Chapter 23
ROMAN
I thought she wanted to look at wine. I didn’t expect her to be on a mission of her own to find some lady she’s worried about after the race over a week ago. I snag an orange and toss it in the air as I trail her in the store.
It’s probably a good idea to watch from afar just in case some of Sub-Rosa’s guys are out here waiting for us to leave the store.
I’ve already checked my cell a few times and haven’t heard anything from the squad, so we’re more than likely fine.
I’d rather err on the side of caution than leave anything to chance, though.
Briar’s brow is furrowed and she looks down every aisle before she stops and talks to one of the other store clerks. It’s pushing ten p.m. already so I wouldn’t be surprised if the lady she’s looking for is off for the night.
My attention gets pulled to the front of the store, where a group of four men enter. They are familiar enough; I think I recognize them from the races, but they don’t look like any of the Sub-Rosa men, so it’s not enough for any concern.
I glance back at Briar and watch as she gently rubs her arm where I rewrote her past. A subtle warmth blooms in my chest. I wish I could reach in and tear that feeling out with my bear hands. There’s nothing good that can come from having emotions again. Especially not for someone like her.
Someone I could never be with.
Unconsciously, I rub my thumb over my fresh scar that matches the ivy leaves to hers. I can’t believe I let myself share that with her. I’ve never shown anyone my process before, nor have I met someone who would let me mark them in my fucked-up methods. But I felt…vulnerable tonight.
What the hell does she see in a man like me? Especially after her ex hurt her like that… I’m cruel to her, at best. Why doesn’t she hate me?
She will once I use her as a lure to get that guy to show himself again.
Guilt is a heavy burden to carry, one that I haven’t endured in years. But the thought of using sweet, unsuspecting Briar puts a weight in my chest.
Briar calls me over, her eyes bright with answers she got, I’m assuming.
The corner of my lip curls up, and I have to shake my head at her relentless care for others.
Does this Hailey person even know her very well?
I doubt it. I’ve been watching Briar since the party.
No one except that damn Sutherland boy has been around her.
“They said she just clocked out and we might be able to catch her in the parking lot if we hurry. They’re worried because she hasn’t been looking so great this week.” Her eyes narrow, and she bites her lower lip—an unfortunate habit that makes me want to be balls deep in her.
“Let’s go then.” I toss the orange onto a shelf, and it earns me a glare from her. She should know that I don’t give a shit. About the orange or her judgy looks.
The parking lot is fairly empty, so it’s not hard to spot the only other person in it who happens to be walking with a limp toward her car.
“Hailey! Hey, are you okay?” Briar shouts as she trots across the asphalt toward her. I shove my hands into my jacket pockets and survey the parking lot as I follow.
Hailey visibly stiffens and quickly looks over her shoulder at Briar. Her eyes widen, and she hurries to her car.
Briar freezes for a second before resuming her pursuit. “Hailey?” Her tone falters.
That’s a strange reaction to have to someone coming to see if you’re all right. I look around the parking lot one more time before jogging to catch up to Briar.
We get to the car before Hailey can start it. Her expression is filled with terror, and she’s trembling.
“Um, Briar.” I reach out to set my hand on her shoulder and stop her from pursuing this, but she’s already talking.
“Hailey. Oh my God, what happened to you? Did Grahm do this?” She opens Hailey’s door and inspects her. Briar’s breaths are heavy now, and I can see why.
Hailey’s face is a bit swollen, and she’s clearly using makeup to hide some bruises on her face and throat. Her eyes are bloodshot, and I’d bet beneath her jeans and jacket are many more bruises and potentially worse.
I frown. “Sutherland did this?”
I knew he was likely in on the black market, and that he’s likely the one who killed Briar’s uncle, but I didn’t pin him for someone who beats on women.
“P-please just leave me alone.” Hailey’s voice is shaky, and she finally successfully starts her car.
Briar takes a few steps back, tears brimming in her eyes. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to make sure you were all right. I didn’t see you at the party after Grahm followed you into the trees.”
