by C. M. Owens
I’m fucking good with that.
“Are you going to let her have friends?”
“We have a lot to catch up on still. She’ll never see the outside world again,” I deadpan, only partially kidding. Sort of. Mostly. Probably...
“You’re a scary man,” Sarah states flatly.
“Pot to the kettle,” I grumble as I walk on in, spotting Maya. “If you need to cash in on the favor I owe you—”
“I got manhandled. No one told me this was happening. That’s the freaking favor you could have repaid,” she snaps, shuddering as she fans herself. “I had a panic attack, you insensitive fuck!”
“Like Axle would ever let anything happen to you,” I state with a roll of my eyes. “Everyone works out their own agendas. You’re the top of his,” I remind her, sickened by how obsessed those two are with each other.
I mean, have some self-respect and not be all over each other all the time.
Some people.
“That actually makes me feel better,” she says on a slow exhale, covering her heart as she sighs.
Axle walks in, glaring over at me. “Why didn’t you leave them behind when you suspected they’d be here?” he grinds out.
“Because if we’d left them behind, it’d have been obvious we knew something was up, simply because I don’t let her out of my sight for that long,” I remind him with a shrug.
He looks like he wants to kill me.
“How did you hide what a maniac you really are so well?” Axle demands, hands on his hips like he’s been driven to the point of needing the answer to this question.
“I don’t think it was very well hidden. His eyes are really cold. Eve and I talk about how scary he is all the time,” Maya tells him so seriously, as though she’s somehow helping me...
“What?” I ask her incredulously. “I’m scary to you?”
She leans against Axle, and gives me a nod.
She’s fucking with me. I hate it when people fuck with me.
“Crazy bitch,” I mutter under my breath as I turn and walk toward Drex as he finishes saying whatever it is he wants to say to Herrin.
“I just came back to tell your dad I’ll be marrying his daughter. Consider this me paying my respects to the man I hated enough to become twice as cunning and lethal so I could marry his motherfucking daughter. Guess this really is the land where dreams come true,” I quip, seconds before I kick him right across the face, catching him off guard.
It’s the first time he’s been struck, but it’s a mercy compare to what I could do with less blunt force.
“If you don’t have it in you to kill him or watch him die, leave it to Sledge. He’s capable and willing,” I tell Drex, mostly letting him know I expect this shit to get followed through with.
“It feels...easy,” Drex says quietly.
“It took this fucking long for him to fall into one of our many trap scenarios. I’d hardly call it fucking easy. It’s just that we finally caught the perfect break we needed, and I was properly motivated,” I assure him, taking full credit.
He narrows the one eye that isn’t swollen shut at me, while Herrin sneers at our humble celebration.
I smirk down at him, not letting him see just how much I really do want to celebrate. I want that spirit fully broken, needing him to think this has all been too easy.
That’s it. Kara’s been out of my sight too long.
Sledge gives me a nod, and I clap him on the shoulder on my way by. “See you later,” I lie.
“We’ll have a drink,” he adds, like he says almost every time we go through some shit.
I smile to myself, pulling my cut off and folding it over my bike, leaving the key in the ignition.
Kara is with Sarah, the two of them cutting their eyes in my direction. Kara’s brow furrows as I walk away from my bike, grabbing the keys to the truck that unlocks beside her.
“What are you doing?” she asks.
“Either you get in, or I take my car instead, and you can ride in the trunk,” I tell her as I open the door next to her.
She eyes it warily, as Sarah heads off without another word.
Without overthinking it, she climbs in, and I prepare to deal with a furious Drex when he realizes I’ve gone and truly kidnapped his sister, just like I said I was going to all along.
No one ever takes me serious enough, and I’m not sure why. I’m usually a serious guy.
“Call me when you have a phone,” Sarah tells her.
“No. That’s how she baits you, offering you favors she can offer, in return for a favor of her own. She’s the give-and-take genie with wishes, and you can’t get out once you’re in,” I cut in, waving Sarah off like she’s a virus.
She laughs under her breath as she walks away, and Kara sighs as she slides in on the bench seat.
“You’re really screwed up in the head, huh?” she asks a little rudely.
“Absolutely. But I’ve never once thought of actually hurting you, so you’re safe,” I assure her, smiling in case she needs the extra reassurance.
She gives me a bland look as I drag her to the edge of the seat and step between her legs, tipping her chin back as I stare down at her. We should go before she remembers what’s going on in there.
“I’ll kill, maim, and torture any single other person in the world to ensure not one fucking hair on your head would get harmed. I tried not to get sucked in again, Kara. Lasted a hot fucking second with each new attempt,” I tell her very honestly, my lips teasing hers. “You’re quite fucking honestly the only damn thing that has ever really made me happy. I’d like to enjoy that for—”
Her lips find mine before I can finish, and I come down on top of her, kissing her to distraction, drinking her in while I can, before I have to restrain her and kidnap her once again.
“I love you even if you are crazy,” she says against my lips, hungrily drinking me in.
