Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 59146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 296(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 197(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59146 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 296(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 197(@300wpm)
“I’m going with you.” Of course, my lungs chose that moment so seize, and I coughed until my sides ached. “Fuck,” I gasped.
“Not sure you’re up for that,” she muttered.
“Good thing them feet didn’t touch the floor,” Knuckles drawled. “You know me well enough to know I will absolutely follow through.”
When I could breathe again, I closed my eyes briefly. This shit was my own fault. I’d been too stubborn to let a firefighter on scene go look for the sound of the screams I’d heard. Sure, the officer in charge hadn’t been super motivated, but he’d had a huge-ass structure fire he was trying to keep from spreading, and I hadn’t gotten specific.
Finally, I sighed. “Take Zero with you.”
She smiled. “I can do that.”
“And be careful.”
“Don’t worry. I have every intention of coming back to make sure you behave. Nurse Lisa says you’ve been particularly… rambunctious.”
“If that’s a fancy way of saying he’s a pain in the ass, then I agree with Nurse Lisa.” Knuckles hadn’t moved from his spot in the corner and didn’t seem to have plans on moving any time soon.
I glanced at the door, and Zero eased into view. “You stay with her at all times,” I said. “Anything happens to her, I will fuck you all the way up.”
He gave me a nod. “Understood, sir. I’ll keep her safe.”
“You’re gonna wear that cut.” I tried to make my voice stern, but again, I started coughing. “It’ll let the world know you’re mine. No one will fuck with you because you’re Kiss of Death, same as me.”
She blinked hard, then straightened her shoulders. “Yes, sir.” It was said with a smirk.
I pulled Juniper in for another kiss. I brushed her hair back and let my thumb trace her jaw, just for a second. “Don’t stay too long.”
“I won’t.” She looked away and out the window. The sad look on her face made me want to kill Brett even more than I already did.
“I just…” she trailed off before looking back at me with a small, sad smile. “I need to see it. You know?”
“Yeah, honey. I get it.”
She looked at me, then leaned in and kissed me. “I’ll be back soon.”
Goddamn, I loved this woman.
* * *
Juniper
Inferno’s cut was heavy as hell on my shoulders. The weight wasn’t just the patches or the leather, though. It was what the thing represented. I knew how much Kiss of Death meant to Inferno. I also knew the other members of the club saw everyone in their compound as family. To me, having Inferno’s vest meant I was family, and I desperately wanted family.
Zero held the exit door for me, and we left the building in the early afternoon sun. The sky was the color of dirty ice, the air wet and sharp against my lungs. Zero directed me to a truck parked next to the entrance. Once we were both in and buckled up, Zero headed out. When we arrived, he parked as close as he could get to the bakery without crossing the yellow caution tapes. Everyone seemed to have packed it in and the street sat empty except for the car I recognized as belonging to the hardware store owner. Yellow tape cordoned off the area, and we sat there for a second.
“You want me to walk with you, ma’am?” Zero asked.
I shook my head. “No. I just want to look for a minute.” He nodded, jaw tight, and settled in for the wait as I stepped out.
Everything still dripped from last night’s excitement. Puddles on the sidewalk and soot turning the runoff black, along with broken glass, all caught the light, shimmering like diamonds. I walked as close as allowed by the yellow tape and stopped.
I didn’t cry. There was a weird calm in me. What sickened me the most was the fact that, if I let an innocent person who only wanted a warm, dry place to live and three meals a day take responsibility, the insurance company might be more inclined to pay. Given all I’d lost, I didn’t feel like I had the luxury of a conscience when the guy had confessed. Every dollar might be the difference between reopening or folding for good. The homeless man would have a place to stay for several years, and I’d be able to put this behind me without much of a battle.
I stood there, staring at the gap where the front door used to be when I heard the glass crunch on the pavement coming up behind me. Brett fucking Calloway stepped out from the side alley, like he’d been waiting for this moment all morning. Hair perfect, shirt and jacket spotless, he approached me with his hands up.
“Junie,” he said, voice honeyed and low, without a ripple of regret. “Can we talk?”
I didn’t move. “I hate that nickname.”