by Elle Boon
Ayesha snatched the picture frame up and held it to her chest. “Yes. Tiana wanted to go to Florida to Disney World for her fifteenth birthday. We’d been to Disneyland of course, but the Florida trip was special,” she whispered, her voice cracking as she traced the photo with her finger.
“I’ve never been to either.” He shrugged his shoulders, his leather cut creaking loudly. “Listen, I need to talk to you about your sister. Can we sit down?” He held his hand out toward the couch.
Dark eyes filled with tears had him closing the distance she’d put between them when she’d taken the photo away. “We know who took Tiana, and we know where she’s at. Now, please sit down so I can explain a little.” His brothers didn’t think he had it in him to be gentle. However, looking into the melted chocolate eyes of this little woman, King knew he’d do just about anything to ease her fears and keep her from pain. Shit, he’d just met her, but he wanted to see her smile, hear her laugh, wanted to know what she looked like when she came. The last thought had him shaking his head and turning away, his eyes locking on another photo, this one of Ayesha and a man.
“That was me and my husband.” Ayesha adjusted the framed image on the shelf.
King looked a little closer, narrowing his eyes. “Your last name is Cappes?” he asked, but already knew it was, thanks to Keys.
“I took my maiden name back after…after Carlos died. I didn’t want—or rather I didn’t need the Leglamos name attached to me or Tiana. Carlos wasn’t like the rest of his family, or so I thought. They were. Never mind. They don’t matter. Now, what did you find out?” She looked up into his eyes, her own so trusting, so full of innocence.
How the fuck could she have that much purity in her after being married to scum like the Leglamos family? They were connected to his sister’s kidnapping, though he’d never been able to prove it or else they’d all be buried if they were lucky. Although she said Carlos wasn’t like the others, King didn’t think there was anyway her husband couldn’t have been involved with that the ‘Family’ business didn’t make sure he wasn’t part of. He pulled his phone out, shooting a text out to Keys and Duke, letting them both know of the new info. How Keys hadn’t found the marriage connection between Ayesha and a family with human trafficking connections, he didn’t know, but he’d bet his Harley that would be corrected within the hour or less.
“Ayesha, are you aware of what kind of family business your late husband’s family ran?” he asked, watching for any signs of deceit.
She shook her head, going into the kitchen area. “Would you like a cup of coffee?” she hollered over her shoulder.
King lifted his Yeti cup that was still half full. “I’m good,” he said. “What did you know about his family?”
“What does Tiana being taken by Rico have to do with my…late husband’s family?” she asked, exasperation making her voice raspy.
He could tell she’d been crying, had probably cried most of the night. Had she been his woman, she’d have slept in bed with him, and he would’ve made sure she was too tired to do anything except fall asleep. Shit, he needed to get his mind off of fucking her. “Fuck it. You’re clearly a big girl, so I’m taking the kid gloves off.” His phone buzzed in his pocket. “Hold that thought.” He raised his finger in the air when she opened her mouth.
“Whatcha got for me, Keys?”
“I got an address and know the layout. The best time to go in is gonna be right at sundown or shortly before, but it’s a good two and a half hour ride, and you’re not gonna want to take your bikes down.” Keys fingers tapping on his keyboard echoed down the line. “I suspect this isn’t the first time Rico Suave has done the snatch and grab. From the intel I’m getting, they might’ve been given the girl’s info, kinda a present from the Leglamos family. Know anything about that?”
King shook his head. “Not yet,” he said, keeping his eyes trained on Ayesha. Even though she couldn’t hear the conversation, he wanted to see if she was nervous. If she’d known her sister was snatched due to her association with her ex’s family, she should’ve gone to the feds, not come to his club unless this was a setup.
