by Debra Kayn
Relief flooded through her. She'd dwindled down her personal account to practically nothing, and since Robert's death, she had no access to his money or the profits from Meghoni. "Thank you."
"I'm happy to share the news." Mr. Kraum cleared his throat. "I'll send you a text the moment the funds are available to you."
She nodded. "Thank you, and if you talk with Will's attorney, please pass on my thanks and appreciation to Will."
"I'll do that. Talk to you soon."
"Bye." She disconnected the call and gazed up at Remmy.
Her thoughts whirled. The news was better than she expected.
"Everything okay?" Remmy asked.
"Amazingly enough, yes." She shook her head and grasped what just happened. "Will backed down from his threats. Meghoni Mine's going to stay open, the employees are currently covered under the terms of their contract, and I will have money coming in again."
Remmy cupped the back of her head and leaned in close. "That's what you wanted, right?"
"It's more than I'd hoped for." She gazed up at him. "Mr. Kraum said Will didn't show up for the meeting."
"He probably got smart. This affects his income too," he said.
She frowned. After what Will said yesterday, she found that hard to believe. "I think I should call him personally to thank him. Maybe find out if he's okay. For him to give up on the truth means he's accepting what the police have stated, and knowing him he's probably grieving."
"Not right now, Nat. Give him some time."
She sighed and whispered. "I hate that he'll never know Robert never...you know."
"Yeah." He gazed around the room at the others. "Let's go for a walk, huh?"
Outside the back door, Remmy held her hand, taking her in the direction of Kurt's house nestled into the side of the Bitterroot Mountains. She followed along the gravel path that slightly inclined. She'd never come out this way and took the time to check out the area while she walked.
Kurt and Risa's two-story house, all wood timbers and steep metal roofing blended into the pine and tamarack trees. The elegant long windows at the front of the house mirrored the sun going down over the mountain peak. There were no personal touches on the outside, except for an old porcelain bathtub filled with wildflowers sitting out in what she'd call a yard, but was just a bare spot in the forest.
"It's beautiful here," she said, keeping up with Remmy's longer steps.
"I always thought nothing could beat living next to the Columbia River in Pitnam, until I came here. These mountains remind you that you're alive and you have more to do in life. Every day changes, and every night, I'm looking forward to tomorrow." Remmy pointed up again. "Are you up to following the trail about three hundred more feet?"
Her legs, already tired, argued with her, but she wanted to keep going. "Sure."
They walked in silence. Natalie gazed at the ground, watching her step. The gravel bigger and thicker farther away from the clubhouse made the walk more challenging.
At the top of the rise, Remmy circled her around and pointed across the valley to the other hillside. "Look over in that clearing."
She studied the spot in the landscape, and could only see the shrubs and fallen log that filled the bare spot. "What am I—oh!"
An elk stepped out from behind a tree, its nose to the ground. She held her hand up to keep the glare from the sun out of her eyes. Slowly three more elk wandered out from hiding and went about looking for food.
"They often wander up to the clubhouse as they pass through, jumping the six foot Cycle fence as if it's only a speedbump, but they hang around that spot right there. This spring, two of the elk had babies," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind.
She leaned into him. "Where are the babies now?"
"They're up there somewhere. The mommas don't wander too far out of the woods yet, because they don't want anything to happen to the little ones."
"Like human moms," she whispered.
She'd had elk back at her home in Montana, but she'd never taken the time to learn their behavior. She relaxed in Remmy's embrace. "It's amazing how they survive."
Remmy kissed her neck. "You amaze me, lady."
"More like frustrate you and try your patience." She laughed softly. "This has been a wild ride, baby."
His chest rumbled with amusement. "Stick around, lady. It's all going to get better."
She turned in his arms and gazed up at him. "With Will freeing up the profits, I'm free to get my own place. I don't even need to stay in Federal."
"You've set up your self-defense classes here," he said, frowning.
She shrugged. "I've taught one class, flaked on last week's class. The girls...I'm sure they only joined the classes because they were trying to help me out."
"Bull shit," he said. "The Silver Girls want to learn how to defend themselves. All women should have the skills to protect themselves if they don't have someone around to watch their back. I can take the idea of the class being mandatory for Bantorus women to the next club meeting."
She kissed him softly. "That's not necessary."
"I think it is." He smoothed the hair out of her face. "I don't want you going anywhere."
"Maybe it's the best choice. It'll give me time to sort everything out, and get back on my feet," she said.
"You're not leaving me," he whispered.
"Never." She paused to collect her thoughts. "My moving somewhere else wouldn't mean I'm walking away from you. We could still see each other, but it'd give us time to take things slower and separate the drama from our lives, and concentrate on us."
"Listen to me." He framed her face with his hands. "Your shit makes you who you are. Whether it's today or five years from now, you'll still have your experiences that came before we met. You'll know the truth I put in your heart. You'll have our time together. It doesn't matter if you're thirty miles away in Montana. It'll always be us. Inside and outside of what is happening in both of our lives, this right here, is real, lady. You, standing on a mountain, gawking at a few elk, me with my hands on you, letting you know I'm not going to let you walk away from me to get your head on straight. Why? Because the other night, you told me that I was in your head and your heart, and when a woman tells me I belong in her, I'm not leaving."
