AllFreeNovel
Share Us
As soon as the sick bastard's legs stopped kicking, and his eyes lost their panic, pain rushed straight to my chest. The list is done with, Gracie is no longer in danger, she can leave the club and return home, and I can go back to being me again.
But that isn’t what I want at all.
“You okay, man?” Jessie asks as we pull back up at the compound. The first person I see just happens to be Gracie, she’s bouncing Dylan up and down on her knee while Maddy and Ella are unloading groceries for Marilyn. She looks so happy, so fucking perfect that the pain in my chest crushes a little more.
Jessie parks up next to them and heads straight for Maddy. Spinning her around and kissing her hard on the mouth.
“I’m a jerk, forgive me,” he says, clearly not giving a shit how much of a pussy he sounds in front of me and a stunned looking Troj.
“Depends,” Maddy shrugs. “How you planning on making it up?”
“Oh, darlin’ I’m gonna make it up,” he says, lifting her up off her feet and carrying her to the truck.
“She’ll be back down later,” he calls out to Ella, sitting Maddy in the passenger seat before he speeds off toward the cabins.
Gracie looks up at me awkwardly, before managing to muster a smile.
“How’d it go?” she asks.
“It’s done,” I tell her, and watch her face drop with disappointment.
“Thank you, I’m sure my mom would be pleased they were brought to justice, however it was dealt with.”
“Brax, help me shift some of this stuff. Marilyn’s gone over kill on vegetables. She’s making smoothies for Abby,” Ella interrupts looking stressed.
It turns out Officer Dan wasn’t as good on his word as he said he was. It’s been two weeks and none of us have heard from him, despite us trying to get in contact.
Ella took the news about her friend surprisingly well when her and Nyx got back from Florida, and although Abby’s still struggling, she got upgraded from the basement to a rutting room within a few days of being here.
The club ain’t an ideal place for anyone to get themselves sorted. But Abby insists it will make her stronger to have temptation, nothing goes in your veins around here anyway. That’s a hard fucking rule.
I nod back, pulling myself away from Gracie and grateful for the distraction, because I was about one breath away from asking her to stay.
And even I ain’t that selfish.
It’s a strange feeling knowing that I’m safe again. Part of me is relieved. I’m sure Brax and Jessie made sure the people my mom had been working on uncovering got the justice they deserved. And I hope she can rest now, knowing that her work hadn’t been pointless and that she made a difference.
Then there’s the niggle of disappointment that I can’t ignore. The thought of going home should excite me. Instead, I’m dreading it. I’ve spent the last two weeks sleeping beside Brax, he’s fucked me every night. Hell, some nights I’ve even fucked him. He still keeps a part of him closed, but we’re all guilty of that. That's the way it has to be when things are temporary.
My time here with the Souls has been an experience I’ll never forget. It’s taught me not to judge people on face value. It’s also taught me how sheltered I’ve been and that really, I know nothing about the world.
And as for me and Brax, well, we were just two people who gave in to sexual attraction, and now it's time to face up to reality.
We leave Ella at the club when Nyx comes back from the tattoo studio where he works. Brax is tense, the same way he always is when he comes back from working with Jessie.
Being here has turned me into a new person. A month ago, if someone would have told me I’d share a bed with a man who just killed someone, I’d have called them crazy. Yet I see the sense in what Brax does, it’s the fact he’s so guiltless about it that takes the most getting used to.
“When do I have to go back?” I break the silence first, Brax has just got out the shower and I try not to be distracted by how sexy he looks with a wet torso and just a towel wrapped around his hips.
“I can take you back whenever you want,” he shrugs, making his way into the bedroom. I follow after him, watching from the door as he steps into a pair of jeans then rubs the towel over his chest and abdomen. He’s got at least six different scars on various parts of his body, including the one he’d got from saving me. I step closer, running my finger over the bumpy wound. And I wonder how something so damaged can be so perfect.
“The night you took me, I didn’t think I’d be ever saying this to you, but thank you.” I keep my eyes on my fingers. not wanting to look up and see him staring at me, the way he does that always turns me soft, and right now I need to be strong.
“Welcome,” he says in a scratchy voice that hints I’ve lingered too long.
“I got to go see Prez, figure out what your story’s gonna be when we take you back. Then you'll be free to go.” I hear the bitterness in his tone.
“Tomorrow,” I blurt out before he can leave. “Can you take me back tomorrow? I want to say goodbye to everyone properly. Maddy and Ella have been really good friends to me while I’ve been here and Abby’s getting so much stronger, I don’t want her to think I didn’t care enough to say goodbye.”
