is worth all the gold in the world - a real family.
Maverick settles the cheque and then takes my hand once again and almost pulls me from the diner. Cassie and Jack start play-fighting until Maverick growls at them to stop. Then he opens the door and barks at them to belt up and shut up and slams the door behind them.
Then he takes my hand once again but before opening the passenger door, leans in until my back is firm against the metal and he crowds the world out. Suddenly, it is only him. He is all around me and I see nothing but those dark, dead eyes looking at me as if I’m prey. Leaning in, he whispers huskily, “As soon as those kids are safely back with their mamas, you and me are gonna talk.”
I stare at him in fear and his lips brush against my ear as he says firmly, “Non-negotiable. It’s your choice, either you open up to me, or you live in fear your whole life. That life is found when you dance between your greatest desire and your biggest fear. We just need to discover what that desire is darlin’ and use it to set you free.”
The fact he is so close makes me lose my mind. I can feel the heat from his skin in the air that I breathe and it is laced with a yearning for something he can offer me that I sorely need right now—hope. Yes, Maverick is asking to help me and I would be a fool to turn him away. However, those eyes tell a different story and both of us know that in opening myself up to him, will bring with it a different set of problems altogether. Will I step into the pit of hell and make a deal with the devil? It certainly feels that way because at this moment I would do anything for this man because for the first time in my life—I am interested.
By the time we reach the Rubicon, I finally know why it bears that name. The point of no return—it certainly feels that way.
As we pull up in the yard, I see Ryder standing with a few of the others and watch as Cassie shrieks and runs to him, jumping straight into his arms. The look on his face brings a lump to my throat as he holds her close and strokes her hair lovingly, whispering in her ear something that makes her giggle. How I wish my own father was a man like that. The tears burn as I think about my own family and as I brush them away, Maverick growls. “Stay with me darlin’.”
We walk across and I don’t miss the interest in Ryder’s eyes as he sees who I’m with and then he smirks, prompting Maverick to snap, “You can thank Lou for this and just for the record, it’s a favor, a one off that means shit.”
Ryder laughs softly causing Maverick to mutter under his breath and before I know what’s happening, he grabs my hand once again and pulls me after him at speed. I almost fall over my own feet as he drags me god only knows where and I don’t miss the amusement on the men’s faces as they watch us go.
Before long we reach the building where the Reapers have their rooms and my heart starts racing inside. Surely, we’re not going there—to his room.
Apparently, we are because he doesn’t even give me a choice before punching in the entry code and slamming the door behind us.
“Slow down.”
I plead with him as he drags me behind him and he growls, “Let’s get this over with.”
I feel hurt and just a little betrayed as I sense his anger and fight back the urge to tell him to go to hell, but something deep inside me wants this conversation. I want to open up to someone and see if he can make it all go away. It may as well be him because I don’t care what he thinks of me - of my family but I do care what happens next because I know I can’t carry on living like this.
By the time we reach his room, I’ve won my own argument with myself. If he wants me to open up, he had better be prepared for what he hears because it’s not the happiest of tales and I expect he can do nothing about it, anyway. If anything,