Page 25 of Outlaws of Tulsa

I’m embedded so deeply in the MC world, I will never get out. Outside of the protection of the lawless, I’ll be thrust back into society. Been there, done that. Not doing it again.

So, rather than be terrified of Koyn, I pull on my helmet and straddle the bike behind him. It’s a smaller bike, meant for a guy like Dragon, so I feel as though I’m perched on a tiny piece of leather real estate. I’m forced to lean in, pressing my tits against this man, and spreading my legs for him just so I don’t slip off the back and become sexy-ass roadkill.

He grips my wrist, pulling my body closer, and then molds my arm to his body. I mimic the action with my other arm until I’m hugging him like a koala on a tree. His body radiates warmth that soothes the shivering parts deep inside me. I hate admitting it, but he does provide a sense of comfort for some insane reason I don’t want to mentally examine right now.

The crux of the matter is…I have daddy issues.

And Koyn is one hundred percent a daddy.

He takes off, kicking up gravel in his wake, and speeds down the driveway. The roar of the bikes behind us makes me relax. So often, I’d lose myself to daydreams on the back of Junior’s bike. He’d ride me around everywhere, taking me to eat and to see cool shit. Sometimes we’d even fuck on his bike. All those moments are gone. I’ll never get them back. Tears burn at my eyes and I close them. I don’t want to see the Arkansas trees—all brilliant with orange and brown and red and yellow leaves—whizzing by. I don’t want to appreciate their beauty.

It seems unfair that I’m having to hold on to my boyfriend’s killer.

Hold on to him or die.

Like I’m forced to choose him over myself.

I don’t get fucked-up Magna vibes off Koyn. I’m fairly sure he’s not going to drag me all the way back to his clubhouse just to torture me or kill me or fuck me. He would’ve done any of those already if it were on his villain agenda.

But something lurks within him.

A calmness that is felt before a catastrophe. Dark. Sinister. Foreboding. It seems to vibrate through him. As if it is magnetic energy making all the hairs on my arms stand on end. I can feel it through every molecule in my body. Buzzing. Humming. Warning.

Dad was that way.

A series of calms and storms. Whipping and thrashing. A constant back and forth like on a boat in choppy waters until I was damn near seasick from it all.

Dad’s storms weren’t ones I could ride like a wave until I hit the shore.

He tried to drown me.

It makes me wonder what sort of storm Koyn is. A powerful hurricane like my father? A tornado like Magna? Or something more cataclysmic. Something earth changing. A violent volcano, rumbling the very foundation I stand on.

His palm covers my thigh and he squeezes it in a reassuring way. The simple, brief gesture has my heart tightening in my chest. I don’t like the way he can silence my fears with a touch.

A healthy dose of fear has been what’s kept me alive this long.

I don’t need someone silencing my inner warning sirens, because who the hell knows what sort of trouble would sneak up on me then.

I’ve had enough trouble for one lifetime.

I need to always be ready for it.

Koyn

Istand inside the open truck door with my hands on the top of the frame as I lean in to talk to Dragon and Copper, my cigarette dangling from my lips. Bermuda took the girl to the restroom. He looks the most like a good ol’ boy. Dragon and I stand out as possible psychopathic kidnappers to the normal public. Definitely a good idea Bermuda took lead on this stop.

“Anything yet?” I ask my brother, nodding at his phone as he scrolls. I blow out a plume of smoke over the top of his truck and then flick my cigarette across the truck into the gravel.

“Nah. When we get back, I’ll get on the computer and run through all my channels. Putnam is off the grid.” Copper scrubs at his face with his palm.

“I’ll stay on Junior’s social media and check to see if I can pick up any clues there,” Dragon offers. “Putnam was a ghost, but we found him. We’ll find him again.”

I glance over at the McDonald’s and wonder what the fuck is taking them so long. If she tried to run off, I’m going to make good on my promise to whip her ass.

“What about Hadley? Anything on her?” I arch a brow at my brother.

“Without a last name, it’s difficult. I’ll run a search on all the missing person reports with that name, but you’d probably get further than me on this.”

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