Page 78 of Cruel Savior

My body jerked, my gaze flying back to his. What was he saying? That he knew? I nearly shook my head. No. No. No. That wasn't possible. I'd planned to take that brief part of my life to my grave. That was not the kind of picture I wanted in my head, let alone anyone else's. I was about to tell him as much when he shook his head, disappointment written on his face.

"I could tell him for you, but that would make it harder for him to accept. He'll take it better if he thinks that everyone who knows, besides you, is dead. Anything else might eat him alive."

The pit in my stomach grew heavy. Why couldn't any of this just go away? The answer to every problem did not have to be to talk it out. I was a firm believer in adapt and overcome. Or in other words, let the shit go. "But why? Why isn't the fact I did what I had to do to get a job done good enough?"

He shook his head solemnly. "Because that's just not how this works. Relationships are built on trust, and for some people, trusting is hard."

I could see he was serious and didn't want to let it go. I for one, however, was tired of talking about it. That said. I didn't want to just dismiss what JD said without at least giving it some thought. He deserved that much, considering what I'd put his club through.

"I'll take it under advisement," I finally said.

He barked out a laugh and shook his head. "Okay, little girl. You do that. Now I guess I'd better see about that leak. Don't make me regret not sending out a prospect to do this dirty work."

I stood straight and mock saluted him. "Yes, sir."

He shook his head and walked past me, grumbling something about a smartass under his breath. I didn't quite catch the words, but I got the gist.

I went back to work because we were due at the next cabin in less than an hour. In true JD fashion he did whatever he did and disappeared as silently as he'd arrived. And for the next several hours I thought of nothing but what he'd had to say until we finished our shift.

It was quiet on the ride back because we were both tired, and I still couldn't get out of my head. But by the time Brianna pulled onto the gravel road that led to my place, I'd made up my mind.

"You still want me to go with you to Bubba's tonight?"

Brianna's head jerked my way in surprise. "Oh my God. Are you serious?"

"As a heart attack." I laughed, hoping it didn't come across too awkward. I'd made up my mind and made a deal with myself. I'd go to the biker bar tonight and if he was there, then I'd do it.

"About freaking time. How about we swing by at seven-thirty to pick you up? We can all eat dinner there too."

"Okay," I said, wondering who she meant byweas I closed the door and then headed inside. Either way, I doubted my stomach would be in any condition to eat by then since the nervous energy right now already had me feeling like I wanted to throw up.

But a deal was a deal, even when I made it with myself.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Axel

She's here. At Bubba's.

I stared down at the text I'd just received from Cash and considered texting back to ask him who. Although we both knew I didn't need the clarification. What the hell was she doing, showing up there?

Since I was already almost there to meet several guys from the MC for a beer and the game, I had to decide quick whether I was going or not. I hadn't seen her since I walked away from her in the hospital, and I wasn't sure how I was going to handle our reunion.

Her refusal to acknowledge her mistake in going after a killer alone, had pissed me off. But her refusal to even talk to me about it or the operation in Vegas led me down a pretty dark path.

Without any hard facts, I had nothing to believe but the worst. And yet... That fucking nagging in my gut hadn’t gone away. I just couldn't reconcile the woman from my past with the woman in the present. And the fact that she'd stayed in town and taken a cleaning job, well that just made no damned sense.

There were a lot better uses for her skills than cleaning a bunch of cabins for the tourists...

I turned onto Main Street, and the sign for Bubba's loomed. I thought I had a choice, but before I could make it, my bike turned into the parking lot and came to a stop next to all the others lined up out front. Annoyed that my subconscious knew better than me, I climbed off my bike and stomped my way inside.

Fine. I was going to take her sudden decision to show up in our bar as a sign that she was ready to talk. It was about damn time. I closed the door behind me and stood there for a moment until my eyes adjusted to the darkened interior. After that, it took me all of two seconds to locate her. She was sitting at the bar, her back to the door, and all alone.

My entire body clenched at seeing her there. It had been almost twelve years since I'd seen her in here, and time fell away as if it had never passed. The desire to call her to me, like I'd done so many times before, flooded into me. She would always turn to look at me, tilting her head so that her long hair fell across her shoulder, her glossed lips widening in a seductive smile.

This time, she didn’t move. Her blonde hair hung loose and straight down her back, making me want to walk up to her and grab a fistful of it so I could tug her in my direction until our gazes met so I could steal a kiss from her before I demanded that she talk to me.

Fuck. She was like kryptonite to me. I was drawn to her no matter how dangerous it might be.

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