by Elle Boon
“I…I don’t know. Yes,” she breathed, tilting her head to the side, giving him access to her neck.
King felt a primitive urge to beat the fuck out of every other man she’d allowed to dominate her. “Who? Who else did you let do this?” He jerked her closer to his body, one hand fisting in her hair while the other went to the rounded ass he fucking adored. He’d always preferred women with curves, loving to run his hands over firm flesh, feel a woman’s body that could cushion his when he fucked them. Ayesha’s petite little body was exactly what he liked, only better.
“What?” she asked, looking up at him, her tongue licked over her bottom lip.
“I asked what other man you have obeyed like you did me?” He gave another tug on her hair, giving an experimental bite of pain to see how she reacted.
Ayesha bit down on her lip, seconds ticked by, making King think she wasn’t going to answer him. If she were his, he’d have had her over his lap and punished already. Finally, when he was about to let her go and step away from her tempting curves, she let out a sigh.
“Nobody else. I don’t know why I listen to you either, but—there’s something so commanding about you that makes me do things out of the ordinary.” She closed her eyes on the last word.
King lifted her face with a slight tug on her hair. “Look at me,” he ordered, glad when she blinked those gorgeous eyes open. “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to obey the right man. When we get Tiana home, you and I’ll explore this thing between us.”
He wanted to say and do more, but he could hear the loud pipes of his brothers’ bikes. That meant it was time to put his game face on and put Ayesha in the safety of his club, while he did what they’d promised to do. “We’re rolling out. I’m going to put you with my brother Duke. He’ll take care of you while I’m gone. You will stay and do whatever he tells you like he’s me. Understand me?” He gave her a little shake when she didn’t immediately answer.
“Yes. How long will you be gone?” She rolled her lips in like she hated that she’d asked.
Letting go of her hair, he palmed her neck, his other arm held her securely around the waist. Shit, she was so damn tiny, fucking fragile. “Our plan is to go in and out quickly. I’ll bring your sister back tonight, tomorrow at the latest.” He didn’t tell her they’d already began gathering intel thanks to Keys, or that the information they’d gotten hadn’t been good. Rico was into human trafficking and drugs. The man wasn’t a low rate criminal, but an international prick who preyed on young girls. Things could go sideways, but they had contingency plans. He hated to bury bodies though. Luckily they had friends who didn’t mind. Sharks needed food he reassured himself. He only hoped the girl was in shape to come home.
“I know you think you have to protect me from things, King, but I know what might…what she could’ve been through. It won’t matter to me. She’s my baby sister. Bring her home to me,” she begged.
Unable to stop himself, he bent and covered her lips with his, coaxing her into a heated kiss. King felt her sigh of surrender moments before the hard knock on the door. He pulled back, nipping on her lower lip, licking the small wound, satisfaction filling him at her response to him. “Fuck, I could get lost in you.”
He stepped back, putting a couple inches between them, watching Ayesha lift her hand to her lips.
“I think I would like that,” she whispered.
“Yo, King, let’s roll,” Duke hollered through the door.
King walked to where she’d dropped the bags, lifting them into one hand, turning to where he’d left her. “Come here.” He held out his other hand, the need to have her obey him was strong. Shit, he wanted to own her.
Duke stood on the other side of the door, his arms crossed over his chest, leather cut on display. “You want me to go in your place?” he offered.
King shook his head, handed over the bags. “No, you take care of Ayesha for me.” He pinned Duke with a knowing look.
“So it’s like that?” Duke raised one brow.
“It is. Make sure she’s not fucked with and let everyone know she’s under my protection.” King reached back for Ayesha, hating the fear in her eyes. If he could he’d take her with him but leaving her with his brother was the next safest place. “Duke will see to your safety while I’m gone. We’ll be radio silent until I have your sister safe. However if Duke needs to get in touch with me, he’ll know how.”
“I’ll be fine.” She straightened her spine. He was glad to see her lips were slightly swollen from his kisses.
