I snort with laughter. “I will take a six-ounce ribeye steak with a loaded baked potato with a side of grilled veggies.”
He winks and orders almost the exact same thing, but a much bigger steak and double the sides.
“Your food will be done shortly.” She walks away, leaving me and Wilder alone. He stares at me, and I don’t know what to do or say. I place my hands in my lap, twiddling my thumbs.
“Why didn’t you tell us before you left?” he asks and I sigh deeply. Well, he didn’t beat around the bush, did he?
I shrug. “I am so used to handling everything myself the thought never crossed my mind. I have always done everything alone, and I don’t want to be a burden to anyone.”
His face softens, and he leans over the table so his face is much closer to mine. “That is an honorable trait, Baby, but you will never have to handle anything alone again. You have friends, Joslyn.”
What do I say to that? How do I react? “Wilder—”
His hand in the air halts me. “Don’t argue.” He leans back in his seat. I arch an eyebrow at his bossiness. He looks so gruff and tough sitting there with tattoos covering his arms and parts of his neck. Don’t forget that beautiful beard and the cut on his back, making him look badass and intimidating.
He leans forward again, and one of his arms, which is resting on the table, brushes against mine. His eyes darken in thought, and I hold my breath waiting for what he’s about to say next because, whatever he’s thinking, it’s got him furious.
His head tilts to the side before he grins evilly. I gulp and twist my fingers in my lap. “Also, don’t worry about the fucker harassing you. He is good as fucking dead.”
Did he really just say that? He sits back in his seat and stares me down. He means it alright.
I lick my parched lips, and I shakily reach forward to touch his arm. “I don’t want you to do that.” I close my eyes because that’s a lie; Robert being dead means he can’t bother me anymore. “I don’t want you to get in trouble.”
He laughs loudly, startling me. “Baby, I won’t get in trouble. I am the VP of the Grim Sinners.”
“Oh.” I don’t know what else to say.
He asks me a few questions, which I answer with a simple “yes” or “no.” I wish to God that I didn’t analyze my every word. I feel like if I say one little thing wrong everything will come crumbling down around me, leaving me all alone once again.
“Here you are.” The waitress interrupts my thoughts by putting my food in front of me.
“Our plane leaves at ten o’clock in the morning,” Wilder informs me.
“Okay.” I nod, smiling slightly. Going back means I am far, far away from Robert.
2
Joslyn
A Few Hours Later
“Joslyn, relax. I am not going to bite you.” He throws me a wink. I laugh at how foolish I must look right now, curled into a ball in the middle of the bed. Wilder is in his own queen-sized bed, watching TV.
I sink down into the bed, pulling the blanket over me. I let out a loud sigh, closing my eyes. “I haven’t felt a bed this comfortable in months.” I snuggle my face into my pillow. This is the best hotel, and the softest bed, I have ever been in.
“Want to order a movie and some snacks?”
I contemplate what to say, and I feel freer than I have in months. “Sure.”
Wilder’s face softens. “What do you want, Darlin’?”
I think for a second, but anything will suit me. “Whatever you want.”
He takes the phone off the small table by his bed and orders a ton of snacks and drinks.
“Thank you, Wilder.”
He tilts his head to the side, eyeing me. “What did I say about thanking me for shit?”
When he paid for our food earlier, I thanked him about ten times before we parked at the hotel. He turned off his truck, looked me dead in the eye, and growled, “Quit fucking saying ‘thank you,’ Joslyn.”
“Yeah, I remember. Mr. Growly,” I say now, rolling my eyes.
“Are you sassing me, Joslyn?”
I cringe at the darkness in his voice, and he is glaring at me. Oh no, did I make him mad? “Wilder, I didn’t—”
The sound of his laughter cuts me off midsentence.
I cross my arms across my chest, not liking to be laughed at one bit. I narrow my eyes at him, but that just makes him laugh harder.
