prison.”
“Do you think what he said was true?”
He’s still playing with my nipples, but his eyes lift to mine. “Which part?”
“The part about getting his conviction overturned?”
“I think that would take a miracle, babe.”
I take a deep breath. “I’ve got to get my hands on that key. Today he teased me with a clue. Said it was closer than I thought. It’s got to be in the house.”
“Makes sense. It’s got to be in a location Sylvia can’t get to, and that would be your house.”
“Shit. I did something stupid today.”
“What was that?”
“He made me so mad that I lied to him and told him Mom was moving and some other people were already lined up to move in. You should have seen the look on his face.”
“Then maybe he’s going to get Sylvia to get that key for him before that happens.”
“How’s she going to do that?”
“Try to cozy up to your mom, get inside the house. You’re going to have to make sure that doesn’t happen. You run into her, don’t let on that you know anything.”
“Why?”
“Never tip your cards, babe.”
“Were they friends back in the day? Sylvia and my mom?”
“Sort of, but I think your mom suspected something was going on between her and Growler.”
“Maybe Rat did, too.”
“Maybe. Maybe that’s why he set Growler up for forty years.”
This was news to me. I pull back. “What the fuck do you mean?”
“Rat’s the one who tipped off the cops and led them to bust your father.”
My brows lift. “So Rat’s a rat?”
“Yup.”
“I thought the club was all about loyalty. What kind of shit is that?”
“The kind that gets a man hauled out to the middle of nowhere and a bullet put in his brain.”
I’m stunned speechless. The silence drags out between us, and Gypsy watches my every blink.
“Now you know what kind of a man I am.”
“I always knew what kind of a man you were.”
“Not the kind who would stab my own president in the back, though.”
“Just the kind who would sleep with his daughter.”
His jaw tightens. “You don’t want to be here, there’s the door.”
He jerks the sheet aside and moves to sit on the side of the bed. In a second, I think he’s going to reach for his jeans, head out the door, and leave me here.
I scoot across the sheets, press my chest to his back, and loop my arms around him. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to fight. A minute ago I was so happy and content.”
He reaches up and cuffs my forearm gently, his thumb brushing softly over my skin. “I was, too.”
“I’m scared,” I whisper in his ear.
“Of me?”
“No. Of us.”
He turns his head, and I press my forehead to his cheek.
“Why?”
“All my life I’ve sworn I wanted nothing to do with my father’s MC. And then you come along.”
He squeezes my arm. “I know the feeling.”
CHAPTER TEN
Tess—
It’s late Sunday afternoon when Gypsy pulls up a long gravel driveway. But it isn’t the place I remember. This is a ranch style house out in the country.
“You moved.”
“Yup. About a year ago.”
“You have a lot more land around you. It’s pretty out here.”
He stops the truck and jams the gearshift in park, then looks over at me. “I like it. Neighbors aren’t right on top of me, but it isn’t as convenient as the other place.”
“Still. It’s got to be worth the drive.”
He pulls on his door handle. “Come on. I’ll show you the rest of it.”
I climb out and follow him toward the door.
There’s a pond behind the house and a split rail fence to the right with some horses grazing in a pasture. I point. “Are those yours?”
“No. That’s the neighbor’s property. I just have this small tract of land. Those woods on the other side are state land.”
“Means you won’t have to worry about it being developed.”
“Exactly.”
I follow him up onto a porch and then inside. There’s a living room to the left with a fireplace, a kitchen on the right and a dining table in between.
“Wow.” He’s decorated in a masculine style with some nice motorcycle art and leather furniture. I don’t know what I was expecting, but not this. “Someone help you do all this?”
“What do you mean? Like move my shit in?”
“No, silly. The decorating.”
“Oh, yeah. My sister did most of that.”
“I like it.”
“Thanks, I’ll tell her.”
“So, you have a sister.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve always wanted a sister.”
He nods but doesn’t say anything. And suddenly I’m pretty sure we’re both thinking the same thing. World doesn’t need anymore