Page 26 of Bane's Beginning

“It will if she wants to survive,” he said with a gloom in his voice. “Anyways, kid. Go get ready for your date. I don’t want you to think anymore about this right now. No matter what happens, it isn’t your fault. It’s that creepy ass motherfucker’s. I love you.”

“Love you,” I said, ending the call.

Chase always knew exactly what I was thinking, and that’s one of the many things I loved about him. It’s hard to not feel at fault when I brought this trouble to the United States. I never told anyone about me being pregnant in Italy. It was too much to think about. It was one thing to have the choice not to have a child, and another to have that choice ripped from under you. Unfortunately, I’ve dealt with both situations.

The fact of the matter was Matteo Santoro thought I gave birth to his child, an heir to one of the largest mafia families in history, which means that as long as I was still breathing, the devil himself would always be looking for me.

Always.

Chapter 13: Maverick

She was late, but that was exactly what I expected from Thea. She was the type of girl who didn’t like being told what to do even if it was something she wanted to do. After about ten minutes, I saw her walk out of the clubhouse doors.

Of course, she was stunning. She was wearing tight-ass skinny jeans, a cutoff T-shirt that showed her perfect stomach, knee high leather boots and a sexy-ass leather jacket. Fuck, she knew just how to set me off.

I let out a whistle as she walked over to me and I saw a smile creep up on her face.

“Anna gave me some clothes to borrow,” she said.

“Remind me to thank her later,” I said as I winked at her. “You’ve ridden before?”

She shook her head as if she was nervous, but I didn’t take Thea for the nervous type. Neither was I, but our dynamic was changing tonight and the stillness in the air almost seemed to reassure that.

“Anna told me to tell you that I don’t ride bitch.” I couldn’t help but laugh at the unexpectedness of what she said. “If it helps, you’ll be the first girl to ride bitch on my bike.”

She smiled once again and I knew I was a goner. My girl was fucking beautiful. “Get on, wrap your arms around me and make sure to lean when I lean,” I told her and she did exactly that. “If you need me to stop, tap my shoulder a few times and I will pull over. Okay?”

“Okay,” she said, and we took off. Riding with Thea on my bike was a fucking wet dream. Her hands were wrapped tight around me and when I looked back at her, I saw the biggest smile on her face. She was having fun, and I was glad I was there with her.

After about fifteen minutes, I pulled into my driveway. It was a long road that led up to my rustic, cabin-style house. I remodeled the cabin after I finished up my last tour in the Marines as a way to work out my shit. Now, it’s two stories, has new bathrooms and a wraparound porch. Had a lot of shit to work out.

We got off the bike and I helped take the helmet off of her head. She looked around and smiled brightly. “Where are we?” she asked. “My house,” I responded as I grabbed her arm and led her into the house.

“You brought me to your house for our date?”

I laughed as I could tell she was getting a little pissed at the sentiment.

“Yes,” I said as I pulled her close to me in the kitchen and wrapped my arms around her. “Look, I don’t do flowers and fancy restaurants and I promise you I wouldn’t be good at it if I tried. But what I can do is make time for you and bring you to places that are important to me and do my best to make sure I keep that pretty little smile on your face. Is that enough?”

I saw her face brighten up. “It’s enough,” she said and reached up to give me a kiss, and I took the opportunity to deepen it, letting my tongue explore her mouth. She tasted so fucking good, and I couldn’t get enough.

After a while, we sat in the dining room and I watched as she put the food that I brought from my mom’s on her plate. The roomwas encased in windows and the sun was setting, which gave a perfect view since the cabin sat on top of a hill overlooking the water.

“It’s beautiful out here,” she said as she looked outside. “How long have you lived out here?”

“A few years. I bought it the same time I got out of the Marines,” I said and took a bite of my food.

“You were a Marine,” she said, taking it in.

“Yes, ma’am. I served four tours and then got the fuck out of there.”

“Is that how you met my brother?”

“No, actually, my battle buddy Flynn introduced us when your brother had gotten out. Said he had a vet that needed a job.” I saw her flinch at the name Flynn, and I wanted to ask her why, but I knew that she wouldn’t tell me. I just continued on to tell her about my experience in the Marines, how the shit I saw fucks with you and how I used this cabin as a way to escape those demons and move forward. She looked at me with a look of admiration, and I didn’t feel deserving, but fuck, I didn’t want it to go away.

“Tell me about you, though,” I said to change the subject. “And none of that fake Chicago shit either.”

“Sorry about that,” she let out a nervous laugh. “For the most part, I wasn’t lying though. Just about my name, job and city.”