Aiden (Grim Sinners MC Book 4) Read online

  He laughs at me. “I have a lake right by my house. Want to head there? You can borrow one of my fishing poles.”

  I take his hand and practically pull him to the truck. “Come on, I can hear the fish calling my name.”

  He laughs and opens the truck door for me, and he helps me inside. He is about to be shown how to fish.

  We pull up outside a large black iron gate. He reaches out and presses some buttons on the pad, and it swings open.

  I sit up further in my seat. We start up a long driveway, and on the other side of the road, a black fence leads all the way to the end of the property, where his house is.

  He lives in a large log cabin with huge windows in the front. The inside of the house gives off a luminous golden glow.

  “Oh wow, your house is beautiful, Aiden.”

  He looks at me; I can see his eyes in the glow of the lights on his dashboard. He pulls up in front of the cabin, and I open my door and step out.

  I am really proud of him. I am really proud of the way he has turned out. It’s amazing to think that I knew fourteen-year-old Aiden, the nerd who people made fun of but who was just the sweetest.

  “Do you want me to get you a jacket or anything?” he asks as I follow him toward his garage, which is opening.

  “I think I will be fine, but I can take one anyway?”

  As we get closer to the garage, I see a whole wall covered with fishing poles, and under it is every kind of essential you could want or need.

  I grin. “I do believe you’re my kind of man.” I walk straight to a fishing pole just like mine and take it from the wall. I turn around, smirking. “Are you prepared to be outfished?” I tease him.

  He gets a wicked gleam in his eye. “Oh honey, I’d like to see you try.” He takes a couple of jackets from a shelf. Then he walks over to a mini-fridge and takes out some live bait. He is one hundred percent my kind of guy.

  “Hand me your pole and I will tie it down until we get to the lake.”

  I hand him the pole and look at the side-by-side. “Do you want me to get in?” He gives me a slight nod, and I get in on the passenger’s side.

  His arms flex as he ties down the poles, and I take the time to admire the way his muscles move and his messy hair frames his face. He has grown into a fine-looking man, that is for sure. He finishes tying down the pole and gets in the side-by-side. He starts it up, and I close my eyes as a sudden surge of fear hits me.

  All alone in a dark place, and no one can help you. You are completely alone. Your phone is in the truck.

  I bite my lip and try to stop the erratic thoughts in my head. I don’t want to have these thoughts, and I know that he would not hurt me. This fear arises over the smallest things.

  I open my eyes as Aiden backs out of the garage. “Here, Cici.” He puts the jacket in my lap so I can cover myself if needed.

  “Thank you.” I feel much better. These things just hit me out of nowhere. I hate to say it, but that is a huge factor in why my relationships have not worked. I never let them reach their full potential. I just run, and I don’t want to do that anymore.

  I snap myself out of my thoughts before I can dive too deeply into them. I sit up and plaster on a smile, pretending that I am not fighting an internal war.

  3

  He pulls to a stop in front of a dock, and I open the small door to the side-by-side as he unties the poles. I look up into the night sky, loving seeing all the stars and being away from everything. I just breathe, relax, and let go.

  “Ready?” he asks and I nod. I follow him down the short path to the boat dock.

  “It’s really beautiful here,” I tell him. The water and the calmness are intoxicating. I sit down on the edge of the dock and take off my shoes so my toes can be in the water.

  He sits beside me, and I’m hyperaware of our legs touching slightly.

  He hands me some bait, and I bait my hook and throw my line out into the water. “This is kind of crazy, isn’t it? I was thinking I was going out on a date with someone completely new, but then it was you. It’s kind of wild.”

  He grins. “Yeah, I was thinking that I’d just met this hot softball coach, and now it’s CiCi. I am thrilled though. I have thought about you quite a bit over the years.”

  Happiness flows through me and I smile. “I have thought about you too. I always wondered what happened to you.”

  I look over at him, trying to wrap my head around all of this. I feel my pole jerk, and I jump up and start to reel in my line. “Yes!” I say loudly, and I back up so I don’t fall in. I pull the fish out of the water; it’s a big bass.

  “Damn.” He takes out his phone, and I smile as he takes the picture.

  “Now try to beat that.” I put the fish back into the water.

  “Oh, it’s on.”

  I laugh under my breath and sit beside him, itching to get another bite so I can out-fish him.

  “How are your grandparents?” he asks.

  Ouch, that’s a sore subject. “They both passed away.”

  We sit in silence for a minute. I can feel him looking at me, but I don’t want to see his look of pity so I keep my gaze focused on the water. He knows that they were the only family I had left. They were it. My grandma wasn’t the best to me, of course, but it was better than nothing, right? My grandpa, on the other hand? I was really close to him.

  “I am really sorry for your loss, CiCi,” he says softly, touching the small of my back.

  I finally bring myself to look at him. “That was years ago. It was a few months after I turned twenty-one.” My grandma died first, then my grandpa. I was alone but I finally had time to heal.

  He touches my hand, getting my attention. “I can still feel bad that it happened to you, Gracie.”

  On the inside I am freaking out because that was so unbelievably sweet. “That was so sweet,” I tell him.

