Chapter 12 #2
“Make this about control,” he said.
“It is about control,” she fired back. “Yours, because I sure in hell don’t seem to have any when it comes to me having a say in anything.” She stood and crossed the room, standing right in front of him. “You want me to trust you?” she added, softer now. “Then stop shutting me out.”
Tank stared at her, long and hard. “Fine,” he muttered.
Lillith blinked. “Wait—what?”
“We go into town,” he said. “It will be a quick in and out. No wandering around, and no talking to anyone we don’t have to. You stay close to me, understand?”
A slow smile spread across her face. “See, now was that so hard?”
“Don’t push it,” he warned.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. “How is that for pushing it?” she teased.
“Now, that’s the kind of pushy I can deal with,” he said, swatting her ass.
“Get dressed, we’ll leave in ten.” She shook her head at him as he walked out of the room.
Lillith wasn’t sure if she liked his bossiness or had just gotten used to it.
Maybe it was a bit of both, because bossy Tank made her hot.
The drive into town felt different. Lillith didn’t realize how tense she’d been at the cabin until they were back on actual roads, passing actual buildings, seeing actual people. The only way she could describe it was normal. Well, it almost felt normal.
Tank, on the other hand, acted as though this was the first time that he’d ever been let loose in public. His eyes never stopped moving between the rearview mirror, side mirror, streets, and every corner in between. He scanned every car and person along the way.
“You’re going to wear those mirrors out,” she muttered.
“I’m staying focused,” he said. “You should do the same.”
“I am focused,” she said. “On the fact that you’re acting like we’re in a spy movie.”
“We kind of are,” he said, flashing her a wolfish grin. That shut her up for a second.
They pulled into a small strip of shops; the kind of place no one would pay much attention to. It was perfect. “I’ll get the phone,” Tank said. “You stay in the truck.”
Lillith turned slowly. “You’re joking.”
“I’m not,” he insisted. She stared at him and then reached for the door handle.
“Lillith—” he started, but it was too late. She was already out of the truck.
“I’m not sitting in a truck like a hostage,” she said, slamming the door shut. “I’m coming with you.” Tank swore under his breath but didn’t argue further, and she considered that a small win.
They moved fast. To the store, not lingering around the parking lot. He held her hand so tightly that she worried she’d never feel her fingers again. Within minutes, Tank had a burner phone in his hand. Lillith didn’t wait—the second they were back in the truck, she snatched it from him.
“Hey—”
“Relax,” she said, already dialing. “I’m calling Ember.”
His jaw tightened. “We shouldn’t bring more people into this, Lillith. Be careful what you tell her.”
“Too late,” she shot back. “They’re already in it. Once I disappeared with you, they became a part of this, I’m sure of it.”
The line rang once, and then twice, and she put the call on speaker so that Tank could listen in. Lillith felt as though she was holding her damn breath waiting for her sister to answer the phone. “Hello,” Ember’s voice filled the cab of the truck.
Relief flooded her so fast it almost knocked the breath out of her. “Hey,” she said, softer than she meant to.
“Lillith, where the hell are you?” Ember demanded. “You just disappeared—”
“I’m okay,” Lillith cut in quickly. “I’m with Tank.”
“I figured,” Ember said, “but you couldn’t pick up the damn phone and call to tell me where you were? I’ve been trying to call your cell since you left.”
“I didn’t so much as leave, but was taken,” Lillith corrected, shooting Tank a look. He shook his head at her and sighed, as though he knew that she was about to tell her sister everything.
“Taken,” Ember shouted into the phone. “What the hell does that mean? Is Tank holding you against your will?” she asked.
“No,” Tank shouted. “I’m keeping her safe.”
“Listen,” Lillith interrupted, glancing at Tank briefly before turning away. “We need help.” That seemed to get her sister’s full attention.
“What kind of help?” Ember asked.
“The kind where a guy tried to grab me off the street,” Lillith said bluntly. “And then, Tank saved me and took me to a safehouse.”
“Do you want to repeat that?” Ember asked.
“You heard me,” Lillith said. “This isn’t just about Tank anymore. The men who are looking for him are trying to get to him through me.”
“Put him on the phone,” Ember said. Lillith held the phone out, but Tank didn’t take it.
“Tank,” she said. “Just talk to her.” He stared at it, and then at her. He finally took the phone from her and sighed.
“Yeah,” he said.
“Take me off the speaker,” Ember insisted. Tank looked as though he was going to protest, but hit the button to take the call off speaker. Lillith watched his face as Ember talked. She watched the way his expression shifted. He seemed guarded and tense.
“No,” he said at one point, and paused. “No, that’s exactly why I don’t—” There was another pause—this time it was longer than the last. His jaw tightened, and then, he exhaled hard. She could tell that Ember was giving him a hard time, and a part of her took some satisfaction in that.
“Yeah,” he muttered. “I know.” That surprised her because Tank didn’t admit things easily. “Fine.” Tank pulled the phone away from his ear and ended the call before handing it back to her.
“Well?” she demanded. He stared out the windshield for a second and then looked back at her.
“We’re going back to Yonkers,” he said.
Her breath caught. “Back to Yonkers,” she echoed.
“Your sister’s right,” he said. “You’re safer with people around and with her club.”
Lillith blinked, because that wasn’t something she expected him to say. “You sure about that?” she asked.
“No,” he said honestly, and then glanced at her. “But I’m sure as hell not letting you get taken.”
Something in her chest tightened. “Tank—”
“Don’t,” he said quietly, starting the truck. “Don’t make this something it’s not.” She wanted to tell him that it was too late. This thing between them was happening whether he liked it or not.
“Buckle up,” she breathed as he pulled out of the parking lot. She had a feeling that things were about to get bumpy.
As they pulled out of the lot, heading back toward Yonkers, Lillith leaned back in her seat, her mind racing.
Everything was changing—fast. But for the first time since this all started, she didn’t feel like she was just reacting to what was happening around her.
She was choosing her next move. She had chosen to call her sister and to go back home.
She was just happy that her sister was able to convince Tank that it was a good idea.
When she glanced over at Tank, watching the way his grip tightened on the wheel, the way his eyes stayed sharp, alert, she knew one more thing. He was choosing too, even if he hadn’t said it out loud yet. He was choosing her, and she knew that he was going to fight it tooth and nail.