Ryder

by Blair Grey

  I was stuck in the background, as though I didn’t matter to the success of what was about to go down. I had to just go along with it as though it was the plan all along. It was infuriating to say the least, and I wanted to give them all a piece of my mind.

  But, there was no arguing with the look of resolution that was etched on the faces of all who were around the table, and I knew better than to try to get any one of them to see things from my point of view. I just had to let it go.

  “Come on,” Ryder said suddenly. “I think we’ve got it all figured out here, why not get out of here now?”

  “That’s not a bad idea,” Jett said. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be here too long, in case your dad tries to get a hold of you or something. You don’t want to get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  “I thought I was in just the biggest safety net here,” I remarked with a sarcastic raise of my eyebrows.

  “You are, while you’re here,” Jett replied with the same cool, collected attitude he had while talking to the rest of his club. It was difficult to get him worked up, I’d learned that before. But, I still wanted him to know just how pissed off I was with the situation, not that he seemed to care much about it.

  “But,” he continued, “You’re going to be going home tonight, and when you do, you’re not going to be under our protection like you are now. You don’t want to do something that’s going to lead to you getting in trouble when you’re not immediately in our reach.”

  I opened my mouth to say something, but Ryder cut me off. He clearly didn’t want me getting into an argument with Jett, even if he was on Jett’s side. He grabbed my arm and pulled me up from the table.

  “I’ll give you a ride home,” he said. “We can talk along the way if you want.”

  “There’s nothing to talk about,” I said flippantly. “I want to be there for the rescue.”

  “But that’s not going to happen,” he said with a shake of his head. “Come on.”

  I reluctantly followed him out of the house and to his bike. My mind still raced with all I wanted to say, but it was useless talking to Ryder about it now. I could voice my frustrations, but that was about all. He wasn’t going to let me go against what Jett said, no matter how badly I wanted to.

  I climbed onto the back of the bike with him, wrapping my arms around his body. It was hard to ignore the thrill that ran through me as I did, pulling him into me as I held him close. But, I knew I had to think about more important things.

  It wasn’t going to be much longer before the raid took place and my mother came home. Whether I got to be there when they pulled off the raid or not, I knew I should be excited for the final result. I should relax and just focus on what I wanted to say to her and what we were going to talk about. It had been so long since I last saw her, I wanted to hold her in my arms and just tell her that I loved her.

  But, my mind was brought back to the present when I realized we weren’t heading back to my place.

  “Where are we going?” I asked Ryder. I spoke over his shoulder and almost directly into his ear so he could hear me on the back of the bike. But, he just looked over his shoulder and shrugged at me, letting me wonder.

  I wasn’t worried. I knew Ryder would take care of me, but the further we drove, the more my curiosity grew. It was just like him to do something that would make me feel better, and riding on the back of the Harley while he drove certainly did make me feel lighter.

  We continued on a dark street, turning down another dark street before taking another turn. My heart skipped a beat when I realized we were going to the landing that overlooked the whole town. Though I hated Fallen Hills, there was something about that one spot that always made me feel like I was standing on top of the world.

  We had gone there a lot when Ryder watched over me as a teenager. It was one of the places I felt safe. Sure, we weren’t anywhere away from the town, but we were able to have privacy, and we were able to overlook the place in a whole new light. It almost felt safe when I could look down on the houses and shops in the town below.

  It made the whole place feel much less like a prison and more like a nice little place to live. I knew the secrets that played out on those streets, but when I was up here, things were different.

  We stopped at the top of the landing and looked over the town. I continued to hold Ryder as we did, my hand slipping lower down his body. I stopped with my hand right over his cock, pressing firmly against him and letting the magic happen.

  His dick grew hard under my touch, and I smiled to myself. It was the first time I had been the one to instigate sex between us, but I was okay with that. I wanted it. I wanted him. There might not be much in my life that made me feel like this, but tonight, I wanted to give into the moment.

  Adrenaline was rushing through both of us with the raid lingering on the horizon, and I wanted to get some of that energy out somehow.

  Ryder put his hand over mine, pressing harder down on his cock. I massaged my fingers, arousing him further, continuing until he wasn’t able to control himself any longer. He sat up, sliding off the bike before turning back to me.

  I smiled, also rising from the bike and taking off my pants. He pulled his cock from his jeans, sliding back onto the bike and straddling it, holding it up while I climbed over the top of him. I eased myself down on his cock, using my hands to steady myself on the seat as I looked him in the face.

  I slid up and down over his dick, closing my eyes as I did so. The feelings rushing through my body felt like fire, and I could hardly breathe. There was something about Ryder that did this to me. Something that made me want to let go of the things I thought I knew.

  I wanted to embrace this side of me, even if I knew deep down, I had been running from it for so long. That didn’t matter now. Right now, all that mattered was the fact I was with Ryder, and I knew I still had feelings for him. I had been telling myself for so long that it wasn’t so, that I just had to get out of there and I could forget all about it, but I knew that was a lie.

  As I slid over his cock, letting him fill me again and again, I knew this was the person who owned my heart. I wanted to be with him. I knew it wasn’t possible, but I knew I couldn’t live without him.

  My mind was spinning, my heart thumping in my chest. My body thrummed with the heat of the moment, the adrenaline rushing through me as we clung to each other.

  Each thrust of his cock pushed me closer to climax, and I knew it was going to be hard. There was an intensity with Rider I didn’t feel with anyone else before. It was the one thing I knew had been missing from any other man I’d slept with.

