Chapter 6
Chapter
Six
ROSCO
T hree days away from my mountain feels like a lifetime.Three days of tense negotiations with the Kings, of Tank's constant presence, of sleeping with one eye open in the Saints' clubhouse.Three days of wondering if Deena's still waiting or if she's gone back to her world without me.Again.
I guide my bike around potholes as I climb the mountain road, every mile bringing me closer to home.To her, if she's still there.The Kings finally backed down after we showed enough force, the territorial dispute resolved for now with minimal bloodshed.Just bruised egos and a new understanding that the Saints aren't to be tested.
My body aches from tension, from sleeping on an old couch, from memories that being back at the clubhouse stirred up.But it's done. I've repaid my debt to Tank, and now I'm free to return to my solitude.
Except solitude isn't what I want anymore.Not since Deena crashed back into my life.
The cabin comes into view as I round the final bend, and my heart rate kicks up when I spot her rental car in the drive.She stayed. Relief floods through me, immediately followed by uncertainty.Just because she didn't leave doesn't mean she forgives me for walking out.
I cut the engine, letting momentum carry me the last few yards. No sense announcing my arrival with a roar.As I dismount, Bear comes bounding around the side of the cabin, barking his greeting.I crouch to receive his enthusiastic welcome, rubbing his ears as he leans his massive weight against me.
"Missed you too, boy," I tell him, scanning the property for signs of Deena.
The cabin door opens, and there she is, arms crossed, expression unreadable.She's wearing one of my old flannels again, the sleeves rolled up, her hair pulled back in a messy bun.Beautiful and guarded, like a wild thing ready to bolt.
"You're back," she says, voice carefully neutral."I was starting to wonder."
I straighten, dusting off my jeans."Said I would be."
"You said a lot of things." She doesn't move from the doorway, maintaining the distance between us.
Fair enough. I cross to my bike, pulling my duffel from the saddlebag."Everyone okay here?"
"We managed." She steps aside as I approach, letting me enter without touching."Bear's a better guard than you might think."
Inside, the cabin is immaculate.My work boots are lined up neatly by the door, dishes put away, even the blanket on the couch is perfectly folded.She's been busy. But there are signs of her presence all over too.
"You stayed," I say, dropping my bag by the hall.
"Seems that way." She follows me in, keeping several feet between us."Roads cleared yesterday."
"But you're still here."
She nods once, arms still crossed like armor."I am."
I try to read her expression, to gauge if this is just stubbornness or something more, but she's shuttered herself against me.Can't blame her, after the way I left.
"How was the... business?" she asks, the slight hesitation making her feelings about the MC clear.
"Resolved." I head to the kitchen, needing water after the dusty ride."Kings backed down when they realized they were outmatched.No one got hurt."
"That's good." She follows, but stays on the opposite side of the counter."Earl said there was some kind of stand-off at the county line."
Of course Earl would know. Probably has the whole town buzzing about it.
"Nothing serious." I drain the glass, setting it down harder than intended."Look, Deena--"
"You don't need to explain," she cuts me off."You made your choice clear when you left.I've had three days to process it."
"Process what, exactly?"
"That this--" she gestures between us "--is a temporary diversion for both of us.You've got your mountain isolation and occasional MC obligations.I've got my career and research waiting in Atlanta.We had some fun, scratched an old itch, but we're not--"
"Stop." I round the counter before she can retreat, close enough to see her pulse jump at her throat but not touching."Is that really what you think?"
"What am I supposed to think?" The careful neutrality cracks, frustration seeping through."You slept with me, then the next morning called it a mistake.Then you took off the moment your biker buddy snapped his fingers, after telling me how you'd walked away from that life."
"I did walk away," I insist. "But some debts can't be ignored.Tank took two bullets for me three years ago.When he calls, I answer. Once.Then I come home."
"Home to what, Ross?" Her eyes search mine, looking for something I'm not sure how to give."Your isolated cabin? Your woodworking?Your memories?"
"To you," I say before I can stop myself."I came back to you, Dee."
She blinks, clearly not expecting that answer."For how long?"