I groan, wishing I could savor this a little longer, but we need to get going before everyone starts wondering where we are and makes a fuss.
She says it so casually, as though I haven’t waited all these years to hear it as much as possible. She’s been off to a good start, but I need to soak her in a lot more before I can believe she’s really mine again.
Her smile disappears very abruptly as I secure her wrists to the door with the zip-tie.
“What the—”
She jerks her legs around, dodging the door as I shut it.
“Rush, what the hell?” she snaps as I hop in behind the wheel, cranking the truck.
“We’re going on a little road trip. Any suggestions for tunes? Bathroom breaks will be a minimum, because I plan to be there in two days.”
She blinks at me, her mouth opening and closing. “In the back, I have everything we need to live on for a while, and I have a revenue stream to support us, so long as we live modestly,” I add. “Clothing will even be optional.”
I rev the engine on her gasp, and I cut down the streets of Halo. Until Sarah calls in her favor, it’ll be the last time I’m in Halo.
The club’s on its own. I handled Herrin. I paid my dues. I put a lot of things in play, and I’ll be there when it comes to a shit storm. No regrets. No responsibility.
“Rush, you can’t be seriously doing this right now. Pop is—”
“You really want to be around for all that aftermath, Kara? Do you need that closure?”
She opens and closes her mouth. “Actually, no. I don’t. I spent too long worrying about what I needed to survive him. You and all your crazy actually gave me closure. That’s scary,” she says very seriously.
She turns, putting her feet in my lap, and I smirk as I reach down, patting her ankles.
“I won’t struggle. Cut me free. Please.”
“Only if you plan on giving me road head—” A pained breath hisses between my lips when she presses down on my balls with the heel of her foot.
“Fine. You win. I’ll cut you free and won’t charge anything for service
s rendered,” I concede.
She smiles like she’s won something, and I let her continue to think she’s more badass than she is as I pull over to surrender to her demands.
Her lips are on mine in the next instant, and I pull her closer, my arms going around her. She’s finally mine. I feel that last bit of surrender in the way her body bows so easily to mine.
She’s willing to do whatever I ask, so long as I ask it the right way. I was hers for a very long damn time. I’m going to savor every moment of making her as fucking crazy as I am...in the non-scary way. Whatever that means.
This time, I’m not worried about losing her, because she won’t go anywhere without me ever again.
“Quit thinking crazy thoughts. Your lips are curved in that scary grin, and it’s seriously creeping me out how much it’s turning me on,” she says against my lips, just as Bad Romance starts playing.
The intense air is stolen between her random interjection and the song choice that has apparently struck a relatable chord she finds hilarious.
“Glad you find this so funny,” I tell her dryly, as her entire body writhes with somewhat hysterical laughter.
Tears start falling out both corners of her eyes, even as she laughs harder.
Holy shit, I’ve had her all to myself for thirty minutes and I’ve already broken her. Damn it all to hell.
She wipes her eyes, her lips finding mine again, as I love her while she’s clearly vulnerable.
“It’s like I don’t even know how to imagine a future where I’m not looking over my shoulder for Herrin,” she says on a broken whisper. “And come to find out, he wasn’t even hunting me like I thought he was. The effort was lazy at best.”
She bats her tears away, eyes landing on mine again.
“Stop thinking about the past,” I tell her, dragging her closer to me on the seat as I sit up.
She buckles in next to me, and she dries her eyes again as I get my arm around her shoulders, pulling off onto the road as the moment gets stolen by reality.
Everyone can call me crazy if they want to. I’m the one who got exactly what I wanted.
I wanted Kara Caine to love me and be under my control. My lips twitch as I pass the sign that tells me I’m leaving Halo with everything I planned on taking with me all along.
Epilogue
One month later...
KARA
“He really is insane,” I note as I stare at all the rose petals on the floor, trying my damnedest not to smile.
Mostly because I usually have to clean up the big romantic gestures he throws in from time to time.
We’re quite literally living on an island that is in the middle of a privately owned lake in an undetermined state.
The house is small, but adorable. You have to take a boat to get to land that can be driven on. He wanted me in isolation. The crazy bastard got what he wanted.
Two arms come around my waist, and I grin to myself, unable to even convince myself any of this is wrong anymore. He kisses down my neck, arms tightening on me.
I’ve surrounded myself with people who never knew me. Rush knows me. I want to know everything about him so that I’m just another person he can only be half-honest with.
Out here, it’s just the two of us, and we don’t get out much, so it makes that easier.
“What’s the reason for the romance today?” I ask, half-worried he’s trying to get pregnant. I keep checking my birth control pills to ensure they’re the real deal.
Yes, I know he’s crazy. I love him anyway. I just don’t think kids are the best idea.
“I killed a man and it made me horny,” he deadpans.
“That joke still isn’t funny,” I inform him.
“Depends on the sense of humor,” he fires back, dragging his lips across my collar bone, causing my breath to hitch.
Clothing really is optional, and I don’t wear much of it these days. Neither does he. Not when we’re still living like we’re making up for lost time.
