TWATKNOT

Cora gapes at us when we return. I can’t tell if she’s happy to see me, or if she’s gonna kick me in the junk. Either way, I need answers, so I guess I’ll take my chances.

She opens her mouth, about to speak, but I put a finger to her lips and inform her, “You’re taking a break now.”

Her brown eyes flash with anger as she swats my hand away. “I can’t take a break because I have nobody else to work tonight. And besides, if you think you can pull this alpha male bullshit and I’ll come running like some stupid little lap dog, you don’t know me at all.”

Priest waves a hand in my direction and heads around to the far side of the bar. Cora watches him with wide eyes as he walks up and stands next to her.

“There, Priest is on it. Now take. A fucking. Break,” I repeat, each syllable laced with increasing frustration.

We compete in a stare down, until finally, Cora’s shoulders fall and she turns to Priest, handing him her bottle opener. “I’ll be back.”

Priest accepts her offering with a smug smirk.

She slips out from behind the bar and I follow, hot on her heels, all the way out the back door and into the alley.

Cora takes a few steps away from me, putting space between us. Space I don’t think I can handle. I need to know who that guy is, why he scares her, and why he’s harassing her?

And why seeing her anywhere near another man drives me fucking crazy?

I want to kiss her lips and claim her. I want to fuck her against the wall of this bar to show her that she’s fucking mine. I want to shake her until she stops glaring at me the way she is right now.

“Who the fuck is he?” I demand.

Cora folds her arms over her chest. “He’s none of your concern.”

“The fuck he isn’t. First, he follows you and your boy, scaring the shit out of you both, and now he’s come to harass you at work. Who the fuck is he?” I snarl. “Who is he to you?”

She paces in front of me, her hands fisted in frustration.

“Either you fucking tell me, or I’ll hunt that piece of shit down and find out for myself. One way or another, I’ll get my answer. You know I will.”

Cora stops her pacing and throws her arms up in the air. “Why can’t you just leave this alone? This isn’t your problem—I’m not your problem.”

In two strides, I eliminate the distance between us. I keep moving until her back hits the brick wall. “That’s where you're wrong, Cora. You’re mine. I think we established that earlier today, before you ran out on me.”

Cora stares up at me, her eyes filled with anger, as well as desire.

“Who is he?” I ask, my voice softer now, gentler.

Anger and desire turn to shame. Turning her head away, she whispers, “He’s Harrison’s father.”

I take a moment to think that through. His father. Harrison’s father is a biker. It all clicks into place. This is why she hates the rally so much, why she’s so jaded. It’s because of him.

“He hurt you,” I conclude. “Which means he’s the reason your dad threatened me with a fucking spatula not to hurt you.”

This makes her laugh. “My dad did what?”

“Not important,” I say. “Is he why?”

She leans back against the wall and rests her forehead against my chest. “Yes,” she admits. “Every year, I leave town when bike week comes around, because I never want to risk him finding out about Harrison. But this year, my boss got hurt, and he needed me here.”

She raises her head and looks up at me, her eyes filled with unshed tears. “I never should’ve agreed to take Harrison to see the motorcycles the other day, but he loves them so much. And since this was his first time being here for bike week, I couldn’t tell him no.” Reaching up, she wipes her eyes with her fingers. “I hate being here for the rally, because it reminds me of what happened.”

“What happened?” I ask, placing my finger under her chin so she can’t look away. “Tell me everything, Cora.”

“A few years ago, I went to a concert with a couple of friends during the rally, and Big Dick was there. We were all drinking, hanging out in one big group. I only had two drinks that night, but they were apparently too many because I blacked out. I woke up a few hours later, naked in a tent, and he was on top of me. My head was so fuzzy, and I could barely move.”

I want nothing more than to go out and kill that fucker, but I need to know the rest.

“Did he—” I start, trying to find the strength to ask what I know she’s holding back. “Did he rape you?” I hiss through gritted teeth.

A tear slides down her cheek. “I don’t even remember going back to that tent with him. When I woke up, I tried to push him off, but I could barely move my arms, and he had a hand over my mouth, and…” Her voice trails off, like she’s seeing it all over again.

