Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 135792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
He dove in for the softest of kisses, shivering when Knox’s long lashes tickled his cheek. He felt so much lighter now that he’d confessed his feelings. “That… that was the right moment.”
“Oh, yeah? Were you rehearsing for a long time? Making a list of my pros and cons?” Knox laughed and slid his hands into the back pockets of Liv’s jeans as they kissed again.
Liv chuckled and pulled Knox’s head to his shoulder, cradling him to caress his jawline. It was as if weights that he’d been carrying at all times have suddenly dropped and he might just float up like a helium balloon. “Not really. I just say what I feel, babe.”
Knox smiled and opened his mouth, but a series of car honks outside made him back out of Liv’s embrace. “That must be Ezra! He’s got the turkey!”
His excitement disarmed Liv. There was no other choice but to submit to this Thanksgiving ambush, and right now Liv couldn’t understand why he’d been upset in the first place.
Maybe Knox was right and he’d gotten so wrapped up in the idea of saving him that he forgot how necessary it was to be with him when it mattered. “Oh man, remember how my mom came over one Thanksgiving, convinced us to spend it with her, and then bought heroin for the cash I gave her for the turkey? Dark meat had never been as good as the bits Mr. Walters gave us out of pity.”
Knox laughed, even though the memory had so much darkness in it. What else could they do when that had been their reality?
“Jesus Christ. I must have eaten ten biscuits with gravy and then gotten sick. But you were there to nurse me. Even if reluctantly.” He winked at Liv and walked out.
Ezra was standing next to his car as Frank lifted the steaming turkey out of the trunk.
“It’s done,” Ezra said with a flush and wiped away a strand of hair sticking to his forehead.
“Hell yes! I’m so damn hungry!” Dex yelled.
Frank looked to Liv with a smile. “You’re right on time. First night off in forever, eh?”
Liv smirked, pulling Knox close by the waist. They approached the fire, which livened up the messy piles of junk, but also all their faces, providing more than enough warmth to sit outside in comfort. “Fortunately, Knox took matters out of my hands.”
The smile he got from Knox was filled with so much love and tenderness Liv’s whole chest felt light, and he promised himself that just tonight, he wouldn’t be thinking about money, the surgery, or the piles of work on his plate.
“I need to check on the rabbit,” Knox said and gave him one more kiss before joining Jag at the grill.
Shane nodded at him with a grin. “It was so hard to keep this secret.” They often worked together at the junkyard, and Shane managed to keep his mouth shut. Which somehow both made him a great and terrible friend.
“I feel duped. And blind,” Liv said, sitting on one of the empty benches while Frank and Ezra arranged the food in front of them.
The feast filled the table to the brim. Sweet potatoes, carrots, gravy, pies, a pot with a sticky note stating Dex’s Thanksgiving Ramen, and a salad of mixed veggies.
Dex whistled, wrapped around Hammer like a sloth around a tree. “That’s nothing. I once had this guy invite me over for sex, but when I arrived there were several men there that he failed to mention. So yeah, I planned to be out of there in twenty minutes but had only finished them all at three in the morning.”
Liv stared at him, frozen. “Are you… okay? When was that?”
Hammer stroked Dex’s back. “Before me, obviously. I would have dealt with those people differently.”
Liv decided not to question any of it and glanced at the fancy-looking square plate from a set he recognized from Ezra and Frank’s home. His crooked reflection in its polished surface seemed to wink, and he looked up, trying to ignore the intense scent of meat until he was allowed to have it. He focused on the stormy face of the man sitting across the table.
Liv had seen Hammer at the clubhouse many times, and had even worked on his car once, but the guy remained a mystery. Some of the other bikers seemed to fear him, or at the very least have mad respect for him, and while present at the party, he remained quiet next to his loudmouthed boyfriend. And yet, he was as welcome as everyone else, yet another member of this strange family made of castoffs and outsiders.
Ezra slapped Dex’s hand when it reached for a turkey leg. He looked ridiculously out of place in an elegant woolen coat and a plaid scarf. And yet, Liv couldn’t imagine him not being here either. “Wait for the rabbit! I want to take a photo when everything’s on the table!”