Chapter Nine

Rhea

We pick the coffee shop across from my apartment building.

It's half past eight when we finally make it out of my apartment. I could point fingers and blame Knight for the additional hour it's taken us to leave because the man just had to take me against the wall, but then again, I was a willing participant.

Knight said he wanted to talk, but it became pretty obvious pretty fast that there would be no talking happening in my apartment, so after a shower— during which I practically had to lock the man out—I changed into my most unattractive t-shirt and long baggy pants, anything to kill the sexual tension between us.

It doesn't seem to have its intended effect as Knight's hand is on the small of my back, practically grazing my ass when we walk into the coffee shop.

"Knight," I scold, swatting the impossible man when I feel his hand on my ass. We're in public, and he should be careful about starting a fire in public.

"What?" the man blinks up at me innocently, and I shake my head, pointing at an empty seat in the corner.

"Please go and sit down there before we get kicked out of the shop. This is my favorite spot."

And it's true. This is my favorite spot, and I frequent it whenever I need to work on my coursework and the school library is closed. The shop is operated by a sweet middle-aged woman who calls everyone "honey" with a deep southern drawl and stays open until midnight. The students around here all love her, and I am no exception. Having grown up with a mother who cared very little about me, I often find myself seeking her out not just for her sweets, but for the maternal aura she exudes in waves.

"Don't be long," Knight's words snap me back to the present, and I watch him walk to the table and settle down to stare at me.

I shake my head and approach the counter. The proprietress, whom we all affectionately call Maggie, flashes me a kind smile.

"Well, hello there, Rhea honey. Surprised to see you back so soon."

"Hi Maggie," I say, my brows drawing in confusion at her words. "What do you mean ‘back so soon?'"

"Well, you did mention you would be visiting family for the weekend. You seemed uneasy before you left, and now, you're back only a day later."

Oh, I forgot I told her that.

"Right, I came back early."

"I see that," Maggie says with a sympathetic smile before nodding toward the man watching us like a hawk. "Does it have anything to do with the big, beautiful stud scaring off all my customers?"

My lips crack into a smile as I check out the displays on the counter. "Maybe."

"Well, good for you, honey," she says, and I try hard to hide the smile as my eyes inspect the goodies displayed behind the glass wall. "So, what will you have today?"

"Hmm, those brownies look so good, but it's the lemon-flavored cupcakes I really want to try." Hell, maybe I'll have both. "Oh, and those chocolate chip cookies look especially tempting. I need to have those too. They're practically calling my name." Just this once, I'll splurge on sweets, even if I regret it tomorrow.

Maggie smiles as she boxes everything for me before preparing my usual coffee, and I realize that I don't know what Knight takes. I'm just about to go ask him when Maggie stops me by placing two cups in front of me.

She chuckles when she reads the confusion on my face. "I have worked in this business for twenty years. I've only ever guessed one customer's drink wrong."

"What happened with the customer?"

"I married him," she chuckles. "Turns out, he was a picky bastard who didn't even drink coffee and just wanted my number. Anyway, take that to your man. If he doesn't like it, you can get something different. On the house."

I nod and pay for our food before walking over to Knight. I slide his coffee to him and watch as he takes a sip of it.

"How did you guess?" he asks, his gray eyes boring into mine.

"The owner guessed. Apparently, she can tell someone's coffee preference by looking at them. I should have trusted her, she guessed mine when I first showed up," I tell him, digging into the box and taking out a cupcake. I bite into it and force my gaze away from Knight.

I'm stalling.

I know I am, but I am scared of the conversation awaiting us.

Christ knows how long I have waited for Knight to profess his love to me, but now that he's said it, why am I still afraid?

"I spoke to Priest," Knight says, and my eyes snap back to his. Suddenly, he has my undivided attention.

"W-what did you say?" I whisper, dropping my half-eaten cupcake back into the box. "I told him we slept in separate rooms at the hotel, so he shouldn't be too mad at you."

"He wasn't mad at me, he was livid," Knight says, his voice calm, a clear contrast to the storm raging in my head. "I told him that we spent the night together, Rhea. I told him that you're mine, and I'm never letting you go regardless of what he thinks."

"What!" I yell, lowering my voice when several heads turn to us. "W-why would you tell him that?"

"Because I have no intentions of lying to my best friend or anyone else for that matter, not when it comes to us, Rhea."

"But you knew he would get mad at you," I say, exasperated, then a thought occurs to me. "D-did he hurt you?"

"We fought, I let him get a few hits in to work out his anger, but it's nothing we haven't done before."

Suddenly I realize this is what terrified me about his confession. A part of me realized that by accepting his love, there is a possibility I could create a wedge between Priest and Knight. Even though Priest is my brother, he and Knight have grown up together in the club. They were a family before I came into the picture, and they are both leaders of a club with many people dependent on them. The thought that I might have ruined that . . .

The thought that I could lose either or both of them makes my heart ache.

"Hey, Rhea, breathe," Knight says urgently, pushing back his chair and walking around to mine. "Breathe for me, baby."

