Gentle Curves (Dangerous Curves Book 4) (6 page)

Jax and Aidan nodded.

“Well, you think I’m going to stand for that?” King’s gray eyes were flint. “You think I’m going to let Trigger and Ace get away with what they did?”

“No,” Aidan said. “But what can you do?”

King grinned, a hard grin with zero humor. “Best for you to not know too much about that, man.”

“The less we know, the better?” Jax said, only half-joking. “But if that’s how you want to do things, then how can we help you?”

“You’re
not
helping me,” King said. “Aidan and Dillon need to focus on Gabi and Maria and being there for them. And as for you and Mac, Jax? Well, you need to be able to say, with total honesty, that you know nothing about any harm that might befall those MC dickheads.”

“And
will
it befall them?” Aidan said. “Some harm?”

“Oh, yeah.” King’s face and voice were as terrifying as his friends had ever seen or heard them. “Hell, yeah. Trust me. It will. Like a fucking sledgehammer.”

Chapter Six

Mirrie bit her lip and mentally ran through everything that she’d packed. Her small backpack held her ID, money and a change of clothes, and everything else was in her battered suitcase. Not that it was much: Mirrie had decided to travel as light as possible.

She looked around now, spotted her cell phone on the sofa. Working quickly, she removed the card and then cut it in to tiny pieces. She left them and the phone on the coffee table next to the envelope of money for her landlord. She’d buy a burner if she needed to, not that she had anyone to call once she settled in to her new life. She had resolved to not even contact Spider. She was sure Shane would be all over the poor guy, and Mirrie didn’t want to put her friend in the position of lying.

She looked around her apartment one last time, said goodbye. Then she strapped on her backpack, hauled up her suitcase. She stepped in to the hallway and turned to lock the door behind her. She’d leave the keys in the mailbox downstairs for the landlord, along with a groveling apology note for him and Spider. She was confident that she’d remembered everything; after all, this
was
the second time that she’d done this.

“Just where the hell do you think
you’re
going, babe?”

Mirrie spun and when she saw the huge man standing in the corner, deep in the shadows, she screamed and took a step back. She hit the closed door hard, winced at the bolt of pain that shot down her spine.

Startled, Mac pushed himself off the wall in one strong movement and reached for her. Fuck, he hadn’t meant to scare her like that and the terror in those amazing eyes stunned him.

“Mirrie? Hey, you OK?”

She tried to breathe, to fight past the wave of fear that had automatically overwhelmed her at the sight of a man hiding outside her door.

“Oh, God.” Mac gently grasped her shoulders. “I’m sorry… I’m so sorry. I thought you’d know it was me.”

She shook her head, still trying to suck in air. “I just saw – I just saw a shadow. I thought –”

“It’s alright, babe.” Mac tugged her a bit closer, longing to hold her. “You’re safe.”

Mirrie pulled back, though, denying him her curvy body, her sweet warmth. “Don’t touch me.”

Right away, Mac let her go and raised his hands. “Mirrie…”

“Fuck, Shane.” She felt anger moving in her chest now and she welcomed it. “What are you doing here? You
said
you wouldn’t follow me.”

He shrugged. “I lied.”

“You – you
what
?”

“I lied.” His eyes were blazing down at her. “You honestly think King’s people couldn’t figure out where you lived? C’mon, babe. That’s basic one-oh-one shit for them. Also? You still haven’t answered my question.”

“What question?”

“Just where the hell do you think you’re going?” He looked pointedly at her backpack and suitcase. “Enjoying a little getaway? Maybe a spa weekend with the girls?”

“None of your business.”

“Oh, you think?” Mac narrowed his eyes at her. “I knew you’d do this, Mirrie. I knew you’d cut and run. That’s why I’ve been standing out here like some creepy asshole for the past three hours, waiting for you to sneak off under the cover of darkness.”

She looked away. “I –”

“Save it.” He cut her off. “Don’t you bullshit me, OK? I’m through being a nice, patient guy. I’ve waited all day for you to talk to me and I ate my weight in baked goods while I did it and I’m done waiting. You hear me, Mirrie? I’m
done
. Now, we’re going inside and we’re talking. You’re giving me five fucking minutes of your time and you’re gonna listen to me.”

“I –”

“No.” He wasn’t joking or gentle now, not at all. He reached past her, opened the door to her apartment and pointed. “Inside. Sit down. Shut up.
Now
.”

“Screw you!” She was suddenly enraged. “You have no right to talk to me like this!”

