Give Me Grace (49 page)

He looked up, pausing his movements. “Hungry?”

I pursed my lips. “No.”

“No?” He raised his brows. “I make a mean grilled cheese and tomato sandwich.”

“Of course you do,” I retorted. “Because you’re a mean person. If you were nice, you’d be making a
nice
grilled cheese and tomato sandwich.”

Kelly barked out a laugh as he started slicing cheese from the block of cheddar. “You worried my sandwich is going to beat you up?”

“I wouldn’t put it past anything you made,” I muttered snidely.

He chuckl
ed as he layered the cheese over the bread. My stomach growled again. Without even looking at me, he handed over a slice of cheese. His response was a grin when he felt the piece of cheese leave his fingers.

There was no harm in eating, was there? It would give me energy for a
proper escape. And maybe appearing amenable might get him to answer the question that had been running through my head on repeat since I first saw him. I nibbled on the edge of the cheese as I watched him slice tomato and add it to the sandwiches.

“Kelly.”

“Mmm,” he replied, not looking up.

“Your parents. It wasn’t a murder
-suicide, was it?”

Kelly paused and I almost missed the way his hand shook a little before he drew a deep breath. The tremor stopped
when he regained control. He finished making the sandwiches and put them on the pan heating behind him. Then he turned around and gripped the edges of the counter on either side of me, trapping me in. “How ‘bout you tell me what you were keepin’ from Casey that got him so upset. Then I’ll answer your question.”

“Really?”

“Yes, babe. Really.”

I’d tell him anything to get the answers Casey was so desperate for. “I have cancer,” I said simply. “I was going to tell him, but he found out from someone else.”

Kelly drew back sharply, looking like I’d punched him in gut. “Fuck.”

He muttered the word under his breath
, but I still heard it. His reaction didn’t make sense. Why would he care?

“How bad is it?”

“That’s none of your business,” I replied.

Kelly stepped close again, so close I could feel the heat of his body. I tried inching back, but there was no room to move. “How bad is it?” he bit out.

“I’m supposed to be on my way home to Melbourne right now to start chemotherapy. I’ve already held off treatment as long as possible, so whatever the hell you’re doing with me, it’s pointless if I don’t get home.”

Kelly nodded
carefully and I could see him absorbing what I was telling him. After a pause, I said, “Your turn.”

“No, it wasn’t,” he told me before he turned around and flipped the sandwiches, his body tense.

“What?”

“Your question. It wasn’t a murder
-suicide,” he told me. Reaching up, he took two plates from the above cupboard and placed them on the counter, the grim reaper on his back glaring at me all the while.

“What was it then?”

“I answered your question,” he growled. He put the sandwiches on the plates, sliced mine into quarters, and turned, shoving the plate at me. I grabbed it before it dropped on the ground.

“Quarters? I’m not a child.”

“The cheese is hot,” he replied. “It’ll cool faster for you.”

“You’re worried I’ll burn my tongue?” I questioned,
my eyes wide with disbelief. “After you backhanded me across the face?”

“I told you to be quiet and you started screaming. It hurt my fuckin’ ears.” He carried his plate to the dining table, dragging me along with him.

I noticed his sandwich wasn’t cut into quarters. He hadn’t cut his at all. “What, your tongue is so badass it can handle hot cheese and mine can’t?”

“Babe, you
wanna know how badass my tongue is then sit down and spread your legs.”

I paused to glare at him, beginning to realise he was a lot more like his older brother than just in looks.
“It all comes back to sex with you!”

Kelly snatched the plate from my hand and dumped it on the table. “Sit down, shut the fuck up, and eat.”

I sat, and I ate, and I blinked back tears because I wanted Casey and I wanted him now. I wanted him to wrap me up in his arms and hold me close like he loved to do. It made me feel safe when I was burrowed against him, inhaling his warm, male scent.

“Don’t cry,” Kelly ordered.

“Sure,” I muttered sarcastically.

