The wave of love I felt from my girls overwhelmed me. But so did my fear. Reb was so much bigger than life. In just a matter of weeks, he’d taken over every aspect of me until he was the first and last thing I thought about every day. We were practically living together, for crying out loud. He hadn’t let me stay at my apartment since the tire slashing incident. Oh dear God, please let him be all right.
I wasn’t a particularly religious person, but I spent the entire endless ride to the clubhouse clutching Jessica’s hand and praying.
Finally we pulled up to the clubhouse’s gate. I had an eerie moment of déjà vu. The last time I was here I had Tucker in the backseat and went toe-to-toe with his stubborn and scary father. Now all I wanted was to look into Reb’s eyes and make sure he was okay. Tank still hadn’t broken and told us anything about what had gone on tonight, and all of the ladies’ phones were suspiciously silent.
That wasn’t a good sign.
Shouldn’t their guys at least check in and tell their girls they were all right? Was that too much to ask?
And why wasn’t Sig opening the gate?
I was inches from climbing over the fence myself—screw the barbed wire—when Tank blared the horn. He rolled down the window and yelled, “Hurry the fuck up, prospect! I’ve got the prez’s old lady here. Move your ass!”
A beat later the gate crawled open. Tank pulled through and had to park at the far end of the lot due to the amount of bikes everywhere. I didn’t even wait for the truck to come to a complete stop. I shoved the door open and ran. When I reached the front door, I hesitated. Should I go in here, or circle around to Reb’s private entrance? I didn’t even know where he was. He could be in his room or his office or anywhere, really.
“What are you doing?” Jessica asked when she caught up to me.
“I don’t know where to go.”
And I’m afraid what I’ll find inside. But I couldn’t give those thoughts power, because he was okay. He had to be okay.
“Follow me.” Jessica grabbed my arm and led me through the clubhouse. Unlike my first visit, there was no thumping music. No tables full of recklessly drinking men, and women ducking underneath. I heard a murmur of conversation as we passed through the front tables. A few guys were clustered around the bar, but no one I recognized. Where was Zag? Bumper? Reb?
Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. It had to be bad if Zag wasn’t waiting out front for Jessica. My scalp prickled, and I had a sudden, overwhelming urge to wash my hands. Air wheezed through my lips with every breath I took.
“Shit, she’s looking shocky.” Suddenly Bumper’s face swam into my vision. “Maybe she shouldn’t go in. We don’t need two patients. How many fingers am I holding up?”
“Her man’s hurt. She’s fine.” Jessica shoved Bumper out of the way and pulled me down the hall. “Stop asking stupid questions, Bump. Where the hell is Reb? His room? His office?”
“His room. But—”
Jessica immediately whirled around and plowed down the hallway toward Reb’s club bedroom. It was only my second time in the clubhouse, so I didn’t know where to go. But Jessica did.
At the end of the hallway, Zag stood in front of the door. “Doc’s in with him right now. I think he needs a min—”
“Get out of my way.” I cut him off as I stepped in front of Jessica. “Move. Or I’ll make you.”
Zag’s eyes grew big. Something in my voice or expression must’ve warned him, because he raised his palms and stepped away from the door without a fight. Or maybe it had something to do with his pissed-off fiancé at my back. Either way, I won.
I opened the door and froze at the sight before me. Reb was on his stomach in the middle of his bed, but it was his back that had me swaying on my heels. I put a hand out on the doorjamb to steady myself. Blood oozed from at least three large cuts. One marred the tattoo of his club logo, while another stab wound farther down looked precariously close to his kidneys.
Oh God. He was hurt. Really hurt.
A slender man in leathers leaned over him with a needle and thread. “I really don’t think you wanna be awake for this part, brother. I have some pills—”
“No.” Reb turned his head and glared at the man over his shoulder. “I gotta be awake when Emily shows up.”
I opened my mouth to tell him I was here, but only a croak came out. Tears burned my eyes as I couldn’t look away from the extent of his injuries. Reb was bleeding.
But he was still alive, I reminded myself.