My fingers slip into his hair as I turn, my lips seeking his. He kisses me hard, lifting me until I’m straddling him, too caught up in him to think about much else.
His phone goes off, and we both freeze, as he reaches over, lifting it from the table and glancing down at the screen.
I let him go, giving him a little space as he exhales like he’s relieved.
“She’s not calling in her favor, I presume,” I guess, pouring him a glass of whiskey, since we both need a drink when his phone rings.
Sarah’s the only one with his number.
There’s something liberating and confining about that.
“No. It’s still going to be a while. She’s just putting me at ease with a semblance of a timeline,” he tells me, putting his phone back down.
“Seventy-two. I watched her and paid attention. I set seventy-two traps for Herrin, and he never stepped into a single one until that last time. It’s honestly why I wasn’t even all that scared about you following me in,” he confesses, brushing my hair away from my face, opening up here and there.
I’ve really missed this part about Rush. It’s easier to get this guy when he’s not being the Rush everyone else expects him to be.
“She’s set over three thousand traps for her father. She said you never pin a man of power down until you’re ready to kill him, and you need to have control of the entire situation to pull that off,” he goes on, pulling me down to his lap.
“What happens when he steps into one? Will she really be ready?” I ask him, only having a little knowledge about the colossal fucking shit going down.
I really don’t want Rush anywhere near that shit. I want him far, far away. But I know he won’t do that, no matter how much he acts like he’s just doing it for Sarah’s favor.
“I thought so. Until I saw how you folded when you watched Herrin crack before your eyes,” he tells me, glancing down.
When my gaze meets his, and gives me a colder smile.
“I stopped fearing Herrin completely when I realized the sort of man Sarah’s father is. He makes Herrin look like a small fish. When you see someone as small, it’s hard to see them as anything else ever again. He’s the only man in the world she’s never seen as small. The odds aren’t in her favor, and I never thought I’d say that after working with her,” he adds quietly.
“Are she and Snake going to—”
His laughter cuts me off abruptly, and I look up at him.
He gives me a curious look before rolling his eyes. “Jude cared for her, but he doesn’t love her like I love you,” he points out like he’s bragging on himself.
“Some would argue that we’ve got an unhealthy relationship,” I remind him, even though I try not to smile.
“Some can kiss my fucking ass. I’ve worked too hard to let you go, and I don’t really care what non-murderous people think is healthy,” he informs me.
The things he says that shouldn’t make me smile...I should probably add that to my growing list.
He kisses my smiling lips, moving me to the floor and coming down on top of me.
“Snake doesn’t love her like I love you,” he says again, running his finger over my lips. “I set eyes on you, and I needed to know your every move.”
I don’t point out that it’s unhealthy, since I’m okay with the boundary pushing these days. It’s really addicting to be loved by someone as intense as Rush. I forgot what it felt like, and it’s even more intense than before after being alone for a month.
“Why are we still talking about Sarah and Snake?” I ask against his lips.
He decides we’re done talking as well, as he lifts me, the stolen moment getting stolen back by us.
“You have to stop looking at me like that if we’re ever going to get anything else done,” he says against my lips as he works my underwear off, the only thing holding him back.
Living like savages in prehistoric times, who only go out into their own time when they have to. Has to be better than playing pretend and
playing by all the rules.
“I’m okay with this being a priority,” I assure him, causing him to groan against my lips as he pushes inside me.
He shudders like he does every single time he pushes in that first stroke, and my nails dig into his back.
I’m done trying to fit in with normal people. I don’t even need the adrenaline anymore. All I need is Rush.
At least for now, it’s more than enough to be a captive on his literal island, letting him call the shots, while loving me in a way that makes it hard to complain about anything at all.
He’s a clubbing-over-the-head shy of being a caveman, and he’s lucky I’m okay with that too.
Surprisingly enough.
He kisses me harder, and my mind gets too distracted to think. My toes curl, and my nails dig in deeper, as his hips find that magical rhythm with all the right pressure points. He groans against my lips, muttering all the typical threats of how hard he’ll work to keep me, and telling me how I can never escape.
I smile against his forehead as he crashes against me, still tired from last night, and I close my eyes as he wraps his arms around me. It’s our own private bubble.
I don’t want it to pop.
My smile stretches wider across my face when I try to move, only to be held still. “Just sleep with me,” he murmurs against my throat.
I manage to get a blanket over us, even though he keeps me wrapped up against him, using my chest as his own personal pillow. I don’t know why I enjoy this screwed up life so much, but I’ve never been happier.
For now, this is as close as anyone could ever possibly get to happily-ever-after.
He’s just got to survive one last favor, and we can have our happily-ever-after with no strings left attached.
One last adrenaline rush, and we’re free to live out our lives as boring people. Just like we want to do.
Then I remind myself Pop was scared of him, and Sarah thinks he’s crazy.
I hope he’s as badass as they all think he is.
Because now I know I really don’t stand a chance in that world, and there’s nothing I can do to help him if this goes sideways. I don’t see it going as smoothly as it did with Pop.
