Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
M att couldn’t remember a time when he’d been more content.
Content . What an inadequate word. Happy seemed better, but even that didn’t do the moment justice. At peace , then?
All Matt knew for sure was that he felt quiet and sure. Settled. Like having Scarlet wrapped in his arms—with her head resting on his shoulder, her arm draped over his chest, and one of her legs tossed over his—meant he was home. He wasn’t sure when exactly it had happened, but sometime between Daisy breaking her arm and now, he’d fallen in love with her.
Little by little, as they’d gotten to know each other, Scarlet had opened up to him. Relaxed. Become herself. Not the chipper waitress with the ever-present smile, but the real her. Yes, she was often chipper and smiling, but she could also be frustrated and tired and crabby. And the fact that she let him see all sides of her meant the world to him.
She was sweet and funny and sarcastic. She teased and laughed and warmed a part of him that he’d thought died after his divorce. Hell, in truth, it was a part that he’d thought died long before his divorce.
He wasn’t sure Scarlet would ever fully understand how much she meant to him. But he’d damn well make it his duty to show her. Because as far as he was concerned... his heart was hers. Hopefully forever.
She shifted in his arms and pressed a kiss to his pec. “What’s got you thinking so hard over there?”
He smiled. “You.”
She propped her chin on his chest. “Thinking good things, I hope?”
“Always, baby.”
She rolled her eyes. “Riiight.”
He was pretty certain she wasn’t ready to hear she was it for him. That he was hers. So, to keep things light, he asked, “Where do you want to go to dinner on Saturday?”
“I thought you had it all planned out?” she teased.
Running a hand up her spine, he felt her shiver. “Only who’s watching Daisy. I didn’t want to take you somewhere you don’t like.”
“I’m not super picky. What were you thinking?”
“We can go fancy like the Watermark at the resort or as casual as you’d like. We can even head over to Port Townsend or Whidbey Island. Whatever you’re in the mood for.”
“Not the Watermark,” she said, scrunching her nose.
His eyebrows lifted in surprise. The Watermark was an amazing Michelin three-star restaurant with a months-long wait list. However, his buddy was the chef there, so he had an in. “Not a fan?”
“Oh, I’ve never been. It’s just that it’s fancy fancy. Thinking about stepping foot in the place makes me uncomfortable.”
He tipped her chin up with his finger. “Sweetheart, you have nothing to feel uncomfortable about.” Scarlet opened her mouth to protest, so he hurried on, “But we can go somewhere else.”
She kissed his pec again, then lowered her chin back to his chest. “I’m high maintenance, I know.”
He snorted. “Hardly.”
“Taking the ferry to Port Townsend or Whidbey for dinner sounds stupidly romantic...”
“But...” he prodded, tucking that little nugget away in his brain.
Her nose scrunched again. “But it seems a bit extra, you know?”
She was so fucking cute.
Tapping a finger to her lips, she asked, “How about Monty’s? We know the food’s good, and it’s right in town.”
He grinned at her. “Sounds like a plan. Besides, I think Daisy would like to join us if we took a ferry somewhere. Something tells me she’d get a kick out of it.”
The smile Scarlet treated him to was blinding. “She would. We don’t leave Hudson all that often.”
Daisy’s sweet little face popped into his mind, and his chest ached. Scarlet wasn’t the only one he’d fallen in love with. That was for damn sure.
The question that had swirled in the back of his mind for as long as he’d known Scarlet shoved itself to the forefront. Before he could second-guess himself, he said, “Can I ask you a really personal question?”
The hand tracing his chest stilled. “Of course.”
He pulled her tighter to him. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. I’m just curious...”
She shifted to meet his gaze. Her eyes narrowed as she asked, “You want to know about Daisy’s dad?”
Shit. Was he that obvious? “I do. But you don’t have to tell me anything. I was just wondering?—”
She pressed a finger to his lips. “It’s okay, Matt. It’s not something I talk about, but... it’s okay. It’s you.”
Who was Daisy’s dad?
Dammit. Scarlet had known this conversation was inevitable. She’d just stupidly hoped it would never come up. Like, ever. Panic bloomed in her belly, and she tried to squash it down. Without much luck.
She just really, really hoped that what she and Matt had shared minutes before would make her next words less likely to drive him away. Because their connection was beyond sex. It was beyond making love. She couldn’t exactly define it, but she prayed it was enough.
However, she was a realist. She would not be surprised if Matt told her to leave his bed after this conversation. She wouldn’t blame the guy. Not one bit, because come on...
Taking a deep breath, she aimed for a calm expression and a casual shrug. Unfortunately, she had a feeling her calm expression was more like a cringe.
“Well...” Holy shit, never mind . She’d been wrong. She couldn’t do this.
Scarlet closed her eyes and concentrated on Matt’s touch. The soft up and down of his hand on her back took the edge off her nerves. She reminded herself to have faith in him. After all, she trusted him with Daisy. So she could trust him with her secrets, too. Right?
She met his steady brown gaze. “I left that spot on her birth certificate blank.” Which wasn’t a lie.
Chuckling, he shifted them into spooning positions, then kissed the top of her head and pulled her close. “You know that’s not what I’m asking, baby.”
With a sigh, she ran her hands over the coarse hair on his forearm and relaxed against his chest. “I know.”
“Let me rephrase. Does the guy who fathered Daisy know about her?”
Scarlet wanted to say no, but in truth, she wasn’t sure. She’d been just over four months along when she’d testified against the club, so someone could have noticed. However, she’d taken extra precautions to hide her pregnancy. The last thing she’d wanted was for any of them to realize she was carrying one of theirs.
Instead of saying anything of that, she remained silent, savoring the feel of Matt’s arms around her. It could very well be the last time he held her like this...
