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Unfortunately, right now wasn’t the time or place for me to deal with that anger. The stinging-cold wind coming across the field had me on edge, beside the fact I was about to send Kate into a place that I was afraid for her to go.

“Here,” I said, helping her put the earpiece in again. “It’s small enough that they won’t be able to see it, and as long as you don’t go into something with walls as thick as a bank vault, you’ll be able to hear me.”

It was almost the exact same speech I’d given her earlier when we’d been getting ready for the exchange. But Kate didn’t say anything about the fact that I was telling her again. She hadn’t said much of anything since her phone had chimed with Max’s message.

The rest of the guys were on their way, along with Charlie and a whole phalanx of police. That was the second battle, getting her to let them come. She’d finally said yes after I’d promised they wouldn’t make a move until we had absolute, concrete proof the Riders were up to some illegal shit.

Either way, it would take time for them to get here and all their equipment into place, especially without being spotted. For now, we were on our own.

Another gust of wind crashed into us, and I fought the flash of memory. I knew what it was like to be completely alone and not have backup—and know that the backup you needed was never going to come. Kate wasn’t going to feel that. I would have her back for every second of this.

“I’m going to try to find a way inside,” I said. “Walk around, see if there’s a back entrance or something.”

Her eyes flashed up to mine before flicking toward the barn. “Doesn’t really seem like a place with a lot of options.”

I forced a smile. “There are always options, promise. Besides, I’ll be listening the whole time. Maybe we can pick up something that will give me an opening or an excuse and then I can just saunter in through the front door.”

“Yeah, maybe.” Kate laughed, but not like she actually found it funny. That was fine—I didn’t either.

“I just want you to remember one thing.”

“What’s that?”

I fiddled with her earpiece for a moment before fixing my own. “I’ll be listening to you the whole time. If you need me in there, you can tell me. I don’t give a shit about anything else. If you tell me to come, I’ll come and get you.”

Kate looked up at me. It was dark, and the only light was from the moon rising above the mountains, painting her face in silver. “Why?”

“Why what?”

She shook her head. “I don’t understand why you would do that for me. I don’t understand why you would do any of this for me.”

I stayed silent for a moment before reaching for her earpiece one last time. It was an excuse to touch her at this point, because Kate... I didn’t know what it was, but something about her called to me. I wanted to help her. But even as I thought those words, I knew it was deeper.

“I’m helping you because you’re a person.”

“What?” She blinked. “What does that mean?”

“It means you’re a human being, Kate. Every person in the world deserves to have someone in their corner. Everyone deserves to have help when they need it. Believe me. I know what it’s like to not have it.”

She shuddered. “Even if that’s true, you’ve still done more. You could have found my phone number, called me to tell me what you found, and let that be it. But you didn’t, and I’m nobody.”

“Not to me.”

“Noah—”

I reached out and touched her arm. “You’re not nobody, and you don’t owe me anything. For any of it. But what I’m about to do? It has nothing to do with me helping you.”

The question was in her eyes, and I knew after this, we couldn’t go back. I leaned down and kissed her anyway.

Chapter 11

Kate

I saw the intent in Noah’s eyes one second before he moved, and the next his lips were on mine. Gentle. Seeking. Insistent.

We were standing, freezing in the wind, and now there was no part of me that was cold.

Noah pressed me against the car, allowing both our bodies to line up. The body I’d seen that first day, I could feel all of it now, and it had my head spinning.