Page 22 of Reaper

"Why should I believe anything you say?"

"Because I never stopped loving you either!" The words explode from her like a confession."And whether you want to believe me or not, I did all of this to keep you and the Saints' past wiped off the feds' radar.I will not let you make me regret that because that would mean regretting loving you, and I fucking refuse-"

"Fuck!" The word tears from my throat as I grab her, cutting her off and crushing my mouth tohers.She makes a sound somewhere between a sob and a moan, her fingers digging into my shoulders as I kiss her with all the rage and hurt and love I can'tshake.

She tastes like whiskey and truth and everything I've everwanted.Her tongue meets mine, matching my anger with her own as I haul hercloser.My hands tangle in her hair, tilting her head to deepen the kiss until we're bothgasping.

Her phone rings, the sound piercing through the haze ofneed.Before either of us can move, mine goes offtoo.

We break apart, both grabbing ourphones.Sandy spins her phone to me, and I do the same. The messages make my blood runcold.

Handler

Timer spotted atthe old warehouse. Changing locations now.

Ranch

Timer's location confirmed. Heading in to handle it.

Sandy's eyes meet mine,both of us breathinghard.The taste of her still lingers on my lips as understanding crashes overus.

"Oh fuck," we say inunison.

The race to Timer is on. And only one of us canwin.

The question is, what breaks first - her career or myheart?

Sandy matchesmy speed as we tear down empty back roads, our bikes in perfect sync.Even now, even with betrayal still burning in my veins, we ride like we're two parts of the same machine.The way she takes each curve, anticipating my movements before I make them, reminds me of how perfectly we fit together in other ways.

"Pull over!" she shouts over the wind."I've got an idea!"

We stop at a deserted intersection, gravel crunching under our tires.Sandy kills her engine and pulls out her phone, motioning me closer as she leans in.

"Say 'Timer's at the docks' loud enough for Handler to hear.He'll redirect the teams."

I grin, catching on to her plan."You devious woman. Setting up your own boss?"

"He was getting suspicious anyway." She shrugs, but tension lines her shoulders."Might as well give him what he expects, he's always seen me as the compromised agent making emotional decisions."

She dials, putting it on speaker."Handler, we've got movement-"

"Just saw Timer heading toward the docks!" I call out, making sure my voice carries."Moving to intercept! Multiple vehicles!"

"Copy that." Handler's voice crackles through."Teams redirecting now. Mitchell, stay on Hunter's tail."

"Already on it, sir." Her acting is flawless.Almost too flawless. "He's not getting away this time."

She ends the call, her eyes bright with adrenaline."That buys us twenty minutes, tops.Handler's smart, he'll figure out the misdirect soon enough."

"More than enough time." I swing back onto my bike, the engine rumbling to life beneath me."Race you there?"

Her answering smile is pure sin."Try to keep up, Road Captain."

We fly down back roads, taking turns at speeds that would terrify normal people.But there's nothing normal about us.Never has been. Sandy rides like she was born for it, her body moving with her bike like they're one entity.

The warehouse comes into view ten minutes later.Ranch and three other Saints are already there, bikes parked in formation.My brothers. My family. The ones Timer betrayed just as thoroughly as he betrayed me.

Sandy pulls up beside me as I kill my engine.Her hand brushes mine, a ghost of contact that sends electricity up my arm.

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