His phone rang where it rested on the table beside him. I saw the name
Morgan
flash up on the screen before he picked it up. My eyes narrowed. That
bitch!
Were they in this together? I should’ve done more than just slap her in the face. I should’ve throat punched her. And when she went down, because my blow would’ve felled her, I could’ve scratched her eyes out and ripped every single hair extension from her head.

“What do you want?” Kelly answered.

I strained but I couldn’t hear her reply.

“Shit,” Kelly spat. “This
ain’t the fuckin’ mafia, bitch.”

I took mild satisfaction at hearing him call her a bitch when all I got from him was
babe
or
Grace
. Suck on that, Morgan. The entire world knows you’re a mean cow.

“You can’t just go around putting hits on people because your brother is the president of the Sentinels.”

Oh shit.

And I’d
slapped
her.

No wonder they wanted me dead.

I was so dead.

So very, very dead.

I tuned back in to find Kelly ending the call.

“I’m dead, aren’t I?”

“Fuck.” He tossed his phone on the table without answering me and stood quickly. “Morgan is on her way and she’s got her fuckin’ brother involved.”

“What are you doing?” I shrieked, batting his hands away as he began strapping me back down in the chair. “You should be letting me go, not taping me up to await my doom like a Christmas turkey!”

“You don’t escape the fuckin’ Sentinels, Grace. Shit is about to fly. You’re better off here with me while I talk it out.” He paused and then picked up the tape. Ripping a piece off, he slapped it over my mouth. “Be better if you shut the fuck up too. If you start flappin’ your gums, you’ll only make it worse.”

On that ominous note, he disappeared down the hall. Moments later he returned, a handgun tucked into the waistband of his sweats and a shirt in his hands. He tugged it on, pulling it quickly over that motherfucker chest.

That’s when I heard it. The thunderous roar of a motorcycle coming down the street. My heart began to hammer in my chest in tune with the sound, creating a symphony of doom. As though my fear was audible, Kelly stood in front of me, arms folded, his bulk wiping out my view of the front door.

There was arguing out the front of the house, then suddenly the front door slammed. I flinched. I wasn’t sure my heart could hammer any harder until it suddenly hit warp speed.

“Where is she?” I heard Morgan hiss.

“Move,” boomed a gravelly voice from the door. There was a shuffle and Morgan came into view, moving sideways as someone came in behind her.

Kelly jabbed a finger at her. “Keep out of this, Morgan.”

Yeah, bitch,
I added silently from behind the tape.

“This her?” boomed the voice, louder now because it was closer.

Kelly stepped to the side, still keeping guard, but revealing me to the big biker boss dude.

My mouth fell open as I took him in, from the buzzed hair on his head, to the mammoth, woolly beard, to the leather that covered his entire body and down to
booted feet that would crunch bones beneath them with ease.

My eyes flew back up, meeting his dark brown ones. That’s when I knew that before, when I thought I was dead, I really wasn’t. Because that was before I saw this man. Now I was whatever was worse than being dead, because I
knew
this man.

From the flare in his eyes, I knew he knew me t
oo. The last time I saw this badass biker was at the bonfire after our photoshoot for the Hendrix label. I’d tossed water all over his burning beard before careening away in a hail of gravel, John sideswiping a bunch of Harleys with his car as we made our rapid escape.

“Grace.” The single word on his lips was a ball of dread in my belly.

He reached forward and ripped the tape from my lips. I ignored the sting because it was nothing in the grand scheme of things. Not when death was here, knocking on my door.

I breathed his name with horror. “Bingo.”

“This is the
bitch
you ordered a hit on, Morgan?” he thundered, looking at me while he spoke.

“That’s her,” she replied,
her lips pressing in a smirk that I wanted to smack from her face.

He spun around. “What the fuck
? Who do you think you are, traipsing around ordering hits on people? What are we? The fuckin’ mafia? You want every single fuckin’ fed in Sydney tacked to our fuckin’ asses? Goddammit!” He jabbed a finger at Kelly. “You shoulda just fuckin’ told me what the bitch was up to.”

Kelly held up his hands. “You were out of town. I had to do something to keep her safe until I could get a hold of you.”

