Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 154037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 770(@200wpm)___ 616(@250wpm)___ 513(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 154037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 770(@200wpm)___ 616(@250wpm)___ 513(@300wpm)
Wasn’t sure what the fuck was wrong with me, but I didn’t think I could stomach the thought of it tonight. Didn’t think there was a chance of letting her out of my sight until I had her tucked safely behind a locked door.
Raven angled around me, her stride quick on those wicked heels, like part of her wanted to get away from me as fast as she could.
She should.
She should stay far the fuck away from me.
But I was right behind her, acting as a fortress as we pushed through the club. Didn’t bother to give Theo or Kane a text since they were likely on the prowl, letting loose the way I was a firm believer we all should do.
Except the only person I wanted to let loose with right then was a thousand times forbidden. The last fucking person I could take.
She was family.
I guided her through the thrumming throng of Kane’s and out into the night.
This late, there was the slightest chill to the air as fall approached. The door swinging closed behind us cut the noise level in half, the quiet of the night butting against the roar from within.
I gave a jut of my chin to Ty and Jonah who were manning the door, and I stayed one step behind Raven as she strode out into the parking lot that was still packed.
My palm barely made contact with the small of her back as we went.
Didn’t matter.
The connection still burned me through.
Which meant I needed to get this shit under lock and key considering she was about to be wrapped around me on my bike.
Never said I wasn’t a masochist.
Her heels crunched on the loose gravel as we treaded to the line of bikes that were parked along the exterior wall at the front of the club. Mine was right between Theo and Kane’s, and Raven strutted right for it, like she was drawn to the metal, though tonight, her energy was all off.
Normally, she was excited as hell to get on the back of my bike.
She was facing away when I rumbled, “You okay?”
Raven barely shook her head as she turned back toward me, and a long sigh pilfered from those red-painted lips. “I just…I need to know that I can handle myself, Otto. For myself. I need to know that I don’t need you or my brother to sweep in and fix everything that goes wrong for me.”
My chest panged.
I got it. I got it. But our lives came with a certain danger, and I’d seen firsthand the depravities that people succumbed to. The atrocities inflicted.
“I know you need your independence, Raven. But the world we live in…”
She blinked those inky eyes. “We all live in that world, Otto, and yeah, it’s fucked up and bad things happen, and I know you want to keep me from that, but I need to be able to make mistakes for myself. Fall in love and out of love and deal with douchebags and get my heart broken. I need all of that so I can discover what I want and who I want to be.”
She fisted her hand over her heart.
Air heaved from my lungs, and I scrubbed a hand over my face. “I know. And I’m sorry if I was being overzealous. But when I came around the corner and found that bastard had you against a wall? There wasn’t a speck inside me that would allow me to ignore it. That asshole was pressing you.”
He was lucky he wasn’t floating face down in the lake.
Frustration billowed out of her, and she tossed an arm out like she was gesturing at him. “Tanner is harmless.”
I couldn’t do anything but reach out and take her by that wrist. I tugged her forward a step so she was right in front of me. Her presence hit me like a landslide. “Maybe. But I didn’t like what was comin’ off him. Like you owed him something.”
“He’s…fine.”
Wasn’t satisfied with the way she said it. With the uncertainty that flashed through her expression, like maybe she’d felt exactly what I’d felt oozing from him, too.
“I want you to tell me if he’s harassing you. That’s all I’m asking.”
Energy pulsed around us, that thing that I’d been ignoring for years, pretending it only meant I cared about her as a part of my family.
Complete bullshit.
“Promise me,” I urged. “Can’t stand the idea of someone trying to get you under their thumb.”
Emphasis tightened her brow. “You know I would never get myself in a situation like that.”
That was the thing, though. No one ever intended on succumbing to an abusive relationship. It was just that they got blindsided along the way and they found themselves in that situation before they knew they were there.
Shucking off the intensity, I canted her a grin. “Good. Just so we’re clear.”