Page 63 of Broken

“Put yourself in the firing line.”

“He was going to kill us anyway.”

“Then you should have come up with a better plan,rather than claiming to be Warden’s whore and guaranteeing you were going toget fucking shot.”

“I didn’t know what to do, and I was thinkingabout Rosalie and what she needed.”

“Rosalie needs her best friend.”

“You don’t get to tell me what to do. This is notyour decision so stop being an asshole. None of this is your business.”

Dirty took a step toward her. “What happens toyou, matters to me.”

She snorted. “Yeah, right? Is that guilt, is thatit?”

“You don’t get it and you don’t want to get it.That’s fine, but just so you know, if anything happens to you, you’d be missed.There would be people who wouldn’t be able to think straight for knowing theyhad failed.”

“Oh, yeah, who?” she asked, moving to take a steptoward him, then another.

Silence met her question and Dirty stared at her,knowing he could either lie or tell her the truth.

“Me,” Dirty said. “I would have failed. You weresupposed to have fun. The girls’ night was supposed to help you, Kim, andRosalie. A lot of bad shit had happened and that night wasn’t meant to end theway it did. And you trying to get yourself killed, I couldn’t live with that.”

“Stop it,” Petal said.

“No, you are needed, Petal,” he said, movingtoward her.

She shook her head and he watched as the tearbegan to fall.

“You are wanted, Petal.”

“I said shut the fuck up.”

“And … you are loved.”

Dirty knew he was pushing and it might be toosoon, and as Petal slapped him around the face, he accepted the burn. It wasn’ta hard slap, but it stung nonetheless.

She pulled back and put her hands to her mouth,and that was when he saw the tears truly fall. He knew she didn’t mean to hithim.

“You are loved,” Dirty said.

She shook her head.

“By Rosalie, by Kim, by the club, by Myth, even byColt, and by me.”

She covered her face and began to sob. Dirtydidn’t hesitate in pulling her into his arms, and he held her. The weepingshook her whole body and he refused to let her go.

“I’ve got you,” he said.

Petal didn’t hold him back, at least not at first,but then she slid her arms around him and held on tightly. He finally had herand he wasn’t going to let her go.

Dirty tightened his arms around her as she lostcontrol.

****

With jeans and a shirt, Petal felt a little moreherself than when she was wearing the black dress for girls’ night.

Dirty pulled into the Satan’s Death Riders MCparking lot, and as she climbed off the bike, she turned to him about to saysomething, and then her name was called.

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