Hart

by Monroe, Evie

  “I’m not leading him on a leash. He agrees with me.”

  “He agrees because he doesn’t want you to get hurt. He feels bad because he cares about you and didn’t want you to get wrapped up in this. That’s why he’d leave. But what you two don’t understand is that moving away ain’t going to fix anything.”

  She was quiet for a moment. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean what I say. You think putting distance between Joel and the Fury will keep him safe? That’s bullshit, Charlie. He knows too much about the club. They won’t care what borders they have to cross. They’ll find him.”

  She let out an uneven breath. “Is that true?”

  “Yeah.”

  “How . . . is that how the Cobras operate, too?”

  I shrugged. “We don’t take betrayal lightly, but we’re not like the Fury. They won’t show a kid mercy just because he’s a kid. I’ve seen it before with their prospects. In their eyes, the only way out of the club is death.”

  She gasped, and her hand flew to her mouth. She didn’t say anything for a long time, and then I heard a quiet sob and realized she was crying.

  “Hey,” I said to her.

  She continued to cry.

  “Hey,” I reached for her arm and drew her close, wrapping her up in a hug.

  She sniffled. “Oh, God. It seems like there’s no way out! It’s hopeless,” she wailed against my chest.

  “No, it ain’t.”

  “What do I do, then, Hart? Tell me what to do,” she begged.

  “What I’ve been telling you,” I said, smoothing down her hair.

  She looked up at me, and I could just make out her wide eyes in the darkness. “But how do you know that’ll make things okay? If he goes with the Cobras, it’ll just make them angrier.”

  “Because one of my brothers, Zain, was once a prospect for the Fury, and he lives every day with an X on his back. But the difference is, we’re always protecting him, and they know if they fuck with him, they’ll have to deal with our wrath. So they don’t.”

  Her voice was small. “Can you do that for Jojo?”

  “Yeah. That’s the plan. That’s how we’d get him out.”

  She pulled away and wiped at her eyes. “And the Cobras will do that for him?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. The president of the Fury was fond of beating up on his wife and daughter. We took out Slade, and now we have his family in hiding. We take care of them. We could sure as hell do the same for you.”

  She let out a hard breath. “Both of us?”

  “Yeah.” She had crossed her arms in front of her, hugging herself, so I took hold of her forearm and pulled her closer. “Listen to me. This isn’t just for Joel. I’d feel better if I was keeping an eye on you.”

  “Because they’ll be after me, too.” It wasn’t a question.

  “Yeah. They know about you. So they will be. But I’ll keep you safe. If you trust me, Charlie, I’ll keep you safe.”

  She nodded and lowered her head. “Thanks, Hart.”

  I wrapped my arm around her and she lifted her chin to me, begging to be kissed. My mouth descended on hers, and I tasted her. Tasted and kissed and plundered her mouth with my tongue for as long as I could stand it. She felt so right and perfect in my arms, I couldn’t think of leaving. But I needed to get back to Nix.

  When I broke the kiss, I didn’t have to ask. She lifted my t-shirt up and started to kiss her way down my chest as I pulled it the rest of the way off. Her hands went to my belt buckle, and she tore my pants open, letting out hot little noises to tell me just how excited she was to get to me.

  “You thirsty for something?” I asked her, taking hold of her ponytail to keep it out of the way.

  She didn’t answer. She was focused on one thing. I lifted my ass up to pull my pants down as she finished unzipping them and went for my cock, no hesitancy at all. She pulled it out, her tongue still hot on my abdomen, and started to palm my cock, making it harder.

  Then she put her tongue on the tip. I leaned back onto my elbows and my head fell to the sky. She felt so damn good. I was glad it was dark because I was so damn horny for her, I couldn’t fucking see straight.

  When she licked down my shaft, my elbows buckled, and I nearly fell back on the table. I wanted, needed more of her, on me. She set to her work, taking the head into her mouth, and though I couldn’t see more than her shadow, I knew her eyes were focused on me.

  I groaned. “Fuck . . . that’s good.”

