Page 32 of Unholy Cross

The pizza arrived and Doreen sat a soda down in front of her before heading off to take care of more customers.Cross plated a slice and laid it in front of her.

“I like this, you know,” he said in a low voice.

She raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue.

“I like taking care of you,” he elaborated.“I like being your decision-maker, and it surprises me because I never thought I’d be into that.But it settles something in me.Like how you took away the noise in my head.I know you might want to explore the world since you were denied it for so long, and it’s probably wrong for me to want to keep you by my side.But I want to continue this.I want you to always be with me, Lorelei.”

For one moment, she thought about going her own way, but she felt safe with Cross.Something she hadn’t felt in a very long time.She picked up his hand and kissed the back of it, then nodded her agreement and laid her head on his shoulder.She also liked their dynamic, and couldn’t imagine leaving him for anything.

****

Cross stood at thepassenger side, watching as Lorelei hugged Jeremiah and then Evren goodbye.They looked a little uneasy, and he completely understood.None of them had love or softness growing up.They weren’t hugged or tucked into bed at night.No one read stories to them, or drove them to school.He hadn’t even finished high school.All that was left for them was anger.The world had fucked them up, and it had taken an especially dark toll on him.Most of his life had been spent trying to outrun the beatings his father had given him.When he’d been a scrawny kid, he’d been helpless to defend himself.He’d had to keep all his rage bottled up until it had turned into noise, becoming the blueprint for adulthood.

Without the static blaring in his head, it was easy to bury the memories.Thinking about the abuse gave them life, and he refused to resurrect the dead.Now, this tiny slip of a woman had given him something he never realized he needed.She was his purpose.Someone to focus on, other than himself and his fucked-up past.Some people might not understand this desire to be her decision-maker, and it wasn’t about controlling her.He simply wanted to make damn sure she was safe and happy.

“Sax passed along his goodbye,” Jeremiah told him.

“Where is he?”

“Haven’t a clue,” he admitted.“He headed out this morning and said he’d be back later.You know how he is.”

“Yeah.”

Out of all of them, he and Saxon had a need to move.Perhaps they were trying to outrun the painful memories of their childhood.Only, Sax kept returning to the scene of the crime.

Lorelei joined him and he held the door open for her.When she sat down in the passenger seat, he leaned over to buckle her up.He closed the door and faced his brothers once more.

“Your bike should be there when you arrive,” Evren said.

When Jeremiah gave him the SUV, he was grateful because he didn’t want to subject Lorelei to the seven-hour drive from Vegas to Reno on the back of a motorcycle.Plus, all the new clothing they’d bought.Jeremiah had advanced him his first paycheck, and damn, this was the first time he was earning money the legal way.

Evren handed a small box to Lorelei.“It’s a phone with all the bells and whistles.You’re going to need to keep in touch with Aera through text.”

She smiled and nodded her thanks.

“Thank you,” Cross said, first to Evren and then to Jeremiah.“For everything.And you know I don’t say that shit easily.I’ll check in daily.Tell you how it’s going.”

“The manager, Torrance, knows you’re in charge of security.”

“Okay.See you whenever.”

He slid behind the wheel, gave a wave, and then they were off on their next journey.

---