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“Shhh, Makenna, take a breath.” He stroked his hands up her back once before cupping her shoulders and putting space between them.
Now that she’d gotten his club in trouble, he’d probably want nothing to do with her. How could she have been so stupid to have taken that CDMC job? Why had she ignored her gut that night? In the past, a poor choice earned her a beating and isolation, now it endangered her entire family.
“Mak, hey.” He dipped his knees, bringing them eye level. Hers watered as her lower lip trembled. “Take a breath for me, babe, okay?”
She did as he asked, sucking in air and blowing it out in a long, shaky exhale.
“Good girl. You’re okay, I’m okay, and the girls are okay.”
Her stomach bottomed out. “Oh, God, the kids. I need to get them—”
“Mak!” This time he gave her shoulders a gentle shake before cupping her face and tilting her head back. Though light, his hold was firm.
Clearly, she was sick in the head because a flare of arousal shot through her at his controlling actions.
“Here’s what we’re gonna do, okay?”
Nodding, she looked at the rear of the car, where her sisters studied their every move. Their safety was their first priority. “Okay.”
“Good. You’re gonna get in the car and drive straight home. I’m gonna follow right behind you. When we get to your house, we’re gonna take the kids inside and watch movies while we eat junk food. Just like you promised them.”
“But…” Her gaze sought out the spot where Crank’s motorcycle had been parked.
“No buts. You’re gonna give them a totally normal night, so you don’t freak them out further, okay? I’m gonna call this into Copper, and from now on, we’ll have someone on you guys to make sure you’re safe at all times.”
“How are you so calm? I’m freaking out right now.”
He pulled her close. “I know, Mak, and I’m so fucking sorry you got dragged into this mess. It’s the last thing I wanted.”
Oh, was he warm and solid and…hard. Yep, that was an erection nudging her in the stomach. Despite the riot of anxious feelings coursing through her, her body responded with a little shiver of delight. How could it not when she recalled what he’d done to her with that particular body part last night.
Had it only been last night? Not even twenty-four hours ago.
“None of this is your fault, Thunder. I should never have taken that job. Wait!” She lifted her head. “Aren’t you supposed to be working right now? Come to think of it, what are you doing here?”
He laughed. “I canceled and swung by your house. Lee told me you and the girls came to get some movie snacks.”
With a nod, she looked at the car again. Kara was now making ridiculous faces at them, which had Emmie in stitches and trying to imitate her. “You canceled?” She faced him. He was so good looking it nearly hurt her eyes. Last night wasn’t nearly enough. She wanted time to get to know him, to explore him, to learn all there was to discover about him. “Why?”
He kissed her forehead. “We’ll talk about it later. Let’s get those girls home, okay?”
She nearly swooned from the unexpected show of tenderness. But his actions had her head spinning. Leaving in the middle of the night, taking a stripping job, canceling a stripping job, kissing her head. What on earth would he do next? “Okay, uh, yeah. You’ll be behind me?”
“Right behind you. And, Mak?”
She paused. “Yeah?”
He dropped his head, so his lips rested next to her ear. “We are a thing. I don’t know what that means yet, but we are definitely a thing.” Then he kissed her mouth and sauntered off to his bike as though he hadn’t nearly gotten into a brawl with Crank five minutes ago.
She stood there, blinking like an idiot in the middle of the parking lot, then pressed a hand to her tingling lips. They were a thing?
What did he mean?
Was he done stripping?
Did he want to date her?
Elation soared at the notion.
No, no, no.
She was not supposed to get excited over the prospect of dating him or any man. Yet she feared the prospect of being with a man like Thunder was too tempting to turn down should it be what he proposed.
On unsteady legs, Mak moved to her car. After buckling Emmie in her car seat and Kara in the booster, she slid into the driver’s seat. Her hands trembled as she tried to get the key in the ignition. A few deep breaths solved that problem but not the internal turmoil.
“Who was that other man?” Kara asked from the back with a frown. “You looked scared.”
“Oh, no honey. It was just—” She’d almost said a friend of Thunder’s, but then the thought of Crank confronting Kara somewhere shook her to her core. “He’s a man who’s not very nice, so if you ever see him anywhere, you run away and find a grown up immediately. Do you understand?” As she pulled out of the space, she flicked a glance at the mirror in time to see Kara’s solemn nod.
