Page 50 of Property of Saint

Would I really want to return to that job, even if there wasn’t the chance that someone would finish the job that the people who ran me off the road had started?

After a lifetime of trying, what would I do with myself if I stayed here with the Kings? Become Saint’s bed buddy? I certainly wasn’t going to be anyone else’s.

Have Saint’s baby. Have a family.Hell, I could already be pregnant. Unconsciously, my hand reaches down and touches my belly.Could there already be a new life growing there?And if there was, would that give me a new purpose?

Saint’s been waiting patiently, while I’ve been thinking. I’ve been vaguely conscious of his hand smoothing up and down myback, keeping me grounded. I decide to look at things a different way.

Turning to look into those mesmerising dark eyes, I ask, “What would my life look like as your old lady?” Before he can speak, I add fast, “And don’t say anything about me benefitting from your cock every night.”

His hand moves to rest over his chest. “You wound me. You think I can only perform at night and in bed?” I’m starting to think that if he can’t take my question seriously, then there’s no hope for us when he stops touching his heart and takes my fingers in his instead. “Not saying it will be easy. You’ve still got to earn the trust of me and my brothers.” He pauses, thinks, then frowns. “I think, after Skunk, they’ve got a grudging respect for you, but we’ve got a long way to go to get them on your side. It will take time, but I think we can get there.” Again, he measures his words before continuing. “I live at the club, and they’d expect us to stay close for now, but if it all works out, then I’ve more than enough put aside to support you, to buy us a house, or have one built.” He considers again, this time his lips turning up. “We’ve got enough land here, maybe we can build something close.”

“To be near to the club, but able to have our own private time away from it?”

He squeezes my fingers. “Exactly.” Earnest eyes look into mine as he adds, “And not because I don’t trust you, but because I don’t trust the world out there. You have my baby, then I’ll want to know you’re protected and safe.”

I bite my lip. “And what would I do every day, while you’re out riding your bike and causing trouble?”

He chuckles. “You don’t have a very good view of bikers, do you?”

“Not those who wear the one-percent diamond patch.”

“I’m an outlaw, darlin’. And you already know I’m no Saint. You just got to decide whether you can live with that.”

Can I?When I’ve been law-abiding all my life, when I’ve never so much as picked up a speeding ticket. If I can’t, there’s no way out, except ending up six feet underground.

“You talk about having a child, building a house.” I grimace, thinking my next words are going to get blown off. “Where does love come into this relationship?”

This time, when his intense eyes meet mine, his fierce expression makes it impossible for me to look away. “I’ve never felt this way about another woman. Fuck, it was against my nature to stop there that night and come down to see who was in the accident. I can’t think anything other than fate played its hand, making me act out of character.” He breaks off and chuckles, “I fell for you the moment you handed me back my cut after I thought it was lost in the explosion. Pippa, babe, I’ve gone against my club to keep you alive, and I want to kill any other fucker who puts their hands on you or looks at you wrong. For the first time ever, I can see my life with a ride-or-die woman beside me, but only you. I’m willing to put my property patch on you, to forsake all other pussy and be true only to you. If that’s not love, I’m not sure what is.” His fingers tighten around mine. “Maybe you’re not there yet, but I have hope that one day you will be.”

His words and the way he’s looking at me so intently steal my breath. For a moment, I’m incapable of doing anything other than staring at him as he’s laid himself bare. It’s time to give him some honesty.

“I was attracted to you the first moment I saw you, when you came to my rescue. I want to hate everything you stand for, want to hate your club, but when I knew Skunk was betraying you, I couldn’t keep that quiet. I wanted to protect you, when perhapsI should have stood back and let whatever club he was with destroy you.” I shake my head. “But I couldn’t do that.”

“Know that, babe. And so do my brothers.”

Closing my eyes, breathing deeply, trying to find the courage, I finally admit, “I never saw anything beyond my career, never thought I’d deserve a family. I’ve been running so hard just trying to keep up, it never occurred to me to stop moving and take a breath. You’re offering me something I never knew I wanted but somehow know that I need. The thought of setting up a home and having a child with you? I must be fucking crazy, but I can’t think of anything I desire more.”

“We do this,” he says. “We do it right. When my brothers accept you, you’ll have all the family you’ve ever wanted.” He chuckles. “They’ll drive you crazy, but that’s what families do.”

“Saint?”

“Yeah, babe?”

“Why do you insist on calling me Pippa?”

His arm comes around me, pulling me into his side. “Because Phillipa sounds like a stuck-up bitch who works in law enforcement. Pippa is mine, as if losing the formality is metaphorically letting your hair down.”

“Is your legal name really Jeremiah?”

He sucks in air through his teeth. “You heard that?”

“When the sheriff called out Jeremiah Henley.”

He huffs a laugh. “Yeah, I escaped being called Bullfrog by this much.” He holds his forefinger and thumb a quarter of an inch apart. “And I think that was only because it was too close to Bullseye.”

I can’t help it. I burst out laughing. “Lucky escape.”

Placing his thumb against the corner of my eye, he chuckles, “I’d agree with that.” Suddenly, his mood changes. He reaches out and takes my hand. “Come with me downstairs. Come meet my brothers properly.”

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