Bingo turned back around to face me. “No one’s touchin’ this classy piece of ass. Call the hit off,” he ordered, staring into my eyes.

“Why?” I blurted out.

“You saved my motherfuckin’ life,” he boomed.

Morgan’s mouth fell open. “She did?”

“I tossed water at you,” I told him as if he needed reminding. It was hardly life saving. “Then I broke all your motorcycles,” I added. Then I shut my mouth before I could mention the slapping of his sister. Otherwise he might change his mind and put the hit back on.

“You scratched a couple,” Bingo admitted,
then rubbed at his epic facial hair lovingly. “But you saved me from goin’ up in flames when I was being a fuckin’ idiot. You didn’t stick around to let me thank you. I owe you big, ” he boomed.

Bingo turned back to Morgan. “Touch a hair on her pretty head and there’ll be trouble.” He jabbed his finger at Kelly again
, who’d been standing there watching our exchange without a flicker of emotion crossing his face. “I need to take a piss. When I come back, I want her out of that chair and gone.”

Bingo disappeared down the hallway.

“Fuck,” Kelly growled suddenly as he stalked to the window. “Casey’s here. You let him follow you,” he accused Morgan.

My heart leaped instantly. Then Kelly snatched the gun from the back of his sweats and engaged the slide. My heart plummeted just as fast.

I opened my mouth to scream when suddenly Morgan was slapping another piece of tape across my face.

God
fucking
dammit!

The butt of the gun jammed harder into the back of my head. I blinked and Grace came back into focus. I wanted to turn around, to see my brother, but I wouldn’t take my eyes from Grace for anything.

“I should’ve known the police would let you off quickly,” Kelly growled.

“You did this?” I whispered because suddenly it hurt to talk. Every piece of me hurt
knowing my brother was alive and hid from me all these years. That he would do something like this. “You took my girl and you made it look like I killed her?”

No answer came from behind me
and that was answer enough. Anger coursed through my blood like molten lava. Breathing through it took effort. My eyes flicked from Grace to the gun pressed to her temple. I couldn’t look at Morgan because if I did, I knew my finger would press down on the trigger and I’d shoot her and that couldn’t happen, because if I fired at Morgan, she might hit the trigger and shoot Grace.

“Call off your bitch before I start shooting,” I ordered Kelly, the gun in my hand steady and cocked.

“She’s not my bitch,” Kelly said from behind me as if the thought made him want to puke.

Movement from the hallway caught my eye and the big biker came into view. I blinked, because he was even
bigger up close and that was a lot to take in. He scanned the scene before him with apparent exasperation. “What the fuck is goin’ on here?” he boomed. “You!” He pointed at me and my adrenaline spiked. “Get that fuckin’ gun off my sister. You!” he pointed at Morgan. “I told you to leave that girl the hell alone.”

“Fuck you, Bingo!” Morgan cried out, the words aimed at
the biker. “And fuck you,” she added, glaring over my shoulder. At Kelly, I realised with surprise. “I wanted you like I never wanted anything in my life. But after everything I did for you, you never gave me the time of day.” I felt my brother jolt behind me, the butt of his gun shifting slightly against my head. “So I fucked your brother instead.”

“Jesus,” Kelly breathed from behind me.

Grace closed her eyes, her chest expanding with a deep breath before she opened them again. I wanted to apologise for making such a huge mistake. I hadn’t even met Grace before it happened, yet it continued to taint us anyway.

“But your brother never wanted me either!” Morgan shouted, her eyes red and her body trembling. It made the gun in her
hand shake and I held my breath knowing how easily the trigger would fire. “He threatened to destroy everything I ever worked for. Just like that!
Everything.
That’s why this bitch here deserves to die. If he takes everything from me, then I’m going to return the favour. All the better he’s here to see it,” she sneered.

“Put down the weapon, Morgan!” I ground out. Both my arms were outstretched holding the gun, my eyes squinting as I kept her in my sights. I didn’t care how big her biker brother was. As long as Morgan stood there with that gun pointed at Grace,
I wasn’t putting mine down.

