Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 104403 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 522(@200wpm)___ 418(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104403 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 522(@200wpm)___ 418(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
“Beth.” He pinched the bridge of his nose.
“What is your problem?” She huffed and threw her hands in the air. His eyes immediately went to the strip of stomach showing as her tight tank top shifted with the movement. “I’m sorry that you got stuck babysitting me this afternoon. I certainly didn’t ask for this. You’re more than welcome to drop me off at home and go do whatever the hell you have to do.”
Fire shot from her eyes. Part of him felt a surge of pride. Just last week, she’d been injured and threatened by a man, and instead of cowering, she’d stood up to a damn outlaw today. The other part of him wanted to throttle her for her carelessness and stupidity.
He leaned down until their noses nearly brushed.
Beth sucked in a breath and stopped hollering.
“You told a wannabe gangster to fuck off. So, yeah, I’m fucking pissed. Today could have ended very differently for you. We could be scraping you off the side of the goddamn highway, or your fucking family could be searching for you while some psycho holds you in his basement.”
Christ, his heart was racing as horrifying images ran through his mind.
“So what the hell should I have done, huh? Cowered and let him see how terrified I was? Fuck no,” she spat out with a harsh swipe of her arm. “I lived that for too long. Never again. I refuse to cower to any man.”
She proved her point, yelling at him in front of the clubhouse without apprehension. Him, a man who could snap her in half with ease. Equal parts brave and stupid.
But still, her courage and conviction took the wind out of his sails. He exhaled a long pent-up breath as he nodded. “Okay.”
Frowning, she blinked. “Okay?”
“Yes.” It would take a few minutes for his rage to cool to a simmer, but the ride to Beth’s house should help. “I get it. I respect it.” She had no idea how much. “Sometimes, I get a little… intense about the safety of people I ca… know.”
She huffed a breath. “Ya think?”
He responded with a smirk.
After a hefty inhale, Beth sighed. “I get it. I didn’t know anything about him, his intentions, or how dangerous he was. Antagonizing him might have been… less than smart.”
Saint grunted. That was one way of putting it.
“It’s just… after what happened with Jason and the way I did nothing for so long, another man using his size and strength to overpower me made me so angry. All I could think about was how I refused to let it happen again.”
Before his brain clocked his intentions, he lifted his hand to cup her cheek. No woman deserved to be intimidated by a man, and he couldn’t fault her for fighting back the best way she knew how. Thankfully, before he crossed the line and touched her, his good sense kicked back online, and he reached for his spare helmet instead. “Let’s get you home, killer.”
Beth snorted and rolled her eyes as he plopped the helmet on her head. Once he had it in place and buckled, she smiled at him, making his damn cock twitch. She looked hot as hell astride his bike with her green eyes sparkling at him. She still wore a light layer of makeup to hide the fading bruises, but they’d mostly disappeared, giving her a fresh, bright appearance. If she were any other single woman, he’d lean in to steal a kiss. But this was Beth, and if he did that, it’d likely be the last thing he ever did.
Her effortlessly sexy smile was making it difficult to care about the consequences.
“Let’s roll,” she said.
Saint forced himself to turn away and climb on the bike. As soon as his ass hit the seat, her hands settled on his sides like two brands searing him through his clothes. It’d take nothing for her to slide them forward and cup his dick, which was growing more interested by the second.
“Fuck my life,” he muttered as he fired up the bike.
“What was that?” Beth yelled in his ear.
He shook his head. “Nothing, just thinking out loud.”
They took off, heading for Copper and Shell’s house, where Beth had been staying since she came home. Did she enjoy it there? It had to be nice to spend time with her parents and younger siblings, but after years on her own, moving back in with them couldn’t have been easy.
About five minutes into his ride, the Bluetooth on his helmet made an announcement. “You have one new message. Play message from Stillman?” the robotic feminine voice spoke in his ear.
The old friend he’d told Copper he’d contact for information about the mystery bikers in town. And that was before one of them approached Beth. Now, he didn’t just want to speak to Stillman, he needed to talk to the guy. Getting information had gone from helpful to necessary in less than an hour.