Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
SAGE
Iwas going to scream.
Something that wouldn’t be good for my healing vocal cords, but it was out of my control. These idiot men—whom I love very much—were precisely one point five seconds from causing me to lose it.
“She’s stayin’ with me. If she wants, I’ll put her up in a room with me at the inn, or we can crash at Rox’s place. End of discussion.”
That came from my dad, and although he’d declared “end of discussion” I knew it certainly wasn’t. Mainly because he’d said it three times already, and yet, the discussion carried on.
“Naw, fuck that! She ain’t staying here with that motherfucker still on the loose. She’s comin’ back home. She’s got family in Redemption. It’s where she belongs.” That came from my dad’s bud Scooter.
Five hours after the world’s most uncomfortable talk with Hayes and Trick, my dad’s boys showed up in force. Danno, Scooter, Banks, Fletch, and even my ex-boyfriend Cannon had come barging into my hospital room in full biker badass force.
At first, I’d been thrilled to see them.
Then when I saw the wrecked expressions on all their faces at the sight of me, I’d burst into uncontrollable, body-wracking sobs that sent pain everywhere.
I’d had another thirty seconds of thrill before the drugs the nurse came in to push went into effect, and then I zonked out.
When I woke a couple hours later, I returned to thrilled, only a milder version of it so as not to set anything else off.
We spent hours catching up, me mainly listening to them talk because my throat still felt like raw hamburger meat, before all of them had been told that visiting hours were over, and they had to go.
Being the badasses they were, they didn’t take kindly to being ordered around by nurses, but not wanting to risk doing anything to tip me over the edge again, they relented.
They each took turns giving me gentle hugs and kisses, and when it was Cannon’s turn, he looked at me with that sweet, charming smile that had made me fall for him way back in the day and whispered, “Missed you like crazy, chestnut. Glad to have you back.”
The sight of him and hearing his old nickname for me threw me back in time, and I smiled up at him wistfully, realizing I’d missed him like crazy as well. I told him as much, and he responded by leaning in and placing a soft, lingering kiss on the corner of my mouth before finally disappearing.
Throughout all of that and the days that passed Xander had remained my tall, menacing, silent sentry.
He was there when Danika visited. He was there when Rox and the rest of the girls came, and when the guys from work stopped by.
He was there when my dad’s crew came by for a couple hours before visiting hours ended each day.
He was there when I fell asleep and when I woke up.
He hadn’t left my room for more than a couple of minutes since I woke up, but he also hadn’t said a word to me, and not being able to get a read on him was driving me crazy.
If it had just been the two of us at any point, the silence would’ve become too much to bear, but as the days ticked by, I had a constant stream of visitors passing through my door.
I’d been in the hospital for exactly a week, and today was the day I’d finally been granted my freedom.
Or so I thought.
The minute the doctor signed my discharge papers my dad and his boys had started arguing over where I’d be going.
The only thing they agreed on was that I wouldn’t be returning to my house, and I couldn’t say I was upset with that decision.
As much as I’d loved the place, it would forever be tainted by what John had done.
I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to go back.
“Gotta say, I agree with Scoot. Think we should take our girl home.” That was Cannon, and when I turned my head to look up at all six foot four inches of hazel-eyed hotness glaring at the group with his thick arms crossed over his solid chest, I wanted to punch the hell out of him.
“She’s not goin’ to Tennessee. Hope Valley’s her home now,” Roxanne threw in, standing close to my dad.
Side note: The guys being here meant that, not only did they get to catch up with me, but they also got to scope out Dad’s new woman. And it didn’t surprise me one damn bit that they all approved.
“Maybe we can set her up with an apartment then. Find a place, explain the situation, get her set up quick,” Fletch—the most reasonable of the crew—suggested.
“That’ll take a day at the very least. Probably two,” Danno argued. “What the hell’s she supposed to do ’til then?”
I pulled in a deep breath and parted my lips, prepared to scream bloody murder, when the door to the room swung open.
Halfway through this ridiculous conversation, Xander had disappeared to parts unknown.
I thought he’d wised up and made a run for it, but now he was pushing an empty wheelchair toward my bed.
He brought it to a stop by the foot of the bed where I was sitting and engaged the brakes, speaking for the first time in days.
“In you go, Shortcake.” Moving to my side, he put his hands on me and gingerly helped me to my feet, giving me no other choice but to move with him or risk hurting myself as he guided me into the wheelchair.
“What the hell’s he doin’?” Cannon asked, pointing at Xander while giving a perplexed look to the group.
Roxanne’s lips curved into a Cheshire cat grin as she replied, “Looks like while you boys were screwin’ around, arguin’ over stupid shit, he was makin’ a decision.”
“And that would be?” Banks asked with a menacing scowl.
It was Xander who answered that. “That she’s comin’ to the cabin with me.”
Scooter’s face twisted with shock. “’Scuse the fuck outta me, but when did we decide that?”
“We didn’t decide shit,” Xander responded. “I did. She’s been to the cabin and likes it there. I got a dog she loves, and a bathroom half stuffed with her shit already.”
Fletch cast a curious look to Dad. “Why’s he got her stuff in his bathroom?”
To which Dad answered, “Cause he’s her man.”
This wasn’t happening.
