fell on the floor, then scuttled back across to the door. I shivered, both from adrenaline and sudden loss of his heat, wrapping my arms around my body. Despite everything, I was still turned on, which was seriously fucked up. It wasn’t right, feeling this much lust and anger at the same time.
“Did you really think you could lie to me about everything and expect me to just take it?” I asked, pushing to my feet. He frowned, taking a step back, eyes glittering with a mixture of lust and frustration.
“I wasn’t thinking at all,” he said, eyes darkening. “I spent the last twenty-four hours in a jail cell, fucking helpless while the whole town was calling you and telling you stories about me.”
A bitter smile twisted my lips.
“Half the town doesn’t even talk to me,” I pointed out. “Remember the whole slut-shaming thing?”
“Fuck them,” he said, the words surprisingly harsh. “Fuck all of them. You’re better than the rest put together, Tinker, and you’re sure as shit better than me. But remember how much they love to spew shit when you hear the rumors about this weekend. Rumors about me, and what’s going to happen next. There are big changes ahead for the Nighthawks.”
I swallowed, wanting him and hating him at the same time.
“You’re part of the Reapers MC,” I said slowly. Gage nodded.
“You’ve heard of them?”
“My husband was a prosecutor,” I reminded him gently. “I’ve heard plenty about your club and other clubs like it. And I know what kinds of things you’re responsible for.”
Gage shook his head.
“You don’t know my club,” he said softly. “But you will. They’re here in town because things got out of hand with the Nighthawks—we both know it’s true. I came here to see for myself and found them terrorizing everyone. Now we’re going to fix it. Then I’ll introduce you to my brothers and their families and you’ll see what we’re really about.”
“I have no interest in your friends, let alone their families,” I snarled the word, turning it ugly. “Especially if they’re all as fucked up as you.”
Gage shook his head slowly, eyes hardening. “Hate me all you want, but don’t judge people you’ve never even met. My Reaper brothers are real, just as real as you and Darren and Carrie. They have wives. Children. We’re people, Tinker, not stereotypes. We live life on our own terms, but you’re a fucking hypocrite if you fall for all the shit people say about us, especially people like your ex. That’s bullshit, the same kind of bullshit they’ve thrown at you because of that stupid fucking sex tape.”
“You can’t compare this to that—you got arrested for drugs!”
“No, Tinker, I didn’t,” Gage said. “Everyone who got arrested for drugs is still in jail. I don’t fucking use meth, and there wasn’t a trace of it on me, either. Guess your sources were wrong about that, hmmm? Wonder what else they got wrong? Maybe you should ask first instead of making assumptions.”
I took a deep breath, shuddering with relief. I hadn’t even realized how Carrie’s phone call had scared me.
“So you weren’t selling drugs out of my apartment building?”
Gage caught my eyes, holding my gaze.
“No, Tinker. I wasn’t selling drugs out of your building. I wasn’t selling drugs at all. I was mostly fixing your roof and unclogging your toilets and trying to figure out what to do about this incredible, sexy, irresistible woman who came into my life at exactly the wrong time, because I couldn’t get her out of my brain. Give me a chance, Tinker. I dare you. Meet my brothers. Meet their families. But keep your mind open. Otherwise you’re just as bad as Maisy and Heather. They’ve held that tape over you like you’re some kind of whore who deserves to be punished for being human. But you aren’t a whore and the truth is never that black and white. Get to know me, get to know my brothers. My family. Give them a chance.”
I considered his words, and something hit me. Before I’d been caught on that tape, I’d have felt perfectly justified in judging him. He’d lied to me, and there was no excuse for that. Except it sounded like maybe he did have a reason. I thought about Sadie and her bruising. About the fact that she’d refused to go to the police, and that if she had, Marsh might have punished her for it.
Cooper hadn’t lied about one thing—something had gone terribly wrong in Hallies