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I smile at her as she stretches her arms over her head, the thin tank she’s wearing riding above her sleep shorts, showing a small sliver of soft skin. A sudden and almost feral urge to trace my lips against her smooth flesh takes me by surprise before I tamp it down. The last thing this girl needs is an ex-con biker pawing at her.
“We’ll be leaving in a few hours. I think all of us will feel better once we’re back at the clubhouse.” Clearing my throat, I attempt to clear my mind at the same time.
Charlie nods and heads back to the pool gate. “See you in the morning,” she calls, holding up her hand and waving before disappearing around the corner.
The ride back to Shine was grueling. Instead of taking the back roads as we did on the way to Texas, it was decided we would take the most direct route, which meant a lot of time on crowded highways, breathing in exhaust fumes and dodging minivans.
None of us were sure how Jace found us in Texas or if he was after us at all. It could have been his cousin, or he could have been looking for Charlie and assumed we would lead him to her. I don’t know if or how long he’s been following the club, but the sooner we’re back in Shine, the better.
Pulling into the club’s compound after twelve hours of riding has me breathing a sigh of relief. Being in the open like we had been had us all on edge, but now that we’re in the safety of these gates, we can finally figure out what our next move is.
“You made good time,” I hear Ozzy call as I’m moving my stiff legs off my bike.
He crosses the gravel lot and reaches out to clasp my hand.
“We weren’t stopping for shit,” I reply, releasing his grip and stretching my arms over my head.
Ozzy lets out a chuckle at my obvious discomfort. “You’ll be paying for that decision for the next couple days.”
“Worth it to see your pretty mug.”
Ozzy’s laugh is deep and loud.
“I doubt it’s my face you want to see.”
He’s probably talking about one of the club bunnies, but the only face I see in my mind is Charlie’s. Though we traveled from Texas together, she wasn’t on my bike. Lucy and Charlie opted to ride in the car with Barrett, which was fine by me. I don’t want her on the back of my bike while she’s scared that her deranged ex could show up any minute. No, the first time she’s on my bike, I want her to love it as much as I do. Not that I thought about her being glued to my back instead of in the car for most of the ride.
Nope, not at all.
When Ozzy walks over to the rest of the guys to check in, I head to the car and open the door for Charlie. She greets me with a tired smile as she takes my offered hand and slowly gets out.
“Such a gentleman.”
“I don’t know if that’s a word I would use to describe myself.”
The truth is I couldn’t go another second without putting eyes on her. I needed to see for myself that she felt safe and wasn’t regretting her decision to come back to Shine.
“This must be Charlie,” Ozzy says from behind me.
Charlie looks at the giant of a man and clasps my hand a little tighter. The urge to pull her behind me and protect her from feeling any sort of anxiety when she meets Ozzy catches me off guard. There’s nothing for her to fear from my president, but anyone making Charlie feel uncomfortable doesn’t sit right with me.
Fuck, I need to get my shit together. Exhaustion from our trip and everything that went down is fucking with my head.
Ozzy holds out a hand and offers it to Charlie. She shakes it without letting go of mine. That little tidbit doesn’t escape Ozzy’s scrutinizing gaze.
“Thank you for letting me and Lucy come stay with you guys.”
Just then, Lucy gets out of the car, and a loud groan escapes her as she stretches her arms high above her head.
“Thank God. I thought I was going to become one with the seat if I was in that car another second.” Lucy bends over to stretch her back, and every guy behind her is staring at her ass while she’s completely unaware of the show she’s giving my brothers. Naturally, Jude takes the opportunity to call out a lewd comment.
“Fuck you, asshole,” she calls back to him.
“Anytime, darling. I’d love to see what other positions you can twist yourself into.” He shoots her a lecherous smile.
She holds up her middle finger toward him.
Ozzy watches the exchange with curiosity. “I see Jude is making friends wherever he goes.”