“Come on, girl, let’s get out of here so they can hit the road. The faster they get there, the faster they can get back. You hungry?” Duke asked, stepping off the porch and waiting.
King put his hand on Ayesha’s back as they walked down the steps, looking at the bikes lined up outside her house. If her late husband had people watching her house, they’d be getting an eyeful, or if Rico’s gang were, they’d be shocked at her company as well. Several Harleys sat with their back tires to the curb, engines idling with their riders straddling the bike, each man on point. King nodded at each man, letting him know he appreciated them.
“I’ll ride your bike back and follow behind Stoner and the girl.” Duke held the door to the pickup truck open, nodding toward the man called Stoner.
“What’s up, King. This your girl?” Stoner asked, brushing invisible lint from the immaculate interior of the vehicle.
He was called Stoner not because he was high all the time, but because his last name was Stone. Not that he hadn’t liked getting high when he’d been younger, but he’d been clean since his best friend had jumped off a bridge and lived to tell about it. He’d said it had scared him straight.
“You treat her like she’s my old lady, and you’ll live to see another day, brother.” King waited for Duke to put the bags in the back of the truck, unable to leave until he helped Ayesha get settled in, making sure she was buckled in safely. Son of a bitch, he needed to put some space between them. “I’ll see you,” he said, and then because he couldn’t help himself, he gave her a quick hard kiss, stamping his ownership in front of his club.
“Be careful,” she whispered.
King didn’t answer, stepping away before he made himself look like a pussy and promised her he would.
“Let’s roll,” he called out, lifting his hand in the air, swirling it to get the vehicles in motion. The longer they sat there, the more attention they drew. No need to announce to the entire West Coast they were there.
“You got it bad,” Traeger said.
He glared at his friend but didn’t deny him. What it was about Ayesha, he didn’t know. Yeah, she was hot, but there were lots of hot chicks in California. She was sweet, and delicate and he wanted to wreck her in the worst possible way. “Fuck, let’s roll.” He got into the SUV climbing into the backseat. The next couple hours would determine how the future panned out. If Tiana was relatively unharmed, he could see about him and Ayesha. He wouldn’t classify what he wanted with her as dating. Shit, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d actually taken a woman on a date.
“Penny for your thoughts.” Traeger tapped on the seat.
He was half tempted to ask the other man his input, but this wasn’t Dr. Fucking Phil. “You work on a Plan B?” If there was one thing he knew his friend excelled at, other than weaponry, and that was planning.
Traeger’s smile grew. “Is that how this is gonna go? I feel you, brother.”
For the rest of the trip, they went over possible scenarios, making sure they had back up plans and that Keys was on board with the layout of the house. Most times they preferred to have more than twenty-four hours to prepare, but they were a tight team that worked well under pressure. By the time they got near the property, he and Traeger had moved from the SUV to the van so they could see on a computer what they’d be dealing with. They mapped out the route that Keys thought would be best, set their watches to when he’d deactivate the alarms, and waited.
“A
re you seeing what I’m seeing?” Traeger asked.
King snorted; every bit as shocked to watch two women scale their way down the side of the mansion. He wasn’t sure if their little escape was making their rescue mission easier, or harder. “Which one is our girl Tiana?” he asked, the fading light making it hard to tell. One was taller, but both were dark haired and slender. Fuck, this shit just became more complicated.
“The first girl looked like the one Keys gave us information on. The other one, I didn’t recognize. What do we do with her, boys?” Digger asked.
Traeger looked at the other man. “We grab ‘em both and figure out the what the fucks after.”
They’d driven down with Digger and Coal, both men driving their cage vehicles. While the MC preferred their bikes, when they went on a mission, they used what they needed, and a cage or a vehicle on four wheels, was usually what they needed. Digger drove the lead SUV, a tricked out armored Escalade that fit eight, while Coal drove a van that could hold a dozen and housed a state of the art computer system.
