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S pade walked into her hospital room, toting her overnight bag that Charlie had picked up at her place and brought over to her, and a wheelchair. “The nurse is right behind me with your discharge papers. You ready to get out of here?” He asked.

“More than you know,” she breathed.

“I feel the same way. If I never see that damn chair again, it will be too soon,” he looked over at the chair in the corner of the room as though it had offended him in some way. felt bad about not sharing her bed, but she knew that if she let that happen, she’d want more from Spade. He was helping out of the kindness of his heart, and after the way that she had treated him, she wouldn’t blame him for dumping her off at her apartment and running as fast as he could to get away from her.

“I’m sorry that you had to sleep in that chair,” she said. “I should have let you sleep in the bed, but I—” She was going to admit that she wanted him and that she knew that them landing in the same bed together would be a problem. Maybe not for her, but for him. Spade had made it clear that he got her message loud and clear when she admitted that she had made up a boyfriend to get him to stop asking her out. God, she was an idiot for trying to push him off and spending two days in the hospital with him had shown her that. Spade hadn’t left her side the entire time she was there, and she knew that Eric would never have done the same. Maybe pushing Spade away was her defense mechanism, to keep her heart from being hurt again, but what if he turned out to be the one—the guy she had been hoping to meet her whole life, but was too stubborn to give him a chance?

“No need to explain,” he insisted. Spade rubbed his back dramatically, making her smile. “I’m sure that this kink in my back will go away at some point.”

“You do have a way of making a girl feel better,” she teased, rolling her eyes at him.

“How about you come back to my place with me?” he asked. She wasn’t sure that she had heard him correctly. They were just joking around and then he asked her to live with him. Was that right?

“I’m sorry, what?” she asked.

“Come back to my place,” he said. This time, he wasn’t asking. “Listen, you’re still a bit out of it from the drugs. I’d like to keep an eye on you, to make sure that you’re okay, and to make sure that whoever drugged you doesn’t come back to do it again.”

“I’m sure that’s not necessary,” she insisted. “I think that I’ll be fine back at my apartment.”

“Okay, then, let me stay there with you until we know that you’re fine,” he said. Again, it didn’t sound like he was asking her permission and had a feeling that he’d give her a fight if she refused. Plus, she kind of liked having the big biker around. She felt safer knowing that he was in the room with her at night, not that she’d admit that to him.

“I only have a one-bedroom apartment,” she said. “You’d end up sleeping on the sofa, and I’m afraid that isn’t more comfortable than the chair.” She nodded to the chair that he was just complaining about in the corner of the room.

“Well, my house had a few extra beds, and you’d be welcome to pick your favorite,” he said. wondered if one of her choices might be his bed, but asking him that didn’t seem like a good idea. “It won’t be forever. Just until Razor and I can figure out who did this to you.” He had a point. If someone was after her, she’d need a place to lye low until the cops could figure out who it was.

She sighed, “Fine,” she breathed. “I’ll go back to your place with you, but I’ll need a few things from my apartment. Would you mind stopping by there so I can pack what I need?”

“Not a problem,” he almost whispered. Spade seemed shy again, almost like the first day he met her at Ink’s shop. She liked that side of him for some reason. Maybe it was the fact that she made him nervous, or maybe it was that he was showing her a side of him that most people probably didn’t get to see. Not only was he a biker, but he was an undercover cop. He had a hard exterior that she got to see through, and for some crazy reason, that made her hot.

The nurse walked into the room holding up some papers. “Who’s ready to get out of here?” she asked. enthusiastically raised her hand, making the nurse and Spade laugh. “You’ll need to have someone stay with you for the next few days until you see your primary care doctor for a follow-up. You’ll need more bloodwork done in about three to four days, and then, if you get the all-clear, you’ll be able to live on your own again. Do you have anyone to stay with you?” the nurse asked . She was talking to her, but looking at Spade as if she expected him to volunteer.

“She’s staying with me,” Spade insisted.

“Great,” the nurse said. “Well, I’ll go over the paperwork with you both, and then, we can get you out of here.”

“Thank you,” said. She wasn’t sure that she had made the right call about staying with Spade until this very moment when he sat on the edge of the bed with her to study the papers that the nurse handed to her. He asked questions, and all she wanted to do was sit and sigh at how he was willing to take care of her—especially after the way that she treated him by lying about a boyfriend. Maybe Ink was right. Maybe Spade was a good guy, and she just needed to give him a chance. Hopefully, this time, she wouldn’t get her heart broken.

They had stopped by her apartment and Spade helped her to quickly pack a week’s worth of things. He wanted her to pack more, but she didn’t want to assume that she’d be there longer than that. She was amazed at how close they lived as he drove five minutes down the road to his neighborhood.

“You live in a gated community?” she asked as he punched in the code to get in.

“Yeah, as an undercover cop, I can’t be too careful,” he admitted. She had never thought about that before—not that she had met any other undercover cops. One thing was for sure—Spade would be able to keep her safe at his home, and she was happy that he pushed her to stay with him.

