As he opened the door and waited for her to enter, he thought of something to say, something that would redirect her attention because he didn’t want to admit when he bought the house. He wanted to leave the past in the past and didn’t want her knowing anything that could make her feel guiltier than she did already.
“Wow.”
He closed and locked the door then looked at her, taking everything in. The room was large and mostly empty, so it made everything look bigger. To their left, a living room with an old brick fireplace he’d refinished. Two large bay windows at each side of the front door. The den at the far end of the house had wall-to-wall built-in shelving. In the middle of that room sat a couch.
To their right, the dining room. Behind it, the kitchen: dark cabinets, white and gray marble countertops that matched the concrete countertop on the massive island and breakfast bar. The back of the house had floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors.
Between the den and living room, a hallway led to the bedrooms. Off the kitchen and dining room, a door led to the two-car garage and laundry room.
Grabbing her hand, he pulled her toward the hallway and walked until he reached the room before the master. “I thought this could be Bree’s room.” He painted the walls pink just weeks ago when Bree told him it was her favorite color.
“You painted it already?”
He looked down at her and smiled. “Yeah. She needs furniture though and blankets and…” He shrugged. “…Guess more toys to fill this room up.”
Before she said another word, he tugged on her arm, leading her farther down the hall and into the master. An inflatable mattress lay in the center of the room. Aside from that, it was empty.
“It’s—”
“Mostly empty now, but we got time before we can move anyway. You can pick out whatever you want, decorate it however you want. Just try not to make it too girlie, yeah?”
Her gaze swept the large room then met his. “The club’s clean?”
Right, so it was time to tell her everything the club did. “Remember I went away a while back?”
She released his hand, wrapped her arms around her waist, and nodded.
“I had a guard outta town. That’s what we call them, what we do, ‘guards,’ short for bodyguards. We get paid good money for that ’cause people pay a lot for safety and ’cause we include…extras.”
Her eyes went round. “Like?”
“Rough people up.”
She didn’t even flinch. Then again, he hadn’t expected her to. She’d been with him when the club was into running drugs and guns, and before that, she lived with Chip whose club was involved in much of the same. She’d seen worse.
“Like enforcers?”
He shrugged. “Guess it’s something like that.”
“That’s not legal.”
“No.”
“So technically—”
“We’re not gonna get in trouble. We’re good at what we do. Besides, the people we rough up are on the wrong side of the law.”
She swallowed. “Who pays for something like that?”
“People who’re loaded and need protection.”
“Like?”
“Like Tiff.”
Her lips parted. “Cuss’s Tiff?”
“Yeah, Cuss’s old lady. Her family’s loaded. She was in college in LA and got unwanted attention from a sick loser who’d follow her around and break into her apartment. Her dad paid the club to deal with him.”
She quirked a brow. “So, you dealt with him?”
“I didn’t. Cuss, Mellow, and Bud did.”
She nodded. “Is that how they met?”
He shook his head. “Naw. They go way back, went to high school together from what I heard.”
“When you went away—”
He grabbed her arm, tugged it away from her waist, and trailed his hand down her forearm to lace his fingers through hers. “Some dick wouldn’t leave his ex-girlfriend alone. Her new man has money and paid us to teach him a lesson.”
“How do you know she didn’t want him—”
“We check to make sure. We talked to the girl. She was terrified, and cops couldn’t or wouldn’t do anything. We get that with situations like that, there’s not much cops can do but write a report, not until something bigger and worse happens. We make sure it doesn’t get to that.”
He shrugged. “We’re hardly ever asked to rough people up anyway. Mostly just scare them enough they don’t think about doing it again.”
“So you basically deal with stalkers?”
He squeezed her hand. “No, we deal with all sorts of fucked up people. Not what you’re thinking though. We don’t get involved with gangs or the mafia or dealers, they handle their own shit ’cause their enemies found out they couldn’t, they wouldn’t last much longer. Most of the time, we’re just providing protection for a short time. For the right price, we provide extras. We work for who we want meaning we don’t feel right about someone, we turn them down.”
“But you could get hurt—”
He moved closer and cupped her cheek. “You worried ‘bout me?”
She rested a hand on his chest then on an exhale admitted, “Always.”
He grinned.
She released his hand to wind both arms around his waist tightly. “Bay windows. You remembered I like them?”
He nodded. All those years ago, those windows had been the reason he bought the house. They were also the reason after she left him, he couldn’t live in it. Those windows reminded him of her, and he couldn’t bring himself to remove them or sell the house, so he rented it.
“I can’t believe you found a house so soon. When did you start looking? When did you buy it?”
Drawing away, he grabbed her hand and led her to the en suite bathroom. “Big shower, a big tub for your baths.” Then he led her to the closet. “Don’t think either of us will ever fill this, but we can try.”
“Bryce?”
Having no choice, he met her gaze.
“When did you start looking?”
He turned. “Let me show you the backyard, lots of room.”
She tugged on his hand before he took another step. He stilled and faced her but didn’t meet her eyes.
“What aren’t you telling me?”
