She tilted her head and studied him. Who was he telling?
"Okay." Dumbass disconnected the phone and looked at her. "You need to stay here."
Her skin prickled. "Why?"
"Romeo's on his way. He wants you to wait for him."
The fight went out of her spine, and she slung her purse over her shoulder. If he was coming, she could get a ride home with him.
For a moment, she feared it was her dad trying to track her down. Adrenaline filled her and the morning fiasco was forgotten. In a few minutes, she'd see Romeo again.
"Do you want to go sit inside? I'll buy you something to eat." Dumbass scratched the back of his head.
"Thanks, but no. I'm not hungry." She smiled, hoping to soften the rejection. "You can go eat, though. I'll wait out here for Romeo."
"I'll stay with you."
She narrowed her gaze, waiting for him to tell her why. Instead, he stuck his hands in the front pockets of his jeans and rocked back on the heels of his boots.
Highly suspicious of people's motives, she said, "What's going on?"
"Nothing."
"You're sure?"
"Yup."
She folded her arms. Something was off. Her day hadn't gone as planned. The thugs her dad hired to watch her had let her get away. Someone would be mad—probably her dad. So why was Romeo coming for her?
Oh, my God. She groaned, half turning away from Dumbass. How could she be so dumb and forget?
When she was put in the car, she'd texted Romeo and his brothers.
Reaching into her purse, she took out her phone and tapped the screen. Seeing the missed texts, she quickly scanned them. Every man with the last name Muel had texted her back—multiple times, frantic and demanding her to reply.
Wanting to throw up, she stared down at the messages. What was she supposed to do?
Romeo and his brothers wouldn't understand. Her father decided to pay other men to make sure she was safe because her dad had no inclination or desire to get to know her.
Every mishap done to her was done in the name of protecting her. It was her dad's weird way of believing he fulfilled his job as a father.
How many times in Seattle had men taken her to school or picked her up on her walk home? How many times had men transported her to a new apartment where her mom was waiting for her? How many times had men woke her up in the middle of the night and forced her to hide under the bed and not make a sound until everyone cleared the apartment?
After a while, having men show up in her life no longer frightened her for longer than it took for them to explain what they were doing.
But she was in Spokane. All the trouble surrounding her dad was back in Seattle. For a moment, when she was kidnapped that morning, she had known real fear.
But once she realized the men were hired by her dad, she completely forgot about the frantic texts to Romeo and his brothers.
She groaned. Today was turning out terrible.
"Are you okay?" asked Dumbass.
She lifted her head and nodded, putting the phone back in her purse. There was nothing she could do. Even if she deleted the texts on her end, it wouldn't make them disappear, or the guys forget that she'd reached out to them for help.
Why had she done that?
She never relied on anyone before. She'd taken care of herself since before she could remember.
She gasped, suddenly lightheaded. She'd reached out to Romeo and his brothers because they were the first people who showed her they cared about her. Over and over, without saying a word, they showed her they were there for her. They made sure she had food in her stomach, comfortable, and protected. They made her laugh when she needed a boost in her mood. They gave her conversations when she was quiet and lacked the courage to talk. They surrounded her with a family and made her feel like a valued member.
She stifled a groan. Romeo had her going crazy. She was screwing up a perfect life with Romeo completely.
She should never have slept with him—or had sex with him. Even living at his house while her dad was near asked for trouble.
Damnit. She thought getting far away from Seattle would fix all her problems. But even in Spokane, she was doing everything wrong.
"Here he comes," said Dumbass.
She looked toward the entrance of the Killere Truck Stop. Sure enough, Romeo rolled through the parking lot looking all badass and sexy on his Harley, making her heart thrum to match the purr of the engine.
At the last minute, he turned from going to the clubhouse and headed straight for her.
She had no idea what she would tell him or if he would believe whatever excuse she gave him. Lying polluted their otherwise perfect but distant relationship.
He toed the kickstand and got off the Harley without taking his gaze off her. She caught her lower lip between her teeth, recognizing that look. No matter what she told him, he wouldn't listen to her.
He was set in his ways, stubborn and dedicated. He wasn't made to handle her chaotic and often unexplainable drama surrounding her.
Romeo stalked toward her, passing Dumbass. "Get lost."
She barely had time to witness Dumbass going in the back door of the diner when Romeo filled her vision.
A storm reflected in his eyes before he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. Relieved the temper dwelling inside of him wasn't aimed at her, she melted against him, holding on to the back of his leather vest.
His heart raced against her cheek. He wasn't judging her.
His hand cupped the back of her head. "Scared the fuck out of me, doll."
She'd expected him to yell at her or be upset for scaring everyone. What she heard were concern and worry.
A lump of emotions strangled her. She swallowed hard. If only Romeo could be the one person who understood her. The one she wouldn't need to figure out her mixed signals. Who would come to her with total understanding about everything and never question why she hated to talk or look at her strangely when she needed to whisper late at night because it was lonely in her head.
She wanted Romeo to be the one person who knew her, and she wanted to give every fiber of her being to him. Most of all, she wanted to trust that he would love her forever.
That loving her was even possible.
He placed his hands on each side of her head and tilted her face up. His thumbs worked over her cheeks. She closed her eyes an extra heartbeat, taking in the care and attention he gave her.
Good things happened to other people. Never her.
She had to force herself to remember Romeo's minute of concern would turn into tomorrow's frustration with her. No one was ever pleased with her for long.
He lowered his head, softly taking her lips. Her eyes fluttered shut, desperately hoping he could see her for who she was and not turn away from her.
Not now.
Not.
Right.
Now.
He picked her up, sweeping her into his arms. She grabbed onto his leather vest, clinging to him.
Half conscious of a door slamming shut, she opened her eyes to the inside of a motel room.
Romeo put her on the bed, reached behind him, and took out his wallet. Blindly taking out a condom, he gazed at her. "I heard about what happened from your dad."
She sat up, frowning. Her whole life, her dad had drilled it into her head that how they ran their family was never to be shared with others. That the constant moving around Seattle was for their safety.