Breathing

By T.O. Smith

That night, he lost everything. And now, she wants to show him how to breathe again.

There's not much I won't do for this club. They gave me a purpose. Joey, the prez, stopped me from destroying my life.

Everything was pieced back together. I had my family again. My parents even let me know my little sister and form a bond with her.

But then, that phone call changed everything.

Now, I'm suffocating. I can't breathe under the mountain of everything I lost. I can't stand to be in this town anymore. So, when Joey accepts my request to go nomad, I snatch it with both hands and ride away as far and as fast as I can.

Five years later, I'm back. It's time for me to stop running. It's time to come home.

But I sure as hell was not expecting her when I walked through those doors.

She's fire and ice, an entire contradiction I don't know what to do with, and she doesn't know when to just quit.

Yet when I'm around her, my lungs fill with air again. I can breathe past all the smoke. I can taste something other than soot.

I'll do anything to keep that fresh air. I'll do anything to keep her.

Her husband will try to stop me, and when he does, he better hope he's got some kind of deity on his side.

Because for her... I'll rip him to shreds.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tiff Thomas
• Release date: Mar 14, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224776931

T.O. Smith

T.O. Smith believes in one thing - a happily ever after.Her books are fast-paced and dive straight into the romance and the action. She doesn't do extensively drawn out plots. Normally, within the first chapter, she's got you - hook, line, and sinker.As a writer of various different genres of romance, a reader is almost guaranteed to find some kind of romance novel they'll enjoy on her page.T.O. Smith can be found on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and now even TikTok! She loves interacting with all of her readers, so follow her!

Book preview

1

Whiler

F uck yes, I groaned, my head falling back on my shoulders as the woman on her knees between my thighs wrapped her lips around my shaft again. Just like that, I urged, my hand gripping the blonde’s strands of hair, forcing my cock deeper down her throat. She gagged, her throat muscles spasming around me, and I moaned low in my throat, forcing my dick deeper until my cum spurted from my shaft. She choked, her nails digging into my thighs, but I didn’t let her up for air until I was spent.

What the fuck, Whiler?! she yelled at me, her dark eyes blazing with rage. She was a newer club whore, but apparently, she hadn’t learned her place yet.

I stood to my full height and fixed my clothes, glaring down at her as she shakily rose to her feet. She swallowed thickly, fear flickering in her eyes. Watch your fucking tone with me, I growled. I was one of the nicest guys in this club, but I drew the line at disrespect. She was hired here as a club girl—nothing more. And if that was a problem for her, she knew where the fuck the door was. Get the fuck out of my room, Chastity.

She quickly scampered out of my room just as my phone blared on the desk. I snatched it up, my eyes widening in surprise at my little sister’s name. She was only seven, and with it being well past midnight, she should have been in bed asleep hours ago. Mom would cut off our communication in a heartbeat if she thought I was being a bad influence on her.

And fuck, the mere thought of losing contact with my little sister had pain slicing through my chest. She was my reason now. The reason I stayed sober. The reason I was extra careful on runs. My little sister was everything to me. The light of my life.

Mom and Dad had sheltered her from me for the first six years of her life. They didn’t trust me, given my past—first drugs, and then getting patched into the Sons of Hell MC after Joey got me clean. To them, I was nothing but trouble. And in a way, I was.

But I would never let a goddamn thing in my life touch the little angel that was my sister. She was a surprise to everyone, most of all my parents, who were both in their fifties, almost nearing sixty. Helena was the most precious person in this world, and I treated her as such.

Helena? I asked, my frown deepening at her sobs that echoed through the line. That was alarming. Helena hardly ever cried. Helena, sweetheart, what’s going on? I demanded.

It’s so hot, Whiler, she sobbed. There’s fire and smoke. Fear trickled down my spine. Momma and Daddy won’t get me out! she screeched. She was panicking, and fuck, she was trapped. Trapped in a burning house with no goddamn way out. No one there to help her.

My heart stopped in my chest. Fire. Smoke. Won’t get me out. Those words were on repeat in my head. Fuck!

Hold on, Helena. I’m coming, you hear me? I’m fucking coming. I rushed out of my room, my boots stomping down the stairs. Joey! I roared. Vern! Ink! Helena was screaming in my ear. My heart was racing in my chest as I rushed for the clubhouse doors. Helena, sweetheart, it’s going to be okay. God, I hoped it was. I prayed I wasn’t fucking lying to her.

