Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 83970 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83970 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
“Thank you so much for coming,” Lorali says as we walk to the front door.
“We appreciate the hospitality,” I tell her and turn to Kaleb. “Congrats, man. Best of luck,” I say giving him a hug and a quick slap on the back. Then my eyes land on Josie. She’s glowing, and her happiness is evident in every breath she takes. I reach up and stroke her cheek with my thumb. “You look much better than the last time I saw you, Sugar.”
She reaches up and kisses my cheek softly. “Thank you for saving me. I thank God for you every day that I get to hold him in my arms,” she whispers in my ear.
Right this very second it is exactly what I need to hear. I wrap my arms around her and hug her tight against my chest. I wasn’t the only one involved in her rescue. Hell, I wasn’t even the one in charge of the mission, but knowing I helped save a woman, my cousin’s woman, means everything to me.
“Trouble?” Kaleb asks as he opens the front door and notices the two additional bikers that weren’t there just a little bit ago.
“Nothing we can’t handle,” I tell him and make my way down the front steps to my waiting bike. Kaleb has followed me down, no doubt to make sure there isn’t something he needs to get involved in.
I climb on and balance the machine between my legs so Emmalyn can climb on behind me. She works to get her helmet on, and I immediately feel like an ass for just handing it to her and not helping her put it on. I’m distracted, but not seeing to her needs is unacceptable. I grip her thigh gently in apology.
Before he can even ask again, I speak. “Any word on the leak in your department?”
“Nothing yet,” he says and looks back to the front door. “I’ve just gotten back in the good graces of the department. My focus has been on my wife.”
“I understand that,” I tell him truthfully. “Let us know if they need any real help.”
He laughs, waves goodbye, and heads back into the house, no doubt missing the feel of Josie by his side already. “I understand that too,” I say to myself, my words hidden by the roar of my engine coming to life.
I turn out of Ian’s subdivision on full alert. I know this is going to be the longest ride of my life. For the first time in Cerberus MC history, I’m not riding point, and I’m livid that Wrench has put me in this position.
Chapter 33
Emmalyn
The ride back from Colorado was miserable. I could feel the tension in Diego’s back as we rode straight through, with only one stop for gas. My back and ass are killing me by the time we pull up to the clubhouse, and I can still feel the vibration of the bike in my thighs as I climb off and hand Diego the helmet.
Something has been off since we woke up this morning. I was deliciously sore all over from his thorough attention to my body, but I woke with a hunger inside me that only he’d be able to satisfy. I’d stretched and pressed my naked flesh against his, somewhat disappointed to see that he’d already been up and was fully dressed except for his boots.
He ignored every attempt I made at flirting. At first, for some reason, I felt shy, especially when he didn’t touch me like he normally does. The shyness turned to worry when he brushed my hand away when I began to lower it to the front of his jeans. My worry turned to utter uncertainty about everything we did last night when he climbed out of the bed and insisted I go shower alone while he made some phone calls.
He’d whispered beautiful things to me last night while I lay on his chest before falling asleep with him just as wrapped around my body as I was around his. I was safe and content. I could honestly say I was the happiest I’d ever been in my entire life when I fell asleep listening to his strong heartbeat against my cheek.
The man I fell asleep with last night is not the man I woke up to this morning. He’s distant, and although he’s told me nothing is wrong each of the dozen times I’ve asked, I know he’s lying. I can’t help but wonder if last night wasn’t as pleasing to him as it was to me. My greatest fear is that he’s been manipulating my emotions this whole time and acting like the good guy when his intentions with me were different than what he’d said. I fear he’s gotten what he wants and has no use for me now.