He pocketed his phone, stepping around the counter separating himself and the petite little woman who just might be on the wrong side of good. Not that he and his brothers were considered good guys, but they sure as shit weren’t like the men Ayesha had been related to. He backed her against the refrigerator, a bit of satisfaction filling him as her eyes widened with fear and feminine lust. “I’m going to ask you one more time, and you best believe I will know if you’re lying to me. Are you or are you not, working with the Leglamos or the Trevino families?” He lifted her chin with one hand, keeping his thumb on the pulse in her throat, feeling it flutter beneath him.
“Are you fucking crazy? Of course I’m not working with the Trevino family. He took my sister, or rather she went with him, but I know she doesn’t realize he doesn’t really care about her. She’s only sixteen for god’s sake. As for the Leglamos family? They hate me as much as I hate them. They blame me for Carlos’s death. If he wouldn’t have been married to me, they think he’d have been happily alive, living with them and doing their bidding, whatever that was. He told me he hated everything they stood for. We were only married six months. He…he didn’t tell me much about his life before me, only that it was hell, and I was his chance at something better. I didn’t know he was rich until after he was killed. I swear to you that’s the truth. I’ll tell you the same thing I told his brother, and that was I didn’t want his money then, and I don’t want it now.”
King felt her tremble beneath his touch, but there was no doubt she was telling the truth, or else he wanted to believe her version. Her home was cute but not extravagant. “Why do you say it like they still fuck with you about his money? Did he have life insurance or something?”
She licked her lips, her eyes stared unblinkingly into his. “There was a small policy we had together. It paid off my mortgage and car loan, but that was it. It wasn’t millions of dollars or anything crazy. His family acted as though I killed him,” she cried, tears leaking from her eyes.
King sat his drink on the counter behind her, rubbing his thumbs beneath where dark smudges were, drying the moisture as she wept. “Ssh, don’t. I can’t stand to see a woman cry. Listen, let’s go back into the living room, and we’ll start over.”
Ayesha hiccupped. “Does Carlos’s family have something to do with Tiana’s disappearance?”
He didn’t want to say yes or no. Too many coincidences pointed to the affirmative and in his gut he couldn’t help but think there had to be a connection, but he couldn’t say for sure. However, until they got the girl home, he wasn’t going to do or say anything either way.
Ayesha hated crying worse than she hated getting her period. Her face felt swollen and splotchy from the previous night’s episode, and here she was doing it again all over King, the man who really was too gorgeous for her liking. “Where’s your bike?” she blurted as they sat down on her overstuffed couch.
He pointed toward the front of the house. “Out there. Why?”
“I didn’t hear you pull up.” She took a sip of her coffee that she’d liberally laced with sugar and milk, needing the caffeine to clear her head.
“I shut it down a couple houses away and rolled it here. I wanted to see what kind of security you had. By the way, it sucks hairy monkey balls, lady.” King sat with one big booted foot resting on his knee while his arms were draped across the back of her couch.
She’d always thought her furniture was huge and could seat at least four or five people, but seeing King on it, the way he was sprawled out, she recalculated her estimation, or rather decided only he could take up so much space.
“Why’re you looking at me like that?” he asked, his gaze heating her from the inside out.
How could she be lusting after this man, any man, when her baby sister was probably being taking advantage of even as she sat there? “You’re so big you intimidat
e me,” she blurted, looking away so he wouldn’t see her blushing.
King uncrossed his legs, bringing his face closer to hers. “Good, I’m not a pussy ass little bitch, Ayesha. Now, I need to ask you a few things, and I need you to answer them without holding back.”
She took a deep breath. “Whatever you need to know, just ask.”
For the next hour, she answered to the best of her knowledge everything he asked. When his phone rang, she sat back, her throat was dry from talking. “I’m going to get a refill. Do you want any?”
King nodded, the phone to his ear while he got up and walked away. She wondered who he was talking to, and just how a bunch of tattooed biker guys had gotten into the business of saving young girls.
“That was Chloe’s old man. He told me to tell you Chloe won’t be making her next appointment, but to schedule her in eight weeks. I’m assuming she usually comes every four weeks?” King asked, his back to the wall, but he stayed away from the windows.
