Chapter 17

The look on Bruiser's face is enough to tell me whatever they discussed in church wasn't a good thing. I'm pretty sure it has to do with me.

Me and this situation that's happening with the man who is sick in the head.

I cross the room, meet him halfway, and plant my hands against his chest while his arms go around me. "What's going on?"

"We'll talk about it later. Right now, we gotta get back to the apartment, you need to pack a go-bag. We're heading out," he states, squeezing my waist.

I blink up at him, sensing now is not the time to argue with him about go-bag or about where we're going. So, instead, I lick my bottom lip and nod. "Okay, but you will tell me, right?"

"Yeah, Princess, I'll tell you," he mutters, dips his head down, and kisses me ever so gently. "Now, let's go."

"Okay." Stepping away from him, I don't get far before he snags me around the waist to keep me close. Together we make our way to where I left my stuff sitting while I spent time helping Avery and Willow with preparations. I grab my bag and smile at both women. "Sorry, we're not sticking around. I wish we could."

"It's okay," Avery says, looking somewhat upset. "When it comes to the club, I've learned to expect things like this."

"Trust us when we say it's never a dull moment around here," Willow adds to Avery's statement with a small smile. "If we didn't expect the unexpected around here, we'd all be running scared of the what-ifs and whatnots."

"Come on, Princess," Bruiser urges me toward the door, where I spot not only Dagger waiting but Colt and Carbine.

I nod and give both women a wave goodbye, a sense of dread twists around in my stomach, leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth. I'm used to just Dagger and Bruiser watching out for me, but add in two more guys, there's more to whatever this is.

"Princess, we're heading out as soon as you get your bags packed," Bruiser says the moment we step over the threshold into the apartment. "We don't have time for explanations right now, but I swear once we're on the road, I'll give you the answers you deserve."

"Okay." I'm not surprised in the least, but it doesn't make me happy. I want to know what's going on. "Can you tell me how much I should pack?" I ask while pulling out a duffel bag from my closet.

"Just pack some clothes, Gwyneth. Whatever else you need, we'll pick up when we get where we're going. And you need to leave your phone here."

"I need to let Angie and her dad know I'm leaving town," I tell him, opening the bag. My mind whirling with the danger that I know I'm facing but not knowing what it is. I really want nothing more than to argue with him right now, though I know it's not a good idea. Not with the mood he's in.

"Gwyneth, baby, I know you want to talk to them and let them know, but you need to get packing and not worry about telling everyone where you're going. We'll get word to them and let them know what's what. Now, get packed before I just throw shit in the bag for you." He turns and leaves the room without letting me speak further.

Biting back a response that might start an argument, I go about packing and throwing different random types of clothes in my bag. The last thing I go to grab is my birth control, and an idea pops in my head that has me grinning. I grab a couple of my toys, including my favorite one. I pack them quickly and throw a couple other things on top. I barely get the zipper zipped when Bruiser steps back into the room.

"Ready?" he asks, eyes going to my bag.

"Yes. Can you tell me now where we're going?" I ask, hefting my bag up off the bed.

Bruiser steps forward and takes the heavy bag from me. "I'll tell you when we get on the road."

"Right," I grumble, staring up at him. "Will you at least let me grab a few snacks from the kitchen? I don't want to have to rely on fast food and gas station junk."

"Already packed it up, Princess," he mutters. "Dagger's put it in the truck for me."

"Oh, um, okay. Well then, I'm ready."

Bruiser holds out his free hand. "Phone."

I bite back a curse, wishing he'd forget to ask about it, and walk over to where I'd tossed my purse on the couch and pull out my phone. "Here you go," I state a bit snappishly.

Taking the phone in his hand, he tosses it behind him on the side table, where it lands with a clatter. "Let's get moving," he orders, jerking his chin toward the door. "Dagger's already in the truck waiting for us."

"Why are we all riding in a truck?" I'm sure it seems like an annoying question to ask, but I need to know exactly what's going on. I don't like being in the dark.

"You, me, and Dagger are in the truck. Carbine and Colt are on their bikes. Mine and Dagger's bikes are in the trailer," he informs me while opening the door and stepping through, keeping me shielded.

"Why trailer the bikes?" I really wish he'd tell me what's going on. For that matter, when did they get a truck here with a trailer? This whole thing is starting to piss me off—more than just a little bit.

"In the truck, Princess. I'll tell you once we're in the truck."

"Fine, you better not leave anything out." I huff and follow his lead to the truck, where he opens the back door of the dual cab, tosses my bag in, turns to me, and hefts me up into my seat without so much as a grunt of response.

A moment later, he closes the door and rounds the hood to get in while Dagger hops into the passenger seat.

"Bikes are secure," Dagger remarks and turns to look behind him at me. "Don't worry about Grady. I made a call to him while waiting on you, explained a few things, and told him I'll be in touch."

"You talked to my captain without me even knowing first what's going on?" I snap, close to losing my temper.

"Princess," Bruiser takes on a totally new tone with me, one that not only seems like a warning, but seems like I'm nearly hitting the danger zone with him. His body is tense and his eyes are focused ahead of him on the road as he maneuvers the truck out of the parking lot and onto the road, heading in the direction of the interstate.