“This is my place,” Spade said, parking his car in the driveway. He cut the engine and stared at his house as though seeing it for the first time. “It’s not much, but it’s home.” She could tell that Spade was nervous but had no idea why. He had nothing to be nervous about. thought it was wonderful. Her tiny apartment could never compare to his house.

“Your house is beautiful,” she almost whispered. “Are you sure that you want me to stay here with you?”

“Yes,” he said, without hesitation. “I’d like you to stay here for as long as you’d like. I mean, it’s the only way to keep you safe until we can figure out who drugged you.” For a split second, she thought that he was asking her to move in with him, but that would be ridiculous—the barely knew each other, no matter how badly her body wanted him, her mind was being rational and telling her that she was being foolish.

“I appreciate that,” she said. did too. The thought of going back to her apartment alone right now scared the hell out of her. But the question remained—was the person who drugged her drink out to get her specifically? “We can’t be sure that drink was meant for me. What if someone was just being a jerk and trying to drug anyone in the bar that night? Ink picked those drinks randomly. Heck, he could have given one to Charlie, and then, she would have been the one in the hospital. I don’t believe that I was actually a target in all this. I think that it’s more like I just have bad luck.”

“I agree with you on some level, but we need to be sure. If you’re right, then you’ll be able to get back to your life soon. Don’t you want to be sure that you weren’t the target though?”

She sighed, “Yes,” she admitted.

“Good,” he said, getting out of the car. “I’m going to grab your bag from the trunk, and then, I’ll help you into the house.” She wanted to protest and tell him that really wasn’t necessary, but he had already got out of the car and shut the door. She was going to have to convince him that she wasn’t an invalid, but she had a feeling that it would take some time.

He showed her around his home, and she had to admit, it was pretty great. It didn’t look like the bachelor pad that she was expecting. Spade stayed true to his word and let her pick the bedroom that she wanted to stay in, and she chose the one across from the master bedroom. Maybe she was acting foolish, but staying close to him made her feel safer.

“Thank you for doing all this for me,” she said. It was only late afternoon, but she was exhausted. “Do you mind if I get some sleep? I think the trip home has worn me out.”

“Of course,” he agreed. “When you wake up, I’ll make us some dinner. Do you need anything?” She wanted to ask him to sit in the room with her, but she thought better of it.

“No, thank you,” she said.

“No problem. If you think of anything, I’ll be in my bedroom.” He walked out of her room, pulling the door shut behind himself. And sat down on the bed. She pulled off her shoes and stripped down to her shirt and panties, which she usually slept in, and got under the covers. Sleep quickly found her as she let herself relax for the first time in days. She felt safe at Spade’s house and that said a lot about the man who was quickly becoming a big part of her world, even though she fought that from happening with all her might. He still found a way to break down her defenses, and for that, she was grateful.

“Hey,” a voice whispered into her ear, “wake up, .” She’d know that sexy, deep voice anywhere—Spade. He appeared in her nightly dreams, but she was sure that wasn’t what was happening right now. No, this time, she knew that he was close, and she opened her eyes to find him lying next to her in bed.

“What happened?” she asked. “Why are you in my bed?” sat up and looked around the room. She wasn’t in her room anymore. She was in Spade’s room, and she wondered how she had gotten there.

“You’re in my bed,” he corrected.

“How did I get into your bed?” she asked. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep, thinking about how safe she felt in Spade’s house.

“No clue,” he admitted. “I was downstairs prepping dinner and when I came back up to my room, you were in my bed. So, I decided to let you sleep and take a little nap myself. I didn’t get much sleep in that awful chair at the hospital.”

lay back next to him and Spade wrapped his arms around her body, tugging her close. He was so close that she could feel his warm breath on her face. “Did you have a bad dream or something?” he asked.

She shrugged, “No clue,” she admitted. She nuzzled her head into the crook of his neck and sighed. “Is this okay?” she asked. Being close to him helped calm her nerves. Heck, being close to Spade felt like a balm to her soul. Suddenly, the past year faded and all she felt was safe, and dare she say it, wanted. Spade made her feel that way; something that Eric never made her feel.

“It’s more than okay,” he whispered, kissing the top of her head.

She cuddled closer into his body and when she felt his erection against her thigh, she almost gasped. “You’re um, you’re,” she stumbled over her words not sure how to tell him that she could feel his erection through his gym shorts.

“Yeah, sorry about that, honey,” he said, “but I can’t help it. When I’m around you, this is what happens. If you want me to leave, I will.”

“No,” she almost shouted, “I don’t want you to leave.”

He chuckled and kissed the top of her head again. “Then, I won’t leave,” he promised. “But we need to talk about—us,” he said. She could tell that he was a bit shy even bringing up the subject and she wrapped her arms around his body to let him know that he had nothing to fear with her.

“Do I still make you nervous, Spade?” she asked.

“You don’t make me nervous. I think I’m worried that you’ll change your mind about being here—with me,” he admitted.

“I won’t,” she promised. “I’m not just here because I feel safe with you, or that I’m afraid to be at my apartment alone. Those things are both true, but I’m here because I want to be with you, Spade. I’m done fighting how I feel about you.”

“So, no more making up fake boyfriends to get rid of me?” he teased.

“No, but I need a promise from you too, Spade,” she insisted.

