Everlyn
Out of everything I’d seen and heard over the last hour since Bishop showed up and began yelling at me, and then Zephyr arrived, the most startling thing wasn’t what Bishop said.
It wasn’t even when Zephyr grabbed him by the throat, which I secretly was thrilled happened.
It was Zephyr telling the big-mouth Bishop Reeves that I was his girlfriend and that no one better mess with me.
If I hadn’t been holding onto the chair, I would’ve fallen onto the floor. As it was, Bishop believed the lie. Now that he had left, I had to ask why Zephyr told him that and what we would do when it was discovered to be a lie. I knew Bishop would be even worse if he found out he’d been lied to.
Zephyr turned back to me. His eyes were still snapping with fury. I opened my mouth before I lost the nerve.
“Zephyr, we need to talk. Come back inside with me, please.”
“Alright,” he said after a short pause, then held the door for me to go inside first.
I retook the chair I’d vacated a minute prior. He sat on the sofa but leaned forward on the seat, bringing himself closer to me. He stared intently at me. My palms were sweating, but I resisted wiping them on my pants or giving him any other indication that I was nervous. I got started.
“Zephyr, I appreciate you standing up for me. However, there was no need. I handle people like Bishop Reeves all the time. And by grabbing him, as satisfying as I know it had to be, you opened yourself to him coming after you. He’s the kind who’ll call the cops at the drop of a hat. He’s a bully, plain and simple.”
“You’re right, he is a bully. But I don’t fear him or what he might do. He moves against my club or anyone under our protection, and he’ll be the only one to regret it,” Was Zephyr’s matter-of-fact reply.
“But he isn’t moving against your club, and I’m not under your protection. Why did you lie to him? You said I’m your girlfriend. When he discovers you lied, I fear it’ll make the situation worse. He doesn’t strike me as one capable of handling it.”
There was a protracted pause before he answered me.
“What if it weren’t a lie?”
For a moment, I thought I heard him say What if it weren’t a lie?
“Zephyr, what did you say?”
“What if my being your boyfriend wasn’t a lie?”
My breath hitched, then I forced myself to swallow the disappointment that came on the heels of my elation.
“Zephyr, I appreciate you wanting to help, but I won’t allow you to go that far. Pretending for a while isn’t the way, though I do appreciate your chivalry in offering to do that.”
He came to his feet and walked over to me. He crouched next to my chair. His expression was solemn.
“This way isn’t how I wanted this to go, Everlyn.
I meant to wait a while longer, give you time to get to know me, then ask if you'd be willing to give this biker a chance. I’ll be honest with you, I’ve never asked a woman to be my girlfriend.
It’s all new and strange to me. I have no clue what to do, and I’m probably screwing it up. Straightforward is my way.
“I’ve been intrigued by you from the moment we met at Norse Passages.
It was the reason I came over and listened to you and Allegra talk to Myron.
I wasn’t evaluating shit. I was trying to find a reason to learn more about you, and…
to stare at an utter goddess. And that was also why I was there the next morning. ”
My mouth gaped as my eyes widened. Nothing came out of my mouth. Astonished was too mild a word. He remained there, patiently waiting. After several moments, I somehow found my voice.
“Zephyr, you can’t be serious. Why would a man like you want someone like me?”
He frowned. “What exactly does that mean? What kind of man am I? And why not you?”
I waved my hand, gesturing to him. “Well, first, let’s start with the obvious.
You’re a biker, and I hate to talk in stereotypes, but bikers, from what I understand, have women throwing themselves at them, no matter their other attributes.
You have no shortage of women willing to be with you in whatever capacity you want.
Secondly, add that you have a steady job running a business for your club.
You own a home, a motorcycle, and that beautiful 1964 Mustang.
“And don’t forget your physical self. Not to sound shallow, but you have to know you’re far from ugly, Zephyr. You’re a ruggedly handsome and physically fit manly man. You command attention and respect.” I paused, feeling my face flush.
“Thank you for saying all that. I like that you see me that way. What did you mean by someone like you?” he asked.
I gestured from my head to my feet. “I know that I’m not ugly.
But I don’t fit the picture people have of a woman that a man like you would go for in that way.
I don’t mean to sound down on myself. I’m not.
I’ve had more than a few men interested in me, but I don’t meet certain requirements.
Highly successful corporate guys don’t see me as a match for their style.
And I think it would be the same for you.
God, I sound pitiful, but I swear, I’m not without self-esteem.
I simply mean, I’m not a ten, and I see you with a ten. ”
I watched Zephyr shake his head, an expression of disgust on his face.
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing. For you to feel that you’re not enough for a man, any man, let alone me, is beyond fucking ridiculous, elskling. It’s the other way around. I should beat my own ass for asking you to be mine. But I refuse not to take a chance.
“When I look at you, I see a brilliant engineer who has a deep connection and love for nature and others. You’re loyal.
Look at the way you stuck with Allegra. You’ve only been honest since I’ve known you.
