Damaged and the Outlaw (Damaged #4)

“Come inside,” I said, pushing open the door.

A second passed as Vaughn realized I’d been lying about another guy. I saw something shift in his expression. Whether feeling relief or male cockiness, he walked inside and sat on the couch. I got us two beers and joined him.

“You’re all pink,” he said, rubbing my burned nose with his thumb.

“What happened with your mom?”

“My cousin Caleb likes to call and taunt me. Sometimes, he’ll text to say someone got married and how I never will because I’ll be dead soon. Just crap like that. Tonight, he called to tell me that I would outlive my mom.”

Despite my need for separation, I took his hand. “What’s wrong with her?”

“She’d had a heart attack years ago. Since then, she’s had problems off and on. Last night, she had another heart attack and they don’t think she’ll last much longer. Caleb said if I wanted to tell her goodbye that I needed to get my ass out there within the day.”

“They’ll kill you though.”

Looking like a little boy lost, Vaughn shrugged. “I know, but maybe I can tell her goodbye first.”

“Or maybe they’ll kill you the minute you arrive. Are you sure your mom is really sick?”

“Yeah, Caleb gave me the number to the hospital and had the doctor tell me my mom’s status.”

Unable to say the right thing, I just caressed his hand and tried to ease his pain.

Vaughn exhaled slowly. “For most of my life, it was just me and my mom. When she met Ted, things changed and I didn’t get to spend time with her. It was like she was an extension of him, but I never knew if that was what she wanted or if it was how things had to be with him. They’d known each other in high school then he blew her off. She bounced around from one loser to another until she had me. I know she was lonely, but I missed her when she ended up with Ted. I missed the old her anyway.”

Vaughn turned to me and studied my face. “When I was little and would get scared because of gunshots or our neighbors were fighting, she would let me sleep in her bed. I knew she would die to protect me. I trusted her, but Ted ended that when they hooked up. I haven’t spoken to her since I left Tucson. This would be my last chance. Tell me what to do, Raven.”

I felt pressure to say the right thing, but I didn’t know the answer. I only knew I didn’t want Vaughn to die.

“Look, either your mom is a bitch who chose the club over her son or she’s the woman you remember from when you were growing up. If she’s that bitch, she doesn’t deserve you dying to say goodbye. If she’s the mom you love, she wouldn’t want you to die. A good mom would want you to live.”

“It’s only a matter of time before I get killed. Some bastard was scouting my place today. So far, the idiots who’ve tried to kill me were sloppy. Eventually, someone with half a brain will make a move. Why not just end this shit and do it on my terms.”

“It’s not on your terms though. They’re setting you up and you might not get to see your mom anyway. Also, think about Kirk and Cooper. They did a lot to protect you all these years. If you let the Devils kill you, all their work would be for nothing.”

Vaughn stared at me then whispered, “But it’s my mom.”

Wiping angrily at my eyes, I knelt next to him and pulled him against me.

“You’re breaking my fucking heart, Vaughn,” I said, stroking his cheek. “I know you love her and want to say goodbye, but no words will ever show her how you feel. If she loves you half as much as you love her, she’ll know how you feel. In your heart, you know the real her too.”

Vaughn wrapped his arms around my waist and I flinched without thinking. He frowned up at me like a rejected child.

“I’m burned all over,” I said, kissing his forehead. “I’m sorry I can’t give you better advice. I just don’t think you should go.”

“Judd would say the same thing, but he’d tell me I was a fucking idiot for even considering it.”

Caressing his face, I wished to take away his pain. “What’s your mom’s name?”

“Michelle,” he said, giving me a little smile. “She has dimples.”

For the next hour, we drank too much beer while Vaughn told me about his mom. How she had tiny feet and a goofy laugh. How she liked his hair long and nicknamed him Hippy. How he loved when she sang to him even though she had a horrible voice and never got the words right. By the time he told me about how his mom nearly choked to death on gum while they played Twister, I was drunk off my ass. Vaughn probably wasn’t, but I didn’t know or care.

He helped me stumble into the bedroom where I peeled off my clothes then tried to find a comfortable position with my tender skin. Dozing off, I thought Vaughn left, but something startled me enough to turn around. He stood next to the bed, looking lost again.