Breaking the Cycle (Rocking Racers Book 1) Page 16

  I blow out a breath. “Okay, just anxious, you know? I want everything to work out. I want Rome to genuinely want to change, and I want him and Gray to work things out, to be as happy as we are, but I’m terrified none of that is going to happen. I’m terrified Gray is going to get hurt and she’ll blame me and be devastated.”

  “I know, baby, but we just have to have faith that everything will be okay.”

  I snuggle closer to him. “It’s just there’s so much I can’t control, and it’s so fucking hard. I want everything to be okay so badly.” Tears sting my eyes but I refuse to cry.

  “I wish I could guarantee everything will be all right.”

  “I know, and I love you for it.”

  “I hate seeing you so torn up.”

  Just hearing him say those words makes me feel better, a little bit of anxiety lessening knowing he’s right beside me.

  “Come on, let’s get cleaned up. We don’t want to keep your family waiting,” I say, getting up.

  “Don’t worry. One thing you’ll learn about my family is when it comes to food, they wait for no man.” But he follows me into the bathroom regardless.

  Chapter Thirty

  REED

  I timed waking Bria up just right and was able to take her again before we went over to the diner. Shower sex with Bria is amazing, but then, any sex with Bria is mind-blowing. I can’t wait to have a lifetime of loving with her and only her, which is something I never thought I’d want. I tuck her under my arm, hers around my waist, and we walk over to the diner.

  “What do you want, baby?” I ask after the greetings are out of the way.

  She stops to consider for a moment. “Nachos?”

  “And to drink? Caramel shake?”

  “Hmm, no. I’m feeling something fizzy. Lemonade?”

  “No worries.” I kiss her nose before putting in our order.

  I go back to the table and as usual, I lift Bria up, take her seat, and pull her back down on my lap.

  “There are other chairs, you know,” she says with a playful smile on her face.

  “Baby, I’m the only chair you’ll ever need,” I say, nuzzling her neck, and she giggles. I fucking love when she giggles. So light-hearted and carefree.

  She gasps and her eyes widen when our meal is delivered, and one of my brothers—I’m not sure who but my money is on Mav—gags.

  “What the hell, Reed?” she asks when the giant platter of nachos is put in front of us.

  I shrug. “When you said you wanted nachos, I felt like them too. I knew we’d be sitting at the same spot so I combined our orders.”

  “You’re too cute,” she says, grabbing my face and squeezing my cheeks between her palms.

  I kiss her quickly on the nose.

  We eat our meal and then she relaxes back on me, her head on my shoulder.

  “Was my boy well behaved over the weekend?” Pop asks Bria.

  She nods and snuggles into me more. “He was the perfect gentleman.”

  “Gentleman? Can’t have been Reed,” Park says, and everyone laughs.

  “I can be polite,” I argue, and the laughter continues.

  “Poor baby,” Bria coos and leans over to kiss me. “No, seriously, Reed was extremely well behaved. My parents loved him,” she says.

  “The good old Ryan charm,” Pa says.

  “You see any embarrassing photos of sis?” Jax asks.

  “A few.”

  “What?” Bria screeches.

  “Your mum showed me.”

  “Oh, my God!” She buries her head in my neck.

  “You were adorable, angel. Still are.”

  “I’m going to kill her.”

  “Nah, you’re perfect.”

  She unburies her face and rolls her eyes at me. “Smooth, Ryan, real smooth.”

  I lower my voice. “You wanna bring up Roman now?”

  She blows out a breath. “I suppose.” She sits up straighter.

  “Something came up while we were home,” Bria tells my family. I see them perk up and become more alert at the perceived threat. I smile at their eagerness to protect my girl.

  “Oh?” Pop says, his jaw tense.

  “My parents’ friends joined us for dinner, Colt and Anne Thomas. Their son, Roman, rides for Devil Racing.”

  “Okay,” Mav says, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Mav’s the quiet one amongst us, the thinker.

  “Rome joined Devil five years ago, when he was seventeen, and cut everyone off, including me and Grayson, with whom he was in a serious relationship. He broke her heart and hasn’t spoken to us in all that time.”

