Three
Grayson
I had just plated our breakfast when Brooke’s scream tore through the house.
And not the sound one let loose when encountering a bee or spider – besides she wouldn’t even flinch in that type of scenario – but one of desperate need.
Fury ripped through me and I released a feral roar. “Brooke!”
Dropping the silverware onto the floor, I sprinted for the front door, barreled outside, and then around the side of the house, in the direction of her cry.
The sight of a member of Brutal Demons attempting to cart her off had my vision turning blood red.
And I wanted blood . . . HIS.
When her wide eyes landed on me, she rammed her head back to connect with his face.
I almost smirked at her savageness, but when her eyes closed briefly on a wince and he hurled her body at me, the only thing I could do was catch her in my arms.
Then the fucker sped toward the back of the houses.
In that instant, I chose to stay with Brooke to ensure she was okay and that there weren’t any other bastards around that could easily nab her, rather than give chase.
Wrapped up in my arms, I cradled her to my chest and walked back inside, resetting the alarm before heading to the living room.
It was in that moment, it struck me that this was the second time an immense wave of protectiveness stunned me when it came to Brooke.
However, the wonder quickly vanished because I was well aware Brooke meant more to me than my usual random hookups.
For the first time ever, I wanted what Ryder had with Sage.
And I was going to have quite the fight on my hands to make and keep her mine. Good thing I never backed down from any fight.
After grabbing Sage’s purple blanket off of the back of the black leather couch, I sat down with Brooke on my lap and covered her up.
Taking her face gently in my hand, I inspected the damage.
“Fuck, Brooke.
Not that I mind you staying with me, but it’s going to be a solid week before all of these marks are gone.
And your beautiful face is getting all bruised up; you’re not going to have an inch without coloring.”
She now had matching discoloration on her opposite cheek and a red rim starting under her left eye.
I had also caught a glimpse of finger outlines on her arm.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head onto my shoulder.
“Just let me close my eyes for a moment.
I’ll figure something out.
I’ll need to get my own clothes at some point for work and my car, but .
. . okay too much thinking at the moment.”
I ran my hand gently through her hair.
“We have a doctor on retainer.
You would really like her.
Let me take you to her to get your head checked.”
I pressed kisses to the top of her head in the hopes of soothing some of the pain.
“No.
I just need a moment.
And some food.
And coffee.
My head is just going to be sore. But I’m okay. Just a little rattled.”
“Did that fucker say anything to you?”
My jaw clenched in anger.
I could guess what he was after, but they normally didn’t strike during the daylight.
Although there had been that incident at Twisted Eats.
“Just that he was looking for another girl, but I would prove useful as well.
Did you piss off a boyfriend or an ex?”
And now Brooke could possibly be caught up in this mess.
That should work wonders in helping to endear her father to me.
I growled under my breath.
“No.
He was after Sage. For revenge.”
“What?”
She popped her head up to stare at me, her eyes wide.
“That beautiful soul who is now a mother? Now I really wish I would’ve been able to get in some more hits.”
“You got in plenty.
I’m relieved he wasn’t able to drag you off.
They don’t have a club stationed here in South Carolina that we know of so it makes it more difficult to find them.”
Tucking my hand into her hair, I played with the long strands.
“Sage spent some years with Pyro Devils and one day a member from Brutal Demons attacked her while at their club.
Ryder and I rescued her when we found her body in the woods.
The guy later managed to kidnap her, but she killed him before he could kill her.
Are you sure you want to be with someone like me? I know I didn’t like it when you blew me off just because you knew I was a biker. But now that you know some backstory, you wouldn’t be being judgmental.”
“You don’t think shit like that happens to us regular people? And wow, she killed him?”
Unfortunately, too much of that shit happened and she was right, it didn’t discriminate.
But the fact that we held the label bikers, it was assumed we brought these things on ourselves and were always asking for trouble.
“Since we had found out that the guy was looking for Sage and demanding she be returned to him, Ryder taught her how to use a gun and got her her own for protection.
He made sure she wouldn’t be helpless.”
“Good for her.
I admire her for that.
She doesn’t seem like she has an ounce of violence in her so I’m glad she was able to find it in herself to shove that side down and do what she needed to in order to survive.
I’m not sure I would be able to do that.”
She paused briefly as her eyes took on a faraway look and sadness passed behind them, but she quickly schooled her features.
“And stuff like that can happen even if you aren’t involved with a biker club.”
