Rainbow (Ruthless Kings MC Baton Rouge #1) - K.L. Savage Page 0,38
this is bad.
I catch Hound and Mime struggling to maintain a hold, but the winds are becoming too strong. I shouldn’t have been out here, but I’m the only one limber enough to climb a tree. The howls in the air slashing by remind me of a pack of wolves.
I’m over the water at this point, the river. Hound has had to let the slack out, and damn it, I knew moving right next to the Mississippi River was a bad fucking idea. I take the saw in my hand and glance at the guys. Hound is pressed against the house, his mouth open as he yells, and his muscles are flexed along with my brother’s to try to reel me back in.
Yeah, that’s not happening.
Mime stares at me as I place the saw on the rope. He shakes his head and tries to pull again, a desperate attempt to get me on land. The only way that’s happening is if the wind stops getting stronger.
All I can do is hope I make it out of this like I do everything else.
In one slice, I cut the rope. With a loud crack, it lashes back, snapping into the air. I cover my face, straighten my body, and hold my breath as I hit the water.
The current is a vengeful bitch swooping in for the kill. Waves crash over my head from all directions. I don’t fight the current; I swim with it, doing my best to keep my head above the muddy water.
It’s cold, the water tastes like something died in it, and the smell is… horrendous.
I wince as I swallow a mouthful of river water, retching when I taste grains of dirt and fish. I don’t know how long I drift for, but my muscles begin to ache. I’m tired. Finally, I see what could be my salvation: a huge tree trunk is extended over the water, but it’s still pretty firmly stuck in the riverbank. I reach for it, knowing it might be my last chance to get out of this river before it kills me.
Fucking rope swinging in the wind, god, I’m an idiot.
All I keep thinking about is Ryan and how I should have been more careful. Of course, the guys and I have done dumber shit than this, but to be fair, there weren’t catastrophic winds on those days.
I catch the trunk by wrapping one leg around the end that’s sticking in the water, then throw my body around it. I crawl over the rough wet bark, scraping my hands along the edges of the wood. I spit out more water and shake the ends of my hair out of my face, fighting the current smashing against the right side of my body.
Fuck me, I’m exhausted, but pretty green eyes flash in my mind; I can’t help but push forward. Giving up would be so easy. I could stop fighting and let the water take me, just like all the fires I’ve been in, but there’s always something that makes the next day worth it.
And this time, it’s Ryan.
My Sassafras.
I smirk when I think about what he’ll say to me when I get home. Although he might slap me and kiss me all at the same time, which makes me smile.
Hell, I hope he slaps me. It would be fun to see what would happen next.
I crawl along the tree trunk faster as I think about him, scampering as quickly as I can back to land. I know right now everything is happening fast between us, just like the current that’s trying to sweep me away. I never thought in my life that when I finally found myself settling down, it would be with a man. Honestly, I thought I’d marry a woman, have a few kids, and have the typical white picket fence house.
Even when I was a teenager, I always just figured I hadn’t met the right woman to make me feel that spark. I hadn’t found the person I’d spend the rest of my life with. My dad always told me that I’d know within the first two minutes of meeting someone if they were the one or not. He said he knew the moment he saw my mom at the peace rally. I remember asking him what he thought or how he knew and all he said was, “Everything around me slowed down, and everything inside me changed. That’s how I knew, and that’s how I know to describe it.”