And it burned me to the core.
Of course, she had been giving Paton all her meals. Of course, she had. She was the perfect mama bear.
And she had been starving.
She had been eating slowly, carefully, as if she hadn’t seen this much food in a long time. I could see the look of ecstasy on her face as she chewed. It made me feel like a monster. I’d been obsessing over her looks and she’d been literally wasting away.
Well, no more. And never again. I’d see to it, even if it ripped my guts out being so close to her.
“I’m okay by myself.”
I cocked an eyebrow at Paton, then glanced at Michelle.
“You could take the day off.”
She shook her head swiftly.
“I want to work. I’m not sure about leaving her with a stranger though.”
I nodded.
“Okay, so Pate comes with us, then we call it a night early and come back.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
I cut her off before the words were even out of her mouth.
“I’m the boss, I can knock off whenever I want.” I reached down to scratch Cheeto behind the ear. “Besides, I usually come back for an hour or so to feed the critters.”
I looked up to find her staring at my hand. She was watching me stroke the cat’s fur. She looked… transfixed.
I had a sudden flashback to the kiss. That stupid, out of control kiss that had been haunting me every minute since. Every damn second.
The one thing I couldn’t believe wasn’t how good she had felt in my arms. Or the sweet relief I felt when I finally touched her. It was how she had kissed me back…
And she had kissed me back. Eagerly. Passionately. Without a shred of hesitation.
I closed my eyes and stood up. I had to get some head space on this. Everything was too mixed up. She was my responsibility now, not just a sexy girl that got my motor going.
I’d just avoid extreme proximity to her. I had to strong. Respect her boundaries. Just keep my distance.
While working and living with her, naturally.
And wanting to be as close to her as humanly possible.
No problem, right?
I cleared my throat. I knew I was doomed. But I didn’t care. It didn’t change a damn thing.
They were mine now. My family. My responsibility.
Mine.
“I’ve got to bring in some hot sauce. Be ready to go in ten.”
I could feel her eyes on me. I knew she was wondering what the hell was wrong with me. Sadly, that was the one thing I couldn’t tell her without laying my foolish heart on the table.
I headed to the basement to get a tub of my homemade hot sauce. We went through the stuff like water, so I cooked up a big batch at least once a month and froze some.
I needed to calm the fuck down if I was going to driving Shell and Pate to work.
The hinges creaked as I opened the freezer. My phone vibrated. I glanced at the screen.
Dammit. Not now.
It was Cain.
The meeting set for six at PJ’s.
I wanted to stay the hell away from club business. Especially now that I had two innocents under my roof. But I had promised Cain.
And I knew Cass and Connor were tied up in this business too. Plus, any blowback on me could hurt Michelle and Paton. None of that was acceptable.
I texted back quickly that I’d be there.
Then I grabbed a tub of hot sauce and headed back upstairs.
Chapter Seventeen
Connor
“This is nuts, Con. We’ve been coming here for weeks.”
“Shut up, Reily.”
My new partner was getting on my nerves. He never shut up and at least fifty percent of what he said was a complaint.
It didn’t matter what the hell he said anyway. I was not leaving. Not when there was a chance I could put this case to bed once and for all.
Protect my woman. Avenge my partner. Close the door on this horrible case and get the monster safely behind bars.
Four unsolved murders. Now five, plus some club girls getting attacked by the same monster. All signs pointed to the Hell Raisers and the club President, Shane. He’d been second in command for only a year before he took the mantle. A newer member, but powerful and charismatic.
Not to mention reckless and wilder than anyone I’d ever met.
Most, but not all, of the murders had started after he became a member. My partner’s death was years ago. I couldn’t pin that on Shane. But he was involved in the rest, I had no doubt.
Or at least, he knew something about it.
“I’m starting to think you have a crush on pretty boy.”
I glared at him. Shane didn’t look like a typical biker, that much was true. He had Rob Lowe-esque good looks. But he was covered in tats and scars like the rest. Hell, he probably had more ink than half his club combined.