She eyed me for a moment, her gaze solemn, before her lips curled into a teasing grin.
“And last night, it was more you were a guy not a biker that pissed me off.”
Since she changed the subject, I didn’t address her first comment.
I knew she hated violence and why.
And I knew thinking and talking about her mother brought her pain.
But I was certain if she ever found herself in desperate need of using extreme violence, she would in a heartbeat.
She was feisty and strong even if her past experiences caused her to recoil from it. So instead I went for the comment I could tease her about. “So you like girls.”
Rubbing the scruff on my jaw, I smiled despite the main topic of our discussion.
“I’d like to watch some of that action while we’re getting to know each other.
And then I’m sure I could find a way to – ”
She punched me in the shoulder.
“I’m sure the kisses and nightmare from last night clued you into exactly what I’m interested in.”
“So you are interested?”
Tilting her head up slightly, I dropped my lips to hers in a gentle kiss.
However, before I released her mouth, I swept my tongue in for a little taste.
“In case there is any doubt; I am very interested.”
Lifting her from my lap, I set her feet on the floor in front of me.
“But let’s go eat before our food gets any colder.”
“Thank you.”
Slipping the blanket from her shoulders, she tossed it onto the couch.
“For what? The kiss? Breakfast?”
I stared up at her.
She knew I was making food for the two of us.
And she also knew I wanted much more than kisses despite my teasing.
“Not treating me like an invalid.
You don’t assume just because I was attacked that I can’t use my own legs to walk into the kitchen.”
“I know you’re feisty and capable, but you let me carry you into the house without protest.”
“You weren’t swooping in to play hero.
Besides, I needed a slight breather after that.
I don’t mind some help; we all need it sometimes.
But I don’t like to be treated like I can’t take care of myself just because I’m a petite girl.”
She was tiny – a foot shorter than me – but she packed some immense power into that petite frame.
Rising from the couch, I clasped her hand in mine and led her to the kitchen.
“Hopefully the food isn’t so cold that it doesn’t taste good.
If so, I’ll make more.”
When we plopped down on the stools at the bar, I pulled our plates in front of us.
“Shit.
I forgot I had dropped the forks when you screamed.”
Rising from my seat, I circled the bar to snatch clean ones out of the drawer.
I’d grab the ones off of the floor when we were finished and loading our dirty dishes into the dishwasher.
I slid the forks across the bar to our places.
“Are you ready for some coffee now?”
“Yes, please.
I could really use the caffeine.”
I set a cup into our Keurig and placed a mug underneath.
When it was finished, I slid it in front of her.
“Do you like cream or sugar or both?”
“Some milk or cream would be perfect.”
After pulling the carton from the refrigerator, I handed it to her and then made myself a cup before taking my seat beside her.
Then I scooped up a bite of egg and stuffed it into my mouth.
“Still a little warm.
Could be worse.
Do you want me to make you a new batch or rewarm your breakfast?”
“No.
I’m sure they’re fine.”
She took a sip of her coffee.
“And this is perfect.
I should feel better in a few minutes.”
“Do you still want to go visit Sage? I’m sure they will understand if you don’t.
Not that I’ll give Sage details right now.
But I’ll clue Ryder in on what’s going on so he can be more vigilant.
But I don’t need to worry Sage right at this moment.”
“I do.
I think it will be so much fun.”
But her cheerful expression grew concerned as she raised her hand to her cheek and lightly touched the bruise.
“I don’t want the people there to think you did this to me.
Last night they looked bad so I’m sure with the added ones it looks even worse now.
I know Ryder and your friends won’t think it was you, but the hospital staff and other visitors there might have some less than savory opinions.”
I eyed her curiously and couldn’t stop an amused smirk from curling my lips.
“I don’t care what people think of me.
But thank you for wanting to stand up for me.
I don’t know that I’ve ever had a girl want to do that.
Most of them were too busy trying to flaunt the fact they were with a rough biker.”
“Well, I’m starting to realize there is much more to you than what people see.
But I’m still not sleeping with you.”
She shot me a flirty grin.
“Yet.”
Leaning down, I swept my lips across hers.
“Finish eating so we can get changed and go meet Sage and Ryder’s daughter.”
Since she kept bringing up the sex thing, it gave me hope we were one step closer to my getting my hands and mouth all over her naked skin and then my dick inside of her.
With that thought, I had to slyly adjust as he was making a huge statement in the front of my shorts.