There it was. That ability she had, reading him so easily. It seemed she got it back. Too bad it failed her all those years ago. He wished it failed her now instead of then. He didn’t want to get into this, not now, not ever. They kept going over the past, they’d never move forward. He wanted her to know he never cheated, never hurt her, but he didn’t want her to know this. It’d only wound her.
“Look at me.”
He did. He knew the moment she figured it out.
Her face changed, a sadness taking hold. “You…bought it before?”
He couldn’t bring himself to say it, so he didn’t.
“Tell me.” She shut her eyes and whispered, “Please, tell me.”
He lifted her hand to her face and rubbed the band he placed on her ring finger. “It doesn’t change this, so it doesn’t matter.”
“We’re starting over. I need to know.”
“For us to start over, you don’t need to know. You need to let shit go. Are you saying you need to know before you let shit go?”
She nodded.
He expelled a breath. “I closed on it a week before you left. I was going to tell you about it, and I would’ve. But at the time, I didn’t know when we would’ve been able to move in because I needed to make some big changes that were gonna have to wait a while.”
Her gaze fell from his as tears clouded her eyes.
He lifted her chin with his finger. “It isn’t your fault.” He shook his head. “I never told you I loved you, but I told you plenty of other shit, how I didn’t see myself getting married or having kids, how that wasn’t me. I knew you wanted that. So when you left, I kicked my own ass for not giving you that, for not telling you how I felt. I should’ve.”
He drew close until her body touched his. “We’ve both made mistakes. We both lost years. Now, we got us back, and we got Bree, so Em, we gotta leave the past in the past and start making up for the years we lost, yeah?”
She smiled at that. “Yeah.”
“I’ve never lived here. I’ve rented it out and fixed it up some over the years. When I found out about Bree, it was good timing ’cause the lease was up, and the tenants hadn’t renewed, so I’ve been coming and fixing some shit here and there, painting mostly. Except for Bree’s room, I painted everything white. Now you’re here, you can tell me what you like, and I’ll paint again.”
Her face softened. “I love you, Bryce.”
He felt the words in his soul, so he couldn’t do anything but stand there looking at her looking at him in that way he loved.
When he managed to move, he did what he’d been dying to do all day. He kissed her deep. The kiss led to other shit that led to other shit that led to him having the best orgasm of his life. It’d be the best until next time. He knew because it got better every time.
****
Her stomach growled. Not a surprise. She and Bryce thoroughly enjoyed their first night as husband and wife. While doing that, they’d skipped dinner.
Close to seven in the morning now, they didn’t have to pick up Bree until noon, but hunger woke her, and she couldn’t wait any longer. That, in itself, presented a problem, a big one. She didn’t think Bryce had stocked the fridge. Not to mention how much she really hated to get up, it was cold, and she was warm snuggled close to Bryce. Her chest pressed against his side, her leg swung over his, her hand resting on his abs.
Slowly, she moved away, first her hand then her leg, and finally, she shifted backward. He didn’t stir. She stared at him in sleep for a while, letting the past day flow through her, the best day of her life. A smile spread across her lips. Her stomach growled again loud enough that she thought it’d wake him. She strode out of the master bedroom, where they slept on an inflatable mattress, walked down the hall, through the den and living room until she reached the kitchen. Making her way to the fridge, she parted it. As feared, empty. She then looked inside the cabinets and found those empty too. Her gaze drifted across the kitchen landing on the breakfast bar. Her phone binged, the text message alert sounding. She went in search of it. It didn’t take her long to find it right where she left it last night, on the couch. Picking it up, she slid her finger across it and froze.
Got ur grl. U in xchange 4 her. U got a min to decide or she’s dead.
It took her less to make the decision. Not much of a decision, she’d give anything for Bree, even her own life.
Without further thought, she ran across the room to the door, unlocked it, and stepped out. A hand grasped her bicep tightly dragging her to her right. She didn’t get a chance to see anyone since a second later someone covered her head with a hood.
The heat of a body against her back, that someone’s mouth at her ear threatened, “Scream, deal’s off.”
Another man snickered. Then the person holding her yanked her forward. She went willingly. A short distance later, the man holding her arm tightly released her, and she felt an arm hook around her back and another under her knees. Whoever held her now lifted her and laid her down. Feeling the felt at her back, something slammed down. No doubt, they locked her in a trunk. Where they planned to take her didn’t matter. What did—Bree would be safe.
Knowing this, she tried to come to terms with the fact that the best day of her life would be followed by her last.
Chapter Nineteen
The warmth and scent of her gone, he cracked his eyes open and sat up on the inflatable mattress, wide awake.
Any minute she’d walk out of the bathroom. He waited until he lost patience. Annoyed, he groaned his frustration hoping to God she heard him and came before he dragged himself out of bed.
When she didn’t, that mild irritation turned to annoyance. He hated waking without her. He had the best day of his life yesterday, and he wanted that amazing day followed by one where he woke beside his wife.