  “But?” Mav asks.

  “But he’s recently gotten back in touch with his parents and has reached out to me.”

  “What does he want?” Liam asks.

  “He says Devil has been doing things that he doesn’t agree with and he wants out.”

  “So what does this have to do with us?” Jax asks.

  “I know your history with Devil and while Reed has told me Rome hasn’t come onto your radar, I wanted to make sure it was okay with you, all of you, before I meet up with him.”

  “And then what?” Park chimes in.

  “I want to talk to him, make sure he is sincere in his desire to leave Devil and return to the life he had, or was on track for, before he got involved with that scum. If he is, I would welcome him back into my life again.”

  “You wouldn’t be meeting with him alone, would you?” Jax asks, alarmed.

  “Reed would be coming with me.”

  “Getting out of Devil isn’t going to be easy,” Liam says.

  “She knows. So do his parents,” I say.

  “What do you think?” Park asks me. “You had the most trouble with Devil.”

  “I think as long as he’s genuine then I don’t have a problem with Bria reconnecting with her friend. What do you know about him?” I ask Liam.

  “Roman Thomas?” he asks, and Bria nods.

  “He’s been around Devil for a while, a lot longer than most guys, but he’s not one of Hunter’s main guys. From what I’ve seen and heard, he has a lot of talent for mechanics, which is why Hunter’s kept him around so long.”

  “What is he going to do once he’s out?” Pop asks.

  “I have no idea. That’s just one of many questions I’ll want to have answered,” Bria says. “So is it okay with you all? I don’t want to cause trouble between you and Devil or even me and you guys.”

  “I think I speak for us all,” Liam says, “when I say that as long as Reed’s with you and this guy is genuine, we don’t have a problem.” Everyone nods.

  “But it’s not going to be easy for him to leave Devil,” Mav says, “especially if Hunter finds him useful.”

  “If he is genuine, what can I do to help him?”

  “Just be there for him,” Mav says. “He’ll need a job and probably a place to live, but that’ll be stuff he has to do himself. Getting away from here might be the best idea. If he’s hanging around and not with Hunter, it could get ugly.”

  “Fu—far out,” Bria says, remembering Chris sitting next to her.

  “It’s gonna be rough for him, Bria,” Mav says. “Real tough. Tough enough that he may even decide that it’s easier to stay.”

  “Will they hurt him?” she asks in a small voice, and I hug her tighter to me.

  “More than likely,” Park says.

  She nods. “I’m sure he’s probably thought of this, knows it himself.”

  “It’s also about preparing you, sis,” Mav says.

  “And Grayson,” Jax adds.

  “Okay, thanks guys.”

  “We’re here for you,” Liam says. “We’re here for Grayson too, and would be for Roman himself if it wouldn’t cause more problems for him.”

  Bria sniffs and wipes her eyes, and I turn her so she’s sitting sideways on my lap and hug her even tighter.

  “Thank you, all of you,” she says and tries to smile.

  “You okay, ang
el?”

  She nods. “It’s just a lot, you know?”

  “I know, but we’ll get through it together, taking everything one step at a time. Okay?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can we have ice cream now?” Chris asks, clearly bored of the adult conversation, and everyone laughs, the tension broken. God love that kid.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  BRIA

  I slept well last night. Reed made sure I was too tired and otherwise occupied to think about what was going to happen in the coming days and weeks, not only for me but Grayson and Rome himself.

  I sent a text to Rome after dinner, asking him to meet me and Reed at Mike’s on Tuesday arvo. It’s off the beaten track, so not many people make it there, and by two it should be late enough that whatever customers Mike does have are hopefully gone.

  “How are you feeling about today?” Reed asks on Tuesday morning.

  I shrug. “I’m nervous.”

  He rubs my back. “Don’t be. I’ll be right there with you.”

  “I know, and I’m glad. I’m not sure I can be objective.” I lean back so I can look him in the eyes. “I’m relying on your instincts.”

  He nods solemnly. “No worries, I got you.”

