Page 47 of Desert Sky (RB MC #4)

SKYE

I tried to focus on Jackson and the new pony but something was off. More men than I had ever seen were milling about. Some with walkie-talkies. Trucks and men rolled in.

JD came stalking out of the main house phone ringing in his hand… then the rain started like a whisper, a soft hiss against the pavement, almost too quiet to hear over the roar of bikes and shouted orders.

JD didn’t say a word. He didn’t have to. I saw it in his eyes—that flint-hard edge that hadn’t been there when we were just kids in love. This was the man he’d become. A Royal Bastard. A protector. A warrior.

He scooped up Jackson without hesitation, barking for Colton to load the SUV with whatever essentials we could grab. I chased behind him, breathless as we were swept into motion.

“Where are we going?” I demanded as he slammed the car door shut behind Jackson. “JD, what’s happening?”

He didn’t look at me. “Clubhouse. It’s on lockdown. ”

“But why? JD?—”

He gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles turned white. “Because it’s the only place left I trust to keep you safe.”

And just like that... I had no choice but to trust him too.

The ride was fast and silent, Jackson dozing in the backseat, blissfully unaware. My fingers trembled in my lap. The clubhouse came into view like some strange hybrid of home and fortress—lights blazing, men posted at every entrance, bikes lined up like sentinels.

Regan met us at the gate, wild hair under a ball cap, grin sharp. “Welcome to the Royal Bastards Sleepover Palace,” she quipped, yanking open the door and scooping Jackson into her arms. “C’mon, kid. You’re gonna be our taste tester for ice cream sundaes.”

Amber appeared, ushering Tarak’s kids in with popcorn buckets and juice boxes.

Jackson waved at us sleepily. “Don’t worry, Mama. I’ll save you a gummy worm.”

I tried to smile. It didn’t reach my eyes. I was left in the bustling chaos. My hands shook as I took a seat in the corner trying to figure out what to do. How to help…

And then I saw him.

JD, striding down the hallway, dressed in black from head to toe. Cargo pants. Leather vest. Long sleeves. Fingerless gloves. Guns holstered at his sides. A pistol strapped to each thigh.

He looked like death coming to collect a debt.

“JD,” I whispered, my legs moving before I knew it. I followed him past the war room, past the bar, past the row of pool tables, into the loading bay where bikes were revving low like animals growling in the dark .

“Don’t do this,” I begged, catching his arm. “Don’t go.”

He paused. Rain hit the concrete outside in scattered drops, beginning to soak the world in shadow and silver.

“I have to.”

“No,” I cried, stepping in front of him. “Let someone else—Edge, River—someone without a son. Someone who doesn’t have everything to lose!”

His eyes flickered, wild and pained. “You think I don’t know what’s at stake?”

“Then stay. Please,” I said, voice cracking. “Come back to me. To us.”

Thunder rolled low in the distance. The rain picked up, a steady curtain now, slicking his hair back, darkening the front of my shirt. I could barely breathe around the knot in my chest.

He grabbed my face, rough palms trembling. “If anything happens?—”

“Don’t,” I sobbed. “Don’t talk like that.”

He lowered his forehead to mine. “Nothing’s gonna stop me from coming back. Not even death. I swear, Skye. Even if I gotta crawl back as a ghost—I’m coming home.”

My heart shattered. I kissed him like it was the last breath I’d ever take. Rain fell harder, plastering my hair to my face. His lips were fire, his hands a storm over my back, my hips, my face. We devoured each other. No promises. No lies. Just a desperate collision of love and fear.

He pulled away first.

Mounted his bike.

Then turned once more—eyes locked with mine, full of fury and devotion and something ancient and raw.

The bikes screamed to life around him. Engines roared. Thunder cracked. The storm swallowed the sun .

And the Royal Bastards MC rode out into the night.

I dropped to my knees on the wet pavement, clutching my sides as the tail lights disappeared into the rain.

Please come back.