I am saved from his laughter by a knock at the door, and the snacks are delivered. My arms are still crossed across my chest, and I glare as he walks by. Yes, it may be petty of me, but it seems I enjoy teasing him. I guess a small part of me is getting used to him. Just a small bit.
“Don’t pout, Baby.” He chuckles and walks to my bed. He sets the chips and drinks in front of my crossed legs and plops down on the bed. My eyes widen at the sight of him getting comfortable beside me, and my legs touch his slightly, which causes me to jerk away, my face flooding with embarrassment.
“What are you doing?”
I wave my hand around, like that will help me explain.
He smirks at me, looking way too hot to be doing that next to me. “Doing what, Sweetheart?”
My mouth opens slightly; then I shake my head and pick up a bag of Doritos and a soda.
“What do you want to watch?” Wilder asks, scrolling through the movies.
“It doesn’t matter.” I shrug and open the bag of Doritos.
He clicks on a scary movie, and my heart fills with dread. I shouldn’t have let him choose the movie. Me and scary movies do not mix. I close my eyes and tilt my head back, hoping that I can fall asleep or something so I can tune out the movie.
“What are you doing?” I can hear the laughter in his voice. I open my eyes just enough to glare at him. “Nothing.” I look at the screen.
The movie starts and I cringe internally. Do not scream, Joslyn.
Wilder
She screams for the tenth time during this movie, and I burst out laughing, this time because she has her face buried in a pillow. “No! Don’t look in there, are you dumb?” she yells and waves her hand at the screen. She has moved closer and closer to me, and she is almost hidden behind my arm.
The demon pops out and she screams, burying her head into my shoulder blade. I reach back and touch the back of her head, rubbing slightly.
When the scene ends, I expect her to sit up, but she wraps her arm around my forearm, raising her head just enough so she can see the TV. It shouldn’t feel this fucking good for her to be lying on me like this, but I wanted her the moment I saw her, months ago. She worked for my cousin Shaylin and is way too fucking beautiful to be normal.
I asked her out over and over again, but she never said yes until a week before she left. Then that fucker came to town and she ran. When I saw her again, at the hotel today, she looked like Joslyn, but she also didn’t look like her. She was missing her light, the happiness that was in her smile, even though she hid it every time she noticed she was doing it. Now she looks sad, and I don’t like that one fucking bit. Robert is a fucking dead man. That is a guarantee.
Thirty minutes later the movie ends, and I shut off the TV. I hear Joslyn’s light breathing, and I look down to see her fast asleep, her hand gripping my shirt.
Unable to resist I kiss the top of her head, lingering to breathe in her smell. I loosen her grip on my shirt and lay her down on the bed. I set the chips on the nightstand. The blanket is pooled at her feet, so I cover her up, tucking it around her neck.
I slip off the bed and go to mine. I set my cut on the back of the chair and my gun on my bedside table. I pull my blankets over me as I slip into bed, turning off the light on the nightstand, putting the room in complete darkness.
I hear a loud gasp as Joslyn wakes up. “Wilder?” she whispers.
“I am right here,” I soothe and I hear her let out a deep breath.
“Did I mention that I was scared of scary movies and the dark?” she whispers, the bed creaking as she moves around.
“Scoot over.” I walk over to her bed. I can see her outline, sitting up. “What?”
She seems shocked, but she scoots over anyway. I climb in beside her and pull the covers over both of us.
“You didn’t have to, Wilder.”
“I know, Darlin’.”
She doesn’t say a word but, without a fucking doubt, she is freaking out on the inside.
“Go to sleep, Sweetheart. We have to get up early to get to the airport.”
“Goodnight, Wilder.” She turns her back to me.
“Goodnight, Joslyn.”
Joslyn
It’s been around an hour since Wilder climbed into bed with me, and my brain won’t shut off. I’m having a million different thoughts. The major one is, Where am I going to live? Are my mom and stepfather still at my house? I can almost guarantee they are.
I will just have to find a new place and see if Shaylin will allow me to have my job back. I have a feeling she will, considering she did all of this to bring me home.
