Page 81 of The Girlfriend's Guide to Dating a Biker
“I know.”
I pulled into our apartment building’s car park, scanning the darkness for threats. Nothing seemed off, but instinct always kept me aware.
“Talk to me,” I said as I parked the car and turned to her. “Tell me what it is.”
Her eyes searched mine and I saw her hesitate before finally saying, “I get that club business is club business. I get that there are times you have to disappear to take care of it. And I get that you can’t talk about it with me.” She took a breath. “But that makes things hard for me because I stress and spiral when I’m uncertain and don’t know facts.” She looked down at her hands for a beat before looking back up at me. “I guess I’m just processing that. And what that means for us.”
The way my body reacted at “what that means for us” said a fuckuva lot about just how hard I’d fallen for her.
“You’re right that I can’t talk about a lot of it, but there are things I can tell you that’ll take some of that uncertainty away. I just hate the idea of dropping all the club shit on you. I want to protect you from it.”
“I didn’t fall for you because you made me feel safe, Jake,” she said softly. “I fell for you because you made me feel seen. Don’t try to protect me by keeping me in the dark. That’s not safety. That’s distance.”
She was right. I knew she was. And yet, I also knew I was going to struggle with this.
I didn’t say a word. Just leaned in and kissed her like it was the only way to get oxygen into my lungs. When I pulled back, I slid my hand along her jaw and said, “Thank you for coming to the hospital tonight. It meant a lot to me.”
She curled her hand around my forearm and fuck if I didn’t crave so much more of her touch. “I liked that you let me be a part of it.”
We sat watching each other for a few moments, not speaking, but still saying more than we had in the last twenty minutes.
I felt the things neither of us were voicing out loud but were absolutely communicating.
The way her hand stayed on my arm like she needed the contact just as much as I did.
The way her eyes softened but didn’t let go of that guarded edge.
The way mine probably looked like a fucking storm because that’s what she’d turned me into; a man who was feeling a fuckload of new feelings and didn’t know how to express them all.
She hadn’t said she was staying. But she hadn’t said she was going, either. That was Eden, though. Fierce, cautious, and standing firm.
I ran my thumb over her jaw. “I’m not trying to keep you in the dark, darlin’. Not on purpose. I just don’t always know what to give you.” I paused for a second. “I’ve never wanted to bring someone into my life like I do with you. I might need a little help and a fuckuva lot of patience with this.”
A smile spread slowly across her face, and she nodded as she whispered, “I can do that.”
“Thank fuck.” I pulled her in for another kiss before saying, “Okay, let’s get you inside so you can rack up some sleep. You’re gonna need all your brainpower to survive whatever fresh hell Johnson serves up in the morning.”
Her smile grew and her eyes lit up. “Honestly, that might be the hottest thing you’ve ever said.”
“Fuck, I’ve got work to do if that’s the bar.”
She laughed as she opened her door, and I thought about how fucking much I liked her laugh. Hell, I liked every damn sound she made.
We were halfway to the building when two figures stepped out of the shadows. They moved like they weren’t in a rush. Streetlight highlighted the distinctive tattoo crawling up one guy’s neck. Recognition flared; I knew that tattoo from the surveillance I’d been doing. These motherfuckers were Black Deeds.
The other guy held a chain, and it clinked as he adjusted his grip and said, “Well, look what we have here.” His tone was lazy, but his eyes were sharp, and they slid past me like I wasn’t even there, landing on Eden. His expression turned predatory. “Two for the price of one.”
I stepped forward, putting Eden at my back. “If you’re smart, you’ll walk away.”
They didn’t move.
The one with the tattoo spat on the concrete. “You’re Jake, yeah? Storm?”
Lethal focus rolled through me. The kind my uncle taught me. The kind that shows no mercy. I didn’t answer the guy. If they were here for me, they already knew who I was.
“Word is you’ve been in our shit,” he said.
“Word is right,” I replied, my attention on chain guy.
