After years of a revolving door of short-term boyfriends and one-night stands, I wasn’t even sure how a love like this was meant for me. But Ifeltit—this love—within every fiber of my being. Wiping away a few tears that had fallen, I swallowed thickly. “God dammit, Cain. I’m not a crier. But I love you, you big sap. Who knew such a tough exterior would house such a beautiful soul?”
He swiped at another tear with his thumb, banishing it from rolling any further. “I love you, baby. I always have.”
Though my heart soared, my stomach sat in a knot. “What are we going to do about The Reaper’s Wings? I’m worried, Cain. They’re not just going to disappear.”
“I know, and I don’t want you to worry about it. I will take care of everything, okay? I’ll probably have to take a ride to Bridge Point and go work it out, prez to prez.”
“I hate that plan—there has to be another way.”
Cain took my hand and laced my fingers through his. “It might be the only way since they’ve now escalated from just threatening to actually showing us they mean good on their word.”
“Do you think they’d go after my staff? The bar?” I asked, feeling my stomach roll. If The Reaper’s Wings knew where to find the Sinners that easily, it meant Andromeda had a target on it, too. If there was true danger at my bar, I needed to be there. I walked back toward the bike. “Take me back to Ridgewood.”
He followed, hot on my trail as we pushed our bodies through the overgrown brush and back to the dirt road. “No baby, let's just get a hotel for the night and head back early. It’s already getting late and—”
“I don’t care, Cain! If these shitbags end up in the bar between now and us getting back tomorrow and they do something to my staff, I’ll never forgive myself. Please. Just get us home.”
I thought he’d put up a fight—argue with me about why we needed to stay, but he didn’t. Instead, he searched my eyes, and whatever he saw behind them convinced him to take me home.
“Okay.”
“Thank you,” I breathed through the knot in my chest.
He handed me my helmet, and I tugged it on, waiting for him to get on the bike. Once he did, I curled myself around his back and settled in, trying not to think about the distance we had between us and Ridgewood, or the fact that I just might freeze my ass off on the way there.
CHAPTERTWENTY-FOUR
By the time we made it back to Ridgewood, Andromeda was long since closed. When we pulled in front of my condo, we were cold, wind-blown, and exhausted from the night. Cain sent a message to King to let him know we’d made it back without issues, then slowly undressed me and nudged me into the bathroom for a shower.
The warm water washed over me, offering a slight reprieve from the tension that’d settled into my bones. I stood there for a while before the shower door opened and Cain stepped in. Despite the exhaustion that plagued his features, he reached for my shampoo and squeezed a generous amount into his palm, before lathering it and bringing it to my scalp. Massaging it with his fingers, he washed my hair, working the soap down to the very ends, before using the excess to wash his own.
When our hair was clean, I returned the favor by cleaning our bodies with my body soap, scrubbing away the night we’d had.
Once all the suds had washed away, Cain tangled his fingers through my hair and kissed me gently, letting his actions speak the words he was holding inside. Our bodies reacted, yet neither of us attempted to turn the kiss into more, content with just basking in the closeness of each other.
We held each other and kissed until the water turned cold, then dried off and met under the covers of my king-sized bed.
Even though cuddling wasn’t my thing, I found myself craving the comfort of his touch and scooted closer to him, nestling into his side. Within minutes, sleep swept him away, and his soft, rhythmic breaths acted like a sound machine as I fell asleep too.
* * *
Headlights illuminatedthrough the window as a car passed by, temporarily lighting up my bedroom. Cain and I spent the day in bed, only getting up for necessities. We drowned ourselves in sex, hardly stopping long enough for Cain to take King's and Damon's calls, fully aware we were using each other to hide from reality, but for just one day, we allowed ourselves to. The Sinners were under Cain’s strict instruction to go to theiractualhomes for the night unless stationed as extra eyes around the bar.
King looped in Indy last night, and after I spoke with her this morning to let her know I wouldn’t be coming in, I’d called the head of my security team and asked him to stay extra vigilant.
There was no point in cowering from The Reaper’s Wings. We wouldn’t allow their threats to have a chokehold on us, but we’d absolutely make sure we protected everyone as best as possible.
“Maybe we should call off the barbeque tomorrow,” I suggested as I trailed my fingertips along Cain’s chest.
He adjusted the arm that wasn’t wrapped around me to rest behind his head. “I mentioned that to King and Damon while you were in the kitchen earlier. Neither of them thinks it’s necessary. If we cancel family dinner, in some capacity, we’re letting them win. It sends the message we’re afraid of them.”
I understood and couldn’t fully disagree with him. Still, an anxious feeling sat deep in my gut. I’d learned a long time ago to always trust my intuition, and I knew as confidently as I knew the sky was blue, that this war between the two clubs was just beginning.
Sensing my nerves, Cain pulled me closer to him and let his lips graze my temple. He held me close, and the steady beating of his heart soothed me. “It’ll be okay, baby.”
“Alright,” I said, with only a hint of uncertainty.
Cain gripped my chin, tipping my head back. He offered me a small smile before pressing his lips against mine. Our kiss started slow, but as he deepened it, the fire within me roared to life again. Rolling on top of him, I straddled his body, and I kissed him roughly as I took what was mine.