"For as long as you'll have me." The words feel like jumping off a cliff, but I'm tired of holding back, of protecting myself from what might hurt."I didn't leave because I didn't want what we started.I left because I had to, and I figured you'd be gone by the time I got back.That you'd take the easy out I gave you."
"Since when have I ever taken the easy way?" The first hint of a smile touches her lips."You think hiding in a lab is easy?Dealing with university politics and grant committees?"
I step closer, testing whether she'll retreat.She doesn't. "No easier than hiding on a mountain, I guess."
"We're quite the pair, aren't we?" She uncrosses her arms finally, hands falling to her sides."Both running from the world in our own ways."
"Maybe we're done running." I reach out, brushing a loose curl back from her face, half expecting her to pull away.She doesn't. "Maybe we've been running long enough."
Her eyes dart to my hand, then back to my face."What are you saying, Ross?"
"I'm saying I want to try this for real.Not just while you're stranded here, not just until your sabbatical ends." I cup her cheek, feeling her lean into the touch despite herself."I'm saying I want to see if we can build something that lasts this time."
"And the club? What happens the next time Tank shows up needing you?"
"We set boundaries. I'm not rejoining, but I won't pretend they don't exist." I stroke my thumb across her cheekbone."What about your career? Your lab?Your life in Atlanta?"
"I've been thinking about that." She takes a deep breath."There's a research position opening at the community college in Riversend.Teaching part-time, field research the rest.It's not as prestigious as Atlanta, but--"
"But you'd be closer."
She nods. "Four days in Riversend, long weekends here.Or wherever makes sense. If... that's something you'd want."
Hope, dangerous and fragile, unfurls in my chest."You'd do that?"
"I haven't decided yet," she cautions."But I'm considering it. If there's something worth considering."
I could spend more time talking, trying to convince her with words.But I've never been good with those.Instead, I close the distance between us, claiming her mouth with mine.She makes a small sound of surprise before melting against me, her arms winding around my neck.
The kiss deepens, her body fitting against mine like it was designed for me alone.When we break apart, we're both breathing hard, foreheads pressed together.
"I missed you," I admit, the words easier now."Every minute I was gone."
"I missed you too." Her fingers play with the hair at the nape of my neck."Even though I was mad as hell at you."
"Still mad?"
"Getting over it." She smiles, a real smile this time."But you've got some making up to do."
"I think I can manage that." I lift her onto the counter, stepping between her legs."Starting now."
Her legs wrap around my waist, pulling me closer."I still have questions. About the club, about what happened three years ago--"
"And I'll answer them," I promise, pressing a kiss to her neck."But can we talk later?"
She laughs, the sound lighting me up from the inside out."Later works for me."
As I carry her to the bedroom, her mouth never leaving mine, I know one thing with absolute certainty: this time, neither of us is running away.
Steam fills the bathroom as I step out of the shower, muscles finally relaxed after three days of tension.Deena's curled up in my bed, her bare skin still flushed from our reunion, hair spread across my pillow.The sight of her there, comfortable and soft in sleep, does weird things to my insides.This is what I want--her, here, always.
I dress quietly, not wanting to wake her just yet.She needs the rest after I kept her up half the night making up for lost time.Making love to her felt like coming home in a way nothing else has, not even returning to this mountain after years with the Saints.
In the kitchen, I start coffee, the familiar routine grounding me.How quickly I've gotten used to making it for two instead of just myself.Bear nudges my leg, looking up with hopeful eyes.
"I already fed you, boy," I remind him, though I slip him a bit of jerky anyway."Don't tell Deena I'm spoiling you."
"Too late," her voice says from the doorway."I saw that."
I turn to find her wrapped in my robe, hair wild around her shoulders, eyes still soft with sleep.The sight makes my heart stutter.
"Caught me," I admit, holding out a mug of coffee as a peace offering.
She accepts it, our fingers brushing in the exchange."How long have you been up?"
"Not long." I lean against the counter, watching as she takes her first sip."Had some thinking to do."
Wariness creeps into her expression."Thinking about what?"
"About what happens next." I gesture to the window, where the mountain valley stretches below."About what we both want."
"And what conclusions did you reach?" She sets her mug down, giving me her full attention.
