Page 125 of 23 Hours

Dancing down the front steps, his arm then curls around my waist as I snag the new boots and socks from the bike. Gunz draws me in, and I do what any sane woman would—I plant a big, sloppy, grateful kiss on his lips. Gunz chuckles on impact before slating our mouths together and claiming me like a beast. Tongues dueling for dominance, my brain turns to mush, and my panties catch fire. Lost in the moment, I claw at his clothes, not giving a single damn where we are. The quicker we’re naked, the better.

Wrenching his lips away from mine with a pained groan, Gunz’s hooded gaze stares down at me as I force air to enter my lungs. He boops my nose with a finger. “You’re gonna be the end of me.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” I slide my hand over Gunz’s thigh, into the juncture, right alongside his erection. Teasing the tip through his denim, I innocently bite my lip as he gasps, then growls, when he realizes what I’m trying to do. He pries my hand off before we get ourselves into trouble.

I need to see it.

I need to play with it.

He goes down on me… Every. Single. Day.

Not once has he let me do what I want. To explore and taste him. It’s driving me crazy.

“Get dressed, love. We’ve got places to go. People to see.”

Grumbling a slew of unpleasantries, I stomp dramatically over to the steps of our house, boots in hand, plop down, and proceed to do as instructed, all the while glaring at him—partly because I’m sexually frustrated and partly out of fun. What can I say? I love this man.

Gunz watches me pull on the socks and the boots, wearing the sexiest smile known to mankind. What I did to deserve this guy, I’ll never know, but I’m gonna appreciate every minute.

Sufficiently dressed for a ride, I use Gunz’s shoulder for support as I swing my leg over and mount the back of his Harley. He downs the pegs for me to place my feet on before reaching into his bag of wonders and handing me a matte black half-helmet. I strap it on as he slides a pair of black sunglasses over his eyes.

“You ready to ride?!” he hollers over the rumble of his bike.

“No helmet for you?”

“I’ll be fine, love.”

“Erik.” That’s not gonna work for me.

“Kit,” he mocks.

“Helmet.”

“Love, we’re not goin’ far.”

I don’t care. “We’re at war. You need a helmet. You’ve already had two surgeries. I’m gonna guess ridin’ wasn’t in the doc’s approved notes, but we’re doin’ it anyhow. Helmet, babe.”

It’s the least he can do to protect himself.

Gunz nods stiffly in agreement, unhappy with my demand. He pulls out his phone, fires off a text, and less than a minute later, Adam comes running from the clubhouse with a helmet similar to mine in hand.

“Hey, Mom,” he greets, delivering the protective shell to his father.

“Hey, back. Thanks for bringin’ it.”

“No problem. Stay safe.” Adam taps the side of my leg and gives a chin lift to his father before jogging back to the clubhouse.

My guy secures the helmet on his head. “There. Better?” he grumbles, knocking the side with his fist.

From behind, I squeeze him around the middle, careful not to get too low and bother his stitches. “Thank you.”

“Yeah. Yeah.” He pats the back of my hand before repositioning my hold around him.

Settled on his Harley, I relax the best I can, given I haven’t ridden on one of these in forever, as Gunz heels up his stand and gets us rollin’. White Boy opens the front gate for us to leave, and before I know it, we’re cruising on the open road. Cool wind in my face, warm sun on my back, and a beautiful man in my arms.

The longer we ride, the more my muscles ease. The stress I’ve been carrying for months fades, replaced by a calm I’ve never felt before. This is where I belong. Each day, I heal a little more from what happened. Each day, I’m accepted into a world I never realized I needed. In a week, I marry this man.

Chin resting on his shoulder, I close my eyes and fly. A mishmash of happy, sad tears paint my face, disappearing just as fast as they come. Their remnants a memory on the wind, and with them goes the past, the pain, and the fear of what was or is to be.

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