  His face falls and I laugh. “I am sorry if that ruins your badass image.”

  He laughs and scoots a little closer to me, but this time I move closer to him. He is radiating heat and it’s kind of chilly.

  He gets a bite and reels in his line, and I fall to the side laughing at the sight of his little bluegill.

  “Ha ha ha.” He fake laughs, and I wipe the tears from my eyes. That was absolutely hilarious.

  I am still lying on my back and, from the corner of my eye, I see him put his pole down so he can lie down beside me.

  We lie side by side, the stars above us. He intertwines our fingers, and I smile and look over at him.

  I don’t care what he pretends to be; he will always be a softy to me.

  Aiden

  It fucking hit me like a ton of bricks that it was Gracelyn. We dated when I was fifteen years old and went our separate ways. But she was my first love and my first girlfriend, and I’ve always thought about her throughout the years.

  It’s fucking wild that I never realized it until we went out tonight. It’s like fate had a play in all of this.

  I watch her stare up into the sky. I know one fucking thing: she is not going to just slide out of my life again.

  I want to know her, the woman. I want to know what she has been up to the last ten years.

  She yawns loudly.

  “Tired?” I ask.

  She nods. “It’s been a long day.”

  “Come on. I will take you home.” I sit up and take her hand, helping her up off the dock.

  Gracie

  When we pull up in front of the center, where I left my car, nervousness hits me. I have many, many flashbacks of moments when the date was over and the man thought he needed to be rewarded for buying me dinner. This sets off a chain reaction in my brain, telling me I need to get out of there.

  I unlock my car door, and he opens it for me.

  “Thank you, I have had a lot of fun.”

  “Me too, Gracie. Want to grab lunch tomorrow?”

  I find myself nodding instantly. “I would love that.” I really would.

  He lean
s forward, his hand touching my cheek gently and, much to my utter shock, his lips touch my forehead softly. I close my eyes, just basking in the feel of his lips on me. Lips that aren’t asking more of me. Lips that don’t want to force me to do things before I am ready. This is pure, unadulterated respect, and my respect for him grows tenfold.

  “Be safe, text me when you’ve made it safely.”

  I nod. “You be safe too.”

  I get in my car and he shuts my door. As I pull out of the parking lot, I look in the rearview mirror and see him watching me leave.

  “Holy shit,” I whisper to myself. I just can’t believe all of that happened. I went into the date thinking one thing and came out thinking something completely different.

  I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

  4

  Grace

  I look at the clock on the wall and it’s noon. Aiden will be here any minute, and I have to say I am pretty excited.

  I woke up this morning, and the first thing I did was check my phone to see if I had any messages from Aiden. I did. He wished me good morning, and I have to admit I was way too excited over one little text.

  So I got dressed in a pair of jeans and a loose black V-neck, which is comfortable but very flattering. I went to the center to make sure everything was up and running for dinner and game night. Every Friday night we have a game night, and all the kids can stay until nine o’clock. We have movies, fun games, and snacks, and once a month we all stay for a lock-in. It gives them something to look forward to, because many of them don’t have that.

  At the door we have a wish box, where the kids can put in notes about what they need or want. One way or another, we try to make sure that happens. Usually it comes out of my own pocket. I have been blessed with a lot; why not share that?

  I hear a motorcycle outside. Do you think? I start toward the door and look out to see Aiden sitting, right out front, on his bike.

  Oh yeah, I am hopping on the back of that.

  I feel nervous but very excited at the same time. Last night was an amazing date, and I want to see what will happen next. I push open the door and step outside.

  He smiles at me. “You ready?”

  Am I? I am ready as I am going to be. He reaches into his saddlebag and takes out a leather jacket. “Put this on, sweetheart, and this.” He takes out a helmet.

  I slip on both of them, and I take his outstretched hand and swing my leg over the seat behind him. Okay, that was easier than I thought it would be. He looks back at me. “Scoot closer to me, babe, and hang on.” I scoot closer until my front is flush against his back and my arms are around his waist.

  He starts the bike; then we are off. My stomach sinks from the feeling of riding the bike for the first time. It’s nerve-racking but I can see why it’s intoxicating; it’s very freeing. I close my eyes and enjoy being in the moment. This is something I need to do more often; I have to fight the habit of overthinking everything.

  When we stop at a red light, I open my eyes. Aiden’s muscles are bulging as he squeezes the handlebars. His thighs are thick in his jeans as he braces us. It should be a crime for a man to look like this.

  Someone pulls up beside us; a woman is staring at him through the window. Bless your heart, girl. I know exactly how you feel.

  The light turns green, and we pull into the parking lot of a pretty nice restaurant.

  Inside we are seated instantly. I’m sure I have major helmet hair and look less than amazing, but I can’t find it in myself to really care.

  Aiden doesn’t sit across from me like I thought he would, but right next to me, and my body is instantly alert to his every movement.

  “How does it feel knowing you got beat last night?” I tease him. I continue to look at my menu, but you couldn’t take the grin off my face if you tried.

  He laughs. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.”

  “Mhm. How is Reid today?”

