I ground my teeth, hoping the man would trip and fall into a toilet.
The blood in my veins turned to ice. Had Sebastian been playing me this whole time? It all made so much more sense now. That would explain why he’d suddenly shown so much interest in me after ignoring me for the past year. Nobody who looked like him and could have his pick of girls would choose someone like me.
There was another crash and a few shouts.
“Let him go,” Blade said, sounding like he was on a Sunday brunch date instead of in an office in a strip club. Guess it made sense for Sebastian’s boss or president or whatever he was to be there as well.
I suppressed the gasp that wanted to escape. Jim’s betrayal didn’t hurt. It was an annoyance I could do without. What caused a stabbing pain to shoot through my chest was the thought of Sebastian using me to get to my ex.
I stepped back, running into one of the bouncers coming out of the storeroom. “Oh, sorry,” I mumbled, ready to go home.
I adjusted the strap of my bag and shot the guy a tight smile. I didn’t know his name, but he was part of the regular rotation. He nodded at me and turned back to the main area when the door behind me opened.
Sebastian came out, looking like a bull ready to charge. He stopped, his face going soft when he saw me. “Nora. You finished already?”
Bastard. How dare he talk to me like nothing happened. And he made me swear on top of lying to me. Double bastard.
“Just on my way out,” I replied, my voice wavering.
I couldn’t seem to take a proper breath; the only thing on my mind was putting as much space between us as I could.
“Let’s go,” he said, taking a step forward.
My hand shot up, and he frowned. “That’s okay. You look like you’re busy. I’ll call a cab.”
“You’re not taking a taxi,” he said, not giving me a chance to reply before taking my hand and leading me outside.
I found myself on the back of his bike before I could protest. He put a helmet on my head and untangled a strand of hair that had gotten caught up in the strap. His fingers whispered across my cheek, the gentle caress making my chest feel like it would cave under the pressure of my emotions.
And I hated him a little in that moment. How dare he make me fall for him and then turn out to be my biggest downfall?
We drove back to the compound, and I jumped off the bike as soon as he’d come to a stop, the engine still running.
I was halfway to the front door when he caught up with me. “Nora, wait.”
There was no way I could pretend everything was okay. I wore my emotions on my face like a billboard advert.
“What?” I asked, my voice low, not turning around.
“Something happened,” he said. It wasn’t a question but a statement.
No shit, Sherlock.
I clenched my jaw to hold in the sob working its way up my throat. “It’s nothing. I’m fine. Just tired.”
“Hey,” he said, his voice raspy. “Talk to me.”
I struggled to get the next words out. “There’s nothing to talk about. Now can I please go to bed?”
He stiffened as if I’d told him his bike had a scratch. His hand dropped from my arm, and I shivered at the sudden loss.
“This conversation isn’t over,” he said, never taking his eyes off me. “But there’s something I have to take care of. If I could stay, I would.”
With one last glance at me, he got back on the bike. “We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”
I didn’t respond, and he didn’t wait around. Instead, he started his bike back up and left.
I went inside, dragging my feet. The temptation to lie down on one of the couches downstairs instead of hauling myself up to bed was great.
“Sweetheart,” Grim greeted me as soon as I took the first step inside.
“Hey, Grim,” I said, taking a seat on the barstool next to him. The baby monitor was in front of him, the image showing my sleeping babies. “What are you still doing up?”
“I don’t sleep much. Usually don’t go to bed before five,” he said.
The room was still busy, everyone except Grim glassy-eyed and most of them swaying on their feet. I guess everyone but me had had a good night.
“Thanks so much for watching the kids,” I said, getting back up. “You’re the best.”
“Anytime. And I mean it.”
He tilted his head, our eyes meeting.
“Whatever happened, happened. You can only move forward,” he said, making an accurate interpretation of my defeated expression.
“If only it was that easy,” I said and yawned.
He got up and opened the giant tree limbs he called arms. I didn’t even pretend to think about it before I fell into him, winding my arms around his big body. He held me close, and I felt like I was in a biker cocoon. He smelled of leather and oil, and I took a big breath.
“If you ever need anything, you know where to find me,” he said, pressing a kiss to my head.
I nodded into his chest and let go, deciding that was as much of a pity party as I would throw for myself. “Thank you. Again.”
I gave him one last half-hearted smile and went to Sebastian’s room. Even though I could barely walk because I was so tired, I went into the bathroom to shower the smell of Pepper’s from my skin, slathering myself with soap and shampoo.
My pajamas were an old ratty T-shirt and sweatpants. I didn’t bother drying my hair since that required turning on the hair dryer, which would in turn wake the kids.
And I needed at least a few hours of sleep before I could function.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“Let’s wait for Sebastian to get back before you