“Sounds solid to me,” Digger agreed.
“My facial recognition program says one of the females is the sister of the fuck who took the girl we’re here to rescue, which by the way, it appears she’s helping our target escape,” Keys explained through the speaker system of their vehicle, letting them all in on what he’d found.
“We better move. I see movement on the upper floors. I think the fucks in question know their girl is missing.” Traeger opened the door, moving before he’d finished speaking, blending into the waning night.
At times like these, King was grateful for the other man and his abilities to blend into his surroundings. Although Traeger was a big son of a bitch like King, they both knew how to move quietly, and with efficiency.
Traeger lifted his rifle, slinging it over his shoulder as he moved toward their targets. King followed, keeping his ears peeled for any indication that the men from inside had come out. Thanks to Keys, they had already disabled all the alarms inside and out, so even if the women inadvertently would’ve triggered one, none would go off.
He and Traeger moved like a team, both silent and deadly, each of them taking a route toward the women that was sure to intercept wherever they planned to go, before they had a chance to get there. King motioned to Traeger to stay closer to the house, getting a nod of confirmation.
“I’m going to move forward, head off any trouble just in case there’s any waiting for the women,” Traeger said in a low voice to King.
From the intel they’d gotten on the drive down, there shouldn’t be, but King knew it only took a moment for shit to hit the fan. In cases of human trafficking, none of them liked to gamble with the lives of women or children, or in this case a teen girl. Nope, he wouldn’t risk Ayesha’s sister.
Flood lights began lighting up the front yard, making it nearly impossible for him to find a shadow to blend into, but he didn’t change his course, staying low, picking up his pace until he finally reached the two women at the same time as Traeger. His arms came up and around Tiana, his hand clamping over her mouth, silencing her scream. “Sssh, your safe. Ayesha sent us. Be quiet,” he growled as she bit his hand.
Traeger held the other girl who seemed to surrender immediately. King glared over her head at Traeger. “We need to move. Keys says there’s movement inside and lots of it,” King said, keeping his voice low.
Both girls whimpered, but between the both of them, neither could say anything.
“Your sister’s looking for you. If you’re a good girl, I’ll have you back with her by sunup,” King assured the young girl.
Traeger’s woman stiffened in his arms. “What’s the matter, you upset we’re taking away your money maker?” Traeger asked, his voice taunting.
The younger female in King’s arms squirmed, trying to get away. “She saved me, you asshat,” she muttered out between King’s fingers.
“We need to move. You got your mark under control Pres, or you need a little assistance?”
King raised one brow but didn’t say a word in response. The little girl in his hold needed some discipline that was for sure. He could see the woman in Traeger’s arms wasn’t too happy either, but even he could tell she was trying to save the girl. “Let’s move it.”
Traeger gave a low chuckle. King nodded, knowing the same as Traeger, and that was he and his friend would more than likely be blowing off steam together back at the clubhouse, unless they found another way to expend the pent up energy. From the way Traeger was holding the little woman in his arms, King had a feeling he’d be more than happy to do just that with her. King tried to keep from hurting Ayesha’s little sister, while at the same time, he kept her from harming him or herself.
“You two done playing? ‘Cause you got about ten fuckers coming in hot right behind you. I can give you a distraction, but you’re not gonna make it back to us the same way you went in. Find another way, and we’ll meet you at plan B.” Keys rattled off the coordinates for the rendezvous location. His fingers, which never seemed to stop tapping on a keyboard, were even louder through their earpieces.
“We can take my car. That’s where we were heading before you so rudely dropped in on us.” Traeger’s woman whispered.
“I’m supposed to trust you?” Traeger asked.
“Hello, did you not find us shimmying out of a third story window? If we were part of whatever you think we were, or rather I was, do you honestly think I’d have risked breaking my damn neck?” she asked in a whisper yell that had King looking up at the sky.
