Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 66480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 332(@200wpm)___ 266(@250wpm)___ 222(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 66480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 332(@200wpm)___ 266(@250wpm)___ 222(@300wpm)
I followed her to the door, desperation clawing at my chest even as I knew I fought a losing battle. "Wren, I'm asking you to wait. Just give me time to sort this out. Once I get permission from Vittorio I can tell you everything."
"I don't owe you shit." She wrenched the door open before pointing my way in warning. "Stay away from me. Stay away from my Bound in Blood. And if I find out you're using anything I might have said against Bound in Blood, I will personally make sure Ghost and Bloody Jack end you in ways that'll make hell look like a fucking vacation. I sure as shit hope I’m your only backup if things go to shit. Cause if I am, you’re fucking screwed." She headed off.
I grabbed my jeans from the bedroom floor, yanking them on as I followed her into the hall. I didn't bother with a shirt or shoes, just hurried after her as she stormed down the stairs to the building's exit.
The night air hit my bare chest like a slap, the asphalt cold under my bare feet. Wren strode across the parking lot to her bike, her back rigid, every line of her body screaming fury.
"Wren, wait!" I called, jogging after her. My feet protested against the rough surface, bits of gravel digging into my soles. The discomfort barely registered through the panic of watching her slip away.
She reached her Harley and swung her leg over, jamming the key into the ignition before she put her helmet on. I caught up to her. "Wren—"
"Back off," she warned, eyes flashing. When I didn't immediately move, she kicked out, nearly catching me in the balls. "I said get away from me!"
"Wren, don’t leave me like this," I insisted. "Let’s go back inside and I’ll call Vittorio. He can call Ghost and Ghost can confirm. I never intended any harm to Bound in Blood or to you. What happened between us was real. All the way around."
Wren stared at me for a long moment, her eyes searching my face. For a second, I thought I'd reached her. Then her expression hardened again. "You know what your problem is, Rocky? You've told so many lies I bet you don't know what's real anymore." She turned the key, and the bike roared to life beneath her. The sound cut through the quiet night, seeming to echo off the surrounding buildings.
I placed my hand on her handlebar, one last desperate attempt to make her stay. "Five minutes. Just give me five fucking minutes."
She revved the engine, the noise drowning out my words. The vibrations traveled up my arm, a physical manifestation of the barrier between us. Her eyes met mine one last time, and what I saw there was worse than hatred. There was nothing. Emptiness. As if I'd been erased from her world.
She knocked my hand away and guided the bike backward, then kicked it into gear. The rear wheel spun, kicking up gravel that stung where they sprayed me. She was gone, the red taillight of her Harley shrinking as she tore out of the parking lot, leaving nothing but exhaust and dust, and spitting gravel in her wake.
I stood there, half-naked in the cold night air, watching until her taillight disappeared around the corner. The empty parking lot echoed with her absence. I'd fucked up. Royally, completely fucked up. Vittorio had told me to befriend her, to forge a connection that might prove useful if I needed an emergency exit from the Copperheads. Instead, I'd fallen for her, compromised myself in ways I'd never expected and the only thing I cared about was how badly I’d hurt her.
I owed my life to Vittorio. I’d gather the final pieces of information Vittorio needed to move on these bastards then I had to find a way to convince Wren to trust me again, that I was worth a second chance when I didn’t entirely believe I did. Lives depended on the information Vittorio asked me to get. Young women and girls who didn't deserve to be drugged and sold like property. I couldn't abandon them, not for myself. Wren was safe when the others were not.
Standing there in that empty parking lot, I felt the weight of my choices pressing down on me like a physical burden. For the first time since I’d met Vittorio, I felt pulled in two directions, torn between duty and the unexpected need I had to be with Wren. To protect her.
I ran a hand through my hair, muttered a curse that fogged in the cool night air. There was nothing to do but continue. See it through to the end. Maybe, if I was lucky, I'd find a way to make Wren understand when it was all over. Maybe she'd listen when I could tell her the whole truth.