Page 50 of Complete Me
Reid walks us back into the bedroom, setting me on the edge of the bed, pulling the towel closer to my body, clearly making sure I’m completely covered. How is this man so genuinely good and sweet? How can this man that I thought I knew be in a motorcycle club?
“I’ll be right back, I just need to change out of these wet jeans,” he tells me before opening a drawer and grabbing some clothes and returning to the bathroom. I take a second to look around the space; a large dresser stands in front of the bed closest to the door, plain black curtains cover the window, blacking out the world outside. His leather jacket is thrown haphazardly against a chair that sits in the corner. There’s no closet and just the bathroom. It’s simple and modest and reminds me of a single college dorm room.
He has no photos or real personal items anywhere, and I wonder how much time he actually spends in this room. It can’t be often since he’s always in Aspen Ridge. Everything just leaves me with more unanswered questions.
Reid returns quickly with a T-shirt and hairbrush in his hands.
He pulls the extra-large T-shirt over my head and makes sure it covers my torso before pulling away the damp towel. I situate myself so that I’m covered, and then he’s moving behind me, each of his legs on either side of mine so that I’m sittingbetween them. He starts at the bottom of my tangled, matted hair and slowly starts brushing, working through each knot with such tenderness, I almost cry.
“You don’t need to talk right now, Kins, but you’re goin’ to someday, and I’m gonna be here for you when you’re ready. I want to know what happened in there.”
We sit in silence as I sway into his delicate touch. How can this massive man be so heartbreakingly gentle with me? After he’s worked through every inch of my hair, he lifts me again, pulling back the blankets and covering me. His calloused hand sweetly touches my face, running his fingertips along the crown of my head and trailing past my ear. He leans down, and my eyes flutter closed as he presses his firm lips against my forehead in the sweetest kiss that has my body humming and my heart flipping over in my chest. I have a moment of panic that he will leave me in here alone, and his next words validate that.
“Get some sleep, little fighter. I’ll be next door if you need anything.”
My hand darts out, reaching for him. “Please don’t leave me.” I know my voice breaks, the emotion caught in my throat, but I don’t want to be alone right now. Especially not away from him. “Please.”
“Fuck, I was hopin’ you’d say that. I can’t stand the thought of leaving you in here alone.”
Relief courses through me as I lie there, my shoulders deflating. Reid works his jeans over his hips, pushing them down his legs. I do my best to give him privacy, but I’ve never seen this man in anything but denim jeans or athletic joggers to box in.
His legs are thick like tree trunks, each one thicker than my waist. Just as I had suspected, every inch of the skin covering them is adorned with tattoos. A mix of black and gray with various colors mixed in. I can’t make them out from my positionon the other side of the bed and the darkness of the room, but there’s no missing that they’re there.
He strips his short-sleeved T-shirt next, his chest equally covered in ink. A large skull with a crown falling to the side, an ornate dagger slicing through the top and coming out the bottom fills the center of his body, identical to the one on his arm, with an array of hodgepodge designs scattered around it. Reid lifts up the covers, slipping into bed next to me in nothing but a tight pair of boxer briefs. I lay stiffly next to him, my knees still tucked up to my chest.
“You’re gonna be okay, I promise.”
“I believe you.”
“Can I hold you? I really wanna hold you, Kinsey.I need to.”
I bat a stray tear away from my cheek as I answer him, “Please.” His hands don’t waste any time snaking around my hips, pulling me to him, tucking my body into his. My back lies flush against his front, his large arm bound around me. The warmth of his body seeps into mine, enveloping me in exactly what I need right now—familiar comfort and safety.
I breathe in the rich scent of leather and cedar as my body finally gives in, relaxing against this beast of a man who has become such an enigma to me. Why aren’t I more concerned about his hidden identity? His secret life? Why does everything with him feel so . . . right?
I wake for the first time in my life next to another person, and the sudden newness of it pulls me under a tidal wave, threatening to drown me. Fear clutches my heart, squeezing painfullyas I struggle to remember where I am. I thrash against the body, a scream piercing my ears as I try to escape my captor.
“Let me go!”
Warm hands grip my shoulders, turning me over in the bed, and I buck wildly in response, squeezing my eyes shut, trying my hardest to kick him away.
“I’m here, Kinsey, it’s me, I’m right here.” Familiar hands touch my face, so strong but so gentle, and I start to relax, letting my eyes peel open to reveal the man next to me. He’s not my captor at all. He’s my protector. His hair is disheveled, hanging around his face in a wild mess, his face pinched in a desperate mix of pain and concern.
“There’s my girl. You’re safe. I’ve got you. Nothing is going to hurt you.”
“Reid.”
“Yeah, sweetheart.”
“I’m so sorry. I thought . . .”
“Shh, I know, I know. But you’re not there anymore. You’re at the clubhouse with me, in my old bedroom. You’re safe.”
“I’m safe.”
“Yeah, baby, you’re safe.”
He smiles down at me, continuing to stroke my hair, running his other hand over every inch of me he can reach, doing his best to calm and relax me. I melt against him, suddenly desperate to be closer to him.
