Page 12 of Arrow: Riding Rebels MC

He scooped Hendrix up and cradled him to his chest like a football. Pressed against Arrow, Hendrix looked like a speck in his arms. His attentiveness to my son gave me mixed emotions because Gideon never interacted with Hendrix this way, and hewas his father. That quickly, fear was like ice in my veins at the thought of what my husband would do once he caught up to us. Arrow and his crew could be scary, but Gideon was powerful.

Although I was here against my will—at least it started out that way—I felt bad for what I was getting Arrow, his brother, and their friends into.

“Here.” I held out my arms. “Let me see if he’s wet. I’m surprised he ain’t screaming his head off to eat.” I chuckled.

“’Cause he know he safe. Hmm.” Arrow handed me Hendrix, then leaned against the wall… watching us. “So, what’s your plan when you leave here? Do you plan on running for the rest of your life?”

“You’re letting me go?”

Fuck everything else he was talking about.

Arrow smiled, licked his lips, and crossed the room in four steps. Dirty diaper in my hand be damned. That man backed me up until I hit the wall, pressed his forehead against mine, and looked me directly into my eyes. My senses were on overload.

I couldn’t pinpoint his scent, but I knew exactly what it was doing to my body.

“You ready to tell me your husband’s name? I told you I only had one condition, then you could be on your way.”

I squinted up at him because of the smirk that took over his lips when he said that.

“Worrying about who did what isn’t going to change the truth. You might as well let me go because I need to keep moving. My husband finding me here will be bad news for everyone?—”

“You think your husband has a chance of getting past the Rebels? I’d like to see it. You see how all you did was turn down a street and somebody was on you. The moment an outsider steps foot over the town line, I’m made aware. He is gon’ die, regardless if I have to go searching for him, or he brings hisass here. The damage done to you was a violation… The healed bruises and where Doc found them secured his place in hell.” Arrow rubbed his nose against mine and took a deep breath. “The only way out of Rushin Mills is in a body bag, baby. He can try it if he wants to… We’ll be ready.”

Arrow kissed my jaw, backed away, then turned on his heels and left the room.

In my face and looking in my eyes, that man told me he’d kill Gideon, and instead of being afraid… I wanted to fall to my knees and fill my mouth with all of him. Was it possible to have Stockholm syndrome within forty-eight hours of knowing someone? It took Hendrix cooing for me to snap back into my right mind. I finished getting him together, picked him up, and rocked him.

Arrow said the only way out was in a body bag… Did that go for me too?

“What has mommy done? Did I just put us in even more danger?”

There was no answer from Hendrix, and there wouldn’t be one.

Life with Gideon had been bad, but was this worse? I’d never felt more welcomed by anyone than I had with the Rebels, but this couldn’t be safe for my son and me. I hated feeling like I needed saving; however, having them on my side versus being alone didn’t sound half bad. Sighing, I kissed Hendrix’s forehead and decided it was time to come up with a plan. Arrow and his crew might be confident, but Gideon didn’t know how to fight fair.

I left the bedroom with determination and a timeline.

“Aye… Look who’s up! Hand my nephew here. He missed his uncle. Ain’t that right, namesake?”

Laughter bubbled out of me as I watched Boss with Hendrix. That man was just as delusional as his brother. Since my son was being loved on, I went to the couch and sat down near Izzy.

I wasn’t her favorite person, but I was willing to be cordial.

“So,” she started as soon as my butt hit the cushion, “when are you leaving?”

“Wow.” I shifted so I was facing her. “You do know that your problem with Arrow doesn’t have anything to do with me, right? I don’t want to be here just as much as you want me gone, but at least I’m not being a bitch to you. You are the one who called him the night I tried to catch some sleep on the side of the road, not the other way around. You could have let me leave when I was trying to.”

I waited for her to respond, but she never did.

We stared at each other until, once again, that man was in my personal space. He fell onto the cushion, and the impact bounced me partially into his lap. I pushed off him, glared, and Arrow cracked up.

Not once did he look in either of our directions, and out of my peripheral, Izzy shifted.

“You’re an asshole. How do you know we weren’t over here having a private conversation?”

“Because I know Izzy. She don’t fuck with you, so she ain’t talking about nothing if she was talking. That girl only care about one thing, and it’s something you can’t offer, so I was good.”

Izzy gasped and shot to her feet. I waited for her to light into him, but all she did was stomp away. I jerked my head back when she turned around and came back, pointing a finger at Arrow.

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