Page 23 of Ink

“Same,dolcezza. Same.”

I’d have kept her glued to me twenty-four seven if I could have, but I couldn’t refuse her request to go have coffee with Rachel when she looked so delighted about it. Not when I had no legitimate reason to say no.

I kissed the fuck out of her before buckling her into the driver’s seat of her Jeep. “Be careful and protect what’s mine,” I ordered gruffly before capturing her lips one more time.

“You aren’t going to convince me to cancel with those tempting lips and that growly voice if that’s what you’re trying to do,” she muttered, sounding less than confident.

I grinned but took a step back. “Go,dolcezza. Before I change my mind and drag you back to my cave to have my wicked way with you.”

She glanced between me and the clubhouse, appearing even more indecisive after my comment. As much as I wanted to take advantage of the moment, I was more interested in fucking her after she came home and was still glowing with happiness.

I was saved from ruining my good intentions when Onyx stuck his head out of the door and shouted, “Ink! Waiting on you, man.”

“Have fun, baby. Be careful.”

“Okay. See you soon.”

I watched her drive away, then tromped back to the front door, my mood already shit by the time I stepped inside. Onyx was waiting, and we hopped into my truck and drove out to Hellbound Studio.

I had no reason for wanting to keep her locked in my room—beyond my desire to tie her to the bed naked so I could fuck her until we both passed out from the ecstasy—but something was nagging at me. A dark feeling in my gut that I shouldn’t have let Annika out of my sight.

Since she had made plans with her friend, I’d had Onyx rebook a couple of my clients, but it probably hadn’t been the best idea. Luckily, I was excellent at my job and didn’t need to be at full concentration to do my best. But with my mind somewhere else, and that gnawing feeling eating away at me, it felt like a whole day had gone by when my phone buzzed in my pocket.

Taking it out, I saw Annika’s picture on the screen, and I quickly answered it. “Hey,dolcezza,” I greeted, my mood already lifted. “How was your coffee?”

“Um…so, don’t freak out, okay?”

“Annika?” I growled. “What the fuck happened?”

My gut clenched, insisting that I’d been right and shouldn’t have let her go.

“I’m fine. Really. I swear. It was just a small accident.”

“Onyx!” I bellowed as I spun around and marched into the office where he was doing paperwork. “Call Cross at Inferno and tell him to bring a tow truck to—where are you, Annika?”

She sighed and gave me the nearest intersection, which I relayed back to Onyx.

“I’ll meet him there,” I finished as I jogged out to my truck.

Once I was seated and the vehicle started, I connected the phone to the Bluetooth and pulled out of the parking lot. “Tell me everything, Annika.”

While I drove to her, she relayed everything that had happened.

Other than the fact that the driver had taken off right after hitting her, it sounded like it had truly been a random accident. But I wasn’t completely convinced.

A tow truck with the Inferno Cycles and Customs brand emblazoned on the side pulled up just as I arrived. I parked far enough away to give him plenty of room to maneuver Annika’s Jeep, then climbed out of my truck and jogged over to the corner where she was talking with several police officers.

As soon as she saw me, she ran straight into my arms. “I’m okay,” she said, her voice muffled against my chest. “Really, Matteo. I’m not hurt, and the car doesn’t have a lot of damage.”

I couldn’t speak yet. I just stood there and held her, trying to calm my racing heart.

“Matteo?” she finally asked after a period of silence.

“What did the police say?” I grunted, shifting her to my side so I could talk to them when they approached.

“Ink,” one of the cops greeted me.

“Daniel,” I replied. Daniel was a friend, if you could call it that, to the Hounds. He’d helped us out from time to time with information. His partner, Harry, was an old guy and a stickler. He was very old school, though, which meant he was a pain in the ass.

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