Looking away from her, his jaw went hard. “No.”
She nodded.
“And Ty’s—”
“He’s fine.”
She couldn’t stand the nagging feeling something was off about him. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”
He met her eyes. “Tell you just about everything, Allie.”
It wasn’t what she meant, so she tried to rephrase. “Why…why are you…”
“Why am I what?”
“Why are you acting different?”
“Scared outta my goddamned mind, Allie. Fuckin’ lost it.”
Shit. He’d lost it. A memory flooded her, a memory of Jace, carrying her, saying in a deep ragged voice, “Yeah, baby, I’m here.”
He found her.
He saved her.
What else had he done?
“Did you kill him?”
He released a breath. “No, didn’t kill any of them. Let the police handle them.”
Eyes falling away from his, she exhaled in relief.
“He’s facing kidnapping, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, assault and battery charges, and a bunch of other unrelated shit. He’s not getting off.”
“What other stuff?”
“After your tires were slashed, I hired a friend that’s a PI to look into him. He found out the bastard’s been paying off judges.”
It came as a shock. Not the fact Jace hired someone, but the fact Wyatt had paid off judges. It seemed so out of character. Then again, Wyatt was good at disguises, concerned for her one minute, shamelessly beating her the next.
Lost in her thoughts, she barely caught it. A brief moment before Jace could blanket it from his expression, she saw it—the pain, the reason he kept his distance. He loved her. He told her, but most importantly, he showed her, every single day. After all she’d been through, that hurt the most. That it hurt the man she loved the most.
“Hold me.”
“Want nothing more, but don’t want to hurt you. Wanted you to get some rest, too. You need it.”
She smiled. “Don’t you know after all this time that what I need most is you?”
He fought a grin and lost.
“You can’t hurt me, and I sleep better with you.”
He pressed his lips to her palm, closed the distance between them, and settled beside her. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pressed her head against his chest.
She caught glimpse of the bandage on his hand. “What happened to your hand?”
“Lost you. Lost my fuckin’ mind,” he whispered into her hair.
He didn’t elaborate. She didn’t push. If he didn’t want to say, she didn’t want to make him relive it.
“Love you, Allie.”
Tilting her head up, she looked into his eyes. “I love you, honey.” She then settled against his chest, and in seconds, she fell asleep.
****
Allie.
Even with the nasty bruise on her cheek and her busted lip, she was beautiful. His beautiful, smart, sweet Allie.
He held her against his chest. She’d fallen asleep in seconds. She needed it. Apparently though, she slept better with him. Softly threading his fingers through her hair, he smiled.
The door to the hospital room opened. Army walked in. “She wake yet?”
He nodded. “Up for five minutes. Long enough to make sure we didn’t kill anyone, ask if everyone was safe, ask about you, and tell me she loves me.”
Army smirked. “Never thought the man who saved my ass in Afghan was the man for my baby sister.”
“Never thought the baby sister of the man who’d saved my ass in Afghan would be the one for me.”
“When you making it official?”
“Want to move her in and give her some time.” He wanted to make sure there was no backlash either. She’d seemed fine when he spoke to her, but she’d been kidnapped, held against her will for more than nine hours, and beat by her ex. He’d be stupid to think the experience wouldn’t affect her.
Army nodded. “You got something good, both of you, together. Everyone knows it.” He chuckled. “When I found out, remember you told me you were different with her?”
He nodded.
“I didn’t believe it, but then I saw it. You’re different, not just with her, with everyone ’cause you have her, but you know shit gets fucked sometimes. Sometimes it’s our own doing. Sometimes, it’s shit we let get to us. Don’t let this eat at you, brother. You could ruin what you’ve got with her, and then you’d have no one to blame but yourself.”
He’d already let it get to him, and Allie sensed it. There was nothing he could do but thank Army. That’s what he did.
****
“Where are we going?”
Jace pulled his gaze away from the road to glance in her direction. “Home.”
Allie had just been discharged from the hospital and could not hide her relief. She’d been there only a day, but she’d suffered through eating horrible hospital food and didn’t think she could take any more of it. Her head still hurt, but she felt better than the last time she woke.
