Page 37 of Bride for the Bikers

“And yet we still have to have to fight over who bunks with who tonight,” Lightning says with a laugh, collapsing onto a chair in the sitting area.

“I feel like I’m running away from my problems,” I say while wetting my lips. “Mom is out there somewhere, and I don’t know if she’s okay. He could be hurting her, or telling her I’m dead or all sorts of horrible things.”

“Carnell is on it. In the meantime, the most important thing is to keep you safe, and that’s what we’re doing.” Thunder sits on one of the beds, putting our heights about even. “We’ve been doing nothing but reacting since this shit started. It’s time to take a minute and think.”

“I know…” I lean my back against the wall, kind of how my whole life feels at the moment. “I just hate not doing anything.”

“Waiting is shit. It’s one of the hardest fucking things to do. We all fucking hate it, but you have to play this smart.” Shadow sounds about as frustrated as I feel.

I look around the room taking in all four of them, one by one. Outlaw might be the only one hurt, but they all look rough. “Why are you guys even still here? Honestly. You've got your bikes back, you delivered your message to Vincent. You don’t need me for anything anymore. I’m literally just more trouble for you. Not that I don't appreciate it, because I have no idea what I'd do without you guys, but… you're putting yourselves at a lot of risk here, for what?” I have to ask, even if I'm terrified that if they think about it, they'll come to their senses and leave.

I get hard stares back from each and every one, like I'm asking a really stupid question. Even Outlaw.

“Pretty fucking sure we promised to keep you safe. That means something. Do you think we’d go back on our word just because shit got messy?” Thunder sounds genuinely insulted.

“No, of course not, but there has to be a time limit on that, right? Ten years from now you aren’t still going to be with me just because you made a promise. None of us expected things to spiral this far out of control.” I raise my hands like I'm trying to indicate the whole universe.

Lightning grins. “Trying to get rid of us?”

“What? No.”

“Don’t fucking worry about ten days from now, let alone ten years,” Outlaw says, propping his head up on an arm. “We’ll deal with today first, and then see where we are tomorrow. Right now, I just want something to eat.”

“I'll see what’s nearby,” Lightning says, pulling out his phone.

“Chinese,” Thunder adds. “Szechuan Chicken, extra hot. Wanna feel it burn all the way down.”

“And out,” Lightning tacks on.

I blink at the guys. Apparently I'm stuck with them. And we're having Chinese for dinner.

A warm feeling spreads inside, making me grin. If you look away from the kidnapping, the shooting, the hiding out while fearing for our lives, it’s actually been nice to be part of the group. It’s just been me and Mom for a long time, and I’ve never had any other family. The way they’ve taken me in without question, it would be really easy to get too attached.

Well, if you can't beat them, then join them. “General Tso's, if they have it. Medium,” I announce, before going to explore the shower. I need to get all this desert dust and road grit off me.

“Noted,” says Shadow.

Still smiling, I go check out the bathroom. It's nice. With a huge open shower that looks more like a sauna, with a wood slat floor, two shower heads on the wall and two rainfall showerheads above. There’s room for at least three or four people my size, so maybe two bikers.

I strip off my dust filled clothes and turn on all the heads. When I jump in, it's like being dropped into a tropical storm. One day when this is all over and I have a home of my own, I’m going to have a shower like this. That's not too much to ask, is it?

I'm just starting to lather up with the complimentary loofa when a cool draft alerts me that the bathroom door's been opened. “Who's there?”

“Need help? I’m good at scrubbing backs and other hard to reach spots.” Lightning's voice is teasing.

“I'm not dressed!” Why out of all my options wasthatwhat came out of my mouth?

“Woulda hated to think you were one of those weirdos who showers with their clothes on,” says Thunder.

“It'll get pretty cramped in here,” I note, not sure if I'm trying to encourage or discourage them. I turn towards the back showerhead, clutching the loofa with both hands and my forearms covering my breasts.

“Then I guess we’ll have to get cozy,” Thunder says so close that I jump. “You've got great hips for holding onto, honey.”

He puts his hands on my hips and pulls me into him, pressing my shoulder blades against his torso, my legs against his, and his rigid cock against the small of my back. My time with him and Thunder feels like a lifetime ago even though it’s only been a couple of days. I swallow nervously at the thought, because I don't think anyone's going to interrupt us today.

“Hand me the scrubby thing,” he asks, clearly not expecting resistance.

I pass it to his waiting hands, knowing that I'm baring my breasts in the process, but what’s the point? He’s seen all of me, and I doubt I’m hiding nearly as much as I think. As tall as he is, I bet he’s getting a great top-down view.

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