  I hug him tightly. “I know, thank you,” I say and kiss his chest.

  “You ready to shower now?” he asks and I nod.

  He turns on the shower and sits on the bench, my legs wrapped around him, the water running over us. Neither of us really bother to move, just enjoying our closeness in our bathroom cocoon. It’s only when Liam bangs on the door that we snap out of it.

  After our shower, Reed dresses in his usual ripped jeans and baseball tee and slaps a Ryan Racing cap backwards on his head. If he’s trying to take my mind off this meeting with Rome, then mission accomplished, but if he wants me to be able to concentrate, then that’s going to be a more difficult feat.

  “What?” he asks me, coming over and wrapping me in his arms. I take a deep breath, his manly, musky scent calming me.

  I look up at him and wind my arms around his neck. “You really are too good-looking sometimes.”

  His green eyes sparkle with amusement and love. “Too good-looking? Is there such a thing?”

  “There is when I’ll be trying to talk to Rome and all I can think of is how hot you are.”

  He lowers his head so his forehead rests on mine. “That will be a problem. What if I promise to behave myself and you can reward me tonight?”

  I pretend to consider for a moment. “Can you be good?”

  “For you, I’ll be anything you want me to be.”

  I melt and don’t even pretend to be unaffected by his sweet, sweet words. “Fine, I guess I can go along with that.”

  “Good.” He kisses my nose before releasing me and slinging an arm around my neck. I sling one of mine around him, sliding my hand into the back pocket of his jeans and giving his fine arse a squeeze.

  He chuckles and we walk out to his car, a Mustang like Liam’s.

  He opens my door for me, then sprints around to the driver side.

  He takes my hand before he starts the car. “I’m right here with you. If there’s anything you don’t like or if you’re not comfortable, just tell me and we’ll leave, okay?” I nod.

  “It’s gonna be okay, Bria. Just hear him out.” Again, I nod. He cups my face and looks straight into my eyes. “I love you and I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  I smile at his protective words. Warmth spreads through my chest and I try to blink away my tears. Geez, all this emotion overload is turning me to mush.

  “You good? You ready?”

  “I am.” I square my shoulders.

  “There’s my girl.” With a kiss to my forehead, he starts the car.

  The drive to Mike’s is silent, both of us preparing for what’s to come. We pull into the car park and I spot Rome’s old dirt bike. I smile. He used to tool around with Grayson and me on the back of that thing for hours.

  I look over to the tables and spot him instantly. It’s pretty easy, seeing as he’s the only one here.

  Reed comes and opens my door, and we walk hand in hand over to Rome.

  “Bria,” he says, and stands when we get near. It’s clear he’s relieved I showed, as though he thought I wasn’t going to.

  “Hey, Rome,” I say, and stop a metre from the table.

  “It’s so good to see you. Thank you for coming. I know it can’t have been an easy decision. Roman Thomas,” he says, extending a hand to Reed.

  “Reed Ryan.” They shake hands.

  “Will you sit?” he asks, and gestures to the bench seat in front of us.

  We sit. Reed sits sideways, one leg on either side of the bench, and pulls me between them.

  “I heard rumours Reed Ryan had settled down. Doesn’t surprise me one bit that you were able to tame him, Bri,” he says, playing with his fingers.

  “What do you want, Rome?” I ask quietly, my stomach is in knots. I feel like I’m about to spew.

  “I want out,” he says simply.

  “What does that have to do with me?”

  “I want my old life back, Bri. I want out of Devil and away from Hunter. I want to go back to the way things used to be with me, you, and Grayson.”

  “You want her back?” Anger laces my question. Immediately, Reed rubs my back, trying to calm me.

  Rome runs a hand through his shaggy chestnut curls. “I know I fucked up beyond comprehension and broke Grayson’s heart, but I love her, Bri. I never stopped.”

  “You didn’t just break her heart, Rome, you broke her. You have no idea how devastated she was and still is. No idea of the amount of damage you did to her. She’s not the same girl you first fell in love with.”

  “I know, but please, Bri—”

  “Why now?” I ask.

  “Huh?”

