“Don’t get all mushy on me,” she says, but her green eyes soften. “So are you still public enemy number one?”
I accept the subject change with a laugh. “I think it’s cooling down now, I don’t know. Vinnie doesn’t seem to want to tell me all the details, but security seems to have relaxed a little. The day I can go to a movie by myself, I’m going to celebrate.”
“It’s temporary,” she says, shrugging her shoulders. “Whenever shit was going down with me, I’d always tell myself it’s temporary. You just have to push through for now.”
“I know. I always think about how much worse it would be if Vinnie hadn’t brought me here,” I admit. “If I didn’t have him in my life . . . He just makes everything better, you know? Gives me something to fight for.”
Anna grins, showing her teeth. “You’ve got it bad, don’t you?”
I duck my face. “He’s just . . . everything. I don’t know. I know it’s new, and we pretty much started living together from the second we met, but it just feels right. That’s the only way I can explain it.”
I never thought I’d end up with a biker, but Vinnie is everything I could wish for in a man. He’s rough around the edges, but I kind of like that. He’s strong and takes charge, dominant, but also a total sweetheart. He can be stubborn, but so can I. He knows how to handle me, in and out of the bedroom, and doesn’t get distant when I show emotion of any kind.
He sets my blood on fire.
Anna makes a sound of amusement. “You have been living together since you first met, that’s pretty hilarious when you think about it.”
“I know.”
She pushes off the ground and offers me her hand. “Let’s work on more punches. You kind of suck.”
I grin and place my hand in hers. I really do suck. “Can’t I just slap whoever it is?”
She turns and laughs. “No, definitely no.”
Well, fine.
I guess I was going to learn how to fight like a man.
Or like a biker chick.
* * *
“Colt, sit,” I say, pointing with my index finger.
He sits.
“Good boy. Colt, down.”
He lies down.
I look to my audience and say, “Okay, he’s still working on stay, so that’s all for now.”
Vinnie, Tracker, Rake, and Lana clap.
“I still can’t believe you named your dog after one of my book characters,” Lana says, laughing. “That’s crazy.”
“She practically named him after me,” Tracker says for the millionth time.
Everyone ignores him.
“He’s going to be massive,” Rake says, patting Colt. “The kids can probably ride him.”
“I need to get him leash trained before he gets big enough to drag me,” I say, wincing. “Which will probably be very soon.”
“Should have got her a pug, or something,” Rake jokes to Vinnie.
“I’m sure a pug will protect her,” Lana says, sitting down on Tracker’s lap. “A pug with small-man syndrome. Those small dogs can be pretty vicious.”
Everyone heads back inside, but Vinnie grabs my arm. “Two things I want to talk to you about.”
“Yeah?” I ask, brow furrowing.
“The accounts you did for your dad, you didn’t mention that you did work for the Kings MC.”
He’s right, I didn’t mention that, and I’m pretty surprised that Talon mentioned it to him.
“Vinnie, when they say accounts, it isn’t some code word for dodgy shit. I legitimately did their accounting. I helped Dad with the numbers; I don’t know about anything else that went on with them.”
“Why didn’t you mention it?”
I sigh and try to explain it to him. “I just don’t want anything to do with all of that anymore. I didn’t do anything wrong, and I didn’t know my father was doing anything wrong until it was too late and men wanted me dead.” I tilt my head to the side and study him. “You knew all this, yet you didn’t say anything, and you accuse me of being a liar?”
To a man like Vinnie, loyalty is everything. Although I didn’t do anything wrong, I also didn’t tell him small details like that. I kept everything to myself, even though I wouldn’t have lied about it if I was asked. Keeping things to yourself protects people. I don’t want any more people to get hurt because of me. I just want everything to be over with.
“I go with my gut, Shay,” he says, eyes gentling. “I don’t think you have it in you to deceive me.”
We look into each other’s eyes, something passing between us.
“What else did you want to talk about?”
“Talon said you should go to your father’s house to sort out the estate and shit, figure out if you want to sell it or what. I told him I can take you out there next week. Is that all right?”
“Yeah, sounds good,” I say, my heart feeling heavy. The thought of going there . . . but it has to be done. What did I want to do with the house though? I definitely didn’t want to live there; I guess I’ll just have to put it on the market.
“Is it safe for me to go there though, won’t everyone be expecting it?”
“I’ll make it safe,” Vinnie assures me, pulling me by my hand toward him, so our bodies touch. He grabs my hair in his hand and uses it to lift my head back. “Now give me a kiss.”