Risqué Business (Club Risqué #8)

Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

“ W hat the actual fuck?” Micah swore as he and Jake stared at the bound man. He looked around but there was no sign of Melody, either in or near the vehicle, and the trunk was wide open, so she wasn’t trapped in there either.

“Just as well I contacted Logan,” Jake muttered, poking the bleeding man with his foot. “Who is this guy?”

“Tell Charlotte to call Andy,” Micah said grimly. “Because that’s fucking Guthrie. The guy who tried to abduct Melody from the club. The one who got away.”

“Motherfucker!” Jake growled, kicking the man a bit harder as he started to come around.

“I’m going to look for Melody. She must be around here somewhere,” Micah announced.

“If you want to go on foot, I’ll get Charlotte to drive up the road. We know she wasn’t the way we came, so I’ll send her in the opposite direction. I’ll stay here with this joker,” he announced gruffly.

Micah nodded. He was sorely tempted to stay with Guthrie himself and heap on a little more pain in places it wouldn’t be seen, after what that fucker had done, and allowed to be done, to Melody. But finding her was more important than any reprisals he might heap on the asshole. And besides, he had an inkling Jake might be doling out a bit of his own, once Charlotte was out of sight.

Micah set off up the driveway at a jog, looking all around him as he did. There was no sign of Melody, but he wondered if she’d been able to gain access to the house or one of the outbuildings and find herself a place of safety.

He wasn’t surprised she hadn’t stayed with Guthrie. It would have brought back too much trauma, too many bad memories. Micah could only hope this incident hadn’t stalled her rehabilitation.

But damn, was he proud of her. She’d been insistent, as soon as she was fully recovered, that she build up her muscle mass. Micah had helped her with that, and suggested an additional Krav Maga class to help her learn some self-defence skills. He’d never imagined that she might need to use them, but he’d thought it would help her psychologically, and boost her confidence, to know she could defend herself. She’d taken to it like a duck to water, practising every day in the dungeon when the space was empty.

Right now, he’d never been so grateful for anything in his life.

Jogging up the steps to the front porch, Micah found the cottage was locked when he tried the door. He peered through the windows, but everything was quiet and deserted.

To the side of the house was a garage, so Micah tried that next, but without any luck.

Jamming his fists on his hips and blowing out a breath while he turned in a full circle to see if he’d missed anything, he finally decided to check out the back of the house and walked around the wrap-around veranda.

He couldn’t believe this was the place Melody had viewed. The same place he’d thought might be their forever home.

It was ruined now, of course, after everything that had transpired here. And how the hell had Guthrie found her? Never mind at the only time she’d been by herself. Micah didn’t like it. It all pointed to the fact that the asshole had been stalking her… and none of them had noticed.

He hadn’t noticed.

But there was enough time to beat himself up over that fact later. Right now, he needed to find his woman. God! He was never letting her out of his sight again.

“Melody?” He called her name again, not expecting to hear anything. But this time, a small gasp and a rush of movement caught his attention.

And there she was, uncurling from a corner of the veranda and flying towards him.

Micah braced himself as Melody launched herself into his arms; catching her and holding her tight.

“Oh, thank God! You’re safe.” He breathed the words into her hair as he banded his arms around her like he’d never let her go. That was a distinct possibility right now.

“Micah! You’re here,” Melody sighed on a choppy breath.

Neither of them said anything more for a few long minutes. Just clung, and clutched, and took time to let their breathing normalise.

Then Micah pulled back and cupped Melody’s face in his hands, searching her features before staring into her eyes. “You’re okay,” he breathed, more to himself than to her. Outwardly, anyway, he reminded himself.

“I’m okay,” Melody confirmed before seizing his lips, and kissing him like it was the last time. He kissed her back with the same gusto. His heart hammering in his chest and pure relief flooding his veins.

“I need to let the others know I’ve found you,” he told her when they finally came up for air.

“The others?” Melody queried, as he dug his phone out of his pocket.

He gave her a nod as he dialled. “Charlotte rang to check on you and raised the alarm. She and Jake came with me and Logan’s probably here by now, too, since Jake called him before we left. Maybe Andy too, since Charlotte phoned him as soon as we found Guthrie.”

Micah made the call short and sweet. “I’ve got her. She’s okay.” Was all he said before ending the call and reaching for Melody’s hand, intent on walking her back down the drive.

Before he even took a step, Melody threw her arms around him once more.

“Micah, I love you so much.” The words dripped with passion, but not the sexual kind. “I don’t want to lose you, but after this, I can’t keep quiet anymore.”

Micah listed his head to look at her, dread coursing through his veins at her words. What the hell did she mean?

The ‘but’ on the end of her declaration hovered in the air between them like a portent.

He knew something had been bothering her recently. Had she finally realised what she felt for him was nothing more than gratitude? It had always been his biggest fear. Especially when he’d realised he was in love with her.

Swallowing past the fist-sized lump in his throat, Micah clenched his jaw as he waited for her to shatter his world.

“I-I’ve bought a house…” she stammered, waving vaguely to the property at their backs. “The paperwork is all signed. The lawyer is already working on the conveyancing.”

He stared at her, stunned, barely able to comprehend everything she was saying.

Melody had bought the house? It was already a done deal?

He guessed she really didn’t need him for anything.

He tried to take the smallest step back. To put some distance between them while he desperately attempted to shore up his heart against the painful beating he could sense was coming. Whatever Melody was about to say was going to alter the course of their lives, he could tell from her agitation, from the haunted look in her eyes. But try as he might, he couldn’t say anything to reassure her. His voice was trapped in his throat, trapped by the depth of emotion he was feeling.

“The thing is, I - I…” Melody continued, dropping her gaze from his and shuffling her feet, even though her trembling fingers were still curled into his polo shirt.

She bit her lip, stumbling over her words and Micah could do nothing but wait for the hammer to fall.

Melody squared her shoulders and sucked in a breath. This was it.

“I don’t want to live here without you.”

For a moment the words didn’t compute. His brain, expecting the worst, had short circuited, and he swallowed repeatedly to try and combat the lump and the dryness in his throat.

It was too long.

Melody took a step back, tears welling in her eyes for the first time since he’d found her, as she turned away from him, despite everything she’d been through earlier.

“Never mind,” she whispered. “It doesn’t matter.”

Micah grabbed her arm, realising she’d mistaken his silence, and pulled her to him.

He didn’t think, didn’t plan, just grasped Melody’s hand and fell to one knee.

“Marry me.” It was almost more of a demand than a romantic proposal, he realised, and sought to rectify that. “Marry me and be my wife. Let’s buy this house together and make it our forever home.”

“Yes!”

The word was barely more than a murmur, but it was enough. Micah jumped to his feet and plundered Melody’s lips, oblivious of the applause around them.

When he finally lifted his head, he found their friends around them, smiling and clapping.

“Well, looks like it’s been a momentous day,” Jake said, sardonically, as he came forward and clapped Micah on the back.

A second later, the pair of them were swamped by their friends and their congratulations.