LORELEI
Glaring at the hot guy as he climbed into the front of the rental SUV, I screamed in frustration while I mentally kicked myself for holding back from asking Karina what was wrong before I hit the slopes. “You better take me right back into that cabin, or else you’ll be in a ton of trouble! Kidnapping is a felony, you know!”
His brown eyes held no fear when he glanced at me over his shoulder. “You’ve got it backward, firecracker. I’m getting you far away from the potential trouble while Cash keeps your friend safe.”
Tilting my head, I released the belt I’d unbuckled—only to find the childproof locks were engaged while he was rounding the front of the rented SUV. Treating me like a little kid was something I’d planned to rake him over the coals for, but now I had more important things to worry about. “What does Karina need protecting from?”
I was irritated that I had to ask him about what was happening with my best friend. I’d never been a napper, but between jet lag and the skiing lesson I’d taken yesterday, I had been exhausted enough to pass out for a couple of hours. When I woke up, the vibe in the cabin her dad had rented for our trip had done a complete one-eighty. Karina and I had been best friends long enough for me to know her mood without her having to say a word, but I’d still let her push me out the door to hit the slopes instead of staying to find out what had gone down while I was asleep.
Now I’d been carted off by a stranger and had no idea what was happening with my best friend. If I hadn’t been distracted by his hotness, I would’ve thought to make a mad dash toward the room I shared with Karina before he and his friend could stop me. Not that I would’ve stood much of a chance if he gave chase since he was a good half foot taller than me and had a muscular build that even his winter clothes couldn’t hide.
The snowflakes that peppered his slicked back, short brown hair and close-cropped beard and mustache were starting to melt. Instead of making him look silly, they somehow made him more attractive.
But no matter how sexy he was—or the sense of danger surrounding him—I couldn’t let him separate me from Karina without an explanation.
“And why is Cash the one doing it?”
He shrugged his broad shoulders. “We flew out here because our prez told us to. That’s how it works with the Silver Saints MC.”
My eyes went wide at his answer. An MC as in a motorcycle club?
None of this made any sense. I hadn’t pushed Karina for answers earlier because only one person had ever put that sad, disappointed look in her eyes—her dad. But he wasn’t the kind of guy who hung around with bikers. As a judge, he was more likely to put them away. “What did Karina’s dad do that ended up with my best friend needing a motorcycle club to protect her?”
He cocked a brow at me. “How do you know he’s the reason we’re here?”
I leaned forward, resting my arms against the back of the front passenger seat. “Because he’s the only person in her life who lets her down on a consistent basis.”
“That lines up with the shit he’s pulled,” he mumbled, shaking his head.
My eyes narrowed. “I’ll need you to be more specific than that if you expect me to leave with you.”
“Not sure how you’re gonna stop me.” His lips curved into a sexy smirk. “With those child locks engaged, you’d have to get past me to get out of this cage. And you might be a firecracker, but I’m bigger, stronger, and meaner than you are.”
I shook my head to clear the fog from my brain. Now wasn’t the time for me to wonder if he had those grooves in his cheeks because he smiled a lot. The man had just kidnapped me, for goodness’ sake! And to add insult to injury, he’d just brought up those darn child locks, too.
Flashing him my most innocent look, I retorted, “But would you be able to stop me after I nail you in the junk? I have lots of experience aiming for a guy’s balls.”
The humor drained from his dark eyes, and he growled, “Who the fuck do I have to kill?”
My brows drew together as I tried to figure out what had flipped his switch. “Pardon?”
“A woman only goes straight for a guy’s balls when she feels threatened.”
“Oh.” As wrong as it was—especially considering the situation—butterflies swirled in my belly over the fact that he seemed ready to hunt someone down for potentially hurting me. “Sorry, I should’ve been clearer. It was just me being a little sister to my big brother. Probably more often than I should’ve if he ever wants to have kids.”
He grimaced. “Gotcha.”
“Please, I really need to know what’s happening with Karina. She’s my best friend. I can’t just drive away with you and leave her behind.”
He heaved a deep sigh and nodded. “That’s fair. If I were in your shoes, I wouldn’t be able to either.”
He went on to tell me a wild story about Karina’s dad helping to frame one of his club brothers. And that wasn’t even the hardest part to believe.
“Holy crap,” I breathed, my jaw going slack with shock. “Karina’s dad has a whole other family that she and her mom never knew about?”
“Yeah, and since Knight has claimed her sister, our club has a vested interest in the shitstorm he’s created, even with Rom being out of jail now.”
I knew Karina’s dad was a jerk, but there was a huge difference between being an absentee father who lets down his daughter and a corrupt judge willing to put an innocent man behind bars. If I had difficulty wrapping my head around everything he’d done, I couldn’t imagine what my best friend was feeling right now. “And you’re sure the danger is bad enough that we need to be separated?”
His gaze slid toward the cabin before he nodded. “Yeah, it’s better for both of you this way.”
“Crap, I was afraid you’d say that.” I slumped against my seat. “I hate that I can’t be there for her when she’s just found out that her dad is a truly awful human being.”
His head jerked back as his brows drew together. “Shit, she didn’t know?”
“There’s zero chance her dad told her any of this before today. And I’m willing to bet he finally filled her and her mom in on what’s going on while I was napping earlier because she was weird when I woke up and practically shoved me out the door to go ski.”
“Damn.” He let out a low whistle. “I thought she was just being a pain in the ass by not coming back on her own so we could protect her at the clubhouse.”
“Karina is the sweetest person I know,” I hissed. “She wouldn’t do something like that.”
“Settle down, firecracker. I wasn’t trying to insult your friend.” Finally realizing how cold it was inside the SUV, I shivered and rubbed my hands down my arms. He twisted in his seat and turned on the engine to get the heater going.
“I get that you’re trying to help, but I’m not going to just let you cart me off like this.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “I have a few stipulations, or else I’ll make this hard on you.”
“Hard is right,” he muttered, shifting in his seat to twist around and glare at me. “What’ll it take for you to behave, firecracker?”