Chapter 20
Henley
The car was quiet as I lay there with my head resting in Maverick’s lap. I was so tired, but I just couldn’t make myself fall asleep. My eyes were closed, and I could feel him playing with a strand of my hair while he drove. I desperately wanted to sleep—needed to sleep—but I couldn’t stop thinking about that phone conversation I’d overheard between Maverick and Big Mike. I knew there was something going on with the club, and it was bad. It was something that threatened to tear them apart, but Maverick refused to tell me what was going on. I knew that there would always be secrets with the club… things Maverick just couldn’t tell me, but I wasn’t expecting to hear him growl out my name like that to Big Mike. He was pissed when he told Mike that I wasn’t an option. He demanded they find another way. A way to do what? I had no idea what he was talking about, but I knew I had to find out.
When I finally woke up, the sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon. I looked over to Maverick, and his eyes were red with exhaustion, his eyelids heavy and dark. “You need to get some sleep,” I told him.
“We’ll stop in an hour for breakfast. I’ll get some coffee when we get there,” he grumbled.
“Pull over,” I demanded. “Let me drive for a while.”
I expected him to fight me… to tell me to piss off, but he slowly pulled the car over onto the shoulder of the highway, letting me take the wheel. I reached in the backseat and grabbed my jacket, folding it neatly into a pillow for him. I put it on my lap and waited for him to lie down. The minute his head hit my makeshift pillow, he was sound asleep. I even managed to drive through a fast food window without waking him up.
The entire time on the road, I was thinking about Maverick. He’d been through so much over the past year, and things were finally coming together for him. If he could get this mess settled with his club, he could have a real chance to be free, to really be happy. I wanted to do something to help him, to help the club catch the guys who were giving them so much hell. I needed to talk to Big Mike. He wouldn’t have brought my name up, if there wasn’t something I could do to help. I knew Maverick wouldn’t want me to get involved, but I needed to do this.
It was almost noon when the gas tank ran low, forcing me to stop. When I turned off the engine, Maverick ran his hands over his face as he sat up in his seat. He sat there, staring out the window in a daze, and I hated that I had to wake him up.
“Hey there, sleepyhead,” I said softly.
He groaned while he stretched out his arms and asked, “What time is it?”
“It’s almost twelve. We’ve made good time and should be home in about eight hours.”
“Thanks for driving. I’ll get the gas. You go grab us something to eat, real food. Not that junk food shit you live on,” he said sarcastically.
“I’ll see what they’ve got,” I said, smirking as I got out of the car. Luckily, there was a burger place attached to the gas station, so I was able to get us both a decent lunch. I also grabbed a few snack essentials just in case we didn’t make another stop.
When I came back outside, Maverick was already sitting in the driver’s seat and ended up driving the rest of the way home. He drove with a heavy foot, so we made it in seven hours instead of eight. As soon as we’d unpacked the car, Maverick told me he needed to go have a word with Cotton. The minute he left, I set out to find Big Mike. I worried that this might be my only opportunity to talk to him without Maverick knowing.
When Mike opened his door, he looked surprised to see me standing there. He cleared his throat and said, “I didn’t know you had made it back. Where’s Maverick?”
“He went to talk to Cotton. If you’ve got a minute, I’d like to ask you about something.”
“Okay? Come on in,” he said as he stepped out of the doorway.
“So… Maverick told me about your idea?” I lied. I knew he wouldn’t talk to me about it otherwise. His eyebrows pinched together as he struggled with whether or not he should believe me. He was caught off-guard and didn’t know what to say.
“Well, he didn’t like the idea, so there’s no point talking about it,” he said, turning away from me.
“Come on, Mike. Don’t be like that. I really think this could solve everything. We’d just need to figure out how this whole thing would work,” I explained. I still had no idea what I was talking about, but I could see the wheels start to turn behind his eyes.
“Maverick will shit a brick if he finds out I’m even talking to you about this,” he grumbled.
“Yeah, well, what else is new? He has a conniption fit about everything,” I said, smiling. I didn’t like keeping this from Maverick, but I didn’t know any other way. “I just don’t see how it could work?”
“It’s a stupid idea, Henley. It’s just too dangerous. Maverick was right; using you just isn’t an option.”
“I think you both are wrong about that,” I snapped.
“It’s too dangerous. Using you as bait was a stupid idea, and who knows if that tracker on your car is still working? And even if we were there, waiting for them, it’s just too risky. Anything could happen.”
“That’s the one thing I don’t understand. Why would they still want me? I don’t really have anything to do with your club.”
“These men are different, Henley. Whoever they are, they aren’t the kind of people who like to leave loose ends. You’re the only one who can tie them to Skidrow’s murder, and they won’t want to take a chance on you burning them later down the road.”
It made sense, but I still found it hard to believe that these men would really come after me. “What does Cotton think about your idea?”
“I haven’t said anything to him. Maverick…”
“I’m not telling you to go against Maverick. I know you aren’t in the position to do that. It would take a lot to change his mind, but if you think it’s a good idea, you should push for it. I am willing to do whatever the club needs me to do.”
“Henley, just let it go. I’ve already told you. These men are dangerous. They aren’t the kind of guys you mess around with, or you could end up getting yourself killed. Maverick’s right. We’ll find another way,” he warned.