And worried about me. He should be taking care of himself and his injuries. I wiped a hand over my eyes—no doubt smearing makeup all over my face—and stepped into the room. “I’m here, Reb.”
“Sunshine.” Reb turned slightly and winced at the movement.
I rushed over to the side of his bed. “Don’t move. That looks painful.”
“Hurts like a motherfucker.”
I had to laugh at his usual blunt way of speaking. He might be in pain, but that wasn’t dulling his wits at all. “I know, baby. Maybe this isn’t the place to, uh, get medical help. Shouldn’t you…I don’t know…be in a hospital or something?”
“Can’t. Doctors ask questions, and we can’t give answers.” Reb broke off to hiss as the man I assumed was Doc poured some kind of liquid on Reb’s back.
“Some of these cuts look pretty deep,” Doc said as he put the bottle down and picked up his needle and thread. “You’re gonna need a few deep dermal sutures.”
“I don’t give a fuck. Just get on it already.” Reb turned his head and closed his eyes.
“Maybe we should clear the room and give you something for the pain now that you’ve seen your woman.”
Reb grunted. “I’m not taking shit. Didja get a look at my girl in that dress? Get to stitching me up, Doc. I got important business to take care of.”
“Reb!” I shook my head and closed my eyes briefly in embarrassment. “Everyone’s gonna think we’re going to…you know.”
“Baby, they’re not gonna think it. They’re gonna hear you screaming in about twenty minutes. Now get over here, so I don’t have to worry about you passing out while you watch Doc stitch me up.”
Judging by the way my face was feeling, I had about a three-alarm blush going on. But still I walked around the bed and took a spot kneeling by his head, so I could look at Reb but not see everything that the dubious Doc was doing.
“I still think you’re crazy for not going to a hospital.” I cupped his cheek in my hand and brushed my thumb over his stubble. The pain I saw in his eyes made my heart catch. “You need real medical attention, Reb. Somewhere sterile, with drugs and qualified people. No offense, Doc.”
“None taken,” Doc murmured as he bent over Reb’s back.
“Can’t, baby.” Reb tensed as Doc began stitching. “Puts the club in danger, and I’ll be the last one to do that.”
I watched helplessly as Doc labored over Reb’s wounds. I didn’t watch watch. My gaze was centered on Reb’s face and the agony he fought to contain. I know he was trying to be brave for my sake. My stomach in knots, I searched my brain for something, anything, to distract him.
“So how many lap dances did you have tonight?”
Reb blinked. “What?”
“You guys went to a strip club tonight, right? So how many lap dances did you have? Two? Three?”
“Technically it was a juice bar. Not a strip club.”
Now it was my turn to blink. “A juice bar? Why did you guys go there?”
Doc barked with laughter. “Is she for fucking real?”
“What?” I looked between them in confusion. “I thought you went to a strip club for Zag’s party. How’d you get stabbed if you were at a juice bar? Doesn’t Smoothies close at like ten o’clock?”
“Holy shit, man. How’d you end up with such an innocent? She doesn’t even know what a juice bar is?” Doc stepped back and stared between Reb and me like someone watching a Ping-Pong match.
“Just fucking stitch me up already.”
Reb scowled in no apparent direction. “This is taking forever since the two of you are clucking away like a couple of hens.”
I bit my lip in embarrassment. What did I say?
“Don’t look at me like that, baby. I’m not mad. Not at you, at least.” Reb twisted to look behind him and winced at the movement. “Fucking stitch me up already.”
“Yes, sir.” Doc pushed Reb’s shoulders back into position, then bent over Reb once more. “Just didn’t know there were still innocents like her out there. Let alone ones who’d hook up with guys like us.”
“Yeah, well, she’s one of a kind.” Reb avoided looking at me.
“I can see that. Unless…do you have any sisters?”
I had no idea what they were talking about. How’d this conversation swerve so hard in another direction? “No, sorry. Only child. So does that mean you didn’t get a lap dance, Reb?”
Reb huffed with laughter, then winced. “Don’t make me laugh, baby. It’s screwing up Doc’s stitches, and hurts like a son of a bitch.”
