Page 28 of Goose's Wren

Bella steps around the counter and pulls me into a hug.“Wren, no one in this building is laughing.Least of all Goose.That man looks at you like you hung the moon and doesn't even realize it.”

My breath catches, but I hug her back, heart thudding with something soft and terrifying.

Because the thought of Goose finally looking at me as a woman, means everything.

I say goodbye to Bella and Hayden with a smile that feels a little too big.My heart’s still fluttering from Bella’s words.

I tuck it away in the back of my mind like a secret.Something to pull out later when I’m alone and brave enough to really believe it.

The bell above the door jingles behind me as I step out into the sunlight.I squint up at the sky for a second, trying to remember what all I wanted to get from the grocery store before heading back to the cabin.

Just a few things.Coffee creamer, maybe some fruit.Something sweet to make up for the nerves still buzzing under my skin.

I don’t even make it halfway across the lot before I feel a hand close around my arm.It’s hard and bruising.

I gasp, instinct kicking in, but I don’t get the chance to scream.

Tim’s voice is a ragged snarl in my ear.“Get in the damn car.”

Before I can react, he’s slamming me into the seat of his car.My shoulder hits the door frame hard, and the world tilts from the pain of it.

I try to push back.Try to kick my leg out to stop the door from closing, but he’s stronger than me.Always has been when he’s like this.High.Wild.Sweating and shaking with fury at something only he can see.

The door slams shut like a prison cell.He’s already behind the wheel before I can grab the handle to try and get out again.The lock clicks down instantly.

“Tim!What the hell are you doing?”I shout, panic climbing my throat as I bang my palm against the glass.

His head jerks around, eyes wide and glassy, darting like he’s seeing ten things at once.None of them real.

He’s grinding his teeth, muttering under his breath as he slams the car into drive and peels out of the parking lot so fast the tires squeal.

“Should’ve known you’d run to them,” he snarls, hands tight on the wheel.“Should’ve known you’d go crying to your biker boyfriend like a little whore.”

I flinch, curling into the corner of the seat, trying to stay out of reach.

“Tim.You need to pull over.”

“I’m fine!”he barks, slamming his hand against the dashboard.“You think you can just leave me?After everything I’ve done for you?”

“You’ve done nothing for me,” I snap before I can stop myself, voice trembling with fury.“You’ve taken everything I ever had, and you’ve never...”

He whips around and backhands the headrest beside me, just missing my face.I recoil, heart hammering so fast it feels like it might burst through my ribs.

“You shut your f***ing mouth.”

My fingers fumble for my phone, but it’s still in my purse.My purse, which I dropped when he grabbed me outside the coffee shop.

The car barrels down the back roads, heading away from town.Toward the old trailer.Toward isolation.Toward danger.

And the worst part?

No one knows I’m gone.

Goose

I’m elbow deep in the guts of a customer’s Harley, oil smeared on my forearms with a wrench in hand when I tighten a bolt a little too hard.Muttering a curse under my breath I take a step back wiping my hands on a rag.

I’ve tried to shake her out of my head all damn day.It’s not working.It hasn’t worked all week.

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