Chapter Four #2
“Calm down, woman.” He laughs as we squeeze between two massive tree trunks. As we make the tight turn, I start to wonder if he’s crazy until I see the cabin ahead.
“It’s not much, babe, but it’s home,” he says, putting the truck in park.
“It’s perfect.” It really is. The closer I look, the more charming it is.
There’s a wraparound covered porch with a set of matching rockers set right outside the door.
The country swing that is hung from the rafters just beckons to come and sit for a while.
I bet it’s the best place to be during one of Florida’s sudden downpours.
The red door and white picket fence seem like a contradiction to the man sitting next to me, yet here it is.
Feeling him staring, I turn to look at him and blush at the way he’s looking at me.
“Sorry, I was enjoying the view,” I admit, holding his stare.
“So was I,” he rasps as he looks from my lips to my eyes.
“Sparrow . . .”
“Yeah, baby?” He leans in like he’s going to kiss me, and I freeze. Do I want him to kiss me? I’m not sure, but I think I do. He confuses my hesitation for fear and quickly backs away. Clearing his throat, he says, “Let’s go inside, darlin’.”
I grin and climb out of the truck. I don’t know how it happens, but there’s a shift in the air between us.
Things feel lighter and maybe even a bit hopeful.
I feel it again when his hand brushes mine, and butterflies flutter inside my stomach for the first time in my life.
Stealing glances, I follow him through the gate and up the steps to his front door.
My fluttery excitement quickly crashes as he opens his unlocked door. Doesn’t he know how unsafe that is?
“Can you lock that?” I ask, nodding to the door after he closes it behind us.
“Uhm . . . Sure. But nobody can get into the compound without us knowing, Birdie. This place is more secure than Fort Knox. After . . .” He briefly looks away before continuing, “After everything that happened last year, Dex and George worked non-stop to make sure every inch of this place is secure.”
“I hate that I’m still scared, but after what I’ve been through, I need to know I’ve done everything I can to protect myself.
” I know he wants to ask me about my outburst in the clubhouse earlier.
It’s written on his face as he watches me like he’ll find what he’s looking for if he stares long enough.
He won’t. I’ve perfected keeping my secrets buried, or at least I had.
As I turn to avoid his prying eyes, I notice his shirt is soaked in blood. “Shit, Sparrow. You’re bleeding.” Lifting the material, I squat down to examine the wound on his side.
“You must have done this when you tackled me. Do you have a first-aid kit?” When he doesn’t answer, I tilt my head and see the problem I’ve created. My face is now inches from his crotch. I can tell that he’s hard, and for some reason, it excites me that I did that to him.
He clears his throat and nods down the hall. “It’s in my bathroom.”
Grabbing his hand, I pull him behind me as I look for his bathroom.
Behind the first door is an office of some sort.
The next two rooms are completely empty.
I open the last door at the end of the hallway, and I’m pleasantly surprised to find it fully furnished.
I try to look past the mess, but it’s impossible.
There’s shit everywhere. Laundry, dishes, open bottles of liquor, and I don’t want to know what that smell is.
“Sorry about the mess, babe. Wasn’t expecting, company.” I sure as hell hope not, considering his whole house is a wreck. Not to mention I really don’t want to think about how many women he’s probably brought here before me.
I drag him into his ensuite and point for him to sit on the closed toilet lid.
Planting my hands on my hips, I scan the bathroom and am rather surprised at how big it is, not to mention how much storage he has.
The clawfoot tub in the corner is calling my name.
Moving on from the tub, I wonder who designed this bathroom because it’s like it was plucked from every woman’s dream.
There are double sinks, floor-to-ceiling cabinets, tons of storage, and a built-in vanity table.
Jealousy comes over me when I remember the redhead from the clubhouse.
He also lost a child, so maybe he was married, and this was hers.
“Were you married?” I ask, taking a second look at his beautiful bathroom.
He covers his mouth, but his eyes show the laughter he’s trying to hide.
“Baby . . . are you jealous? Didn’t we just have this talk?
No, not married. Wouldn’t bring you here if I had a woman that called this place her home.