After we finished eating and cleaned up, we retreated to my bedroom.
“Ryder said Sage wanted you to know you can borrow anything of hers from the baby’s closet.”
I slid off my shorts before grabbing a pair of jeans from my drawer and then tugging them on.
Rummaging through another drawer, I pulled out a plain black t-shirt and slipped it over my head.
“Let’s go find you something else to wear.
Your outfit is giving me indecent thoughts which I’m not comfortable sharing until I get to know you better.”
My lips curving into a mischievous grin, I tugged her toward the room right beside mine.
When we stepped inside, Brooke paused while her eyes ate up the room.
“Did you guys do this for Sage?”
“Ryder and I did it over a two day span without her knowing.
Do you really like it?”
Ryder and I had decided to paint the walls peach instead of pink so it was still feminine but not over the top.
We replaced the laminate flooring with soft crème colored carpet.
Everything else: the wooden crib all decked out with jungle animal sheets and a blanket; a matching changing table; a small white dresser and a plastic toy box were all gifts from club members.
And Remus had built Sage a beautiful rocking chair.
“It’s so adorable in here.
Jade is going to love this room.
I’m assuming all of the furniture was bought brand new; it looks it.
But that rocking chair was hand made.”
She walked over to the piece and ran her hand along the wood.
“It is gorgeous.”
“Remus, our Prez, built the chair and Lynette, his Old Lady, made the cushions so they would match the jungle theme.”
“Wow.
You guys have a pretty amazing club.”
She twisted to meet my gaze.
“I wish my dad wouldn’t be so negative about you guys.
His opinions had rubbed off on me, but in a really ridiculous way I’m glad I got beat up in the parking lot.
It meant I was forced to give you a second chance.
And you deserved one after the way I had treated you.”
Walking over to where she stood, I wrapped my arms around her waist and pressed a kiss to the crown of her head.
“Your dad isn’t the first and he won’t be the last.
Honestly, I don’t care what he thinks of me or my club.
He knows my club is invaluable to them.
Although I’d like to date you and I’m sure he’ll have some words about that. So I do need to figure something out.”
Then I shrugged.
I wasn’t keen on feeling like I had to prove myself to someone, but Brooke might be worth my sucking down my pride.
I’d see how things rolled out and adjust from there.
Taking her hand, I led her over to the closet.
“The dresser is packed with baby clothes already and some things are hanging in the closet, but it’s mostly Sage’s pre-pregnant wardrobe in here.”
Pulling open the closet door, I gestured inside.
“Sage said you could help yourself to whatever you wanted.”
After Brooke stared at the contents of the closet for a moment, she released a sigh.
“I’ll have to go with a pair of yoga pants; jeans wouldn’t be comfortable since I don’t have any clean panties to wear.”
A low groan escaped my chest.
“Can we please not speak about your lack of panties?”
“I thought you weren’t ready for anything since we’re still getting to know one another?”
Her eyes danced with teasing.
Caught up in the lust rolling through my body, I spun Brooke to the wall opposite of the closet, slapped my hands to the sides of her head, and pressed my groin into her stomach.
“You are a tantalizing temptress.
Fuck, I want you so bad.”
The pulse at her neck throbbed and her eyes went wide.
Backing away slightly, I ran a hand through my hair.
“I’m sorry.
I didn’t mean to be that aggressive.
I don’t want to scare you.
I hope you know I would never push you.”
Disgusted with myself, I twisted to walk out of the room.
She made me insane and I wanted her like I’ve never wanted anyone else, but I knew she had her reservations.
She was staying here with me voluntarily and I had to bide my time.
But Brooke’s hand on my arm gave me pause.
“I’m not scared, Grayson.
Quite the opposite actually.”
Her words caught me off guard and my head swung around to face her.
An adorable blush bloomed across her cheeks.
“I don’t feel an ounce of fear around you.
Even right now I know you would allow me to completely walk away.
But I don’t want to.
Even though I don’t really know you, it truly doesn’t bother me. I’m comfortable around you and I’m looking forward to staying tonight too.”
A growl rumbled in my chest and I took her face in my hands before smashing my mouth onto hers in a savage kiss that intended to devour and conquer.
But thankfully, I gained enough control of my carnality I was able to pull back and rub my thumbs across her cheeks.
Her eyes were wide, pupils blown, and her chest heaved with her breaths.
My heart thundered in my chest and my erratic breathing matched hers.
