Chapter Seven

Faith

Outlaw is quiet the entire ride back to the cabin. I can tell he’s processing through something, but I don’t know what it is. I imagine whatever Carmen said to him outside the truck had something to do with it.

“You want to go for a ride?”

My tone is low as I say, “Didn’t we just get back from a ride?”

“Yeah, on the bike I mean. I need to clear my head.”

I liked riding on his bike yesterday, but this whole thing is making me uneasy. Whatever Carmen just told him, shook him up. So much so that he has to clear his head. I don’t know what to think.

I doubt it was about her seizure because she would’ve said that in front of me.

The only logical conclusion is that Carmen is somehow onto this. She knows who I am, which can’t be good.

Outlaw climbs up onto his bike and starts the engine. I’m not sure how the man looks as good as he does despite the stress and lack of sleep, but he does. He might even look better. He has this rough, rugged look that’s wild and untamed. Turns out, it only gets better with lack of proper rest. Lucky him. I’m sure I look like a train wreck.

I climb onto the bike behind him and hold on tight, leaning into his giant frame as we twist down the winding mountain roads and lean into curves. I have a feeling this might be my last ride, so I close my eyes and enjoy it.

The sun on my face, the wind on my cheeks, the faint smell of pine, cedar, leather, and exhaust. For a last ride, it’s a good one. The mountains in the distance stand white-capped and the pine that dot the valley floor grow lush and green. I always imagined I’d live out in the mountains somewhere. A little cabin with a smokestack in a field of wildflowers. I’m lucky I got it as long as I did.

Outlaw moves his hand from the handle and rests it on my leg. I’m not one hundred percent sure why he does this, but I figure he’s comforting me because the end is near. We are going down the mountain and if we turn left at the stop light, I’ll know we’re headed north. North toward Montana, where he turns me in.

I don’t blame him. A hundred thousand dollars is a lot of money and holding a girl hostage is a lot more work than he probably anticipated, especially if people know who I am. I guess it was only a matter of time before word got out. Though, I’d hoped it would be more than a day.

The bike rumbles at the bottom of the hill and the vibration rattles through me. This is the moment.

Left or right?

Freedom or thirty years in prison?

He’s clearly going to turn left. Why wouldn’t he. I should’ve run. I shouldn’t have trusted him.

I’m such a fucking idiot.

He rubs my leg and leans to the right.

What the hell?

We didn’t go left. Maybe there’s another way around… except I’ve studied the map of this town inside out. I know roads that lead to paths that lead to other roads. I had to in case I had to run. There’s no way to go north from here.

I swallow hard and lean against his back as his big hand holds my calf. I don’t know what’s happening, but right now, I’m okay with that. I don’t need to know. Outlaw is in charge. He’s making the moves. He’s making the decisions. All I have to do… is hang on.

We drive like this for what seems like minutes, but judging by the shifting in the sun, I’m sure it’s more like hours.

Outlaw turns onto a stone path, and we ride up a few miles before a turquoise lake unfolds in front of us. The shoreline is rocky with giant glacial rocks and colorful gravel in shades of green, red, and white. Waves lap gently at the shore and seagulls dive and pluck at the grass along the lake. The sight is so incredible that I’m shocked to see we’re the only ones here. Not only that, but this place doesn’t look touched. It’s like it’s been set aside in space and time just for us.

Wind whispers through the trees and the popping gravel beneath the tires comes to a stop as Outlaw parks behind a pine tree.

The peaty smell of algae and fresh air takeover as he climbs off the bike and reaches for me. My hair blows in the wind and he stands in front, blocking the sun from my vision.

I stare up into his dark brown eyes, his hat turned back. There’s something different in his gaze now, something that hadn’t been there before. A feral look that’s both wild and protective, like he wouldn’t let anything hurt me.

My stomach tightens and my heart speeds up.

He cups my face with his rough hand and leans in slowly, kissing my lips ever so gently.

Tingles spread upward from my toes as our lips brush together.

He pulls away. “We need to talk.”

I’m dazed. I don’t want to talk. I gulp down a breath and then another, still staring up at him.

“Do we need to?”

He nods. “Yeah. We need to.”

I sit back on the bike and dig my feet into the rocky shoreline, staring out at the lake as waves splash gently. For a second, I picture myself free.