Why the hell does the song from Top Gun pop into my head? Like, seriously, if I don't get answers soon, I'm going to officially lose it.

"Don't Princess me, Dorian Tyler Bruiser Gentry," I all but snarl, using not only his road name but mixing it in with his real one because what the hell. "I deserve a damn answer as to what's going on."

"Yeah, you do, Gwyneth," Bruiser growls. "And I'll give them to you, but first, I'm trying to get us out of town before anyone is the fuckin' wiser. The last thing we need is for someone that wants to claim the bounty on your damn head to take their chance or follow us."

"What bounty?" I demand. My entire being seems to freeze all over.

"The one that was put out for you that's worth a shit ton to a lot of people," he grinds out. "Now, chill out. Give me just a little bit of time to get you the fuck out of here before I start telling you how this bastard is willing to pay five million to get his hands on you."

My stomach twists all the more, and I clamp my mouth shut. The blood in my veins goes cold, and a chill rushes over my body. Suddenly, I feel colder than I've ever felt in my life, including the time I spent in that godforsaken hellhole my mom sent me to.

Sitting back silently in my seat, I kick off my shoes, pull my legs up onto the seat, wrap my arms around them, press my cheek to my knees, and look out the window. There's nothing else I can say right now. Bruiser needs to focus, and I need to absorb the fact that some monster is willing to pay that much money for me.

Why? Why would someone be willing to pay such an amount? I'm having a hard time comprehending all of this. I need Bruiser to talk to me and explain what he knows, but not right now. He needs to focus on the road and make sure we get wherever it is we're going safely.

"Come on, Princess, we're here."

"Hmm," I murmur, feeling his big arms scooping me up out of the backseat where I'd fallen asleep at some point.I blink a couple times, seeing it was dark out, but I could hear the sound of waves splashing. "Where are we?" I don't bother lifting my head off his shoulder and simply snuggle deeper into him.

"One of the club's safe houses," he answers, backing away from the truck.

"We'll get all the bags," Dagger announces, keeping his voice quiet.

Bruiser grunts something, but I don't really hear him as I allow myself to drift off once again. With this man's arms around me, warmth starts to seep through the cold, and I feel safe when I know safety isn't something I should allow myself to feel right now.

"You gotta wake up, baby," Bruisers murmurs, not letting me completely fall asleep again. "I gotta make sure you eat something, then we're gonna finally talk."

"I don't wanna," I grumble sleepily. "Tomorrow."

"Gwyneth, we're not waiting until then."

I know that tone Bruiser's using and it's not one I'm willing to argue with. Honestly, I don't even have the energy to fight him on it.

Bruiser carries me up some stairs and into a house already lit up. I'm guessing one of the other guys went ahead of us and opened the doors. Just inside the house, he lowers me to my feet and takes my hand. "Come on, I'll take you to the kitchen and make you something to eat while I tell you everything you need to know."

"Okay, Bruiser." I sigh, giving in to him. I wanted to know everything, but I didn't. In the truck just before falling asleep some time ago, I decided ignorance was bliss.

Bruiser guides me through, up another set of stairs, and it dawns on me we're at a beach house.

"Where exactly are we?" I ask him as we clear the stairwell and the open kitchen living space comes into view.

The kitchen is a nice size with stainless steel appliances, a curved counter in the middle with a sink surrounded by black granite tile. A long wooden light-grain table sits just off to the side of the kitchen. On the other side, there's a couch and loveseat squaring off another section of the space. The walls are a cool blue with different types of beach decor hanging, including a map. The back wall is mostly all windows except for a set of glass double doors, making the room feel bigger than it is. Granted, it's still a big room. I'm willing to bet in the light of day, it's a gorgeous space to be in.

"The club has several safe houses. Some in state. Some out. This one is in Avon and isn't just a safe house, it's used whenever one of the members wants to come to the beach," he says, moving around the kitchen and pulling things out to make sandwiches. "Our room is on the second floor, along with Dagger's. Carbine and Colt are going to take the bottom floor. There's a bathroom just behind the kitchen in that little adjacent hall."

"So, we're at a beach," I remark, moving to sit on a stool in front of him, watching him as he works at making a sandwich.

"Yep." He nods. "Hammer made a call to Twister, the president of the Franklin Charter. He found out Horse, the VP there, is actually in town with his family. They stocked up the place for us."

"That was nice of them."

"Yeah, it was," he says, lifting his gaze to mine, and I know it's time. He's going to tell me what he hadn't told me in the truck. "Johnathan Bryant put a bounty on you. One that says kill anyone who gets in the way."

And there it is. The reason we're in a safe house. We're all here because it's safer to be away from everyone else and not get anyone else hurt. This is far worse than I ever thought it could be. To make matters worse, Bruiser and his brothers are risking their safety to protect me, which scares me even more.

If something were to happen to any of them, especially Bruiser, I don't think I could handle it. I know for a fact I couldn't. In the time we've actually been together, he's come to mean so much to me, and it would kill me if he were gone.