Chapter Twenty-Two
Kylo
I’d never known panic like that in my life.
Not even when men were in my apartment, when they were brutally attacking me, never.
Because nothing, not even my own damn life, mattered as much as Rue being safe.
And when she hadn’t responded to my texts that I was on the way, I feared the worst.
The house was eerily silent as I made my way up to it, my gun in my hand, not trusting it not to be an ambush.
But it was empty.
Save for all the destruction left in their wake.
They’d gutted couch cushions, knocked art and family collages off the wall. They’d pulled out and broken all of her dishes, had tossed food from the fridge all over the floor. They’d sliced her mattress and two of Ernest’s beds.
It was just pure wreckage for no good reason.
And while there was no blood anywhere, I couldn’t help but fear the worst.
That I was too late.
That they’d taken her.
That they were doing to her all the awful shit they’d told her they wanted to.
A sick feeling rose in my throat as I called her name.
Then, the text.
The relief.
Finding her in a tiny hole in the wall, dirty, terrified, but unharmed.
I didn’t plan on trying to apologize, let alone get her to forgive me.
I was going to save her, get her safe, then give her the space from me I was sure she wanted.
But then she was clinging to me, talking to me, listening to me.
And when all that was done, she leaned up and pressed her soft lips to mine.
All the days of despair, of a deep, dark hole that threatened to swallow me up forever, fell away.
My hand slid to the back of her neck, gently massaging as I kissed her back, careful at first, then harder, more urgent.
Until I heard the footsteps coming down the hallway.
I pulled away first, watching the dazed look in her eyes as her lids fluttered open.
“We should get her out of here,” Huck said. “If they know she’s working with us now, they will be back sooner or later.”
Rue stiffened, but was quick to get up to her feet.
“Babe,” Huck called, nodding toward her feet.
“Oh, right,” she said, turning back to her closet and finding a pair of slides. “Should I get anything else?” I asked.
“Yeah, here,” I said, handing her one of her duffle bags.
“Fit as much as you can in there. Just in case,” I added, not wanting her to think she was going to be away from her house for too long.
“Unless there is something Ernest is partial to, we can get him all new shit to hold him over,” I told her.
“Wait, I heard motorcycles,” she said when she zipped her bag after shoving clothes and underwear inside.
“Yeah.”
“How is Ernest going to get out of here?”
“Eddie,” Huck said when I had no answer. “Eddie headed over with his car. Ernest is gonna have to sit in the front seat, but it isn’t a long drive.”
With that, I waited for Rue as she ducked into her bathroom to toss her toothbrush and anything else she needed in the bag, then, finally, moved out into the main area of the house with me.
I reached for her hand.
She laced her fingers between mine.
Then I gave her a squeeze as I led her through her mess of a house.
A small whimper escaped her as she glanced into the kitchen, seeing her mismatched mug collection destroyed, but she kept her head up as I led her outside, handed off her duffle to Eddie, and watched her tell Ernest she would see him in just a few minutes.
“You okay with this?” I asked, waving toward my bike.
“Yeah,” she agreed, sounding suddenly exhausted.
Caymen tossed me his helmet for her, since I’d rushed out without even my own.
Then we climbed on and pulled out, the rest of the club flanking us all the way back to the clubhouse.
The OG members were still there, waiting, making sure we weren’t invaded while the rest of us were out scooping up Rue.
“What now?” Rue asked, sounding a little numb as she watched Eddie coax Ernest out of the car with a meat stick.
“Now, let’s get you inside and cleaned up,” I said, grabbing her duffle, pressing a hand to her lower back, then leading her inside. “Don’t worry about Ernest. He’s in good hands with Eddie,” I told her when she looked over her shoulder for him.
She said nothing as I led her up the stairs, then down the hall into my bedroom.
“I lucked out and snagged the room with a bathroom,” I told her, waving toward it. “You want to take advantage of it?”
She looked down at the grime that had dried on her hands and arms, letting out a little shiver. “Yeah. Thanks.”
She took her bag in and I heard the shower water slapping the floor as it warmed up.
I was about to go downstairs and ask Huck what the plan was, when her soft voice reached out to me.
“Kylo?”
“Yeah?” I asked, close to the door.
“Can you come in here?” she asked.
Excitement rose, but I tamped it down, reminding myself that she probably just needed a towel or something.
I cracked the door open and moved inside.
“Did you forget something?” I asked, forcing my gaze to stay on my damn shoes.
“Can you… do you want to join me?” she asked, voice tiny, almost impossible to hear over the rush of the water.
“Yeah?” I asked, letting myself look up.
She gave me a little nod.
There was no hesitation then.
I kicked off my shoes, stripped out of my clothes, and rushed into the shower with her.
My hands went to her hips, pulling until her body was flush with mine.
She leaned into me, letting out a long breath.
She just wanted comfort, nothing more.
But try telling my cock that as her breasts pressed to my chest, as my hands moved over bare, soft, wet skin.
I forced my hands to slide, to press, to work out tension, but there was no way to stop my cock from stiffening.
“Just ignore it,” I said, my voice soothing when I felt her body tighten as she felt the press of me against her belly.
But her own hands were moving then, going from being wrapped tightly around me to gliding up and down my ribs, then, getting bolder, to my hips.
Her body shifted slightly. Then her hand was around my cock, stroking down the length, and dragging a ragged curse out of me.
Her head lifted, gaze finding mine, her eyes as needy as I felt.
There was no more hesitation then, just hands roaming, teasing, twisting.
My lips were on hers, hard, hungry, borderline bruising. But she kissed me back just as hard.
I broke away and dropped down to my knees.
