Page 40 of Steel

Tempe rolls her eyes, tugging at the hem of her T-shirt. It hits her mid-thigh, brushing against the smooth skin of her legs. And the cool air from inside the refrigerator makes her nipples peak against the fabric.

“Your grandma gave it to me to sleep in. Hope you don’t mind.” She brushes her hands over the front of the T-shirt, and I realize it’s one of mine. “I didn’t have anything comfortable to sleep in.”

“It’s fine.” Albeit tempting as fuck. “You looking for something to eat?”

I tip my chin at the still-open fridge.

“Not really, I just couldn’t sleep.” She looks from me to the food and shakes her head. “Thought a snack might help take my mind off things.”

Tempe shuts the refrigerator and tugs her hair out of the messy bun, only to wrangle the waves right back on top of her head in a fresh knot.

“How are you doing?” I ask.

It’s bad enough I’m here—bad enough I’m letting Tempe and her brother live in my house. I shouldn’t give a shit how she’s doing, but I can’t seem to help myself after what happened at the bar tonight.

Tempe grazes her fingers across her neck, skating them back and forth over the faint bruising already starting to show. I wish I could bring Banks back from the dead just so I could suffocate the life out of him all over again for putting his hands on her.

“I’m doing okay.” But her eyes don’t match her tone in the dark kitchen as they trail off.

“And Austin?”

Her gaze snaps to mine, and her eyes gloss over. “He’s in shock, and I don’t blame him.”

I nod, not sure what else to say.

I’ve been that kid—frozen in time. Born into circumstances that only twisted and became more fucked up the older I got. He’s going to become tough quickly, and that’s not always a good thing.

“Thanks for everything you did at the bar.”

“Don’t mention it.” I stand up, circling the island to get a glass of water.

I’m too fucking sober, and the room’s too hot with Tempe standing in the middle of it.

Grabbing two glasses out of the cabinet, I fill them up and hand one to her.

“Why were you there, anyway?” Tempe’s eyes pinch as she watches me take a sip. “I’m sure you have better things to do than check in on your prospects.”

I drain the glass and set it down, wishing she’d stop seeing through everything. “I was around the corner and figured I’d drop in on my way back to the clubhouse. It was on my way.”

Kind of.

It would have been quicker to head straight out of the city, but I couldn’t seem to help myself. After checking in with Kansas, I had every intention of heading back to the club. But something pulled my bike in the direction of Dirty Drakes instead.

Tempe is a magnet, and I’m the metal that can’t escape her pull.

“Well, you had good timing, so I guess it worked out.” She lifts off the counter, setting her water glass down. “Sorry, I’m keeping you up. You must be tired. You don’t need to entertain me. I’m heading back to bed soon.”

“I’m usually up this late.” If anything, this is early.

Her gaze drifts around the kitchen. “Are you hungry then? I was going to make a grilled cheese, if you want one.”

Between Stevie cooking for the guys at the clubhouse, and my grandma always having food packaged in the refrigerator, I’m used to people cooking for me. But heroffer feels different. Like genuine kindness when all I’ve done is add to her problems.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“It’s fine.” She waves her hand, walking back over to the fridge. “You’re letting us stay here. It’s the least I can do.”

“Thought I was holding you hostage?” I smirk.

---