It took several seconds for Thorn to finish. When he did, he collapsed over her, his heavy frame pressing her into the mattress. She loved every fucking second of it.
“You good, baby? Did I hurt you?”
“I’m good. No pain, Thorn. I swear. I’ll be sore, but it will be a good ache.”
“Thank God,” he said. “Not sure how I’d prevent myself from taking you again had you disobeyed me.” He glanced at her quickly, as if suddenly realizing what he’d admitted to. “I would have, though. Never test me on that. I will never hurt you, Ana. Never.”
She smiled. “I know.” Mariana pulled him down for a gentle kiss, needing the tenderness after all the dirty, kinky sex. God, that had been fun! “I need to run through the shower.”
“Oh, no. I’m running you a bath. Then I’m washing you very thoroughly. You’re not going to be the least bit uncomfortable. Once you’re clean, I’m gonna hold you until you go to sleep.”
There was something in his voice. A note of something she couldn’t define. “What happens after that? You’re staying with me. Right?”
“I will as long as I can, baby. There’s club business, but I swear, I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Are you leaving the clubhouse?”
“No, honey. I’ll be in church or in the basement, but I’m not leaving the property.”
She still got the feeling there was something he wasn’t saying, but she chose to trust him. He’d tell her if she needed to know. She had no desire to know everything going on with the club. In fact, this was probably one of those times when the less she knew, the better.
Thorn did exactly what he’d said. He bathed her, dried her, then pulled her into his arms and cuddled her until she went to sleep. The last thing she remembered was him promising, “I’ll never let anyone hurt you again, Ana. Not ever.”
* * *
“I can get the little fuck from here,” Beast said, sounding just a bit too eager. Not that Thorn could say much. He wanted Jason Harrison dead. No. That wasn’t quite accurate. Yes, he wanted the man dead, but not right away. Eventually. But first, he wanted to show him what pain really was. He wanted -- no, needed -- Harrison to suffer.
“Put the fuckin’ gun down, Beast.”
“You said if we made a positive ID and he was anywhere other than the front fuckin’ door we could shoot him! Do you remember sayin’ that?”
“I do.”
“And?”
“Put the fuckin’ gun down.”
“You’re gettin’ soft around that woman.”
Thorn smacked the back of Beast’s head. Hard. “Have you forgotten the last time we intended to take him down? I want him up close before we do it. There will be no mistakes. Besides, I want him to know it’s coming. And know there’s not a Goddamned thing he can do about it.”
“Fine,” the other man grumbled. “But he says one wrong word, makes one wrong move, I’ll be takin’ matters into my own hands. Man’s got a lot of shit to pay for.”
Thorn ignored that. He knew everything Jason Harrison had to pay for, and it was almost time. “How many did he bring with him?”
“We’ve spotted six. They’re all packin’, but they have no idea how to use their weapons other than aimin’ and pullin’ the trigger. Skipper said he saw one dumbass showin’ another dumbass how to turn off the fuckin’ safety.”
“Good. Just don’t underestimate them. They may be inexperienced, but they can still get a lucky shot off. Be ready for anything.”
“On it, brother. This one’s for your woman.”
Thorn shot him a look. “Thought you were doin’ it for me?”
“We are. Doin’ it for her more. She’s special, that one. Probably the only woman in the whole fuckin’ state who’d have your sorry ass. You’re lucky to have found her.”
Thorn rubbed his chest where it felt too full. His brother’s caring and Mariana’s love filled up spaces he never knew were empty. “Don’t I know it.”
They watched the small gang gathering outside the clubhouse, trying to get their courage up. The Jim Beam they were currently shooting would certainly do that. It would also create its own problems.
“Maybe it’s time to go out and greet our guests.”
Beast snorted. “Guests. Right.”
“Red. Tinker. You know this guy. I need you to make the identification. He baited us with a relative last time. Need to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
“We’ll both make certain,” Red said. Tinker nodded. The two men fanned out away from the group as Beast, Vicious, Havoc, and Thorn walked together to greet the group of young men.
