THE BABY VOW

by Sophia Gray

  She wished she’d brought her clothes into the bathroom with her, so she could just leave from here. He clearly wanted her gone and she told herself that was what she wanted, too. But she hadn’t been thinking clearly, so she’d have to go back into his bedroom once more. She squared her shoulders, lifted her chin, and walked back down the hall.

  “There you are,” Ethan said, a lazy smile tilting his lips as he caught her around the waist and tugged her down into the sheets with him. “Thought you might have gotten lost.”

  Amelia was too surprised to reply. This was so far from what she’d expected that she didn’t even know what to say. He didn’t want her to leave?

  Well then, she’d take all she could get. Amelia snuggled against Ethan, her body relaxing once more as she breathed in his scent. He ran his fingers through her tangled hair, smoothing it with each stroke. It was as relaxing as being petted.

  “You are good at a lot of things,” he said and she could hear the smile in his voice.

  She was relieved. “You are, too.” She traced one of the tattoos on his arm. “I really do like your artwork.”

  “Thanks. I’ve been working on ‘em for about five years now. They’re finally just about what I want.”

  “I noticed you have kind of a theme,” she said, propping on one elbow and looking at him. “Bikes, women, and America.”

  Ethan laughed. “That’s about it.”

  Amelia walked her fingers down his left arm. “Why is this the patriotic side?”

  “The other side already had a few crappy bike tattoos on it,” Ethan answered honestly. “I had ‘em covered up as soon as I could,” he went on when she leaned down to squint at his right arm. “And no, I’m not gonna tell you what they were.”

  “Are you a soldier?” It struck her as odd to be having this conversation after she’d given him her virginity, but she was genuinely curious about this man.

  “Did a stint in the Army,” he said. “Mechanic. In for a little more than five years. My dad was Army, too, and so was his dad.”

  “Is that why you did it?” He didn’t really seem like the type of man who did something just because it was expected of him.

  “I did it because it felt right,” he said. “And it was better than hanging around with my thumb up my...better than doing nothing,” he corrected himself, making her giggle.

  “It must be nice to know what feels right,” Amelia said wistfully, forgetting herself for a moment. She felt so damn close to him, closer than she’d meant to.

  To her surprise, he cupped her cheek and turned her toward him. “You feel pretty damn right to me, Amelia.” He pulled her down for a kiss, taking his time with her mouth, running one hand down her bare back. She gave in to both the kiss and to the desire to curl up beside him and sleep.

  # # #

  The early morning sun dawned right into Amelia’s face. She put one hand over her eyes, trying to figure out why it was so bright. Her bedroom faced west, so she usually slept much later than this with no problem. Then it hit her. She wasn’t at home.

  Ethan was lying on his side and his arm was still around her, resting just under her breasts. He was clearly sound asleep. She eased out of his grip and sat up, wincing slightly. She wasn’t as sore as she’d thought she would be, but she was sore in more places than she’d expected. Sex was quite the workout, it seemed.

  Amelia pulled her dress on carefully, trying not to wake him as she stood. Her heart nearly stopped when he rolled over, murmuring low in his throat. Last night had been amazing, but she didn’t nurse any delusions about it. He’d be glad to see her go. No one liked an awkward morning after.

  She also wasn’t looking to get cut off by her father. Now that it was over, the reality of how furious her father would be was sinking in. She had to go. No matter how hot Ethan was. Or how right it had felt to have him moving inside her, or holding her afterwards. Her body went hot at the memories, so she shoved them away.

  No. No attachments. Even if the thought of leaving was physically painful. He was even more handsome in the early light of day. As she pulled on her shoes, Amelia realized she still didn’t know exactly what color those dark eyes were.

  She stood there for a moment, giving in, hoping he’d wake up. He didn’t. She left as quietly as she could.

  Chapter 7

  Ethan

  Ethan woke up feeling more relaxed than he’d felt in weeks. He stretched out his arm for Amelia, but he only found empty sheets beside him. He propped up on one elbow and listened. There was no sound from the bathroom or the kitchen. He frowned, sitting up. Had she gone outside?

  He pulled his jeans on and walked through his small house quickly. She wasn’t there. First woman he’d ever brought back to his own place and she’d ditched before breakfast. But why? She’d fallen asleep in his arms and he...hadn’t minded. He’d had a fair amount of sex in his thirty years, but he’d never actually slept with anyone. He’d also never slept as well as he had with her sharing his bed.

  He glanced around the kitchen hopefully, but there was no note. He didn’t even know her full name. Just Amelia. How many Amelia’s would there be in the surrounding area? Was he even sure that she was from here? The answer was a depressing no.

  Ethan started the coffee maker and walked back to the bedroom, contemplating how little he knew about the woman who had thoroughly rocked his world last night. He didn’t know her last name, didn’t know where she was from, didn’t have any idea why she’d left without saying goodbye...he stopped suddenly, staring at the sheets.

