Free STEEL TEMPTATION (A Back Down Devil MC Romance Novel) by London Casey, Karolyn James Page B

other.
    Mia had done things before to
survive. Short on rent a few times, she never slept with Chris, but Chris
directed her to a few of the patrons who would be willing to throw cash her way
for something private. Not the greatest moment of her life, bending over an
office chair in the back of the club, bracing herself for a few minutes of
fucking. But it paid the rent. It kept the lights on. And that only happened a
few times.
    Maybe this with Nate felt different,
but it was a lie.
    Mia quickly finished her beer.
    Nate had a couple of burgers and
fries. The food was greasy and good. The way Mia attacked it she knew it made
it seem like she hadn ’ t
seen the light of days in weeks. Hell, it had been just a few hours.
    Seated next to her, Nate said, “ You can ’ t fuck around tomorrow. You do what we say when we
say. We ’ ll be everywhere,
watching. You fuck up once, and you die. ”
    Mia licked a glob of ketchup off
her lip. “ You talk that way
to everyone who just swallowed you down? ”
    Nate looked at her and raised an
eyebrow. “ Babe, most of the
women who suck me off don ’ t
say a word to me and I don ’ t
say a word to them. Let alone know their name or give a shit. ”
    “ So
you give a shit about me? ”
    “ Yeah,
right. ”
    “ You
kept me alive. ”
    “ You ’ re useful to me right now. ”
    “ Like
my mouth was? ”
    “ That
was convenient, babe. The moment got us. ”
    “ Fuck
you, Nate. ”
    He grinned. “ Maybe later. ”
    They finished eating and drinking
in silence. Mia felt the day sliding off her shoulders. Uncle Jake texted her
back a simple message to take notes and don ’ t
get caught. Nate laughed at the text and kept the phone out of her reach.
    They then sat next to each other,
silence all around.
    “ You
don ’ t have to stay, ” Mia said. “ I ’ m
not getting out. I can ’ t
get to my phone. Go do something else. ”
    “ Can ’ t, ” Nate said. “ You might
scream. ”
    “ Would
someone hear me? ”
    “ Probably
not. So I ’ m staying put. ”
    “ You
know my uncle is powerful, right? ”
    “ So
am I, ” Nate said, smooth
and sexy.
    “ No,
Nate, he …” Mia turned her
head.
    No. Don ’ t tell him.
    “ What? ” Nate asked.
    “ Nothing. ”
    “ You
really want to start holding back on me now? ”
    “ Shit, ” Mia growled. “ I hate being kept like this. ” She pulled at her wrists. “ I ’ m
not leaving! I swear! ”
    “ I
don ’ t have keys, babe. Deal
with it. ”
    “ Fuck. ” Mia took a deep breath. “ Fine. I think Uncle Jake killed
my Aunt Theresa. ”
    “ What? ”
    “ Yeah.
I remember it. They had a son. ”
    “ Jacob, ” Nate said. “ I know. ”
    “ How? ”
    “ One
of our guys, Jace, helped him out. ”
    Mia ’ s
eyes went wide. “ Holy shit.
He ’ s in trouble because of
you. ”
    “ No,
he ’ s becoming a man. That ’ s all. Learning to fight and
survive. ”
    “ Yeah,
well, I ’ m pretty sure my
uncle beats the shit out of him. ”
    “ Wouldn ’ t doubt it. ”
    “ And
I ’ m pretty sure my uncle
killed my aunt. ” Mia looked
right into Nate ’ s eyes. “ Meaning he made her disappear. ”
    She was terrified just thinking
about it.
    Nate reached out and stroked her
cheek with his thumb. “ We
make people disappear too. We know how to dig holes and call in favors. ”
    “ Not
him, Nate. He ’ s …”
    “ We ’ re more, ” Nate growled. “ You
need to learn trust right now, babe. Sleep on it. ”
    “ Sleep
where? ”
    Nate looked to his shoulder. “ Crash here. ” He touched his shoulder. “ I ’ m
not going anywhere. ”
    Mia put her head on Nate ’ s shoulder. She took a deep
breath, still unable to comprehend the day. Now, the night. She had a desire to
scream, claw, kick, and fight. Maybe she could get Nate to hold her down. Get
on top of her. Press his body tight to hers.
    Her eyes slowly shut. Nate ’ s shoulder was the size of a
boulder. It shouldn ’ t have
been comfortable but it was.