“Gonna need you to state your business,” Thorn said briskly. “This is private property, and we like to keep it private.”
“You were the fucker with my girl,” the one who Thorn assumed must be Jason said. His words were slightly slurred, but nothing Thorn was overly worried about. He seemed sober enough to make a halfway sound decision if he had to. “I come to get her. She’s carryin’ my baby. You know that?”
At that all the guys laughed and nudged each other and Jason. It seemed odd, like the man had no idea about the extent of what he’d done. But how could he not have known? Thorn had talked to Doc extensively about the whole thing. According to the paramedics and police on the scene, there had been so much blood they’d been concerned Mariana would bleed out before they could get her to the hospital.
“She’s fine where she is,” Thorn said, shifting his stance to be better able to reach his gun if necessary. He had no intention of shooting the little bastard. That would be too easy. “Besides, you and I have business to attend to.”
He’d been about to wave the seven men inside the clubhouse where they could control everything, but Red’s voice over his earpiece stopped him. “Can’t confirm the bastard,” he said. “I need to get closer. Lookin’ for a scar over his right eye that I can’t find. But if this guy ain’t Jason Harrison, he’s a dead ringer.”
Thorn ground his teeth in agitation. He would make absolutely sure. Because this was going to be a permanent solution.
He looked at each man, noting who seemed relaxed and who was nervous. Most fell into the latter category, but two were actually checking out their surroundings like they might know what they were doing.
One of them said, “This an MC?” Thorn nodded, shifting to the balls of his feet in case he needed to move fast. Something was nagging at his instincts that he needed to be on guard.
“It is,” Havoc said, his gaze shifting over the seven men as well as around the area. He wasn’t the only one. Beast and Vicious had both moved farther away, looking around the front of the property as well as positioning themselves so they could see around the side of the building. “Which girl you talkin’ about? Ain’t got no girl here pregnant.”
“Right. I know she’s here,” Jason said. “I seen you with her at Red’s Garage, and I seen her outside here one night.” He spat on the ground, and more than one of the Salvation’s Bane members inside the clubhouse made their way outside. They draped themselves against the building or stood with their arms crossed and waited, a blatant show of force. The four men who looked so nervous backed up a step, glancing at each other. Jason, as well as the two bolder men, kept their attention on the Bane members in front of them. It was likely the final fight would be only between these three men and any of Salvation’s Bane who wanted to participate.
“You got a name for the girl?” Thorn asked, setting his trap, letting the reality of everything that had happened reveal itself along with exactly how much this lot knew.
“Her name’s Mariana, but everyone calls her Mari.”
“Wrong,” Thorn snapped, stepping forward. “No one but you calls her Mari, and she fuckin’ hates it.” To his credit, the younger man flinched but only took one step backward and only because Thorn crowded into his space.
He shrugged. “Well, I ain’t calling her Mariana. It’s a stupid name.”
“That’s o
ne,” Thorn warned. “Please keep going. The more beatings you earn, the better I’ll feel.”
“Right. Like to see you try.”
Immediately, one of the two brave friends he had with him grabbed his shoulder, pulling him back a step. “Easy, man,” he hissed. “You might want to think about what you’re doing. Girl ain’t worth dyin’ over. Neither is he, or he’d be here himself.”
Thorn was immediately hyper aware of the man looking at him with hate-filled eyes. Who was the “he” the other man mentioned? Yeah, something was definitely up. He spoke up so the mic at his collar could easily pick up his voice. “Ripper, double check the security feeds. We might need to look for an intruder.” He turned his attention back to his adversary. “If you’re not Jason Harrison, you better fuckin’ tell me right this fuckin’ second. ’Cause that’s all you got before I drag you inside. Once we have you there, you ain’t fuckin’ leavin alive.”
