Page 29 of Savage Bond

“What?” I pull away and stare up at him. “And you didn’t tell me?” I plant my hands on my hips and glare at him. How dare he not tell me when he knew about my sister dating Storm.

“Oh, c’mon, baby. We weren’t together. You were still pretending to hate me. Why would I tell you?” There’s a smirk tugging on the corner of his lips, but he’s trying to hide it. He knows I’ll freak out if I think he’s laughing at me.

“Because I thought we were friends,” I say softly.

Without another word, I spin around and march towards the far side of the bar. I have nothing to do over here, but I need a moment to myself. A second to cool down so I don’t ruin all of the progress we’ve made so far.

I pretend to check my stock of alcohol and when someone approaches the bar, I nearly jump for joy. I happily get the man another round of beers for his table. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Chopper watching me carefully. He looks frustrated, but he’s still rooted in the spot I left him in.

“So… What’s going on with you and Chopper?” Oakley slides onto the bar stool in front of me. I guess she’s taking this as her opportunity to question me.

“What do you mean?” I arch a brow, daring her to keep poking her nose into my personal life.

But in true Oakley Reeves fashion, she doesn’t care and she takes the risk.

“Is something going on?” She plants her elbow on my bar and drops her chin into her palm. A smirk lifts both sides of her lips. She thinks she’s so cute.

“No,” I say simply.

“Hmm, but the way he’s staring at you says different.”

“Chopper’s been staring at me since we were like five.” I roll my eyes.

My words hit me like a train though. Chopper’s always cared about me. I'm what matters to him and I always have been. Any issues in our friendship are probably my fault. I’ve made it my life’s mission to push him away. It’s not his fault he kept his distance when that’s all I’ve ever wanted.

“Yeah, but tonight is different.” She glances in his direction and this time I don’t hesitate to follow her gaze.

Chopper has his hands braced on the bar and his head is hanging. The muscles in his shoulders are tight and he looks like he’s seconds away from losing the control on his anger.

“Why is tonight different?” I ask, without taking my attention off of him.

“I don’t know, but I think it has something to do with that new tattoo on your thigh. Since when do you like lions with the same color eyes as Chopper?”

I don’t bother responding to Oakley. We both know no matter what comes out of my mouth, it’d be a lie. Anything to get her off my back and her nose out of my business.

I quietly close the distance between us and when Chopper doesn’t respond at all, I slip under his arm, between him and the bar. I slide my hand under the hem of his shirt, just to feel his bare skin against mine.

He opens his eyes and slowly raises his gaze until it locks with mine. There are so many emotions swimming in his green eyes.

“I'm sorry,” I whisper as tears begin to gather. I suck in a deep breath and stare up at the ceiling while I try to blink them away. “I'm so used to trying to keep you at a distance. I'm used to keeping the walls built high between us.”

“Why do you do it?” He asks in a raw voice.

“Because I know how skilled you are at climbing them.” I lift my shoulders in a shrug.

“How long do you expect me to keep climbing, baby? I’m kinda getting tired of falling.”

I feel like our entire relationship is teetering on the edge of a cliff and how I respond right now will determine if we crash and burn, or if we start something amazing.

River’s words run through my head and I squeeze my eyes shut.

“He’s been keeping his left chest free of ink for years. He said he wanted it for something special. He wanted it for his future wife.”

Chopper took a part of his body he’s been saving for his future wife and gave it to me. That’s not something he would take lightly.

Instead of answering Chopper, I cup his cheek and stare into his eyes, hoping he can see the feelings I don’t know how to put into words. I lean forward and press my lips against his. He doesn’t hesitate to snake his arms around my waist and pull me flush against him as he deepens our kiss.

All conversation stops. The bar goes completely silent as everyone stares at us. I can feel the heat of their gazes and I want to yell at them and tell them to stop watching us.