Ginny angrily snatched the washcloth away from him to smack his chest with it. “I don’t ever want to hear you blame yourself again! Ever!”
Reaper tried to take the washcloth back, and she just whacked him again.
“That’s the most asinine thing I’ve heard out of your mouth! Memphis, Crash, Vincent, and Slate were the ones responsible. Don’t you dare—”
“How do you know who was responsible for my kidnapping?” he asked, his eyes narrowed into slits.
She snapped her mouth shut.
“Killyama told you, didn’t she? She told you all of it. You and all the rest of her friends.” As rage and hurt bubbled inside of him, he placed his hands on the side of the tub to lever himself out.
“Sit back down!” she snarled up at him.
Reaper had no choice but to gingerly sit back down. Why? Because she was clenching his hair in her fist.
“Are you fucking crazy? What if I slipped?” he roared, trying to remove her hand.
“Boo-fucking-hoo. Listen up, wild man. Killyama and I did talk, but that was after she swore me to secrecy. She jeopardized her marriage to tell me, and no, she didn’t tell the other girls anything.”
“She had no business telling you jack shit!”
Humiliated that she knew the facts of his kidnapping, he was glad that Gavin was still locked inside his heart. Reaper could bear the humiliation; he was stronger.
Deciding he wasn’t ready to go bald, he made another attempt to get out of the tub, needing to get away from Ginny and the memories.
He tried to stand, only for Ginny to twist more fully in the water toward him. She moved her leg over his thighs to curl around his waist, laying more fully over him in the tub. His frantic effort had water splashing onto the tile below.
“Fucking move, Ginny, or so help me … Ow!” His ass settled back in the tub, when the back of his head hit the stone and a hunk of his hair came out. “Are you fucking crazy? You nearly cracked my skull open!”
“Good, maybe then you would see some sense. Listen to me!” she screeched. “I was feeling sorry for myself after I came to the clubhouse the day after Trudy’s wedding. I knew you wouldn’t be coming to take me up on my offer for coffee. Killyama had come to the church to see me, to check up on me for Sex Piston … but really, it was for Trudy.”
“What in the hell does this have to do with Killyama disclosing information that wasn’t hers to share?”
“If you’ll sit still and shut up, I’ll tell you.
“Killyama, Sex Piston—all of the crew—knew I was waiting for my soul mate. When I saw you at the wedding, I didn’t know who you were, so I asked Trudy, but she wouldn’t tell me. Neither would Fat Louise or Crazy Bitch. Killyama was the only one who told me when I threatened to ask Shade.”
Reaper went stone still. “Why wouldn’t they want you to find me?” Then, wounded by her disclosure, he started prying her hand out of his hair, uncaring about the resulting pain.
Ginny whacked his head back on the tub. Any idea Ginny was a gentle, compassionate woman who wouldn’t hurt a flea was smashed to smithereens by the volatile spitfire that was determined to be heard. No way was he taking it her easy on her the next time she deserved a spanking. At this rate, though, he would be lucky to get out of the tub without a concussion.
“Are you trying to knock me unconscious so you can drown me?” he accused.
“That little love tap won’t knock you unconscious,” she scoffed, pressing her breasts against his chest to tilt him backward. “You actually have to ask why they didn’t want me chasing after you?” Sliding her fingers from his hair, Ginny started rubbing the spot behind his ear enticingly. “They were protecting you. Each of them knows me well enough to know that I would drive you nuts with my belief we are soul mates. Hell, even Hammer and Jonas know I’ve been waiting for you. They also knew you wouldn’t be receptive to the notion.” Ginny huffed at him. “And boy, were they right.”
Reaper shook his head at her, trying to stop her enticing movements. “That wasn’t all they were worried about.”
“Can you blame them?” Ginny settled her free hand on his chest to prop her chin. “You made no secret about Taylor breaking your heart and that you ignored any overture from any woman in town or at the club. They thought, if none of those women could get to first base with you, I didn’t stand a chance. They were protecting my heart. They didn’t think I had enough courage to fight for you.”
He rolled his eyes at her and asked, “So where does the part about Memphis and Crash come in, then, huh?” Just mentioning their names felt like he was sitting in an ice bath.
“You don’t believe me? They were right. Everyone felt I never made an attempt to heal the breach between me and my brothers, and I pretty much let crap slide unless it involved me taking up for someone else.”
“For instance?” he growled.
“Anyway,”—Ginny went on as on as if he never spoke—“Trudy was on her honeymoon, so she asked Sex Piston, who was at work, so Sex Piston sent Killyama to see me.”
“Do me a favor and just finish bashing my head in or get to the fucking point!”
“I will if you would try to be more patient.”
Reaper spread his legs wider in the water so her ass would sink, and he could propel her off him without hurting her.
“I thought Killyama came to talk to me to put me off you. She wasn’t. She wanted me to be prepared so I wouldn’t fail.”
“Fail at what?”
“At getting my man! She thought I would have better luck landing Kaden’s jet than landing you without her help. She’s probably right. I’m not the type of woman you usually go for. I love you, but I’m not eating lettuce three times a day just to get rid of my pouch.”
What in fuck did this have to Killyama spilling his secrets?
Confusion had him wanting to get her back on track right after he assured her that her body was just fine the way it was.
“I don’t fucking expect you ….”
“You don’t have to disagree with me to make me feel better. Killyama told me you workout a lot. We could be workout buddies. What do you think about that idea?”
Instead of trying to get away from her, Reaper pulled her closer to feel the softness of her body. “I think, Killyama’s been running her mouth too damn much. I like the way your body feels.” He hand swept over the contour of her stomach. “She told you the details about my kidnapping …,” he prompted her along trying to get her back on track.
“Yes.”
“What else did she tell you?”
“Are you going to try to jump out of the tub again if I tell you?”
“No.”
“Then she told me everything she knows.”
Reaper raised his eyes to the ceiling.
“I love you, Gavin.”
“Don’t feel sorry for me.”
“I’ve never, ever felt sorry for you.”
“I should have been the one to tell you in my own time, not Killyama.”
“I’m glad she told me. After Killyama told me, I went to the lookout and cried. Not for you, but because I was so angry at God for not helping you. I haven’t gone to church or prayed since, except the night you took off with Slate.”