* * *
Everything had happened so fast. Mariana’s head spun when she thought about everything Thorn had done to her body, playing it like a master. Hell, if he continued to give her the kind of pleasure his kink provided, she might be willing to call him master. He’d left their bed late that morning, but not before making slow, lazy love to her. It was almost hard to reconcile the two different sides of him, but Mariana knew she loved both of them. She also knew he’d made an effort to give her tender to offset the rough and kinky. She’d never admit it to him -- at least, not yet -- but she was beginning to suspect she enjoyed the rough and kinky even more than the slow and gentle. At least, with him she did. Probably because he took his time and made her enjoy every single dirty thing he did to her. She shivered and grinned just thinking about it.
She’d seen Thorn a few times throughout the day. Always, he took time to pull her into his arms and kiss her. Always, his brothers catcalled and whistled, but he just grinned, kissing her all the more enthusiastically. The first time it had happened today, Marian had tried to push him away. He’d swatted her ass and kissed her again before letting her go. He’d winked at her, and then she’d listened to his brothers. Really listened. They were ribbing him about being so gone on her he couldn’t even wait to get her into private before kissing her senseless. None of them had said a negative word about her. In fact, all the men and most of the club girls had congratulated her on finally semi-taming him.
She’d been a little bemused, but hey. When in Rome, right? Besides, she couldn’t help but think about all the filthy images he’d put in her head the previous night. Him fucking her in front of his club at a party. Or even just whenever he took the notion. She wondered what would happen if she bent over at the waist to pick up something she’d dropped while wearing a short skirt and, oops! She forgot her panties! Yeah. That’d get her fucked, she’d bet. What a whirlwind of a day!
She’d waited until the club girls were done with the pool, then made her way there. It was hot and humid tonight, the moon bright. Knowing Thorn would know she was in the pool -- he probably had Ripper keeping tabs on her all the time, which should have freaked her out but just made her feel safe -- she wore only a towel wrapped around her. The second her naked body slipped beneath the water, she groaned. Was there any more sensual feeling than skinny dipping? And really, why was that? It didn’t feel the same when she bathed, and she certainly didn’t wear a swimsuit then.
God, how her life had turned around! For the first time in a very long time, happiness blossomed in her chest. Thorn made her happy. Made her feel safe. He accepted her as she was, brought her into his life without reservation. How long had it been she’d felt that kind of… of family? The only people who’d been remotely sour toward her were Mama and Pops. Mostly Mama. And only when she was trying to get her and Thorn together. Though the other woman gave her an uneasy feeling, Mariana still wanted to tell her she understood. She wished the couple hadn’t left.
Oh, well. She’d make up for it later. Maybe Thorn would take her to visit the other club, and she could thank them both in person.
Mariana had made a turn and kicked off the side of the pool, swimming laps, when an arm grabbed her, hauling her down beneath the surface.
She struggled, trying to see if it was Thorn messing with her, but even though the underwater lights shone brightly, she couldn’t see whoever was behind her, snaking an arm around her neck.
That definitely wasn’t Thorn. Mariana struggled in earnest now. Thank God she was a strong swimmer and could hold her breath, but she was out of shape from her recent ordeal, and there was no way she could last like this more than a few seconds.
Realizing she wasn’t going to get free using strength or clawing her way out, she reached back with one hand down low, looking for the crotch of her attacker. The second she found it, she squeezed with all her might until he let go. Even then, she didn’t release him until he stabbed her hand with a knife. He’d drawn blood, but, thankfully, hadn’t been very accurate.
Lungs burning, heart pounding, Mariana took off swimming as hard as she could until she reached the wall, hefting herself out of the water. She turned to find her attacker still in the water, but recovered from the pain and shock and coming after her. She let out a sharp scream, so out of breath a long, sustained scream just wasn’t possible. But she did run around the edge of the pool to the pool house the club was building. Their tools were all put away, but there were stone and bricks. She picked up a rock in one hand and a brick in the other.
By this time, she was able to focus on her attacker. Not one of the club members. Jason!
