Page 26 of Bride for the Bikers

He chuckles softly. “Maybe? Not directly, but I suppose it planted the possibility in my head. He wasn't a good guy, not by most measures, but he saw me. Gave me direction. A sense of… I dunno. Of self, I guess.”

“Yeah, I don't think my father's going to do that for me.”

“Fuck, baby girl, you don't need him. You were already living your life before you met him. Taking care of your mama and doing the best you fucking could. Him being who he is doesn't take shit away from everything you've done before this clusterfuck. You fucking got this.” He sounds more confident than I've ever felt.

“Do I have to?” I say with a tired laugh. “Sometimes I think the worst part of this isn’t not getting the father of my dreams, it’s that I thought I had it for a short time, and it was so nice to just be able to relax and know I didn’t have to make all the decisions. Now that’s over and everything’s even more complicated. I just want someone to take over, deal with the bad things and just tell me what to do so I don't have to think about it. It sounds stupid, but it's true.”

“Baby, if you wanted someone to order you around, all you had to do was ask,” his voice is husky and low.

“What? I didn’t…” The tingles from his fingers stroking my arm start buzzing around and racing under my skin. Shadow has a calm aura of competence that makes him a natural leader. “What would you order me to do?” I ask him breathlessly before I chicken out.

“You have no idea what it does to me to hear you ask that,” he growls, deep in the back of his throat. As much a threat as a promise. “Are you sure you want to play this game?”

I run my hand over his pec, feeling its muscular outline through his tight T-shirt. “What are the rules?”

“Do you trust me?”

I nod. The only people in this town that have proven to want to protect me are the four men in this room—even Outlaw. Maybe it’s stupid, but I do trust him.

“Then rule number one. You don’t let anyone fuck with you unless you want it. Even if that’s me. Rule number two. While you’re with us, you belong toall of us.”

My knees go a little weak. “Is that it?”

He shakes his head, and the smile on his lips should be illegal. A dimple stands out next to the scar. “Yeah, one more. Rule number three. You do what you’re fucking told.”

16

HARPER

Shadow’s fingersthread into my hair and hold me in place while he kisses me like he's trying to devour me.

I’m losing touch with the person I used to be, because I’m not worried about anything except the relief of knowing that I can turn off my brain and leave him in the driver's seat. For once, not having to be in charge of anything. It’s an incredibly powerful feeling.

I moan into Shadow's mouth as he claims me.

Shadow pulls back. “Shh.”

“But—”

“Quiet.” He stops me with a callused finger on my lips and a clever smile on his. “We don’t want to wake anyone else up, do we? I'm gonna need you to be real fucking quiet. Not a sound, got it? The twins have already gotten a taste and right now I want you all to my fucking self. Can you do that?”

I nod eagerly. That’s easy. I can keep quiet if he wants.

“Say it,” he commands.

“I'll be quiet,” I mouth silently.

He smirks. “We'll see. But if you're not, I might have to punish you.”

“You wha—”

“Shh.”

I shut up, then swallow thickly as he grips the hem of my T-shirt and pulls it up. I open my mouth to say something, but one look, and I close it again. When he gets it up to my armpits, I raise my arms so he can take it all the way off.

“Good girl,” he whispers, and the soft words give me goosebumps.

Am I that desperate for affirmation? Does it matter if it feels so good?

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