Pinching the bridge of my nose, I think about my Kings of Mayhem brothers. By now, they’ll know I’m missing because Jack will have noticed the ambulance still parked out on the street. Everyone will be looking for me, so it’s only a matter of time before they find me.
No point getting myself killed before then.
I decide to ride it out here and do what I can to ensure I don’t get myself killed, and mentally prepare myself for the day ahead.
On the bed, Sunshine stirs and begins to moan, waking Lily.
From the window, I watch her straighten and stretch her slender arms toward the ceiling as she yawns. When she relaxes, her tongue glides along her lips to moisten them, and I feel my fists clench at my sides, and the throb in my temple increases.
I haven’t noticed a woman in years.
But I’m noticing everything about her.
Our eyes meet across the room, and I feel that unwanted attraction speed through me like lightning.
She gives me a wary look, and I give her one right back.
Something tells me it’s going to be a long fucking day.
LILY
The biker with the deep blue eyes and dimples hates me.
And that’s fine by me.
Because I plan on hating him right back.
It doesn’t matter how attractive he is. I don’t care. It takes more than an inked-up, muscular body and a set of bright blue eyes to turn my head.
Besides, he’s a biker, and I’m not even slightly interested in bikers, no matter how gorgeous they are. That part of my life is supposed to be behind me.
In one of the guest bathrooms, I wash up and take a moment to figure out what to do next.
Max has me backed into a corner. What he has done is reckless and unnecessary and serves only to put us in harm’s way.
By kidnapping Doc, he’s poked the Kings of Mayhem bear, and he’d better be prepared for the fight that’s coming. I only hope I don’t get caught in the crossfire.
Leaning against the basin, I check my reflection in the mirror and use the moment to catch my breath.
“You can do this,” I say to the reflection staring back at me. “Just get through this, and you can go back to your normal life.”
Taking a deep breath, I look around the bathroom. It’s dark and dirty, and there is the distinct odor of decay coming up from the drain. Grime crawls up the walls toward the water-stained ceiling, and no matter how hard I turn the faucet, the damn thing won’t stop dripping.
The building we’re in isn’t the Appalachian Inferno’s clubhouse. It’s an abandoned hotel I’ve never been to before, which isn’t surprising. Max has secret hideouts dotted throughout the trail, and this is just one of them.
It’s how the Inferno evades detection. They take over abandoned buildings and use them as hideouts or as warehouses for their meth and heroin production. Once they’ve served their purpose, they’re burned to the ground.
Use. Torch. Destroy.
It’s the Appalachian Inferno way.
And it’s not just reserved for buildings.
People are just as disposable.
The Doc would do well to remember that.
If he thinks he’s walking out of here once Sunshine has her baby, then he’s wrong. Max never keeps his word. I would know. I grew up with him. I witnessed firsthand what he does to things once they’ve served their purpose.
Use. Torch. Destroy.
Now they have Doc, a fully qualified, trained doctor, and the chances of Max letting him go are next to zero.
I don’t know anything about him, but I know all about the Kings of Mayhem. For years, Max has held a deep-seated hatred for the motorcycle club. Max loves control and dominance, boy, does he love dominance, and the very existence of the Kings of Mayhem takes some of that power away from him. He wants all of Appalachia for the Inferno, and the Kings are the big red stop sign preventing it from happening
Raised to hate the Kings of Mayhem, even though I’ve never met any of them, I figured they were just as mean, rough, and narcissistic as the Inferno.
But now, I’m not so sure. Doc is something else. I’ve never seen a biker so damn gorgeous. None of the Inferno look like that. He’s handsome with beautiful eyes and a powerful body, and when he looks at me through that furrowed brow, I feel it caress every nerve ending in my damn body.
Not that I’d ever admit it.
In my other life, I would stay as far away from him as possible. Bikers are off-limits, and the only reason I’m even thinking about how hot he is now is because I haven’t had any action since I walked in on my boyfriend having sex with someone who wasn’t me—three years ago.
But here and now is not the place to think about it. Because something bigger than my nonexistent sex life is unfolding here, and I’m afraid it’s about to change all of our lives.