Page 30 of Jester

JESTER

Inever had much troublesleeping in prison. My last cellmate was a scrawny, older guy named Danny. I remember how fucking terrified he was when I walked into the cell. I swear I thought the motherfucker might cry.

That night, he did whimper and sniffle, waiting for me to turn him into my fuck toy. The next day, once he realized I had no interest in my dick getting to know him, Danny nearly kissed my damn feet.

Afterward, he kept our cell clean, acting like the maid. I just let him do whatever. People didn’t interest me there. I never made friends. As a big guy, I kept to myself and people—even other big guys—liked it that way.

I only wanted to get through my time and go home. I thought about Talon a lot, first at Papa Bear’s house and then at this cottage. I never pictured her riding with the club. I refused to imagine her in danger or palling around with a bunch of guys.

But I did like thinking about her sleeping in her bed, safe at the Sanctuary, her body healed from the brutal beating those frat assholes gave it.

This morning, I wake up to find her curled up on the edge of the bed. She’s still wearing the pale blue boxers and white tank top from when she changed before bed. Her golden-brown hair hides her face. The blankets are piled up on the ground. I get hot easy and don’t like shit on me when I’m sleeping.

Resting on my side, I study Talon and think about last night. She settled down after I managed to kiss her without ripping off her clothes and fucking her sideways.

After I keep my clothes on and let her breathe, Talon goes from a mumbling scaredy-cat to the sassy broad from our phone calls.

Eventually, we smoked a joint and watched a movie. She laughed a lot at the action scenes. As the hour got later, she popped popcorn and brought me a beer. Talon often got starry-eyed and leaned in for a kiss as if I was supposed to sweep her off her feet.

I must have done an okay job with the romantic shit since she never flipped out or asked me to leave. We crashed around midnight. I spotted the nightlight in the corner and nearly mentioned it. Talon noticed my gaze in that direction and said something about needing light to avoid tripping over all the crap on her floor. I knew she was lying. She just feared the dark. I didn’t blame her, so I kept my mouth shut on the subject.

I’ve never felt this weird need for a woman. Few people can hurt me, and she’s one of them. I hate giving anyone power over my happiness. As a kid, I wanted to go cold inside and stop feeling. Even after Papa Bear entered my life, I still didn’t really warm up to most people. But Talon has got me wound up like I never thought possible.

Talon begins stirring a half hour after I do. I just watch her, fascinated by seeing my woman up close.

And she is mine. I don’t know what happens next. I’ve never loved anyone enough to change for them. With little Lando, I could have been better, but I chose different.

Now, I have a woman who will want shit. I don’t even know what. A house on Tobosa Road? She doesn’t seem to like kids. I think she thinks I want one. I didn’t even want Lando. But if Talon came up pregnant, I’d no doubt celebrate that news.

I’ve spent more than seven years knowing Talon belongs with me. All I needed to do was get through my sentence and stay focused on freedom. Now, I’m unshackled.

Except I feel like I’m now an inmate in a new prison. Talon’s the one holding the keys. She gets to decide what happens next.

Maybe that’s why I don’t smile immediately when she finally opens her eyes and looks at me. She seems so vulnerable and young as our gazes meet. Her tough-chick armor must have ended up wherever her clothes were because she stares at me with fear.

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do now,” I say when she refuses to look away.

“Neither do I.”

“Don’t you have tasks from Overlord?”

Blinking wildly, Talon sits against the headboard. When her shirt tugs up, I spot the tail end of one of her scars. My thoughts return to when I heard she was in the hospital. The world dropped out from under me that day. I don’t think I’ve breathed right ever since.

“You don’t have to do anything,” Talon finally says after breathing into her palm and flinching. “I need to brush my teeth.”

“To impress me?”

Talon stares at me for a second before smiling. “We kissed last night.”

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