Movement came from the hallway again. I was careful not to
shift my eyes and reveal Travis silently making his way towards us.

Ignoring
everyone, Morgan ripped the tape from Grace’s mouth. Tilting her head at my girl, she asked, “Any last words?” before cocking the gun. The sound was soft, but it rang through my ears like a crack of thunder.

A single tear rolled down Grace’s cheek and my heart stopped.

I love you
, she mouthed silently, her eyes holding mine.

I locked my jaw, fighting back
a sob as time stood still.

“Who do you think you are? Batman?”

She’d been so fierce and bright the day I first met her. From that moment on I knew I’d be whoever she wanted me to be.

“You even think about carrying me, or touching me, or even breathing in the same airspace as me, I’ll punch you so hard you’ll be spitting teeth for a week.”

So damn feisty and beautiful.

My finger tightened on the trigger and I dragged air into my lungs.

“This is my fight! It’s mine, and I’m not going to allow what happened to my father and to my family happen to you.”

Grace was wrong. It wasn’t her fight anymore. It was
our
fight. I wasn’t letting anyone, or anything, take her from me.

A red haze of anger drew down over my eyes.

“You made me love you so hard.”

I
cocked my head, checked my aim, and I pulled the trigger.

Then everything happened at once.

Kelly knocked my arm from behind and the shot went wild, hitting the ceiling. At the same time, Travis launched himself at Bingo and they both went down. In the middle of all that, Gabriella stormed the front door behind me, rushing past. Her rapid-fire Spanish flooded the room as she went straight for Morgan. Mitch came from the opposite direction, having come through the same back door as Travis. They both closed in from either side.

Morgan’s e
yes flared wide. She swung the gun from Grace to me and fired three rounds into my chest.

I heard Grace cry out as the force shoved me backwards. I smacked hard into my brother, my legs buckling beneath me.

“No!” Kelly bellowed, catching me. He stumbled, going to his knees as he took my weight. We both went down. I landed hard on the floor, Kelly hitting somewhere behind me.

Then
he appeared over me.

“Grace,” I gasped
at him. My lungs felt crushed and I could hear the ragged breaths escaping my lips.

He looked up quickly and
then back down. “She’s fine.”

I nodd
ed because that was all I could manage to do. Everything else felt impossible. Kelly’s face swam in front of me as he ran his hands down my chest, checking the bullet entry points. I stared for a moment, finally getting to see the man my brother had become. He looked just like me and my gut clenched with grief, not because I didn’t know him, but because I wasn’t sure I wanted to.

“Why?”

Kelly’s jaw quivered and he clenched it hard. “Because you left me,” he choked out, “and I’ve hated you ever since.”

“I’m sorry,” I managed, his words a punch to the gut. I was his big brother. I was supposed to protect him from anything that would hurt him. And I’d failed. But what he’d done today? No apology could fix the man he’d become. I didn’t know if I could save him from himself. And the thought broke my heart.

“Casey!”

Hearing Grace cry my name was the best thing I’d ever he
ard in my life. I tilted my head forward and tried to tell her I was okay, but I couldn’t get the words past my lips. Her eyes held mine while Travis cut her free. Travis loved Grace because I loved her, and when I hurt for Grace, he did too. I could see it in his eyes as he untied her with so much care, checking for injuries while she slapped at his hands, impatient to get to me. When the last bit of tape was removed, she was suddenly on me.

Kelly shifted out of the way and stood. Straddling my lap, Grace began patting at my chest where the bullets hit.

“Casey,” she sobbed. “Where are you hit?”

“Fine,” I breathed, my head falling back with relief. “I’m fine.”

Her hands shoved my hoodie up and over my chest where she encountered the bulletproof vest beneath it. “Oh thank God!” she cried. Her arms wrapped around me and she buried her face in my neck. I could feel her tears on my skin, her delicate frame shaking with sobs as she draped her body over mine, unwilling to let go. My arms came up around her, happy to keep her there.

