by Lane Hart
Mike’s head hangs in defeat, so Sax comes over to where I’ve been sitting on the hard cement floor for so long, I can’t feel my ass or my legs.
“You did good. Now go get some sleep,” Sax says, offering me a hand up so I can get to my numb feet.
“Thanks,” I tell him before I head outside. Realizing that Sax and Reece took the van back to the clubhouse and Sax rode his bike over today, I start walking the mile back, ready to crash into bed and sleep for the next twelve hours.
I don’t even make it downstairs before Cedric stops me at the bar.
“Hey, Maddox. Got a second?”
“Not now,” I tell him. “After I sleep.”
“Okay, but she said it can’t wait.”
“She?” I repeat in confusion. “She who?”
“The girl that just called the bar, looking for you. She said it’s important and that you didn’t have her number, but you know where she lives…”
“Shit,” I mutter. It has to be Audrey. Glancing around the bar to make sure there are no brothers around, I ask, “Did she leave her name, by chance?”
“Yeah,” he says, wetting his lips nervously. “Her name was Stella.”
“Stella?”
“I’m certain that’s what she said. I wrote it down and the number from caller ID,” he says, pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket and holding it up to me. “I didn’t know where you were, and Reece knew but wouldn’t tell me, so I tried to call you on your cell phone and it went straight to voicemail.”
“Fuck, my phone must be dead again.” I yank the paper out of his hand. “Thanks, Cedric. You did good,” I tell him, repeating Sax’s encouraging words.
Going around behind the bar, I pick up the landline and dial the number on the piece of paper for “Stella.”
“Hello?” I don’t get the cat, instead Audrey answers.
“Hey, it’s me,” I say.
“Maddox! I’m so sorry to call but I didn’t know what to do, and I can’t tell Warren…”
“Can’t tell him what?” I ask. “Is everything okay?”
“No,” she replies with a sniffle and I realize that she’s been crying. “Can you come over?”
“You want me to come over? To Wilmington? Right now?” I ask, since it’s not just down the road but over an hour away.
“Please?”
I haven’t had any sleep and I’m dead tired, still I find myself saying, “I’m on my way.”
“Thanks, Maddox,” she responds before hanging up.
Going over to Cedric, I tell him, “I need to take the club’s van for a few hours to run an errand. I’ll charge my phone on the road and have it ready if anyone needs me.”
“Okay,” he replies, then asks, “Where’s Mike? I haven’t seen him in a while.”
“No clue,” I lie before I walk out of the Savage Asylum.
…
When Audrey opens the apartment door an hour later, she looks even worse than she sounded on the phone. Her eyes are red and puffy, and she’s distraught, appearing as if her world is coming apart.
“What’s going on? Are you okay?” I ask as I wrap her in my arms and pull her to me.
“It’s…it’s a long story,” she says. “And I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“Come on,” I tell her, taking her hand and leading her to the sofa, where I sit down and then pull her onto my lap. “How about you start from the beginning?”
“Okay,” she agrees with a nod. “You remember that professor I told you about?”
“The one you slept with?” I ask.
“Yes.”
“What about him?”
“I ran into him at the grocery store the other day, right before the semester started,” she explains.
“What happened?” I ask, as dread as heavy as an anchor sinks in the pit of my stomach. Audrey and I may have been together only briefly, but I don’t like thinking about her with another man. “Did you sleep with him again?”
“No,” she answers, which is a relief for whatever reason. “But he mentioned that he’s close friends with the professor I have this semester for Organic Chemistry.”
“Yeah?”
“And that he had told him about us, what we did together,” she explains. “He said that Professor Talbot was ‘looking forward to meeting me.’”
“Okay,” I reply, unsure why that would upset her this badly.
“Today, after class, Professor Talbot called me out to talk.”
“What did he say?” I ask, even though I’m starting to get an idea.
“H-he basically told me I have to come over to Professor Burrows house tonight, or he would fail me over and over again,” she says before she starts to sob against my chest.
Even then, it takes a few seconds for me to put everything together.
“He wants you to fuck him?” I exclaim.
Audrey nods her head and says, “And Professor Burrows.”
“No,” I tell her. “That’s not going to happen!”
“What else can I do?” she cries. “I have to have this class to graduate, and if I try to transfer, Warren will get mad and want to know why…”
“You don’t want to tell War about the professors because he would kill them,” I reply with full understanding.
“Yes.”
And Warren would, the consequences be damned. He’s so protective of his family that he keeps his son and sister away from the MC, his brothers I know he loves. If he found out that someone was trying to manipulate Audrey, he would put a bullet through their heads.
That’s when it all clicks into place—why Audrey called me instead and asked me to come over. She wants me to figure out what she should do. She’s trusting me to help her without committing murder.
And fuck, having someone put that type of confidence in me for the first time sends a rush of adrenaline through my veins.
Even after all of the years in the MC, the crazy and illegal shit they’ve made me do, none of it was even half as important as making sure that some pervy-ass fucking professors never lay another finger on Audrey again.