“Sleep, Baby,” Wilder says softly and throws his arm over my waist, pressing his hand to my stomach and pulling me against him. My back is flush against his chest, and my butt is... I clench my hand closed and bite my lip hard.
Breathe, Joslyn. I love the feel of his arms around me way too much. Way too much. Wilder is extremely attractive, and I’ve had a major crush on him since the moment I met him.
I love the feel of his arms around me, making me feel safe and so warm, the way he smells, and how big he is compared to me.
Stop it, Joslyn. He doesn’t want you. Look at him and look at you. He is just being nice.
3
Joslyn
I wake to Wilder shaking my shoulder. “The plane just touched down.” I open my eyes and look out the window to see that we’re on the ground. I have slept since the moment I got on the plane. It was a straight shot.
Being on the run has exhausted me physically and mentally. But I have felt at ease since Wilder has been here; not being alone is comforting.
Wilder unbuckles my seatbelt and I stand up. He takes our bags from the overhead compartment; we both packed light.
“I want to thank you, Wilder, once again.” I touch his arm to get his attention, and he glares at me, so I drop my hand.
“What did I fucking say about that shit?” I take a step back, and his eyes darken. He splits the distance between us, and his hand goes to the back of my neck softly. “Sweetheart, I would never hurt you. I would rather take my own life than hurt you.”
I duck my head, feeling ashamed for acting the way I did. It’s an instinctive thing when someone is powerful and angry. It would make anyone feel that way. “I didn’t mean it.”
He sighs loudly and lets me go, and his hand curls around my forearm and pulls me against him. My forehead hits the middle of his chest, and his lips touch the top of my forehead. My eyes burn at the feel of someone hugging me and kissing me. I haven’t felt that in such a long time, if ever. I went on dates, but there was never a second date, and my mom never had any nurturing instincts. I grip the back of his shirt, not wanting him to let go just yet.
“Alright Sweetheart, let’s go get you fed.”
I laugh out loud at that. Wilder is constantly trying to feed me.
“You know before too long I won’t be able to get through a door,” I say and he chuckles. Taking my hand he leads me off the plane and through the airport.
When we are in his truck, I say, “You don’t have to take me to dinner. A hotel is fine.”
He arches an eyebrow. “A hotel? Why not go to your house?”
I lay my head against the window. “I guarantee my mom and her new husband are staying there. They tend to show up and take over my life, forcing me to leave.”
I hear the leather of the steering wheel creak, and I peek over at him. He seems pissed off. “You will come home with me.”
“What do you mean come home with you?” I touch his arm. “I can’t do that, Wilder. I don’t expect you—”
He pulls the truck in front of a restaurant and turns toward me. “Joslyn, I will not have you staying at a hotel when I have spare rooms for you to sleep in.”
I growl angrily because he has a point, and I am almost out of money on top of that. A hotel won’t last me another week—by then I will be broke—and that doesn’t count me having to eat. I am stuck. “Fine.” I open the door and step out.
He laughs at me, which makes me pissed off. I walk in front of him to the restaurant not looking at him.
“Sassy,” he mutters.
Wilder
She is fucking sassy and hot as fuck when she is pissed off. She is quiet, but the second I piss her off, her whole attitude changes.
I’d rather she be pissed than scared out of her mind. She is scared all the time, though she pretends she’s not. I see the way she looks at her surroundings, and when someone gets close she expects the worst out of them.
Pisses me the fuck off.
Her fear will not be a problem for long.
What she doesn’t know is that he has been following us from the moment I picked her up at the hotel. Joslyn has let her guard down. The fucker wouldn’t dare to try something when I am around, and I wanted him to follow us home. It will be easier to take care of him in my town rather than drawing it out.
“What are you smiling at?” Joslyn says, and I quit thinking about torturing and killing the fucker so I can focus on her.
“Nothing, Sweetheart.” I wink at her and she blushes, looking at her lap. She’s already forgotten to be mad at me.
