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Grave gripped his shoulder. “If you’re feelin’ something for her, don’t let her slip away. You’ve tortured yourself for the past long enough.”
“I agree,” Hades added. “You want fifteen fucking cocks in your party, go for it. I ain’t judging where you all dip your wick.”
All three of us lifted our middle fingers at the same time.
Roaring laughter followed.
I WOKE WITH A SCREAM on my lips, dying before it had a chance to vault from my lungs. My breath came fast and shallow as I sat up, panting as the dream played over in my mind. The nightmare felt as real as the actual auction, pulling me back into the horror and depravity, Scourge’s vicious grin, and the girl’s lifeless eyes. I lifted my hand to my throat, the ghost of Angel’s touch still lingering on my neck.
Suddenly feeling dirty, I climbed from the bed where I’d fallen asleep, waiting on Slash, Havoc, and Gunner.
They had a biker meeting that Cora called church. I didn’t ask her to go into detail. I’d slept in the truck, but the exhaustion had crept back into my body, and she brought me to Slash’s room. At least, she said the room belonged to Slash. I hoped she was right.
I padded my way to the bathroom and flipped on the light, blinking at my reflection. No one told me I had dark circles under my eyes or smeared makeup, my hair was wild and tangled, or there were red marks around my neck. A slight bruise had formed on my cheek where I’d been hit.
I was a mess, and it wasn’t just physical.
The shower beckoned, and I locked the bathroom door, turned the handle, and let the water get hot. I stripped and brought my bra and panties into the stall with me to wash them since I didn’t have any other clothes. I took care of them first and then placed them over the empty towel bar to dry, draping the towel over the shower rod.
I stayed under the spray much longer than necessary, scrubbing the grime off my body and the memory of that auction. Tears filled my eyes, and I didn’t bother to blink them back. What I went through was a stain on my soul, and I had it easy compared to some of the others the Serpents MC bikers had touched. Salty tears mixed with the water and slid down my face as I wrapped my arms around my waist and cried.
A knock sounded on the bathroom door. “Molly?”
Gunner. He was the last guy I expected to check in on me.
“You alright, sunshine?”
Sunshine? He never called me that before now.
“I, uh,” I stammered, shutting off the water. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
“There’s no rush.” He sounded like he stood far too close to the other side of the door. How long did he hear me cry before he called out?
I didn’t bother to pull on my ripped tights or the outfit from last night. A white robe hung on a hook, and I wondered if Slash ever used it. When I slipped it on, I found the tag from the store. Nope. I kind of liked that it was all mine.
When I belted the sash around my waist, it swallowed me up in soft terry cloth, but I liked the warmth and coverage it provided. Soon, though, it became hot as I applied lotion and deodorant and brushed my teeth with the extras gathered on Slash’s sink. I had a feeling Cora left them for me to use.
Shrugging off the bathrobe, I reached for a larger towel, stretching it around me and tucking the end under my armpit. It wasn’t long, barely covering my ass and breasts, but far less confining.
My hair went into an extra towel and curled around my head. Gunner stood there when I opened the door, looking lost but determined.
He opened his mouth and then snapped it shut, his gaze traveling over me. Heat blazed molten silver in his eyes as they swept my body from head to toe.
Of the three, Gunner surprised me the most with his harsh commands and soulful gray eyes. The kind of eyes that churned a turbulent sea right before a storm, cloudy and frothy, hiding the depths within. A man who hid pain and regret but wore it like an invisible badge on his chest.
Gunner was savage, hardened by something in his past or a life that had taken too much out of him. He shouldered a burden I didn’t understand and used that as a crutch to keep me at a distance. He was quiet but closed off. A violent menace that rolled underneath his skin, waiting to be unleashed.
And then there was the other side of him—caring, attentive, almost kind, a contradiction like nothing I had ever seen.
He surprised me when he betrayed the raw hunger and need before he could lock it away, turning his head far too late to conceal it.
“Gunner?”
“I heard you,” he answered in a low, guttural tone. “Had to be sure you were alright.”
“I think it’s gonna take time,” I replied with brutal honesty.
“Yeah.” He swallowed, turning his gaze back to me. “We’re all here for you. Me.” He cleared his throat. “I’m here for you.”