“But we just passed the garage.”
He grasped her hand, squeezing it lightly, and placed it on his lap. “Our home, Allie.”
They had a home? “Um…okay.”
A moment later, he pulled into the drive of his house. Finally understanding he meant his home.
“Honey, I don’t have clothes here.”
He parked, then angled his body until he faced her. Smiling his amazing smile and without saying a word, he opened the driver’s side door and hopped out. Walking around the car to open her door, he helped her out and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Together, they strode up to the door. He unlocked it, opened it, and allowed her in first. From behind her, he wrapped his arms around her waist, buried his face in her neck, and kissed under her ear. “Welcome home, baby.”
She turned, her chest to his, tilting her head up to meet his eyes. “Jace, umm…are you saying you want me to live here with you?”
His eyes twinkled with humor. “Yeah, Allie, that’s what I’m saying.”
He wanted her to live with him? In his beautiful house? He didn’t ask her. He brought her and let her figure it out. She should’ve guessed. He was a biker, and bikers told you to do stuff instead of ask.
She smiled. “I don’t have any of my stuff.”
“Mia, Lynn, and the guys took care of that.”
“But it’s been like…two months…I mean…isn’t it too fast?”
His brows drew together. “Allie, when we began dating, we were living together. I had to go without for weeks, and I nearly fuckin’ went crazy. I got that back when you were living with me at the compound. For a month straight, slept with you beside me, woke with you beside me, got home and you’d give me a kiss and ask how my day was, and then you’d fuckin’ make me an amazing meal. You think I’m gonna let you move into your own place, you’re fuckin’ wrong.”
“It’s because I cook for you, huh?” she teased.
He fought a smile. “Agreed?”
“Do I have a choice?”
He smirked.
She smiled. “Yeah, honey.”
****
Allie woke in the middle of the night. Her head lay across Jace’s chest, her hand on his stomach, the smell of him filling her.
It’d been a week since she’d been kidnapped, and a week since she’d moved into Jace’s house. As it was with them, everything was perfect. Well, except she caught him staring at her several times. It wouldn’t bother her because she loved it when he looked at her and because she loved looking at him too, but it did bother her.
As of late, when he looked at her there was a sadness in his eyes. She knew in those moments he was reliving it, thinking of what could’ve happened. He’d been overprotective, too, hovering over her every move, getting things for her she could get herself. She couldn’t blame him and accepted it with ease, hoping with time it would pass.
She couldn’t accept his sex ban though. He held her all night, told her he loved her, but he never made a move. She had several times, and he’d made some silly excuse. When she finally pushed for the real reason, he admitted she was bruised, and he didn’t want to hurt her. She could not accept this, so daily she attempted to seduce him. So far, she’d been unsuccessful. She tried it all. Almost.
Allie lifted her head and tilted it up to meet his face. The hard angles relaxed in sleep. She moved, angling her body over his, straddling him. His arm around her back tightened.
She pressed her lips against his softly, then trailed her mouth down the length of his body. Reaching the top of his boxers, she tugged them down, took the length of him in her hand, and watched as he hardened before her eyes. She took him in her mouth.
His eyes snapped open and widened, groaning. His fingers pressed into her shoulders.
She continued to take him in her mouth, pressing her tongue against the length of him. His hands grasped her arms and hauled her over him until her lips were pressed against his. He rolled until he’d nestled her under him, his shaft pressing at her core. Her legs instinctively pushed him toward her, a silent demand. With his tongue in her mouth, the warmth of his body over hers, he pulled up her nighty, yanked her thong off, and filled her slowly.
Yes, exactly what she wanted, what she needed. Ecstasy rippled through her. Her eyes widening, she moaned into his mouth. Her fingers gripped the skin on his back.
“Missed having this, baby. Missed having you so fuckin’ much,” he whispered against her lips.
He pulled out of her, then pushed into her again, slowly. In that slow pace he set, he stayed, making love to her. She didn’t ask him to go faster or harder. She couldn’t. His eyes held hers captive, making her heart squeeze in her chest.
Then and there, she fell in love with him all over again.
****
Allie liked it hard. She liked it fast, but he also knew she’d take it however he gave it to her.
