Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36070 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 180(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36070 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 180(@200wpm)___ 144(@250wpm)___ 120(@300wpm)
I just hated that the special moment had been ripped away from us by greedy, careless monsters.
Her skin, as I had predicted, was already discoloring, turning different shades of purple and black. Bite marks littered her skin, and fingertip-shaped bruises were scattered across her breasts, hips, and thighs. A hand-shaped bruise wrapped around her throat.
No doubt in my mind that she’d taken that beating and rape for the fucking club. It took everything in me not to fall to my knees.
This was all my fucking fault.
“Come here, cupcake,” I murmured, drawing her into my arms. “Let’s get a shower, and then we can rest until Doc gets here. Sound good?”
She nodded, allowing me to help her down from the counter. “Who’s Doc?” she asked me, a yawn falling from her lips as we stepped into the shower.
“He’s a doctor for a club Scorpion was part of before he became the president of this club,” I informed her. “He’s trustworthy, and we call him for everything we need if a hospital can be avoided.”
She looked up at me. “Thank you for not taking me to the hospital,” she whispered. She closed her eyes, and a tear ran down her cheek. “I can’t take the questions, the cops—”
I drew her into my arms, ignoring the way her soft body felt against mine, the way her curves seemed to mold to me.
“I know, cupcake. I know,” I rasped.
And for the first time tonight, I was thankful for Scorpion. He’d done one thing right, which was to not allow me to take her to the hospital. Because that was exactly where I’d wanted to fucking take her.
Sophia was curled up in my arms on the couch, her lips slightly parted as she slept. She was wearing a pair of my boxers and one of my t-shirts with one of my plain black hoodies on over it. She’d refused to leave my arms after the shower, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to complain.
Tragedy had brought us together, but I’d do everything I could to help her through this. Even if she ended up pushing me away again when it was all over.
The pain afterward would be worth all the comfort she received from me now.
“Come in,” I grunted when a light knock sounded on the door. Scorpion pushed it open and walked in, Doc behind him. Doc was an aging man with tired, blue eyes and gray hair. One look at him and I could tell he’d seen way too much in all his years of living.
Doc sighed at the bruises on her face and around her throat, but he wasn’t surprised.
“Can you wake her up for me?” he quietly asked me.
I nodded, standing up from the couch with her cradled in my arms. She groaned and slowly opened her eyes. “Chase?” she mumbled, her sleepy eyes quickly filling with pain.
“I’m still here, cupcake. Doc is here to look at you.”
She looked over my shoulder and then clutched at my cut, shaking her head. “Chase—”
The terror that completely clouded over her eyes, wiping away the sleepiness, when she looked at another man, one I trusted at that, made me want to vomit.
“It’s okay,” I soothed, laying her on my bed. “I won’t leave. I promise. I’m right here.”
Her lips trembled but she nodded her head. Scorpion leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. I shot him a dark look, wanting him to fucking leave and give Sophia some privacy, but he just shook his head once at me.
“Mother fu—”
Doc arched a brow at me in surprise. He knew how close Scorpion and I were. He was my president, but he was also my best friend. We didn’t go at each other like that, and I knew the vehemence in my voice surprised him.
Scorpion pushed off the wall, narrowing his eyes at me. Sophia clutched at me. Ripping my eyes away from Scorpion, I looked down at Sophia. She shook her head at me, and I blew out a harsh breath, nodding my head once at her.
I wouldn’t do something stupid. At least, not where she could witness it.
“Can you tell me what happened to you?” Doc gently asked Sophia as he opened his bag.
Sophia’s lips trembled. “I was stocking some coffee, and they attacked me from behind.” Her voice wobbled, tears tracking down her pretty face again. I brushed them away, but they just kept coming. Rage curled in my gut, tightening around my lungs like a vice. “There were two of them. They beat me, knocked me unconscious. I woke up to one of them inside me—” She broke off on a sob.
And I fucking lost it.
Scorpion yanked me back, but I shoved him off of me, swinging on him, landing a solid punch to his jaw. He shoved me back against the wall with his forearm against my throat. I could vaguely hear Sophia screaming my name, begging for me to stop, but I was seething.