  “Why, after all this time, have you decided that you want out? What changed?”

  “Hunter changed.”

  Reed scoffs.

  “Look,” Rome says, his attention on Reed, “you gotta know I never approved of his rivalry with you, never agreed with the way he went about things.”

  “Didn’t do anything about it though, did you?” Reed spits and I grab his hand and squeeze, this time calming him. “All those times he pushed too hard and sent me, him, and whoever else happened to be in the way into the gravel. All those times he was openly doing drugs, putting lives at risk. You never once went to the race organisation, did you? Never thought to put a stop to him. Even now, you let him get on the bike. What happens when he kills someone?”

  Rome hangs his head. “I was scared,” he says in a small voice.

  “Oh, please,” Reed scoffs. “I gave up my entire career to stop that dickhead and it still wasn’t enough. If you or someone on your team had backed me up, we could’ve put a stop to him.”

  “He said he’d blackball me.”

  “That would’ve been hard to do when he himself was blacklisted. No one would’ve listened to him. Besides, Hunter may be a psycho but we all know he has a nose for talent. Someone would’ve picked you up.”

  “So why are you leaving now, Rome?” I ask, trying to get back on track.

  “Because of you.” He looks right at me. I hold his stare and I can see remorse, pain, but more importantly, honesty in his blue eyes.

  “What?” Reed stiffens next to me.

  “I was at the diner that night, Bri.”

  “What ni— Oh,” I say, putting two and two together.

  “I was supposed to just wait outside for Drew and Dean, but then I saw you run and grab the kid. I knew nothing was going to stop them from beating you,”—he looks to Reed—“and your brother to a pulp or worse, except the chance of getting caught. That’s why I smashed the windows, so they’d get spooked and run.”

  “You did that?”

  Rome nods. “After that, we started getting reports that Reed was spending a lot of time with a blonde-haired chick.
We thought it might be just his usual fling, but then you kept going back to the diner and he would kiss you in public, so we thought it might be something more serious. When he took you to the race, Hunter thought it’d be a great opportunity to hit the Ryans where it hurt. All of them had clearly taken to you and Hunter was ecstatic. Reed Ryan finally had a weak spot.”

  Reed growls and clenches his fists. I pat his thigh and try to calm him down.

  “Hunter already had the idea to hit you at the track, but when he saw Bria, that cemented it. He got one of the guys to mix up something, just enough to destroy your garage but not take out the whole building. Hunter wanted to do it while he was out for warm-up. He gave it to Bobby and told him to lob it once he was gone. I went with him and when I saw you and the kid—”

  “Christian,” I correct.

  “Christian, right. Parker’s kid?” Reed nods.

  “Right, well when I saw you two were still in the garage, I grabbed Bobby and managed to convince him to let me do it.”

  “You?” I stutter.

  Rome hangs his head. “Yeah. I locked Bobby in a closet and told Hunter he’d freaked and bolted. I told him I’d do it. Hunter wanted me to do it right away but I told him people would see me, so I did it before the race when no one would see me or be hurt.”

  “Which is all well and good, fuckstick,” Reed bursts out angrily, “but Bria and Chris went back to the garage.”

  “What?” Rome asks, shocked.

  “They were almost there too, when your little explosion went off.”

  “Oh, my God, Bri, are you okay? Was the kid hurt?” he asks frantically.

  “Luckily for you, Chris was unhurt, but Bria was hit by shrapnel.”

  Rome looks distraught. “Fuck, Bria, I’m so sorry! Was it bad? I didn’t think anyone would be around, fuck!” he exclaims.

  Anger at his involvement rushes through me. He put Chris and me in danger. But as much as I want to throat punch him, his reaction now is not fake. Remorse mars his features, and I can't help feeling sorry for him making such stupid decisions and being caught up in the nightmare that is Hunter. “Rome,” I say, and reach out for him. His head is in his hands.

  He lifts his head and I see tears in his eyes. “I’m so sorry, Bria. I never meant for that to happen, I truly didn’t. Hunter, he wanted to hurt you but I thought this way I’d be able to protect us both. Are you okay?”