I pulled one of her legs over my shoulder and flicked, circled, sucked. Until she was writhing against me, until her moans were filling the room.
I reached out of the shower, digging around in my pants for my wallet, then the condom within.
When I got back to my feet, I protected us before grabbing her leg again, pinning it against the wall, then sliding deep inside of her.
I wanted to take my time, to savor this, but her hands were grabbing my ass, her hips were rocking against me, and her little moans ripped away what was left of my control.
“Fuck, baby,” I growled as her walls tightened around me, threatening to take me with her as she came.
“Kylo,” she gasped, body tensing. “I’m gonna…”
Then she was, her pussy tightening around me as she cried out.
I fucked her through it, but had no control left to take her to another as I slammed deep and came with her.
It wasn’t just Rue who was shaky and breathless afterward.
I angled her chin up and sealed my lips over hers again. Softer. Unhurried.
Until the hot water ran out, blasting us with frigid water that had Rue squealing and rushing out.
I reached to turn off the tap, a smile on my lips as she wrapped a towel around herself.
I cleaned up, dried off, then followed her out into the bedroom where I found (with a small tug of disappointment) that she’d already pulled on a pair of biker shorts and an oversized t-shirt.
“Damn,” she grumbled, digging through the duffle.
“What’d you forget?”
“A brush.”
“Lucky for you, I have hair,” I said, walking back into the bathroom to grab my brush and hand it off. “See something you like?” I asked, a cocky smirk tugging at my lips, until I saw the way her brows were pinched.
“What is that?” she asked, voice tight as she looked at my stomach.
I followed her gaze, seeing the old, pink, round scar there.
I couldn’t lie to her.
“Bullet wound,” I admitted. “Happened a long time ago. Before I joined the club. Got myself into some shit. Some guys tied me to a chair and… yeah. The bullet wasn’t even the worst of it,” I said. “Though I don’t think Siana would agree. She’d been white from all the blood loss.”
“Siana. Your old neighbor.”
“Yeah, she saved my life. I was at death’s door when she came in to put some pressure on some of the wounds. Even so, barely made it.”
“Is that why you joined the club?” she asked, glancing back up at me with misty eyes for an injury I barely thought about anymore. “Because you had no one to help you when you needed it?”
“Something like that, yeah.”
“Have you ever been hurt since joining the club?”
“Not like this, no. It’s been pretty safe around here, all said and done. It’s always the women who bring the trouble,” I added with a little smile.
“To be fair, Marco is both our problem,” she said.
Then I watched as her face fell, her eyes going huge.
“Babe, what?” I asked.
But she ran past me, yanking open the bedroom door, and barreling down the hallway before I could even grab a pair of pants.
Her feet thundered on the stairs.
“Rue! Wait!” I called, grabbing a shirt and pulling it on as I rushed down the stairs. “Rue!” I yelled as she flew out the front door.
“She took my gun,” Caymen said, already up and trying to rush after her himself.
Then it hit me.
Her grandmother.
That was how Marco kept her under his thumb.
With threats to her loved ones.
I yelled back over my shoulder.
“Get someone to bring in Traeger,” I called, then ran after Rue.
The gravel bit into my bare feet as I followed her shadow as she flew across the street, not even pausing to watch for a car.
She had a head start, but my longer stride should have allowed me to easily gain on her. That wasn’t factoring in her panic, though. Rue weaved down the winding streets of the fifty-plus community, never slowing, not even when security lights flicked on or a startled dog barked from windows.
She had one goal in mind, and nothing could slow her down.
I pushed my body harder as she zeroed in on the well-lit front of the assisted living building, worried that there might be a pin that I would need to get in.
Sure enough, I saw her pause, punch something in, wait, then yank open the door.
I was just quick enough to grab the door before it clicked closed.
The lobby had the lights at half power, but it was still oddly bright for nighttime. There was no one standing at the front desk, so Rue moved right to a screen, clicking around, then signing something.
Only then was she able to move forward, past a small lobby, then toward the elevator bank.
“Hey, wait,” I said, grabbing her arm. Once I had her at the wrist, I pulled the gun free and slid it into my waistband, highly aware of the cameras peering down at us.
If there was anyone sitting and watching those, we were fucked.
If there wasn’t, so long as we didn’t cause a scene, no one would have any reason to check them and find the two of us barefoot with a weapon in the building.
“We will get her safe, but we have to be smart,” I told her, pushing the elevator button with my thumb.
“I can’t stomach the idea of something happening to her.”
“Nothing is going to happen to her.”
“You don’t know that. We’ve already wasted so much time.”
“This place is locked down,” I reminded her as she tapped her fingers impatiently on her thigh while the elevator climbed to the right floor.
The doors dinged softly as I reached out to grab Rue’s wrist, pulling her behind me as we moved down the hallway.
She pointed from behind me toward a door with a brightly colored wreath around the peephole.
Sucking in a deep breath, I reached for the gun, keeping it hidden against my front as I released Rue’s wrist to knock casually on the door.
“Who is it?” a sing-song voice called from inside.
I looked over at Rue, giving her a nod.
“Grammy, it’s me. Open up.”
Her voice was shaky.
“Unlock it, Katherine,” Claudia ordered.
A lock slid.
Another clicked.
Then the door was inching open.
The woman I’d recognized from the group I’d been introduced to answered the door, wearing a strange purple apron with sleeves, the kind you’d maybe use to paint.
As soon as the door swung open, the harsh scent of bleach reached me.
“Grammy?” Rue called, her voice tight.
Claudia moved toward us, also wearing one of the purple smocks.
Her keen eyes slid to my gun, giving it a nod.
“Well, it’s about time you two got here,” she said. “We’ve got a body in the tub and blood all over the kitchen.”