Broken Bond by C.J. Primer

34

CALLUM

A gust of warm air whooshes into my face as I push through the door to exit the squad complex, the summer sun beating down relentlessly overhead. We’re in the middle of what feels like an endless heat wave. The grass of the practice field is crunchy underfoot as I step out onto it, dying of thirst and begging for rain, and despite the fact that I just showered off the sweat I worked up while training, my t-shirt is already clinging to my body like a second skin by the time I reach the outer gate to head for the parking lot.

“Yo Cal, wait up!” a voice calls from behind me, and I swivel to see Logan jogging my way, his clunky motorcycle boots thudding against the ground.

I pause to wait for him, idly twirling the keys to my Corvette around a finger.

He flashes me a smile as he approaches, two rows of straight white teeth gleaming and a pair of dimples sinking into his cheeks. Handsome fucker. “Think you can find some time this week to finish my chest piece?” he asks, fingers trailing over his left pec where he’s sporting my ink beneath his shirt.

“Yeah, for sure. My schedule’s wide open these days.” I rake a hand through my hair. ” Just let me know when you’re up for it.”

His eager grin widens. “Shit, I’d do it right now, but I’m headed to Westfield to see Jax and Quinn. Maybe tomorrow?”

“Sure,” I shrug, though truthfully, I’m just as eager as he is. I’ve been fucking around with my tattoo gun on myself for a while now, but the only other person I’ve ever tattooed is Nessa. That is, until Logan and I got to talking about our ink while we were away on the mission. When he found out I’d done it all myself, he asked if I’d do one for him, and I jumped at the chance. There’s

just a certain thrill that comes with seeing my art come to life on someone else’s skin.

Logan claps me on the shoulder and the two of us start toward the parking lot, falling into an easy stride with one another. “So can we count on you for the next mission?” he asks, swinging his gaze to me. “The IT unit

thinks they may have identified another

offshoot of the shadow pack, wants to send a team to investigate.”

“Nah, man,” I grumble. “Think I’m gonna stick around here for a while.”

He arches a brow in surprise, stopping short in front of his motorcycle parked at the curb. I swivel to face him as I palm my keys.

“Any particular reason?” he asks, a knowing smirk pulling at his lips.

Yeah, Logan knows about Ness. He was tasked with leading the mission, and he’s the one person on our team that I really connected with- we’ve got a lot in common.

with our mutual passion for art and ink. He noticed all my sketchbooks lying around the dingy motel rooms we holed up in while we were away, and when he thumbed through one, he happened to see a sketch or two of!!!! my muse. Or fifty. I can’t help that all my recent sketchbooks are full of her face.OTR

He doesn’t wait for me to answer because he

already knows. “You get her back yet?”

“Working on it,” I grunt.

Logan gets a mischievous glint in his eye,

his smirk deepening. “Was that what you were doing at the swimming hole yesterday?” 3

Shit, I’d actually deluded myself into thinking Nessa and I had been discreet. Then again, I can’t remember the last time I drank that much- it’s not exactly like I was firing on all cylinders when I jumped her in the water.

I reach up to rub the back of my neck, wincing. “You saw that?”

“You two all over each other?” he snorts.

Yeah, hard to miss.”

While a natural reaction would probably be to feel something akin to embarrassment, for some reason, I get a surge of smug satisfaction, my wolf preening with pride for publicly staking our claim. Not that I have any right to, not after the way I left.

“I still don’t know where we stand,” I admit, heaving a sigh. “We were both a little drunk yesterday. I have a feeling she might have woken up this morning with second thoughts.”

“Ah, you’ll figure it out,” Logan says with a cavalier grin. “Take her out to a fancy dinner or buy her something nice. Girls love that shit.”

I shake my head, chuckling wryly. If only it were that easy. “Not this girl,” I mumble.

Even if I could afford to do that, Nessa’s not the type to be impressed by flashy presents or fine dining. It’s more about the little things with her. She’d take a scenic view over a stuffy restaurant any day, or a drawing out of my sketchbook over expensive jewelry. The things that make her eyes light up are the ones you can’t put a price tag on.

