Page 30 of Pirate

Fletcher’s retort seemed to snap Pirate out of his shock. He immediately put an arm around Sophia’s waist and drew her into his side. His hand had a possessive feel to it, making Sophia think that the man actually did know how to act.

Rather than addressing Fletcher, though, Pirate turned to her mom. “I apologize about you finding out this way, Mrs. Groveton. Sophia and I decided to keep our new romance asecret until after the wedding. We didn’t want to steal Jasmine’s thunder.”

Well that at least was true, but themdatingwouldn’t have stolen Jazz’s thunder. Them waking upmarriedand the drama of getting a divorce would have. But hopefully it was enough of a reason to not make her mom question them further or push pairing her with Fletcher for the wedding.

Shit, how was she going to explain this to Jazz now? Her mom would be expecting Pirate and her to act like a couple at the wedding. Jazz would definitely notice that. She was not okay with keeping secrets from her bestie.

She supposed telling Jazz that Pirate and she were faking being a couple to appease her mom would work. It just felt like she was sinking further into the rabbit hole of deception.

Sophia was not averse to lying to get her way. But the one person she refused to lie to was Jasmine. Keeping the drunken, accidental marriage a secret from Jazz was wrong, but Sophia was doing it to protect her. Jasmine so rarely got into the spotlight. Sophia would be damned if her impulsive, rash disposition took that away from her bestie. After everything Jasmine and Jumper went through to get to where they were, and all they still struggled through, sherefusedto take away from Jasmine’s big day.

Besides, it wasn’t that big of a deal. Pirate and Sophia werenotdating and they werenotstaying married. The divorce would be finalized in a little under six weeks. Jasmine and Jumper would be on their cross country motorcycle honeymoon tour by then and be none the wiser.

Jazz did not need to know. No one needed to know.

It was entirely believable that Sophia would lie to her mom to get out of having Fletcher as her date to the wedding.

Sophia did not give her mom time to argue or reply to Pirate’s apology. “Okay, now that that’s settled, we’ll be going now.”

She gave Pirate’s arm a hard yank and steered him out of the room. She could hear footsteps following them but ignored them. They were too heavy to be her mom’s so they could only be Fletcher’s.

“Go away, douche canoe,” she called over her shoulder without looking back. Pirate still had his arm around her waist, but he’d dropped his hand to cup her ass as soon as they were out of her mother’s sight. Was he doing it for show? Because Fletcher was following them? She doubted it. Pirate had proved again and again how much he admired her ass.

Which Sophia couldn’t help but feel a bit cocky about. She didn’t have much of an ass or tits, so it felt really good that Pirate seemed to appreciate what she had.

Fletcher followed them outside and down the large marble staircase. Her parents’ drive was gray brick with some sort of resin over it to make it smooth. They’d redone it a few years back when her dad had expanded the garage to accommodate his growing collection of antique cars. Sophia had never liked the added pretentious feel of the new drive. Her parents didn’t flaunt their money, per se, but they didn’t hide it either.

There was nothing wrong with flaunting their money. She wouldn’t hold it against them if they did. Her parents had done very well for themselves and they deserved everything they wanted that made them happy. But it didn’t change the fact that both her parents, her siblings, and Sophia herself had been born with a silver spoon in their mouths.

Sure, she splurged on occasion. Or when she was pissed enough at her best friend’s mom to fly across the country to yell at her. But there was a reason she kept holding onto her red Beetle, why her clothes were bought atWalmart, why she donated her time and money so much to charities…

At the end of the day, Sophia was grateful for the ability to live comfortably while doing all the things she wanted, but shedidn’t like how others looked at her because of her money. As Pirate had said on the plane, that was a veryrich personthing to say.

Sophia had never struggled to pay a bill in her life. She’d never worried about rent or if her next paycheck would be enough. She’d never had to skip a meal to make food stretch or turn down an activity because she needed gas money. She was extremely lucky to have been born under the circumstances she had been.

Pirate worked a shitty job at the local high school, something that was well below his expertise, because he needed a job that gave him the flexibility to be there for his brother. She loved his idea about working with veterans with PTSD. It was a cause that meant something to him, so he would never fail at it. His experiences with caring for his brother, as well as his own trauma when he lost his leg, gave him a personal knowledge that others, like her, would lack if they tried to pursue the same endeavor.

She wondered how Pirate would feel if she offered up the startup money he needed. The school year would be ending in two months. It would be a good time to change careers and not leave the school in a lurch mid-year.

But she knew what Pirate’s answer would be without even opening her mouth. He would not accept her money. He hadn’t even accepted it to pay for his half of their cross country trip. It had taken him a couple of paychecks, but he’d paid her back. She tried to refuse it—and she’d ended up over his knee with her red ass in the air.

Pirate led her over to where he parked his hog. He picked up her helmet, turned, and placed it over her head. Then he worked the strap under her chin. She liked the feel of his rough hands on her chin as he brushed against her skin. Heat flared in her belly,making her consider telling him just to take them to her place and forget about her car.

A haughty huff came from behind her. Sophia looked over her shoulder as Pirate looked over her head at Fletcher.

Her ex—and God, she hated that she’deverlet this man put his grubby, slimy hands on her—was standing a couple of yards away from them. Putting his pristine white riding gloves on while holding his helmet under his right armpit.

“Have you seen my wheels?” he asked them. “Picked her up only a day ago. The dealership tried to talk me into another model, but I knew this one was the right one for me. More power, more speed.” His eyes roamed over Sophia in an open way he hadn’t done in front of her mother. “If there’s one thing I know how to handle, it’s fast women.”

She expected Pirate to make a snappy retort or to tell Fletcher to fuck off, but instead he casually walked her around the back of his bike. Then he straddled it. She followed suit, pressing her front to his leather cut. Her hands went to his thighs. He turned the bike on, making her body vibrate in all the right places.

“Are you sure you want to ride on that piece of junk, Sophia?” Fletcher asked her, stepping closer. “My ride’sa lotsmoother?—”

Pirate suddenly revved his engine.

Fletcher shot him a glare before turning his attention back to Sophia. “I would appreciate the opportunity to speak with you priv?—”

Pirate’s engine cut him off again.

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