Tara
The last two weeks have flown by, most of it spent trying to adjust to my new lifestyle and getting the clubhouse in order, making it feel more like a home. Apart from the room Nate calls church, I’ve taken on making sure the place has been freshened up. There's only one room I’ve yet to step foot in.
Jeffries’ bedroom.
The room where he laid his hands on me.
I just can’t bring myself to do anything in there.
“Hey.” Nate places a gentle hand against the back of my head, kissing the top lightly. “You looked deep in thought there for a moment.”
“I was,” I say, looking up at him. The smile on his face warms my heart. He narrows his eyes, squinting at me. “Anything I need to know?”
“Oh, no.” I shake my head, wafting my hand in dismissal.
“I’ve been thinking,” he says dropping down on the bed beside me. “The room at the end of the hall, my father’s old room. I think we should move in there.”
“No,” I blurt out. “I like this room,” I continue, my voice a little softer.
“It’s bigger though, baby,” he adds.
“I’m getting the designers to rework the room, but I like it here,” I say, grabbing his chin and planting a fleeting kiss on his lips. “This room reminds me of us, and our first night here together. I don’t want to be in his room.”
He nods.
“Any luck on finding him?” I ask, hoping that they have managed to finally locate the bastard.
Pressing his lips together, his eyes fall to the floor. “Nothing.” He lets out a huge breath. “We will find him, don’t worry about that.”
Shooting him a sad smile, I step up from the bed, grabbing my purse.
“Hey.” He grabs my wrist pulling me back toward him. I stand between his open legs, my hands resting on his shoulders. “Where ya going?”
“Work,” I scoff. “I still gotta work, Nate.”
“Hmmm…” he squeezes my ass tightly, “I have a little somethin’ you could work on.” His eyes trail down to his straining cock in his jeans and I let out a little giggle.
“I gotta go, baby,” I say, tearing myself away from his hold, when all I really want to do is stay here in his arms and fall back into bed with him.
“Let me take you. I have some spare time before I finish up in the studio.”
“I’d love that,” I say sarcastically, my eyes falling to my bare legs and the skirt I’m wearing. I rise up on my tiptoes, kissing his lips softly. He parts, his eyes trailing to my legs and he lifts his brows suggestively.
“I love when you wear a skirt. Easy access.”
I roll my eyes, but secretly love that Nate can’t keep his hands off me. That I’m the only woman he looks at. He makes me feel wanted. Making our way downstairs, we head outside and over to his bike. I love this time of day. The house is empty, the sun shines and if you listen carefully, you can hear the birds singing. No loud engines roaring, no music playing, just me and Nate.
And Emily. Not forgetting Emily.
“Hey, have you seen Emily this morning?” I ask Nate.
“No,” he replies, handing me the helmet. I slide it on, fastening the buckle under my chin. “Maybe she’s having a late one.”
“Maybe,” I say in agreement, making a mental note to call her when I get to the office. She’s usually the first up, knocking on the door checking to see if we want breakfast.
“I’ll check in on her before I start working on the studio.”
“Okay,” I say, watching as he mounts the bike and I follow his lead, hanging onto him as he starts the engine and we drive out of the grounds. Burying my face into his back I stay this way until we finally make it to the office. Cutting the engine, I drop from the bike, removing my helmet and hold it out to Nate. My hand shakes so badly that I almost drop the damn thing.
“Still not sure about this riding thing?” he asks, laughing and tilting his head.
“It scares the shit out of me when you ride so fast, but if it means I get to hold you for ten minutes, then who am I to turn you down?”
His eyes narrow on my shaking body before he wraps his arm around me causing me to crash against his hard torso. Lifting my chin, he kisses my lips. “Be back for you later. Call me when you’re ready.”
I allow my eyes to flutter shut as he kisses me softly once again. He removes his arm, stepping back on the bike. I pull in the corner of my lip, biting, as I watch him setting off on his bike. My stomach flutters and I shake my head, making my way into the office. Heading straight up the stairs, I barrel through the door, a huge smile plastered to my face.
“Good morning,” I sing, walking over to my desk.
“Someone looks happy,” Izzy remarks, peering over her screen, a smirk dressing her lips. “How are things at the MC mansion?”
“Great!” I say swinging on my office chair. “The place is looking good. You should come by sometime.”
“I’d love that,” she says, stepping up and walking over to my desk. Resting her ass on the corner, she puts her hand over mine. “I’ve really missed you, T.”
“I know, I’m sorry." I drop my head, realizing what a shitty friend I’ve been these last few weeks. “I kinda got caught up with a hot, tattooed guy. I lost my head, but don’t worry, I’m back. So where’s Brax?” I ask, my eyes searching the office.
“Out on business,” she says with a roll of her eyes. “Kinda lonely in here on my own. And shit, talk about busy. We’ve really got to think about taking on someone to help around the place. I’m barely keeping on top of everything.” She exhales loudly before continuing. “Just gotta find someone we can trust.”
“I have just the person,” I remark, placing my purse on my lap and pulling out my cell phone. “Emily would be perfect. Trustworthy, hardworking and reliable. She’s a quick learner and I think you’d really—”
“Okay, okay,” she cuts me off. “Call her. See if she’s interested.”
I let out a little squeal of excitement knowing how much this would mean to Emily. I dial her number, listening to it ringing out.
“Well, if it isn’t the beautiful Tara.” His voice booms down the receiver and I freeze with shock, my phone sliding out of my grasp and falling to the floor.