  Her hot mouth slid up and down on my prick, her tongue going in circles, while she kept one slick finger and thumb wrapped around the base. It felt almost unbearably incredible, like a dream I’d soon wake up from. Grabbing her ponytail tight, I milked it, holding her there with her lips around my base for a couple of seconds before letting her resume her rhythm. She started going up and down, faster and faster on me, so I lifted up off the table and fucked her face.

  Any more, and she was going to make me come. “Wait, Charlie . . . fuck. Wait,” I said, nudging her away.

  “Was that okay?”

  “Fuck yes. But I want to be inside you.”

  She straightened and reached for the buttons of her shorts. “Do you have a condom?”

  I’d been sure to restock after the last time. I reached for my wallet, pulled it out, and waved it in front of her as she shimmied out of her shorts. She laid them down on the bench and stood there, a little unsure as I ripped the condom package open and rolled it on.

  I motioned her forward. “I’m going to get splinters, aren’t I?” she said.

  “Yeah. I’ve probably already got a few in my ass,” I said. “But it’ll be worth it. Get up here.”

  She took a step closer. I reached down and lifted her up, so she was straddling my lap. She knelt on the table on either side of me, her arms wrapped around my shoulder, her breath mingling with mine. She grabbed my cock underneath her and aimed it at her entrance.

  Eye to eye, she slowly lowered herself down onto me. I let my hands fall down to her ass, grabbing the cheeks thinking how fucking perfect she fit me.

  She started to grind on me, slowly, not up and down, but back and forth, rubbing herself on me and letting out little moans of pleasure. Slow, so agonizingly slow. She let out a sexy little whimper and her mouth dropped to my ear. “This okay?”

  Like she had to ask? She was using me to get off. I felt her trembling, getting close. It fed my own lust, drawing me even closer. “Fuck yes. Keep going.”

  I reached up under her tank top and cupped her tits. They were perfect. Just two handfuls, the nipples already hard for me. “You feel so good,” she whispered to me, her nose bumping against my ear. I dug my teeth into her shoulder. Her skin was so fucking sweet.

  I wasn’t going to last.

  “Take it easy,” I murmured, more for myself than for her, as she’d been moving more and more furiously, and I wanted to enjoy the ride a little longer.

  She didn’t listen. Lost in whatever trance she was in, she kept going, moving on me in a wild rhythm, feeling so fucking good. Her insides were so wet, so slick, so fucking heavenly, I couldn’t remember a time when I’d felt this good. I growled as I thrust myself upward, gripping her hips and pulling her up, then jamming her back down onto me as I went off.

  She shuddered, let out a little scream, and exploded a second later, falling, limp and boneless, on my chest. I let her spread herself out on me, with my cock inside her, just feeling the bones of her spine in the quiet of the night.

  As I held her, feeling her heartbeat against mine, I decided I’d destroy every single one of the Fury with my bare hands before I’d let them ever harm this sexy lady.

  Chapter Twenty

  Charlotte

  I left the Green Grove Park floating on air.

  Even know the Fury might have eyes on us, Hart didn’t let me walk home alone in the dark. Despite the few minutes’ walk, he insisted on following behind me at a safe distance.

  I stepped lightly, almost joyfully
out of the park, feeling something inside me I’d never known before. And my cunt still throbbed like it had never throbbed before. Like I still had his fat cock in there, filling me up. Making me come. I shivered, and not from the chilly air. My heart felt like it had grown wings, the way it fluttered in my chest. I couldn’t help looking over my shoulder at Hart and smiling like a goofy cartoon character.

  When we got to the sidewalk outside my apartment complex, he revved his bike and tore off, giving me a little bit of a wave.

  God, he was such a sexy beast. It made me warm inside, thinking of what we’d done.

  When I reached our parking spaces in the lot, I saw Jojo’s bike parked next to mine. I checked my phone. Eleven-fifteen. And he was probably wondering where the hell I was.