“Or maybe we could – ”
After sweeping my lips across hers to cut off that brilliant and mouthwatering thought, I touched my forehead to hers.
“Let’s go visit Sage and Ryder.
That will give you some time, when you’re not alone with me right after I nearly ravished you, to think on this.
Because once I have you, Brooke, I won’t be letting you go.
I’ll leave you to get changed and then meet you out in the living room to head to the hospital.”
Giving her a smile I hoped didn’t look predatory; I turned and made a hasty retreat out of the room.
Fuck, the girl made me do crazy shit.
Like practically maul her in the baby’s nursery.
My craving for her was off the charts, but I wanted to give her the time she needed to make a sound decision; so my body was at constant war with itself.
Out in the living room, I stared out the window to our small yard.
And was this really a good idea? I didn’t want her to be a one and done, but was I willing to accept what being with me would mean for her?
Did I knowingly want to bring her into my world? Sage would have been in danger or most likely dead even if she hadn’t met and fallen in love with Ryder.
However, for Brooke, with the earlier incident, was it already too late to consider any of this now? Did that one encounter already put her on their radar?
“Are you ready to go?”
Brooke’s voice broke me out of my troubling thoughts.
Twisting to face her, my eyes ate up the stunning girl standing at the edge of the room.
“As much as I like you in my clothes; I think for now I like you better in Sage’s.
You’re still gorgeous, but I don’t have as many naughty thoughts racing through my mind at the moment.”
I shot her a teasing grin and then crossed the room to her.
“That is sure to change so let’s get out of here.”
Taking her hand, I led her to the side door and out into the garage.
After handing her my helmet, I mounted the bike and patted the spot behind me.
She eagerly hopped on, plastering her front to my back.
“I was hoping to get to ride on this again soon.
But I’m really looking forward to going on a long ride with you though.”
Laying her cheek against my back, she tightened her arms around my waist.
After rolling my bike out of the garage, I fired it up and steered us in the direction of the hospital.
About fifteen minutes later, I pulled into a spot along the street about two blocks down from the building.
Then the two of us hopped off.
And when I turned to Brooke, she gazed up at me almost drunkenly.
“That is such a rush.”
Her words came out breathlessly.
And I couldn’t help thinking about how she would sound after I had my mouth and hands all over her.
Regretting considering that possibility, I put a stop to that train of thought by teasing her.
“I can’t help but think you are using me for my bike.”
“For now.
But I’m hoping to experience something even more incredible later tonight.”
Her response had that train rushing back full force and nearly knocking me onto my ass.
Fuck, I wanted to hop back on my bike, return home, strip her naked, and do all sorts of naughty things to her body.
We could see the baby when they brought her home.
Right now I wanted to see Brooke, completely naked and writhing underneath me while I pleasured her and then eventually fucked her until we both passed out from satisfaction and exhaustion.
Tucking my helmet under my arm, I released a low growl and then snatched her hand in my free one and led her down the street to the hospital’s entrance.
“Let’s go see if my friends remember you from last night.”
Stepping inside the building the two of us crossed the lobby to the elevators.
When the doors closed, I pushed the button for the fourth floor.
On the maternity floor, I was surprised to discover the waiting room not filled to capacity by club members.
Although it was rather early in the day for bikers to be up on a weekend.
So I suspected a bunch would be arriving soon.
We walked up to the nurse’s station to ask for Sage’s room.
Then we headed down the hallway.
At her door, I slowly pushed it open to peer inside to make sure we had the right one.
Ryder sat on the side of the bed with Sage curled under the covers and a baby wrapped in a pink blanket cradled in her arms.
Stepping inside, I closed the door behind us.
“I sent Brooke home and brought another chick to visit the new baby.
Hope that’s okay?”
Ryder twisted to scowl at me.
“Grayson, what the f – ”
Then he shook his head.
“It’s going to be difficult curbing my language, especially around these bastards.”
Sage rolled her eyes.
“First of all I think you just need to try harder, and come on, Ryder, that is Brooke.
He’s just screwing with you.
See that’s a perfectly acceptable word to use to get your point across.
I recognize her pretty face even though she reminds me of a MMA fighter.”
Snuggling her baby to her chest, Sage smiled over at us.
“Come meet, Jade.
Oh my God she is so perfect.
I can’t believe she looks so much like me.
She even has hints of red in her blonde hair. But I’m sure we’ll find some way she resembles Ryder too.”
