17
ADDIE
“You want a coffee?”Manic called from the kitchen.
“Not this morning. I need to get to work.” I was running late, not for the first time. Thank fuck for Gerald. He was definitely getting a bonus. After filling in for me while I was away and now this, he’d more than earned it.
The last two weeks, since Manic and I returned from our trip, had been insane. We’d been doing a whole lot of living in the moment, that’s for sure. I wasn’t sure how it happened, but we’d spent every night together since he told me he wanted more than those few days away, and we couldn’t seem to get enough of each other.
I’d loved every minute. I was going with the flow. Having fun. No pressure, like Manic said.
I took myself in. My eyes were bright, my hair all over the place, and my lips were fuller and darker. I leaned forward and angled my shoulder closer to the mirror. “You gave me a freaking hickey!”
Manic appeared at the bathroom door, then strode forward to take a look, brushing my hair to the side. “Would you look at that.” He smirked, then he bent over and kissed it.
“No kissing, I’m already running late because of you.” I grabbed some concealer and tried to cover it. “You totally did this on purpose.”
“Gotta make sure every fucker in this town knows your mine somehow, cupcake,” he said, his gaze meeting mine in the mirror.
“How very caveman of you.” My heart did a little flutter. He’d been saying things like that more and more the last few days.
His eyes stayed locked on mine. “Until your patch arrives, I’m gonna have to get creative.”
“Patch?”
He wrapped his arms around me. “Property patch, cupcake.”
My heart gripped in my chest. “You’re getting one for me?”
He nodded, still watching me closely, waiting.
A flurry of panic exploded through me and kept on building. My palms were suddenly sweaty. I tried to shove it down as hard as I could so he wouldn’t see.
He watched me closely. “You okay with that, Addie?”
The nerves and swirling in the pit of my stomach intensified, my anxiety spiking, fear trying to take hold.
We held each other’s stare in the mirror, and I stiffened without meaning to. “I’m…I’m not sure—”
He pressed a kiss to the side of my neck, shutting me up. “We’re taking things slow, Adds, but we’re not seeing anyone else, right?”
“Right,” I said, and my voice sounded strange.
“And we’re gonna be riding with the club this summer, going to parties, hanging with some of our support clubs like the Pythons, a few rallies as well, yes? You still cool with that?”
“Yeah.” I was, and I wanted to go, but a property patch?
“You know, wearing my patch will keep you safe. I just want to keep you safe, Addie, okay? Don’t overthink it. I want us to have a good time, and if you’re wearing my patch, I won’t have to worry, especially when we’re with other clubs. You good with that?”
I nodded, that feeling in the pit of my stomach growing bigger. Logically, I knew he was right. And after what happened at the Pythons party on the way home from Colorado, I’d need one. Lila wore one to club parties and when they went away and were around other bikers.
No one would touch me if I was wearing it. Other guys respected it. Cracker wouldn’t have come near me if I’d been wearing one. It didn’t need to mean more than that. Intimacy and closeness were still some of my triggers, and this thing between us was still so new.
A property patch was a serious commitment, like a biker marriage.That’s not what Manic’s offering. No pressure.
Yes, this scared me, but I didn’t want this to end. Not yet. This whole patch thing was a shock, that’s all. God, I was so sick of being scared of my past fucking with my future.
It’s no big deal. This was about my safety, that’s all. “Yeah, I’m okay with that,” I whispered.