Page 34 of Tempt Me

Inside the large farmhouse, they guide me down a back hall. Tack strokes the back of my head.

“My room is down the hall. Once you’re cleaned up, Siobhan will bring you to me.”

Tack looks down at where I grip his wrist. “Don’t leave.”

“I’ll see you in a few minutes,” he promises.

Siobhan guides me into the large communal bathroom. Atticus’s blood causes my clothes to stick to my skin. I cry when I think of him. Siobhan keeps telling me how everything will be okay. She’d be more convincing if she weren’t also crying.

We end up in the shower together. She washes my hair while I hang onto the wall and try to stay upright. Even in the quiet bathroom, I keep hearing gunshots and the chopper. In my mind, Atticus dies again and again. I see Tack drop from view over and over. I recall the faces of the staff in the two other SUVs.

Once Siobhan and I step out of the shower, I sit my damp ass on the closed toilet while she dries my hair.

“I got people killed today,” I whimper as she helps me with the clothes Aunt Fred left. “One of them had only gotten married a few years ago. I overheard her telling her husband how excited she was to travel to Hong Kong.”

“You did nothing wrong,” Siobhan insists as she dresses. “On your way here, I heard Dad on the phone with Mom. He said all the assholes today are dead. Our guys are okay. Once we find out who’s responsible, that person will end up in the boneyard. Just focus on that end part.”

“Do I still have Atticus’s blood on me?”

Siobhan hugs me as I begin crying again. I can’t believe someone I knew for so long is simply gone. I wish I had chosen to remain at the estate. How many people would still be breathing if I hid rather than attempting to flee?

“Tack is alive, right?” I ask as Siobhan and I shuffle into the hall. ‘I didn’t imagine that, right?”

“No, he’s okay. I’ve seen him in various stages of pain before. I’d guess he’s currently at a six, so that’s not too bad.”

Once Siobhan knocks on Tack’s door, he throws it open while only partially dressed. I see an ugly red mark on his bare stomach. He looks at me and then back at his room.

“It’s not fancy like yours.”

Imagining him dead in the road, I don’t give a damn about his room. I launch myself at him, wanting to know he’s real and safe and mine.

TACK

Having Hunter in my bedroom is so surreal. For hundreds of nights, I’ve rested in here and fantasized about her. Now, she’s in my arms as we catch our breath. Siobhan watches from the doorway, looking like a lost kid. I wave her over and add her to the cuddle pile.

Hunter notices my gesture and smiles at me like I’ve long craved. She’s holding nothing back now. I’m everything she wants.

I’ve finally won the heart of the woman I love. All that’s left is keeping her alive.

“The doctors are here,” Aunt Fred says from the doorway. “They brought the doublewide trailer, so they can run tests.”

“How is everyone back at the scene?” I ask as I hold a shaking Hunter.

“Banged up. They’re riding in soon. Let’s get you two to the trailer.”

Though much of her dazed behavior is from shock, I also suspect Hunter has another concussion. She rubs her neck when we enter the trailer, so maybe she’s suffering from whiplash, too.

“I want Tack to go first,” Hunter says and begins crying. “They shot him in the stomach.”

“The armor kept me in one piece,” I say and kiss her forehead.

My words only make Hunter cry harder. I’ve never seen her so broken down, so I agree to get checked out first. After the club’s concierge doctor runs tests using his fancy mobile machines, he promises Hunter that I’m only bruised up.

“You should stick to soft foods for a few days, just in case,” the doctor adds, making me frown. “And stay away from alcohol. Also, avoid physical exertion.”

“Clarify that last one.”

The older man just stares at me until Hunter mumbles in a raspy voice, “Tack wants to know if he can have sex.”

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