by Sophia Gray
The meeting room was packed, and I quickly introduced Victoria to everyone. She seemed a little stiff and uptight, and I guessed I couldn’t blame her. A few of the guys looked at her like wolves about to take a snack.
I turned to her once everyone calmed down from the introduction. “Are you sure you don’t know anything, anything at all, that’ll help us find out what happened to Trenton? And to Sage?”
“I won’t hold back anything,” she said coolly. “I don’t know where she is. That’s why I went to his place, to Trenton’s. I was hoping I might find him or find out something from one of his neighbors.”
“Did you?”
“No. No one else has seen him. It’s like they just disappeared.” She bit her lower lip.
We all got into a big discussion as to who saw Trenton last and where and tried to come up with a game plan. Did I mention the drugs? No. Not yet. I wanted to keep Victoria safe. She was doing her best for her daughter, and I respected that, but I wanted to also keep her memory of her daughter untarnished. I didn’t know if Sage was involved with the drugs or not, and until I knew for certain, I didn’t want Victoria to freak out. Drugs meant money. Lots of money. And money meant guns. And danger. And murder. We might be looking for Trenton and Sage, but we might find their bodies instead.
We grabbed pizza from the bar to eat for dinner, and I sent a few guys out to chase down some possibilities.
Victoria yawning caught my attention. She stayed close to my side the entire time, but not too close.
“Tired?” I asked her.
She shook her head. “I’m too worried to be—” Another yawn cut her off.
I smirked. “It’s all right to be tired.”
“I should be out there, searching,” she murmured. “If I’m not working, I should be searching.”
She hadn’t eaten much. She’d been texting on her phone, and I assumed it either had to do with details for her restaurant or about trying to chase down some of her own leads, on Sage’s end of it.
I grabbed another slice and put it on her plate. “Eat.”
“I’m not—”
“You can’t stop living. You can’t survive on fear. Eat. Sleep. You need energy to keep up.”
She glowered at me, but she did take a bite.
“Good. Once you’ve finished eating, you’ll come with me to my loft.”
Victoria had lifted the pizza to her mouth, but she lowered it without taking another bite. “To your loft? No. I don’t think so. I have my own place—”
“Victoria, your daughter has disappeared, and we don’t know why. The circumstances, well, they might not be good ones.”
“Because of Trenton being in your motorcycle club?” she asked, eyes flashing.
“Because of Trenton being Trenton,” I said sharply.
She grunted, and I fought back a grin. Sage might not be her blood, but she treated her like she was. That was how I was with my crew. I understood exactly where she was coming from.
“A kidnapping is serious. I don’t know if that’s what happened here, but we have to take precautions, don’t you agree?” I asked. Victoria was rational. I’d appeal to her rational side.
And once we learned what happened to the couple, I would love the chance to appeal to her wild side in the bedroom, if she’d let me.
“Yes,” she said begrudgingly.
“You can’t stay here.” There was a cot in my office, but that was only for me and only in emergencies. “And you won’t be safe at home.”
“But your loft will be safe?” she countered.
“Safer than your place.”
“What if you came over?” Her cheeks flushed.
“I could, but I think my loft is a better option. I’ll keep you safe. I swear.”
It was obvious she didn’t want to, and I understood that. I was a stranger, and I had whisked her away from the lead she was tracking down, hadn’t given her enough hope that we’d find her daughter, and now I was telling her it wasn’t safe for her to go home, that she should come to my place. If I were her, I’d be doubting whether or not to come, too.
“Call a girlfriend,” I urged. “Let her know where you’re going. I swear I don’t have a secret motive here.”
Maybe that was the truth. Maybe that was a lie. I honestly wasn’t sure.
She nodded and proceeded to call someone named Alice and made it clear she was going with me back to my place and she wanted someone to know in case anything happened. Her cheeks turned an even darker shade of pink, and I wished I could hear what Alice said back to her. If I had to guess, it was something about not wanting to know details, or something along those lines.
Victoria ate that slice and a second one, and I ate another myself. Maybe she was stalling. Or maybe she hadn’t been taking care of herself since Sage went missing and she was really hungry. I didn’t say anything when she reached for a third—albeit tiny—slice.
But once she finished it, she wiped her hands on a napkin and threw away her trash. “All right. I’m ready to go.”
“Good.” I put a hand to the small of her back and led her outside. She hesitated, glancing from my bike to her car.
“I’ll follow you.”
I nodded, but inwardly, I was smiling. Once everything was good and right in the world, I’d find a way to get her on the back of my bike. She’d hold on tight, and it would be the ride of her life.
I’d make sure of it.