I give Hailey a dull glare and set my hand on the hood of her car and lean in. “Did Sutherland do this? I’m not going to ask nicely again.”
The blood drains from her face, and she forces her eyes to her steering wheel where her hands are gripping it tightly. “If I say yes, I’m only putting myself in danger.” Her tone is clipped but with fear, not anger.
I lean in closer so Briar can’t hear what I say next. “Are you in the underworld? A gatekeeper for Sub-Rosa?” I mutter coldly.
Her eyes flash wide, and she finally looks at me. I don’t know what she sees, but her teeth start clattering. “Yes,” she whispers. “I used to be.”
Unfortunate.
“I see. Well, you’d better get home before trouble finds you again,” I say in a normal volume. Briar looks worried, even though Hailey wasn’t very friendly to her. “I’d be quick about it too,” I tack on at the end, and she seems to get the message loud and clear.
She shuts her door and tears out of the parking lot.
Briar’s holding her arms as if she could make herself smaller than she already is. “Will she be okay?” she asks quietly.
I glance down at her and firm my frown. “My bet is that she’s going to go home and pack all her shit. She’ll likely leave town before morning.” Briar covers her mouth. “At least she will if she’s smart. Things in Bane Falls are escalating.”
The farm is as lifeless as it was the first night we met.
I cut my headlight a mile out from the house in case we have company out here.
This is probably a really stupid boundary to push with everything that happened today.
But Nolan was clear. He wants the flash drive and the gate location to the underworld.
And selfishly, I want more time with Briar.
The flash drive might have enough secrets on it to satisfy Nolan. If I check off all his boxes, he might allow me to spare Briar. I know he wants me to discard her after, or let her die in the raid, but I don’t think I can do that.
It’s much too late for me to walk down that path. Whether I like it or not, my humanity stirs around her. Like a beast being coaxed from a long hibernation.
Briar, why did you wake me?
Some might say I’m more dangerous when I’m willing to save someone out of emotions. I think about Dalton and Nyla and how horrendous I became after. Yes, one is willing to be much more vicious when it’s for someone they care about.
I park in the barn and clear the area with my silencer pistol up and ready before I give Briar the nod to let her know it’s safe.
She quickly unlocks the back door of the house, and we slip inside.
“Best to keep the lights off,” I mutter, grabbing her hand softly as she reaches for the switch.
Her eyes fill with horror. “Oh shit, yeah, good call. But how will we look through all this crap?” She motions to the hoard that Arnold built. I have no doubt that he intentionally filled it with clutter to hide the flash drive and possibly weapons.
I don’t release her hand as I guide her down the hall. “Let’s start upstairs, there’s a full moon tonight so we’ll have a little light. I’ll work on getting the windows blacked out so we can light some candles. That should be safe enough, but not the overheads.”
Briar nods, and we spend the next two hours sorting through a bunch of trash.
I found black garbage bags and was able to completely cover the windows in the entire house. We work in silence. I appreciate that about her—she needs time to her thoughts just like I do.
Her hand brushes over mine when we reach for the same pile of books. Our eyes meet, and neither of us move our hands away from the other.
“Are we wasting our time here?” she asks with an exasperated sigh.
I brush my thumb over her hand and smile as her cheeks flush. “No. We need to find it, even if it takes all night.”
“Did you let the guys know we’ll be out late?”
A devious grin pulls at the corners of my lips, because I already told them we won’t be coming back to the shop tonight at all. “Yeah, I did. They’re monitoring for us, so don’t worry, Squirt.”
She nods and sets her other hand on top of mine. I startle, which is fucking weird for me, but the warmth and softness of her hand makes my chest flutter.
“I never thanked you for saving me today.” Her voice is like a song I can never forget.
I find myself staring at her and have to blink and clear my throat to reset my expression. What the fuck is this girl doing to me?
“We’re even. You know, since you helped me out at the lake.” I rub the back of my head and force my eyes away. I hate intimate things. It makes me uncomfortable, but with Briar it’s in the best way. I want her to follow me into the dark. More than anything, it’s what I want.
She looks at me like she’s waiting for more, but I shift and start looking through the books.
