Page 27 of Sinful Need
“I’m so sorry Jase.” I apologize again. I don’t know what else to do.
“Stop apologizing, Rayne. We’re together now, that's all that matters.
I want to throw myself in his arms but I can’t. Not with the way they have to hold him up, so I nod my head instead.
“Are you going with us then?” Chainz asks.
I meet his hardened stare, “Yes.”
“Then let's get him in the car.”
I fumble with the door handle, opening it for them and scurry around to the driver's seat. I’m still trembling when I climb inside.
Chainz reclines the seat, easing Jase backwards with the movement until he’s as flat as the seat will go. Catching resistance from the car seat and Lilly’s swinging legs. Jase stares up at her innocent smile but the deadpan stare on Chainz’s face sends a shiver down my spine. “Who's the kid?”
“She’s mine.” I practically stutter. I didn’t think about how anyone other than Jase would react to her but thevisceral reaction Chainz is displaying is not at all what I expected.
“Is she.” Chainz says it with such definiteness, as if he can see right through my lies, instead of a question. The fear returns, twisting my stomach.
Chainz lowers his deadpan stare and fastens the seatbelt around Jase.
“Follow us to the airport,” his order is firm as he closes the car doorand I let out the breath I’m holding.
I wait while they climb on their bikes and a moment later Chainz is in front of me. I pull the car back onto the road behind him while Tank pulls out behind me.
“I’m sorry Jase. I’m sorry for everything. For running when I should have trusted you with my secret and for the accident.” I whisper, but his unconsciousness steals my words leaving the weight of my apologies hanging in the air.
Chapter 16
Fuel
I wake up in an oversized bed tucked in a small cabin. The speed of the plane flipping my stomach. I search the room to get my bearings and spot Rayne sitting in a chair in the corner. She’s folded into herself, her knees drawn tight to her chest, her arms wrapped around them.
“Why didn’t you tell me you had a child?” My voice is rough and raspy. Rayne’s eyes jut open at the sound.
“I didn’t know how to.” The pain in her eyes guts me.
Of all the things I feared I’d find, that was the last thing I expected. The thought of her having a child with Hawk is like a crucifix staked through my heart but I can’t be angry with her. I have no right to be. I left her behind to endure his hell and I couldn’t expect time to stand still.
I sit up, propping my back against the headboard. Heat from my side rushes through me and I suck in a breath. Drawing my hand to my side, my fingers skim the tender and red flesh along my ribs. “How old is she?”
“I don’t know. Three, I think.” Confusion arches my brows and Rayne hangs her head, “She’s not mine. Hawk gave her tome to take care of. It’s how I earned my freedom but I didn’t think about what the price would be at the time.”
“If she’s not yours, whose is she?”
“I’m ashamed to admit I never asked. I never reported it. I never tried to find out where her parents were. I fell in love with her instantly and was too selfish to give that up. I know it was wrong but I swear I didn’t know he planned to traffic her.”
“You’re not selfish, Rayne. You’re a mother. You fought to protect her from Hawk and the predators he was going to sell herbut it’s over now. Hawk is dead. You can finally take back the power he stole from you. We can finally have the future we were meant to have.”
Rayne crawls onto the bed next to me. My arms encircle her waist. I want to comfort her in her time of need and for all the many times I wasn’t there for her when I should have been. She rests her face in the crook of my neck, her warm breath on my skin shoots sparks through my body.
Her tears fall, soaking my shirt. “I’m so sorry Jase. I was terrified you were Hawk coming back for us. I never meant to hurt you.”
“Hush now. This is nothing. I’ll be fine in a few days.” Rayne pulls back from my embrace.
“There’s more.” She pulls a crumpled piece of paper from her pocket, meticulously unfolding it and soothing the creases before handing it to me. “Someone else is looking for her.”
I take the paper from her and my heart drops to my stomach, recognizing what it is. Before I can say anything, the door to the cabin flies open. Chainz’s bulk crowding the small space. “I see our boy’s awake. How ya feeling?”
