Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 34187 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 171(@200wpm)___ 137(@250wpm)___ 114(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34187 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 171(@200wpm)___ 137(@250wpm)___ 114(@300wpm)
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, I can’t argue with that. You know I always jump at the chance to go riding with you.”
“Good. Grab your helmet and come on.”
Ten minutes later we were rolling down the interstate. Two of the guys from the club rode in front of us, two in back, putting us safely in the middle. I had no idea where we were going and didn’t particularly care. The only things that mattered were the bike, the guys surrounding us in a bubble of protection, and the man I had my arms wrapped around.
I wasn’t sure how far we went. Not far enough as far as I was concerned. I was too busy looking at the scenery to worry about our destination. We pulled off the interstate and into an older section of Nashville to a strip mall with a nightclub and a couple of restaurants in a huge parking lot. The place looked like it had been abandoned for several years. The windows in every building other than the nightclub were dusty and grungy. A couple had the windows broken. The nightclub looked as seedy as they came.
There seemed to be only one other car in the lot, and we were driving toward it. The closer we got, the more sickeningly familiar the vehicle became.
We rolled to a stop in front of the Cadillac SUV. Dad always had to have a new vehicle every year, so he leased. The guys revved the engines a couple times before everyone shut down.
Xavier helped me off his bike and turned me to face him. Putting his hands on my shoulders he gave me an encouraging look. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t want you stressing over this. I’m here to support you while you do this. So are the rest of the guys.”
“I should be mad at you, but I can’t be.” I smiled up at him and Xavier leaned in to kiss me.
“You got this, baby. I’ll be with you the whole time.”
“I’m not afraid of them, Xavier. They’re not going to hurt me.”
“Lots of ways of hurtin’ someone. Words are sometimes as bad as blows.”
“Matilda!” I winced as my mother called out to me from their vehicle. “Matilda, come here, please.”
I took a breath, popping my neck before putting my shoulders back. “I got this.” My muttered pep talk wasn’t much, but I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be. Like, maybe I’d built this up to be worse than it had to be.
As I walked between Oktober and Chains to my waiting parents, Xavier took my hand and squeezed. When I looked up at him, he winked at me and I smiled. I was so in love with this man it wasn’t even funny.
Mom’s face was a carefully composed mask of polite concern, but I could see the flicker of disgust in her eyes as she took in my companions. Dad stood ramrod straight beside the Cadillac, his fingers drumming impatiently against the door.
“What on earth are you wearing?” Mom hissed as I approached, eyeing my leather vest.
“Oh, you haven’t gotten to the good part of my outfit yet.” I smiled and turned around where Xavier’s property patch was prominently displayed. When I faced her again, I kept my smile firmly in place as I made introductions. “This is Xavier. These are my parents, Richard and Eleanor Dyson.”
Xavier nodded once, his hand still firmly clasped in mine. “Ma’am. Sir.”
Dad’s gaze swept over Xavier, taking in his tattooed neck, his cut, his entire presence, before dismissing him entirely. “We’ve been trying to reach you for weeks, Matilda. You shouldn’t worry your mother.”
“Wait a minute.” My mother’s eyes had grown wide, and her mouth was now open in a silent “O” of shock. “Oh. My. God! That’s the man who killed poor Paul! Richard! Push the OnStar button! Call 911!” My mother was actually fanning herself. I’d have felt sorry for her except I knew she wasn’t outraged on my behalf. She was angry at Xavier for taking away her ticket to a life of luxury. That’s all my parents ever cared about in life. Money.
“We weren’t notified you were out of prison.” My father was still behind the driver’s-side door. I had no doubt he’d already called the police, and I had the urge to leave. No one had done anything, but a group of ex-cons intimidating an older rich couple wouldn’t work out well for anyone in my party.
“Why would you be?” I asked, trying to get control of the situation before it spiraled. “You weren’t related to him or Paul.”
“Paul was like a son to us.” My mother dabbed at her eyes. “And this… this… animal took him away from us!”
“This animal picked me up on the side of the road in the middle of the worst storm I’d ever seen. I was covered from head to toe in bruises, my clothes ripped and bloodstained. He didn’t ask questions, he simply offered me a ride. When he finally coaxed me into confiding in him, he made it so Paul would never hurt me again.” Memories swamped me. Reliving my nightmare was almost more painful than going through it the first time. I had a visceral reaction to the trauma, breaking out in a sweat. I had to fight to keep my knees from buckling, but I stayed on my feet. “You scoffed at me. Told me to quit being a drama queen.”