Page 43 of Tell Me Lies

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The Present

“I’m fine,” Cassie gritted out through her teeth.

She turned on her side of the bed, exposing her back to Rage. Her heat beat like the nervous wings of a hummingbird.

Tension mounted and she wondered what would happen next. They wasn’t much space in the bed to move. A proper gentleman would offer to sleep on the floor but Rage had proven he was nothing but. He was Grade-A jerk, there was no denying that, but Cassie couldn’t ignore the warmth emanating from his body.

If he was a little more pleasant to her, Cassie would have boldly suggested they huddle together, share some warmth.

“Then let’s get some sleep. We have a long ride ahead of us tomorrow,” Rage said.

The mattress creaked under his weight. He turned on his side of the bed as well. Cassie pursed her lips together. Stubborn, unbearable man. She squeezed her eyes shut.

All she had to do was spend one night with Rage. She could manage that. Then tomorrow, she would be back home in Hanging Cove. She wouldn’t need to speak with Rage again. Cassie could just ignore him, pretend he didn’t exist.

Her stomach turned as she thought of finally speaking to Breaker after all these years. What would he say to her? That conversation was certainly going to be unfordable and Cassie was dreading it already.

Restless and unable to sleep, Cassie looked out the window. Neither of them remembered to close the curtains. Jagged bolts slit the night sky. Her chest tightened and Cassie clutched at the thin blanket that hardly offered any warmth or protection.

The thunder that followed was a deep rumble that resonated through her bones. She shrieked, unable to help herself. Don’t wake up, she silently thought, squeezing her eyes shut.

Thunder boomed again and Cassie tried pulling the blanket over her eyes. She hated how she always reacted to a thunderstorm. Cassie was a grown woman, for crying out loud.

“What’s going on?” Rage asked, sounding irritated.

“Nothing, go back to sleep and don’t hog the blanket,” she whispered.

Cassie tugged at the sheet again, this time half-expecting Rage to start playing a little tug of war with her, but he didn’t. She curled into herself as the storm intensified. Cassie let out a muffled moan, silently hating the fact that Rage could see her in such a vulnerable state. Heck, Cassie expected Rage to laugh at her now. Her heartbeats spiked, her breathing hitched.

No way. She was really going into a panic attack with her hated energy only inches from her? Cassie could already imagine Rage telling his biker friends how pathetic Breaker’s daughter was. A grown-ass woman terrified of a little thunder and lightning.

Without warning, Rage wrapped his strong, muscled and inked arms firmly around her body. Rage pulled her close to him. Her relief was so palpable, she didn’t fight him. Cassie merely sagged against him. Rage was a solid wall behind her back. An unmoving fortress. Momentary sanctuary.

“Breathe,” he whispered, his breath warm against her ear. “In and out. That’s it. Good girl.”

Good girl. For some reason those two words filled her with ridiculous pride. She was safe. That was all she cared about. It didn’t matter she was taking solace in the arms of a man who always reminded her he hated her guts.

Rage breathed with her and some of Cassie’s sanity returned. They remained like that, locked in each other’s arms until the storm finally subsided.

Maybe Rage felt brief pity for her but it wouldn’t last. Still, he didn’t let go. Rage pressed his face into her hair and Cassie didn’t have the heart to tell him to stop.

She suddenly became aware of the fact that they both had no clothes on. They were touching, skin-to-skin. Cassie could feel his cock pressed up against her and part of her almost wished he’d stopped playing at being a white knight and take advantage of her, even just a little. She wouldn’t mind one bit. Maybe it was her emotion talking but how would he react if she rubbed herself against him? One night. That was all. They could pretend nothing happened the next day.

Crazy thoughts. That road led to nowhere good. Cassie shook her head. One moment, she wished Rage was more of a gentleman and now she wanted him to be the beast? What was wrong with her?

If Cassie had to be honest with herself, it felt good to be held like this. In those few moments, Cassie had a wild thought. She could pretend Rage was her man and she was his queen. She wondered what it would be like to be loved by someone so fiercely, that he wouldn’t hesitate to protect her from anything, including a storm.

Then that illusion shattered because she remembered Rage probably would never want anything to do with her. Rage and her. That was a terrible idea anyway. Most of the time, they’d bicker, disagree about everything, but Cassie bet the sex would be hot.

“You good?” Rage asked.

Was he going to ask her why she reacted that way? Rage thankfully didn’t press and for that she was grateful.

“Yeah. Thanks. You can let go of me now,” she said.

She grimaced, glad Rage couldn’t see the expression on her face. Cassie didn’t want him to let go, but she didn’t want Rage to know how needy she was either.

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