“We ain’t got all night, Trigger. I’m leaning toward believing her since she did technically break herself and this one out. Besides, our options are limited. Let’s roll, and if she’s lying, we’ll just shoot her.” King shrugged. His number one objective was to get in and get Tiana out.
King and Traeger came to an abrupt stop when they reached the garage, grunting out a curse at her ride. “You’ve got to be kidding me?” He glared at the little sports car with the top down.
“A motherfucking convertible,” Traeger muttered. “We’ll be sitting fucking ducks in this thing.”
“Let’s go, we ain’t got many other options unless you want to hotwire one of the other vehicles, but they might have a shut off option since they’re rich assholes. Roll out, I’m driving,” King announced.
“Fuck that, I’m driving,” Traeger said, hopping into the driver seat. “I’ve seen you drive a cage, and it ain’t pretty. Let’s roll,” he announced, shoving his captive in the passenger seat while King and the younger girl hopped in the back. Traeger was right to a point, but only because King hated being confined, the fucker.
Before they pulled out, he had the top, which thank fuck was a hard top once it came up from under the back, locked in place, giving them a little extra protection. “Scoot your seat all the way up,” he ordered. King was used to being in charge and luckily the woman did as he said without argument.
By now, every light in the house was on. Guards were coming out with what King was sure, their guns ready to fill them with enough bullet holes they wouldn’t be leaving with breath in their bodies. Time was ticking, and as soon as Traeger started the vehicle, he and King would be moving targets.
“How likely is it that your brother will shoot you and your vehicle?” Traeger asked the girl, before he cursed low. “What do I call you?”
“Kailani, but my friends call me Lani,” she said softly.
In the dashboard lights, King watched Traeger pat her thigh, albeit a bit awkwardly. “Well, I’m Trigger, and I need to know one thing, Kailani. Is he gonna give a kill order, or no?” he asked.
Tiana gasped, her fist going into her mouth. King put his arm around her shoulder, but he needed to know the woman’s answer.
“I don’t know. It depends if he thinks I helped Tiana escape, or if I was kidnapped along with her.” She fidgeted with her hands in her lap.
“Well, which do you think he’s gonna think happened
?” Traeger asked, his voice held a silky quality King had never heard before. Yeah, his friend had it for the little lady next to him. King just hoped she didn’t betray them.
“Buckle up back there. This could be a bumpy ride,” Traeger warned.
King made sure Tiana did as she was told, his protective instincts on her first. He tapped on Traeger’s seat, getting his attention of his passenger who seemed to be annoying the other man. “Let’s roll.”
“Keys, you got the lights taken care of?” King asked as the door opened almost soundlessly.
“Way ahead of you.” Keys quick response eased King’s mind, which he was sure had Tiana’s captives shitting in their expensive suits.
“Our boys have set up a distraction on the other side of the estate. We’ve got a clear shot if we go now,” King ordered.
Traeger shot out of the garage, the small car clearly having a lot of horsepower. None of them uttered a word until they hit the end of the driveway where the large iron gates stood wide open. “Shit, this was too easy,” King muttered, whipping his head backward.
With the car at a steady thirty, which truly was fast for exiting a private drive, Traeger steered the car onto the road, jerking the wheel to the left just as the first bullet pinged the back fender. “Get your head down,” he ordered, pushing Kailani’s head toward her knees while he shoved Tiana onto the seat between them.
King shot out the back window, returning fire as Traeger concentrated on the road.
“Keys, we got trouble.” King brought his arm back in through the broken window.
He brushed the glass off of Tiana, checking her for injuries. “You okay?” he asked while listening to Traeger and Kailani talk up front. The calm way the older woman spoke, the way she held herself, he knew she was a ride or die chick, just what his friend needed.
“I’ll keep you safe,” Traeger vowed.
She turned her head sideways, staring at Traeger. “I’ll keep myself safe, thanks. Just get us as far away from there as possible. We’ll pull over when it’s safe for you to rendezvous with them. I’m sure you guys have someone ready to pick the three of you up, yes?”