  He flicked the top one back. He knew one thing about her now that he hadn’t known before. She’d been a virgin. There wasn’t much blood, but it was enough.

  Ethan sat down on the edge of the bed, even more confused. That would explain the determination he’d seen on her face when she’d walked into the bar. It would also explain why she’d taken him so slowly in the beginning, a memory that had him stiffening at the mere recollection. But why?

  Why the hell had she picked some seedy biker bar if she was planning to lose her virginity? God knew what kind of person she could have picked up. If he hadn’t been there, would she have gone home with one of the other guys?

  Probably not Michael; she’d seemed repulsed by him. But maybe Jimmy or Kenny. Or Ryan. He never had a problem finding a woman. It felt surprisingly like both a near miss and a gift. He’d been the one to take her back to his place. He’d been the one she trusted. It felt like an honor. One he wanted to revisit, if possible.

  He rubbed his hand over his chin, feeling his two days’ growth beard and thinking abstractedly that he needed to shave. He’d probably roughed her up a little bit. Kissed her too hard. Fucked her too hard.

  He couldn’t regret it, though. And he had a feeling she didn’t either. He might not know why she’d left, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t because she’d hated last night. She’d slept in his arms. She’d smiled at him. They’d talked. Even without him taking her virginity, it had been a different kind of one nighter. Maybe it didn’t even have to be one. Sure, there might be a lot of Amelias, but this was the age of the internet. He could probably find her.

  Should he find her, though? Ethan stopped. They were obviously pretty different people. He wasn’t rich. Hell, he wasn’t even middle class.

  Maybe what she’d wanted was a night of slumming it. She might have gotten all she’d wanted from him. He turned the idea over in his mind and then shook his head. It didn’t ring true. He’d felt her relief when he’d pulled her back into bed with him. She’d wanted to stay.

  So, that was decided. He’d find her and see where it went. With his mind at ease on the subject of Amelia, he pulled out his phone and called Kenny.

  “Hey,” he said when his Vice President picked up. “You know that meeting we were supposed to have at the bar?”

  “Yeah,” Kenny said, sounding mildly amused.

  “Let’s do that at HQ today. Whatever the guys have got going on, tell ‘em to cancel i
t. I’m making this one mandatory.” He didn’t do that a lot because he knew the other officers had lives, but they really did need to get a plan in action about State Representative Stratton.

  “Sounds like a plan. I’ll round up the guys.”

  “Thanks,” Ethan said, knowing he could leave it in Kenny’s hands and it would happen. “I’ll see you--”

  “Hey, hang on. Who the hell was that girl you left with? She was--”

  Ethan discovered that he didn’t want Kenny to finish the sentence. “Her name’s Amelia. See you later.” He hung up, half amused by his own protectiveness, half worried he was falling for a shadow.

  # # #

  The day at the mechanic’s shop he worked for had been long. He wasn’t even supposed to be there on a Saturday, but there was the usual summer backlog. People wanted to make sure their cars would run as they escaped the desert heat. He couldn’t blame them, but his back was aching and he was sick of the paperwork that came along with supervising the shift. And he still hadn’t been able to get Amelia off his mind, even while he was trying to think of ways to take Stratton down.

  Ethan clocked out and pulled his phone out of his pocket. Maybe he could start tracking her down. Then he noticed the time. He’d worked through lunch and now he had to get to HQ or William would have his balls on a plate. He’d have to do it when he got home. Swearing, he shoved the phone back into his pocket and headed to his meeting.

  Everyone else was already there when he walked in. He’d known Kenny could handle the typical scheduling issues without breaking a sweat.

  “’Bout time,” William said, exhaling smoke.

  “There was a pileup at the four way stop,” Ethan replied, going to the mini fridge and pulling out a beer. He didn’t speak again until he’d downed a few cold swigs. “Slowed things down more than usual. God, it’s hot as fuck out there.”

  “So, what’s the big plan?” Kenny asked over the general chatter that rose about the heat. He was always the one to shepherd them back to the business at hand.

  Ethan put his beer down and leaned back against the desk. “Charity. Charity is the big plan.”

  “Charity?” Ryan repeated with a grin. “You mean like that girl who took you home last night? That kind of charity?”

  Ethan reached over and smacked the road captain in the back of the head. “Actually it’s more like the poor girl who had to spend the night talking to you.”

  “Settle it down and get to the point,” William said evenly. “What kinda charity?”

  “We’ve got a few good options,” Ethan said. “But I thought we could do--”

  He was interrupted when the door banged open, the glass pane shivering as the frame smacked against the inner wall. Ethan thought for a second it was going to shatter. They didn’t have the money to deal with repairs right then.

  Then his attention was drawn to the person who’d flung the door open in the first place. He didn’t look at all like the kind of man to come bursting into a motorcycle club. His suit was charcoal gray and tailored to a perfect fit and everything about him screamed money.

