Savage (Demented Souls #15)

20. 20

20

H ours later, Donna lay in her sleeping bag, staring up at the stretch of nylon above her head. The sun had set over an hour ago and she was so tired her entire body ached, but her mind wouldn’t quit spinning. They’d gone into town and gotten several things, not the least of which was a pregnancy test.

After leaving the store, as they sat in the car he’d asked if she wanted to take it now, or go back to the ranch to do it. Donna didn’t want to monopolize the bathroom in the bunkhouse, or risk anyone else finding out before she was sure and ready to share, so she’d opted to do it while in town. He’d found a gas station that looked relatively clean, she’d pocketed the test and they’d gone inside.

Donna had asked to use the restroom while Savage had wandered around the place shopping. By the time she’d gotten the results, exited the bathroom and was ready to leave, Savage stood at the register with a stack of snacks, sweets, and a few drinks.

“Well?” he’d asked as they settled into the front seats of the borrowed SUV.

“It was positive. I’m pregnant.” She felt kind of numb. Though she wasn’t sure why. She had already known but somehow seeing the result in the little window had been like a blow to the stomach.

“You said you were, but now we have confirmation. Good thing we already picked up the vitamins Kinard suggested. The rest can wait until we get to Tucson.” He reached over and squeezed her hand. She stared at their hands for a moment, still in a daze. “Are you all right?”

The question shook Donna out of her daze. She blinked several times as she looked up and met his gaze.

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

“I asked if you are all right, but I think you might not be.” He leaned over, wrapped an arm around her and tugged her close for a moment, or as close as he could with the console between them. “It will be okay. We’ll figure it out.”

“Thanks. And thank you again for the phone. I don’t know how I’d manage all this without you.” She gave him a wan smile then turned to stare out the far window as they made their way back to the ranch.

That had been hours ago, now, not for the first time, she found herself listening to Savage’s breathing, wondering if he was asleep and if not, what he was thinking. She’d been surprised when he’d come to bed shortly after she had. He’d said there was something called a poker run planned for the next day and he wanted to make sure he was well rested since he would have precious cargo.

Now she couldn’t get the phrase out of her head. What had he meant? All she could think of was her but that didn’t make any sense. He barely knew her and while he’d spent a not inconsequential amount of money on her, there was no reason he should be so invested in her. No, he must have meant something else. But what?

Besides, what was a poker run anyway? She’d overheard enough from the conversation the women were having to know they’d be going for a ride on the motorcycles tomorrow. It hadn’t been that they’d been excluding her, but she hadn’t known enough to contribute much.

“What are you thinking so hard about over there?” Savage’s voice startled her.

“What? How did you know I wasn’t asleep?”

“I can hear you moving around, babe. Not to mention you keep holding your breath, then kind of snorting when you start again.”

Her face heated and Donna could only be glad it was nearly dark and if he could see her, it was likely just her silhouette, or she likely would have died of embarrassment. She was snorting? How could she ever forget that and look him in the face again.

“Relax, babe. We’ve got a ride tomorrow, and I’d be willing to let you stay but everyone is going, and I don’t want to leave you alone in case that ex of yours somehow figures out where you are. I’ll feel better if you’re with us and I can keep an eye out for him.”

“I know there’s a ride tomorrow.” She ignored the part about Noah. Worrying about him and that he was surely looking for her wouldn’t help her relax or get any sleep. “What actually is a poker run, anyway?”

“It’s a group ride, with a bit of fun thrown in. Everyone pays a fee to ride and play. There are several stops planned and at every stop you draw a card, whoever has the best hand at the end wins whatever the prize is. Sometimes it’s part of what was collected, sometimes it’s an actual prize. I think tomorrow’s is going to benefit the kids, I’m not sure what group exactly. Lurch and the others will tell us more about whatever the benefactor is in the morning, as well as what the prize will be.”

“I’m riding with you?”

