“No way that’s going to work. Summers is smarter than you’re giving him credit for. He’s going to figure it out and go ape-shit crazy. Let me handle this, okay?”
Nausea pushed up into my throat. This was a cluster-fuck of events, and I couldn’t see a good outcome however I looked at it.
Ryder came back to where I sat and pulled me into a hug. “Listen, I’m sorry about the outburst and if I scared you. Are you okay in all of this? Because right now, that’s the most important thing, even though I acted all crazy when you told me.”
I folded my hands in my lap and gave him what I hoped was a reassuring smile. Heaven forbid I tell him that it was unprotected sex. “I’m okay. It was horrible at the time and I wanted to die, but I’m a fighter and I can handle this.”
“You’re a strong woman, but this wasn’t your fault . . . you understand that, yeah? We’re going to make sure you get the best treatment when we get back to LA.”
I placed my hand on his arm. “Of course this means you can’t tell Jade either. Not because I don’t trust her, but the less people who know the better. I’ll see a doctor and a therapist, because I know I need to, but other than that—”
“So you’re going to let the senator get away with it? You’re not going to press charges or expose him for the fucking bastard he is?”
I shook my head. There was going to be more than enough publicity about the abduction, and I doubted Nolan’s career would go anywhere after that. He was ruined and he deserved that, but protecting Harrison from retribution was more important than getting my own revenge.
“I’ll be honest with you—I’m not sure whether you’re being stupid or brave. Probably a bit of both.” Ryder swiped the back of his neck as he gave me an exasperated look. “I’ll make a deal with you. I won’t say a word until you tell Summers yourself. But you can’t ignore it and pretend it didn’t happen, because it did, and you need to deal with it. As for Parker, he will get what’s coming to him. He deserves to be punished for what he did to you.”
As usual, Ryder had a point.
“Okay, I will as soon as we get back to LA. Thanks for talking me through this.”
“I love you, Sis. I only want what’s best for you.”
“I really got lucky in the brother department. I love you too, Ryder.”
The smile he gave me lit up the whole room. “I’m the lucky fucker with the two most amazing women in the world loving me.” He held out his arm. “Ready to go?”
Taking a few deep breaths to steady my nerves, I straightened my pencil skirt and ran a hand over my hair. I nodded and hooked in to his arm.
“Let’s go home,” I said. “The future is waiting.”
Chapter 47 — Harrison
I stood at the cabin door, every minute ticking by feeling like an hour. My eyes kept darting around, looking for Ryder and Eva to emerge from the building. What was taking them so damn long? Everyone was ready to go, and I was becoming restless and agitated. I wiped my clammy hands on my pants and cursed under my breath.
The flight captain had warned me that we needed to leave soon as a heavy storm was brewing over the ocean, and our window for a safe takeoff was narrowing as heavy winds were coming our way.
Just as I was about to go in search of the two of them, they came running across the tarmac, Ryder pulling Eva by the hand. I guess they were as eager as the rest of us to get off this island.
A heavy sigh of relief blew out from my lungs as Ryder helped Eva on board. The only reason I’d kept my shit together this long was because Savage was watching me like a hawk and keeping me away from the back section of the plane where Parker and his minions were already buckled in.
Razor and Cobra were standing guard between our prisoners and the door, even though Nolan and his cronies had all been handcuffed. From the glint in the biker’s eyes, I could tell that Razor was just waiting for someone to act up so he could straighten them out. The man called Jones had lost a few teeth since we’d arrived because apparently he’d put up a fight whilst boarding the plane, and Razor had laid his fists into the man.
While climbing the stairs, Eva looked up at me, her normally blue eyes now red and puffy. She’d been crying some more, and my heart ached for her. I was going to do everything in my power to make it better for her and help her get through the nightmare that had happened to her.
If she let me, of course.
Because she could easily have changed her mind after speaking with Ryder. I wouldn’t be in the least surprised if she wanted nothing to do with me once we got back home. Not that I’d give up without the fight of my life.
Even if she said yes to marrying me as a knee-jerk reaction because she was grateful I’d saved her, there had to be something there that would help us through this crisis. She’d said she loved me, and I simply had to believe that it was enough.
I took a few steps forward and held out my hand. She placed hers in mine as she stepped into the plane, her breathing still jagged from running.
Unable to resist, I pulled her into a hug. I wanted to shield her from looking to the back of the plane, but mostly I just needed to feel her against me. Both our bodies trembled as we clung to one another for a few moments.
“Please take your seats. We’ve got to take off in the next five minutes.” Savage’s voice boomed through the cabin and brought me back to reality.
Pulling Eva into a front row seat, I helped her buckle in. Her cheeks were flushed, her hands shaking, and her breathing still erratic.
“Just breathe, Eva. Just breathe.”
She closed her eyes and took a few long, slow breaths. I buckled myself in and leaned over to cover her hands in her lap with mine.
“It’s okay, baby. You’re safe, I promise. All the boys are here to protect you. In six hours, we’ll be back home and we’ll put all of this behind us.”
She laced her fingers through mine and squeezed. “Thank you.” Her voice choked. “For everything.”
“Baby, if you meant what you said back there in the room, I’m the luckiest man alive. I’m the one who should be thanking you.”
She turned her head and gave me a small smile. “I meant every word. I love you, Harrison.”
“I love you too, Eva. I can’t wait to finally make you my wife.”
She flinched. “We need to talk.”
This wasn’t the place to launch into a full-scale discussion because I already knew what was on her mind, but the least I could do was to let her understand that my love for her was strong enough to overcome anything that came our way.
“We’re going to be okay. Nothing will change my mind about how much I love you. I want you to understand that, baby. And I mean nothing.”
She sucked in a breath, reading my eyes to find meaning in their depths.
We sat staring into one another’s eyes for the longest time, just drinking one another in. It calmed my soul like nothing else could. The love we beamed at one another was both healing and cathartic. I could do this all day.
“Close your eyes, sweetheart, and try to sleep for a while. I’m not going anywhere, I promise.”
The smile I got as a reward blew me away. She snuggled closer and lay her head against my shoulder. Seconds later, her breathing evened out and she was sleeping.
It gave me time to think. One thing about flying I’d learned was that since I was stuck for several hours, I might as well settle in and use the time to think through things I normally didn’t have time for.
What surprised me most was how my mind kept wandering back to the Scorpio Stinger MC and the people in it. Never had I seen a tighter bunch of guys, willing to lay down their lives for one another. Such a deep sense of brotherhood wasn’t something I was accustomed to and truth be told, I really liked the idea of such a strong band of brothers working toward a mutual outcome more and more.