Page 20 of August 20

Skye went to her aunt. "Can we go to the beach today?"

Brooke whispered, "No, we—"

"Yeah." He couldn't take his gaze off Brooke.

She'd left the bathroom as if she hadn't crumbled into tears moments ago. He studied her red-rimmed eyes. The brush shook in her trembling hand. Those were things a child wouldn't notice. But he could see past her wall of strength.

"I'll take you." His neck muscles spasmed, and he cleared his throat.

Brooke shook her head, refusing to let him take his daughter to the beach. He pointed at her, then Skye, and then the door. He was done talking. They were all going, or they were all staying another fucking day in the house.

It took her three seconds to grab Skye and push her toward the bedroom. "Get your shoes on, honey. Hurry."

Brooke wasn’t going to let him change his mind. He recognized the moment she caught a glimpse of freedom, and the sadness left her gaze.

Alone in the room, he pulled out his cell phone and texted Jagger.

I need three brothers to escort us from my house to the beach. He paused. I need extra eyes on them and no one else on the beach close to us.

A minute later, Jagger confirmed riders were coming to the house to meet him. He pocketed his phone. There were a million things that could go wrong. All it took was one person to get close enough to Brooke for her to scream her head off and yell for help. Skye could run in one direction and Brooke in the other. He was only one person.

But, he'd have his brothers at his back.

The only people who visited the area of the beach below the house were those who lived on the three nearby streets. Tourists hung out at the boardwalk in town, where all the restaurants and shops were within walking distance.

Skye hopped down the hallway with the excitement of an eight-year-old, quickly followed by Brooke. He tapped his wrist, letting her know to wait. The change in her demeanor had done a one-eighty. There was hope in her eyes.

Bright brown eyes that held excitement and bravery. The weariness and exhaustion were gone. She looked at him as if to beg him not to disappoint her.

And damned if he wanted to make sure she had a day on the beach.

He found it hard not to stare. She was beautiful.

Unlike Janelle, who'd been tall and slender before turning to heroin and then meth, and had blonde hair and brown eyes, Brooke was small and muscular—healthy. She had warm brown eyes, almost yellow, and mahogany-colored hair like Skye’s. He wondered if she and Janelle had different fathers. That would explain the differences.

But he'd never gotten to know Janelle after getting her pregnant. She was a party girl. A couple-night stands. Unfortunately, he'd knocked her up. They were never a couple, but he'd involved himself enough to let her know he wanted to share custody of the baby.

He inhaled deeply, putting Skye's mom out of his head. Brooke might not be like her older sister, but she was trying to stop him from being involved in his daughter's life.

Outside, the rumble of motorcycles invaded the house. He walked to the door, needing nothing for their two-minute drive to the beach.

He walked straight to Brooke's car and removed the keys from his pocket—they were always on him. He couldn't afford to leave them lying around, or she'd run off.

Brooke hesitated at the vehicle. He motioned for her to get in the passenger side.

As if to go against his order, she opened the back door and ushered Skye inside. His daughter scrambled across the seat and sat on a booster seat. Brooke sat beside her in the backseat. He started the car. As he backed up, he dipped his chin at Rush, Link, and Dio.

The two in the backseat never questioned him about the added company. He looked in the rearview mirror as he drove away from his security on the ridge. Brooke's eyes no longer shined.

She gazed through the window without blinking. All hope of escaping had left her with the company he kept, and she struggled to hold it together for the sake of Skye.

He stopped at the crossroad and then proceeded forward. There was a public parking lot for beachgoers on his left. Only two cars were parked there. He looked in his rearview mirror.

Dio held up his arm and circled his hand. All was clear.

He skipped the lot and took the entrance onto the beach, giving the Honda more speed to make it through the dry patch. The front-wheel-drive pulled the six-cylinder car through the sand with no problem, and he parked on the packed sand. The tide was going out. It would give them time before they'd need to move the car to get away from the water—but he wasn't planning on being here that long.

In the backseat, Skye yelled, "Look, Aunt Brooke, I see the ocean. Do you see it?"

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