Chapter 14
FOURTEEN
TINY
I’m going out of my mind. It’s been hours since I heard from my Buttercup.
She usually texts me goodnight, even if it’s just a simple “miss you” or a heart emoji.
Tonight there’s nothing. I’ve checked my phone every ten minutes, but the screen stays dark.
Service out here has been shit, but she’s always found a way before.
Something’s wrong. I can feel it in my gut.
We’re holed up in a cheap motel after a long day of club business. I’m pacing the room like a caged animal while Cole watches me from one of the beds.
“You’re gonna wear a hole in the floor,” he says.
“She hasn’t texted,” I mutter. “She always texts.”
Cole doesn’t give me shit about it. He knows how deep I’m in with her. “Maybe her old man took the phone again. Or she fell asleep early.”
I shake my head. “Something’s off. I can feel it.”
My phone finally buzzes. I snatch it up so fast I almost drop it. But it’s not Lucy. It’s Rook.
Rook: I got your girl. She’s staying with Scarlett and me for the time being. She doesn’t have a phone anymore. Big fight with her dad. He kicked her out.
The words hit me like a punch to the chest. I read it twice, then a third time. He kicked her out. No phone. No car. My Buttercup is out there with nothing and I’m hours away.
“Fuck this,” I growl. I start throwing my shit into my bag.
Cole sits up. “What’s going on?”
“Lucy’s old man kicked her out. She’s at Scarlett’s. I’m not waiting till morning. I’m riding out now.”
Cole doesn’t even hesitate. He stands up and starts packing his own bag. “Sounds good. I’m coming too.”
We don’t say much after that. We just load up the bikes and hit the road. The night air is cold and the miles stretch long, but I push hard. Every hour that passes feels like too much. My woman is hurting and scared and I wasn’t there. That thought eats at me the whole ride.
We roll into town around nine in the morning. I’m exhausted but wired at the same time. My first stop is the cell phone store. I buy her a phone along with a charger and a case. It’s not much, but it’s something. But at least she will have a phone now.
Cole waits outside with the bikes, sipping shitty gas station coffee. When I come out he just nods. “Ready?”
“Yeah. Let’s go get my girl.”
We ride straight to Scarlett and Rook’s place. My heart is pounding by the time we pull up. I barely kill the engine before I’m off the bike and heading for the door.
Scarlett opens the door before I even knock. She takes one look at me and steps aside. “She’s in the guest room. She didn’t sleep much. Been pretty shaken up.”
I don’t wait for more. I move down the hall and push the door open quietly. Lucy is lying on her side facing away from the door, curled up small under the covers. Her shoulders look tense even in sleep.
I kick off my boots, shrug off my cut and hoodie, and climb into bed behind her. The second I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her back against my chest, she gasps and rolls over in my arms. Her eyes fly open, red and swollen, and then she buries her face in my neck and starts to cry.
I hold her tight, one huge arm locked around her back, the other cradling her head. “I’ve got you,” I murmur into her hair, voice rough from the long ride. “I’m here, Buttercup. I’m right here.”
She clings to me like I might disappear, her whole body shaking with sobs. “He called me a whore and said I was throwing my life away. He took my phone and my car and told me to leave. I didn’t know where else to go.”
Rage burns hot in my chest, but I keep my hold gentle. “He was wrong. You’re not any of those things. You’re brave as hell. You stood up for yourself. That’s not throwing your life away, that’s finally starting to live it.”
She cries harder for a few minutes, soaking my shirt, then slowly starts to calm down. I don’t let go. I just rub slow circles on her back and press kisses to the top of her head until her breathing evens out a little.
When she finally pulls back enough to look at me, I wipe the tears from her cheeks with my thumbs. “I got you a phone,” I tell her, reaching over the side of the bed for the bag. “It’s not fancy, but it works. My number’s already in it. You can reach me anytime.”
Fresh tears spill over, but she smiles through them. “Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”
I kiss her forehead, then her temple, then the corner of her mouth. “You’re staying with me from now on. Or here with Scarlett if you want. Whatever makes you feel safe. But you’re not going back to that house unless you want to.”
She nods, curling back into my chest. “I don’t want to go back. Not after last night.”
“Good.”
We stay tangled up together like that for a long time.