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“I’ll let him know before the end of the day.”
I can’t take my eyes off of the new guy. He has to be Hawk’s brother. They have the same shaggy blond hair and olive-jade eyes. This guy has a slightly leaner build, but I guess him to be at least an inch or two taller than Hawk. When I continue to stare at him, the new guy steps closer offering me his hand. “Hey, Gracie. I’m Colt.”
When I shake his hand, I’m startled to see the tattoo on his left bicep: a diamond with a set of angel wings inside and a halo of fire floating over the top. Air feels like it’s punched from my lungs when I suddenly realize where I am and exactly who I’m with. I’m new to this town, but I’ve heard all about the bikers that run Creswell Springs, California.
Rumor has it that the president of the local biker club had killed a man with his bare hands. He’d been sentenced just a few weeks ago, and everyone on campus has been talking about it since the day that it happened and was all over the local papers. I’ve heard stories of how brutal they are … and how devastatingly sexy they are …
My gaze goes to the man still sitting on the bed. Hawk watches me closely, and I’m trying hard to comprehend that the man that has taken such good care of me is part of a biker gang. “You’re an Angel’s Halo member?” I whisper.
His eyes narrow. “Yes.”
“Are … are you really killers?” Everything inside me protests the question as soon as I utter it, but I need to know. Need his answer before I’m able breathe again.
“No.” His answer is clipped, and I see hurt darken his eyes before he tosses back the covers and stands. “We aren’t killers.”
I bite my lip, knowing that I had hurt him in some way but not sure how to fix it. “It’s just that I’m new around here … and there has been talk about Angel’s Halo being …” I break off, not knowing how I can describe his gang without insulting him even more than I obviously have.
Colt clears his throat, still standing beside the bed waiting on his brother. “Those are just rumors that the university starts to keep the tender footed virgins away from the big bad bikers.”
A blush creeps into my cheeks. I’m a virgin and have obviously been put in my place. “I’m sorry,” I whisper.
“Don’t worry about it.” Hawk’s tone is a little less frosty, but I can still see he isn’t happy from the tension in his shoulders. “Colt, let’s go. Gracie needs to get dressed.”
“Hawk …” I call after him hesitantly as he follows his brother out the door. I hear the curse he mutters under his breath before he turns his head to glance at me over his shoulder. “I’m sorry.” I tell him again.
Chapter 9
Raven
Hawk stomps out of the house without a word to me or Felicity. Colt follows but at least waves as he grabbed his keys to his hog. I frown at my brothers, wondering what’s up with Hawk’s dead eyes. The frat boys must still be weighing on his mind if he’s in that kind of mood.
Felicity gulps down the last of her OJ before washing her glass and turning to face me. “You ready for this?”
Am I ready to stomp some sick cow for setting up a gang rape of a sweet and innocent girl? “Bring it.” I sit down at the kitchen table and pull on my heeled boots. I’m so ready.
By the time I have my boots laced up Gracie is walking down the stairs. I glance up at her as she enters the kitchen. The sweat pants I had lent her seem to be at least a size to big, and she looks pale and bleary-eyed. I don’t normally get all softhearted where other women are concerned, but there was just something about Gracie Morgan.
“Morning, Gracie.” Felicity greets her with a smile. “It’s a bright new day. Let’s take the world by the balls and squeeze.”
A half-smile lifts her lips, but she doesn’t move from the doorway. “I … I think I hurt Hawk’s feelings …” she whispers hesitantly.
That has a smile tilting my own lips. “Hawk?”
Gracie blinks back her tears, chin trembling. “I … Well … I didn’t know that he was … an Angel’s Halo member … and I had heard so many bad things …”
I sigh and push my long blonde hair back from my face. I’m not sure how to handle this one. The women I know are all aware who my brothers are and just how dangerous they can be. Women that chase any member of Angel’s Halo are looking for a walk on the wild side, not someone that’s going to hold their hand or shit like that. “Look Gracie …”
“The guys have a bad rap around here, Gracie,” Felicity tells her before I can even guess at what to say. “I won’t lie to you. They are pretty hard-core, but that’s because they have to be. They aren’t bad guys. And they sure as hell don’t condone rape. Hawk, he’s pretty high up in the club, but he is a really great guy. Don’t judge him from rumors that stupid dickheads started because they just weren’t good enough, brave enough to be part of Angel’s Halo.”
“I know.” Gracie sucks in a shuddering breath. “I realized it as soon as I said what I did. But I trust Hawk … with my life. How do I make up for hurting him?”
“Don’t say stupid shit again,” I say, standing and reaching for the keys to my Challenger. “Hawk will be over it by tonight, but the only way to prove to him that you didn’t mean what you said is to stay loyal to him …” I shoot her a serious look from under my lashes. I may like this girl—shocker—but I don’t let anyone hurt my brothers. If they’re protective of me, then I’m sure as hell protective of them. “And if you do say stupid shit like that again, you’ll have to answer to me.”
“No, I won’t.” Gracie folds her arms over her chest, not seeming to back down from me. That’s a good sign. If she’s scared of me, then she’s not going to last long in this world that we live in. Crazy enough, I think that maybe Hawk wants to keep her around for a while, and I don’t mind it if he does. She might be all innocent and shit, but I see fire deep in her eyes.
“I need your keys.” I hold out my hand. “Felicity and I will get as much of your stuff as we can today and go back for the rest tomorrow.”
After the slightest hesitation, she hands me her keys. “Be careful.”
