“I’m sorry that happened to you,” She whispered as she settled against his shoulder once more.
“Don’t be sorry for me, Rayna. I’ve done my own fair share of bad in my life. I just want you to know one thing, okay? I’ve never hurt someone that didn’t deserve it, and I would never intentionally hurt you.”
“I like the way you say that to me, like you’re so sure.”
“I am sure. I know I haven’t been easy to get along with, and I’m sorry for that. I really am. Ox, he really clarified things for me this morning. Made me see how damn stupid I’ve been,” Fury assured her.
The words made her warm and happy and Rayna wasn’t used to being happy.
She wasn’t used to someone touching her and wanting her without the intention of inflicting pain.
Her whole life before the last three months, that life didn’t matter anymore.
The details would always remain the same, but the woman she used to be…
She was dead.
She wasn’t going to come back, not this time.
Rayna had survived the heartbreak of losing Derek, she’s survived her entire life without her mom, but she knew that she couldn’t just come back from losing herself.
She’d had to relearn everything, from social cues to compliments to even wearing her own clothes.
Nothing would ever be the same, and she was starting to realize that, that was okay.
“The picture of the boy on my desk, do you remember it?”
Fury nodded.
“His name was Derek and he was my first love. I thought we were going to be together forever,” Rayna said softly.
Derek’s whole body stiffened.
“You’re a long ways away from a clean cut guy like that with me, Rayna.”
“I know. Derek was the star athlete, clean cut, sweetheart that everybody loved. He was always gentle with me, and he would have never raised his hand to anyone else in anger,” Rayna said as she remembered Derek as she used to know him.
“Why the fuck are you with me, then?”
Fury’s tone held no anger, only confusion.
“I was seventeen and in love and we thought we had our whole lives ahead of us. And then Derek got sick,” She whispered.
Fury lifted his arm so she could settle in closer to him.
“He started getting migraines and he was so tired all the time. One day he collapsed on the field during a game. They rushed him to the hospital, but by the time the doctor broke the news to his folks, we all knew it was too late. He had an inoperable brain tumor, and just like that, our futures changed completely. I loved him, Ryder. I loved him so much I thought I was going to die right along with him. But he didn’t want that for me, and eventually, I learned to understand that he was right.”
“What do you mean?”
“It took me a couple of years, sure, but I grew to appreciate the time we spent together instead of mourn it. By the time he died, he was in so much pain it was selfish of me to hold on. I had to let him go. So I did, and it hurt like a son of a bitch, but eventually I did move on,” She said.
Fury remained silent for a few minute before he kissed her temple.
“You understood from the start about Lizzie.”
“Yeah, baby. I understood.”
“We’re two peas in one disastrously fucked up pod, ya know that?”
Rayna laughed, patting his abs as she did so.
“Yeah, I guess we are.”
The stars were shining brightly into the cab of the car and Rayna took a moment to appreciate the scenery.
At one time she hadn’t ever believed she’d make it out of the Blazin’ Eagles’s clubhouse, and there she was, riding with Fury on her way to buy a whole new identity.
“What about what they did to you?”
Such a loaded question surely deserved a loaded answer.
“What do you mean?”
“You can tell me about it, baby. It won’t change the way I feel about you.”
It won’t?
“You already know. It was mindless, blatant abuse. There was no rhyme or reason to it.”
“Do you want to tell me about the nightmares?”
Rayna shook her head.
She didn't want to share that.
Not with him.
“It’ll eat you alive inside if you don't share. Just tell me what's going through that pretty head of yours,” Fury begged.
Give him this.
You can do it, Rayna.
“It's always the same. I'm back with the Blazin’ Eagles and it's dark. They have me on my knees, outside, and it's windy. It smells like smoke. I can hear my dad screaming for me somewhere off in the distance, but they've got me on my knees in the dirt. The moon is high in the sky, hanging like a lantern between the clouds. I'm completely naked and crying because there's a gun aimed at my head, and I know with a definite certainty I’m going to die. And that's when I start asking for you. Flight is there laughing, waving a gun in my face and he asks me, ‘Who the fuck is Fury?,’ and so I tell him.”
Rayna takes a second to suck in a deep breath, hoping she won't start to cry.
Fury quietly tells her to keep going.
“Come on baby, you're almost done. What happens next?”
“Ringer and Tool are there, and they're laughing at me, grabbing at my body as I struggle to keep away from them. They press the barrel of the gun to the back of my head and I know it's loaded. I know they're finally going to kill me, and for just a moment, I welcome it. I want them to take me out of my misery-but still, I ask for you. I hope that you'll be there, and you'll kill every last one of them, but you're not there. You're never there, and just as I hear them pull the trigger...I wake up. And the dream is over.”
Fury's dark eyes settled on her and pulled the car off the shoulder and onto the side of the road.
The sign welcoming them to Myrtle Beach is right in front of them.
