Page 51 of Bound by Passion (Ravage MC)

He smiled down. “Yep. Told you we were seein’ family.”

“Yeah. But not a birthday party for your father,” I said low. Why that mattered, I was trying to work out. But it did for some reason. It was more than just a party. It was a birthday. Growing up, Mom always made a big deal of my birthday.

Party, balloons. All the fun.

That was probably why I was feeling this way. It was no big deal. A man bringing me to his family function that happened to be a birthday instead of just a party. Yeah. No big deal at all. I was reading more into this. I had to be.

“You should see the cake!” Indie said excitedly. “It’s his bike. Hard as hell to make, weighed a ton, and had to bring it in pieces to set it up, but it’s awesome.”

“I bet it’s spot on,” Raid praised, and I could feel the love and respect he had for his brother’s woman. Yeah, still a bit jealous, but it was also a beautiful thing to see.

Admiration. That was what it was. He admired her talent. Admired her. I’d never had that type of adoration. She was lucky, and I hoped she knew it.

By the look in her eye, she did, and Ax was all for it. He loved seeing his brother care for his woman.

Yeah, I didn’t fit in here at all. I had my mother at one point, but never had something like this family thing. This closeness. This bond. No, it had never been in my wheelhouse and never would be.

Raid didn’t know anything about me. Nothing.

Once he knew, he’d run.

And I couldn’t blame him one bit.

Maybe for just tonight I could be with him like a normal woman. No past. No problems. No thoughts of tomorrow.

Right?

Who was I kidding. That shit never went far.

I was grateful my phone was with Screech. As much as I wanted it, I just couldn’t see those images and hear those sounds anymore. It fucked me up more than I wanted to admit.

People were scattered everywhere. The clubhouse was very large.

It had several buildings. Two were made of concrete blocks, kind of like a military base. Then there was two other large-sized buildings further out. Even a garage off to the side. Banner Automotive, the sign said.

Raid led me toward the first concrete building, but we didn’t actually make it.

There was a large parcel of grass with an older playground area off to the left. There was a canopy off the building that hung over a large concrete slab and extended over the grass. It would be a good spot to sit on the picnic tables and listen to the rain.

With the tin roof, I’d bet it put out a relaxing sound. I used to love listening to the rain.

“My man.” The surfer boy from the bar last night came up to Raid, who had to let me go to take his hand and slap his back. “Glad everything went good,” he continued, and I had no clue what he was talking about.

“All good,” Raid said. He came back to me and grabbed my hand, lacing my fingers with his.

On instinct, I pulled away. Sex with a man was one thing. Holding hands… Why did that feel so much more intimate? Like something a couple would do.

We weren’t a couple.

Couldn’t be. God, I hoped he never found out about my past. Even when we were no longer together, I never wanted to be remembered as the fucked up mess who was set on revenge.

He gripped my hand again and laced his fingers through mine. This time, I didn’t pull away and yes, it felt way more intimate than having sex. More of a connection. More of a… I shook my head.Stop it, Nyx!

“Hey. You’re the waitress from last night,” Surfer boy said, looking at me.

“Bartender actually. I was beckoned to your table last night,” I responded.

“You didn’t say you were with Raid,” Surfer boy looked at Ax. “You know?”

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