"Protection."
"For someone who rides for freedom and hates laws, you sure make a lot of rules." She planted her hands on her hips. "I don't want to be treated any differently."
Kodiak's gaze softened. "You're not some girl. You'remygirl. That means you're a target. That means I can't afford to be distracted. And if that means the rest of the clubhouse keeps its distance until things cool down, then that's what happens. I make the rules, and when it comes to you, I'll do anything to keep you safe because you're worth so much more to me."
Roma stepped closer to him. "You treat me like I might slip up and bring the whole place down."
"No, I treat you like you're mine," he said. "That's the problem."
She pressed her lips together. Even Andrea stilled, the magazine forgotten in her lap.
"You're afraid something might happen to me, so you're building walls around me—around the people who used to talk to me, around you. And fine. You want to call it protection? Call it that." She crossed her arms. "I don't want to be outside the fence. I understand why you'd want me on the property if Deception's circling. You're doing what you think you have to. I get all of it." She paused, eyes locked on his. "But I'm sick of pretending I'm okay with everyone taking risks on my behalf. I didn't ask for any of this."
Kodiak straightened and looked up at the ceiling. She inhaled deeply. It hadn't been her plan to start an argument.
"I didn't do anything, and yet they tried to kidnap me and killed my dad," she whispered. "Do you know how awful I feel, knowing everyone is out there risking their lives for me?"
He looked at her, and his hard, unreadable expression flickered. "You know it's not your fault."
"It sure feels like it."
Kodiak reached for her, but she stepped away. Frustrated, she walked away before she said anything else to upset him.
He was doing all he could to fix the situation. It wasn't his fault that he was put in the position of protecting her.
Chapter 26
Roma lay on her side, curled against the cool edge of the bed, the worn cotton sheet draped over her lower half. She breathed slowly, keeping her eyes almost closed as she peered between her lashes at the wall in Kodiak's bedroom. A thousand thoughts swirled in her mind, all of them involving Kodiak.
She had heard him ride in. The low rumble of at least twenty motorcycles arriving at the compound usually hummed her to sleep, except when she was looking forward to seeing one of the riders.
The door to the room opened and shut. Boots scraped against the concrete floor. She held her breath. The quietclinkof his belt buckle seemed like a distant gunshot in the night. That was how she knew he was tired. Usually, he was the most considerate person, trying not to wake her. Tonight, he moved like he was exhausted.
She felt the mattress dip behind her as he climbed in, the heat of his body flowing across her spine. He didn't speak. He never did, not immediately. She gave him time to leave the violence at the door and come to her because he wanted to be in bed with her.
She waited, keeping her body still and her breathing shallow. She knew he was aware she was awake.
Still, she pretended, giving him time.
And then he moved. One large, calloused hand slid beneath the cover and curled around her waist to cup her breast. He pulled her toward him in one fluid motion, flipping her onto her back like she weighed nothing at all.
In the glow of the light coming from the other room, his dark eyes were shadowed with exhaustion. Her breath hitched in disappointment. Whatever he'd hoped to find in the search forDeception MC's next move, he hadn't. She could read it in the tight line of his lips and the faint tremble of frustration in his fingers as they moved over her hip to cup her ass.
Roma palmed the curve of his jaw. The look he gave her was softer than anything he'd shown the world. She pulled him down. He kissed her like he was trying to forget. Or maybe trying to remember what he continually fought for.
This was a side of him that the members of Royalla never got to see. It was the part of him that she loved the most.
Roma responded without hesitation, her body arching to meet him, her mouth parting to take him in. She had no desire to know what happened tonight. All she wanted to know was that he was okay. That nobody was hurt.
His hands roamed her body. Every touch, every press of lips against pulse points, made her believe that he'd come to her for comfort. It was the one thing she could give him that his club couldn't.
"Spread your legs."
She dragged her feet up on the bed, dropped her knees to the mattress, and opened herself to him. It'd taken one night after having sex with him to learn that he expected her naked in bed when he rolled in. At first, it was unusual to have nothing on. Growing up in the clubhouse, her dad had specific rules for her. She had to dress in the bathroom after showering in case one of the bikers had come to visit with her dad. That made sense. She wouldn't want to dash from the bathroom to the bedroom wrapped in a towel around the members. Her dad also made sure that she set a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt on the dresser, so if anything happened at night and she needed to leave the room, she was supposed to pull on the clothes, as she couldn't go into the clubhouse in her pajamas.
At the time, it seemed silly. The clubhouse was her home. But she understood her dad was only protecting her and her childhood. A childhood that was perfect for her.
Kodiak's hand cupped her pussy. His rough, thick finger slid between her folds, dipping in the wetness before circling her clit. Her knees came up like the wings of a butterfly, flapping for takeoff, before she calmed enough to keep them down. His touch always surprised her, yet he knew exactly how to relax her body, allowing her to enjoy what he did to her fully.