Sage’s lip trembled as she fought back tears over the worry her baby wouldn’t resemble her daddy.
“Count yourself lucky she looks like you and not him.
You want a beautiful girl, right?”
I teased as Brooke and I crossed the room to Sage.
Narrowing her eyes at me, Sage grumbled.
“Ryder is very handsome.”
“I’ll give you a pass since you just experienced child birth.”
I walked over to Ryder to shake his hand.
“Congratulations, Man.
You have a little family now.
That’s just weird.”
“Ignore them.”
Sage growled.
“Do you want to hold her?”
She smiled up at Brooke.
“Are you sure? You don’t even know me.”
Brooke’s tone held a heavy dose of amazement.
“I mean I just – ”
“If Grayson brought you home and you’re still with him today, something significant is going on.
For all the ribbing he throws Ryder’s way; I knew he’d find someone too.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that.
But . . .”
Her voice lowered to a whisper as she leaned down to tuck her arms under the baby and lift her.
When she straightened and cuddled Jade to her chest, a strange sensation squeezed in my own.
For all of the shit I gave Ryder over this, I could definitely see its appeal.
And wasn’t that some fucked up shit.
I hadn’t even known her an entire twenty-four hours yet and her father was going to be a huge issue.
I was positive I wanted to date her, but I needed to slam the brakes on anything more at the moment.
“Knock, knock.”
Angel’s singsong voice preceded her entry.
And behind her strolled in Misti, Gage, Remus, and Lynette.
“She looks beautiful even from here.
And Sage you don’t look that rough after just giving birth.”
Angel snickered as she crossed the room.
“And who is this person we haven’t met before? Is she one of your friends, Sage?”
She shook her head.
“Can’t be.
You never mentioned being close to any of those girls.
Besides, she doesn’t look like any of those skanks.”
“You would be correct, Angel.
The one holding my beautiful daughter is Grayson’s – ”
“Girlfriend.”
I filled in the noun for her.
Angel’s green eyes grew wide before a huge smile lit up her face.
“About time, Grayson.
And I can’t wait to see the look on Tara’s face when she hears you’re off limits now.”
I released a frustrated groan.
“Really, Angel.
You couldn’t have kept that tidbit to yourself.”
“It’s okay, Grayson.
Not for one second did I think you were celibate.
But I kinda like the idea that some girl is going to be ticked off about me.
Think I can take her in a fight?”
Brooke shot me a sly smirk that both amused and aroused me.
“Damn, Grayson, I love her.”
Angel lay her hand on Brooke’s arm.
“Probably, gauging by your bruises and such, you don’t look as if you’d back down from kicking someone’s ass if needed and most likely succeeding.
But if not, we have your back.
This is Misti.
She and Sage are the only other girls at the club that aren’t bitchy skanks.”
She gestured to her auburn haired best friend.
Then she pointed behind her.
“And Gage.
Most of our guys are pretty cool.”
“Nice to meet you.”
Giving Brooke a warm smile, he tugged his hand through his brown hair.
“Now I’m not only going to be jealous of Ryder; I have to be jealous of Grayson too.
How the hell is that fair?”
“And I’m Remus, the club Prez, and this is my Old Lady Lynette.”
Even though Remus’ hair was gray he was as sharp as the young members.
His eyes studied Brooke.
“So it seems another of our guys bites the dust.”
He released a chuckle before shifting his gaze to me.
“So that’s why you didn’t come back to the table last night.
Gage said you had met someone and was heading out.
But this is not what I had expected.
But enough about you. You’re not important. We came to meet the new addition to our family.”
The crew stopped at the side of the bed and took turns peeking at the little bundle in Brooke’s arms.
“How is your hair not turning gray dealing with Prez?”
An exasperated sigh fell from my lips.
“He’s a lot to take and I don’t live with him.”
I raised a brow at Prez’s Old Lady.
Lynette ran a hand through her blonde bob.
“Hair dye.
Believe me, he had me prematurely graying.”
“Can I talk to you guys for a moment?”
Signaling with my head, I gestured to the other side of the room.
The girls wouldn’t think anything of it, knowing it was club business which was none of their business.
Once we were gathered over by the window, I shot Ryder a grim look.
“I’m almost one hundred percent positive someone was sniffing around our place today looking for Sage.
A member of Brutal Demons tried to drag Brooke off this morning when she stepped outside.
But he wasn’t sent there for her because he told her he was looking for another girl, but that she could prove useful as well.
