Chapter Sixteen

CORA AND WIRE STOOD in the driveway. Katrina pulled the van to a stop and glanced in the side mirror to make sure Jagger was still behind her. He'd followed on his Harley, wanting to go with her when she returned the van.

Shutting off the engine, she looked around the interior, double-checking to see if she missed anything. She'd taken all her belongings and cleaned the whole van before returning it.

Outside, the Harley shut off. She slid her phone into her back pocket and greeted her aunt.

Cora hurried to her, engulfing her in a hug. "I'm so sorry about your loss."

She glanced at Jagger, wondering how much her aunt knew about their situation. The last week had been a whirlwind of heartbreaks, ending with the explosion at the clubhouse between Jagger and her dad.

"Thanks." She let go of Cora.

Mama Sue was hers. She felt possessive of the woman who'd raised her and was the only constant parental figure in her life. Sharing her life with Cora felt artificial. Her aunt was always too friendly. It was unnatural.

"Wire mentioned you were going to stay with Jagger." Cora chewed the corner of her lip. "Does that mean my brother will stay in Seaglass Cove, too?"

She wondered why Cora wanted to get close to her dad when he'd done nothing to give her the idea that he was close to anyone. Now that her dad was gunning for Jagger, she wasn't even sure she ever wanted to see her dad again.

"He took off." She shrugged. "I don't know where he is."

Cora frowned as the soft sound of disappointment escaped her lips. "I hadn't heard."

"Yeah, well, that's the way he is. He doesn't answer anyone." She looked over her shoulder. "Thanks for letting us use the van."

"Any time." Cora walked with her to join the men. "I'm glad I got to see you before work."

Wire reached for Cora the second she was within touching distance. Katrina stood off to the side. Others knew that she and Jagger were together, but they had never shown that relationship to others. She felt more disconnected now than when their love for each other was a secret.

Jagger clasped Wire's hand and then put his hand on her back and led her to the Harley. Getting on the back of his motorcycle was a familiar action. He handed her the extra helmet strapped to the bar. She climbed on behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. She ignored her aunt and her husband watching them. All she wanted to do was get out of there.

Instead of going downtown, Jagger cruised one of the residential streets and parked outside a duplex. She slid off the motorcycle when he toed the kickstand.

"Take off your shoes." He swung his leg off the bike and removed his helmet. "You can leave them by the Harley."

"Why are we here?"

"It's Bane and Daisy's place." He took her helmet and set it on the handlebar, then gathered her hand in his, leading her to the side of the house.

Once off the driveway, her feet hit the sand. She dug her toes in as she walked, trying to keep up with Jagger's longer strides. He hadn't taken off his boots and seemed to have no trouble walking.

Past the house, they walked over a dune. She gazed straight ahead, unable to take her sight off the Pacific Ocean. It was just like she'd imagined. The water went as far as her eyes could see, meeting the sky in the distance.

A haze hung in the air. Mist landed on her face but was quickly dried by the constant wind. She squeezed Jagger's hand. He'd held up his promise of taking her to the beach.

He pointed to the water. She nodded, following him. What she hadn't imagined was the sheer volume of the noise from the waves and the overwhelming sense of how big the world was going by the size of the ocean. And to think this was a small fraction of the water on earth.

The sand turned wet and cold. She no longer dug her toes in but walked on the hard-packed surface.

The waves came toward her and then drew back. She couldn't tell if the tide was coming or going.

Bits of broken seashells littered the ground, only to be stolen by the water.

Jagger stopped and put her in front of him. He wrapped his arms around her. His back provided a windbreak, and his body warmed the chill off her.

A seagull swept in front of them. She pressed her back against Jagger's chest, feeling his body rumble with amusement. It wasn't her first time around seagulls. They often came clear to Beaverton if the weather was severe enough to push them inland. But none of them had come so close to her before.

"Thank you for bringing me here." She looked over her shoulder at him. "Isn't it wonderful?"