“It’s gonna be okay,” I promise her, as I brush her hair back from her face and hold her to me. Because it will be. I’m going to make damn sure of that.
“You don’t ever have to do anything you don’t want to do. Got it?” I ask her. “I’ll make sure neither of them ever looks at you again with a foul thought in their heads.”
Audrey’s head pops up and she wipes the tears on her cheeks before she asks nervously, “Wh-what are you going to do?”
“I won’t kill them,” I assure her, but that’s all that I can guarantee. “But I’ll teach them a lesson they won’t forget. Does that work? Will you trust me on this?”
“Yes,” she answers with a nod.
“What time were you supposed to go over tonight?”
“Eight.”
“And you have the address?” I ask.
She nods again. “Yes.”
“Good, so we just have to wait a little while,” I say with a heavy exhale. My adrenaline is rushing, raring to go right now.
“Can I come too?” Audrey asks.
“Yeah, you can come,” I agree. Having her there may be the only thing that stops me from killing the bastards.
And of course, it will be a lot easier to get them to open the door when they see her.
Chapter Sixteen
Audrey
Somehow, I knew that Maddox would come to my rescue, even though he’s made it clear the two of us are done. Well, can you be done if you never started anything? We slept together for three days, and then once again at the MC’s clubhouse, so that’s all it ever was. Still, I think of him as a friend now. Maybe my only friend, who I can count on in times like this, when I find myself standing on the porch of a big, beautiful brick home, ringing the doorbell.
The heavy door opens and on the other side stands the man I once thought was handsome and sophisticated. Turns out, he was just an assho
le who preyed on his students.
“I told Danny you would show,” Professor Burrows says, wearing his typical uniform of a sweater vest and slacks. I bet he even wears his fancy brown dress shoes around his house all the time. Even though we fucked around together for weeks, he told me repeatedly he didn’t want me to call him by his first name—Peter—even during sex. “Come on in. Professor Talbot is already here.”
“Okay, but I brought a friend. I hope that’s not a problem,” I say with my hands clasped behind the back of my summer dress, trying to look the part of the innocent school girl.
“The more the merrier, as long as she can be discreet,” he agrees. “Where’s this friend of yours? Is she waiting in the car?” he asks before he takes a step out onto the porch.
“No, he is right fucking here,” Maddox says when he jumps out of the bushes and shoves Professor Burrows’ chest, knocking him back into the house so hard, he falls on his ass. Once Maddox is inside too, I follow and shut the door behind us to make sure no neighbors see what’s going on.
The door barely clicks shut before Maddox falls on top of Professor Burrows and starts slamming his fists into his face while calling him various profane names.
“Fight back, you worthless piece of shit!” Maddox says.
“She…she started it. I swear!” Peter cries out in defense.
“Oh yeah?” Maddox asks, pausing with his fist pulled back. “Well, I’m finishing it.”
“What’s going on—” Professor Talbot asks as he walks into the foyer and takes in the scene on the floor. “Oh shit,” he mutters before he starts backpedaling, and then turns to run further into the house the way he came.
He doesn’t get far because Maddox jumps up and chases after him.
Since Professor Burrows doesn’t look like he’ll be going anywhere for a while, I kneel beside him and pull his phone from his pocket to make sure he can’t try to call anyone.
“Please, make him leave! Or call nine-one-one,” he begs me, with a bleeding lip and head. “You wanted it…”
“How about I call the police and tell them you blackmailed me for weeks instead?” I ask, holding up the device threateningly. “What I did was stupid, but what you did was illegal! So, you’re going to take your beating so that you can keep your job, even though you don’t deserve to get off so easily.”
With that, I get up to go find Maddox.
He has Professor Talbot up against a wall in the kitchen, plowing his fist into his flabby abdomen until he doubles over. On the way to the ground, Maddox slams his knee into his face, likely busting his nose because blood starts to spray everywhere.
And Jesus, he’s so fucking hot.
My avenging angel, not the bleeding professor.
I’ve never seen someone so tough and badass. Knowing that Maddox is so angry and inflicting pain on them for trying to hurt me makes me love him even more.
Oh shit.
No, I didn’t mean to use that word. I don’t love Maddox. I barely know him!
He’s just a really amazing guy who is sweet and hot as sin, but doesn’t want to be with me...
“Let’s go, fucker,” Maddox says before he grabs the back of Professor Talbot’s shirt, where he’s down on his hands and knees, then literally drags him through the living room and to the foyer to join his friend.
“I want you two to listen to me very closely,” Maddox says when he crouches down to see their faces better on the ground. “If either of you say a single sleazy word to Audrey, I’m gonna come back here. Best-case scenario? You never walk again. Worst? You never breathe again. Is that clear?”
“Yes,” both men mutter.
“I couldn’t hear you,” Maddox says as he turns his ear to them. “Yes, what?”
“Yes, sir,” they both grumble.
“That’s better,” Maddox replies as he stands and straightens. “Now, apologize to Audrey and tell her that you will never try to blackmail her again for sex, and that she is going to pass this semester with flying fucking colors.”
“I’m sorry,” Professor Burrows says.
