Page 33 of Unholy Cross

Chapter Fourteen

They stopped once forfood and a bathroom break, and reached Reno late afternoon.The GPS coordinates led them to a gated community.The grey two-story house was trimmed in white and had a red front door.Lorelei’s eyes were wide as she gawked.He parked and exited the car, walking around to help her out.Never in his wildest dreams did he think he’d be living in the suburbs, but here he was, apparently living the dream.Expertly manicured lawn.Lush, green grass.White fluffy clouds in the blue fucking sky.His well-worn jeans, black t-shirt, and tattoos definitely stood out like a sore thumb.

“Evren did this on purpose,” he told her sourly.He punched in the code Evren had texted him, and the door swung open to a large foyer with marble tiles and chandelier.“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

A staircase curved up to the second floor, and beyond that was a small hallway that opened to a large kitchen.And by large, it was fucking huge.Granite countertops, stainless steel appliances.The stove alone had eight burners.

“Do you know how to cook?”he asked her.

She shook her head.

“Neither do I,” he said with a shake of his head.“I mean, I can scramble some eggs, but that’s about it.”

A pantry the size of a bedroom lay on one side of the kitchen, while a dining room lay on the other.They found a den, a library, and an office, with a separate set of stairs that led to the second floor, where he counted six bedrooms.Six!The master had enough room for a marching band, with a glass fireplace and balcony overlooking a small lake.He could see ducks and dragonflies enjoying the peace of the water.

“Why in hell would two people need this much house?”he asked, frowning.Lorelei turned in a circle, and he was consciously aware of the big freaking bed behind her.“If you’re not happy here, I can ask Evren to find a new one.”

She shook her head.Then she took a deep breath, pointed to herself, to him, and finally to bed.Instantly, his dick hardened behind his zipper.

“Yeah, baby, I plan on us sleeping in the same bed.”She ducked her head, red tinging her cheeks.He placed a finger under her chin to make her look at him.“Don’t be embarrassed.I’m gonna admit I’m not used to living in a house.Growing up, I tended to sleep wherever I found myself.I’ve crashed on couches of people I didn’t know, all in the name of staying as fucked up on drugs as possible.I hated my life back then.”

She brought his hand to cup her cheek and kept it there with hers.He understood what she was trying to convey, that he never had to go back to that dark place ever again.

“If you want to stay here, we’ll stay.If you want to move, we’ll move.It’s you and me now.I know we don’t know everything about each other, but that’s what life is for.Right?”

Lorelei nodded.Then she reached up to his forehead and he felt her there, sinking into his head to make sure the static wasn’t there.He took hold of her hand to pull it away, kissing it before placing it on his chest.Directly over his heart.

“I’m good, Sweetheart,” he murmured.“I’ll let you know when—if—it ever comes back.”

Her smile blinded him.Something squeezed his heart, the pain easing up.His past had always defined him, which made for a fantastic president of a motorcycle club since he never gave a fuck about anything.He had never felt remorse about the people he’d killed, the women he screwed, or the drugs he peddled.Nothing more than a soulless monster until Vivi Wence unlocked something.She’d given him guilt.Shame.Compassion.At first, he had hated her.Hated remembering andfeeling.The damage, however, had been done.He’d been set adrift until the very moment he gazed into Lorelei’s wide grey eyes, and all the riotous emotions settled into one thing—to take care of her.

“Will you teach me how to be a better man?”he asked, and even to his own ears he heard the uncertainty.The fear.

She placed an X over her heart with a finger.

****

Jeremiah’s gentlemen’sclub had nothing to do with refinement.It was a plain and simple dive bar, complete with bikers, criminals, and whores.Oh, my.When he walked through the front door, honkey-tonk music spilled out and a glass bottle went flying by him.On the stage was a so-called dancer fucking her nasty old cooch with a dildo, looking either drunk or stoned.Maybe both.Whatever the fuck she was doing wasn’t legal as well as being disgusting.

A group of men fought over a pool table.Knives out and pool sticks acting as bats.He spotted a few guys drinking beer, that if they were over twenty-one, he’d eat his own dick.A few others shooting heroin into their arms right out in the open.Women walked around, barely dressed looking for johns.There was a gangbang going on at a table, with men who weren’t participating jacking off to the fake moans of the woman being plowed.

It all reminded Cross of the Heart of Darkness clubhouse.He was going to have his work cut out to make this place decent.There were so many code violations happening he was surprised it hadn’t been shut down by the health department.He headed toward the bar and signaled for the bartender.The woman wore a low-cut tank top that showed off her ample tits, and she wore an exasperated look on her face.

“What can I get ya?”she asked over the horrible music.

“Where’s Torrance?”

She blinked, and the irritation on her face dropped away.Instead, she looked hopefully at him.“You the new security man?”

“I am,” he replied.“Is it like this every night?”

“Just about,” she replied, shooting a look of disgust toward the patrons.“This used to be a good place to work, once upon a time.”

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