I turn to look at him and follow his guidance until my lungs are working, but there is no stopping the pain in my chest.

"I'm sorry," I gasp.

"You have nothing to apologize for."

"But, Priest . . . the two of you fought . . ."

"We're good," he assures me. "Who do you think gave me your address?"

"Priest?" I manage, and he nods, rubbing my back until my breath has settled to normal before walking back to his seat.

"After he'd gotten the worst of his anger out, we talked. I promised to make a honest woman out of you and put a ring on your finger. Sky reminded him that he knows better than anyone that I'll take care of you. After a final threat to bury me in the yard if I hurt you, he gave me your address to make that happen."

I run my eyes over him as if checking him for injuries before quickly looking up and locking my gaze with his.

"It's okay. I understand that you told him those lies to get him off your back. It's fine, I get it—"

Knight shakes his head, his eyes boring into mine, and I swallow deeply at the desire I read in them. "Are you intentionally misunderstanding me, or do you just not believe that I could fall in love with you, Rhea?"

"I . . ."

He reaches over and grabs my hands without warning. He pulls me forward, and I meet him in the middle of the table. "I love you, Rhea. I don't care if I have to leave everything behind to follow you here, or if you come back to Austin with me. Where you go, I follow. You're my entire world now. My future."

"But . . . what's changed?"

"A few weeks ago, when the guys and I were uncovering a trafficking ring, I came across girls who were scared and lost, and I thought of you. Remember the first time you showed up at the camp?"

I nod, my eyes filling with tears. "Yeah, I was wearing ripped jeans and an old t-shirt. You were the one who saw me first and brought me to Priest." That was the first moment in my life that I felt truly safe.

"When you told us about everything that happened to you, I wanted to tuck you inside me and guard you from the world. Everyone at camp made a vow to protect you that night. When you kissed me on your eighteenth birthday, you were still very much trying to get your bearings, and I didn't want to take advantage of that. I wanted you to go out into the world and have a normal life. I couldn't hold you back, no matter how much I wanted to."

"I . . . I wanted you." Still do.

"Time is the only thing we've had on our side, Rhea. Took us a minute, but we found our way back to each other."

I nod, blinking back tears. "Okay."

"We'll get it right this time," he promises, rubbing his thumb over my wrist, and if the move is meant to be calming, it has the opposite effect. He must read something in my expression because his eyes quickly darken and narrow on me.

"What's that look for?" he asks, his lips curving in a cocky grin that does things to my insides I refuse to think about with so many people around us.

"Nothing, I'm just tired is all."

His brows arch, and a smug, knowing look settles in his expression. "Sure, let's head back so you can get some rest."

I push the chair back, and I am out of the coffee shop before I remember I've left all the sweets I bought. If the dangerous glint in Knight's eye is anything to go by, then I can tell I'm going to need all the energy I can get. I am about to head back inside for the box when Knight stops me, holding it up.

"You seem oddly eager for someone who's supposed to be tired."

"Yeah, well, you'll learn that exhaustion manifests itself in different ways," I say with a mock glare, knowing full well that the words will come back to bite me in the ass.

A few minutes later, I am literally shaking, tapping my feet impatiently as I watch the numbers on the elevator in my building change at a snail's pace and begging for the darn thing to get to my floor. Serves me right for getting the apartment on the top floor. In my defense, after growing up in a trailer park, I wanted to live in a high-rise building, so when Priest brought me here to pick an apartment, it was a no-brainer that I wanted the furthest one from the ground.

A lot of good that is doing me now.

"We're here," I practically yell, grabbing Knight's arm and dragging him out of the elevator. He chuckles at my eagerness, but the second my apartment door locks behind us, I find myself pulled flush against his massive chest with the man tugging at my clothes fervently. His lips are on mine before I can catch my breath, and soon, his tongue is twined with mine, battling for dominance.

"What have you done to me, Rhea?" he says breathlessly, his lips dropping to my neck, kissing and licking at my skin with the hunger of a man who's not had sex in years, when in actuality, that couldn't be further from the truth.

Everything happens in a flash as Knight strips off our clothes, and I'm soon at risk of rug burns as spins and ruts me in all the positions he can think of. It's all too much, and yet, not enough. I claw his back as he rams his massive shaft into my hot channel, railing me on the floor until I have no doubt I have woken all my neighbors on my floor and the one beneath.

We lose all sense of time as we make love in ways I never would have imagined, and when Knight leans down and whispers his love into my ear, my entire world explodes into a thousand pieces.

"I love you too," I whisper, wrapping my arms around his neck as he follows me over the edge, coming apart beautifully on top of me until we're both boneless. Tears spring to my eyes as we lie down, locked in an embrace, and I realize I am living my greatest dream.

All those nights watching this man from my bedroom window and wishing for him to be mine, and now he is. God, all I can think is . . . finally.

"Mine," he says with a pant, pressing his lips to my temple. "You're stuck with me for the rest of our lives. Forever."

Forever sounds perfect.