Logan shrugs, stepping up to his motorcycle and kicking a leg over. “Find another way to get back on her good side, then. You’ll think of something.” He starts the engine, the deep hum vibrating through my body as he revs it a few times. “Flowers usually help, all girls like flowers. There’s a floral shop in Summervale.” I wrinkle my nose at his suggestion and Logan shrugs again.

she has a chance to sit and stew

with sweat after spending ten fucking minutes out in

with a boot, rolling away from the curb. “Good luck,” he calls,

my Corvette as I hear the roar of the motorcycle engine rumbling

longer I wait before seeking out Nessa, the longer she’ll have to overanalyze what happened yesterday; the longer she’ll have to

time to come up with

here?” Nessa asks cautiously, clutching the edge of the heavy wooden front door of the Norbury packhouse

but it’s all false bravado. I’m nervous as hell about how this is

and my heart is pounding so hard that it feels like it’s about to burst from my

right now for being such a pussy and getting all

remember what’s currently clutched in my hand, half hidden behind the back of my thigh. I lift the small bouquet of white flowers, thrusting

me. “Aw, I love carnations,” she breathes, her lips pulling into a bright smile as she fingers the soft white

have ever bought them for someone before. I didn’t even think to ask the florist at the shop in Summervale what kind they were; I just went in there and asked for the biggest bouquet I could get for the rest of the cash I had in my

amount of flowers I ended up walking out with, I thought I was getting

any work for me at the garage while I’m waiting for my stipend

long lashes fluttering. “They’re beautiful,” she smiles, pulling the door open wider and taking a step backwards.

you, Logan. 5

Nessa carries the flowers

asks over her shoulder as she puts the flowers in the glass of water and arranges them just so, fussing over the way they fan

“You’ll see.”

suspiciously, but I keep my

relents, crossing in front of me to grab her shoes from beside the door. She bends at the waist to slip them on her feet, giving me a nice view of her ass in the little white pair of denim shorts she’s wearing. She catches me staring

perky and round. I get the flash of a memory of squeezing it in my hands, my fingertips sinking into her flesh as I bent

as we approach the Corvette, her expression twisting. It doesn’t register at first, but bile crawls up my throat when it hits me that she’s probably associating my

despite its flaws, she truly appreciated the beauty of the old, restored car that I had poured so much sweat and effort into. When she climbed in, I remember how she took in every detail of

apprehension, all the good memories painted over by the dark, ugly stain of

I reach for Nessa’s hand, lifting it and pressing my keys into her palm. ” Wanna drive?”

jaw goes slack, her eyes widening in shock as they ping between the set of keys in her hand and my face.

to look at the Corvette, her expression slowly shifting from apprehension to excitement. “But this car’s like your baby,” she points out. “You sure you trust me behind the

this car makes me a little bit queasy, but I shove that down because I’m really trying here. It’s a gesture, one that I’ll hope she

I should’ve trusted you with my secrets and let you make your own choice. And I should’ve trusted myself to keep you safe rather than just bailing out on you.” I reach up to touch her face, running my thumb gently along the curve of her jaw. Her throat bobs beneath my knuckles with a hard swallow. “I know I fucked up everything when I left, but I’m trying to make

beautifully, spreading across her face. I feel her little tremble of excitement beneath my fingertips, see it spark in her warm

for the drivers side while I open the door and drop into the passenger seat, feeling completely out of place on this side of the Corvette. I watch Nessa climb in behind the wheel, her long tan legs slipping inside, her lithe fingers gripping the key as she turns it in

out of the driveway. It’s not that I don’t trust her with my car- I do- it’s just that this vehicle is one of

it?” Nessa giggles from beside me, darting me a glance and clocking the tight set of

a little,” I admit, shooting her a wry smile. I tip my head toward the windshield.” Eyes on the

the gear at the end of the driveway and lurching forward

My lungs constrict.

way?” she asks, braking a little too

to hit the button for the radio, cranking up the volume to calm myself by filling up

fast for my liking, my hands scrabbling for purchase on the ceiling of the car, which she finds fucking hilarious. Although my heart’s in my throat, her giggle soothes my nerves

down since it’s a narrow one-lane road with sporadic places to pull off to let other cars through. There’s hardly ever any traffic, but the last thing I want is for her to chance it by going too fast and send the Corvette tumbling over the edge. The boys and I used to come up here to smoke sometimes, and there’s a killer view up at the

appreciate. If we can make it there in

from reaching over and grabbing the wheel. “The

finally rolls to a stop and she

my shoulder. “C’mon,” I urge, opening the door and twisting at the waist to step out.

drivers’ side and meeting me

before?” I ask, and I grin when she shakes her head, taking her hand in mine and

a few strides, and I hop up onto the top of the stony plateau, offering her a hand to help her up. As

on a swivel as she

one of the best views in the whole six-pack territory. From this vantage point, you can see the swell of nearby mountaintops and the snow-capped peaks of those in the distance. The lush foliage of

as she drinks in the

Nessa murmurs closer to the

flares up inching and I re out to grab her arm, tugging her back before she can take another step. “Careful,” I warn, nodding toward

creasing her lips. “So you didn’t

I flinch.

doesn’t, though. The smile drops from her face, her