Atonement (Angel's Halo MC 5)

The mayor’s office was on the other side of the police station. I drove past it at about fifty yards, then parked in the only space available on the same street. Turning off the truck, I unsnapped my seatbelt and sat back, waiting.

“What the hell are you doing, little brother?” Tanner was eyeballing me like I was insane now.

Maybe I was, but I didn’t honestly care.

I shrugged. “You’ll see.”

“Please tell me you aren’t hooking up with those bitches we were banging a while back.”

I shot a frown at him, not remembering who he was talking about. I had banged plenty of bitches over the years.

“I don’t remember their names, but one’s daddy is friends with the DA or some shit.”

“Oh.” I still didn’t remember the girl he was talking about, although I did remember that I had fucked some chick a few times because she had said her daddy was the district attorney’s best friend, or something like that. I hadn’t really cared enough to remember. It had just been a little fun to try to distract myself. Not that it had worked. “No, this isn’t about that bitch.”

“Good.” Tanner nodded. “So, what are we doing here, then?”

“I told you, you’ll see.”

He grumbled something low under his breath that I didn’t hear. I was too busy watching for the person I was waiting for to care.

A few more minutes passed, most of them filled with my brother huffing every few seconds because he was bored, or hungry, or whatever else he could think of to annoy me. He was worse than a kid, unable to sit still for more than a few minutes at a time. He had no patience, which was one of the reasons he got himself into so much damn trouble.

“Can we get some dinner when you’re done losing your mind?”

I scrubbed a hand over my face, reminding myself that he was my brother. I loved him. I couldn’t kill him.

No matter how badly I wanted to.

Out of the corner of my eye, something caught my attention, and I made myself take it easy, despite the adrenaline now pouring through my veins. Moving slowly, I turned my head, watching the girl who was now walking out of the mayor’s office and heading toward my truck. Watching the way her hair bounced with each step she took in her girlie as hell heels. The way the sun shined off her honey-kissed skin. How her dimples popped out when she saw my truck and smiled that secret smile that made my dick rock-hard.

Every cell in my body was suddenly on alert, and all I could think about was how soft her skin was going to feel when I touched her.

“The fuck?” Tanner breathed beside me. “Is that …?”

“Yup.” I opened my door and climbed out as she rounded the front of the truck. “Hey, girl.”

Her bright green eyes lit up, her face turning radiant as she threw herself against me. My truck was tall enough that if anyone happened to look out of the mayor’s office right then, they wouldn’t be able to see us together. Not that I figured they would be looking. Once she was out of sight, she was usually out of mind when it came to the people in that fucking place.

She brought her arms around me, combing her fingers through the back of my hair, making me shiver at her soft touch. “Hi,” she breathed, her lips close to mine, teasing me with the taste of something lemony and sweet. “Miss me?”

“More than you fucking know.” I lowered my head, brushing my lips over her cheek when what I really wanted to do was kiss that ripe mouth of hers. If I let myself do that, though, I would just be begging for trouble. Mostly because I wouldn’t want to let her go when the time came for me to have to. “Can I take you home?”

“I wish. But I have an evening class in thirty minutes, and if I’m late, the professor will call my dad.” She lowered her lashes, biting into her naturally pouty bottom lip. The fucking little tease. She knew what that did to me. How hard my dick got for her when her teeth sunk deep into that perfect lip. “Will you call me later?”

I cupped her neck, tilting her chin up and making her give me her eyes. Those eyes had been the first thing to capture my attention … once I had stopped drooling over her body. “You still got minutes on that new burner I gave you?”

“I have plenty for now. But I might need more next time.”

“Okay, babe, I’ll get it for you.” I lowered my head more, rubbing my nose up and down her graceful neck. “Fuck, you smell so good.”

She was the one shivering now. Then, way too soon, she was pulling back. “I have to go,” she whispered, regret and reluctance dimming her eyes.

“Be safe,” I whispered back. “Text me and let me know you got there.”

She nodded. “I promise.” She turned to go, but my fingers caught her hand, pulling her back before she could get more than a few steps away.

I tucked her head against my chest, breathing in the floral scent of her shampoo.