It burns! she screamed. Tears slid down my cheeks, but I didn’t slow down. She could not die. Not like this. Never like this—so slow and painful. It wasn’t goddamn fair.

Joey rushed out of the back hallway, his boots on his feet, his jeans unbuttoned. Call 911! I shouted at Joey as I rushed out of the clubhouse.

Helena’s screams were growing louder. Ink and Vern jumped on their bikes, tailing me out of the clubhouse parking lot. Helena was just screaming. She wasn’t even hearing me anymore as I pleaded with her to just hang on. To keep trying to find a way out. To cover her mouth and try not to breathe so much smoke in.

Suddenly, she wasn’t making a single sound. All I could hear through the phone line was the crackling of flames.

No! I roared, pushing my bike faster than I ever had before. Tears were burning in my eyes and making hot trails down my cheeks. Helena! I shouted. Fucking answer me, Helena!

Nothing. The call dropped before I could shout for her again. I weaved in and out of traffic, breaking almost every road law there was, and by the time I got to my parents’ house, the fire department was working on putting out the flames, but there wasn’t much left of the house. The fire chief rushed over to me, instantly recognizing me. I took one look at his face, and I fucking knew.

She didn’t make it. She didn’t make it out.

No! I roared, my chest tightening to the point I could hardly breathe. Goddammit, no! She’s in there, Carl! She’s fucking in there!

Carl grabbed my biceps and shook me when I continued yelling at him. Everything hurt. It felt like every organ in my body was being squeezed. The smell of smoke snagged my lungs, making my knees weak. They shook under the weight of my body. There are no survivors, Whiler, he told me calmly. I sobbed, shaking my head. I could feel the heat of the fire, and it was sucking the life out of my body, emptying my body of my soul just as it had my little sister. I sank to the ground, sobs wracking my chest. I’ve got two men in there now getting them out.

I screamed, folding in on myself on the ground. I could taste the soot—fucking death—in my mouth. On my tongue. Ink drew me into his arms as I fell apart, and for once, I didn’t push my brother away. I cried and screamed into his shoulder, agony slicing me apart with sharp, jagged blades.

My little angel—my sweet little sister—was gone.

She was never meant to get her wings this early.

I was a fucking wreck. Alejandro had to come pick me up from my parents’ house since I refused to leave, and I fought him and his men as they tried to wrestle me into the back of his SUV. I didn’t fucking want to leave. I deserved to sit here and suffer as I watched them pull Helena out of that cursed fucking house.

Get in the fucking car! Alejandro yelled at me, finally having enough. He roughly shook me, glaring down at me with those dark, almost soulless eyes.

Fuck you! I barked at him, trying to shove him off, but his grip was too tight, and he had my cut bunched in his fists.

He shoved me into the backseat and closed the door. I growled in frustration and shoved my fingers through my hair, hating the sooty streaks that were left behind on my hands. My eyes were burning from crying so much, and I was exhausted. Fucking tired down to my bones.

And my heart felt goddamn empty. My entire being felt empty. Lost. Soulless.

Alejandro slipped into the front seat and quietly drove off. I leaned my head back against the headrest, silent tears streaking down my cheeks. I was in fucking agony.

She was gone. Just like that. And I’d listened to her dying. Even now, her screams were still echoing in my ears as if she was still screaming for me to save her.

I’m so sorry, little angel, I silently whispered. I’m so fucking sorry.

I hadn’t gotten to her in time, and that shit would haunt me for the rest of my life.

I thought the open road would relieve some of the pain, but it only seemed to make it worse. I had nothing to do. Nothing to occupy my mind with. And every time I set up a tent somewhere to sleep, nightmares plagued my mind, only letting me get maybe a couple of hours of sleep each night, if that.

Days had passed, but I could still taste the soot on my tongue no matter how hard I brushed my teeth or how much mouthwash I rinsed my mouth out with. I could still feel the hot ash landing on my skin no matter how many times I dipped into a cold ass stream or river. And no matter how loud I played my music, I could still hear her fucking screaming for me. And every time I closed my eyes, I could smell the burning flesh, the charred wood.

I needed a purpose again. But I couldn’t stand to be in this town all the time. Not yet. The Sons of Hell had given me a home. Given me a purpose. Allowed me to be near my family and build a relationship with my little sister.

But now, I needed to be away. Yet leaving the club was not an option.

I scrubbed my hands down my face as I stared at my face in the mirror. It was the first time I’d been at the clubhouse in days. The first time I’d really gotten a look