“Anything,” he said.

“I need to know that when this all ends, you won’t break my heart. I gave up dating after Eric broke things off with me. I promised myself that I wouldn’t be with a man for a year, and it’s only been six months.”

“I’d wait six more months for you, honey,” he admitted. She believed him too. But for some reason, she didn’t need that time to heal anymore.

“I don’t need six months,” she admitted. “I’m ready now, Spade. I want you, and I’m done pretending that I don’t. I guess the question is, do you still want me?” He grabbed her hand and led it down to his massive erection.

“What do you think?” he asked. let her fingers run over his shaft and when he moaned his approval, she knew that she didn’t want to stop. She dipped her hand into his shorts and wrapped it around his cock, allowing him to pump in and out of her hand.

“That feels so fucking good, honey,” he growled. “But if you don’t stop, I’m not going to be able to do any of the things that I’ve been dreaming about doing with you.”

“What do you want to do with me?” she whispered. God, she hoped that he wanted to do everything with her, but she’d let him take the lead if that was what he wanted from her.

“I want you naked,” he breathed. She sat up, removing her hand from his cock, and started to strip out of her shirt and panties. She noticed that Spade was only wearing a pair of gym shorts, and the sight of his bare, tattooed chest nearly had her swallowing her tongue.

“Your turn,” she insisted, looking his big body over. She could already tell that he was big, just from touching him, but she couldn’t wait to see him—all of him.

“Not yet,” he said. “First, I want to taste you, honey. On your back.” She thought about protesting but knew better. Spade looked so serious that she quickly laid back and let him spread her legs open as he settled between them.

“Watch me, honey,” he ordered. She pulled a pillow down the bed and propped it under her head. “You’re so beautiful.” She felt beautiful when he looked at her the way that he was.

“You make me feel that way,” she whispered.

“Tell me that you’ll stay with me, honey,” he begged. “Stay in my bed with me. I don’t want to give you up after this.” She wasn’t sure if that was a good idea or not. If she agreed, would he get tired of her and tell her to get out? Would he find another woman and move on from her as Eric had?

“Stop overthinking this, , and just tell me yes,” he ordered. Gone was the shy man that sat in her chair at Inks and in his place was a big, bad biker who liked the control that she was willing to give to him.

“Yes,” she agreed. “I’ll stay with you, Spade.” He smiled up at her—a wolfish grin, and dipped his head to lick through her wet folds. It had been so long since any man did that to her, she nearly bucked off the bed.

“You need to hold still, honey, or I’ll tie you to my bed,” he said. The thought of being bound to his bed, unable to move as he gave her pleasure, made her half crazy with lust. “Oh, I think that you’d like that,” he said. “We’ll do that later. For now, I just want to hear you call out my name while I eat your sweet pussy.” God, the way that he talked to her that way had her already wanting to come.

“Please,” she whimpered, closing her eyes.

“Open your eyes and watch me, honey,” he ordered again. She did as he asked and was rewarded with the best orgasm that she had in a very long time. She rode his mouth until she felt her release, shamelessly screaming out his name.

Spade seemed pleased with himself as he stood to strip out of his shorts. She was right—he was big and she suddenly worried that they wouldn’t fit. He crawled up her body, kissing every inch of her body as he did.

“You look worried, honey,” he said. “What’s going on in that beautiful head of yours?”

“I’m worried that we won’t fit,” she admitted. “You’re big.”

“Thanks for noticing,” he said, bobbing his eyebrows at her. giggled, making Spade smile. “That’s better,” he said. “And don’t worry, we’ll fit, honey. I’ll give you plenty of time to adjust to my size. You just tell me when you’re ready for me to move. You have all the control here, .” She doubted that she was in control of anything, but there was no way that she’d tell Spade no—not now.

nodded her agreement, and he rolled her to the top of his body. “What are you doing?” she asked.

“I’m giving you control,” he said. “You can go as fast or slow as you want.” She liked the idea of riding Spade. She wanted to watch him when he found his release, just as he had her.

She slid her slick folds over his shaft, and he moaned. Spade was on edge, and she liked it. stared sliding down his cock, inch by inch and when she was fully seated, she found herself panting.

“You okay?” he said, his voice hoarse.

“Yeah, you just feel so good,” she breathed. “I’m ready,” she said. Spade didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed her ass in his big hands and helped her move up and down his shaft. He set a punishing pace and when he was close, he rolled her underneath his big body to finish. He shouted out her name and collapsed on top of her body. It felt good having his weight on top of her, and she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. She wanted them to stay just like that, but Spade rolled to her side.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to crush you,” he said.

“You weren’t crushing me,” she insisted. “You felt good.” She snuggled into his side, and he wrapped an arm around her, tugging her close.

“You felt good too, honey,” he said. They lay like that until the room fell dark and she never wanted to get out of his bed. Making him the promise to stay in his bed wasn’t one that she’d regret, she was sure of that. Spade was quickly becoming more than just her safe space, but knew that telling him that wasn’t a good idea. They were only just beginning, and she wanted to see where things could go between them. Scaring him away now would only lead to more heartache and regret for her, and that wasn’t something she wanted or needed in her life again.