Page 7

CHAPTER 6

T he End.

Caroline stared at those two simple words. It had taken her six weeks to write and rewrite her first motorcycle club romance. She loved the grit and emotion that had woven its way through the story. Caroline didn’t think she’d done it alone.

The magic had happened, along with so many anguished moments. Some days, she’d struggled to read the words she typed—her vision blurred by the tears that cascaded down her cheeks as she immersed herself in the two characters. Deep inside, Caroline understood this was the best book she’d ever crafted. She had a hunch her editor would agree. Before she could second-guess her decision that the story was perfected, Caroline sent it off.

Pushing her chair away from her desk, she glanced out the window. The light green spring leaves had matured, and the sun blazed. Caroline had survived every single day that passed. The hole in her heart hadn’t repaired itself. She could still feel Wraith’s arms around her.

She’d tried to go see him at Inferno. Scythe had turned her away at the door. His harsh expression had softened a bit when she’d burst into tears. Horrified by losing her control, Caroline had fled past all the bar goers lined up to get in. She’d dressed up twice to visit again and hadn’t made it out of her garage. Pride hadn’t held her back. A picture of Wraith’s face flashed on repeat in her mind. He didn’t want to see her.

Brushing the tears from her cheeks, she stood and walked purposefully into her bathroom. After washing her face, Caroline pulled on a comfortable pair of jeans and her favorite fuchsia top. Maybe it would bolster her confidence. After applying a scant amount of makeup, she grabbed her keys and courage on the way out the door.

At three in the afternoon, no one stood at the front entrance. Caroline walked in and scanned the room. A few people sat at the bar, getting an early start. Caroline headed for a stool.

“What can I get you?”

“Wraith and a diet cola, please.”

“He’s pretty potent by himself,” the young woman said with a smile as she dispensed the drink. “I don’t think Wraith is here yet. I’ll call up to the office to see.”

“He’s not.”

The flat voice made Caroline turn. Scythe’s expression was hard and remote. She ignored it and forced herself to say, “Hi, Scythe. I’ll wait.”

“He doesn’t want to see you.”

“I know. I want to see him enough for both of us.”

“Your drink is on the house. Leave now,” Scythe ordered.

“I’m not going. I’ll stay until Wraith arrives,” Caroline told him softly. “Please, Scythe. I need to talk to him.”

The biker crossed his arms, displaying his massive biceps as he stared her down. Caroline swallowed hard but didn’t waver. This would be the last time she approached him. If he refused, there was no chance for her to make this right.

Grabbing the last of her courage and shredding her pride, Caroline whispered, “I’m his Little girl, Scythe. I screwed up. I have to see if I can fix this. Help me, please.”

He blinked.

Caroline counted three full breaths as she waited for his decision. She blinked furiously to hold back the tears that prickled the inside of her eyelids away and crossed her fingers on both hands.

“He’s at the warehouse in back. Go through the rear door. At the gate, tell them I sent you to Wraith. They’ll let you in.”

She slid off her stool and grabbed a ten from her pocket to set on the bar. “Thank you, Scythe. I owe you one.”

Before he could change his mind or stop her, she hurried through the bar and burst through the door marked Authorized Personnel Only. Bikers leaned against the wall with a bottle of beer. They all turned to check her out. Caroline didn’t pause but nodded and kept going toward the tall concrete walls, topped with razor wire. Scythe’s name worked like a charm at the gate. They handed her a visitor’s hard hat and sent her inside to building two.

Steadying the unfamiliar weight on her head, Caroline scanned the wide space. Spotting a large yellow two on a massive building to her right, Caroline started walking. Men zipped by on all sorts of heavy-moving equipment. The forklifts were laden with huge packing crates.

She wanted to hesitate at the door but forced herself to enter. Inside, a wide set of shoulders drew her attention. Caroline headed toward the familiar figure, completely focused on reaching him.

A loud horn burst, and a squeal of brakes behind her made Caroline jump. Whirling around, she met the gaze of the driver, who looked completely pissed. “I’m sorry!”

“You’re going to get yourself killed, lady. Get out of here,” he yelled, half hanging out of the window.

“Enough. She’s with me.” Wraith’s gravelly voice came from beside her. He stepped between Caroline and the irate driver.

“Sorry, Wraith. Keep her out of the driving lane,” The man grumped before moving on.

Caroline held her breath as Wraith slowly turned to face her. He wrapped an arm around her waist and steered her to the side. The heat of his touch made her ache inside. When he removed his hand, her heart sank. A tear escaped and tumbled down her cheek. Quickly, she dashed it away.

“Thank you, Wraith.”

“Why are you here? It’s not safe,” he growled.

“I needed to see you. You wouldn’t respond to my texts, and the guys at the door wouldn’t let me into Inferno,” she said, wringing her hands in front of her as she searched for the right thing to say.

“Sounds like you should have put the pieces together and moved on.”

