Holt unclipped the strap across her chest and tugged the pack off her shoulders, heaving in his breaths. His hair was plastered to his face, his face red with exertion. “Go.”
“You can’t…”
He shoved her gently toward the dock. “Go, Naiya.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll hold them off.”
Damn stupid man. Clearly, he couldn’t go on, and he was planning to sacrifice himself after she’d gone to so much trouble to save him. She put an arm around his waist and braced herself to take his weight. “I’m not going without you.”
Holt looked down at her, and his lips quirked, amused. “What are you doing?”
“Helping you.”
“Even if it might cost you your freedom?”
Naiya shrugged. “The bikers I know would either have abandoned me or taken advantage of me in the same situation. But here you are.”
“Maybe I’m using you,” he said softly.
“I thought of that.” She took a step, urged him forward. “I make good bait if you want to lure Viper out of his den. But even if you are using me to get to him, I have a vested interest in the outcome, and so do you. But more than getting Viper off my back, I want you to have your revenge. That’s why I drugged you at the motel. You deserve justice, Holt, and even I can see that you won’t get that from the law.” She tugged on his shirt. “Now come on. We don’t have time for all this talking.”
He stared at her like she was some kind of exotic creature, wondrous and curious at the same time. Uncomfortable beneath his scrutiny, she jogged ahead, only to feel his hand clasp hers. He picked up the pace, tugging her forward, where only a few moments ago she thought she’d be supporting him.
“I’m not worth that kind of loyalty,” he said as they raced along the beach to the boat launch. “But you are safe with me.”
Warmth curled in her belly, spread out to her fingers. Maurice wasn’t the protective type. He explained away his reluctance to walk her home at night, or meet her at the bus stop in the dark, as a dislike for the antiquated conventions of chivalry. In fact, he claimed to be honoring her feminist beliefs by lying on the couch watching sports when she came to visit at night, overcoming his primitive urges to protect his woman and mark his territory. He was a modern man of modern times no longer ruled by biology. Of course it made logical sense, and yet a tiny, betraying part of her wished he would put an arm around her and beat back the shadows of the night.
They hit the boat launch at a run and turned into the parking lot, the acrid diesel fumes overpowering the fresh pine-scented air.
“Let’s check if that one’s open.” Holt gestured to an SUV on the far side of the lot. The empty trailer attached to the hitch suggested the owner was out on his boat, but when Naiya looked out over the water, there was no one in sight.
“You’re going to steal a vehicle?” She pulled up short, stared at him aghast.
“You wanna live? You gotta take risks. You gotta be prepared to break some rules.” He scanned the beach behind them, checking for pursuit. “I think we’re clear for a bit. Their bikes won’t make it down the beach, and there’s no way they’ll leave them behind. There’s nothing more important to a biker than his ride.”
“Not even having to face Viper’s wrath?”
Holt shook his head. “A biker is nothing without his bike. They’ll have to backtrack and come after us on the main road. That means we need wheels to put some distance between us. We’ll dump the vehicle at the nearest service station and pick up something else.”
“I’ll never get a job if I have a criminal record, Holt. The security checks they do for crime labs…”
“I’ll do the driving, and I’ll take the rap if it comes to it, darlin’.”
Just like he’d done for his sister. He may have been an outlaw, but at heart, he was a good man.
“I’ll tell them I kidnapped you to lure Viper out of hiding.” He ran toward the vehicle and Naiya followed behind him.
“I couldn’t let you…”
“Survival,” he said. “That’s what it’s all about.”
His words were like a punch to the gut. She’d survived those first few years living with her mom by doing what it took to keep safe, whether than meant breaking into empty houses to find a place to sleep at night, or lying to teachers about why she wanted to stay after school. But after that night with Viper, survival had given way to fear—fear of winding up back in Viper’s clutches, fear of becoming like her mom, fear of breaking any rule in case she was dragged so far down she couldn’t get up. She had set about controlling every aspect of her life so she didn’t have anything to fear, and yet fear was the one thing she couldn’t control.