My eyes narrowed. “I think you’re deflecting. So did you go to a strip club or not?”
“Yes, we went. And no, I didn’t have a lap dance.”
“Wait, what?” I blinked in surprise. “But why not? I’m not one of those irrationally jealous women. I wouldn’t have minded. I trust you.”
“Holy fuck, Reb,” Doc said between clenched teeth. He held a spare needle in his mouth in a totally unsanitary way. “You need to marry this one. Fast.”
“Shut the fuck up, Doc.” Reb’s jaw flexed as he looked at me. “Did you personally enjoy the talents of Johnny Long Arm tonight?”
“Well, no, but that’s different.”
“How?”
“Well, it was a private party, so there was only one, er, performer.” I fiddled with his pillowcase and finished in a rushed whisper. “And I hid in the back of the room, so he didn’t have a chance. He was gross.”
“Baby.” Reb brushed a strand of hair away from my face and winced at the movement. “It was kinda like that for me, too. No one appealed, so I abstained. First time in my fucking life, but I think you’re to blame. After a taste of your sweetness, anything else would be too bitter to handle.”
My heart melted at Reb’s words. That was hands down the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to me, and it’d come from my hardened biker boyfriend. Wow.
Doc snorted, reminding both of us that we weren’t alone.
“You about done back there, Doc?” Reb’s question was more a command than anything else.
“Last stitch. Then I gotta bandage you up. I’ll be out of here in two minutes.”
“You’ll be out of here now. Emily can bandage me up. Leave. Now.”
The door slammed behind Doc, leaving Reb and me alone.
I cast a quick glance at Reb’s back and the barely held-together mottled flesh made me nauseous. “Reb, I really don’t think I can do this.”
“It’s fine, baby. I kicked him out so we could talk. I’ll get him back in a minute. I just—I wanted to say…Fuck, this is harder than I thought it would be.” Reb scrubbed a hand over his head and winced.
“Maybe you shouldn’t move so much and tweak your stiches. Do you need anything? A drink? Some painkillers? I think I have some ibuprofen in my purse. Crap, I think I left it in Tank’s pickup. Let me go get them. Or do you want something else? A whiskey maybe?”
“Baby, stop.”
I don’t know why I was rambling, but something in Reb’s voice told me that what he was trying to say was important. And the Negative Nelly in me immediately went to the worst-case scenario. I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear what he was going to say.
So I said something to fill the sudden void, since Reb wasn’t talking.
“I think I’m falling in love with you.”
Reb stared at me, at an apparent loss for words.
I rushed on. “I just wanted to get that out there. Before you say whatever you wanted to say. Tonight, the whole drive over here all I could think was how much of my life you’ve taken over and how much I love it. Every second I spend with you is intoxicating and magical and I don’t know what I’d do without you in my life. Thank God you’re okay. I was so worried. And—”
“Emily.”
That was all he needed to say to stop my rambling. I resumed my avoidance of his eyes and picked at the seam on his pillowcase.
“I’m not dumping you, baby.”
“Wha—” I looked up at him. Was I really that easy to read?
“I’m falling for you, too. You’re sweet and gorgeous and too damn good for an asshole like me. But if you’re willing to date down to my level, then I’m not gonna give you a chance to smarten up. You’re it for me.”
All my fear melted away, along with my heart. “Oh, Reb.”
“Now get over here so I can kiss you.”
I tried not to jostle the bed as I moved to his side. But Reb didn’t appear to care. He reached a hand up and pulled my face to his. His lips covered mine in a sweet promise of a kiss.
Which quickly turned dirty.
His tongue swept into my mouth, mimicking the motion I loved so much that his cock would make. Thinking about his cock got my hands in action and I rested one on his shoulder. Reb broke the kiss with a grunt of pain.
“Ouch.”
“Oh God. I’m so sorry, Reb. I forgot about your back.”
“It’s fine, baby. But how about you send Doc back in here to patch me up. I don’t want to bleed all over you when I’m inside you later. Kinda kills the mood.”