He gazed out in the distance. "Every place has it's darkness that you don't see."

She turned in his arms to face him. "You don't like the ocean?"

"It serves a purpose." He kissed her. "I prefer being on two wheels, riding the highway."

Hit with an idea, she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Let's do that. We can pack some clothes and tour the United States. Just you and me."

"Kat."

"No, really." She stretched to her toes. "There are so many places we could see. You could do as much riding as you want every day."

"I'm not leaving the club." He pressed his forehead against her forehead. "Everything will be okay. You'll be taken care of. Mom's house is yours. The club will look after you. I have enough money socked away to support you for the rest of your—"

"I don't care about any of that." The urge to scream burned her throat. "I only want you."

He palmed the back of her head, bringing her to his chest. She held on to his vest. The family she depended on were the same people who would punish Jagger.

It made no sense that her father would blame Jagger in any way for loving her. He should be thanking him.

She looked into Jagger's eyes. "I'll never forgive him."

"You will." He inhaled deeply. "He has a right to punish me."

"For loving me?" She scoffed. "That's ridic—"

"There's things you don't know, Kat." He blinked an extra second. "You're going to have to trust me that what happens is part of the lifestyle. It's how we keep Havlin a safe place for family. There are too many men who would hurt each other if the bylaws were lifted."

"How can you say that?" Her heart shattered. "It's your life you could lose. You could lose me. Don't I matter?"

"If that happens, it'll be just punishment."

"For loving me? No, I'm the one being punished for loving you." She pushed away from him, no longer wanting to be by the ocean, where she had to yell for him to hear her. "Nobody can tell me that loving you is wrong."

He reached for her. She shook her head and stepped away. Strung tight, her emotions were all over the place. Yelling caused her anxiety to increase.

The last several days, Jagger had walked around as if trying to fit in everything he'd ever promised her into the week and spent more time with her. It was starting to feel as if he expected to be executed by the club. Almost the equivalent of his last supper.

"I thought you were going to fight for us," she yelled.

He refused to answer. Her body shook. Had she fantasized about the day he would claim her as his ol' lady?

During those years, he told her it was impossible because she was too young. She was twenty-fucking-four years old now. How old would she need to be to prove to him and everyone else that she loved him more than anyone?

It wasn't enough that he now touched her in front of the other members if that ended the moment her dad returned.

She turned from him and walked through the sand toward the dune. Each step made it harder to breathe. She could count the times they'd fought on one hand. Looking back, it was always over insignificant things pertaining to her growing up and wanting more freedom.

Her anger came bubbling out. She wasn't even mad at him. Or maybe she was.

Despite Jagger telling her not to involve herself in his problems, she would find her dad and have him straighten everything out. For fuck's sake, they were two grown men who belonged to the same damn club.

She reached the top of the dune and fell to her knees, unable to walk any more. Her calf muscles ached from walking in the dry sand, and her heart raced. On the verge of passing out, she had no energy to cry. Her temper got the best of her.

A couple of minutes later, Jagger plopped beside her, pulled her onto his lap, and held her.

She was tired of talking. Tired of arguing. Tired of worrying about losing him.

"I wish I could talk to Mama Sue." She swallowed hard. "She was the only one who believed in us."

Jagger's mom understood how much she loved him. Looking back, Mama Sue had warned her about him, putting the club before her. It was something his father had done, too. Mama Sue told her she would need to be strong. Stronger than she ever thought she could be.

What was it with Corbin men?

She had no idea how long they sat in the sand. The sun had broken through the clouds and warmed them enough that they sought shade and moved away from the dune. They rode back to the clubhouse together.

While Jagger took care of business with his men, she went to the bedroom to shower. In the privacy of the room, she checked her phone. There was no message from her dad.

She pulled up his contact and hit connect. The call went to voicemail.

"You need to call me." She disconnected.

She couldn't stand back and not do anything.