Page 121 of One Night with the Biker

The bedroom was as pink and orderly as the rest of the house. The décor didn’t matter to me, only the fact that Ainsley was there, huddled on the floor with Bolt’s arm around her. She looked like she’d been through hell and back but appearedto have no extensive injuries. The bruises I saw pissed me off, though with time, they’d fade.

When Bolt saw me, he stepped away. I dropped to my knees, pulling her into my arms as emotions swamped me.

“You’re alive,” I croaked, my eyes watering, relief like I’d never felt before slamming into me.

She clung to me as if I were her lifeline, burying her face in my neck. She released a watery laugh. “You came.”

Exhaustion laced her tone, and I wondered if she’d slept at all. Based on her chapped lips and raspy voice, they’d deprived her of water, likely food too. It was risky for her and the baby, but a day or two in the hospital should get her back to normal, especially if the baby was fine.

“Of course I came, sweetheart,” I said, holding her close to me, rocking her gently. “I thought I’d fucking lost you. I-I’m so sorry, Ainsley. For not protecting you, for taking you for granted, for—”

It all spilled out, and before I could ramble anymore, she pulled back.

“Hush,” she whispered, her eyes growing droopier. “I forgive you. Just…get me out of here, please.”

Her voice cracked on the last word and my heart ached. Holding her tightly against me, I stood up. As we walked out of the trailer, I was faintly aware of Bolt trailing me, but my primary focus was Ainsley. I cradled her as if she were the most precious thing in the world.

Which, to me, she was. And once she recovered from this ordeal, I’d spend the rest of my life proving it to her.

My three-day stay at the hospital was uneventful. I neededan IV for dehydration, and was given pain medications that wouldn’t harm my baby. Who, fortunately, had survived the ordeal. My little gift was a fighter, and the doctors predicted there’d be no long-term side effects from my beating or stint in the cage. They’d stressed that it’d been a miracle I hadn’t miscarried, giving me the perfect name for my child.

As a kid, I adored theSimsfranchise, something Nova used to mock me for. When I entered college, I was unable to play the game as frequently, and I stopped entirely when Trinity was killed. But my years-long obsession meant I’d researched a fair number of names to bestow on theSimsI created within the game. Confined to a hospital bed, I had little else to do but watch TV and consider what I’d name my baby.

I’d settled on two—Mavisha for a girl, Bennett for a boy. Both meant miracle, with the former being of Arabic origin, and the latter being of Anglo-Saxon origin. Mavisha would have Nicolette as her middle name, while my son would have Bennett as a middle name, with his given name being Reese. I’d considered my son having my father’s name as a middle name—Cedrick—but decided I liked the ring of Reese Bennett better.

I would’ve loved to get Reese’s input, but unfortunately, both he and Roman made themselves scarce.

Each had visited only once. Yesterday afternoon, Roman came with a big bouquet and a teddy bear and apologized for his behavior. I’d forgiven him without a second thought, and he’d sworn we’d talk things over when I was released from the hospital. Last night, Reese brought flowers and chocolate. We hadn’t said much. At my request, he just crawled into my bed and held me. The intimacy immediately lifted my mood. His phone ringing interrupted our moment, and since it was Razor on the other end, he had to leave. His parting gift was a kiss, and a declaration of how overjoyed he was that I’d made it, how proud he was that I’d fought.

Just the thought made my heart flutter.

My steady stream of visitors included Ma Siller, Bolt, Tess, Big Poppa, Jinx, and Louisiana. Jinx said she’d decided to stay and refused to tell me what changed her mind.

Neither Roman nor Reese was available to bring me home, so on the day of my release, Tess and Big Poppa did the honors. I was itching to see the two most important men in my life. Reese had instructed me to go to Roman’s house. Surprising, but it seemed the two had settled their differences, which was all I ever wanted.

Big Poppa sat my things right inside the door, kissed my cheek, and went back to the car, while Tess hugged me tightly, promised to visit the next day and shooed me inside.

The moment I walked through the front door, a strong pair of arms engulfed me. I melted into Reese, savoring his scent and closeness. He buried his nose in my hair, inhaling deeply, which heated my cheeks.

“I stink,” I complained. Although I’d taken a quick shower this morning before my release, I wasn’t able to do my normal routine in the hospital. I didn’t have the body wash and hair products I used.

“You smell amazing,” he mumbled against me, sniffing again to prove a point. “I missed you so fucking much.”

“You saw me last night,” I reminded him, ignoring the butterflies fluttering in my stomach at his words. “A few hours ago.”

It was just his relief talking. As much as I wanted to be his, my kidnapping didn’t change the status of our relationship.

But boy, did I long for something more than the endless hot-and-cold.

I wouldn’t chase him, nor would I push him for more. That didn’t mean fantasies didn’t live in my head about us becoming something concrete, a unit that’d raise our baby together. Butafter seeing Chi Chi killed in front of me, and being beaten, starved, and held captive, I was forced to confront how short life was. I wouldn’t live the rest of my days in regret, wondering what could be with a man who didn’t want more.

The thought crushed me, but hey, it was what it was.

“Hours too long.” He punctuated his sentence with a kiss to my head.

He only pulled away when Roman cleared his throat. The sound drew my attention to him. Emotion overcame me when I took in my beloved brother’s presence, standing tall with prosthetic hands, his expression neutral, but his eyes filled with love and admiration. Best of all, he was alive, the rumors of his death fortunately false. A silly part of me wondered if his visit to the hospital had been a fever dream, something I hallucinated due to exhaustion and medication.

It wasn’t, and the giant smile on my face betrayed my joy.

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