Wild Ride(24)
“Are you sure you want to let me go? Aren’t you afraid I’ll run?”
He glanced at her face. “Where would you go? I can run faster than you, and my friends are just around the corner.”
“And if I go into the villa, Killer will just bring me back out here and lock me in again, right?”
He nodded.
It had hurt when she found out what kind of man Rip was, and she’d lived with that pain for a long time now. But Killer’s betrayal hurt even more.
He crouched in front of her again, resting his hands on his thighs.
“Marissa, I just want to talk to you.”
She drew in a deep, quivering breath.
“Killer put the key in my bra.”
“Fuck.” But Rip stood up. “Which side?”
“The right.”
He walked to her side, then she felt his hand slide along the naked skin between her breasts. Her nipples peaked at his touch. Which was crazy! What was wrong with her?
She held her breath as his fingers glided over the bottom of her right breast, squeezing a little, pushing the hard metal key against her flesh.
“There it is.” His fingers slid inside the leather of her bra and over her nipple, which hardened at the stimulation of his big, masculine fingers.
He got the key and pulled it out, then unlocked the stock and opened it. He helped her stand up and, holding her wrist snuggly, led her forward. She was a bit unsteady on her feet, so when he guided her to sit down, she did.
Then she realized she was sitting on the bed beside him. She tried to pull away, but he had a firm hold on her wrist
“Just relax. I already told you. I just want to talk to you.”
“Why should I believe you?”
“Why should I lie? It’s not as if I have to trick you into bed at this point.”
He smiled, clearly joking about the fact they were sitting together on a big, comfortable king-sized bed. And he could do anything he wanted to her.
But she thought about the fact that even though they’d dated for two months, they had never gone to bed together. Never had sex. Well, not full out sex. They’d enjoyed oral sex one time, but he’d stopped it firmly at that, and only the one time.
She had wanted more. Had dreamed of him in her bed, stroking her until her body tingled with need, then him driving his big cock into her.
“Why didn’t you ever take me to bed?”
His lips turned up in a grin. “Really? That’s the question you want to ask me?”
“Well, uh…”
“Not why I was part of a criminal gang?” His grin faded away. “Not why I walked away? Not why I was accused of killing a woman?”
She began to tremble. “Did you kill her?”
“No.”
She glanced up at him. At his open, frank gaze, she could almost believe him.
“But you were part of a criminal gang. And your friend was convicted of killing her, and you were named as an accomplice.”
“Yes and no. I was part of a gang, but he wasn’t my friend. None of them were my friends.”
She frowned. “You don’t get along with them? Why do you stay?”
“I didn’t. I’m not with them anymore.”
“But I saw you riding with others when you were chasing me.”
His eyebrow arched. “You saw us? I thought we were close at one point.”
He gazed at her. “The people I’m riding with now. They are my friends.”
She shook her head. “Okay, so you’ve changed from one gang to another. Why are you here?”
Did he think it would make a difference to her? Was it possible he thought that he could talk her into coming back to him?
He took her hand and tugged lightly, turning her to face him. “I’m here because I want to tell you that I’m not a criminal. I was part of that gang, it’s true, but only because I was undercover.”
She blinked as the words sank in. “Undercover?”
“That’s right. I was an undercover cop. I had infiltrated that gang as part of my job.”
Her chest compressed. Could it be true?
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I couldn’t. It was too dangerous. For you and for me.” He shook his head. “The reality is, I never should have gotten close to you. I never should have put you in that situation, knowing I couldn’t tell you the truth.”
“Why did you?”
His lips compressed. “Because I was weak. I wanted to be with a woman who didn’t think I was a criminal. I wanted a taste of a normal life.” He squeezed her hand. “I knew it couldn’t last. I knew it would all come crashing to a halt at some point. And that wasn’t fair to you.”
“So you knew it wouldn’t last between us right from the beginning.” All the hopes and dreams she’d had about them had been destined to failure right from the beginning.