“Yeah. I’d say you can ride in the SUV with the other women, but from what I heard today they’re all riding with the men tomorrow. Even the prospects will be on bikes tomorrow, they’ve got a couple of extra bikes here that the prospects who drove our trucks up will ride.”

She bit her lip as she wanted to ask if he had to pay extra for her to ride along. They’d been over this several times and as much as she hated the idea of his spending his money on her, she knew protesting or arguing with him about it would do no good, and only serve to make him more determined. Not that she would mind a chance to ride with him. She liked the feeling of freedom that seemed to only come when she was on the back of his bike. In those moments / hours, the only things that seemed to matter were the man she held on to, the vibrations of the bike and the beauty around them. No, going for a ride wasn’t something she would ever complain about.

“Will we be riding all day?” she asked, remembering how sore she’d been after the trip up from Casper, and that had only been a couple of hours.

“The run could take all day, or it could only be a couple of hours. I don’t know what exactly is planned. But there are usually things to do at each stop, so you get breaks.”

She didn’t know what to talk about next, so she stayed quiet. That didn’t mean she could keep her mind from spinning a billion miles a minute. Was he thinking about her? What was he thinking? Was he having second thoughts about her? About telling her he still wanted her, despite her being pregnant with someone else’s kid.

“Babe?” Savage’s voice pulled her from her spiraling thoughts.

“Yeah?”

“You’re still thinking too hard. Come here.”

She didn’t know what he was doing but she felt her sleeping mat move beneath her. Her eyes flew open to find he’d reached across the open space between their sleeping bags, grabbed her mat and was dragging hers across the floor.

“What?” Before she could finish the question, he brought her sleeping mat beside his, then with an arm around her middle, tugged her, still cocooned in her sleeping bag, against him.

“There, that’s better.” He wrapped one arm around her middle.

Now Donna lay curled on her side, him spooned along her back and his arm wrapped snug around her waist. His breath stirred her hair, and she couldn’t help but think how odd it felt. Despite the weird sensation of his breath along her neck, somehow her mind calmed and she drifted off to sleep.

D onna stepped off the back of Savage’s motorcycle, bent backwards and rolled her shoulders in order to loosen up her muscles before she took off her helmet and handed it to him to put away.

This was their third stop of the day and while she’d had no idea what to expect, Donna found she’d enjoyed the whole thing a lot more than she had anticipated. The other ladies had been nothing but friendly, making sure to include her in whatever they were doing and not acting like she was any different than the rest of them just because she’d only joined the group a few days before while they’d been with them much longer. Donna couldn’t help but be amazed at how welcoming they’d been. Far different from most of her experiences, especially with what had happened at the commune. She’d never really been accepted there, even as she’d gotten close to the end of the year she’d spent with them. And it wasn’t as if the women could have known what she was planning or that she would be successful in her escape. Or at least she had been so far.

She looked around, not for the first time, making sure there were no faces, other than those from the ranch, that she recognized. She didn’t know if after only a couple of days the commune and Noah would have given up looking for her or not, but the last thing she wanted was to be caught unaware by them if they were looking.

“I don’t think anyone’s following us, babe,” Savage said, coming up beside her and hooking an arm around her neck. “I’ve been keeping an eye out and so have my brothers, though they’re not looking for your ex or his goons specifically. It’s just a habit of ours.”

Donna frowned at him wondering why they would watch for people when they had no idea someone would probably be looking for her. Or maybe they did, had Savage told them?

“We always keep an eye out,” Savage said after catching her look. “We’re all ex-military of one branch or another. We spent too long where knowing what was around us and who might be paying too much attention could mean life or death.”

She blinked several times as his words sank in. They were always watching in case they were being watched or followed. What kind of lives had these men lived before this? Did they still need to watch or was it just so ingrained in them now that they always did it? She didn’t know and wouldn’t ask, but knowing that they were watching too made her feel better. She let her head fall back against Savage’s arm where it was still hooked around her neck.

“Thank you.”