  I climbed the stairs to the apartment, and sure enough, the light glowed from inside. When I put my key in the door, I heard the dogs barking, and expected I’d come in to find that Jojo had gone off to his room. But to my surprise, I found splayed out on the living room sofa, a half-empty bag of Doritos on his lap, watching television.

  “Hey,” I said.

  “Hey,” he said back, turning a glazed eye toward me. “You weren’t at work. I thought they might have called you in.”

  “No. Wishful thinking. They cut my hours anymore, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

  He sat up. “So where were you?” He squinted at me. “And why are you smiling like that?”

  I quickly ripped the smile off my face. “I just . . . went for a walk.”

  “Riiight.” I could tell he didn’t believe me for one second, but at least he didn’t say what I knew was on his mind.

  Instead, he said, “I just think that if you’re going to get on me about where I am, it should work both ways.”

  I considered that for a quick minute. “Yeah. I guess. You’re right. I didn’t realize I’d be this late.”

  He leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “You’re grounded.”

  I ripped a pillow from the sofa and tossed it at his head. He grabbed it and threw it back. The animals had a field day with us. Apparently deciding it was playtime, they all started to yelp.

  Thinking of what Hart had said, I got up from the floor where Ernie had bounded on top of me and claimed the other end of the couch. “Am I really that big of a pain in the ass?”

  He rubbed his jaw. “Let me think. Yes.”

  That wounded me. After everything I’d done, I’d hoped he’d eventually come to be thankful for all of it. “Really?”

  He cocked his head at me. “Really.”

  I bit my lip and took my punishment. “Okay, okay. I guess I deserve that. I know I’ve always been a little overprotective of you.”

  He groaned at the animals as they understood his trials and tribulations with his big sister. “A little?”

  I went to smack him again, but this time he held up a pillow, so I wound up hitting that again. “All right. A lot. But I had my reasons. Foster care wasn’t rainbows and sunshine. You know that. I wanted to protect you from that and the crappy foster parents we had. I wanted you to do great things. But I guess I failed you. I probably pushed you too hard.”

  He shook his head. “You didn’t fail me. I was a rebel child.” He chuckled a little, like he was trying on that label for size.

  “Yeah. Because I kept pushing you to do good things. You rebelled.”

  “Maybe. But you were right. I realize that now. I was an ass. I probably should’ve listened to you.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Really? Ya think?”

  “Yeah, even the motorcycle clubs. I thought it’d be cool to be a badass and ride around on a big ass hog and have everyone quake in their boots when I rode into town like some big shit cowboy.” He scoffed and added, “But I didn’t want this bullshit. I didn’t realize this would happen. I didn’t know it would be a matter of life and death.”

  Tears came to my eyes, and my heart broke for him. He looked every bit the scared little kid, abandoned by his parents, beaten by his foster dad, and let down by every person who was supposed to look out for him. “Were you with the Fury, just now?”

  He hung his head. “Yeah. They’re bad dudes, Char. I thought it could get better once I wasn’t a prospect and became a full member. But now I don’t think it will. Scar—”

  “Scar? Is he a Fury guy?”

  “Yeah. He’s . . . when I was there today, he told me they’re testing me. And I have to do everything exactly as they say, or it’s the end of the line for me.”

  I gasped. “What does that mean?”

  Elbows on his knees, he pulled at his hair. “I don’t know. He just said that if I didn’t come the second I was called, they’d fuck me up and make it so I couldn’t walk again, or worse. That’s what they say to their members. They’re supposed to be like a brotherhood, but they aren’t. I’d hate to be their enemy.”

  “You know Hart said the Cobras would protect us.”

  “Yeah. I think Hart’s a good man.” He swallowed. “But I don’t know how he’d feel if I told him . . . if I said . . .”

  I leaned forward. “If you said what, Jojo?”

  He let out a long breath and wiped his eyes, though I didn’t see any tears there. “I’m done, Char. I want to tell them I’m done. All of them. I don’t want any part of this. I don’t want to join any club.”

  “Oh.” It sucked to see him come to reason now, when it felt like it was too late. There had to be some way out. “Hart would understand.”

  “You really think so?”

