Page 70 of Bronco

He traces circles on my back. “I don’t expect you to cook for me.”

“I want to, it’s the least I could do.”

“Like a down payment?”

I laugh. “Something like that. I know my vibrator can’t work like that mouth can.”

“You liked that, huh?”

“Mmhmm, I think we both know I more than liked it, Bronc.”

“So I could be your cabana boy after all.” He smirks.

I know he doesn’t want a girlfriend, he’s said as much over the years. Even if he has hinted at the idea of settling down, I don’t know if he’s truly ready for that. He’s never had a real relationship before, not a serious one, so how could he know it’s what he wants? And with my past forever haunting me, I’m not sure it’s what I want. How would I know when all I’ve known since I was sixteen is violence. I’ve never known what love is, nottruly, or if it even exists. Even when around the MC… I see and feel all of the love the men have for their women, and vice-versa. It’s evidence that love is very much alive and well. Still, I can’t shake how I feel.

I try not to think about that now. I don’t want to ruin the happy moment I’m having being in my best friend's arms, trying not to overthink every damn thing about him that I’ve overlooked all this time.

Not only is he the sweetest man on the planet, as well as kind and thoughtful, he’s got a body made for riding.

“Or you could tell me why a guy like you has been single for so long?” He mentioned he hadn’t had sex in six months, which is quite a long time when I’ve seen him in action over the years. I have to admit, Bronco is one of the nicest guys in the MC. He’s never treated a woman badly, none of the guys have, but he’s always been upfront about it, and the girls knew what to expect. It’s why sweet butts hang around, after all. I’ve never heard any of them say anything bad about him.

“I just haven’t met the right woman.”

“So, that’s the reason?” I laugh. “Who knew?”

He bumps me with his hips. “Smart ass. I could ask the same thing about you, but now I know a little more about your past, I can see why.”

Tears spring to my eyes. I’ve talked about this with Audrina briefly in a moment of panic, but not to him. Now we’re this close, I want to tell him everything.

The good. The bad. The ugly.

“I’m sure you can understand why. Living in a religious cult isn’t exactly screaming a happy, perfect life.”

“How did you get into it in the first place?”

I sigh. “My brother. After our mom died, he was my sole guardian when dad took off. He’d always been fascinated with shit like that, and when he met Vince at a church meet, he got theidea to join Vince’s little posse.” I shudder at the memory. “And it was fine for a while, good, even. They had houses, a village, their own produce; a little like the Amish, but with electricity.”

“How old were you when you were married?”

I hold my breath. “I?—”

“You can tell me. None of this is your fault. You said you were fourteen when you moved?”

He has a good memory. I wonder what he’ll think of the next words out of my mouth.

“I was sixteen.”

“What the fuck?” He shifts, looking up at me as I try to bury further into his neck. “Amber?”

“I thought Vince was so charming,” I whisper. “And he was good to me at first. Funny. Handsome. He always had a big, warm smile, and he treated me like a princess. But after we ‘married’, things slowly changed, especially when…”

His hands still on my back. “Especially when, what?”

I swallow hard. “After I had two miscarriages and couldn’t get pregnant again. In their church, that’s considered the work of the devil. He’d accuse me of cheating on him, he was crazy, paranoid, often leaving me for days at a time to indulge in the other women in the sect, drinking all night, coming home with a different woman….”

“Did he ever hit you?”

I’ve hidden enough from him, and I won’t lie anymore. “Yes.”

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