I imagine just the two of us, pushing oars through the water as a slew of turtles plop into the lake. I can hear the rustling of food wrappers and the pop of a can opening as we laugh and enjoy a picnic on the beach. I envision his hands on my skin under the warm sunlight and the soft brush of his lips against mine.

“My buddy Ruin recognized you from the salon. I have to tell him something.” There’s pain behind his eyes as though he wants to protect me, as though he has an obligation to.

My stomach turns as I stare at him. “Take me in. It needs to be done. I did something wrong. I should pay the price. It’s what’s fair, Outlaw. This was too much to ask.”

He stares down at the ground and kicks the gravel with the toe of his boot. “Yeah, I’m not doing that.”

I narrow my gaze and look up at him. “What?”

“I don’t know,” he sighs. “You’re like this ameba and you’ve crawled under my skin. I don’t want to let you go yet.”

“Ameba… crawled under your skin? How… romantic?”

He laughs and shakes his head. “You know what I mean. I suck at this shit. I haven’t felt like this… ever. You were wrong to rob those banks, but you do things for the right reasons. You… love and you care and… I called St. Michael’s late last night. Your nephew is there, room two twenty-eight. They gave me shit, but eventually they put me through to talk to him. He’s sounding good.”

“You talked to him?”

He nods. “Good kid. Says he’s really looking forward to that trip to see the buffalo. I’m not sure you can disappoint him now.”

I smile, fighting back tears. “I appreciate you and I know you mean well, but you have to turn me in. Too many people know where I am. I’ll never live normally. Not ever. And what does that mean for you?” I close my eyes and push back the wetness that falls.

Outlaw reaches out and stops the tears with this thumb. “I thought about this a lot on the way up here. You already have a new ID, a new life. The cops don’t know to associate Tilly with the charges. All they have is a blurry photo of a blonde woman. Truthfully, I’d have walked right past you had I not been studying your picture. I can talk to my buddy. I’ll pay him off if I have to.”

“But what happens when—”

He leans into my lips again, crushing his mouth against mine with intensity. His lips open and he draws my tongue into his mouth. My tits press against his chest, and I’m lost.

“Don’t worry about what happens next. I’ll take care of you.” His tone is low as he says, “Tell me you understand.”

I stare up at him, my lips stinging with need, my pussy aching, my thighs quivering. I’ve never been this taken care of in my life. I’ve worked since the time I was fourteen. My family always needed me to bring in money. And when my sister passed, I took on every burden the family had.

“You just met me. You’ll be bored with all this in a month. I can’t—”

His thumb draws across my lower lip. “You’re thinking too much. I know what I feel. You’re mine to care for. I knew the second I saw you.”

He leans into my lips again and brushes his hand across my ass, squeezing hard. His cock lays rigid in his jeans and I’m soaking wet. If I didn’t feel something for him too, I’d think he was full of it, but I do.

I feel so much for him.

I want to fall into his arms and lose myself against his giant frame. I want to tell him all my secrets and hear all of his. I want to stay up late at night and share thoughts on how the world is all messed up until we fall asleep in each other’s arms. And the next day, I want to do all that over again. But doing that means putting him in danger too, and that’s not fair. He stole cookies from a cookie jar, not two million dollars.

I lay against his chest and close my eyes, listening to the sound of his heart beat steady.

“I know what you’re thinking.” His tone is gruff. “Stop it.”

“What?”

“You’re thinking you’re going to turn yourself in. I won’t let you. I’ll make you my sex slave before I let that happen.”

I laugh and lean back, staring up at him. “You can’t stop me. You’re a good guy. I’m not going to make you an accomplice to this.”

He narrows his gaze. “You’re not making me anything. I make my own choices, little girl. And now… I make yours too.”

I swallow hard. I don’t know why I like the sound of that. I shouldn’t. I’m an independent woman.

“Really?” I say playfully. “I’m just a little girl and you make all my choices? That’s kind of… the opposite of what women want these days.”

“You’d be within your rights to go on strike, but fair warning… disobedience turns me on. So… I’m not sure how far you’ll make it.”

I bite back a smile and lean into his lips. “You must be really turned on then, because I’m a bad… bad girl.”

He turns me around and smacks my ass. “Yes… you are.”