“The reason I’m asking is because I want to keep you and Daisy safe. If there’s even a remote chance her biological father knows about her, then I’d like to keep an eye on him.”
Scarlet’s earlier panic resurfaced and twisted her belly.
Truth. He deserves the truth. No matter how much she didn’t want to tell him.
“I don’t know who her dad is,” she whispered. “There are a few possibilities.”
Matt tensed, and she could practically feel his confusion.
“The highest probability and most likely person is Steele.”
“He was the club’s VP that you testified against?”
She nodded. “But like I said, he died in prison.”
“And the low probabilities?”
Bile crept up her throat. “There were the three guys who had a go.” Dash, Zip, and Jester. Newly patched club members who had thought they were hot shit but hadn’t fully understood the rules.
“‘Had a go’?” Matt’s icy voice chilled her blood.
“I wasn’t Steele’s old lady or anything, but still, he didn’t like to share. He had me on the side for a few months, and no one was allowed to mess with me. But these guys... they either didn’t get it or didn’t care. They cornered me at a party and did their thing. Steele found me after.” She’d been a bruised and bloody mess, barely hanging on to consciousness. “And he made them pay.”
Matt’s arms tightened around her. Otherwise, he gave no response.
Scarlet closed her eyes in an attempt to block out the vile memories of that night. The rough hands and fists. The terror and burning pain as they’d forced themselves on her. But it didn’t work. Goosebumps claimed her skin, and she shivered. “So it doesn’t matter. All of them are gone now. Anyone who could have fathered Daisy isn’t a concern.”
“What do you mean they’re all gone?” Matt asked, rubbing her arms.
“Steele killed them.”
“For raping you.” It wasn’t a question.
She scoffed, and a bitter smile lifted her lips. “Yeah, right. Steele didn’t care about that. Those guys disrespected him. They were newly patched members who took what was his without permission. Steele’s exact words.”
Matt remained silent for a moment, as if contemplating what she’d said, but his hands continued warming her arms. “Steele killed those fuckers in front of you. That’s what he went to prison for. That’s what you testified against him for.”
“Yes,” she whispered, memories of that night playing in her mind. “After the three of them... took their turns... I was really messed up. Steele found me and made me rat them out. He waited a few hours for me to get my bearings and then took me to the club’s basement.”
Once she’d managed to stand without toppling over, he’d thrown a dirty towel at her, told her to clean the fuck up, and dragged her with him to the basement. A place she’d never been allowed to go.
She could still smell the musty, coppery scent that had grown heavier with every step down. Could still feel the fear that had skittered over every inch of her skin. No one had been allowed in the basement unless they’d been fully patched in. No old ladies, no prospects, no hangers-on. Just club members.
Steele had led her into a windowless cement room with bare walls and a lone drain in the center of the floor. Kneeling in a line behind the drain, Dash, Zip, and Jester had waited. Their hands tied behind their backs and their faces pummeled in.
“Three counts of first-degree murder,” she said. “Steele got three consecutive life sentences and was fine with it. Proud of it, even. He’d been a prominent member of the club, but after that, he reached god-like status. Because he proved to everyone that disrespect wouldn’t go unpunished.”
“That’s so fucked up.” Matt’s arms once again tightened around her. “But you know what, Scar? Regardless of why he killed those fuckers. I’m glad he did. They deserved it for hurting you.”
Tears filled her eyes, and she held tight to his forearms. “Thanks,” she whispered.
“I have one more question. If you don’t mind, that is.”
“Ask it,” she said, even as dread swirled in her stomach.
His arms remained locked around her. She prayed that meant something.
“Did your handlers ever tell you how Steele died in prison?”
Scarlet closed her eyes in relief. It was a question she could handle. “He was just over three years into his sentence when he apparently mouthed off to the wrong guy. He got jumped in the cafeteria.” She shrugged. “I didn’t believe it—Steele always seemed so invincible—but Bates showed me the autopsy photo. Within days of Steele dying, Bates said the club broke up. Apparently, there was some sort of sting. A lot of the guys were busted for selling guns to undercover cops. Shortly after that, they released me from witness protection.”
“Do you really think they disbanded?”
“I don’t know. It’s doubtful, but if most of them were hauled off to prison... who knows? What I do know is that Bates gave me a generous stipend and let me keep my new identity, so there’s that.” She’d been beyond petrified. But she’d made it, dammit. Through grit and a whole lot of luck, she’d made it. And she would continue working her ass off for as long as it took to keep her daughter secure and healthy. “I think I mentioned Rita and Walt before?”
She felt him nod. “They’re Ray and Martha’s friends who own the diner you worked at in Arizona, right?”
A grin split her lips. It still boggled her mind that this man remembered all the things she’d said. “After I got out of witness protection, I told them about my past. I wasn’t quite ready to make another change, so they helped me for a few months. And then they helped me with the move here.”
Matt guided Scarlet onto her back so they could see each other. Her heart thumped painfully in her chest as she tried to read his expression.
“I know I’ve said it before, Scar, but I’ll say it again. You’re so damn strong.” He touched the side of her face, pushed her hair off her forehead. “It kills me that you’ve suffered some of the greatest atrocities a person can suffer. I want to dig up those assholes who hurt you and kill them all over again.”
She reached up and cradled his jaw. “It’s over, Matt. It’s in the past.”
“That’s right. And we’re looking to the future.” He kissed her palm. “But please know that I will help you in any way I can.”
Scarlet pulled his face down to hers. “Then make love to me again.” She pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “Because you make everything better. It’s like you’re my prize. I had to go through hell, but it’s okay because I got you and Daisy out of it all.”
“You have me,” he murmured, settling between her thighs. “Forever, sweetheart.”