You’re a damn hard worker. You’re not afraid of challenges, and you don’t back down.
There’s more on the inside that I could spend a long time naming.
“On the outside, fuck, you’re more than a ten, Everlyn.
I don’t know about these guys you mentioned, but for me, you’re drop-dead stunning, sexy as shit.
Not to make you think all I see you as is a sex object, but since our first meeting, you’ve starred in all my dreams and fantasies.
Believe me, you’re way out of my league. ”
His blunt honesty left me speechless. After several seconds of nothing, he added, “Say something, even if it’s get the hell away from me.”
Those words got me to react, but not with words. Instead, I scooted forward, put my hands on his broad shoulders, and pressed my mouth against his. I moved my lips. Abruptly, Zephyr reacted by moving his. Just like that, the kiss turned into a somewhat frantic mating of our mouths.
Besides pressing together, there was flicking of tongues seeking movements, thrusting, twining, and our teeth nipping at lips and even softly capturing tongues and lips.
My body heat shot up instantly. I didn’t track how long we kissed before we pried ourselves apart, but I was flushed and slightly short of breath.
Zephyr’s skin was darker, and his eyes shone with an inner light.
He refused to allow me to put much distance between us.
“By the gods, tell me that wasn’t a get-lost kiss but a hell-yeah-I’ll-be-yours one,” he said gruffly.
I giggled like some teenager. “A get-lost kiss? Do you honestly think I kiss men when I want nothing to do with them?”
“I don’t believe you do, but I’m desperate here. I’m not taking anything for granted. I’ve never wanted anything this much, Everlyn,” he confessed.
I grinned as I said to him, “It’s not a get-lost kind. But are you sure I’m what you want? And I need to clarify what a girlfriend looks like in your world versus mine,” I added.
“I can do that. You tell me what a girlfriend means to you, and then I’ll tell you what mine is. But first, my knees are killing me. Come sit with me on the sofa, please,” Zephyr insisted.
I chuckled, causing him to chuckle. He stood, then took my hand as I rose, as if to assist me. We took the few steps over to the sofa and sat. Zephyr made sure our knees touched as he angled himself to see my face. I adjusted myself to do the same.
“For me, being a girlfriend and boyfriend means we’re together to determine whether a more serious and permanent future is possible between us. We explore whether we can merge lives to spend the rest of our lives together. And if both parties agree, and it’s possible, to add children to the mix.
“It means we’re exclusive. There’s no dating or sleeping with others.
Loyalty and monogamy are musts. We tell each other the truth.
We share our lives, including friends and family.
If things go well, we’ll possibly move in together and, in the future, marry, though that is negotiable.
I know, it’s a lot. If it differs from your concept, let me know, and we’ll decide if our versions can be modified and enmeshed or if they’re too different and we never speak of this again. ”
I stopped speaking because I thought I’d downloaded enough on the poor man. I wondered whether his head was spinning and he was making up an exit plan right this second.
“It’s extremely difficult to allow people close to me, outside of those in my club.
Trust, loyalty, and commitment are key. I didn’t lie about not having a girlfriend or wife.
Yes, there have been plenty of women, but they were for mutual sexual satisfaction.
I can say I never used them or promised anything I didn’t deliver.
If feelings got hurt, it wasn’t my intention.
“Since they were nothing but casual, sexual relationships, I wasn’t monogamous, but neither were they.
I want longevity. Marriage is possible if you want it.
As for children, we’d have to adopt, but I’m willing to consider that.
I can’t have them. I’ll give you whatever makes you happy, elskling.
I might be a biker, but I’m not without brains, so I believe we can have conversations that won’t put you to sleep.
I’ll work to make your friends mine, as I know you’ve already started to do with my club.
They’re the one thing that will be part of my life no matter what.
“As for the intimate side of us, if thinking of you can turn me on the way it does, and a kiss can turn me inside out, we have nothing to worry about in that respect, unless you don’t have the same reaction.”
“Oh, I do have the same reaction. However, I’ve got to ask you an odd question. What does elskling mean?” I asked.
Zephyr chuckled. “Sorry, I let Norwegian, or even Old Norse, slip out. It means darling. So, what do you say? Do we see what we can make of things together? And it’s not to prevent lying to that jackass.”
I wondered how I’d ended up here after six weeks of knowing him.
It was the quickest I’d ever done it. Heck, we hadn’t technically dated yet.
But something deep down in my gut said to do it.
I was going to listen. Plus, Jeremiah’s words came back to me.
It was right before he died, when he and I were alone.
“Everlyn, you have so much to give, and you deserve even more. Don’t shut out what might be your happily ever after due to self-doubt, what others may think, or because of sticking to antiquated ideas. If your gut tells you to do it, then go all in.”
I smiled. “I say we go for it.”
His loud whoop of delight preceded a kiss that made my head literally spin. Before I went completely under the spell of it, I wondered what Allegra would say when I told her.