It seems that club is still active around here.
At least as far as looking for revenge.
But it wouldn’t surprise me if they were getting a feel for the area in the hopes of setting up a chapter here too.
You decide what all you want to tell Sage. I just wanted to make sure you were informed and I think the rest of the club needs to have their eyes open as well.”
I shifted my gaze to Prez.
“It’s one thing having our aggravations with Pyro Devils; it’s another to have to deal with another club coming in and causing harm and destruction.”
Being officer of our chapter, it was my job to keep track of our enemies.
And Brutal Demons definitely fell into that category.
“I’ll send out a message to the club.
And I want you to do some digging to see if they have anything going on or if it’s just these isolated incidents.
Talk with Pip.
I know you don’t like him, but Pyro Devils have been proving themselves to be a good ally lately.
I’ll put in a call to their Prez as well. And I know it doesn’t need saying; but let me know any little thing you find out.”
Remus studied me for a moment.
“She’s the chief’s daughter, isn’t she?”
Lips pulling into a grim frown, I nodded.
“If you are serious about her and you better be sure that is a road you want to go down; tread carefully.
He could make our lives a hell of a lot more difficult.
But I know you are aware of that.
However, if you are genuine in your interest in her; we’ll deal with the backlash.”
“Thanks, Prez.
That means a lot to me.”
“But I won’t deal with bullshit if it’s just for a piece of ass.
You can get that anywhere.”
I was ninety nine percent damn certain I wanted her for more than a casual lay.
And for me, that was basically a guarantee.
We visited for another half an hour before Sage couldn’t hide any longer the fact that giving birth had left her rather exhausted.
After kissing the baby’s head, Brooke leaned over and with barely a jostle to the little bundle delicately placed Jade back into her mommy’s arms.
“Your baby is absolutely beautiful and we love just looking at her, but we’re going to let you get some rest and enjoy your little family.
Congratulations again you two.
And if you need anything at all, let us know.
And when you are up for another shopping trip or girls’ day out, text me and make sure you invite Brooke along as well.
We want to get to know her too. It was so awesome bringing you into our group. And we need more girls who aren’t bitches. It gets to be draining dealing with those skanks all of the time.”
Angel rolled her eyes before leaning down to kiss Sage’s cheek.
“We’ll bring over dinners for you guys this week as well.”
“You don’t have to do that.
But we will definitely appreciate that.
And bring enough so we can have you stay to join us.”
Sage gave Angel a tired smile.
The five of them stepped out into the hallway.
“Text me if you need anything between now and when Sage is released.”
I clapped Ryder on the shoulder.
“You have the car seat in the SUV right?”
“Thankfully, we had that already taken care of because I most likely would have forgotten it last night.
Let me tell you; I thought just getting Sage to the hospital was unnerving.
Labor and delivery was its own form of terror.”
Ryder sat back down on the side of the bed and ran his hand through Sage’s ratty red curls.
“Terror for you? You didn’t push a baby through a small opening that I still marvel over how that was even remotely possible.”
“You were amazing, Baby.”
He leaned over and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
“I’m proud of you.
Look what you gave me.
A perfect daughter and in about three months you will be officially giving me you.
I’m one lucky son of a B. See I curbed that just for you.”
She shot him an exasperated look.
He kissed her nose.
“And even though you will be the primary one feeding Jade; I’ll still get up with you to keep you company.”
At times their cute banter was nauseating.
But I couldn’t completely deny my envy of their relationship.
“When do you think they’ll spring her?”
“We’re pretty sure tomorrow.”
“We’ll take care of dinner, unless Angel and Misti beat us to it.
I’m not sure how many nights Brooke is hanging around, but you’ll be seeing a lot of her.”
“I’m definitely staying tonight, but I will need to go home sometime on Sunday because I don’t have clothes or my car to go to work on Monday.
After that, we’ll see how things go.
I don’t want to wear out my welcome.”
“As long as you aren’t planning to party like a rock star at our house; I won’t mind you hanging out with Grayson there.
And hey, you can come hang out with me even if Grayson isn’t there.”
Sage released a huge yawn.
“Thank you for that.”
Brooke ran her knuckles lightly over Jade’s cheek.
“She is really adorable.
Thank you for allowing me to meet and hold her.”
“You’re welcome.
I need some more girl friends and I liked you instantly.
Thank you for helping me calm down last night.”
“See you guys at home.
Hope the two of you get some sleep today.