Fury didn't turn the car off but he did unclip his seatbelt and pull her into his arms.
For such a large man, he moved gracefully.
He cradled her body against his chest and smoothed the hair away from her face.
“I wasn't there before, but I am now. If anything ever happens again, I'll be there. I won't let anyone fuckin’ hurt you, Rayna.”
His heated words soothed her, and she gripped him tightly.
She knew she was crying, but Rayna couldn't help herself.
“Promise?”
“Fuck, yes. I promise.”
Rayna caressed his cheek as she pressed her mouth to his.
“Thank you.”
“Don't thank me, baby. Just believe me.”
Chapter Thirteen
Fury watched Rayna unpack her bags.
Her pink tank top was falling off of one shoulder, and he had to actively restrain himself from reaching for her- from taking her into his arms and making her his.
Mine.
She doesn’t realize it, she may not even know he was thinking about her that way, but that didn’t matter.
Not after what they’d shared with one another in the car.
fury felt like an ass for ever being jealous of the man from the photograph on her desk, now that he knew the truth.
He also felt like a real dick for insinuating that Rayna Claire couldn't understand the kind of loss he’d endured.
She knew, better than most, and Fury had no right to assume anything different.
“What are you frowning so hard about over there?”
Her sweet voice broke through the thick silence in the room, and Fury worked to unpack some things from his own bag.
“About you.”
Her eyebrows rose as she laid out a dress across the drab paisley comforter on the bed.
“What about me?”
“I judged you too harshly, and for that I’m sorry.”
Rayna tsked and crossed the room to him, wrapping her small hands around his waist.
“Don’t worry about
it. This year has been crazy for both of us.”
Her forgiveness came to easily, too sweetly, for someone like Fury.
A man like him was used to fists and weapons and blood; Rayna offered him an entirely different world filled with passion and grace and love.
Rayna offered him a chance at his own redemption, at a future.
Ox was right- letting go of someone like her was a foolish mistake.
Fury pressed his mouth to hers again, enjoying the taste of coffee that lingered on her soft lips.
“I’m glad we get to share this time together.”
Fuckkk, she slays me.
My name never sounded so good.
“Let’s get dressed and go grab some grub.”
She smiled as she moved back towards the bed, her fingers treading across the bedspread.
“I guess we can do that. Are you hungry, Fury?”
The way she said those words combined with the way she was smiling had Fury’s dick straining against his tight denim, his blood roaring in his ears.
“Are you flirting with me, Ms. Claire?”
She giggled, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder as she bit her bottom lip- a gesture that was surely designed to make men fall to their knees.
“Maybe. It’s been a long time since I’ve flirted though, so how am I doing?”
Fury grinned as he slid his shirt over his head and tossed it aside.
“Why don’t you come over here and find out?”
Rayna’s eyes fell to the bulge at the apex of his thighs and blushed redder than a fire hydrant.
“Okay, you’re obviously better at this than me, but I’ll kindly remind you that I am a lady and I require a meal before I perform any sexual favors.”
Fury laughed a deep belly laugh that had Rayna ducking her head while giggling.
“I didn’t say anything about sexual favors, but I’ll be damned if I don’t like where your head is at, sweetheart. I may even hold you to that later, after I’ve wined and dined you.”
Fury watched her strip down to her lacy fuchsia panties and a matching bra that were almost exact representations of his teenage fantasies come to life. He had to force himself to change into a clean pair of jeans and a gray henley.
Rayna was tugging on a long sundress that covered way too much skin in his opinion, but the red material of the dress clung to her thing frame in all the right ways- in fact, Fury had half a mind to tell her to change because any man within a mile of her was going to be falling over himself to get to close, but he wouldn’t let that happen.
“You look beautiful.”
The words made her perk up as she slid on her flip-flops.
“I do?”
“Always,” Fury breathed.
Rayna tucked her hair back behind her ears and held her hands out.
“Even though I’m still too skinny and I’m not all done up?”
“Especially then.”
Her bottom lip quivered slightly, but her smile held strong.
That’s how Fury knew it was genuine.
“You make me feel good,” She whispered.
“You make me feel good too, Rayna.”
“Daisy.”
“Huh?”
“I like the name Daisy for my new identity. They were my daddy’s favorite flower.”
Daisy.
I like it, too.
“It suits you. I like it.”
“Really? You think so?”
Fury tipped her chin up and pecked her lips.
“Yeah, I do. Are you ready to go? I’m feelin’ real eager to get to those…sexual favors.”
~`~
Rayna’s belly was filled with flapping butterflies, her hands shaking nervously.
Fury had a tight grip on her waist as they filed into a beachfront bar.
The breeze was steady, and the waves were coming in fast along the shoreline.
“Inside or out?”
“Outside,” Rayna chose.
As they were led outside, Rayna took a cursory glance around.
They were definitely out of their element; all around there were couples dancing, laughing, having a good time- there were no rough, tatted bikers causing a ruckus.
