Page 90 of Elling & Jackie

"I'm not going anywhere," he said as if he knew what she needed to hear. "I promise you're not going to lose me."

She raised her head and stretched to her bare toes. He captured her lips and picked her up. Clinging to him, she held on tightly making sure he wouldn't go back on his promise.

He carried her to the bedroom and put her on the bed. She refused to let go of him, and he stretched out beside her, trapping her leg between his thighs.

Cocooned by him, she couldn't help but try and convince him again what a bad idea he had. "What we have together is between us. Chief doesn't need to know. Not yet."

His heart hammered underneath her head. She waited for him to argue, to disagree, to try and change her mind. His silence only had her doubting herself and her decisions.

She rolled onto her back. He put his hand on her stomach and propped his head up with his other hand. He studied her.

The wrinkles at the corner of his eyes deepened and his low brow furrowed. The fragility of the situation scared her to death. Why couldn't they have normal couple problems?

She'd take a lover's spat or a wandering eye over a threat of losing her family, or him.

Used to stubborn men who dictated their wants without giving women a reason, she wanted more from Elling. She needed his confidence that they'd survive their first big argument.

"What happens between us is nobody's business," she said.

"We're past keeping our sex life private, Jacqueline. It's turned into more." He sprawled his fingers over her stomach. "You can't deny that."

"I'm not. I just don't agree that you need to seek out a meeting with Chief. That's just bringing trouble into our lives."

His mouth thinned underneath his whiskers and he slowly moved his hand in slow circles, soothing her. "Your dad has a right to know because we belong to two opposing motorcycle clubs. In Norway—"

"You're not in Norway." She sighed loudly, trying to relieve the tension building inside of her. "People...women live their own lives here. I'm an adult. I don't need anyone's permission to love you."

"It doesn't change the fact that you're Chief's daughter and you belong to Brikken. I don't have to like him or associate with him, but because I love you, I need to respect your relationship to him."

"Please." She stopped his hand from moving. "Just give us more time and don't do anything without telling me first."

He pressed his lips to her forehead. "I can do that."

She looped her arms around his neck. Deep in her heart, she respected him for his stance. If he weren't a member of Slag, she'd appreciate his integrity and knew her father would admire Elling's need to put her first in his life.

But normalcy never happened in a motorcycle club or in Chief's family. Especially if Brikken felt threatened or one of their own was thought to be in danger.

"I do love you." She moved her arms and cupped his face in her hands. "Don't ever doubt how I feel about you. I'm not trying to hide you. I'm trying to keep those I love alive. Okay?"

"We'll need to figure things out."

"Not now. Later." She kissed him lightly. "You're too important to me, and I have too much to lose if things go bad."

He held her. She clung to him, needing the assurance that he wasn't going to walk out of her life. Having never loved someone so hard, everything scared her.

She wanted to be a strong woman who never doubted anything and put her faith in him, but she couldn't fight off the insecurities.

She could only take one day at a time. One minute at a time. One second.

"Will you spend the night?" she asked.

He rubbed the curve of her hip, tugging her closer. "Ja."

"Good." She gathered the three braids containing his beard in her hand. "And, will you come see me tomorrow night?"

He chuckled. "I'll be here as much as I can between you working and me having to be at the clubhouse."

She buried her face underneath his jawline and laid her head on him. "I like that."