I know what she wants me to say. She wants to know why I keep pushing her away and saying terrible things to her.
But how could she understand? I’m calling you a whore and being a dick because it’s in your best interest sounds like an asshole excuse—even if it’s true.
I set aside a book and lift another, flipping through the pages and freezing as I find it’s been hollowed out. I tilt it, and a USB drive falls into my hand.
Relief sets into my bones, and it feels like for the first time in months, my shoulders relax. I clutch the flash drive like it’s a lifeline. This might be what saves Briar. I won’t let anything bad happen to her if I can help it. Not a fucking chance.
I slip the USB into my pocket and continue searching as if I haven’t found it yet. It might be selfish, but I don’t want to go back. She’s all mine tonight, and I still have to convince her to help us on our mission to draw out the guy who shot Gale.
An awful, guilty feeling seeps into my marrow. I shake it off and ignore the morality of it.
This is for her. I’m using her to save her life, I reason, and it makes me feel a little better.
Briar stretches her arms over her head and yawns. “I guess we should head back. I’m so tired. We can keep looking tomorrow morning, I guess.” She seems bummed out about it.
I give her a sly grin. “Let’s just stay here. We’ll risk exposing the hideout if we keep going back and forth, especially at night when they’re most active.”
She doesn’t say anything for a few seconds, then nods in agreement. “Yeah, you’re right. Okay, fine.” She levels me with a suspicious glare. “But you’re sleeping on the couch.”
I chuckle and grab her arm, pulling her into my lap and thoroughly enjoying the surprised gasp that breaks from her lips as she falls against my chest. “Baby, you know I’m not doing that. I need to stay with you, for safety reasons.” I wink and suck my lower lip in.
Her cheeks burn red and she mimics me, sucking in her lip. We both know I’ll be buried seven inches inside her for the remainder of the night.
“You make me crazy, you know that?” she whispers over my lips, eyes searching mine like she’ll find a man and not a beast behind them.
“Funny, you do the same to me, Squirt.”
I clutch the nape of her neck and bring her soft lips to mine. She smells like vanilla and honey—a warm and consuming scent that has irritatingly reached into my heart.
Our kiss ripples through the empty halls of my haunted soul. She lets out a small whimper and melts into my arms. I slide my tongue into her mouth, and she eagerly lets me in.
I forget time.
I forget that we are wrong for each other.
I don’t fucking care.
Slowly, I lower to my back and lie in the scattered pages we sorted through. Our kisses don’t break, they become more sensual, and she starts grinding that perfect pussy over my cock.
I groan into her mouth and bury my teeth into her lower lip. She moans and smooths her hands down my chest. I watch as she slowly lifts my shirt, pressing kisses down my scarred abs and tracing her finger over them thoughtfully.
She glances up at me with those lovely eyes and continues down to my pants, unbuttoning them and freeing my cock.
The candlelight halos her figure. She’s so lovely it hurts. Flowers couldn’t bloom bright enough to rival her.
Briar wraps her hand around my thickness and starts pumping. I let my head fall back and moan as she watches what she does to me.
“Fuck,” I say in a breathy voice that I didn’t know I had until meeting her.
Her lips are coming down around the head of my dick in the next moment, and I inhale sharply, arching my back as she sucks me in hard. The urge to start fucking her mouth is so strong that I have to will myself to keep my hips planted to the ground.
Briar works my cock with her hands, pumping me, while taking me in her mouth deeply. I’m shocked that she hasn’t gagged once.
Another moan falls from my lips as she deep throats me. I’m so fucking close to spilling into her. Fuck, I want to rut into her so bad. I fist my hands in her hair and stop myself from jerking my hips up.
It’s goddamn painful to restrain myself.
She pops my cock out of her mouth and licks her lips as she smiles seductively. “You can fuck my throat. I don’t have a gag reflex.”
My jaw drops, and my dick throbs with another wave of precum from her unexpected, filthy mouth.
Jesus Christ, I think I just fell in love. My eyes widen at the intrusive thought.
Oh, I’m so fucked with her.