Page 51 of Grave Games

“And that message is ‘You’re paying too much for your auto insurance?’”

“More like, you took one of ours—your brother—so we’re going to take one of yours, which would be you. That was to be expected when we got Chef away from Hades, so we put all our members on alert. But instead of targeting one of our brothers, they’re targetingyou. Which is fucked up,” I couldn’t help but add. “You’re a civilian. Everyone involved understands you don’t have anything to do with our world. But Hades keeps showing us he doesn’t give a damn about respecting the rules, so fine. Until further notice, you’re living on Gravedigger property and staying out of that bastard’s reach.”

“But…” She looked at me with dawning horror. “That’s insane.”

“Maybe. But it’s also your reality, and it’s not negotiable.”

“I can’t just pull up stakes, Romeo. At the very least I have to go back to my apartment to pack. All I have are the clothes on my back. I don’t even have a toothbrush or an extra pair of underwear, or… oranything.”

“After we’re done here, I’ll take you shopping to get you everything you need, and once this is all over I’ll take you car shopping. It’s my fault they took their anger out on your truck and left pieces of it on the exact spot where I beat the shit out of Marvel. The least I can do is get you some new wheels.”

“Romeo, no. The last time I was forced to live on biker property…” She shuddered, and though I was still holding her, the look in her eyes told me she was a million miles away in some nightmarish place that I couldn’t reach. “No. No, no, no. I can’t go through that again.”

“Shy—”

“I’m serious. Being stuck in that clubhouse… it was three days of the worst kind of hell. It killed me, or at least it killed the person I used to be. It also destroyed my family and life as I knew it. I don’t think I can bear to live on biker property again without wanting to die. I’d rather just take my chances and start running.”

“No.” The thought chilled me so bad it hurt, and I moved to clamp my hands on her shoulders to I could look her dead in the eye. “Listen to me, Shy. This won’t be like last time, you hear me? You won’t be locked up in some Rumpus Room where every swinging dick can just walk through to have a shot at you. You’ll be staying at the Barracks, with your own private room and bathroom. I’m hoping you won’t want to just hole up in there and not come out to socialize, but I would understand if that’s what you want to do.”

She seemed to take her time absorbing this, to the point that I thought she wouldn’t respond. Then she glanced at me. “What about if I stay at your place? Just a temporary thing,” she added hurriedly, as if the words couldn’t get out fast enough. “I’m not saying we should move in together or anything. That would be crazy.”

“It would definitely be crazy to have you move into my place now,” I said easily, trying to massage the tension out of her shoulders. “It’d be crazy, because I’m not going to be there now that things are escalating with Hades. After this latest shit Hades pulled with your truck, I’m betting Tyr’s going to pull in everyone who’s vital to the organization, and that includes me. What do you say we save space in the Barracks by sharing a room?”

“Seriously?” The terrible tension was still there in her expression, shadowing her brow and sucking all color from her face. But the way her gaze clung to mine gave me hope. “I wouldn’t be forced to live in a common area of the clubhouse like… like human livestock in some twisted pervert’s petting zoo? I could have doors that lock?”

Swear to God, I’d kill Marvel and Hades for what they’d done to her. “Yeah, baby. You can even lock me out, if that’s what you want. I’m just hoping you won’t.”

“Things have moved so fast today that I can barely even process which way is up, but I do know one thing—I couldn’t lock you out. Not now.”

I didn’t like the open-ended sound of that. “But maybe later?”

“I can’t handle the thought of later. It’s taking all I’ve got just to keep it together in the present.” The final crash of what used to be her truck locking into place brought her head around to watch the wrecker slowly back out of the parking area. “Goodbye, truck. You were wonderful. I’ll miss you.”

The sadness in her voice tore at me. “We’ll get you another one.”

“It’s like all the pieces of my old life are dying. My apartment, my truck, my job… There’s almost nothing left of it.”

“Then let it die, Shiloh.” At the sound of her full name, her eyes swung back to me. When I saw pure misery swimming in their depths, I wanted to punch something. “You don’t need that old life anymore.”

“Who are you to judge that?”

Ah, good. There was still some fight left in her after all. “I’m the guy you wouldn’t let in because of that old life. There was no room for me in it. There were too many walls that cut you off from the rest of the world, and that’s no way to live—alone, isolated. A frozen princess in her lonely tower. I’m glad that old life of yours is dying out, because whether or not you’re ready to admit it, that life was slowly strangling you to death. Life is meant to belived, Shy girl. Experienced, savored, wallowed in. It’s supposed to be messy and loud and chaotic.”

“That doesn’t sound as appealing as you think it does.”

“It’s better than the grave-like stillness you’re used to.”

The look she gave me was a kissing cousin to a death glare. “That’s a bit much. My life was nevergrave-like.”

“You weren’t putting yourself out into the world and living before I came along, so I stand by my words. There’s no need to mourn the loss of a life that died out a long time ago, Shy. Instead, thank your lucky stars you’ve come alive now, and you’ll never again be frozen and alone. I’m here now, and I’ll live and die doing my best to make sure you’re happy you chose to come alive for me.”

Chapter Eighteen

Leather-Studded Sorority

Shiloh

Lockdown.

---