“Wake up, princess.” Viking brushes his calloused fingers over my hip.
Sometime in the night I passed out in Wylla’s father’s bed at the Royal Bastard MC clubhouse. Her and Hazel must have taken off at some point after.
“Hi.” I wipe the creases of my eyes and let out a yawn as I stretch.
“Mornin’.”
“Where’d you go last night?”
“You really want the answer?”
“Did you go after him?”
“Yup.”
“And?”
“You’re lucky he didn’t kill you. Only reason he didn’t that day at your apartment was because your neighbor called in a wellness check after hearing your screams and the sound of you falling down them stairs. They tried knocking on the door and that coward wouldn’t open the door. Called up one of his dirty friends on the force and they showed up first and took over the supposed investigation about your dog. If that neighbor hadn’t acted, I don’t think you’d be here with me now. He killed Mariah Granger. He had a lot of videos on his phone. He’d been stalking you long before he asked you out on that date. Knew what we were up to from the start. Was planning to kill you and pin it on me.”
“He told you this?” My suspicions about that evil bastard were right.
“Tortured it out of him. Also found a video of you. Went to his house and busted his door. The fuck was you thinking?”
“I was thinking that I hated him, and I wanted him to hurt.”
“Can promise you he’s suffering as we speak.”
“Are you going to kill him?”
“Yeah, I am. What he’s done…what he could have done, babe.”
“I want you to. He deserves it. He killed our baby. Made me doubt you. Made me doubt myself. I don’t ever want to feel that way again.”
“You won’t.”
“Can I be there when you do it? I want him to look me in the eyes and know that he’ll never hurt me again.”
He stares at me, seeming to search for something. “We’ll see.”
“Okay. So now what?”
“Now I’m going to take you to my room and remind you that you’re mine. Fuck you so hard you’ll always feel me inside you and give you another baby.”
At the mention of us trying for another baby I shut down. “I need to get home and check on Winston.”
“Think you might love that dog more than you love me.” He grins and then he kisses me. It’s raw, hot, and deep. Full of possession.
A kiss that says I own you. And he does. I can’t deny it not after what we’ve been through. I tried staying away but the minute I was in a room alone with him I knew. I knew there would never be another man for me. I love Torsten, but that doesn’t mean I won’t make him work for it.
I should be mad at Wylla Mae for spilling my secret, but I know she did it out of the love she has for me. And partially because she missed having her best friend living close by. I’m not going to fault her for that.
I probably would do the same if I were her.
“C’mon.” He tugs on me, forcing me to sit up in the bed. “Let’s go check on our dog.”
“Our?”
“Yeah. Then we’re getting your shit and moving the two of you in with me.”
“That sounds good and all, but I have a new lease and I like my job.”
“I’m not moving out of Charleston. Gotta be close to the club, and I have my gym.”
“I didn’t ask you to move. And wait…do you even have a place?” He always came to my apartment, or I’d meet him at the gym when we were seeing each other.
“Yeah. I have a place. Just don’t stay there often.”
“Hmm. Then how come this is the first time I’m hearing about it?”
“You never asked. You don’t want to move in with me and I don’t want to move in with you, so where does that leave things? I’m not above kidnapping you and tying you to my bed.”
“I was thinking you should ask me out.”
“Think we’re way past that stage.”
“No…we never did the whole dating thing. I was your booty call.”