“Like hell I don’t.” He stepped forward, forcing her to move back and away, back inside her apartment. “You’re giving me five minutes and your full attention. That’s all I want and that’s all I ask. After that, if you still want me to leave, I’m out of here.”

That stopped her. “Really?”

“Yeah.” Mac took another step forward. He wasn’t about to touch her, but he knew he was way in her personal space. He eased back a bit, not wanting to scare her more. “I swear, babe… all I’ve been after all day is the chance to offer you something. If you don’t want it, then I’ll go and you’ll never see me again.”

She considered that, worrying her lip between her teeth. “You promise?”

“On my life.”

She stared up at Shane, thinking. OK, yeah, the man was annoying as fuck and he was pushy and obnoxious… but he wasn’t a bully. If he said that he’d go, she knew he would. With a guy like Shane, his word was his bond and she could trust it.

Mirrie sighed, knowing that avoidance and resistance were both futile: he wasn’t going to let up until he got his five minutes. He was a persistent bastard that way. She’d seen him turn that single-minded focus and intensity on a patient’s medical problem and she herself had been the target of it – both in Shane’s professional life
and
his personal one.

No escape and I know it. He’s got me in his sights… and I’m not going anywhere until he lets me.

“OK,” she said at last. “Fine. Five minutes.”

Mac felt his whole body relax. “Thank you.”

She nodded tightly and went back in to her apartment, already regretting this.

He followed her in, took a quick look around. It was small and surprisingly impersonal: no pictures, no art on the walls, no plants or flowers. It looked like a temporary space, like a dorm room or a rental hotel apartment. It seemed that Mirrie had decided to live her life halfway in so many ways, and Mac’s heart hurt to see it.

She stood as far away from him as she could without actually leaving the living room, leaning against the far wall with her arms tightly crossed and her face closed.

“OK, you got past the front door,” she said. “Say what you’ve got to say.”

“Ace is gay,” Mac said, getting right to it. He knew he had five minutes exactly, so no sense wasting even one second of it. “Seeing as his MC brothers aren’t the most liberal, open-minded guys on the planet, we can use it to keep you safe.”

Mirrie stared at him, her mouth actually hanging open. “You – he – Ace –
what
?”

“He’s gay, babe, and we have proof.”

“What proof?”

“Phone texts and pictures.” Mac paused, not wanting to say too much about Gabi. “And he knows that we know and he confirmed it. We’ve used it once already, to force him to give up some information.”

Even as he watched, her face went as white as paper. She blinked, then slid down the wall, her arms still wrapped around herself.

“Mirrie!” In an instant, Mac was kneeling beside her. “You alright? You dizzy?”

She lowered her spinning head to her arms, rested her forehead on them. She felt his large hands on the back of her head, stroking her hair.

“Babe? You there?”

She shut her eyes and shuddered at his touch.
God
, it felt good and she shook as the intensity of memory tip-toed over her skin.

“Hey, c’mon. You’re scaring me now.” He moved closer and she felt his incredible heat and strength pressed up against her. “Talk to me, babe, please.”

Finally, she raised her chin to meet his worried gaze. His gorgeous face relaxed when he saw her eyes and he smiled.

“You good?” he asked.

Mirrie nodded. “So, this is your plan? To push Ace again?”

“Yeah.” Gently, he rested his hand on the nape of her neck and she let him. “We want to remind him of what we know and then explain that you’re fucking off-limits.”

She shook her head. “You really think he has that kind of sway over Trigger MacGee?”

“Yeah. We do.” Mac grinned. “He’s already shown that he can come through when it’s
his
neck on the line. He can play both sides, believe me. The man has a strong sense of self-preservation and we can use it.”

Mirrie stared up at him, thinking. “Who’s ‘we’?”

“Me, King, Jax and Aidan.”

“Anyone else know about Ace?”

“A few members of King’s crew. But that’s it.”

“And Spider.” Her words were almost inaudible. “
He
knows too, right?”

Mac hesitated.

“Shane? Spider and Ace have been together, haven’t they? Or if not, Spider knows who Ace
has
been with. Right?”

“I don’t know for sure that they were a couple,” he said at last. “I just have a very strong suspicion that they were.”

Mirrie tried to smile. “I suppose that’s why he was able to negotiate with the Fallen Angels for me, huh? Why he made it safe for me to stay in Denver?”

“Yeah.” Mac brushed her hair off her forehead. “That’s my guess.”

She nodded, looked down at the floor. “Is he safe?”

“Spider?”

“Yes.”

“Yeah, we think so. The deal between them was that Ace paid him a truckload of money to stay quiet. Spider used it to start the café, actually.”