The words echo inside of my head. I tried to push him off… He had a hand over my mouth…

“I’ll fucking kill him,” I seethe. “I’m going to kill that fucker for what he did, for you and for Harrison.”

Cora grabs my hands and pulls them to her chest. “TK, you can’t. For the same reason I never reported it. He’s the president of a large, very dangerous MC. They’ll kill you and me both.”

“He raped you!” I roar, shoving away from the wall. This time, it’s me pacing the alley, every muscle in my body tensed with rage. “He deserves a fucking bullet between his eyes for what he did to you.”

Her voice is soft now. “But I don’t remember what happened. Maybe I could’ve asked for it.”

That stops me in my tracks. “Getting drunk and passing out is not an invitation for sex, Cora. Even if you had offered before that, the second you were unconscious, that invitation was off the fucking table.”

“I don’t know. I was so fucked up back then, TK. Adrift, I guess.”

“That still doesn’t make it right, Cora. He violated you.”

An internal struggle wages inside of me, and anger clouds my vision. Killing him would be too merciful for what he’d done to her. He took away a piece of her innocence. His actions had hardened her heart against any man who tried to break through the steel barricade around it. Cora didn’t deserve that.

And the worst part of it all is, she feels responsible for his actions. Could I really walk away and just let that son of a bitch live?

The answer is clear—I can’t.

“Let me do this for you,” I say, moving closer, placing my hands against the wall on either side of her head.

Her eyes are sad as she peers up at me. “No.”

“I can’t let it go, Cora. Not knowing what I do now. That fucker needs to die.”

“Please.”

I stare down at her, memorizing the curve of her cheek and the arch of her brow. “He’s gonna pay for every ounce of pain he put you through.”

“Then you’re no better than he is,” she declares.

Her words hit me like a bullet, and the air between us changes. Fire roars beneath my skin.

“I’m nothing like him,” I growl, my jaw clenched. “I might wear a cut, but that doesn’t make me some kind of monster, Cora. Have I done things I’m not proud of? Yes. But I have never robbed a woman of her innocence like he has. Wanting to protect you should be proof enough of that for you.”

She places her hands on my chest and shoves me back, breaking the contact between us as fury fills her face. “The only thing it shows me is that I made a mistake coming to that motel room.”

I snort. “Stop lying to yourself, Cora. You know there’s something between us. You’d never have told me the truth if there wasn’t. And what happened with us in that motel…” I shake my head. “You felt that too. I know you did. Why do you think I need to do this? Why do you think I’d risk everything to take out a threat to you and Harrison?”

“If you do this, it just shows you don’t respect me or what I want. You want to go down this path? Fine, kill him, but know this… only in a biker’s world would this be a conversation between two people. Feelings or no feelings, me and my son won’t be associated with that kind of life.”

I gape at her, not knowing what to say.

She’s right, this isn’t a normal conversation. This isn’t the way things work in the regular world. But doesn’t she understand? Doesn’t she know that letting this go means knowing he’s still out there, breathing the same air as her, and that I just can’t let that happen?

“He’s followed you, Cora,” I say, the anger in my voice gone. “He’s come to the place where you work. What happens if I’m not around to stop him?”

Cora squares her shoulders. “I’ll deal with it.”

“You shouldn't have to. Let me protect you.”

“I have to go back to work.”

She tries to maneuver around me, but I stop her, putting myself between her and the door. “You can’t go home while he’s in town,” I reason. “So you’re staying with me.”

“Like fuck I am. I have a son, remember? A job, my parents.”

Taking her hand in mine, I raise it to my lips. “They’ll be fine. He doesn’t know where you live. You told me that yourself.”

“No,” she snaps, her voice hard, but I can tell she’s wavering.

“Stay with me, Cora, please.” I press a kiss to the back of one hand, and then the other. “We’ll finish out your shift, get your stuff, and then you and I can go back to the motel just until he’s gone.”

Cora looks away, her jaw ticking as she thinks.

“I’ll respect your wishes, baby, but you’ve gotta respect mine. Let me keep you and Harrison safe.”

When her eyes meet mine again, I know I’ve won the battle. “Fine,” she says with an exaggerated sigh. “But I’m only doing it because you said please.”

I smile. If that’s all it takes, I’m about to say that word more than I’ve ever said it before.