Nothing at all.
Joslyn
“What do you mean you are dropping me off and going to get my stuff at my house?” I glare at him.
He leans against the doorframe to his house, blocking me from leaving. “You heard me, Baby.” He smiles.
My eyes narrow. “I heard what you said, but does that mean I have to mind you?” I fling my arms around getting more pissed off every second.
He walks over to me, and I lower my eyes out of instinct. I brush the bottom of my shirt, trying not to freak out as he gets closer and closer to me.
Why does he affect me this way?
Hands touch my jaw, lifting my face until my eyes meet Wilder’s once again. “I will be right back, Baby. I am getting your clothes.”
I sigh loudly in defeat. “Okay.” I do need my clothes. His lips touch the top of my hairline, and his hands fall. He turns around and walks out the door, leaving me alone.
His truck starts up and he backs out of the driveway, the gate shutting behind him. I hope he doesn’t get into trouble. My mom and her new husband aren’t the easiest to deal with.
Wilder
“You ready?” Lane asks and I nod.
I eye the door to Joslyn’s house and hear a ton of laughter inside. Laughter inside the fucking house, while their daughter was running for her life.
I kick the door in.
A woman and two men jump off the couch. I instantly recognize the woman as her mother. The bitch looks just like Joslyn. Joslyn is beautiful, though, and kind—this woman is evil.
I step inside the house and grin at the woman and her husband.
“Who are you?” Joslyn’s mother says. Her voice is shrill. My brothers file in and surround me. I laugh at her scared expression and at her husband, who is holding a pillow in his lap. He fucked pissed himself.
“Get out of here!” she screams, jumping off the couch and stepping closer to me.
I laugh at her antics. “Why the fuck should I mind you? I am here for your daughter’s things and to kick you out.”
Her eyes narrow and her lips form the word “daughter,” but nothing comes out. Then she says, “Daughter?” She shoots a look to her husband and the man sitting next to him.
“You are with Joslyn?” her mom says in disbelief, her eyes moving up and down my body. She bursts out laughing and sits down on the couch. “Is this some kind
of joke?” She screams with laughter.
I don’t like this bitch one fucking bit. I look over my shoulder at the guys behind me, and they look as pissed off as I am. I don’t like my Joslyn being mocked. “She is mine,” I growl loudly, shutting her up immediately. I look at her stepfather. “Get the fuck up.”
He smirks at me, then at Joslyn's mom, before standing up slowly and going head-to-head with me. Nothing will give me more pleasure than fucking him up. He cocks his head to the side. “Joslyn must have a pussy of gold, considering she is ugly as fuck.”
Rage hits me, and he doesn’t get to finish his sentence—I punch him in the mouth. His front teeth break under my knuckles. He screams and clutches his mouth. I throw another fist, hitting him on the mouth again, and hear a satisfying crunch.
“You fucker!” Joslyn’s mom screams, running toward me. One of my brothers, Derek, swoops in and picks her up before she can reach me.
“I will kill you for this,” Joslyn’s stepfather stutters through his fucked-up mouth.
I point my gun at his forehead. “I would like to see you try.” The butt of the gun hits his temple, knocking him out.
“Prospects!” I yell, and they walk in. “Drop them off three towns over.” Aaron, one of the new prospects, picks up Joslyn’s mom, and the other prospect grabs her stepdad’s foot and drags him to the front door.
“Let me get our stuff!” Her hands are clenched around the door frame.
I throw my head back in laughter. “Why the fuck would I do that? When your daughter has been on the run from you for three months. You’re lucky I am letting you have the clothes on your back, only because I don’t want to touch your nasty ass.”
She flips me off, and I point my gun at her. She falls out of the prospect’s arms, hits the ground, and takes off running, making the prospect run after her.
Lane walks over to my side. “Now we wait for the stepbrother.”
Wilder: GRIM SINNERS MC: BOOK TWO Page 2