Page 57 of Scornful

"I know we're in deep shit with your family, and the club's a mess with this Patriot business, but I need you to know—you're it for me, Astrid. Whatever happens, that won't change. I wanna give this a real go, a real fuckin’ shot."

I kiss him softly, pouring everything I feel into the contact. When we break apart, I whisper, "You're it for me, too."

A small smile tugs at his lips. "Good. Now we just have to survive your father's wrath."

"And Emil's."

"And Oskar's, probably."

I groan. "My whole family wants you dead."

"Not your mom," he points out. "She seemed... understanding."

"Mom's always been good at seeing the bigger picture." I finally climb off him, wincing slightly. "We should clean up. Get dressed before someone comes back."

He helps me down from the table, both of us moving to find our scattered clothes.

As I pull on my jeans, I notice him watching me with an expression I can't quite read.

"What?"

"Just thinking about how lucky I am," he says softly. "How fuckin’ lucky that you chose me."

"Pretty sure we chose each other," I correct, moving into his arms.

He holds me close, pressing his lips to my hair.

For a moment, we just stand there, holding each other in the silence of the spa, pretending the outside world doesn't exist.

But it does. And sooner or later, we'll have to face it.

"Did they text you back yet?” I ask, curious.

He looks at his phone, shaking his head. "Not yet, but they viewed it." His arms tighten around me. "No one's going to hurt you, princess. Not while I'm breathing."

"Come to my place tonight?" I ask. "After you deal with club stuff?"

"Wild horses couldn't keep me away."

I smile against his chest. "Good. Because I plan on doing that riding thing again. Practice makes perfect, right?"

His laugh rumbles through me. "Fuck, woman. You're gonna kill me."

"But what a way to go," I counter.

He kisses me, deep and thorough, reminding me exactly why I'm willing to risk everything for this man.

When we finally break apart, we're both breathless.

"I’ll be there tonight," he promises.

"Good." I smile, then look at the mess on the table, "Um, I need to disinfect that."

"All right, I’ll head outside and make sure everything is good, but I won’t leave until you do. Okay?”

"Yeah, that sounds good."

He heads out to his bike and sits on it, surveying the area while he waits for me.

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