Chapter 8
Dean
They’re closing in. Over the past few days, I’ve noticed a few new faces have made their way into town.
All leather, ink, and attitude. I know it’s them.
I know their colors; I know their style of rides.
More importantly, I see the way they watch me when they think I’m not paying attention.
The Rising Tension Motocycle Club has got their claws in Crystal Falls, and I have a feeling it’s about to get ugly.
Sitting on the edge of my bed, I stare at my own reflection in the full-length mirror across the room, taking in the person looking back at me.
Scarred knuckles, busted jaw, my body a roadmap of every bad decision I’ve ever made.
I tell myself to keep cool, don’t react.
But it’s all white noise in my head, a warning I can’t ignore.
They’re not here for some cozy little getaway. They are coming for me.
And if they figure out Aubrey’s associated with me in any way, she will be their next target. Which is why hauling ass out of here in the middle of the night isn’t an option anymore. I have to protect her.
My phone buzzes…Unknown Number.
Tick tock, Dean. You should tell your girlfriend to watch her back. BTW, she looks even prettier up close…bet she screams real pretty, too.
My first instinct is to break something, punch a hole in the nearest wall.
But right now, I need to find Aubrey and not let her out of my fucking sight.
I grab my jacket and gun—stuffing it in the back of my pants.
Barely aware of my own heartbeat pounding in my ears.
I storm out of my room, through the lobby, and I’m halfway to the door, vision tunneling, when the wiry redhead—who I’ve come to know as Savannah—pops up at the front desk.
She raises an eyebrow. “You look like hell, Dean. Is everything okay?” And I can tell she’s not just being nosey this time but genuinely concerned.
“Not now, Savannah,” I grunt, barely slowing down. She calls after me, but I’m already shoving out the inn doors. Right now, nothing else fucking matters. Not until I’ve got eyes on Aubrey…making sure she’s safe, and that none of those bastards have gotten close.
I’m on the sidewalk, moving fast, scanning every storefront, every corner that someone could be hiding, every stranger.
Then, I see her across the street. A mess of sandy blonde hair piled on top of her head, wearing jeans and a Cozy Corner T-shirt, all casual, looking cute as hell.
And damn, if her ass doesn’t look good in those jeans.
Focus Dean.
I start to cross, then freeze. One of the Rising Tension guys is talking to her. Jax. And he’s standing a little too close for my comfort. Jax is one of the biggest and meanest guys in the club, known for the snake tattoo he has slithering up his neck.
Jax is leaning into Aubrey’s space, saying something, with that slimy grin I’ve seen too many times, plastered across his ugly face. I can tell he’s making her uncomfortable by the way she’s shrinking away. But she plays it cool, doesn’t run. My girl is stubborn like that.
Before I realize it, I’m halfway across the street. “Hey,” I bark, my voice sharp enough to cut through steel. “Get the fuck away from her.”
Jax looks up, eyes cold, grinning wide. “Well, well, look who crawled out from under a rock.”
Aubrey’s eyes find mine, wide and confused. Until realization hits. “Dean, it’s fine…”
“No,” I snap, stepping between them. I shove Jax, hard. “You need something, you come to me. She’s got nothing to do with this.”
Jax just laughs, hands going up in mock surrender. “Relax, Dean. I was just being friendly.”
“Don’t mistake me for someone who’s na?ve about your version of ‘friendly.’”
He leans in, drops his voice. “Careful, brother. You keep on, you’re going to start drawing unwanted attention.”
“I’m not your fucking brother,” I hiss.
He smirks and backs away. “We’ll see how long you can keep playing the hero. You think she’d still look at you that way if she knew the truth about why you left?”
I watch him leave, my fists clenched tight, fighting the urge to chase him down and end this whole fucking mess right here. Aubrey reaches out and grabs my arm. She’s shaking.
“Dean, what the hell was that? Is he part of that club you mentioned?”
I turn to her, trying to keep my cool. “THAT, Aubrey,” I say through gritted teeth, “…is exactly what I was trying to avoid.” My voice is sharp, too loud, as my anger and panic start to bleed through.
“You wanted to know why I’ve been so on edge; why I wouldn’t tell you shit about my past?
Jax is why. Guys associated with Rising Tension are bad news, and they don’t play games.
They don’t care who gets hurt to make a point. ”
I can feel myself starting to go off, my fists clenched tight, my breathing heavy.
“You keep pushing for the truth, and this is what happens. They sniff out weakness; they see you even just speak one word to me, and suddenly you’re in the firing line.
That’s why I was trying to keep this fucking wall up, Aubrey! ”
She looks up, and there are tears in her eyes, but I’m thrown off because it’s not fear for her own safety. It’s fear for me.
“I don’t care about them, Dean. I care about you; I’m scared for you.”
At that moment, my anger falters, and my gut twists at the thought that someone is actually scared for me, and not because of me. It’s fucking foreign, the idea that anyone would care what happens to me, that I matter to someone.
For a split second, I can’t breathe. All my life, people have either wanted something from me or wanted me gone. But here she is, with tears in her eyes, terrified not for herself, but for me. I don’t know what the hell to do with that, so all I can do is stare at her, my words stuck.
I take her face in my hands, fighting the urge to break down right here on the street.
“Baby, I’m so sorry.” I rest my forehead gently against hers.