There was nothing she could say about their relationship that he wouldn't refute, and she'd agree with him. Vulnerable and scared, she was also hopeful. This time, she was going to allow herself to reach for her dreams.
He'd seen her at her worst, listened to confessions that were hard to put into words, and learned of her regrets. She stroked his face, amazed that someone who lived hard and fast stopped long enough to take an interest in her. She smiled from the happiness he created for her, and fell more in love with him.
"Okay, baby. I'll stay." She tilted her head back and looked up at the sky, unable to believe something good came out of the heartbreak she'd gone through. "If you ever feel like the drama I bring into your life is too much, you're going to break my heart.
He tilted her head, until she looked into his eyes. "It's not drama, its life. You're finally living it, and you're strong. A survivor."
"Sometimes, I don't feel very strong," she whispered.
His eyes softened, his mouth curved, and his hand on the back of her neck remained firm and steady. "Lady, that's why I'm here."
His boastful claim would've been cute, if it wasn't real. He'd proven repeatedly that he'd take care of her if she needed and knew when to step back to let her take control.
She kissed him softly, lingering longer to taste his lips. "Thank you."
"Stop—"
"I know." She laughed, and the sound of her own pleasure pleased her. Things were changing for the positive, and she was ready.
Remmy's hands lowered, cupped her ass, and tugged her tight against him. A calm that she hadn't experienced in a while flooded her and let the excitement through. She slid her arms around his neck. The peace and quiet of their surroundin
gs, the beauty of nature, and the good news gave her an idea.
"Fuck me, baby." She nibbled the sharp angel of his chin. "Right here."
His lips brushed hers as he hooked his thumbs into the waistband of her shorts, yanking them off her hips. She wiggled, helping him remove the material, along with her panties. She toed her shoes, kicking them off, until her bottom half was naked.
She fingered his buckle, fumbling with the clasp. "Shit, my hands are shaking."
Without taking his eyes off her, he pushed her hands away, and made quick work of removing his belt, his pistol, and undoing the buttons on his jeans. Everything about him was hard. Hard shoulders, hard chest—she gazed down—hard cock.
His hardness extended below a hard stomach, beautiful and proud. She stepped closer. He kept her vibrating for everything he offered.
Solid, committed, and strong. He was her ideal man
Overcome with emotions, she cleared the space between them and jumped up into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. A grunt of pain came from him, and her world tilted. Cushioned by the fall, she landed hard on top Remmy, and stared down into his tight face. She planted her hands on his chest and screamed his name. There was no movement, no air coming from his mouth.
"Baby," she said, running her hands over his body, trying to understand what was wrong. Had he hit his head on a rock when she knocked him down? Landed on a stick?
Air gushed out of him in a rush and he groaned. "I'm okay."
She scrambled off him and kneeled at his side. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." His jaw hardened and he pushed himself to a sitting position. "How about we continue this back in our room?"
She nodded, standing and putting on her shorts, slipped on her shoes. "I'm sorry. I thought you knew I was going to jump."
"I did." He cussed under his breath, hiking up his jeans. "Must've tripped."
His breath came in pants and he moved stiffly to fasten his belt. When he bent over to pick up his pistol, he grabbed his side in pain. She rushed to him. He wasn't fine. He was hurt.
Lifting up his T-shirt, she saw the bruise along his ribs before he stepped away and tugged down his shirt. She stared at him in horror. "What happened?"
"Nothing," he said. "Drop it."
She jolted. "Does this have to do with you getting to the room late last night?"
His gaze snapped to hers. "Club business."
"Right, because manufacturing guns kicks your ass," she said, not hiding the sarcasm.
"Nothing kicks my ass," he muttered.
"Isn't it my business to know that you're hurt and that you came home late and slipped into bed without waking me up?" she asked. "You always wake me up."
He tucked his pistol into the back of his jeans and looked at her. She stayed her ground. Something was up, and she wanted to know what was going on. A relationship went two ways. He'd been there for her, and now she could be there for him.
"I had business to take care of last night, and things got out of hand. I let my emotions take over and opened myself up to a sucker punch. That's all. Shit happens. I move on," he said.
"Someone in Federal fought with you?" She approached him. "Or did you get in the ring with Kurt?"
He tagged her neck. "No, lady. There's nothing for you to worry about any more. Business needed to be done, and it's over."
So, whatever he was doing had to do with whether or not she worried or not? Her chest squeezed the air out of her lungs. "Oh, my God. You're the reason Will didn't show up for the meeting."
He met her comment with silence. She stared up at him in disbelief. "What did you do to him?" she asked, afraid of the answer. "Did you kill him?"
"No." His deadpan expression gave nothing away.
"Then why didn't he show up for the meeting?"
He ran his tongue over his teeth. "Bantorus MC asked him to stay home and concede to your wishes. He fulfilled our request."
"Did you hurt him?" she asked, pressing her hand to her forehead.
Remmy moved away from her and looked out over the land. Her heart squeezed. Violence and threats belonged on television and in movies, not in her life. She certainly didn't want Remmy hurting someone who she still claimed as part of her family, even though she was disappointed in Will's actions lately, he was a part of her whole adult life.
