Page 14 of War

“Did I wake you?”His body is close, but not touching.I yearn for his warmth.

“No, I couldn’t sleep anyway.”I stretch my limbs, ignoring the twinge of pain.

“I heard you had an eventful night.”He presses his lips behind my ear.I sigh and melt into the touch.

“A new King came into the world.”I smile.Red only needed two stitches and will come home tomorrow with her perfectly healthy baby boy.

“Do you want to go for a ride?”

That sounds ominous.“Where to?”

He kisses me on the head.“Get some warm clothes on.We’re taking my bike.”

When I get outside, he’s already on his bike and waiting for me with a spare helmet in his hand.He looks like every fantasy.That man shouldn’t be allowed to be so fucking beautiful.Butterflies dance in my stomach as I lift my leg over the bike.Slipping the helmet on, I scoot forward, my thighs clutching his, and wrap my arms around his waist.

“Ready?”I tap his shoulder to signal yes.

I’ve ridden on bikes all my life, had been on the back of Tyler’s since the age of fifteen, but there’s something different about being on Callan’s.It feels like this is where I’m supposed to be all along.

The exhilaration of riding sends my blood bubbling like warm champagne through my veins.Vibrations zap through my skin, awakening my nerve endings.Streetlights blur as he pushes the machine beneath us to hit speeds most people would balk at.Not me, I love the rush.The scenery becomes familiar as he slows, pulling off the road en route to the hospital car lot.Maybe he wants to see Red.

Parking the bike, he waits for me to climb down before pulling his helmet off and dismounting.Smirking, he lifts my helmet from my head, placing them both on the back of the bike.“Why are we here?I didn’t take you for the baby type.”I bite my lip, anticipating his answer.Tyler couldn’t wait to have kids.I’d never really wanted them, but the thought of carrying Callan’s one day makes me feel different.That terrifies and thrills me.

His face studies mine.“We’re not here to see Red, Rogue.”

“Then why?”It can’t be for me.My wounds are healing.I roam his features, nervous energy making me jittery.Brushing a hand down my cheek, he tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

“Let me show you.”He offers his hand for me to take and my heart leaps.

Taking his hand, I nod my head.“Okay.”

I hope no one got hurt on the run he just returned from.He doesn’t lead us to the emergency department, instead walking along the tall white building with rows of tiny windows to a different entrance.

The long, light blue corridors are like a maze.Cheap artwork and message boards adorn the walls and, despite how big the place is, I feel claustrophobic in here.It’s eerie how empty some parts of the hospital are.Anyone could lurk in these halls.Our shoes echo off the tiles, reminding me of the viewing room where I saw Harley.A cold shiver tingles over my skin, raising goosebumps.

“Why are we here?”His silence is pissing me off.

His footsteps slow outside a hospital room, and my heart rate spikes.

J Cox

Callan opens the door and stands back for me to enter.An older man lies in a hospital bed next to beeping monitors.Silver streaks through his dark hair, a tube is down his throat, and wires come out of him from all over.Gaunt features don’t conceal the fact that there’s an ounce of familiarity to his face.

No way.

“Rogue, meet Jericho, my dad.”

CHAPTER4

PRESIDENT

Mixed emotions battle within me.Turmoil churns everything up, leaving me fighting for clarity of my own mind.The beeping machines fill my head.

Beep.

He’s alive.

Beep.

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