“Nice place,” Fury whispered into her ear as he pulled her chair out for her.
Goosebumps flittered across her skin as his raspy voice caressed the shell of her ear.
Sweet Jesus, he’s lethal.
Rayna inhaled deeply as she sat down and scooted closer to the small table.
They were sitting on a quaint patio that overlooked the beach down below, and the view was spectacular.
“I never thought I’d see something like this again,” Rayna said softly as she watched the waves crash into the shore once more. The scene reminded her of her relationship with Fury in a way, because much like the shoreline and the ocean’s waves, they kept crashing into one another. Their connection was magnetic, turbulent, but steady.
“I’m happy that you’re experiencing it again with me,” Fury said from across the table.
Half of his face was covered in wispy shadows and he was resting his chin on a closed fist; his coal-colored eyes were tiny black orbs surrounded only by moonlight and thick lashes, but they tugged on her heartstrings anyways.
“Me too.”
His expression turned serious.
“I’ve been talkin’ to Ox, about the Blazin’ Eagles.”
Rayna’s heart stalled in her chest at the mere mention of them.
“And?”
Her fingers were digging into her palms, her heart was racing- who knew that even thinking about them could still destroy her mind, even if it was temporary?
Rayna Claire, you survived.
There is nothing those bastards can do to you that they haven’t already done.
Why are you still scared?
“We’ve been working together to make a plan to catch ‘em, Rayna. The Seven Deadlies are going to eviscerate them.”
Rayna’s mouth fell open.
Sure, Ox had promised her that they would find a way to make that happen, and yes, Rayna had fully believed that he would keep his word…
But, now it was real.
“Are you serious?”
They were interrupted by their server returning to their table to take their orders but after they were gone, Rayna asked him again.
“Are you serious?”
Fury shifted in his seat so he was leaning in towards her.
“Yeah. We got some intel that they’re working to build a new clubhouse about an hour away from where you burned their original place down. They're even closer to us, now. Ox gave me the green light to run the mission.”
Rayna covered her mouth with her hand as a hundred different emotions flooded her chest.
Anger.
Fear.
Determination.
Love.
“Fury, this is …a lot. I wanted in on this!”
His jaw ticked and he shook his head.
“No. Absolutely not. I'm not discussing this with you, either. Tonight is about you and me, baby. Tonight is about us, and I’m not wasting another second talking about the past or the Blazin’ Eagles.”
His tone held no room for argument, and for once Rayna had to agree with him.
She’d argue with Ox when they returned home, but for now, Fury was right there and he was asking for her- just her.
“Okay,” she whispered.
Fury picked up his beer and swallowed a mouthful before he set it back down onto the table top.
“You wanna dance with me, Daisy?”
Rayna felt her whole body fill with an eagerness that only Fury could give her. A heat that threatened to turn her entire body into one big puddle of melted goo at his feet.
“Yeah. I do.”
He smiled wide, all of his perfect teeth on display, as he stood and headed for an old jukebox that encompassed one full corner of the patio.
There weren’t more than eight other people
on the patio with them, but Fury obviously didn’t care.
A slow country song filled the air, and Rayna was surprised when she realized she recognized the tune- a sexy song about whiskey and Tennessee.
“Get over here,” He demanded.
Rayna stood faster than she ever had and took the hand he held out for her.
He dropped one arm and wrapped it around the curve of her waist before he lifted one of her hands into his and aligned their bodies just right.
“Damn, you fit against me nicely,” He murmured.
Rayna rested her head against his chest and let herself get lost in the moment.
At one point, she never imagined she’d be tucked up against some burly biker with more tattoos than sense and a body made for fighting and sinning, but there she was- and she was happy.
Derek had been her first love, yeah, but something told her that Fury would be her last.
She rested her chin on his chest as he ran a hand through her hair.
“I think I could stay here forever with you,” She admitted.
Fury’s gaze met hers and he pressed his mouth against hers.
“I never thought about forever before you.”
His admission had her wrapping her arms around his neck and struggling to get closer to him- he rectified that by lifting her up so she could stand on the tops of his boots.
“Really?”
“Really, baby. A man like me doesn’t expect to see forty let alone get to keep a woman like you,” He said.
“And do you want that?”
“Do I want what?”
Rayna caressed the scar above his eye, followed the line of his cheek with her fingertips until she landed on his lips.
They parted slightly beneath her touch and she felt they very tip of his tongue sneak out to taste her.
I’m in love with him.
My god, I’m really in love with him!
“Do you want to keep me, Ryder?”
His hold on her tightened until it was almost painful.
“I don’t deserve you. You deserve more.”
“I deserve to get what I want,” She argued, “Do you want to keep me?”
“Yes.”
His deep voice, raspy and deep, well it just told her exactly what she wanted to hear.
“I want you to keep me, too.”
Wrath (Seven Deadlies MC) Page 12
