Page 27 of Wade’s Wrath

“Why aren't you closer to her?” Wade demanded.

Ripper barked out his laugh. “Because following a woman into the dressing room tends to get a man arrested,” he said.

“Smart ass,” Wade breathed under his breath. Ripper still heard him and grinned like an idiot. Wade scanned the store. He saw no threats and no familiar faces. Nobody was paying them too much attention, but he still couldn’t relax. The abandoned sedan two miles from his house had changed things. Somebody had been watching them, and whether they’d found Harlow or were simply trying to locate her didn't matter—they were too fucking close.

A few minutes later, Harlow emerged from the dressing room wearing jeans, sneakers, and a pale blue T-shirt. Wade forgot what he was thinking. The wedding dress had made her beautiful. His oversized club shirt had made her tempting. But this outfit made her look normal—like a woman he might have met under completely different circumstances at a bar. She could have been a woman he noticed across the bar and bought a drink for. Hell, Harlow could have been a woman he took home because they both wanted the same thing—not because she was terrified and had nowhere else to go.

Her eyes met his, and she stopped. “What are you doing in here?”

“Waiting on you,” he said.

“I can see that,” she mumbled, rolling her eyes at him.

“You done yet?” he asked. Shit, every time he talked to her today, he sounded grumpy as hell. His nerves were on edge, but taking it out on Harlow was a shitty thing to do.

“No,” she said. Wade sighed, and Harlow narrowed her eyes at him. “You said I needed clothes.”

“You do,” he agreed. Honestly, he preferred her in his T-shirt, but if he was taking her into the clubhouse, she’d need to put on some damn clothes because there was no way he’d let his brothers see her in his shirt.

“Then stop rushing me,” she insisted.

“I'm not rushing you,” he countered, even though it was a lie. He couldn’t get her out of that mall fast enough.

“You look like you'd rather have dental surgery than be here,” she said.

“I would,” he agreed. Ripper laughed, and Harlow smiled. Then her gaze dropped to the shopping basket in her hand. Wade made the mistake of looking at it too—underwear, bras, and something black and lacy. His fucking brain immediately betrayed him as he thought about her wearing those sexy, lacy scraps of material, and he looked away. Harlow seemed to notice, and her cheeks turned the cutest shade of pink.

Ripper seemed to notice too. “I'm gonna go wait outside.”

“Good idea,” Wade growled. The bastard was still laughing when he walked away, and Harlow cleared her throat.

“You didn't have to come inside,” she insisted.

“Yeah, I did,” he said.

“Why?” she asked.

“Because you've been in here too long,” he grumbled.

“Twenty minutes isn't long,” she insisted.

“It is when somebody might be looking for you,” he said. Her expression changed, and Wade instantly regretted saying it like that. “Hey.” She glanced around the store. “Don’t start looking for monsters in every aisle. You’re safe right now.”

Her eyes returned to his. “Easy for you to say.”

“No, it isn't,” he breathed. That seemed to surprise her. Wade stepped closer and lowered his voice. “I've spent enough years watching my back to know what it feels like.”

“Because of being in a biker club?” she asked.

“Among other things,” he admitted. She waited for more, but he didn't give it.

Eventually, Harlow sighed. “I need five more minutes.”

“You have three,” he said.

“Five,” she countered.

“Four,” he breathed. “Do you negotiate everything?”