Free Never Enough: The Vipers MC by Lexi Cross Page A

sigh of relief when I saw Cindy’s name on the screen.
     
    “Hey.”
     
    “You sound breathless. Did I interrupt something? Oh, God do I even wanna know?”
     
    I laughed. “No, goof. I’m a little tense right now, is all. The phone scared me.”
     
    “Oh, I’m sorry. I wanted to see if you were doing okay. I didn’t mean to almost give you a heart attack.”
     
    I grinned. “Thanks. And thanks for caring. I’m okay, I guess. Physically.”
     
    “Mentally?”
     
    “A mile away,” I admitted. “Cin, I ran home with David today. I literally ran home. I’m losing my mind.”
     
    “You’re not losing your mind. It’s a natural reaction. You’re going through something scary right now.” She paused, then said, “Listen. I talked to my friend at the bank today. I can take out a loan for you, in my name.”
     
    “Cindy. I couldn’t let you do that.”
     
    “Jess, you know I would. I would do it in a heartbeat. I hate thinking of you going through this.” She let out a cross between a growl and a scream. “You’re so freaking stubborn, I can’t stand it. Why won’t you let anybody help you? You need the help!”
     
    “I know,” I said, “but I won’t let you take out extra debt to help me. You have enough on your plate. What will that do to your credit score, having even more outstanding debt in your name?”
     
    “I don’t care about that,” she insisted. “I care about my friend, and her kid who I happen to adore. I want you guys to be safe. I want you to move on with your life. No more stories about running David home from school. You know?”
     
    I chewed the inside of my mouth, thinking. “I know,” I muttered. Her offer was tempting—too tempting. Wouldn’t it be easy to accept? Would it be? All my troubles would be over until the bills started piling up again. I was still looking for work, every day.
     
    “What about him?” From the emphasis in her voice, I knew who she meant.
     
    “Cindy…”
     
    “Well? It’s not a crazy thought. If you tell him about David, he’ll give you the money. He owes you that much.”
     
    “You don’t know him. You don’t know any of them, the sort of men they are. It’s a matter of pride. He wouldn’t be able to handle knowing I had his child all this time and never told him. I hurt him enough by leaving—he might not admit it in so many words, but I know I did. It’ll be even worse if he knows it wasn’t just me who left.” I remembered the way his eyes flashed fire when he first saw me, when he asked why I left. Before he kissed me. Just the merest thought set my heart racing all over again.
     
    “He’ll forgive you.”
     
    “You don’t know that. Besides, he might want to be a part of his son’s life. I can’t risk that. I don’t want him to be any part of that world if I can help it.”
     
    “I’m sure he’d have enough sense to keep David away from his…business,” Cindy reasoned. I laughed sharply.
     
    “Sure. Do you know how many of the guys in that club are there because their old men were?”
     
    “Old men? That doesn’t even sound like something you would say,” Cindy laughed. My cheeks burned, though she couldn’t see.
     
    “Yes, well, it took a long time for me to work the common terms and phrases out of my vernacular.”
     
    “That sounds more like you,” she chuckled. “I wish I had known you back then.”
     
    “No, you don’t. I didn’t know who I was. It was a mixed-up time for me. Did you ever read Wuthering Heights ?”
     
    “Yeah, back in high school.”
     
    “I identified with Cathy. In love with Heathcliff, even though he was wrong for her. She tried so hard to get away from him, too. She needed to get out of her world—what other choice did she have but to marry a man she only felt lukewarm feelings for? It was that or live with her alcoholic brother. But Heathcliff kept pulling her back, reminding her of who she really was.”
     
    “What are you saying? Is he your