I rolled my eyes as I stood from the bed and walked to the door. Pausing with my hand on the door, I told him over my shoulder, “We are not having sex tonight.”
“Wanna make a bet on that?”
“Reb, you’re hurt. You can’t be horny when you’ve got stab wounds.”
“Obviously you’re wrong.” Reb nodded to where the sheet was doing a poor job of hiding his erection.
“But you’re hurt. We can’t.”
“It’s okay, baby. I’ll be gentle with you. Go get Doc and we’ll pick up where we left off.”
I just shook my head as I opened the door. Even though we were both horny, I knew there was only one way this night could end—with Doc doping Reb until he was unconscious. Horniness could wait until he felt better. We had a ton of time to be together.
Because he was falling for me, too.
Chapter 22
SEPTEMBER 8
Eleven days later I was counting the hours until I got off work. Reb had had his emergency custody hearing today, and I hadn’t heard anything about how it’d gone. I had my fingers, toes, all my appendages crossed in the hope that the judge would see how much Tucker needed a stable parent in his life and award Reb custody. Thank God Reb could walk upright now and wouldn’t have had to answer any awkward questions about an obvious injury. This morning I could see how nervous he was, even though he tried to hide it. It was in the way he tapped his coffee mug and how many times he ran a hand over his clean-shaven face.
I didn’t think I’d ever seen him without the scruff on his face. It was certainly different, but I secretly hoped he would grow it back. I loved the way it felt between my thighs when he…you know.
Twenty more minutes until I could leave school. Not that it meant I was done with working for the day. I had my last shift at the bookstore tonight. So whatever the outcome of Reb’s case, celebration or commiseration would have to wait until after nine o’clock.
Nineteen minutes.
I decided to busy myself by indulging my OCD quirk reshelving some books. School had been dismissed almost an hour ago and any stragglers were long gone, so it was just me, a stack of books, and a ticking clock. I could hear every second pass when it got quiet like this. Sometimes I swore the second hand went in reverse, just to screw with me.
Seventeen minutes.
I pushed my cart to the earth science section and had my hand on a copy of Scholastic’s Rocks and Mine
rals when the side door to the library flew open and crashed against the opposite wall.
A huge figure filled the doorway, and I screamed. Loud. Long. And shrill.
I had a hand on my cellphone when the man stepped into the light and I relaxed. Right before I charged across the room to shove his shoulder.
“Reb! You about gave me a heart attack. Why didn’t you call me? Or wait…fifteen minutes until I was off work? Well, not totally, since I still have—”
“Emily. Calm down.” Reb held on to my shoulders and his huge grin said more than any words he could’ve come up with, but he still tried. “Court ran long, so I came here as soon as I could. I got him, baby! Divorce is final, and Tucker is mine!” Reb picked me up and twirled us around.
I knocked over a huge stack of books, but I couldn’t have cared less. Reb was finally free and Tucker was safe! I don’t think we could’ve had better news.
Reb peppered my face with kisses when he wasn’t grinning like a loon. Although the pecks were probably due to the fact that I was grinning so hugely we couldn’t kiss unless Reb wanted to make out with my teeth.
When my feet were back on the ground, I beamed up at him. “We have to go out and celebrate. What kind of pizza does Tucker like? My treat. Oh, wait. I have to work.”
“Screw that job. Ditch it and come over to celebrate with me and Tucker.”
My shoulders sagged. “I can’t just not show up. It’s my last day. At the very least I need to pick up my paycheck. They probably won’t even want me hanging around long. I’ll be in and out before you know it.”
“Fine. But I want your ass in my house no later than seven o’clock. I’m having the boys over and we’re partying our asses off…after Tuck goes to bed.”
My huge smile carried me all the way across town to the bookstore and my boss’s office.
“I’m sorry, but we really need you tonight. We’re short-staffed.” Daniel gave me his aww-shucks routine, complete with downturned eyes.
I took advantage of the moment by rolling mine. I should’ve listened to Reb. Dang it, why didn’t I? With a huffed sigh, I muttered, “Fine.”
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