“Casey, you came for me.” Grace pulled back, taking my face in her hands. I covered her hands with mine. I looked at her until she blurred in front of me and I knew I’d never find a feeling like this with anyone else. Ever. “You came for me.”

“Remember when you told me you loved me that first time?”

Grace nodded, swallowing as she straddled over me, my face still in her hands.

“And when you said that some people leave you in the blink of an eye, and some are with you for years?” She nodded again. “I promise you, Grace, no matter what happens, you’ll be with me forever, because you’re in my heart, and I won’t let you leave.”

Her bottom lip trembled. “I don’t want to be anywhere else, Casey.”

I dragged her face down until my lips met hers. The kiss was fast and hard because it wasn’t the time or the place. I just needed to taste her before I had to deal with my brother.

After nipping lightly at Grace’s bottom lip, I let her go and Travis loomed over me. “You pussy.” He held out his palm to Grace. She took it in his and he helped her to her feet. “Lying down on the job.”

“Don’t mind me,” I said, wincing as I stood without assistance.

Travis raised his brows. “Last time I saw, you didn’t have a vagina. You can get yourself to your feet.”

I dragged my hoodie over my head and in that split second of inattention, Grace—having decided I was fine—charged towards Morgan. Gabriella had Morgan’s front pressed against the wall as she slapped on a pair of handcuffs. Mitch stood by, holding onto a similarly handcuffed Bingo. Grace obviously didn’t care. She launched herself without the slightest hesitation and all three girls went down in a pile of body parts. Limbs stuck out everywhere as I tossed my hoodie aside, unstrapped the vest, and waded into the fray with Travis.

“You shot my boyfriend!” came a shriek from the pile.

“Calma el fuck abajo!”
was yelled from somewhere and I had no clue what it meant. It sounded harsh though.

Then came the unmistakable sound of a fist cracking someone in the face.

“You
bitch!
” came another shriek, this one muffled and agonised and sounding a lot like Morgan. “You broke my fucking nose!”

“Come here,” was the answering growl. “I’ll break your whole fucking face and I’ll laugh while I’m doing it.”

“Your woman’s feisty,” Kelly told me as if I didn’t already know.

I reached in for a limb like a lucky dip and yanked out a body. I got a glaring Gabriella. “Control your woman,
cara de verga!
” she snapped, shrugging free of my grip.

“What did you call me?”

Mitch’s lips twitched. “She called you a dickface.”

“Nice,” I muttered.

“I told you to wait,” she snapped, brushing hair from her eyes impatiently.

I turned to grab Grace from the pile when Kelly’s arms wrapped around her waist from behind. Blood smeared along her arm and across her cheek from the melee as he pulled her back.

“Babe, stop,” he growled when Grace struggled.

“Let me go, asshole!”

My eyes narrowed. I left Morgan bleeding on the floor for Travis to deal with. I snatched Grace from Kelly’s hold, nudged her behind me, cocked back a fist, and slammed it in my brother’s face.

Kelly stumbled backwards, his hands flying to his nose. “
Ow, fuck,” he hissed.

I clenched and unclenched my fist, trying to relieve the throbbing burn in my knuckles before I went for round two. My brother had a hard fucking face. “That’s for taking Grace,” I snarled.

He came back at me hard and fast, clipping me in the jaw. I sucked in a breath. The punch packed a hell of a lot of power, surprising me. “That’s for leaving me,” he snarled back.

From my peripheral vision, I saw Grace step forward and then snap backwards like a rubber band. I turned my head. Travis held her. “Let them punch it out, Grace.”

“Are you kidding? Look at them,” I heard her say as I turned back, fury taking over the pain of Kelly’s punch. “They’ve got muscles on their muscles. They’ll kill each other.”

“No they won’t,” I heard Travis reassure her as I tackled my brother and we crashed to the ground, breaking the side table by the couch when we landed. I reared back for another punch and Kelly grabbed me in a headlock. “See? They’re hugging it out already,” he added soothingly.

I landed a fist in Kelly’s ribs.

“
Oomphf,” he huffed.

“That’s for calling Grace
babe
. She’s not, nor will she ever be, your
babe.
”