“That makes sense,” Mirrie said slowly. “I always wondered how he’d managed to get the funding for it. I knew that he’d been turned down for a loan by every bank in town and then one day – bam! He had the cash to start up the business, free and clear.”

“Right. Anyway, so long as Spider doesn’t tell anyone about him and Ace, he’s safe.”

“You sure about that?” She looked tense and worried. “Ace doesn’t think that Spider gave him up to you guys, does he?”

“Nah, babe.” Mac stroked her cheek now, unable to stop himself from touching her. “Aidan figured it out on his own just by standing behind the bar and watching all the comings-and-goings at Curves. The man has some fucking sixth sense, I swear to Christ.”

“Oh. Oh, right.”

“So?” Mac held his breath. “What do you think?”

“About what?”

He fought to stay calm. “About you and me.”

Mirrie started. “Shane, I don’t think –”

“Stop.” His voice was rough, angry again. “Just stop, Mirrie. OK? Don’t just automatically say ‘no’ like some fucking knee-jerk reaction. Think this through,
then
answer me.”

She shut her eyes again, desperate to avoid the heat in those blue eyes. Oh, God, how she wanted to stop saying 'no' to Shane and start begging 'yes'. 'Yes' to kissing him, 'yes' to seeing him naked, 'yes' to fucking him hard and deep. 'Yes' to everything he was offering and asking; 'yes' to being together.

Mac was unnerved by her silence, by her stillness. "Mirrie? Open your eyes."

She did and he felt a wave of worry move through his chest at her tears.

"Why are you crying?" he murmured. "I just told you that we can be together and you cry? Thanks a lot."

She gave a watery giggle and wiped her eyes.

"OK, so?" he said. "What's your answer?"

"I – I can't."

"Why not?"

She shook her head.

"No." He was getting angry again. "That's not good enough, OK? Not anymore. You don't want to be with me, fine. But you give me at least one fucking good reason why not. If it's damn good, I'll accept it. But I'm not walking away from you until you talk to me. Don't you just sit there and shake your head and expect me to think that's enough."

She tried to get angry too, but all she felt was hopelessness. "You're going to make me say it, aren't you?”

“Say what?” he asked.

Mirrie struggled to contain all her thoughts and feelings, fought hard to not say everything that she'd held inside for so long. But he was pushing her, he was practically begging for her to expose her shame to the light of day. So at long last, she did.

“I learned how to live my life without you, Shane. It was half a life and it was flat and blank, but at least I lived it knowing that you were safe out there somewhere. It almost killed me, but I did it."

"OK," he said calmly, sensing that whatever she had to say was difficult for her. "And?"

"And... and I can’t do it all again. I’m not strong enough.”

“You’re the strongest woman I know, babe. From the first time I saw you in that hospital, I knew you were a fighter."

"I'm not." Finally, she just lay it all out for him. "
I'm not
. Not anymore."

"What are you really saying? Just hit me with it, whatever it is."

“Four years, Shane." She spoke slowly. "It’s a long time.”

He nodded, waited some more.

“You say you’re in love me with me – that you’ve never stopped loving me. But what if…”

“What if what?” he asked gently.

“What if I’m not the same person that you remember?” she said, the words tumbling out of her now. “What if time and being afraid and angry has changed me so much that you don’t recognize me anymore? And just what the hell will I do when you find out that I'm not that person that you really love and you leave me? I'll crumble, I'll just fall apart. And this time, I don't think I'll be able to put myself together again.”

He cocked his head at her. "Wait. You don't think you're strong?"

“I’m weak, Shane." Now her tone was confessional. "I’m beaten. I just – I gave up and they won. I
let
them win, don't you see? I walked away from the only man I've ever loved because they asked me to and in doing so, I hurt you, badly. I let them dictate the terms of my life... of
our
lives.
No
fucking fighter would ever have accepted that happening. But I did. I just set down my weapons and walked off the battlefield. I surrendered.”

"You didn't surrender."

"Shane..."

"You retreated and regrouped," he said firmly. "
Not
the same fucking thing. Not at all."

Stunned, she stared at him for a few seconds and then burst in to laughter. Relieved, he grinned back at her.

"Is that really what you think?" she asked at last.

"What I think, babe, is that you did a brave, amazing thing for the man that you love and you did it knowing that I'd hate you for it. You did it and then you got your whole life together and started all over again." He touched her lips, traced their curves. "You did it because you were strong enough to do it. And as for me leaving you because you aren't the same person? Utter bullshit, I can assure you."