My little sister designed this place for me.
My only request was for it to be similar to our uncle’s cabin, and well, this is what she came up with. ”
Narrowing my eyes at his teasing, I decide to ignore him and look for the kit but am stopped when he grabs my hand and pulls me between his spread legs. “I like this look on you, darlin’,” he says, squeezing the back of my thighs.
“What look?”
“This one that shows I matter to you.” I can’t believe he just said that.
“I . . .” I look away, and thankfully he lets me off the hook. I slowly back away and focus on finding what I need to get him patched up.
When I look under the sink, I’m thrilled to find not only his first-aid kit but also a bottle of peroxide. I don’t miss the revolver and a half dozen bottles of bleach, either.
Sliding the gun to the side, I ask, “Why do you have so much bleach in here?”
“You find a gun under my bathroom sink, and the first thing you ask about is the bleach?”
“Well . . . yeah.”
“Club business,” he says with a smile.
“Your bleach is club business? Seriously?” I laugh, thinking he’s pulling my leg, but when he doesn’t say anything else, I realize he’s not joking at all. “You’re serious!?”
“What I do with the bleach is club business. You going to fix me up or not, woman?”
“Keep your shirt on, buddy. I’m working on it.
Actually, you can lose the shirt if you’d like so I can see what we’re dealing with,” I say as I spread the supplies across the counter.
I watch as he does that thing all hot guys do when they reach back and grab the neck of their shirt to pull it off.
The tattooed flesh that’s revealed is spectacular.
I swear, the man is all hard muscles and tan skin covered in the most beautiful artwork I’ve ever seen.
“You’re drooling,” he states.
“Don’t flatter yourself.” My cheeks heat with embarrassment at getting caught gawking.
Pulling on a pair of disposable gloves, I kneel beside him and inspect the cut on his side. Thankfully, it’s not going to require anything more than a Band-Aid. I grab a cotton ball out of the bag and drench it in peroxide so I can clean the wound.
“Hurt?” I ask when he flinches away.
“Nah. It’s just cold.”
“Sorry.”
“Not your fault, Birdie.”
“It is my fault. If I hadn’t run away like a coward, you wouldn’t have chased after me and gotten hurt.”
“No, it’s not. You went in there blind and unprepared. Only natural that you’d want to escape somewhere you didn’t feel safe.”
“Thank you for having my back, Sparrow.”
“Always,” he rasps as he stares down at me.
Sliding his hand into mine, he pulls me to my feet and between his splayed legs once again. I shiver as his hands slide up my legs and over my hips before resting at my waist. Gooseflesh prickles across my skin as his thumbs soothe the flesh.
“Can I kiss you, Birdie?”
“Yes,” I say softly as he rises to his full height. Towering over me, he pulls me close, and for the first time in my life, I feel small and safe.
“You’re so fucking beautiful, Sierra,” he growls, tightening his hands at my waist. I flinch at his strength, knowing there’ll be bruises tomorrow.
My heart accelerates in anticipation as he dips his face closer and presses his lips softly against mine.
I follow his lead as he traces his tongue across the seam of my lips, begging for entry.
I gasp, and his tongue sweeps inside, licking across mine in a sensual dance that I’ve never experienced quite like this before.
Like a switch has been flipped, Sparrow comes alive.
He assaults my mouth as he lifts me off my feet.
Instinctively, I wrap my legs around his hips and pull him closer as I get lost in his taste.
The kiss is rough, all-consuming, and the best thing I’ve ever experienced.
When my stomach rumbles, it bursts the bubble we’re in. I could cry when Sparrow ends our first kiss.
“Fuck, baby,” he growls, resting his forehead against mine.
I know what he means because I’ve never felt like this before.
With his eyes closed and his breathing labored, I catalog every detail about him.
I commit them all to memory, so I’ll never forget this moment.
“Let’s get you something to eat before I do something I don’t think you’re ready for. ”
“Okay,” I whisper, licking my lips and making him growl. Shaking his head, he places a tender kiss on my forehead and sets me on my feet. As he leaves the bathroom, I’m left wondering what exactly I’ve gotten myself into.