She licked her lips before answering. “Yes, that’s correct. Is she in trouble because of me?”
He didn’t answer her, which was her confirmation. “She’s not like…hurt or anything, right?”
King raised one brow. “Did your husband hurt you if you disobeyed him?”
Ayesha shivered at the thought of being punished by a man who cared about her. No, Carlos never would’ve laid a hand on her, but she’d fantasized about it. “No. I just don’t like the thought of Chloe getting in trouble because she told me something.” Besides, who would’ve thought only days after the other woman’s slip up Ayesha would need help from the Royal Sons?
“You have a very expressive face, Ayesha,” King murmured.
She gasped, her head whipping up at his words. “How the hell did you get over here without making a noise?” She tried to step back, but he caught her arm.
“Would you like to find out what it feels like to be put over my knee, or better yet, tied to my bed while I spanked that sexy little ass, Ayesha?” he asked, his deep voice rolling over her nerves, making her tremble.
“I don’t think that’s legal.” She tried to cover her cheeks with her hands, knowing they had to be red.
His deep chuckle told her he knew exactly what he was doing. “Baby, there’s lots of things I’ll do to you that might be considered illegal, but I can guarantee you’ll love every minute of it. However, me spanking your ass isn’t illegal, it would only be done if necessary or for pleasure.”
Her entire body heated at his words, while her panties were so wet she was going to need to change them in order to get through the rest of the day. She opened her mouth to tell him he was crazy. His phone buzzed again, saving her. He held his finger up, making her have the insane urge to stand on her tip toes and bite it, just to get a rise out of him.
“What’s up, Duke?” A moment passed, then he was nodding and striding away. “Send a cage here to get me and have someone come get Ayesha to take her back to the clubhouse, along with my bike. Yeah, she’s to be protected like mine. Yep, that’s what I’m saying.”
The hairs on her arms stood up at his words. She wasn’t sure what was going on, but the teasing, sexual man from moments ago was gone, replaced by the commanding man in front of her.
“Grab a couple changes of clothes, a go bag, whatever necessities you might need for a couple days, and some things for your sister. You’re gonna go back to the clubhouse where my brothers will make sure you’re safe while we go get Tiana.” King didn’t take his eyes from hers, his voice was even, no emotion to it.
“Is it going to be dangerous?” Shit, stupid question. “Should we call the police?” Her entire body began to shake, fear for Tiana and for King and his friends making it hard for her to control. She’d come to him, had brought danger to his door.
Chapter Five
King crossed to her, his big arms going around her. “I’ll get your sister back to you safe and sound. Nobody will hurt you or her as long as you’re under my protection.”
The conviction he said the words with, eased some of the fear pummeling her, but it was the strength in his arms and the way he held her, his big body wrapping around her like he cared that had her closing her eyes. She took a deep inhale, breathing in the scent of outdoors that clung to him along with his cologne. God, she was putting all her trust in a man she’d just met, yet she felt like she’d known him her entire life.
Ayesha took a deep breath, inhaling more of him into her lungs and prayed some of his confidence would soak into her pores. Although she wanted to be there with him when they went to save her sister, she was aware she’d be a liability. Rico was clearly a dangerous man, and if he was somehow connected to the Leglamos Family who hated her, he would be doubly dangerous. “I won’t take long,” she whispered against his chest when she could finally get a word out without sobbing.
“You got about fifteen minutes before your ride is here.” He put his finger under her chin. “You’ll be back here in a couple days. Whatever you forget we can send one of the boys to grab for you.”
