Page 95 of One Night with the Biker

It was time for us to go.

I’d been craving barbeque for days, but after Ma Siller tried to murder me with her food, I thought soup and a sandwich might be best, so we stopped in a little shop not far from the Sillers’ place and grabbed a bite to eat. Reese didn’t say much. He barely paid attention to me for all the texting he was doing.

My emotions were still raw from the ultrasound. Added to that was worry that Wizard was up to fuckery. I had no doubt Boom Boom ordered the sabotage, which got me to think about my brother. If Wizard and the others were back, where was Roman?

He wanted nothing to do with me. However, if he was back, he would’ve called and demanded I clear all my things from his house. His radio silence didn’t make sense.

Until it hit me: Roman was dead. They’d taken him on the run and killed him. The realization sent me rushing to the diner’s bathroom and throwing up everything I’d just eaten. The sobbing that accompanied my vomiting left me weak and miserable.

“Ainsley?” A knock accompanied Reese’s call. “Open up, babe.”

I covered my mouth with my hands.

“We need to leave, baby.”

Imagining Roman discarded like a piece of trash turned my stomach again.

“Open the door, Ainsley,” Reese coaxed. “We have to leave.”

Stumbling to the door, I unlocked it, then went to the basin, splashing water on my face and rinsing out my mouth, while Reese hovered in the background.

“I can stop at a convenience store and get you crackers and7Up,” he said quietly.

“I can’t eat anything else.” It wouldn’t stay on my stomach. Not because of the baby, but because of my brother.

I covered my face with my hands, not protesting when Reese pulled me into his arms.

“What has you so upset, sweetheart?”

“Roman’s dead.”

Reese went still, then tightened his hold on me. “You don’t know that,” he said gruffly.

“They’re back,” I said, not bothering to lift my head. “I thought I saw Kite near Dr. Purdue’s office, but I wasn’t sure, so I brushed it off. Listening to Bolt confirmed their presence. Wizard is behind whatever is wrong with his bike.”

“Our grounds are secure, Ainsley. Besides, Bolt has been having an issue with his chain for weeks now.” He pulled away and grabbed my hand, tugging me back into the restaurant and heading toward the door.

I wasn’t sure where we were headed until I saw the signs for Monarch Highway and I knew we were going back to the cabin. Around us, the sounds of nature rose to a fever pitch and a billion stars gleamed from the night sky.

I half-expected Louisiana to open the door with Jinx inside, but that didn’t happen. Reese pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the door to let us in.

Everything that had personalized it and gave it a homey feel was gone. The furniture was there, but everything else had been cleared away.

“Jinx left him,” I said woodenly, stumbling to the sofa and sitting.

“Jinx filed for divorce,” Reese corrected. “Louisiana was served with the papers today. She cited irreconcilable differences. There are some developments that have taken place in the last couple of hours that she isn’t happy about.”

More of Louisiana’s fuckery. “I’m sorry. I hoped they would’ve worked it out.”

“Me, too,” he said quietly. “She loved Louisiana a lot and he betrayed her.”

“I feel somehow responsible.”

Reese nodded. “So do I,” he said, sighing. “I knew he was fucking over her and I looked the other way. Louisiana’s fucking insane behind Jinx and I thought…” His voice trailed off and he looked the other way. “I’m not sure to be honest.”

“I brought Nova with me. If I hadn’t believed her lies, Jinx wouldn’t have found out.”

Reese finally moved from where he’d been standing in the middle of the floor and sat next to me. He tried to draw me into his arms, but I shook my head and he respected my wishes.

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