Secret Mayhem (Back Down Devil MC #4)(30)

When Ava heard the bathroom door open, her body tensed. Shay climbed into the back of the shower just like Ava had done to him.

“Shay…”

“Be quiet,” Shay said.

Ava put her hands to her sides and waited for Shay to touch her. When he did, she shuddered. His hands pulled her against his body. Ava put her head back to his chest.

“I know who’s doing this,” Shay said. “That’s my secret. I’m not saying anything more than that. My club doesn’t know I know and I have to keep it that way so they don’t pull me away from this. And because I know who it is and because I’m the main target, I have to protect you. That means I have to trust you.”

“Trust me,” Ava whispered. “Stein was my father. He protected me by saying I was his old lady. If not, Nile would have had his way with me a long time ago. I just wanted to find him, get to know him. I needed him. But then this guy that used to hang around the clubhouse found out the truth and tried to force himself on me in order to keep the secret. The guy was crazy. He wasn’t even part of the Lost Men. So my father tried to handle it for me. He killed the guy, but not before he shot my father."

“Shit,” Shay said.

His hands were just below Ava’s breasts. His cock was thickening and he wanted Ava again.

“It happened so fast I don’t even remember the details of it. Two men, two guns… then they were gone. That’s when Trev stepped up to keep things under some kind of control. To honor Stein, they all agreed that nobody would touch me, and anyone who tried would get their ass kicked. Trev told me that Stein saved his life more than once and it was the least he could do for Stein’s old lady.”

“All lies then,” Shay said.

“Yes.”

“That’s why you’re so afraid. You don’t know what they’ll do you.”

“Oh, I have an idea,” Ava said.

She shut her eyes and shivered.

“Damn, love,” Shay said. “I’d never let that happen to you. They brought you here to keep you protected. So stay here. Stay protected.”

“It shouldn’t be that easy.”

“It is.” There was silence for a few seconds, the water still rushing. Then Shay asked, “What made you want to find Stein?”

And there it was. The other half of the truth.

“Bad stuff.”

“I’ve killed men without care. I’ve stared into their eyes as they died. You think there’s anything I can’t handle?” Shay asked, annoyed.

“I’m married.”

Ava expected Shay’s hands to leave her body. She expected to be pushed away and shamed. Hell, maybe Shay would even hand her right over to Nile and then it would be all over for good.

“Married, huh?” Shay asked.

“Yeah.”

“I don’t know what to ask first. You’re better off just talking.”

“Do you care?”

“What if I don’t?” Shay asked. “You’re naked with me in my bathroom, aren’t you? If your husband was doing his job, you’d be naked in his shower.”

Ava didn't know what to say. Even when Shay was being an *, he was still sexy.

“It’s far from a fairy tale marriage,” Ava said. “I’m not some bored housewife looking for an affair. My husband, Todd, is a bad person. Maybe I have my father's blood, because I have always been attracted to danger. So when I met this guy in a suit who was mean and dangerous but a smooth talker, I married him."

"So what happened?" Shay asked, confused.

"Todd liked… sex.”

“A guy that likes sex is a problem?”

“It wasn't just that. He made me do a lot of things that I didn't want to do. I thought it was just to fulfill his fantasies, so I went along with it. But it wasn't enough. He wanted me to be on film. He wanted to make movies.”

“Make movies?” Shay asked. “For his enjoyment?”

Ava shook her head. “Turns out the car dealership he told me he owned was a cover for his real business he did in the back offices."

“Christ,” Shay said. “He had his own little film business?”

“And I was supposed to be a star. I let him film us once. Just once. And he ran out and showed it to a bunch of potential investors."

“What happened, love?” Shay asked.

“He tried to force me to sign a contract,” Ava said. She shut her eyes. The hot water felt good, Shay’s touch even better. “He wanted me to become something I never would be. He had things so well organized that it made me wonder how long he had been planning it all. I started digging around and ended up finding a letter from my mother to a guy named Stein. It was my only chance to escape the abuse. I took off in the middle of the night and went to find Stein. Then the rest…”

Ava opened her eyes and forced herself to turn around. She stared up at Shay, feeling protected. Truly protected.

“What about the rest?” Shay asked.

“The rest led me right here. To you, Shay.”

“That’s a good place to be right now.” Shay touched Ava’s cheek. “It’s bad right now, really bad. But if it wasn't, we wouldn't have summoned the Lost Men here, and you would have never shown up."