Page 22 of Mimic

She wrapped her arms around my waist, and I held her tight. I’d missed her so fucking much. Everything she’d gone through was my fault. I’d let my guard down, and Dakota had found me.

“Stop blaming yourself. We are who we are because of everything that has happened.” She looked up at me, her chin on my chest. With a smile, she said, “I wouldn’t have Cash.”

I groaned, and Rose chuckled. She knew I hated thinking about her being with my VP. The truth was, I was glad he made her happy. That was all I’d ever wanted for her. To be safe and happy. Cash would make sure of it.

“Stop blaming yourself. You could be happy too.”

“What makes you think I’m not?” I asked, staring down at her.

“Twintuition.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Rosie.” The growl came from behind me, and Rose shook her head.

“Thought you told him to stay in bed?” I asked as I looked over my shoulder at Cash. His arms were crossed over his chest as he stood behind me in nothing but a pair of boxers.

“I didn’t say he listened.”

Rose pulled away and rushed over to Cash. He caught her as she jumped into his arms, and he buried his face in her neck. When he turned around, I studied the tattoo on his back. The Silver Shadow emblem. I had one too. But I’d had mine done in Colorado by an artist no one knew. I’d done it away from Diamond Creek so no one learned my secret.

“Goodnight, Mimic,” Cash called over his shoulder as he carried my sister to bed. I didn’t answer. The smile on my sister’s face as Cash whispered to her on their way down the hall told me she wouldn’t have heard a word I’d said.

I slipped outside and swung my leg over my bike. Starting her up, I nodded to Joey, who was on the gate. Once it was open, I rode through without a thought to where I was headed. I needed the road beneath my tires, the rumble between my legs, and the wind in my face.

I found myself outside an apartment building at the edge of town. Turning the key, my bike powered down. I told myself I didn’t want to disturb the residents. The truth was, I didn’t want her to know I was here.

I quietly climbed the steps to the third floor. Then, I crept along the hallway until I stood in front of her door. My hands braced against the trim, and I hung my head. There was no reason for me to be here. King had ordered me to stay away from her. But something about her drew me here.

Dropping to a knee, I quickly picked the lock on her front door. The security in this building was shit. She wasn’t fucking safe here. The door opened with a creak, and I winced, expecting her to come flying out of her room demanding to know why I was here.

I didn’t have an answer; I just had to see her. Make sure she was safe. I closed the door softly and snuck down the hall to her room. Her bedroom door was left open, and my eyes went immediately to the woman on the bed.

Entering the room, I slipped into the chair in the corner and watched her as she slept. The urge to climb into her bed and pull her into my arms was so strong I wasn’t sure I could control it.

The scent of her skin wafted across the room. The scent of citrus and flowers. I inhaled deeply and felt a sense of peace settle over me. A peace I had never felt in my life. Something that had been missing from my life after my mother disappeared. And truth be told, it wasn’t something I had felt before then either.

She was my calm in the storm. She wasn’t just something I wanted. I didn’t allow myself to want anything. Wants were selfish. I kept only what was needed. And Indigo Cambridge was something I needed.

She was mine.

Chapter Nine

Indie

I was still here.

I had decided days ago to leave. To pack up and get the hell out of Dodge. Only, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Something changed, and I wasn’t sure what it was.

Gunner closed the shop for three days. And for three days I argued with myself about leaving. Yet I was still here. Still living in my small apartment on the third floor of a building on the edge of town in Diamond Creek.

But why?

I yanked open the door of the tattoo shop and stepped inside. Ignoring Gunner’s greeting, I walked to the back and shoved my things into the locker, then made my way to the front desk to look over my schedule.

“I told your clients you would call them to reschedule their appointments.”

I glared at the giant oaf as he spoke to me. Refusing to answer him, I pushed past him to ready my station for my first client of the day.