Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
“One of these days, Dog, I’m gonna kick your ass,” the grizzled man grumbled. The dog whined again. “You snap and whine at my brothers, but any woman off the street you’ll warm up to.” The dog whined again, giving my cheek a gentle lick.
“You find her?” Another man came into the clearing. He was tall like the other one, but not as bulky. His beard was full, but short and neatly trimmed. Even though he was less intimidating than the other guy, his eyes were flat and cold. Like he could give a damn if they’d found me or not.
“She says not. Dog says otherwise.”
The other guy snorted. “Yeah. Figured.” He approached me and gave my shoulder a pat and a rub, then held out a hand. “Come on, little thing. The sooner we get you back the better everyone will feel.”
“W-what?” I had a hitch in my voice I couldn’t cover as I wiped my eyes, and my hand automatically came to rest on the dog’s head. It turned its head, so I rubbed its ears, and it gave one lick to my knee where they were bent to my chest. “Feel better? Who?”
“Yeah,” the other guy snapped. “You think they want you wandering around on your own after you dropped off your kid with that note? Girl, you need a keeper.”
I took the second guy’s hand, and he pulled me to my feet. “I’m Shooter. This is Walker. Your daughter’s safe and will continue to be, but you’ve got some ‘splainin’ to do.”
I bet I did.
The walk back to the compound wasn’t as long as I thought it would be. I hadn’t gotten as far as I’d thought. Then I remembered my car.
“Wait.” I stopped and, surprisingly, the men stopped with me.
“What is it, girl? Ain’t got all day.” Walker was almost as gruff as I remember Virgil being, but I got the feeling he wasn’t nearly as put out as he acted. Like grumpy was his default setting or something.
“My car.”
“I’ll get it,” Shooter said. He held out his hand palm up for the keys. I dug into my pocket and handed them over. “Where’s it at?”
I pointed in the direction I’d been headed. “Close to the road behind a black barn.”
“Shit, girl,” Shooter muttered. “You coulda picked a better place to stash your getaway ride than behind Old Man Miller’s barn. He sees you there, he’ll blow your head clean off.”
“I-I asked him if he’d mind. He seemed a little skittish but told me I could for today.”
“Great. Now I gotta get your car without getting shot at.” Before I could respond, Shooter stalked away, still muttering to himself.
“I really shouldn’t go with you.” I was sure I spoke too softly for Walker to hear, but he answered me.
“You ain’t got a choice, girl. Even if you didn’t go willingly, I’d toss you over my shoulder and take you anyway.” There was no doubt in my mind he would too.
We got to the compound at the same time Shooter pulled up in my car. The engine knocked so loudly I was certain they probably could have heard me starting it up all the way from behind that stupid barn. Black smoke roiled from the tailpipe when he gave it gas to get through the gate. Yeah. I was a hot mess all the way around. My cheeks burned as I glanced up at Walker. The man shook his head but looked a little amused.
“Pepper!” My name being bellowed from the big building in front of us made me cringe. That was the Virgil I expected. He didn’t have Cassie with him, and that sent me into a panic.
“W-where’s C-Cassie?” I stumbled forward, hurrying toward the man they called Rage. And he looked like his namesake.
“Sting’s old lady has her.” He tilted his head, seeming to study me as I moved toward him. When I would have fallen, he lunged for me, pulling me against his hard body and closing his arms around me. “Hey, there. Calm down. She’s safe.” His tone changed from irritated and angry to gruff but gentle. His arms tightened around me, and I felt his lips in my hair. Kissing me? It was enough to pull me out of my grief and worry long enough to tilt my head up and assess the big man I’d secretly longed for all this time. Looking back, I realized I’d settled for his brother when it became obvious Rage hated me.
“She’ll never be safe again.” My whisper was a broken sob as the tears started coming again. I expected this man, Rage, to tell me to suck it up and pull myself together. Instead, he held me close, giving me time to regain my composure. Which was a good thing, because it took a while.