Page 35

I nodded, and Becs smiled. “And now you don’t have to move around anymore.”
“Becs, we should talk, so we can both meet with Race tomorrow and figure out your schedule,” Bear interrupted.
She rolled her eyes. “I thought we were partying tonight.”
Bear crossed his arms over his chest and gestured to the room. “They are. We are putting together a new plan for you.”
I tugged on Maggie’s hand when Becs put her hands on her hips and shot her chin in the air. I knew that stance. They were about to go head-to-head, and I wasn’t sticking around for it. Maggie walked with me willingly, and I led her out behind the building where it was quiet. I always liked this time of day, right after the sun had set and the darkness of night was starting to take over. It was after eight, early for the boys to start partying, but Bear wanted them here to give them information before Luke showed up.
“Why are we out here?” Maggie’s quiet voice pierced the silence.
I dropped her hand and turned my body so we were facing each other. “I like being alone with you.”
Her light blue eyes widened. “Why?”
I reached out and ran my fingers along the silky strands of blond hair hanging over her shoulder. “You make me feel calm.”
“Why aren’t you calm?”
She had no idea. She wasn’t being coy or playing around. She actually had no idea how much I felt for her and how pissed off I was that we had to hide her from that bastard. That I knew he was out there as a threat, and I couldn’t find the prick, and therefore, I couldn’t really keep her safe.
I made a split-second decision that had the potential to backfire and be the biggest regret of my life, but I had to do it. I was moving as slow as I could, but I needed to be up front with her. She had to know what I was feeling, whether it sent her running in the other direction or not. I tucked her hair behind her ear and took a step closer, letting my palm rest against the side of her neck and only allowing a whisper of room between our bodies.
“Maggie, this situation with Snake…fuck, the idea of you and Snake together makes me crazy.” Her eyes widened once again. “I hate that he knew you before I did. I hate that he hurt you, and I couldn’t get you out of there. And I hate that I still cannot promise you safety.” I took another step closer until our bodies brushed. “You’ve been here for a while, Maggie. Nine months before Luke’s wedding and now almost two months since, and I’ve tried to stay away from you, tried to give you time, but I’m failing. I know that.” My eyes moved from her eyes down to her mouth when she licked her lips. “You make me feel both weak and strong, and it makes no sense. None of this does. But I know I need to see you every fucking day, or I feel like something’s missing.” I leaned down, and she tilted her head back to look up at me. “Does that scare you?”
She swallowed hard, her tell when she’d been nervous, and I waited. I didn’t have to wait too long.
“No,” she responded quietly. “I don’t ever remember not feeling scared around a man, but I don’t with you. Not anymore.”
I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding. “You never will, Maggie. I promise you that.”
She nodded, and a small smile graced her perfect lips. “Thank you for keeping me safe.”
My jaw hardened when a vision of her lying in the hospital bed flashed through my mind. “I haven’t always, but I will do everything in my power to make sure that bastard never touches you again.”
“You’ve done more to keep me safe than anyone else has since my mom died,” she admitted quietly.
“She was a great mom.” I concluded by the sadness in her eyes.
Maggie smiled sadly. “She did her best.”
“You miss her?”
Her eyes filled with unshed tears. “Every day.”
I laid my forehead against hers. She made me want to be a better man just being around her sweetness. How could someone who lived a life like hers stay sweet? I grew up hard, so I understood sacrifice and hate better than anyone. There was nothing nice or innocent about my childhood, and it made me angry every time I thought about my father or the way my mother suffered and was eventually killed.
Killed while trying to save me.
I’d never been able to let go of the anger, never able to just enjoy the here and now, never able to feel pride in what Bear and I had accomplished, not only with the club but with our business. Until the first time I laid eyes on her. The first time I heard her sweet voice. The first time I felt her soft skin.
She was a balm to my battered soul.
I pulled my head back again to stare into her eyes and knew I was pushing my luck. I should just leave her alone. Tonight was hard for her, but she did it for Becs, showing me just how much steel and loyalty lay beneath her soft surface.
“Can I kiss you, baby?”
She’d never been asked before, that was easy to guess by her surprise. That pissed me off even more, but I held it down, not wanting to scare her. I gave her time, not wanting to push her into something she wasn’t ready for, but my stomach was in knots waiting.