Page 37 of Inflame Me
I feel the heat rise through my body and up to my face as embarrassment hits me. My mother and Dagger heard us, but in that moment, all I cared about was Rhys.
“It’s fine. When are the cops supposed to be here?” I deflect as Dagger shakes his head. I don’t want to talk about Rhys. Maybe, if it was just my mom, I would tell her more, but the embarrassment I feel makes me want to move on to something else.
“Couple of hours. You’ll be fine. I’ll be in the hallway, listening. I won’t show my face unless I have to. You stick to the story and the shock of James being dead, and you’ll be good,” he says like he’s done this so many times, and it’s not a big deal at all. I don’t know whether to be scared as hell or impressed.
“Is there food here?” I ask him, needing a distraction. If food is in my mouth, I can’t talk.
“A few things. After the cops go, we’ll head back to the clubhouse,” Dagger says.
My eyes grow wide as a rock falls into my stomach. “I thought we were staying here.” The idea of going back to the clubhouse when Rhys is pissed at me is not sitting well.
“Nah, it’s safer there until we know what these guys want.” He sees my lip curl. “You’re going to see Rhys, so you better get over whatever shit you to have going on.”
“Way to stick up for your daughter,” I grumble, leaving the room.
“Tanner.” His voice is deep and authoritative. It makes me stop in my tracks. “Club life means brothers and club before everyone, including women and children.”
Things start clicking in my head fast: the reason my mother left, the reason she didn’t tell Dagger about me.
“That’s why … because you’d never put my mother first in your life,” I say to him.
“Tanner.” This comes from my mother who eyes me to silence.
“Sweetheart, I would have given your momma everything,” he says, which makes my mother gasp. “But that’s not your business. You need to remember that whatever happens in the club is none of your business. The only reason we are helping you right now is because we take care of our own, but none of this shit comes down on the club.”
So, pretty much I’m shit on the scale of who gives a damn.
“Whatever. We’ll be gone soon, anyway, and then you can go on with your life.” I dart into the kitchen, needing some space.
DISAPPOINTMENT. Rhys, you’re nothing but a disappointment.The sentence trails through my head on repeat. Normally, it’s my mother’s voice saying it over and over again, but this time, it’s Tanner’s.
I ride my bike hard and fast down the country roads, trying to clear my fucking mind. Regardless, those words keep running through my thoughts, pulling me down a path I thought was closed forever.
My mother always told me how much I lacked. Even if she was strung out all the fucking time, she always made it a point to put in as many jabs as she could. To a kid, that shit sticks with you. It’s a fucking wound that never totally heals.
I know Tanner wasn’t aware she struck a chord with me, but fucking hell, she dredged up some shit that I didn’t want to put on her lap.
She’s right, though. Hooking up with her should have been a onetime gig. I shouldn’t have kept going with it. I should have backed the fuck off right away. I definitely shouldn’t have fucking slept with her in my arms. That was a huge fucking mistake.
She’s way too innocent for this life. Fuck, she’s way too innocent for me, even if she melts like butter under my touch. It isn’t like I am going to suck her into this life and have her stay with me. Fuck that. I don’t want to be tied down. Right?
I shake my head to clear the webs of Tanner out of there. It’s better this way, anyway. She needs one of those assholes who are put together or whatever.
I need to erase Tanner from my mind.
A HEAVY KNOCK comes from the front door.
Dagger grabs my arm and pulls me into the hall. “Remember, I can’t protect you and your mom unless you do as I say,” he tells me, the sincerity blaring in his eyes.
“I’ve got it. It’ll be all right.” I move to the door, looking through the peephole. The first man I see is Griff, whom I met at a couple of my mom and James’s parties.
I turn to my mom and nod as she closes her eyes and lets out an exasperated sigh. I then turn the knob and open the door, my nerves hitting me full force as I stare into the eyes of James’s partner and best friend.
“Hello.”
“Evening, Tanner. We need to ask you and your mom some questions,” Griff says with all the formality and power he can muster. Crap.
“Sure. Come on in.” I hold the door open, and Griff and another officer I haven’t met before come in.