"That I want you to stay." The words come easier than I expected."Not just for your sabbatical.Not just on weekends. I want you here, with me, building a life."
Her eyes widen. "Ross--"
"Let me finish." I take her hands in mine, needing her to understand."I'm not asking you to give up your career or your research.I'd never ask that. What I'm suggesting is... a compromise."
"What kind of compromise?"
"The position at Riversend is a start.But I've been thinking about the property." I lead her to the window, pointing down toward her great-aunt's land."The west side of the house is salvageable, according to Earl.What if we rebuilt it together?Made it your research station?A place where you could work without having to leave the mountain."
She looks up at me, surprise and something like wonder in her expression."You'd do that? Help me rebuild?"
"I'm pretty good with my hands," I remind her, a smile tugging at my lips."And I know some guys who owe me favors.Construction types."
"It would take months," she warns.
"I've got time." I tuck a curl behind her ear."Do you?"
She's quiet for a long moment, gaze returning to the valley below."What about your life here? Your woodworking, your solitude?"
"None of it means much without someone to share it with." I wrap my arms around her from behind, resting my chin on top of her head."I built this place thinking isolation was the answer.Turns out, I was asking the wrong question."
"Which was?"
"How to feel alive again." I press a kiss to her temple."The answer wasn't hiding on a mountain.It was finding my way back to you."
She turns in my arms, studying my face with those scientist's eyes that see too much."And the MC? That part of your life isn't completely behind you, is it?"
"It's complicated," I admit. "Tank and the brothers--they're family.But I'm not going back to that life.Not fully. I'm done with the violence, the constant looking over my shoulder.I want peace, Dee. With you."
"Peace sounds nice." She rises on tiptoes, pressing a soft kiss to my lips."But what happens when our two worlds collide?When your MC brothers need you again, or when my research takes me away for weeks at a time?"
"We figure it out. Together. One day at a time." I pull her closer, needing her to feel the certainty in my touch."I'm done letting fear of what might happen stop me from having what I want now."
"And what's that, Mountain Man?" The question is a whisper against my lips.
"You." I capture her mouth, pouring everything I can't say into the kiss."Always you."
When we part, her eyes are bright with unshed tears."When did you get so good with words?"
"I had three days to practice my speech," I admit, a smile breaking through."I kept thinking about what I'd say if you were still here when I got back."
"I almost left," she confesses."Had my bag packed and everything."
"What changed your mind?"
"Mrs. Havers, partly." She rests her hands on my chest, fingers toying with a button on my shirt."And Bear. And... the realization that I've spent twelve years running toward something, never stopping to ask if it was what I truly wanted."
"And now? What do you want, Dr. Wilson?"
Her smile is slow and sure. "To see where this leads.With you. Here." She glances out the window, toward her aunt's damaged house."A research station does sound nice.And I've got those grant applications almost finished--"
I silence her with another kiss, laughing against her lips."Always the scientist."
"You love it," she accuses, fingers threading through myhair.
"I love you," I correct, lifting her onto thecounter."All of you. The scientist, the mountain girl, the woman who makes my coffee too sweet and reorganizes my kitchen when I'm notlooking."
"I love you too, Ross," sheadmits."Never stopped." Sheflushes."And I only reorganized the kitchen because I wasbored."
"You were nesting," I counter, watching the blushdeepen."Making yourself athome."
"Maybe I was," she admits. "Is thatokay?"
I answer by kissing her again, deeper this time, hands sliding under the robe to find warmskin."More than okay. It'sperfect."
Her legs wrap around my waist, pulling mecloser."We should probably talk more aboutlogistics.The house reconstruction, the teaching position applicationdeadline--"
"Later," I murmur against her neck. "We have time."
And we do. For the first time in twelve years, time feels like a gift rather than asentence.Whatever comes next--rebuilding her aunt's house, navigating her career, balancing my past with our future--we'll face it together.
No more running. No more hiding.Just us, finding our way back to each other, one day at a time.
As I carry her back to bed, her laughter warming me from the inside out, I know I've finally found what I've been searching for all along.Not solitude, not escape, but home.
And home is wherever Deena is.