“You’re not the problem. I am. I’m the reason they’re here.
If they think you mean something to me, they’ll use you.
” My throat tightens. “I’m trying to keep you safe. ”
She shakes her head while angry tears streak her face. “By pushing me away? Dean, that’s not how you protect someone. That’s running scared.”
I want to argue, but I can’t. She’s right. All I know how to do is run or fight, nothing in between.
“I can’t lose you,” I whisper, my voice broken.
She touches my cheek, and it’s gentle, in a way that fucking guts me. “Then stop trying.”
Right before I left Aubrey earlier today, I told her to go straight home and wait to hear from me. If a stranger tries to talk to her, she is to call me ASAP, and absolutely, under no circumstances, is she to go anywhere alone. No questions. I was surprised when she agreed without trying to argue.
Now, here I am, sitting in my room, in the dark, my gun resting on my knee, staring at the wall. Thinking and asking myself how I’m going to handle this situation without anyone getting hurt.
Instinct has me on my feet, gun cocked. When I hear footsteps outside my door. Then, there’s a soft and hesitant knock. I open the door. Why am I not surprised? Aubrey stands there; face streaked with tears.
“Aubrey, what the hell are you doing? Didn’t I tell you…”
“Dean Michaels, I know what you told me, but I’m not sleeping until I know you’re okay,” she says, pushing past me.
“You’re not facing this alone. So don’t try to fight me on this.
” She stands there with her arms crossed, defiant, ready to fight me if I try to say otherwise. And at this point, I fucking give up.
Finally willing to admit that this is who Aubrey is. If I’m being honest with myself, it’s the very thing about her that I fell in love with.
“You’re playing with fire,” I say before stepping out to check the hall for anyone who may have followed her. Then locking it.
“Well, maybe I like the heat.” She sits on the edge of the bed, staring me down.
I almost smile.
Almost.
“Also, I need you to promise me something,” she adds.
I raise an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
“Let me in, Dean. Let me help you.”
I sink to the bed beside her, head in my hands. “I’m so fucking scared, Aubrey. Not of them…of what I’ll do if they touch you. I’ve never cared what happened to me, but you…” My voice cracks. “You’re everything I never thought I’d have.”
She slips her arms around me, and for a minute, I let myself lean into her. I breathe her in—desperate, grateful, and so fucking lost.
“We’ll figure this out together,” she whispers. “But I need you to be completely honest with me and give me total transparency on this whole situation. Why are they after you? What happened to make them want to hurt you?”
I take a deep breath, forcing myself to calm down and steady my nerves. I don’t want to do this, but I have to tell her. I have to let her in, even if it destroys whatever we’ve built.
“The club had rules,” I start. “Rising Tension MC always said there were lines you don’t cross. No women, no kids…ever. That’s what made it possible for me to stay as long as I did, even when shit got dirty. I told myself there was some kind of honor in it. But that all went to hell one night.
“A rival MC fucked us over. Burned one of our safehouses, killed a kid who’d just been patched in.
With that, retaliation was expected. I got a call one night from one of the brothers.
‘Club business. No questions.’ His tone was off, and I got this feeling that something wasn’t right.
Still, I showed up. We all did. Some warehouse on the edge of town.
“When I got there, I realized this wasn’t a normal job.
There she was, a girl, tied up, shaking.
Damn, Aubrey, she couldn’t have been more than twenty years old.
She wasn’t one of us, just somebody’s girlfriend or sister.
But because of who she was connected with, they decided the rules didn’t matter anymore.
This girl was going to be a message to the enemy.
“It made me fucking sick.
“I tried to talk them down, tried to make them see reason, but nobody was listening. They were high, angry, and out for blood. And when they started to hurt her, I lost it. I fought my own brothers for some stranger.
“Everything went sideways…somebody got shot, maybe by accident, maybe not. I couldn’t even tell in the midst of all the chaos. All I knew was I had to get her out. I cut her loose, dragged her to my bike, and we ran.
“And I’ve been running ever since. Not just because I broke orders, but because I crossed the one line they finally decided didn’t matter anymore.”
For a long moment, Aubrey just sits there silent, staring at me. Like she’s trying to process everything I’ve said. I brace myself for her to pull away, to be scared or disgusted. But instead, she reaches for my hand, gripping it tightly.
“You did the right thing, Dean,” she says softly, but sounding sure. “No matter what it cost you, you saved an innocent life. And that, Dean Michaels, is why I love you.”
My phone buzzes, and I want to ignore it, and not ruin this moment. But something tells me I shouldn’t. It’s another unknown number, and this time, it’s a picture of Aubrey walking home. My heart stops. I show her.
Her face goes white. “They’re watching me.”
Pure, violent rage ignites within me. “They want a war. Now, they’ve got it.”
I grab my jacket, check my gun, and head for the door. Aubrey grabs my wrist.
“Dean. No. We need to be smart about this.”
I look at her. “I’m done running. They want to come for me. Let them. I’m ready.”
“Okay. Then I’m comin’ with you.”
I shake my head. “Absolutely not! It’s not safe. This is my fight.”
She steps closer, eyes determined. “Not anymore.”
Something in me breaks. I pull her close and kiss her hard. “You’re too good for this world, Aubrey Ryan.”
She smirks, wiping her tears. “And you’re an idiot if you think I’m letting you do this alone.”