Chapter 4
Victoria
I followed closely behind Grant. I had to admit he knew how to control his bike. He wasn’t one of those wild and reckless daredevils, though there were times when he would smirk or smile that he would get this glint in his eyes, and I knew he could be a daredevil if he wanted to be.
It didn’t take us long to reach his loft, about ten minutes. It was a nice-looking place, a little more upscale than I would’ve thought. I didn’t know what to think about Grant. I was determined to find Sage no matter the cost, even if it meant involving myself with the leader of Devil’s Horns. It just seemed so ironic, though. I had been trying to get Sage away from the motorcycle club.
What kind of a man was Grant? He seemed controlling and dominating, but he also didn’t seem to be overly so. His men respected him. They listened to him. They wanted to find Trenton as badly as I wanted to find Sage.
And that was my concern. They didn’t want to find Sage. That wasn’t their main objective. And I understood that. I didn’t blame them for feeling that way. I wasn’t worried about finding Trenton myself. I just wanted my girl back. I wanted her to be safe and happy. If something terrible had happened to her, if she were hurt, I’d never forgive myself.
I turned off my car and reached for the door handle, but Grant already opened the door. He held out his hand, but I ignored it and climbed out without his assistance. I wasn’t sure what to think about him, and it bothered me to realize I was attracted to the man. Now wasn’t the time or the place. A tragic situation—that hopefully would have a simple and easy ending—had brought us together. Adding anything else to the mix wasn’t smart.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spied his crooked smile. I didn’t need his help getting out of a car. I didn’t want to have to stay at his place. What if Sage had been kidnapped? What if her disappearance was unrelated to Trenton’s? I realized that wasn’t likely, but what if she got away? Her first instinct would be to return home. How would she feel if she went home to find me gone?
The thought that my home might not be safe for her or for me left a bad taste in my mouth. I swallowed hard as Grant unlocked the front door.
He held the door open for me and gestured for me to go to the right. I entered the clean and polished kitchen and took a seat at the island.
“Want a drink?” he asked as he opened the fridge.
“Yes, please.” God, I could use one. Or five.
He grabbed two beers, opened one, and handed it to me. Our fingers brushed as I took it, and the warmth of his skin felt almos
t too hot. Our gazes met, and he gave me a grim smile. He was anxious and worried, too, but he was trying to hide it. Why? For my sake? Or because he wasn’t used to feeling anxious and worried?
Grant pulled out and sat on the stool next to mine. His leg pressed against mine, and I took several quick swallows of my beer. “We’ll find them.”
I knocked my beer bottle against his. “I’ll drink to that.”
We both drank, and silence fell over us. Again, my thoughts started to churn. My being here felt so wrong. I had no clothes but what I was wearing. Yes, I had made arrangements with Heather Franklin to keep the restaurant up and running with strict orders to not bother me unless it was an absolute emergency, but I felt like I was pausing my life to find Sage. Which was fine. I had no problems with that.
But sitting here, drinking a beer, feeling the power from his leg as it was pressed against mine, it felt so wrong.
I drank from my beer only to discover it was empty.
“Want another?” Grant asked, already getting up.
“Sure. Thanks.”
He got out another two and opened them. After he reclaimed his seat—I swear he was sitting a little closer to me now—he said, “Tell me about Sage.”
So I told him. I told him about her appearance, about her kind heart and how she kind of always seemed to be at war with herself. How she wanted to be independent but knew she wasn’t ready for that yet. How she could be frustrating and even infuriating at times. How she could be kind and considerate.
It wasn’t until I had two more beers that I added how she should find someone better than Trenton.
“Why is that?” he asked, his tone suddenly cool.
“He’s not good for her.”
“Why do you say that?” He had turned toward me to look at me as we talked, but now he shifted to face forward, his jaw tight, his back rigid.
“You aren’t Trenton,” I blurted out.
Grant tilted his head, his cocky grin making a reappearance. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Trenton’s bad news.” I winced. “I’m sorry. He’s yours. He’s one of yours. He’s…I just don’t think he’s right for Sage. You know?” I was rambling. Beer always made me ramble.
“If I’m not Trenton, and he’s bad news, does that make me good news?” His gaze shifted downward to focus on my lips.
I refrained from licking them. Somehow. “I’m not sure yet.”
He leaned closer, close enough for me to be able to see the flecks of gold in his eyes. “Do you want to find out?”
Yes.
No.
I didn’t know.
I reached for a beer bottle and knocked an empty one over. “Sorry.” I glanced away to pick it up, and when I turned back to Grant, the moment was gone. Which was probably a good thing. This man was fine. Incredibly fine. And I couldn’t have a distraction. Too much was at stake.
Later on, though, once Sage was found, that would be a different story.
