Page 51 of Relentles
At some point, he’d swept her in his arms, laid her on the bed, and climbed in with her once he removed his boots and shirt. He’d win no awards for his singing, but that’s what he did, rocking her until she fell asleep, curled into him.
If Ryan ever found out CJ slept in the same bed as Molly, he’d have a fucking fit. Oh, fucking well. Motherfucker would get over it or CJ would punch the fuck out of him.
“Hey, CJ,” Molly said hoarsely.
He went to move his arm, but she snuggled closer.
“Don’t leave me,” she whimpered.
“I have to, Mo. I need to pee.”
Tears filled her eyes. “He’ll get me if you leave.”
“Ryan won’t come near you if you don’t want to see him. Just tell me.”
“Daddy,” she whispered, tears sliding down her cheeks and onto his chest. “He was hiding in my closet last night. I saw him. He was there, holding Mama’s head in one hand and a machete in the other.”
If only hehadgotten onto the club’s grounds. He’d be holdinghisfucking head in the afterlife.
CJ tightened his hold on her, a whiff of strawberries swirling to him. He’d seen her strawberry-scented shampoo inher bathroom when he’d pissed last night. He never thought anything other than Harley’s vanilla scent would appeal to him. But he suddenly loved the smell of strawberries clinging to hair and wafting from a pillow.
“Tom isn’t here, Mo,” he swore. “He can’t get on the fucking grounds.”
There was a back entrance, much deeper in the forest than the one that now had the electric gate. That needed to be seen to. As a matter of fact, the entirety of their property should be fenced and gated.
As usual, the dissenter was Uncle Johnnie. He’d argued he had jurisdiction over what should be done since his house was the last one. If an attack occurred, he could and would defend it.
That wasn’t exactly true, since parcels of land had been allotted, and the rest of it still belonged to the club. Yet, as Dad’s focus on Mom and their kids increased so too did his willingness to yield to the majority.
The writing was on the wall. It was a fucking disaster in the making.
Molly’s hand covered his erection a moment before her lips brushed his shoulders. He jerked away so fast, he fell out of the bed and landed on the floor.
“Make me forget, CJ.”
The quiet words penetrated CJ’s brain, and he slid his knees up, allowing his elbows to rest on them, so he could hold his head. Of all the fucking things for this girl to ask him.
“Please.” She drew in a sobby breath. “No one has to know.”
“I’d know.”
Her sniffle went through him, so he got to his feet and climbed back in bed. Without invitation, she scrambled into his arms.
“Mo—”
She touched her lips to his in a soft, hesitant kiss. Though he’d only indulged a handful of times, he liked kissing. He enjoyed the tenderness and the breathiness, the sudden urgency for more.
His hand went to the back of her head just as their tongues touched. He could no longer deny how much he wanted her, but his feelings for her were different than what he felt for Jaleena.
Than what he felt for Harley.
Fuck. In her presence or away from her, she tormented the fuck out him. A part of him was beginning to hate her.
Taking a play from Molly’s book, he gently tugged her hair back, moving her mouth away from his. He studied her. She looked so…so…broken. It was the only way to describe her, though he’d never met someone as traumatized and victimized as her.
“I want my Mo back,” he whispered. He missed the ditzy girl, who’d put her death date as February 32nd. He missed her cluelessness and her outrageous conclusions. Sliding his index finger along her jaw, he smiled. “Where is she? Somewhere in there.”
“She’s hiding in the closet,” Molly whispered. “I don’t like closets. You don’t get food there.” Blinking away tears, she swallowed. “Unless I’m a good girl and fuck.” She looked at him with wide, watery eyes. “But you won’t hurt me. You’ll make me feel good.”
