Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 133975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 670(@200wpm)___ 536(@250wpm)___ 447(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 670(@200wpm)___ 536(@250wpm)___ 447(@300wpm)
“The food?” She struggled to understand.
Keys turned to her and wrapped her in his arms, dragging her as close as possible. He wanted to share her skin. Crawl inside her. He kissed the top of her head.
“This is another gift you’re giving me, Lyric. The realization that I have a family and they care. Not just demonstrating it through violence but actual caring. Enough for Lana to find you the perfect clothes. Enough that the wives of the club members filled our fridge with food. I couldn’t see it.”
He hadn’t been capable of seeing the depths of caring surrounding him until he had Lyric. He tipped her face up to his and took her mouth. He was gentle, stroking caresses with his tongue, building the fire as slowly as he knew how. He wasn’t so good at gentle, but he felt that way toward her, his thumb sliding back and forth along her jaw.
He lifted his head slowly, looking down into her dazed, jeweled eyes. “You gave that to me, Wildfire. It may have been there all the time, that caring for me, but I was unable to see it. You’ve given me a different perspective on everything.”
There was no way to miss the little tremors moving through her. Lyric wasn’t convinced he wasn’t going to tear out her heart, but she was willing to try with him, or at least to give him this time.
“I don’t deserve you, Lyric, but I’m taking you anyway. You’ve become the air I need to breathe, so it isn’t like I can just let you run off.”
He didn’t understand why her reaction shocked him. He was pouring out his heart, maybe his soul, and she laughed. It was low. Soft, but it was still laughter.
“Keys, I’m the one who fixates on everything, not you. You have to stay grounded so I can freak out whenever I need to. I love that you think I’m someone special, but I’m not a saint. I don’t have wings and never will. Whenever you begin to think I’m a saintly woman, think about me attacking men with a blow-dryer. It’s kind of second nature to huck things when I’m royally angry. And if there’s one person on the face of this earth who has the capability of making me lose my temper, it’s you when you’re being your bossy self.”
It took a moment to realize she was struggling not to cry. Lyric didn’t cry and she would be horribly embarrassed if she was caught. The things he’d told her meant the world to her, but she couldn’t deal with the overwhelming emotion, struggling to comprehend that he believed he felt those things about her—and for her.
Lyric didn’t have a family. She hadn’t been wanted for whatever idiotic reason her parents and brother had conjured up. To have Keys making declarations, when she was so uncertain of the two of them, was clearly difficult for her.
He grinned at her. “I’d forgotten that I’m the sane one in our relationship. Thanks for the reminder. You do get overwrought and emotional, and you have that nasty little temper and foul mouth when you lose it.” He let the smile fade and narrowed his eyes at her. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten the time you lost your mind and swore at me.”
She burst out laughing. “One time. I swore at you one time. It didn’t have the desired effect, so it probably won’t happen again. If I had money for all the disgusting words that come out of your mouth, I’d be a millionaire.”
He pulled the meat and cheese trays from the fridge and handed them to her. “Let’s get something to eat so we can ride. I’ve never been good at being cooped up.” He leaned into her and brushed another kiss across her temple. “If we stick around here, I’m going to take you outside to the picnic table and have my own little feast. Since you need a break, taking a ride to Caspar seems the best solution.”
“The picnic table? Outside?” Lyric’s perfectly pitched voice hit a higher note as if she couldn’t conceive of such a thing.
Keys had the unexpected urge to laugh when it was completely foreign to him. His little innocent was in for many shocking revelations he was more than happy to teach her. Rather than inform her of all the possibilities, he began building them sandwiches while she stared out the window at the picnic table.
“Why not outside? Wind on your body cooling you. Me keeping you hot. It works. Get the chips out of the cupboard. I think they brought several different kinds. I like spicy.” He grinned at her again, implying all kinds of things just to see her blush, which she did, beautifully. “So barbecue for me.”
“I never know if you’re teasing me or casually giving me one of your endless lessons,” she said as she reached up to try to access the chips on the second shelf. It wasn’t happening, and that made him smile as well.