Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24160 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24160 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
“Let’s talk about what’s going to happen next,” I said softly as I sat on the couch and tugged her down onto the neighboring cushion.
“Um...how exactly do you take care of things around here? Am I going to have to work off my debt as a maid or something?” Her eyes went wide as saucers when she gasped, “You aren’t going to turn me into your sex slave, are you?”
I would have been thoroughly offended except the glint in her eye told me she was mostly joking. Not only that, but she looked as though she wasn’t one hundred percent against the idea, which had my cock swelling to epic proportions. I chuckled to hide my grunt of pain as I tried to adjust myself surreptitiously. “As appealing as that thought is—no, little doll. I think you’ve been reading too many of those books my sisters like.” One corner of her mouth lifted just the tiniest bit. “I don’t care about the wallet, Lucy. I brought you here because you are obviously in trouble, and you’re going to tell me the whole story.”
3
Lucy
I’d spent the past week feeling as though I’d never run far enough to feel safe again. As ridiculous as it sounded, sitting in a locked room inside a biker clubhouse with Dominic was the first time I sensed I was out of harm’s way. All I knew about him was his first name, that he was a part of the Silver Saints MC, and he had enough power for the sheriff to back off. Those things should’ve scared me, but I couldn’t forget how sheltered I’d felt in his arms while we were on his motorcycle. Something about Dominic called to me—and it wasn’t just the sexual chemistry that practically crackled in the air around us.
Whatever it was, I found myself spilling my guts about what had driven me away from the life I’d built for myself. “When I left my apartment to go to work two Fridays ago, my neighbor’s boyfriend was walking into our building. He always skeeved me out whenever I saw him around, so I didn’t say anything and scooted past him as quickly as I could.”
“Did he do something specific to set off your radar?” Dominic asked, leaning forward and resting his forearms on his thighs.
I swallowed down the gulp in my throat as I remembered the first few times I’d run into the guy. “At first, it was just how he had no problem checking me out even when his girlfriend was standing right next to him. But then a few weeks ago, I bumped into him in the hallway when he was leaving her apartment by himself, and he took it up a notch. He scanned me from head to toe, licked his lips, and asked if I was single. When I told him I was seeing someone, he shrugged his shoulders as though it was no big deal, but I swear I felt his gaze on my butt as I let myself into my place.”
“You got a man?” he bit out, his hands fisting hard enough that his knuckles turned white.
I felt my cheeks fill with heat as I shook my head. “No, I lied because it seemed like the quickest way to get him to back off. I’m not sure if it worked or not since I didn’t see him much over the next couple of weeks and my neighbor was always with him. Except for that last time, and he must’ve been distracted because he barely even glanced my way when I went past him. I didn’t think much about it until I scrolled through the local news before leaving work. It was kind of my ritual before heading home, along with checking my social media. But I didn’t get that far because there was an article posted about a murder in my building.”
“Fuck,” he groaned, dropping his head low. “It was your neighbor?”
Tears filled my eyes as I remembered what had happened to her, and Dominic reached out to lace his fingers through mine. I squeezed his hand and continued, “Yeah, someone killed her that morning. They stabbed her a dozen times, and it had to have happened after I left for work because I heard her singing in the shower as I was getting ready. Our bathrooms shared a wall, and she never held back when she was in there. She picked the silliest songs, and it always made me smile.”
His thumb brushed along the side of my hand. “Did the article mention an estimated time of death?”
“The police thought it happened between eight and noon but were hoping to narrow that down after the autopsy.” I shivered at the thought of the coroner cutting into her body.
“What time did you leave for work?” Dominic asked, drawing my attention back to him.