Page 59 of StoryTeller's Tale

“Come on.” I stand, offering her my hand.

She stares up at me. “Where are we going?”

“To eat.”

She doesn’t stand nor make any move to leave. “This is my problem, not yours.”

I breathe deeply, trying to keep my patience. “When will you get it into your head that I’m involved as much as you? You didn’t impregnate yourself.”

“I may have gone with someone else—”

I snort. “No way.”

“You saying the sex with you was too good for me to get it anywhere else?” she challenges. “Maybe you got me hooked and I wanted more. Or,” her eyes spark, “I wanted to see what a real man was like.”

A guffaw bursts out of me. I love this woman’s spirit, and how she’s not afraid to take me down a peg. “Seriously, babe, you didn’t get all my best moves under the circumstances, but I’m happy to give you another demonstration if that’s what you want.” I wink at her, realising what I’m passing over as jest is actually my end goal. I let the amusement slide off my face. “Babe, you went through a traumatic experience. I doubt you’d have jumped into bed with anyone else.”

“Only ’cause no one would want me.” I have to strain my ears to hear her words.

“What the fuck?” This time I brook no argument and pull her to her feet, forcing her to stand in front of me. “What the fuck are you saying, Sheri?”

She tries to pull loose, but I hold her hands tight. A growl gets her throwing out, “You’ve seen Agatha and my stepsister…”

“Stop it,” I instruct sharply. “Sure, I’ve seen them. What of it? It’s you that I fuckin’ like.” And that’s the truth of it. Since I met her, nobody else has caught my eye. Sex with the sweet butts has left me unimpressed.

This time she manages to pull her hands free. Once she does, she places them on her hips. “Why are you even here anyway?”

Fuck.With all the drama about finding her pregnant, I’d put the reason I came to find her to the back of my mind. As I rake my hands through my hair, I wonder how to tell her. What if the shock scares her too much? Is it too early for it to hurt the baby inside? Is there some way I can protect her without admitting she’s in danger?

My eyes flick to the left as I respond. “No particular reason. I was in Texas—”

“Bullshit.” Again, there’s challenge in her eyes.

My mouth quirks with the ease at which she calls me out. Under her intense stare, I guess nothing but the truth is going to work. But when I try to form the words, I realise I don’t want to frighten her. A strange thought enters my head, and I half-turn to try to talk some sense into myself.

That doesn’t work. Fate seems to have wound its fingers around me, bringing me to this time and place.I’m at the fuckin’ airport.My unpacked bag is still on the back of my borrowed bike.

My mind is filled with the phrases I need to formulate my lie. When I turn back, I’m wondering how to say something that will convince me as much as her.

“Come back to Arizona with me.”

“Arizona?” Her eyes crease.

I realise she might not have noticed the patch on my back, so I turn so she can see it, then give a verbal explanation as I turn back. “I was nomad, but I’m now based at my home chapter.”

Now her eyes have opened wide. “You want me to go to Arizona with you?”

“Why not?” I challenge her. “From what I’ve seen, you’ve not got a lot here.”

“Because I’m pregnant with your baby?” She stares, then gives a shake of her head. “I don’t even know what I’m going to do.”

“I said, the decision is up to you, but I’ve got a responsibility to support you while you’re making it.”

“This is ridiculous.” She throws up her hands. “I don’t know you. And, you’re a biker.”

On both counts, she’s not wrong. But I can’t leave her here where Knuckles could get his hands on her, especially not now. My conscience, such as it is, won’t let me.

My initial words haven’t worked, and I’m not sure how else I can verbally convince her. As I drag my hair loose from its tie, then restrain it once more, I have a flashback to when we were held in that fucking cage. I persuaded her once, maybe I can use the same approach again.

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