Verek (Savage Kings MC - South Carolina #3) - Lane Hart Page 0,30

as if he has doubts that she’s capable of watching. He doesn’t know her as well as I do, though.

“She can make up her own mind,” I tell him.

Chapter Thirteen

Tessa

* * *

I wrap my arms around myself as Verek strolls up to the severely wounded man with cuts and burns all over his body.

If I didn’t recognize his face and the dagger tattoo on his right arm that’s locked in the stocks, I would probably feel sorry for him. It’s been almost a week since the Savage Kings caught him and brought him here.

But I bet nothing they’ve done to him has been half as horrible as what he and the three other men did to me and all of those other women, some for more than a week before they killed them.

“Any last words?” Verek asks the prisoner.

“Kill me. Please,” he begs with a scratchy voice.

So maybe they hurt him more than I expected if he’s ready to die.

“Your three friends are dead,” Verek says. “Time for you to finally meet them in hell.”

With that statement, he holds the barrel of his gun up to the side of the man’s drooping head.

I startle at the loud boom of the gun going off, but I don’t scream. And as my heart gallops away, I stare at the crimson mess left behind. Blood is splattered everywhere, even on Verek’s T-shirt.

My first thought shouldn’t have been thank goodness he wasn’t wearing his leather cut, or he may never get it clean. But it was, because four men ruined me with their violence. They may have broken me, but I’ve been putting myself back together, stronger than before.

I’m an accomplice to four murders. That thought doesn’t even faze me because I’m too relieved. Never again will I wake up from a nightmare and have a panic attack, worried they will find me and finally kill me like they planned all along.

There’s nothing I can do to stop thinking about those hours when I was taken by monsters. Knowing they’re dead is exactly what I needed to try and move on with my life.

“Oh fuck,” Verek mutters when he glances down and sees the mess he’s made. He shoves the gun in the back of his jeans and rips his shirt off over his head before wiping his hands on it and tossing it to the ground. “Now I’m glad we didn’t have to use guns on the others,” he mutters. “What a mess…”

“We’ll take care of it,” Cannon says. “You need to get her home.”

I don’t like how he refers to Roman and Charlotte’s house as my home. Yes, I feel safe there, and I’m glad to have my best friend around because there’s no way I could live alone just yet. But now, after the past two days, my home feels like it’s with Verek. And knowing that he’s going to be leaving, even if it’s only temporary…well, I’m not ready to let him go.

When Verek starts over to me, looking a little out of sorts, I throw my arms around his neck and hang on tight, not caring if he has the blood of my abuser on him. For a second, I feel his palm touch my hip before he drops it. I know he didn’t do it because he doesn’t want his hands on me but because he’s not sure if I’m ready for his touch. And I’m not sure either. But this, holding him, feeling the strength of his hard body against mine, is all I need right now.

“We’ll give you two a minute,” Cannon says.

I’m not sure if the two men are still there or not when I grab either side of Verek’s face and pull it down to place my lips on his, kissing him softly over and over again, which he returns with the exact amount of force. It’s not enough, though. I want more of him. All of him. As soon as I swipe my tongue over the crease of his lips, he opens for me.

God his mouth! Nothing has ever been so sweet and salacious at the same time. He may be holding himself back from putting his hands on me, but he shows no restraint with his tongue or lips. My palms slide down his neck to caress his bare chest, down to his etched stomach and back up again, unable to get enough.

It’s not fair to him, how lopsided things are between us. I know that, but that doesn’t mean I can