  “Ethan Billings!”

  Ethan raised his eyebrows. Holy shit, the guy was looking for him? He doubted he’d won the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes. The trouble was, he had no idea what he’d done to piss someone off that badly either.

  “Yeah?” he asked, keeping his voice low and his tone neutral. The guy’s face was red with anger and Ethan wasn’t looking to add fuel to the fire until he knew exactly what the man’s problem was.

  “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” the man demanded, his strong voice shaking with fury.

  “I do a lot,” Ethan answered, not about to admit to anything that vague. “I’m gonna need some specifics.”

  “Fuck, you’re Gregory Stratton, aren’t you?” Kenny suddenly blurted out.

  “What?” the man demanded, turning to look at Kenny who had gotten to his feet. “Yes, I am.”

  Kenny just looked at Ethan, who felt a little stunned. He’d spent all day thinking of how to show this guy up, to prove that not all motorcycle clubs were biker gangs...and now he was here? Here and more than a little pissed off. The trouble was, Ethan still had no idea why. He’d never had anything to do with the man before. Unless the guy was a mind reader, he had no reason to be so pissed off with Ethan.

  “You took my daughter home last night,” Stratton shouted.

  William snorted. “Yeah, right. I’m sure your little princess is hangin’ out in every biker bar from here to the strip.”

  “I didn’t ask you!” Stratton informed the Sergeant at Arms.

  Ethan had a sinking feeling in his gut. There was no way. It couldn’t be. Right? She had looked like she had money. But why in God’s name would Stratton’s daughter be looking for a biker? Unless she really wanted to piss her father off. Shit.

  “Look, I don’t even know your daughter,” he said, trying to sound firm and praying like hell that he wasn’t lying.

  Stratton pulled a photo from his pocket and the beautiful strawberry blonde from last night smiled out at him. “Amelia Stratton! Or have you already forgotten her?”

  William stared at the picture for a second and, when he recognized the woman in it, he turned to Ethan with a dumbfounded look on his face.

  “Holy shit,” he breathed. “You didn’t think that maybe--” he cut himself off, clearly furious, but knowing damn good and well that they didn’t need to be discussing this in front of an outsider. Even if he was the State Rep. He stood up and walked over toward the door.

  “You need to get going,” William informed Gregory Stratton.

  Stratton stood his ground, giving William a disgusted look. “I’ll leave when he’s answered my questions. What did you...what did you do with her?”

  Ethan crossed his arms, amazed that the guy thought he had the right to ask that. What the hell kind of question was it anyway? Did he want Ethan to name positions? Or was there a reason Amelia had been a virgin up until last night? Maybe her father saw her as more valuable that way. The thought made him feel sick. “She’s a grown woman and that’s none of your damn business.”

  Stratton looked like he was choking on things he wanted to say. He settled for an ultimatum. “You won’t ever see my daughter again. Do you understand me? If I get so much of a hint of you going anywhere near her, I’ll use the full extent of my authority to--”

  “To do what?” Ryan cut in, his voice dry. “Shut us down? I’m pretty sure you’re already doing your damnedest to do that, aren’t you?”

  Stratton looked around, seeming to finally see the group of men in the room and realize he was outnumbered. Outnumbered by a group of men he’d vilified to anyone who would listen. William was still standing, looking more furious by the minute. Ryan and Taylor had stepped up to flank the older man. Kenny and Jimmy stayed where they were, but they were watching the drama unfold with narrow gazes, clearly ready to step in if they saw the need. Stratton stepped back, wrenching open the door once more.

  “I’m warning you,” he hissed. “Stay away from her, or this will get much worse.”

  The door slammed and after a few moments they heard a car pull away. Ethan forced his body to relax. He’d gone so tense that every muscle hurt now. William stared at him.

  “Are you kidding me? Fucking the State Representative’s daughter? What in God’s name were you thinking?”

  Ethan’s temper, already pushed to the limits by a long day and then strained even more by Stratton, boiled over. “What the fuck do you want me to do?” he demanded. “Start checking I.D.? How was I supposed to know she was his daughter?”

  “Maybe by her goddamned name?” William yelled. “Or did you not pay attention when we were talking to you about it yesterday?”

  “Obviously, I did! I didn’t get her last name, okay? I didn’t ask!”

  William snorted derisively. “Good plan.”

  “Like you’ve never had a one night stand,” Ethan growled.<
br />
  “Hell yeah I have! I can tell you this, though, none of ‘em looked that much like money!” William shouted. “You didn’t think something was a little off about her? Swaggering in like she owned the goddamn place? Fucking us over like any rich bitch--”

  Ethan took a quick step forward. “Don’t call her that.”

  “Jesus,” William snarled. “What are you gonna tell me now? That you’re gonna see her again?”

  “No, I’m not going to see her again!” Ethan said, every word a pain in his chest. “I’m gonna do what’s best for this place and let her go.”