She didn’t understand his world or how he’d have one of the boys pick up what she needed, nor did she want them coming to her home and going through her things. Thinking fast, she hurried into her bathroom, grabbed her makeup bag, and filled it with her daily routine things. Back in her bedroom, she dropped the little case on her bed and went to her dresser, pulling out a few pairs of panties and her favorite pajamas, tossing them on the bed too. In her closet, she hesitated on what to pack. If she was going into the salon, she’d be dressing up in her customary blackish attire, but she didn’t think she’d be going to work. “Fuck it,” she muttered, grabbing a couple pairs of shorts and some leggings, along with tank tops and cute shirts, her go to outfits, and a small duffle, she shoved everything into it. At the last second she scooped up a couple pairs of flipflops, adding them to the bag. She was a California girl; low maintenance was her name on most days. Realizing she’d forgotten her hair products, she ducked back into the bathroom, grabbed what she needed along with her toothbrush and toothpaste, a razor and other bathroom essentials. She looked in the mirror, seeing the glassy eyed girl staring back at her. “Everything is going to be fine. King said so,” she reassured herself.
“That’s right,” King said, his tall frame leaning against the door frame, looking way too sexy for her peace of mind.
Her hand flew to her chest. “Jesus, you scared me.”
“You taking your robe?” He nodded toward the silk robe on the door.
“Um, I wasn’t sure I’d need it.” She straightened up. Her arms full already, she didn’t have the ability to grab more things.
King reached for the robe, striding across the small space, he grabbed Tiana’s too. “Did you get your sister some stuff?”
“Not yet. I just finished getting mine.” She looked down at her arms.
“Good girl. Come on, let’s get a move on it. Don’t want to keep the boys waiting.” He grinned, dark eyes twinkling.
Good lord, King Royal was a total menace to society with his deep voice, his big sexy body, and to top it off, he was sweet yet clearly liked to talk dirty. She wondered if he actually did those things he’d said, or if he only said them for shock value. Before she could let her mind travel down that road, she went into her room, shoving everything she’d gathered into her bag. Glancing around, she realized she hadn’t grabbed a cellphone charger or her e-reader. If she was going to be away from home for a couple days, doing god only knew what, she wanted her books.
Tiana’s things took less time since she wasn’t there to choose, and she was a teenage girl. They were creatures of habit, or at least her sister had been. Grabbing whatever was in the front of the closet, and on top of the dresser, pretty much guaranteed they were things her sister wore. Since they shared bathroom supplies except for toothbrush and razors, which she’d already packed when she got hers, she didn’t have too much to grab in there.
Seventeen minutes after King told
her to pack, she was standing in her living room with two bags, staring at his back. He wore a leather vest with patches on it. His long legs were covered in jeans with a pair of leather chaps over them, hugging thick muscled thighs. She wondered how he hadn’t melted in the heat during his ride down. His ass though, the way the denim and leather perfectly outlined it, made her thankful he couldn’t see the way she was ogling him.
“I’m ready,” she said, clearing her throat.
“I know,” King rumbled. “I’ve been standing here watching you stare at my ass for the past two minutes.” He looked over his shoulder, pointing at the window and their reflections.
She shrugged a shoulder. “Not my fault. Your ass is really fine.” If he wanted to embarrass her, Ayesha would do her best to not blush.
“Hmm, thank you. I think your ass is mighty fine too. It’ll look even better with my handprint on it. Come here,” he ordered.
Ayesha dropped the bags she had in her hands and walked to where he stood, not understanding why she was obeying him. “What?” she asked.
He bent and put his lips next to her ear. “Good girl.” He licked the shell, making her shiver.
Shit. His dick swelled beneath his jeans. When he saw her walk out of the back rooms, he tried to convince himself she wasn’t as sexy as he’d thought. He’d told himself she was too fucking sweet for the likes of him, and she was. Hell, she probably thought him spanking her ass was a joke. Little did she know he truly wanted to pull her pants down, lay her over his lap and see just how her ass would look wearing nothing but his palm print. And that was just to start. The things he wanted to do to her, she said were probably illegal. His sweet little thing had no clue, none whatsoever. Yet there she was, walking to him, obeying him without question.
“You always do what you’re told, Ayesha?” he asked, biting the lobe of her ear when she didn’t answer him quick enough.