“I understand,” he said quietly.
Did he, though? Did he understand that when he touched and squeezed my shoulder, it sent a shot straight through me? That I was afraid it wasn’t just him that I was responding to, but that I would be feeling and reacting this way to any guy since it had been so long since I had been involved with one? Did he agree that now wasn’t the time? Was he one of those guys who screwed women and tossed them aside when he was bored of them? Honestly, I might have done that once or twice to a guy. A long-term relationship hadn’t been something I needed when I had been climbing the ladder to restaurant ownership, but now that I had accomplished my business goals, why couldn’t I find myself a guy if the right guy came along?
Once Sage was found, of course.
And the right guy couldn’t possibly be from a motorcycle club.
So maybe one more throwaway guy was in the cards.
But as I stared at him, at his deep eyes, his strong lines, his bulging muscles, I knew he wouldn’t be the kind of guy to settle for being a throwaway. He was the kind of guy to be the one to throwaway instead.
Slowly, his lips curled into a teasing smile. “I wouldn’t mind if you took a picture.”
I felt my cheeks flush. “I was just thinking that you’re dirty. I mean, I’m dirty. Not like that. I mean…a shower. Do you have a shower? Of course you do. Can I use it?”
“Dirty body or dirty mind?” he asked, a wicked twinkle in his eyes.
Like a fool, I just gave him a slight smile back. I did not want to keep talking and continue to make a fool of myself. What the heck was going on with me? Four beers was less than my limit, so it shouldn’t be the alcohol. Had to be stress. And Grant was a hot guy. I was out of practice talking to one who made me feel all jittery inside. Some of the guys I interacted with at the restaurant were hot, but I didn’t view them as dating material.
So was I viewing Grant that way?
Cool it, hormones.
Grant polished off the last of his beer. “I’ll grab you a towel. Follow me.” He led me down the hallway to a closet. After he removed a towel, he jerked his head to the right. “This way. Once you get out, I can give you a tour of the place. It’s not huge, but it’s got what I need.”
What do you need? was on the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed it. There was no way a man who looked like he did—a god of sorts with his muscles, that perfect hair for running fingers through, those lips that begged to be kissed—would not take that question sexually.
“Use my shampoo, my soap. Whatever you need.” He opened a door in the long hallway that revealed a rather impressive bathroom. Its cleanliness struck me immediately. Did he not bring a lot of women here? Or maybe he hired a cleaning service. I didn’t think Grant was the kind to get his hands dirty. Not with cleaning at least.
“Thank you.”
He handed me the towel, and I made sure our fingers didn’t touch. His smirk left me wondering if he realized I did that intentionally. I had to get him out of my mind. I needed to focus on Sage and finding her.
We’ll find her soon.
I hoped.
I stripped and adjusted the water to my liking before stepping in. The shower was huge, definitely large enough to fit two people. There was room enough for people to wash each other, to suds up their bodies, making them all slick and wet and clean. There was room enough for sex in a few positions. Leg up in the air, from behind, facing each other, maybe sitting on the ledge, too.
As I washed up, I found myself daydreaming I weren’t alone, that Grant was here, and I almost felt ashamed for it. It was obvious he was attracted to me, too, but the timing was so wrong, and besides, it would never last anyhow. Our worlds were too different.
Didn’t mean we couldn’t have a romp or two.
No. Not now. Not until Sage and Trenton are found.
Still, I was wet between my legs when I climbed out of the shower. I glanced at my pile of clothes and grimaced. I really didn’t want to have to put them back on. Maybe Grant had a shirt I could borrow. A long shirt.
I dried my body and wrapped myself in the towel. Maybe this would only make things worse. The sexual tension between us had started back at his headquarters, but it had only increased since we were in such close quarters.
The moment I exited the bathroom, I collided with Grant. His strong arms wrapped around me, to keep me from falling, but then he didn’t let me go. His penetrating gaze shot straight through me, and I grew even wetter. My gaze shifted from his eyes to his lips, and I barely had time to close my eyes before he pressed them to mine.
The kiss started out innocently enough, but when I wrapped my arms around his neck to draw him closer, he pressed against my back so there was no space between us but his clothes and my towel. My tongue pushed against his lips, and he parted them, and our tongues dueled as the kiss heated up.
Before we could go any further, because that was definitely where that kind of a kiss was heading, his phone vibrated.
Grant broke off the kiss. “Damn
it,” he growled. He didn’t step back as he grabbed his phone out of his pocket, one hand still on my back.
I reveled in the feel of the length of his hard body against mine, but I tried to damper down my excitement. We needed to focus on Sage and Trenton, not each other. It was for the best that we had been interrupted.
My hormones sure disagreed, though.