Page 34 of Wild Ride

The way it should be.

“Our future?” she asks.

My lips tip up, and I lean forward to touch my mouth to hers again. “You’re mine now, Dakota. Mean that shit, babe. Down to my fucking marrow.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

DAKOTA

“Areyou done sucking her face so we can get to know Dakota a little better?” a man asks, standing above us.

Shifting my attention to him, I look up into the setting sunlight and see a man standing directly in front of us. He’s nothing like I expect to see. I didn’t meet him earlier, and I have no clue who he is. But when he extends his hand, he introduces himself as Piggy.

“Piggy?” I ask

He laughs softly as his eyes search mine, and then he clears his throat before he speaks. “When I’m not hanging out around here, I’m a cop in town.”

Blinking, I’m not sure that I heard him correctly. “You’re a policeman?” I ask.

“We’re rough looking on the outside, I know. But I can turn a blind eye to the less-than-legal things the club does. I know they’re all good men, and I’m proud to call them brothers.”

I’m not sure if he’s trying to sell me on these guys or what, but I’m totally sold. Although, I kind of already was beforehe even said anything. I’m not okay with what I saw between Bullet and that woman, but I haven’t decided how I’m going to approach that yet.

We aren’t together. I mean, he’s made some declarations, but he hasn’t asked me if I wanted to date, and I don’t live here. I literally live all the way across the country.

Giving Piggy a smile, I sink my teeth into my bottom lip and watch him for a moment. He smirks down at me before Bullet stands, excusing himself, and I’m surprised. Bullet has been sticking to my side like glue from the moment he walked up to me.

I watch him for a moment as he stands with a group of men. He doesn’t go far. In fact, if I raised my voice at all, he would be close enough to hear every word, but feeling the loss of him at my side is odd. I didn’t realize that I was so comfortable with him and that, at the same time, he was socomforting.

Piggy hands me a bottle. Wrapping my fingers around the cool glass, I turn to face him, forcing myself to tear my gaze away from Bullet and his perfect ass, which I had also begun ogling.

Flicking my gaze from Piggy’s to the bottle, I sink my teeth into the corner of my bottom lip and worry it for a moment. I know it’s beer, but I’ve never tasted it before. I hope I don’t make an entire idiot out of myself here.

He leans forward, no doubt guessing that this is my first beer, and when he speaks, I have to cover my mouth and laugh.

“It’s going to taste like piss. It’s normal.”

Shifting my gaze down to the beer again, I wonder if I really should drink it. If it tastes like pee, I don’t think I want any part of it. Piggy chuckles, and I lift my eyes to meet his again. His are dancing.

“I was going to have a semiserious conversation with you, but I don’t think I can do that knowing you’re about to drink thatbeer for the first time ever in front of me. It’s fascinating. I can’t look away.”

My cheeks heat from embarrassment, and I know they’re probably red, too. Lifting the bottle to my lips, I take a pull from the glass and wince as soon as the liquid touches my taste buds.

Quickly lowering the glass, I cough, pinching my eyes closed. Piggy laughs, and when I open one eye, I look over to him. He is grinning—huge. Once the liquid is down and I’ve gathered myself, I set the bottle down on the ground beside my chair.

“Well, that was awful,” I announce.

Piggy laughs again, but not as boisterously this time, just a quiet chuckle before he stops. His gaze finds mine, and he smirks before his expression changes and becomes a bit more serious. Far too serious. I bite the inside of my lip, waiting for what is likely going to upset me in some way, stress me out, or make me totally nervous.

“Since I’m a cop, gotta let you know that I looked into you for the club.”

My heart races, although I’m unsure why because I have nothing to hide. In fact, I have nothing for them to find, either. I am boring as hell, and I’m perfectly content with that, too. I don’t hold my breath, but I’m really close to doing it as I wait for him to continue. Thankfully, he puts me out of my misery.

“I wanted to offer you some information on your mother. I got the impression you truly didn’t know much.” Then, before I realize what’s happened, he hands me an envelope from inside of his leather vest. “Don’t open it here. Make sure you have a moment to really sit with it.”

Thanking him, I grip the envelope in my hand, crumpling it slightly. He chuckles again, likely thinking of my reaction to the beer as he stands, but he doesn’t walk away. Instead, he dips his chin, and his eyes find mine.

“You got any questions at all, babe, don’t hesitate. Didn’t know Shade back then, never met your mom, but you seem like you’re a good person, so my guess is you got the best of them both.”

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