"Remmy, answer me. Did you hurt Will?"
"Do you trust me?" He turned around, keeping his distance.
She held up the palms of her hands at a loss on how to explain. "Before tonight, yes, but you're not giving me much to go on right now."
"Do you trust that I'd do anything to make sure you remain safe and protect?"
Her heart raced. "Yes."
"Good answer." He stayed away from her and said, "I approached Will to talk about backing down from you. He threw the first punch, because he's got his own demons on his back. I understand that. A man loses his two brothers, picks up a campaign to clear their names, and comes up against a brick wall is living with a lot of anger. I gave him what he needed, an excuse to wear off some of his anger. Then, I let him know without any doubt, that I would not stand back and let him ruin your life, or the lives in Federal by his need to punish someone for the travesty that happened last summer."
"You let him beat on you, because you owed him," she whispered.
He dipped his chin in acknowledgment. "He's dropping his threats against you."
"He agreed?" she asked.
"He got the point I was making last night."
She shook her head and walked a few steps away. "When will it end?"
"It's over."
She whipped her gaze to him. "No. It'll never be over, because not only do I have to live with the fact that for almost a year, I believed Robert guilty of a crime he didn't commit, I also have to keep the secret that would heal Will. Now you've physically beat down on Will, and I'm left feeling guilty because you did that for me. So, no, it'll never be over."
Remmy held out his hand. She shook her head and backed away. "I need a few minutes to myself."
"Why?"
"Because I can't think when you're around." She walked away without giving him a chance to change her mind. Her gaze on the gravel path, she kept going. She was in over her head, and she had no idea how to stop the insanity before another person got hurt because of her.
Chapter Twenty Two
Natalie pushed through the back door of the club in her hurry to escape Remmy. He, twenty paces behind her, stopped outside the door at the sight of Ink taking the steps to the front entrance two at a time.
"Hey," he called. "What's up?"
Ink lifted his gaze, spotted him, and jogged around the side of the building to the back. "Nothing." Ink looked all around the area. "Everything okay here?"
Pink lipstick lined a hickey on Ink's neck. Remmy eyed his brother. After they'd returned from visiting Will last night, Ink had gone over to the cabin to visit the Silver Girls.
"Which one did that?" he asked.
Ink laughed. "Did what?"
"Right." Remmy smiled in understanding.
Ink enjoyed the opposite sex the way Remmy had in the past. Nothing with two legs and pussy went without notice.
"She's a damn hickey licker, man." Ink sighed, rolling his shoulders.
Remmy slapped him on the back, and grabbed his side, shaking his head when Ink fisted his hand to punch him. "Fuck, not tonight, bro. I've already been sucking wind all day. I think I broke a God damn rib last night."
"Suck it up, old man." Ink opened the door. "Next thing you know, you'll be holding down the club when we go on runs."
"Fuck you," he said.
Ink laughed, hopping out of reach. Remmy walked inside, hoping Natalie had a chance to calm down. If not, he'd make sure she came around in the comfort of his bed. He looked into the main room, acknowledged Kurt, and took the stairs. The last thing he wanted to do was spend the rest of the night downstairs with the guys when all he wanted to do was settle himself between
Natalie's legs and bring her back around to smiling at him again.
He walked into the room and found her standing in front of the window. He closed the door, steeling himself for attitude.
"Did you know you can see the cabin from this window?" she asked.
He walked over and stood behind her. This close to her, he wanted her in his arms, but he forced himself not to touch her. "Yep. Stood here many nights when I couldn’t sleep."
He had no idea what she was pointing out. From the tone of her voice, she still hadn't forgiven him for his late night visit with Will.
"I hate violence," she whispered. "I teach women never to accept the position of being on the receiving end of another person's hands, but in the same breath, I show them ways to defend themselves that will hurt someone. I've had many times when that fact bothered me, but I justified my reasons, because women need the confidence and skills to stand up for themselves. What you did violated my decision on how I'd deal with Will. You were aware of how I chose to handle him. You stepped over the line."
"Bantorus takes care of their own," he said.
"In this room, you're Remmy. I'm Natalie," she replied.
He clenched his teeth. "I bleed Bantorus. You take that part away from me and I don't have anything."
"You'd have me," she whispered without turning around.
The desire to explain to her his commitment to the MC seemed a monumental task, one that he was too uneducated to teach to a lady. He walked backward and sat on the edge of the bed, bracing his elbows on his knees. It wasn't his busted rib making it hard to breathe; it was the thought of losing her.
"I want you," he confessed.
She walked over and sat beside him, gathered his hand and held it in her lap. "You want what you can control. From day one, I let you support me. I allowed you to guide me with your advice, your knowledge, and your experience. Half the time, I don't know what I'm doing. I welcomed the roles we stepped into, because that's what I needed, and I'm grateful for what you've done. Every morning I wake up and you're beside me, and I love that. I can't imagine not sleeping with you, but I have my limits. I held anger inside of me against Robert for so long, and—she shook her head—I can't explain what that does to a person. It eats me up inside."