Page 33 of Shielding Lexi (Temptation)

I flinch away from Hawk and take a step forward until I’m squared up with Reaper. I’m looking up at him. He’s looking down at me. His large hulking body like a heavy weight about to fall on top of me. We’re at a standoff, but I won’t back down. It’s not my fault. The sooner he can get his head out of his ass and see me as an individual, the better. Either way, I have something to say and I’m damn well going to say it.

“I’m sorry for what he did to Julie,” I say. “I didn’t need to know her to know she didn’t deserve whatever Brick gave her.” My eyes stay steady on Reaper’s. Hawk and Kane stay still and quiet behind me.

Reaper’s nostrils flare as he looks down at me. “Who the fuck do you think you are, little girl?”Awesome, he’s blown a fucking gasket again.

“I’m a person. Just a person, Reaper. A person that’s so thankful to you for helping me through all this. A person who lost her own sister five years ago. A person who lost her dad a year later. Callie didn’t deserve to die. My father didn’t deserve to die. And Julie sure as fuck didn’t deserve to die.”

His face straightens and softens slightly, but he doesn’t speak. His eyes flick over me, like he’s seeingmefor the first time. Me the individual, not a threat or his enemy, justLexi.

Hawk steps forward and runs his hand down over my back with comfort, and I reach for Reaper’s hand. I’m not sure why. I half expect him to pull away, but he doesn’t. He lets me hold him for a moment, his arms slowly wrapping around me. But the moment passes fast. In what feels like seconds later, he heads out of the house without a word. The last sound I hear is his motorcycle rumbling away as I stand in the kitchen trying to make sense of what just happened.

17

Hawk

Lexi’s so nervous, I can just about hear her teeth chatter. I have to admit, I’m nervous too. The Daggers are evil fuckers. The Guardians are just a bunch of guys who want to hang out together. We’re not on the same level. Not to mention, that weird interaction with Reaper before he took off.

She lifts her head and rests it on my chest as we lay in bed. “Where do you think he went?”

“Probably just for a ride. He’ll be back. It’s hard to say what’s going through his head right now. He’s so triggered all the time these days.”

“I pushed him too hard,” she says, running her fingertip over my arm. “I just… I’m so fed up! Everyone is walking on eggshells all the time and he makes me feel like it’s my fault.”

She’s not wrong, he does do that. And I have a third-party guilt about it all, but I’ve also never lost a close family member, so I don’t know what kind of pain that causes. And if Reaper’s erratic reactions are anything to go by, I hope it never happens to me.

“He and Julie were really close. He pretty much raised her,” I say, returning the favor of a soft tickle down the forearm. “Reaper was around ten years older than Julie. So when their parents died tragically, he had just turned eighteen, and he wanted to make sure he could do whatever it took to take care of his baby sister. The only way he could support them was with the military. He did the best he could, but he beats himself up for leaving. He thought he was doing the right thing by bringing in money so she could have a good life, but Julie just never really got back on track. She was just so young when their parents died and you can imagine… it’s just—”

“How did they die?”

“Car accident,” I say with a sigh. “Dark road, rainy night, drunk driver.”

My eyes squeeze shut as I think about two small kids having to endure that kind of loss and how fast Reap had to grow up. That kind of pressure really changes a person.

“What happened to your sister?” I ask.

“She was thirteen. We went out of town for a family vacation—Monterey. She was so excited to get in the water, she ran into the ocean before we’d gotten settled in. No one saw her go. A wave pulled her off the shore and out to sea. My dad ran in after her, and so did my mom. Dad nearly made it, but she couldn’t hold on any longer. The tow pulled her under.”

“That’s awful,” I say as her blue eyes swim with tears as she relives the memory.

“My dad swam back, but I don’t think he ever left Callie. He spent the next year drinking himself to death, and finally succeeded one night late last year.”

“What happened to your mom?” I ask.

“She checked into a mental hospital shortly after that, and I relied mostly on my friends. Sara and Margo have been everything for me. Also, my friend Olivia… but recently she’s been tied up with a few men of her own.”

I pull her closer to me and rub her back, not knowing what to say.

Truth is, I’m not sure there is a ‘right’ thing to say—just like Reaper. All I know, is I want Lexi to be happy.

“Can I kiss you, Lexi?” I ask, tipping her chin up to meet my lips. I cup the back of her head, holding her in place as I wait for her answer.

“Yes, kiss me Hawk. Make me forget all this shit, everything.”

I kiss her lips, and slide my tongue into her mouth, matching her movements stroke for stroke. If loving on her helps her forget all the shit she’s been through, all the shit she’s going through, then I’ll kiss her forever.

I skim my palm gently over her pert breast, sensing the outline of her hard nipple, and she grips my wrist, arching her back as I pinch and roll her nipple through the light cotton of the sundress I bought her today.

“More,” she sighs, leaning her back against my chest, as she snuggles into me. Her chest faces away from me, and I cup her mound, feeling her wet heat through her panties. She slides them off her long shapely legs, kicking them onto the floor. Then, threads her left arm overhead, caressing my cheek and ear, tipping her head back. She’s so eager, so wet with need and I want to please her. I want to help her forget everything.

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