Placing his feet on the floor, he stood and drew a hand through his face then searched the floor for his jeans. He found them near the door, his shirt missing since she’d worn it to bed. Pulling his jeans on, his gaze on her clothes beside his, he strode toward the bathroom, smiling with the thought when he found her he’d get to rant and rave, and she’d give him lip.
Finding the bathroom empty, he walked out of their bedroom and down the hall. “Em?” In the living room, he called, “Em?” When she didn’t answer a second time, he felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach.
He swallowed then searched the house, front to back, back to front. Everything was as they left it, not that there was much. The place was empty except for his keys, cell, and wallet on the breakfast bar, the couch in the den, and the inflatable mattress in the master bedroom, yet Em was nowhere, her cell gone too.
That sinking sensation deepened like he’d been dropped into the ocean with a ton of bricks tied to him, what people felt when they realized they were about to die, and there was nothing they could do to stop it. Most people never felt it because most people didn’t know when they’d die, and yet in one lifetime, he’d felt it twice. The first time—when she left.
Had she left him? Again?
A memory flashed before his eyes. Em saying her vows, her voice shaking as tears trekked down her face. He remembered something else—how tight she held him last night, how just before she drifted off she whispered, “Always loved you, Bryce. Always will.”
She hadn’t left. She wouldn’t take Bree from him because she loved him, had always loved him, and now, she knew he felt the same. Before he knew what he meant to do, he pressed his phone to his ear. He didn’t realize what number he’d dialed until he heard Trig’s voice.
“Rip, don’t tell me you’re coming this early. They didn’t get to bed ’till midnight.”
“Bree,” his voice came out hoarse.
“Sleep—”
“Check. Now.”
Silence. Then he heard movement. A moment later, “She’s sleeping, Rip.”
“She’s there?”
“Just checked on them. Bree and Della, they’re still sleeping. I just told you they didn’t get to bed ’till midnight.”
“She’s there,” he repeated.
“Yeah.” A pause. “What’s going on?”
If he hadn’t known Em hadn’t left, there was proof now. Meaning Em was taken from their home wearing just his tee while he slept. He knew who took her, and he knew why. His brothers wouldn’t help him. He knew who would, but he had to act fast. If they hadn’t killed her yet, they wouldn’t wait much longer. He didn’t let himself think about anything else.
“Get them to the compound. Don’t let them go outside,” he ordered.
“Why? What the fuck’s going on?”
“Don’t got time for this, Trig. Get your gun. Get Bree, Della, and Allie and take them to the compound.”
He hung up, tugged on his boots and his cut, grabbed his keys, phone, wallet, and headed for the door. There, he turned the knob. Unlocked. No doubt he’d locked it meaning Em had unlocked it, and there was only one reason she would.
Locking the door behind him, he ran to his bike, hopped on, and hauled ass to the compound. Once there, he dug his cell out of his pocket and dialed. He did this while he sprinted toward his room.
“Rip?” Chip sounded like he’d just woken.
“They got Em.”
“Fuck.”
One word so filled with emotion cut through Rip. No one else in the world except for Bree and him would feel it like Chip. This, he knew.
“How? Never mind, it’s not fuckin’ important. Where are you?”
“Just got to the compound.”
“Meet you there.”
He shook his head. “Naw, I’m alone on this. I’ll go to you.”
“Brothers don’t go at it alone.”
“’Cause of circumstances, we’re somewhere new.” Chip gave him the address, promised to text it as well then added, “Don’t need to tell you we don’t got much time.”
“No, you don’t. I’ll be there as fast as I can ride.”
He hung up and grabbed a black tee. Heading out of his room and down the hall, he took off his cut, donned the tee then pulled his cut over it. On his way, he ran into Trig, Allie, Della, and Bree. A look at his baby girl, a rush of raw emotion choked him.
Since realizing Em had been taken, he hadn’t let himself think she could already be dead. He wanted her alive. It was selfish. A gang like the Falcons didn’t have limits on how far they’d go, and there were things far worse than death. Being tortured, beaten, and raped so savagely she’d beg for death. He hadn’t let himself think on that either. But now, for the first time, staring at Bree, he failed. He couldn’t help but go there, images of Em dead, beaten, tortured, raped seared his mind.
Bree smiled and ran to him, wrapping her arms tight around him. He returned the hug. He wasn’t a man of faith, never had been because his life had been fucked, but right then, he prayed he’d bring his little girl’s mom home in one piece and alive.
Leaning down, he kissed her forehead. “Gonna be gone for a little. You be good with your Aunt Allie and your Uncle Trig.”
“Where’s Mommy?”
There it was. And he didn’t have a clue what to say. “I’m gonna get her.”
The truth. Dead or alive, he’d find Em, and he’d bring her home. He shouldn’t’ve said even what he had to Bree. She was too young to understand, to be worrying.
How would he ever raise her on his own? No, he couldn’t think like that. He needed Em. Bree needed her too, so he’d bring Bree her mom. He’d bring back his wife.
Her eyes rounded. He didn’t give her time to think, to respond. “You stay indoors. I’ll be back with your mom before you know it, yeah?”
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