It looks like Jade has no problem with that.”
I gazed down at the sleeping bundle in Sage’s arms before squeezing Ryder’s shoulder.
Then I grabbed Brooke’s hand and the two of us stepped out into the hallway.
“How about we go for a ride and then later I’ll take you to dinner?”
She cocked her head to peer up at me, her expression adorably stunned.
“Like a day date and then an evening date? I mean do you date? You don’t have to do that just for me.”
I shot her an amused smirk.
“I haven’t dated in a really long time and never really cared to, but you might just be worth breaking out of my norm for.
There’s something about you.”
My dick twitched in my pants thinking about spending all day with her and the anticipation of having her naked in my bed later.
But on another level; I really liked hanging out with her.
It was a foreign feeling, but one I wanted to explore further.
Her mouth opened and her expression grew serious and I half expected her to tell me it was not going to work out and for me to take her home, but she instead gave me a beautiful smile.
“Then I think I really like your plan for today.
Thank you.”
Leaning down, I ran my lips across hers before giving her a quick kiss.
“Let’s go enjoy the day.”
I led her down to the elevators and once we hit the main floor we strolled out to where I had parked.
After straddling my bike and Brooke wrapped herself around me, I fired up the engine and rode in the direction of the lake.
The rumble of the motorcycle; the sense of absolute freedom; and the feel of a sexy warm body plastered against your backside – especially when it’s the hot girl’s pussy and luscious breasts making that contact – rouse an experience like no other.
And as much as I appreciated taking a solo ride or heading out with members from my club; there was no comparison to flying down the road with a beautiful girl on the back of your bike.
When we stopped near the lake, we hopped off and then walked along the edge of the water hand in hand, the sunshine and breeze refreshing.
Brooke was quiet and I hoped as the day went on she would come to realize I had been honest when I had said I had planned to do things differently with her. Unless she was concerned about . . .
“If you’re worried about running into your dad when we’re out for dinner, we can order something in or head over to the next town.
I just thought it would be nice to take you on a date.
Start things off right.
But if it’s going to cause you unnecessary concern, we can hold off and I’ll take you to dinner another night.”
“I’m going to have to tell him sooner or later if we’re really going to do this.
So it’s okay.”
However, her voice didn’t convince me.
Or it at least led me to believe something was still bothering her.
But I wasn’t sure exactly what and wasn’t going to push her on the issue.
She’d talk if she wanted me to know what was on her mind.
“Unless you’re starting to have second thoughts about the dating thing.”
“Not at all.
Remember, we’re getting to know one another right now before we move on to other things.”
I waggled my eyebrows at her, hoping to ease her tension with some teasing.
She gave me a distracted eye roll.
I’d take it for now.
After we took the long way home, we curled up on the couch and watched reruns of an early eighties sitcom before heading out to dinner.
While I waited for Brooke to finish up in the bathroom, I shot off a text to Ryder to make sure Sage’s discharge date hadn’t changed.
I wanted to make sure we were here when she came home to help her get settled.
He confirmed her doctor said she and the baby were permitted to leave early tomorrow afternoon.
And he also made sure to inform me that the doctor had stated Jade had been latching on to Sage’s breasts impressively for a newborn, which I didn’t need to know.
But Ryder got incredible pleasure from sharing that tidbit with me.
Even as he tried to play it off as merely being proud of his daughter.
Brooke and I had a pleasant dinner at Antonio’s Amore, an enchanting Italian restaurant.
And thankfully we didn’t run into her father, but her mood still seemed a bit off.
I was beginning to wonder if she was having second thoughts about starting a relationship with me.
When we got back to my place, she slipped into the shower first and then I hopped in after.
I had wanted to join her, but she was still giving off confusing vibes. And I didn’t want to rock the already unsteady boat. I was starting to truly believe it wouldn’t take much to cause her to flee.
When I came out of the bathroom about ten minutes later and found her dressed in another of Sage’s outfits instead of my t-shirt and boxers, my heart sank.
“What’s going on in your head, Brooke?”
I leaned my forearm against the bathroom doorjamb, keeping my distance.
My assumption was correct.
She looked ready to bolt.
But I wasn’t all that sure I wouldn’t give chase.
“I don’t know what’s going on in there.
And I’m not sure what I’m doing here.”
She took a step backward toward her belongings setting on my dresser.
With her seconds away from making her escape, I had to make a snap decision about what I really wanted and what I was willing to do to get it.