“Shit… shit... shit,” I whisper, over and over, before scrambling to the floor, retrieving the phone.
“What is it?” Izzy’s eyes are hard and on me.
“Jeffries,” I mouth to her, placing the phone back against my ear. Izzy’s eyes go wide, and I watch as she races over to her desk, pulling out her own cell phone.
“What are you doing with Emily’s phone?” I force out the question, my lip trembling, as fear courses through every fiber of my body.
He laughs loudly, and I can’t help but contort my face with disgust. “Just tell me, goddamnit,” I yell down the phone.
“Payback, bitch,” he growls, before ending the call and I drop down into the chair, clutching the phone in my hand. I zone out, wondering what he’s done to Emily. I can hear voices, but nothing is registering. My stomach churns and I get the overwhelming feeling I’m going to throw up. Dropping my phone on the desk, I place my hand to my mouth, my eyes frantically searching for something, anything, I can throw up in. Reaching under the desk, I grab the trash can, holding it under my chin and heaving. My stomach contracts as I puke inside the bucket.
“Jesus, Tara. Are you okay?” I feel her hand on my back and her other hand grabbing my hair, holding it back.
“I’m okay,” I sniff, lifting my head and grabbing a tissue from the desk to wipe my mouth.
“She’ll be okay. I’ve spoken to Brax and he’s going to get a hold of Nate.”
“This is my fault,” I mumble against the tissue.
“Don’t…” she snaps with a tone of warning. “You’re not to blame. Don’t ever say that.”
“But Jeffries wants me. He can’t get to me so he’s hurting Emily instead.” I suck in a shaky breath, tears starting to fall over my cheeks.
“We don’t know that yet,” she says in a hushed voice. “You need to stop panicking.”
“He has her phone,” I snap, jumping up from the seat, starting to pace back and forth, thinking about what I can do. Placing my fingers in my mouth, I nervously chew on the hard skin beside my nail.
“Tara,” Izzy calls. “You have to sit down and let the guys do their thing. You making yourself sick with worry isn’t helping anyone.”
I freeze, looking at her momentarily. She’s right.
“I’m sorry,” I say letting my shoulders slump. “This is the second morning I’ve vomited. I think I must be coming down with something.” I rub my stomach, wondering whether it was something I’d eaten.
Izzy’s eyes bug out. Her mouth falls open and I narrow my brows in confusion.
“What?” I say lifting my hands.
“When was the last time you had a period?”
“I don’t have them; I get the birth control shot. I’ve not had a period for years.”
“Well, maybe you’re getting sick. Or maybe you’re just working yourself into a state.”
“I’m sure that’s all it is.”
“Yeah, I’m sure too,” Izzy says with a smile. But now I can’t stop thinking about the possibility I could be pregnant. Surely there’s no way I can be, right?
Grabbing my purse, I pull out my pocket-sized diary, frantically flicking through to check when my last appointment was. I stop on the date where I scribbled the time and appointment details. It was roughly a month ago, and I wrack my brain trying to remember whether I went or not.
Shit!
Did I really miss my last shot?
Dropping my head into my hands, I mentally slap myself.
“What is it?” Izzy asks. “You think you’re going to be sick again?”
“I can’t believe I’ve been this stupid,” I mutter, letting out a huge, pent-up breath.
“What is it?” Izzy’s eyes are on me, her hand stroking the top of my back.
I lift my head, drawing my top lip between my teeth. “I think I missed my last contraceptive shot.” My hands begin to shake as the realization dawns on me. “What if I am pregnant?”
“Then you and Nate will work it out,” she replies sweetly, smiling as she looks at my sad eyes.
My heart races as I try and force out the question that lies on the tip of my tongue. “What… what if it’s not Nate's?” I choke out, my hand covering my mouth as I feel the overwhelming urge to be sick again. Leaning, I grab a hold of the trash can, retching so bad that my stomach hurts.
“Oh, baby,” she soothes. “You have to find out first. Then we worry about Jeffries. We should head out and get you a test. You need to know, one way or the other.”
“Hey.” Brax bursts into the room, his eyes wide and his hand covering his nose and mouth. “Fuck, it smells awful in here.”
“Yeah, sorry,” I chuckle, nervously wondering how much of our conversation he heard. I point down to the trash can with widened eyes. “Something I ate.” Grabbing it, I walk out of the office, heading toward the bathroom. I quickly clean out the trash can, and head back outside. My problems seem to pale in comparison to the fact that Emily is missing.
“Any news?” I ask as I make my way back, sitting on the edge of Brax’s desk.
“Not yet.” He lets out a breath, his nostrils flaring. “Nate is out there looking for her now. But we have nothing. No leads, no possible location.”
“Can you trace him from the call? I ask, racing over and grabbing my cell phone. “Here, take it. See if there is a way to locate her cell phone. He answered my call, so the phone is switched on.”
He reaches for the phone, jumping out of his seat. “I’ll be in the back room if anyone should need me. I got some calls to make.”
“I think we’re gonna head out,” Izzy is quick to reply. “You got the place to yourself for a while.” Lifting onto her tiptoes, she kisses him lightly on the cheek and he gives a little nod.
“Be safe, girls,” he says with a lift of his brow and we both smile.
“Let’s get out of here,” Izzy whispers, throwing her purse over her shoulder.
Swallowing the bundle of nerves in my throat, I follow her over to the door. I need to know if I am pregnant, but I’m also terrified. Having children wasn’t something I’d even considered, and the fact that it could be a product of rape, well that scares the shit out of me.