The Biker's deadly obsession

Chapter two

Bailey's pov

When I heard Jax's brilliant idea of saving my ass and my daughter's life, I had laughed.

To me, it sounded both absurd and insulting.

Marriage?

To the man who destroyed me?

I had opened my mouth to tell him to shove that idea down his ass…

But then Lily coughed again from inside the apartment and reality crashed down like a boot to the ribs.

When it came to Lily's safety, I could do everything.

I could swallow my pride, I could bury my hatred, I could stand next to the man who betrayed me and pretend we were something other than wreckage and a bundle of old bitter grievances.

I looked back to the room and weighed Jax's words.

Reaper was out to hunt me.

That meant a bullet straight to my head or my body rotting in some dark filthy garbage can.

And Lily?

My gaze returned to Jax and said the words in had dreamt of telling him five years ago.

“ Okay, I'll marry you.”

Only that they didn't come from a place of excitement but a pressing need to protect my daughter.

Twenty minutes later, we were tearing through the night on his motorcycle with Lily pressed between us and I was trying not to think about how familiar his body felt against mine.

How my arms remembered exactly how to hold him, how some treacherous part of me felt safe for the first time in five years.

I hated that part of me most of all.

***

An hour later, we pulled outside a small house.

It was a cabin, hidden in the shadows. The kind of place you'd come to if you wanted to disappear.

Or hide.

Ghost killed the engine and the silence that followed was deafening.

Here, there was no traffic, no sirens and no city sounds that had become the soundtrack to my survival.

"Where are we?" I asked, my voice hoarse.

"Somewhere they won't look." Ghost swung off the bike, then turned to help me. His hands found my waist and I froze.

Five years ago, those hands knew every inch of me.

They knew how to make me laugh, how to make me melt, how to make me believe in forever.

Now they just felt like a stranger's.

I let him help me down, then immediately stepped away, adjusting my grip on Lily. She stirred, her small hand fisting in my shirt.

"Mama?" She called weakly.

“ Sleep sweetheart, mama got you.” I whispered, patting her back softly.

Ghost grabbed our bag and headed for the cabin. I followed behind him because what choice did I have? Going back meant crossing paths with Reaper.

It meant a bullet or worse and Lily growing up without a mother.

Or not growing up at all.

Inside, the cabin was surprisingly clean.

It looked lived-in, like someone had been here regularly.

But wasn't the clubhouse where they all lived? Except those who had families?

"How long have you had this place?" I asked, watching him move through the space with easy familiarity.

"Long enough." He set our bag down, then moved to the wood stove and added logs to keep the fire burning.

"That's not an answer."

"It's the only one you're getting right now." He straightened, then looked at Lily in my arms and I swear I saw his expression soften.

"You should put her to bed. It's late." He said, loud enough for me to hear, his gaze still on the sleeping Lily.

"She needs her nebulizer treatment first. The ride probably…"

"I know." He cut me off gently. "I set it up in the bedroom.”

I stared at him, a mix of emotions flooding me.

"You set it up? When?"

"Before I came to get you." He said it like it was obvious.

It felt like he was so sure I would come with him that he prepared a room for my daughter.

Our daughter.

The thought slammed into me and I pushed it away.

No, he didn’t need to know that.

I carried Lily into the bedroom he pointed at and my breath caught.

It wasn't just a room. It was... prepared.

When did he get all these?

Most importantly, how did he know about Lily’s condition?

Did he…

No, I should not think about that so I decided to deal with Lily before her sickness flared up.

I was fitting the mask over her face when Ghost appeared in the doorway. I felt him before I saw him.

He didn't talk and I chose to ignore him.

I stayed until Lily's breathing evened out and I was sure she was deeply asleep. Then I forced myself to leave the room, closing the door softly behind me.

Ghost was now standing by the window, one hand braced against the frame, looking out into the darkness. His cut was off, draped over the back of the couch. Without it, he looked almost normal,almost like the boy I fell in love with instead of the man who became a stranger, sentencing me to death.

"She's asleep," I said.

He turned and for just a second, I saw something raw flash across his face.

Something that looked almost like longing.

Then it was gone, replaced by that careful blankness he wore like armor.

I was seeing things.

I had to be.

This was Ghost, the club's enforcer. The man who stood in front of everyone and called me a traitor. The man who chose the Devil's Reach MC over me.

He wasn't the man who used to hold me after nightmares, who used to promise he'd love me until his last breath.

He was not the same man who swore he would protect me no matter what.

That man died five years ago in a warehouse, right along with my father.

"We should talk," Ghost suddenly said.

"Talk about what? You've already made all the decisions.

From marriage to running to hiding… What's left to discuss?" I fired back, trying to hold in my emotions.

"The rules." He moved away from the window, but kept his distance. Like he knew getting too close would make me bolt. "You wear my ring. You're my old lady in name. That means protection, but it also means…"

"I know what it means, Ghost. I grew up in the club, remember?" The bitterness leaked through despite my best efforts.

"I know exactly what being claimed means."

His jaw tightened. " I am not claiming you. This is survival."

"Is it? Because from where I'm standing, it looks like you've got everything you want. You have me under your thumb and a reason to play hero. What's in this for me besides staying alive?" I asked.