  Aiden’s face completely transforms at the mention of his son. How beautiful is that? “He is amazing today. Bailey is watching him for me.” Aiden takes out his phone and shows me his screensaver, which is a picture of his son.

  “He’s precious, Aiden. You know, he looks so much like you that you can’t tell he’s adopted.” Reid really does look like a carbon copy of him.

  Aiden smiles wider. “He was meant to be mine, it’s fate.”

  I sigh on the inside. “I think that’s completely correct, Aiden. You seem to be an amazing dad. He is blessed.” Saying that automatically makes me think of myself. I never had a father figure in my life. My grandfather played that role in a way, but it’s not the same.

  “Thank you. I want to be the best I can be. He deserves it.”

  Be still my freaking heart. I just stare at him, enraptured, because what man says the things he’s saying? Surely not one I’ve ever met before. I touch his arm without thinking. “You really are the sweetest.” I have to repeat myself, because it’s one hundred percent true.

  He gives me a grin that makes me feel like there’s more to Aiden than I think.

  Aiden

  A couple of hours later

  I notice someone ducking out the back door, and I sprint around the house, hot on his ass.

  He is trying to scale the fence. I take out my knife and stab his right calf. I hear the thump as the knife glides all the way through to the fence. He screams and lets go. When he hits the ground, the knife sinks further into his leg. Stupid fucker.

  I walk over to him, stepping on the hand that is trying to take the knife out of his leg.

  His eyes shoot to mine. He pales and scrambles up to a sitting position. “I didn’t do anything.”

  “Did I say you did anything?” I ask, but I know very fucking well what he has done and what he hasn’t. He is a part of the trafficking ring, one small notch on a long-ass line of sick fucks. He is one of the guys that kidnaps people and then dumps them on a seller.

  “Oh yeah? You mean I didn’t just watch you almost kidnap a kid?” I was inside a convenience store, picking up some things for Reid, when I noticed he was lurking behind a counter, staring at this eight-year-old boy. The mom turned away, and he tried to make a grab for the boy, but the child started to scream. So the guy left. I followed him and had our guys run his address. He was one of the guys we had been looking for.

  Lucky break, huh?

  “I wasn’t meaning anything! I just wanted to talk!” He begs.

  “Fucker, do you think I am just that dumb? I know who you are.” I pick him up off the ground and carry him into his house. I toss him into a kitchen chair and tie him to it. “Now, there are two fucking ways we can do this. It can be hard or it can be really fucking hard. You will answer all of my questions.”

  He shakes his head.

  I start laughing, and his eyes fly open to look at me. “I was hoping you would say that.” I bend down and grab the knife, and I rip it out of his leg roughly.

  He struggles to get out of the ropes.

  “The more you struggle, the faster you’re going to bleed out.” He is going to die one way or another, but first I am going to get every bit of information out of him. If I can help one kid in a horrible situation, it will be worth it. It fucking kills me on the inside knowing that Reid had been sold and we found him in a fucking basement all by himself. They were trying to hide him. That will forever be burned in my memory. Luckily, we got to him before anything could happen to him.

  That is what I am more than thankful for.

  “Tell me who you are working for.”

  He shakes his head, which fucking thrills me to no end. I grab the back of his chair and drag him over to the sink. I push him back so his head is in the sink. I spread a washcloth over his face, turn on the water, and grab the sprayer. I spray the water over the washcloth.

  He immediately starts flailing around, struggling, and I just wait a minute before I take the washcloth off.

  “Change your mind?” I ask.

  “No,”
he manages to choke out, gasping for air.

  I put the washcloth back over his face and pour more water over his face. With my free hand I search through the kitchen drawers until I find exactly what I need.

  I set down the pliers on the kitchen table right in front of him. I take the washrag off and set him down on the floor. He tilts to the side and falls over. I laugh. “Oops.” I pick him up, and his eyes widen the second he sees the pliers.

  “What are you going to do with this?” he stutters.

  “I am going to start with your fingernails, one by one, and if that doesn’t work I will start cutting, bit by bit, until you have no fingers left. Then if that doesn’t work, I will start cutting off your skin.”

  I bend down so we are eye to eye. “I can torture you for weeks and keep you alive. Don’t fuck with me. I will make your life a living hell, and you will wish for me to kill you.”

  He stares at me for a few seconds before he lets his head fall in defeat. I know I have him. None of these fuckers lasts longer than a few minutes.

  I take out my phone and text the guys, letting them know where I am.

  A few minutes later they walk inside the house, and I fill them in on what happened.

  Lane walks to the fucker tied to the chair. “I heard that you have some information for me?”

  The guy, like a fucking faucet, spouts everything we needed to know and more. He tells us exactly where the main man in the operation is located.

  Derek steps forward, putting a silencer on his gun. The fucker screams. “I told you everything you wanted to know!”

  “Do you honestly think we are just going to let you live, knowing you had a hand in kidnapping kids? That shit is unforgivable.” I growl into his face. I take the gun from Derek, press it to the side of the guy’s face, and pull the trigger.

  I hand the gun back to Derek, who puts it back in his pocket. He just got back from hiding with Brittany. She had someone after her for a long-ass time, but it seems that they found them, so they are back.