“Okay, maybe you are right.” I could hear it in his voice that he had no intention of going against Maverick. I didn’t blame him. No one wanted to piss him off, especially me.
It was well after midnight when Maverick finally came to bed. The sounds of his snoring echoed through the room, but I didn’t have the heart to nudge him. He’d had such a long day, and the deep sleep would do him good. The air conditioner was set on high, so the room was absolutely freezing. My toes felt like ice as I snuggled up beside him, enjoying the heat that radiated off of his warm body. Once I was able to stop my jaw from chattering, I closed my eyes and tried to welcome the exhaustion that was overtaking my body. I just wanted to sleep, to forget all the thoughts that were racing through my head. Unfortunately, I couldn’t stop thinking about what Big Mike had said. There had to be a way to make his plan work without really putting myself in danger. When I couldn’t think of a safe plan, one that didn’t involve me getting brutally murdered, I gave up and finally went to sleep.
Sometime in the middle of the night, I felt Maverick kissing along my neck. He continued to nip and suck along my neck and shoulder, while he eased my lace panties down my hips. My back was pressed against his chest as I pushed my ass back against his hard cock. That’s all it took. We spent the next hour making love, and the world around us disappeared. There were no thoughts of Tennessee or overheard phone conversations. It was just him and me, and nothing else mattered. I loved him. He made me feel safe and secure, and being wrapped up in his arms was the only place I wanted to be.
I was still in a sex-induced coma when Maverick gave me a swift slap against my ass and said, “Hey, Slick. I’ll be back in a couple of hours.”
He’d just gotten out of the shower, and his tousled wet hair fell low across his eyebrows. His black t-shirt hugged across his chest, showing off his broad shoulders, and his faded jeans fell just below his hips. Just seeing him standing there, looking so damn gorgeous, snapped me out of my haze. “Wait! Where are you going?” I tried to rub the sleep out of my eyes as I sat up in the bed.
“Heading over to the hospital. I’ve got someone I need to see.”
I didn’t miss the lack of information he’d just provided, like who he was going to see and why, so I hesitated for just a minute before I asked, “Mind if I tag along?”
“You going to behave?” he smirked.
“Maverick, I always behave. Now, can I go or not?” I said, giving him my most innocent smile.
“You can come, but you’ll have to hang back while I go inside,” he told me, crossing his arms across his chest. “It’s business, Henley. No fucking around.”
“Yes, Boss. I’ll do anything you tell me to.”
“Hmmm… anything?” he growled. “I’ll take you up on that when we get back.” His lips crashed against mine as he pulled me to my feet, kissing me with such passion and heat that my knees buckled beneath me. He held me close to his chest, claiming me with his mouth. I was about to melt there on the spot when he pulled himself from our embrace. “We need to go,” he said, smacking me on the ass again.
“You’re going to pay for that, mister!” I told him with my finger pointed toward him. I shook my head as I walked to the bathroom to get ready to go. “Totally going to pay.”
“Bring it on, Slick,” he taunted before I closed the door behind me.
Once I was dressed, I followed him out to his bike. He held out his hand to me, helping me get on behind him. I fastened my helmet while he started up the engine, and within seconds, we were out on the main road. I loved riding with him. There was nothing like being so close to him as he sped through traffic. I’d never felt so alive, and I was almost disappointed when he pulled into the hospital parking lot.
Just as we were stepping off the elevator, Maverick turned to me and said, “His room is down the hall. You can just hang out in the waiting room.”
“Okay.”
“I won’t be long,” he assured me.
He kissed me quickly on the lips before he headed down the hall. When he disappeared into the hospital room, I went to the waiting room and sat down in the only empty seat. After flipping through the pages of three different magazines, I began to get restless. I tried to be patient… tried to do what he told me to, but I couldn’t stop wondering who was lying in that hospital bed. When I couldn’t take it any longer, I got up from my seat and slowly walked out of the crowded waiting area. The hallway seemed so much longer than it did thirty minutes ago, and I was having a hard time remembering which room he went into. I was about to give up and go back to the room when I heard Maverick. His voice was low, but I could tell he was upset.
When I stepped up to the glass window and peered into the room, I saw Maverick try to console his hurting friend. I’d never seen this man before, so I knew he wasn’t one of Maverick’s brothers. I had no idea what had happened to him, but it was obviously bad—very bad. His face was deathly pale, and he was covered in bandages. He looked like he was in horrible pain as he lay there, listening to Maverick. Every so often, he would wince when he struggled to respond to Maverick. He could barely talk, barely move as Maverick tried to talk to him. My chest tightened when I realized that he didn’t have cuts or scratches. There were no signs of bruising that might have come from some sort of accident. He’d been shot—more times than I could count. When I looked over to Maverick and saw the look of anguish on his face, I wanted to go to him, try to comfort him, but I knew I couldn’t. I had to get back to the waiting room before he saw me.
I rushed back to my seat and tried to shake the image of what I had seen from my mind. I couldn’t stop obsessing over the bullet wounds that covered the man’s body. Who could have done that to him? Was it the same men who killed Skidrow? I wasn’t sure how, but the man lying in that hospital bed had to have some tie to the club, and it scared me. Things weren’t getting any better, and I wished there was something I could do to help them.