Looking to the ceiling, I issued a silent prayer to the heavens.
Dear God, Sage Winthrop here. If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, how about you send down one of those bolts of lightning right about now and strike me dead?
Apparently, the big man upstairs wasn’t feeling all that magnanimous, because I was still alive and kicking, and the insane conversation was still flowing around me.
“He’s her man? Seriously?” Danno asked, his eyes going big. “Goddamn dude’s half giant, half Yeti. How the fuck did that happen?”
“Doesn’t matter how it happened,” Dad shot back, his back going straight. “All that matters is it happened. End of discussion.”
Oh for the love of Elton John’s tiny dancer.
“He’s not my man,” I said, my low, raspy voice catching the attention of the idiots around the room.
They looked from me to my dad who gave a lazy shrug. “They’re goin’ through a rough patch.”
I was going to kill him. I just got him back, and I was going to kill him dead.
I opened my mouth to argue that it wasn’t a rough patch, we weren’t together, and that I didn’t want to stay with Xander in his cabin when Dad cut me a warning look. “Doc told you to rest those vocal cords, angel baby. You still sound like a frog bein’ strangled, so no talkin’.”
I clamped my lips together and tried to launch a fireball with my eyes. Had I been feeling up to snuff, I would have argued anyway, just for the sake of it, but the truth was, it still hurt like a mother to talk.
The swelling was going down but the ugly purple and blue finger-shaped bruises John had given me were still clear as day.
Cannon shot Xander an ugly look that I didn’t think said good things about the days to come.
“You wanna see her, Linc’ll give you my address. You can come any time, but I’m warnin’ you now, any of you do a thing to agitate her and I’ll remove you myself.”
And that was the last thing he said before he unlocked the brakes and wheeled me out of the hospital room.
I turned to give my dad a pleading look over my shoulder, but all I got in return was a jaunty wave and a “See you in a few, precious,” before the door closed on them.
Neither of us said a word as he wheeled me into the elevator that took us down to the lobby, and that silence remained the whole time it took for him to get us through the lobby, out the door, and to his truck that was idling at the curb.
We were in the truck and driving down the road for ten minutes before I finally found the nerve to look over at him.
“I’m not sure this is a good idea,” I croaked, holding back a wince.
He kept his eyes forward as he murmured, “Don’t talk, baby. Rest your voice.”
“Xander, please, listen to me—”
“If me listenin’ means you’re talkin’, then that’s not gonna happen. Your throat is fucked. You need to stop.”
“You haven’t talked to me for a week. You haven’t left my side, but this is the first time you’ve said a single word to me. Us staying together is not a good idea.”
I actually got a response to that one. “I haven’t said a word ’cause you’ve needed to concentrate on healin’, not havin’ a conversation with me.
You went through somethin’ really fuckin’ serious, Shortcake.
You needed time to process so you could move forward.
I didn’t talk to you ’cause I wanted to give you the space to do that, but no way in fuck I was leavin’ your side. Not after what you went through.”
My eyes went wide and my lips parted in surprise. “So . . . you aren’t mad at me? For not telling you who John really was, or letting him get away with hitting me that first time?”
“Fuck no,” he clipped. “Gotta admit, I was stunned to hear you’d been married, but not mad.
Knew you had a past, and knew his name was John, so after a few seconds, that knowledge settled.
As for that fucker hittin’ you before. No way in hell that’s your fault.
You did what you felt you had to do to move on and build a new life.
Don’t fault you for those decisions. Only time I got pissed was when that motherfucker of an ex kissed you right in front of me, but I’ll deal. Now, stop talkin’.”
His last comment felt like a punch to the stomach. He’d deal with another man kissing me because we were no longer together, and it was a part of moving on.
It amazed me that, with everything I’d gone through recently, the pain of not having Xander anymore could still be so goddamn fresh.
I faced forward and stared out the windshield, mumbling, “I think I’d like to go stay with Dad and Rox.”
“Not gonna happen.”
“It’s not your call,” I snapped as much as I could. “You don’t have a say in this, Xander.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Sage. You got no other option but my cabin where I know the lay of the land and can keep you safe.
You try and go anywhere else, I’ll find you and carry your ass back.
Until I can make sure you’re out of danger, you aren’t goin’ anywhere, so you might as well accept that now and stop . . . talkin’.”
“God, you’re such an asshole,” I croaked.
He was quiet for a second, then, “You think if I pulled the truck over right now and kissed you, it’d get you to stop talkin’? I’m more than willin’ to give it a shot. Gotta tell you, been missin’ that mouth for weeks, so I’d jump at the chance if you think it’ll work.”
That sent a zing from my nipples to my core that I couldn’t possibly ignore. I knew that because I tried telling myself it was just a static shock. But one stupid mention of him kissing me, and I felt my panties get damp.
Instead of acknowledging his question, I clamped my mouth shut, crossed my arms over my chest, and glared out the windshield, pretending I wasn’t secretly wanting him to do exactly what he’d just threatened.
At my sudden silence, his chuckle filled the cab, setting off another zing. “That’s what I thought. But you change your mind, you just write a note to let me know.”
Since I couldn’t talk, I used the remainder of the drive to shout every cussword I knew at him in my head.
I even made up some new ones for good measure.