He stares at me, completely shocked. “Fuck, sugar, I wasn’t…”

“Take me home, Cade,” I demand, clenching my fists.

His eyes scan my face, and for a moment, he looks like he’s going to back down, but he doesn’t. Instead, his face hardens and he walks over, stopping in front of me.

“No,” he says simply.

“Don’t fuck with me, Cade. I want to go.”

“I said, no,” he says, his voice firm.

“You don’t get a say so in this, you insult me and then…”

“Shut up.”

I feel my eyes widen. “Excuse me?”

He steps forward, leaning in so close I can almost taste him. “I said, shut up.”

“How fucking dare you-”

He covers my mouth with his hand. I squirm and attempt to open my mouth enough to get my teeth around his skin. My attempts fail, and I squirm and grunt behind Cade’s hand.

“Listen to me, and listen good,” he says, a flicker of compassion crosses his features before he replaces it with anger. “Don’t pretend to know what I’m thinkin’. I didn’t say one fuckin’ word about you bein’ a whore. You asked a question that question shocked me. I don’t have to explain myself to you, because I didn’t think what you assumed I was thinkin’. I don’t judge, no matter what shit goes down in someone’s life. We all got a past, girl, and we all have skeletons. Ain’t my place to judge another’s history. I wanted and enjoyed every fuckin’ second of having my cock buried inside you, so it’s about time you shut up, and stop blowin’ off the handle at people before they get a chance to explain. We ain’t here to be your enemies, sugar. We’re here to protect you. It’s about time you learned some trust.”

He lets my mouth go. I take a few steps back and pant with rage and hurt.

“I don’t trust,” I say angrily.

He steps closer, burning me with his gaze, his fists are clenched. I can just about hear him panting. “You do now, ‘coz I am the kinda man who don’t fuck someone over. I can hate a fucker, but I don’t fuck him over. I got somethin’ to say, I say it. I don’t dance around. I don’t lie and I don’t play games.”

I open my mouth to speak, but he puts a hand up and stops me. His expression is thunderous and wild.

“And one other thing,” he growls, “ever fuckin’ lay a hand on me again, I’ll drop you on your ass. I don’t hit women, fuck, I’d kill any fucker that did, but my theory is, if you got the nuts to fuckin’ hit a man, you are askin’ for trouble. Don’t do it again. Now get on the fuckin’ bike.”

I stare at him, shocked. His words hit me at my very core. They cut me deep because they’re so incredibly real. I can brush off abuse, I can brush off fake, but real words that hit my soul, they hurt. Fuck, they burn. My legs wobble as I walk towards the bike, completely unable to focus on the road in front of me. My eyes burn like fire, the tears threaten to escape over my eyelids and slip down my cheeks, showing my weakness. Cade gets onto the bike, starts it up and pulls the throttle, flicking rocks across the lawn. He turns his face to me, his eyes are wild and I can see he’s beyond angry.

“Get on the bike, now,” he growls.

I pull the helmet over my head, and with trembling legs, I get on the bike. As soon as my feet are off the ground, Cade takes off. Rocks fling about, hitting us as he tears down the road. When he skids out onto the highway, I have to grip his jacket to stop myself from falling. I can feel him panting beneath my fingertips, he’s angry and I know I deserve his anger. I assumed he thought something he didn’t, but right now he’s scaring me. I close my eyes, take a deep breath and focus on the wind whipping my face and the sound of the bike roaring as Cade picks up speed. We’ll be there soon; it’ll all be fine.

Finally, we pull into the compound. I skitter off the bike so quickly I end up on my ass in the dirt. I get to my feet swiftly, shove my helmet at Cade, turn and storm out of the gates toward my father’s house. I don’t look back, and Cade doesn’t follow. It’s for the best; we both know it too. I don’t need anything holding me back, and Cade clearly doesn’t want it. We made a mistake, having sex on the back of his bike earlier. We took that step from flirting to taking action, and taking action fucks things up. It confuses things. It makes things difficult and awkward. I should have ignored my lust, did what I had to do, and moved on.

But I didn’t, and that’s on me.

CHAPTER 7

PAST

I can smell his sweat as he moves over me; his body plunges inside of mine. Bile rises and falls over and over in my throat. I’ve learned to hold it down. There’s no point in letting it out; it’ll only make him angrier and the prick gets horny when he’s angry. I just hold my breath and let the drugs in my system take me to another world. It’s the only way to survive this. The only way to survive the suffocating feeling of having him all over me, having his body thrusting into mine, hearing his grunts. God, I wish it would end. I just want it to be over. Things would be so much easier if I were dead.

“What the fuck!”

I hear the sound, and I feel the mass of relief flood through my body. Billy. He came for me like he promised he would. Before I have the chance to open my eyes, Jasper is launched into a nearby wall. Billy has hold of his now limp cock and he twists it. The sound Jasper makes is that of pure agony, and yet it brings me complete comfort. Watching Jasper being lowered to his knees, is a sight I will never forget and will be forever grateful for. Billy leans down and drives his fist into Jasper’s nose over and over until thick red blood spurts out and coats the walls. I don’t even flinch. I have no feelings towards this, none at all.