Page 33 of Love Gamble

Corey would do anything for the people she loves, which means I need to worry about her putting herself in danger.

“You’re not using yourself as bait,” I reply, moving closer to her. She’s so much smaller and shorter, she has to look up to see me.

“Why not?” she asks, putting her phone down on the table. “I know I messed up last time by trusting that snake Rosalind, but I’m not a weak woman.”

I touch her cheek. “I have many words to describe you, Corey, and not one of them isweak.”

She sighs and reaches her hand up to rest it on my chest. My heart stops. “I better finish packing this all away.”

“You need some help?” I offer.

She smiles. “Yes, please. There’s so much food left over. We are going to have to try to eat it all tomorrow.”

We pack it all away until both the fridge and freezer are filled to the brim, and then I help her clean up the kitchen. We stand side by side, working in unison, her washing and me drying the dishes, without even having discussed it.

We seem to be a good team, and the thought fills me with resolve. I need to be honest with her and tell her how I’m feeling, and just hope that she still feels the same. That I’m not too late.

“We don’t have any single women left at the clubhouse,” she suddenly says, breaking the comfortable silence.

“Trust me, there are lots of single women around the men—we just don’t invite them to family events,” I say, smirking.

She pauses in her washing and turns angry hazel eyes to me. “Well, we all know you do. You brought Melinda to the clubhouse.”

Here we go. But I’d rather the fire in her eyes than the flash of sadness when she called herself weak.

She is anything but.

She’s the strongest woman I’ve ever met.

“I did not. She just showed up,” I correct, wondering how the vibe changed so quickly. “And why even bring her up? She’s not an issue anymore.”

To be honest, I haven’t even thought about her once, other than when Corey mentions her.

“I was just pointing out a fact,” she replies, lifting her chin. She continues to wash and I continue to dry, although a little more aggressively this time.

Not everything has to turn into a fight, but I think with Corey I’m going to have to learn how to deal with her temper. I decide to stay quiet and see if that’s the best way to calm her down without starting World War Three.

“Nothing to say?” she fires back.

“Not on that matter, no,” I reply, our fingers touching when she hands me the plate. “But I do want to talk to you about us. Are we ready to stop playing around and actually explore what we have here? Because I know we have something. I knew it from the first time I saw you.”

Her eyes widen as if she’s surprised I’m finally putting it out there.

She clears her throat. “I’m ready. I’ve been ready, Damon. You’re the one who has been playing games.”

“Have you? Because after the kiss, you avoided me, too.”

“I didn’t want to start any trouble for you, I know how River can be,” she admits, shifting on her feet. “But I didn’t think you’d stop wanting me. I was waiting for you. Bikers take what they want, and you weren’t taking me. Instead, you let me think you were dating Melinda for longer than you actually were just to keep some distance between us!”

Fuck.

“I never once stopped wanting you. I’ll never stop wanting you,” I clear up.

She purses her lips. “Then why didn’t you just fight for us?”

“I wanted to keep you safe! With everything going on with the club and me becoming sergeant at arms, I didn’t want you caught in the crossfire. And then there’s River, and of course the age thing was a bit of a concern for me,” I admit, drying the last dish. “But you know what? So fucking what. I don’t want anyone else, and life is too short for me to keep pretending otherwise. I can handle the club with you by my side, River will eventually get over it, and we’re both adults.”

I didn’t want to jeopardize my growing role in the club.

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