Page 21 of Lore
Ora
Yep.
Lu
You better use that charm of yours.
Lore
She’s MINE.
Placing my phone on my nightstand, I leave my room only to find myself standing in front of her door. I told Romeo, one of our prospects, to get her a new phone and to set it up for her, so I could text her. Instead, I lightly knock on the door so as not to wake up the kids.
Atiana opens the door after a few moments, dressed in black sweatpants and a tight white tank top. She’s not wearing a bra, and I can see her nipples peeking through the material.
“My eyes are up here,” she mutters, stepping out of the room and gently closing the door. Her dark hair is piled on top of her head, wisps of it framing her face.
“Fuck, you’re even more beautiful than I remember,” I say, holding her chin between my fingers and lifting her face to me. My eyes scan hers, trying to figure out what she’s thinking. Was I the one who got away for her too? “I’m sorry about before, with Suit. He was out of line talking to you like that.”
“Just don’t fight in front of Rider or Dove,” she says, swallowing hard. “He knows you’re his father. He always knew that Trent wasn’t his dad. I don’t want him to get hurt, Lore.”
“Since when do you call me Lore?” I ask her, my hand sliding down the column of her neck until I reach her collarbone.
She grips my hand and removes it from her soft skin. “You are Lore. Hunter is in the past.”
“Not to you. And I’m not going to hurt anyone. I’m not going anywhere,” I promise her, letting my hand fall back to my side. I want to touch her more than anything, but if she’s not ready for that, I can wait until she is. “You’re my family.” I take a deep breath. “You’re right, back then I wasn’t ready for a child. I don’t know how I would have reacted, and I guess we’ll never know. But you’re here now, and I want to get to know my son. I’m going to be the father he’s always deserved. I know I have a lot of time to make up for. He’s a wonderful kid, and that’s a testament to you. You are an incredible mother, Atiana. I always knew you would be.”
Her lower lip trembles slightly. “I didn’t realize I needed to hear that,” she whispers, licking her lower lip.
Fuck! Those lips.
“Thank you for protecting us.”
“I will always protect you,” I vow, and I mean every single word.
I let her go once. I let her walk out that door, and I never gave chase. I knew I couldn’t give her what she wanted, but I’m never going to make that mistake again. “Is there anything else you need? You can message me at any time?—”
“We’re okay.” She smiles, and it reaches her honey-brown eyes. “But thank you. I’ll see you in the morning.” She closes the door, and I relax when I hear it lock.
Feeling wide awake now, I head downstairs to the bar, where the twins and Haze are sitting, having a drink.
“Hey, Daddy.” Haze smirks, lifting his beer at me. “How things have changed in such a short time.”
It takes all my willpower not to punch him.
We had all thought Haze had knocked up Daisy, one of our club girls, but a paternity test proved it wasn’t him. We don’t know who the father of her baby is yet, because after she found out she wasn’t trapping Haze, she ran off and hasn’t been seen since.
I don’t take Haze’s bait because our situations aren’t anything alike. Atiana is the only woman I have ever loved. If anyone were going to have my children, I’d want it to be her, anyway.
“You want something?” Brandy asks me, leaning over the bar, to show off her cleavage. I’ve fucked her many times, just like plenty of the other women that hang around the club, but for once, my dick doesn’t even twitch.
Where was that reaction seven years ago?
“Just a beer.”
She slides me one. I turn around and ignore her. If I want Atiana, I’m going to have to make some life changes.
Lu had to go through this shit with Haze, knowing he had been with so many women, and I saw firsthand the hurt it put her through. I never thought I’d be putting Atiana through the same thing. I never thought I’d see her again.