“I’m sorry. You don’t have to come to my class. I-I’ll pass you,” Professor Talbot frantically tells me.
“No, I’m going to come to class and I’m going to earn whatever grade I get, fair and square,” I tell him. “But I’m going to do it without touching either of you again.”
Maddox holds out his palm for me. “Ready?”
“Ready,” I agree, then throw Professor Burrows’ phone at him before he leads me out the door.
“Thank you,” I tell Maddox as we walk to my car, my hand still in his, gripping it tightly because I know that soon, he’s going to pull away and leave.
He lifts my knuckles to his lips and kisses them before grinning like a madman. “You’re welcome. That was really fun, actually. It’s nice to have an outlet to get rid of all the shit I keep bottled up. When I’m with you, I find all sorts of outlets for my emotions.”
“What shit do you keep bottled up?” I ask when we get to the passenger side of my car. Rather than get in and separate from his touch, I lean my back against it to keep him talking.
“Everything.”
“Everything?” I repeat.
“Yeah, for years, it’s felt like every time I start to figure out where the puzzle pieces of my life go, they all get tossed around again. It’s so fucking frustrating!” he tells me, reaching up to tug on his hair with his free hand while still holding mine. “But then, being here with you just feels…right, like the pieces are easily falling into place without me trying.”
“It feels like that for me too,” I agree. “Even though we haven’t known each other long, I think I already know you.”
Letting my hand go to cup my face in between his hands, Maddox says, “You’re the first person to see the real me, so thank you,” before he brushes a soft kiss over my lips.
The night air swirling around us is heavy and charged, like right before a storm, as our eyes stay locked on each other. The way Maddox looks at me and makes me feel is both terrifying and invigorating.
“Do you maybe want to come back to my apartment tonight?” I ask, breaking the silence and bracing myself for his rejection.
“Hell yes,” he actually agrees instead. “I’m so damn tired, I could pass out standing right here.”
Oh.
Sleep is not exactly what I had in mind, but I’ll gladly take every minute I can get with him.
“Then, let’s go. I’ll drive us back,” I tell Maddox before I give him another quick kiss and then slip away from him.
Chapter Seventeen
Maddox
I didn’t plan on collapsing into Audrey’s bed and falling asleep as soon as we walked in the door, but that’s what happened.
It felt nice to be back in her room, surrounded by her warmth and her sweet scent. Hell, I even missed Stella, who curled up at my feet before I crashed, exhausted from the days without sleep and the beating I put on the professors.
Waking up with Audrey in my arms again feels perfect. I love the way she reaches for me in the dark, like even when she’s unconscious, she knows I’ll keep her safe and take care of her. It’s a heady feeling I’ll never get tired of.
Except, I can’t get used to it either.
I’m days away from patching into the Savage Kings, and now I get why War kept Ren and Audrey away from the MC. I can’t even imagine how devastating it would be if one of the club’s enemies went after her…
“Holy shit!” I exclaim, as I jackknife into a sitting position in her bed.
“What’s wrong?” Audrey asks as she sits up beside me, her bleary eyes trying to blink open.
Unfortunately, she’s still fully clothed, like I am, since I was too tired to get undressed last night. At least she put on her pajamas.
“Nothing’s wrong. I just had an idea, one that will help the club,” I explain. “All thanks to you.”
“Me?” she asks. “How’s that?”
“I would do anything for you.” I reach for the side of her face to bring her mouth to mine. “You know that, right?” I ask, as I keep feathering kisses over her lips.
“Good to know,” Audrey says against my lips, as her hands reach for my shoulders to push my cut down them. “Does that include making love to me right now?”
“Hell yes,” I agree before I attack her, flattening her back on the mattress while she continues to undress me. Unable to wait another second before I strip her naked too, I kiss my way down her neck and to her stomach before tugging her bottoms down.
“Maddox?” she asks, her tone serious.
“Yeah?” I ask, pausing with my mouth on her belly button.
“Will you come back, even if there’s no one’s ass to kick?”
“I don’t think I could stay away from you if I tried,” I reply honestly, knowing I should. Fuck, I should leave right now and never come back.
But at this moment, not even the threat of War could drag me away from her bed.
…
Audrey
While Maddox and I were sleeping, something changed between us.
And it’s not the sex.
We’d had sex so many times those three days that I lost count, each time even hotter than the last. But this time is…different.
Maddox’s mouth between my legs isn’t just stroking the fires of pleasure to make me orgasm. It’s possessive and dominating, with an intensity I’ve never felt before. He’s owning me.
That much becomes even more obvious after a scream rips from my throat and my eyes roll back in my head.
Maddox’s mouth crashes down on mine as he invades me. The weight of his body presses down on me, so he’s the only thing I can see or feel. And I want all of him.
Our kiss breaks only because we’re both struggling to get air in our lungs. But Maddox doesn’t let up an inch anywhere else. He’s inside me and covering me from head to toe, his forehead resting against mine as he watches my face. One of his palms is planted next to my head to hold just enough of his body off me so that I can still breathe while he rocks into me with slow but deliberate strokes that I never want to end.