“Thorn!” She screamed as loud as she could, still out of breath and growing more and more short of air as panic seized her. In her mind, she was back at the hotel, Jason standing over her. Kicking her over and over.
“He ain’t here to save you, bitch.” Jason sneered. “You’re on your own, ’cause nobody in this shit club gives a damn about their president’s whore.” He stalked toward her, knife still in hand. “That’s what you are, ain’t it? A fuckin’ whore?”
Mariana threw the rock at him. Jason batted it away into the pool. “Stay away from me!” She needed to make as much noise as she could. “Help! Thorn!”
“That’s right, bitch. Call out for him. He don’t care about you. You’re just another piece of pussy. You got any idea how many bitches he’s had? Hell, he’d probably be glad to replace you with someone who can actually fuck. He’ll get used to shocking you, then you’ll be just another boring piece of pussy who doesn’t know how to fuck a man.”
He had almost reached her when there was a war bellow from the other side of the pool. Thorn had climbed the fence from the front side of the property and was charging toward them like a bull. The look on his face was pure, unadulterated rage. Her avenging angel.
Jason took his focus from her, turning to face the oncoming threat. Like she wasn’t a threat. He wouldn’t think so because he’d already beaten her once. Had nearly killed her.
Had killed her baby…
Something inside Mariana snapped. Without a word, she stepped into Jason and swung the brick two-handed into the back of his head. He fell like a stone onto the concrete, mashing his face as he did.
But Mariana didn’t stop there. With an angry scream, she pounded the brick into Jason’s head over and over. Blood and brains splattered over her arms and up her bare legs. Every time she pulled the brick free, there was a sickening squish. Once, a piece of bone stuck into her shin with the force of her beating. Blood was everywhere.
A woman was at her side, trying to soothe her, rubbing her back over and over until she finally gave one final hit with the brick only to throw it down on his head one last time. There wasn’t much left of Jason’s head. She turned to see Fleur and Lucy reaching for her, fierce looks of understanding laced with worry on their faces.
Mariana looked around her for the first time. Several club members, along with the ol’ ladies, a couple of club girls, and Thorn stood all around her, protecting her from the outside world
. Then she saw three unfamiliar men. One looked exactly like Jason. Steve. His first cousin. They looked nearly identical except Steve’s hair had slightly more gray in it, and he didn’t have the scar over his right eye Jason had from a fight as a teenager. This man’s forehead was smooth and unmarked.
She addressed Steve. “Did he talk you into coming here so you could distract the club long enough for him to kill me?”
* * *
Normally, Thorn demanded he be the voice of the club. Not this time. His ol’ lady was doing a smashing job. No pun intended. He was angry with himself he’d let that little fuck get close enough to her to actually get his hands on her.
“Well?” she snapped.
“We, uh…” Steve looked around him nervously. Mariana was naked as the day she was born. Covered in blood, brains, and a few pieces of bone. She looked like something out of a horror movie. Of all the people around those three men, she was probably the least dangerous, but Steve’s gaze kept returning to Mariana and not with lust, either. Every time he looked directly at her, he shivered, his shoulders hunching. “He said he just wanted to scare you into coming back with him. Don’t know why you wanted to leave him, anyway. Ain’t like he was mean to you or anything.”
“Do you have any idea what happened between us? Do you know what he did to me? To my baby?” She sobbed out the last word, but took several deep breaths and got herself under control. Thorn had eased over to her side, needing to protect her, but also wanting the other man to know she was Thorn’s.
“He said you just up and left. I --”
“Fucker!” she screamed, turning once again to Jason’s body and kicking him soundly. Thorn winced. That had to hurt her bare toes, but she just kicked him again before turning back to Steve. “He’s a lying sack of shit! He kicked me out! Then, when someone showed me some attention, acted like I was important, Jason attacked me! His ego wouldn’t let him let me be happy! Did you know he killed our child?” Her hands went to her belly, as if protecting the unborn baby instead of mourning it. “Did you know?”
Thorn (Salvation's Bane MC 3): A Bones MC Romance Page 10