“I got scared, Wraith. I was stupid. Can we talk, please?”

“Talking is overrated. You were attracted to the bad guy from the wrong side of town. You got fucked well and then decided I didn’t fit into your life.”

“Wraith, it wasn’t like that,” she protested. She had to make him understand.

“Then tell me your version.”

“You turned my world upside down,” she said. When his mouth curled downward even more, Caroline rushed to say, “In a marvelous way. I was excited. No, more than excited. No one ever treated me like you did. Like I was special.”

“Then you’re hanging out with the wrong people, Caroline.” His voice held no emotion. It was completely flat.

“I agree. I recently divorced after five years of hell. He checked off all the boxes that I thought were what I needed. I was so wrong.”

“We’re not solving anything here, Caroline. Go back home. Have a good, safe life. You’ll have a story to tell your grandchildren about your night on the wild side.”

“No.”

He shrugged those broad shoulders and looked at her like she had lost her mind. “What do you mean, no?”

Gathering her courage, Caroline stepped so close her body touched his. She grabbed his shirt as tightly as she could to hold on. “No. I’m not leaving. I won’t. It was a mistake to run away before. I won’t do it again.”

Wraith pulled off his hard hat and ran his fingers through his thick hair. “Caroline, it’s okay. I understand.”

“But you don’t. I met a man unlike anyone else. He stepped right out of my fantasies. But he was real.”

“Fantasies and real life are very different.”

“Could you forgive me for panicking? Please.” Caroline begged.

Wraith took a half step back, and Caroline moved with him. She wouldn’t let him get away without a fight.

“Okay, Caroline. I forgive you. Is that what you need to hear?”

“No. I need you to call me Precious. To hug me. Maybe spank my bottom for how I acted. I need you to not just say the words. I need you to mean them.”

He closed his eyes for several seconds before reopening them to stare back down at her. Shaking his head as if rebuking himself, Wraith wrapped his hands around her waist and asked, “What scared you?”

“The Enforcer thing. I’ve never known anyone who exists to be violent.”

“You’ve watched too many movies. I don’t go around beating people up or worse. An Enforcer’s job contains muscle, but most of it is using this muscle,” Wraith pointed to his head. “I handle disputes between members and make sure everyone is following the rules.”

“So, you’re like a police officer.”

“I guess you could look at it that way if you’d rather. I’m not going to lie to you. The Devil Daddies will use force if it’s warranted without a second thought.”

She swallowed hard and forced herself to ask, “Does that include you?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t explain. Caroline understood he wouldn’t. “I guess what’s really important is…. Do you still care about me, Wraith, or did I ruin everything?”

Wraith studied her face. Was he debating how he felt or trying to figure out if he could trust her?

He lifted a hand and cupped her jaw, threading his fingers through her hair. Seconds ticked by, as she waited for him to decide. When he shook his head, she inhaled sharply and expected the worst.

“Damn, I’ve missed you.”

The tears she’d worked so hard to hold back poured down her cheeks. “I’ve missed you too.”

“We don’t do this again, Precious. Don’t leave me without giving us time to talk things over.”

“I won’t run away. I knew I was stupid before I reached the car.”

“Don’t call yourself stupid, Little girl,” he told her as he wiped her tears from her cheeks with calloused hands.

“Wraith? You done? We need you over here.” A voice yelled from the end of the aisle.

“Fuck off, Fury,” Wraith answered without glancing away from her.

“I’ll find Vex to help,” the biker called back.

“I don’t want to get you in trouble,” Caroline whispered.

“You won’t. Vex will handle it until I show up. I’ve got something urgent going on now. It’s going to take a while. Can you wait for me?”

“Definitely. Shall I go back to the bar?” she asked.

“If anyone bothers you, tell them Wraith said Code Pink.”

“Code Pink,” she repeated so she wouldn’t forget it. Caroline hesitated for a split second before daring to ask, “Could you kiss me?”

Wraith claimed her lips with a soft, sweet kiss. It didn’t contain the heat she craved but soothed her heart. He cared about her.

Smiling, Caroline released his shirt. She’d hold on later. “Thank you for giving me another chance.”

“Go wash your face, Little girl. No more tears. I’ll be there soon,” he promised.

After retracing her steps, Caroline handed the hard hat back to the men at the door with her thanks. They didn’t ask her questions, but she could tell they’d spotted her blotchy face. She smiled to reassure them everything was okay before returning to Inferno.

“I didn’t get a call to escort you off the grounds,” Scythe greeted her as she practically skipped inside. He rose from his lean against the wall.

“No. I’m going to wait for Wraith in the bar,” Caroline told him, unsure what to say. “Thank you for helping me.”

“Call if you need something. I’m around.”

The handsome biker strode away without another word. Guessing she must have passed some test with him, Caroline headed to the bathroom to erase the tear marks from her face. She wanted to look her best for Wraith.