  I thought of Hart, and what he’d said to me. Now I believed that he truly cared about my little brother. Not just as a buddy, either—he probably thought of Jojo as the little brother he never had. I got the feeling that whatever Jojo wanted, he’d go along with it, as long as it would keep him safe.

  “Yeah. I do. And I don’t think he’d turn his back on us if you said you didn’t want to join the Cobras, either. He’d help us. He says he can hide us away—they’ve hidden other people the Fury are after. The Cobras have kept them safe.”

  He gave me a doubtful look. “All right. Then that’s what I want to do.”

  I sat down next to him, throwing my arm around him like I used to when he was younger. “We could move, too. Maybe not right away, because it’s too dangerous. But in a few months, when the Fury stops looking for us.”

  I could tell he doubted it. “I know, I don’t have any money. But I have a couple hundred saved up for emergencies. Once we know they’re not looking for us anymore, we can just head out in my car and not stop until the gas runs out.”

  His face got all cloudy with worry and he protested my idea. “The Fury would probably find us. That’s what Hart said.”

  “Not if we lay low for a little while under their protection first,” I said brightly, squeezing him to me. “Remember when you and I were with the Mosely’s?”

  He looked at his knees and shrugged.

  Of course he did. The Mosely’s seemed too good to be true. They were religious people who lived in a mansion overlooking the bay. Mrs. Mosely was a fragile but sophisticated looking woman who worked as a lawyer, and Mr. Mosely, a handsome, geeky, mechanical engineer, had thick blond hair, and glasses and a smile as wide as the ocean. They had wealth and everything that came with it—except, they said, the blessing of children. They wanted to adopt as many children as possible. The day they drove us home, they talked about how they had a passion for travel and liked to go places almost every weekend. They asked if we’d mind that.

  Mind that? We’d told them we’d love it, since we’d never been anywhere before, not even across state lines.

  That first night, I remember looking at Jojo in awe. He had his own big bedroom, filled with model airplanes, Legos and Star Wars figures. Everything a kid his age would want. I was young and naïve, only fifteen, then.

  It was maybe two months later that I woke up in that big, four-poster bed, and found Mr. Mosely naked next to me, with his hand in my pan
ties. When I asked him what he was doing, he covered my mouth with his hand, climbed on top of me, and raped me.

  I did all I could these days, not to think of that. How Mr. Mosely raped me every day for a month until I grew the balls and threatened to tell his wife. The next day, we were back in the foster system again. Jojo never understood it; thought he did something wrong, and I never told him.

  But we had been on several day trips, before things turned bad. And that was what I wanted Jojo to concentrate on.

  He nodded. “Barely. I was what . . . eight? Nine?”

  “Yes. But you have to remember Santa Cruz. Right? The pier? I never saw you smile as much as you did that day. On that ride. You know, the one that goes all around?”

  He laughed a little. “Yeah. You told me you were going to puke.”

  “Well, yeah. It was awful! The human body isn’t meant to fall in little box like that.”

  “Maybe. But it was fun.”

  “Yeah. And I remember what you said to us all as we drove home. That when you were old enough you were going to live on that pier. You were going to live so that the first thing you could see every morning when you came out of your bedroom was the sand, and the Pacific, and the sea, and that pier.”

  Now, he was grinning. “Well. Yeah. I guess. I was stupid.”

  “No, that’s not stupid! Let’s do it! Even if we have to live in our car.”

  “With the animals?”

  “I’ll give them to Barb to watch over for us, just until we get settled. We can do it. You know we can. And Santa Cruz is big enough that we can probably get lost there and no one would find us.”

  He drummed his hands on his thighs, thinking. “Well . . . what about you and Hart?”

  It would be hard, leaving Hart. He was the first guy I’d known who made me feel like there was such a thing as love. But I had to prioritize. “You know you come first. Always.”

  I hugged him close and put a big, wet, sloppy kiss on the unshaven whiskers of whatever beard he was trying to grow. He wiped at it and made a grossed-out face. “All right. All right. Then it’s a go. Let’s do it.”