Trig had been without for more than a week. She’d been banged up and bruised, and he hadn’t wanted to hurt her, so tonight, he’d take his time. He wanted it to last so the memory was seared in his mind.
He slid into her, then out of her, keeping his slow pace. The entire time, her eyes on his like she, too, wanted to burn the memory in her mind.
“Heaven, baby.”
Her lips parted. She moaned, and her nails bit into his skin, her legs tightened around his waist. She lifted her hips to take more of him in, keeping his pace. He was already close. She had that glassy look in her eyes, so he knew she was too.
“Come with me.”
Her arms tightened around him, and then, she moaned his name. He let loose, his cock jerking inside her. She clenched him.
“Jace…”
His fingers gripped the back of her neck, his whole body shook from the force of his release, hers shivering under him. It seemed to last forever. He savored every bit until it slowly dissipated. Panting and catching his breath, he held her eyes.
She smiled, ran her finger along the scar on the side of his lip, and whispered, “Love you, honey.”
Love. What he felt was so much more, and every day it grew.
Without responding, he drew away. Her eyes saddening, she reluctantly unwrapped her arms and legs from him. He hated to let her go, to see the look on her face, but his body moved. Reaching into his nightstand, he pulled open the drawer, and removed a black jewelry box. He settled in between her legs with his head near her stomach, and then he placed the box between her breasts.
Her eyes widened. Her gaze shot from the black box to him, then back again. She didn’t make a move, but the question hung in her eyes.
He hadn’t prepared what he’d say because he hadn’t intended on proposing so soon. He wanted to give her time to adjust to living in their home and get over what happened, but like when he bought the ring, he acted without thought, without giving his brain time to think, process, and plan.
Her gaze went to him again.
“Marry me.”
She let out a small gasp. Her eyes watered. When she whispered, “Yes,” tears drifted out of her eyes.
He smiled.
She leaned down, cupped his cheeks, and pressed her lips to his. “Yes. Yes. Yes.”
He chuckled. “Baby, you wanna see the ring?”
Drawing away from his lips, she nodded. He grabbed the box, pulled it open toward her.
Her eyes widened. Without blinking, more tears drifted down her cheeks. “It’s beautiful, Jace.”
He removed it from the box and placed the diamond ring on her finger.
Her gaze on her hand then met his. “We’re getting married, honey.”
He grinned. “Yeah, baby, we are.”
Her eyes glimmered. “I’m going to be Mrs. Jace ‘Trigger’ Warren. I’m going to be Alyssa Marie Warren.”
Heart tightening in his chest, he took a deep breath, loving the sound of that, loving it more she wanted to take his name.
“Yeah, baby, you are.”
He was the luckiest trailer trash on earth.
Epilogue
Four months later…
Allie descended down the stairs. Her mind on her dress, the beautiful, white, mermaid, lace gown. She couldn’t think of Jace. If she thought of Jace, she’d remember in minutes she would be married to him, and it got her emotional in a very happy way that would make her start crying and ruin her makeup. She knew this, but Mia, Lynn, and Tiff had to remind her every time she let herself think of Jace.
“Allie?”
She turned and met Ty’s gaze. Her hand resting on his elbow, he stood beside her, helping her down the stairs.
“Can’t believe you’re getting married.”
“Me neither, Ty.”
He smiled. They reached the bottom of the staircase. “You make a beautiful bride.”
He told her this multiple times. She’d thanked him multiple times. Right then, she just smiled.
Together, they walked toward the French doors leading to the backyard of her and Jace’s home. He pulled the door open and held it out.
She paused and looked at her brother. “Thank you, Ty.”
His brows drew together.
“If it hadn’t been for you…” Tears hit her eyes. Her voice trailed off.
He shook his head. “Anytime, anyplace, Allie.”
“I love you,” she whispered.
“Love you, too.” He quirked a brow. “Dry them tears.”
She laughed, shakily.
In the backyard under one of the willow trees, stood the white gazebo decorated with roses and calla lilies. An aisle, with rose petals scattered on it, led to it. White chairs lined each side, flowers at the end of each row.