  That was because this was the one I was meant for. This was the one I wanted to be with no matter what. This was the one I had to have. I knew it was impossible for me to admit it, even to myself at times, but this was the one I wanted to grow old with.

  I wasn’t sure what to do with those feelings, and right now, I didn’t even want to try to do anything with them, either. I just wanted to enjoy the moment, enjoy him. I wanted to let the rest of life wash away and just be happy right now.

  And with Ryder, that was possible. With Ryder anything was possible because when Ryder wanted something, he got it. And now, I wanted to be along for the ride.

  I almost let myself believe that I could.

  Chapter 22

  Ryder

  “We’re going in with guns blazing. I’m not sure if I can make that any clearer, but I’m not interested in negotiations or trying to make amends for anything,” Jett said. We all sat on our bikes, ready to put our plan into action.

  I was nervous. I’d spoken to Taylor earlier that day, but I refused to tell her when we were going through with the raid. I didn’t want her to know because I knew she would do something crazy if she found out. Even now, I had a feeling she would try something.

  But, if we were going to make it through this, then we were going to have to work as one, so I had to focus. I couldn’t let myself get distr
acted over what Taylor was doing. I had to focus on what we were doing as a group and push on from there.

  The plan was simple.

  We were going to ride straight to the warehouse and get the guns. It was easy enough to pull off. Taylor had provided us with the key we’d need to get in, and we’d move quickly.

  Then came the next phase of the mission.

  Once we had the guns, we would go straight for Bud’s house. We knew where it was, but thanks to Taylor, we knew where we could set up our attack without having to worry about him having the advantage. If we came in hot as planned, he wouldn’t have the time to put us where he wanted us.

  It would take the advantage away from Bud’s MC, and that meant we would have a much better chance of getting to Katherine before he had the chance to move her. Of course, we weren’t sure if she was in his house, but it would certainly mean he wouldn’t have the time to get word to anyone to have her moved out of hiding.

  No, we would come down on him fast and furious, taking any advantage or plan he had to get away from him and using it to our own advantage. It wasn’t going to be easy, but I knew with my men around me, we would be able to pull this off.

  Jett was fearless, and he had been looking for the chance to do this for a long time. I was proud to be there with him, ready to fight alongside him through all of this. I wasn’t afraid of Bud, or his MC for that matter.

  I was willing to stand up to any one of them. Tonight would finally be the excuse I had to go hard on all of them. I was more than ready to open fire on any one of them, and I wasn’t going to shoot to wound, either.

  Of course, Jett would keep the gunfire under control as long as possible. The last thing we wanted was for a bloodbath or the police to come running before we had the chance to get Katherine out of there. It wasn’t their fight. It was ours.

  And, we were going to fight it well.

  We were going to keep pushing through until we had her back, then I would proudly be there to see her and her daughter reunite. I looked forward to the look on Taylor’s face when we brought her mother home, and I wanted to see how the two of them would reconnect.

  But for now, we had to push through the thick of the raid. It wasn’t going to be easy getting through without getting the shit beat out of ourselves, but I had been in the face of death before, and I wasn’t afraid to face it again. I knew how to shoot, and I knew how to fight with guns. I wasn’t going to back down from any of this, and I promised myself I would be going home again.

  I had a life I wanted to live with Taylor, and that meant I had to survive this. If I died tonight, I would die for a good cause, but it wasn’t what I wanted to happen. I wanted to see Taylor and her mother reunite, and more than that, I wanted to live the rest of my days with Taylor.

  Nothing was going to take that from me, not even her father or any of his ruthless MC.

  They had hunted us down and fought us for far too long. It was time to put them in their place, and perhaps drive them out of our town for good. I knew Jett had been waiting for the right time to make it happen, and what better time than now?

  “Alright, you all know the orders. You fight like this is the last fight of your life, and that’s final!” he said. “We hit the warehouse first, then onto Bud’s house. Go in there with guns out, and don’t hesitate to shoot! Make sure Katherine gets out alive, and above all, watch your brother’s back!”

  He revved the engine as we shouted our agreement, and we were off.

  It was the heated moment I loved. The moment when all we had been waiting for came to a head. It was the moment when we all came together as one, ready to fight for everything we believed in. It wasn’t going to be easy, we knew that, but we didn’t need it to be, either.

  We were there to fight. Fight for each other and fight for what was right. And, that’s what we were going to do.

  Taylor’s face flashed before me as we sped into the night, but I knew I had to keep pushing her from my mind and focus on what was happening next.

  Our engines filled the night as we coasted along the road, eager to get to the warehouse. It wasn’t going to take long before the other MC knew what was going on. If they were smart, they would have patrols along the way. Of course, they didn’t know what was coming, and they didn’t know we had the key, but that didn’t buy us a lot of time, either.

  We rode straight to the warehouse, and I was glad that we hadn’t had to deal with any gunfire yet. There was a tension in the air, but it only added to the adrenaline that was coursing through me. I wanted to fight. I wanted to pull my gun on someone and pull the trigger. I wanted the rush of victory.

  And, we’d have it.

  Jett let us into the warehouse, and together, we went on the biggest raid we could pull off. We took the biggest of the guns along with most of the ammo. There weren’t enough of us to be able to carry it all out, but there were enough of us to take most of it.

  And, we were taking it to the fight.

  “Let’s go!” Jett called out. Each of us loaded down our arms on our way out the door, grabbing as many of the guns and tools as we could along the way. We didn’t want to leave anything – nothing the others could come back and retrieve, and certainly nothing they would be able to bring to the fight when it broke out.

  Reinforcements would be sure to arrive as soon as the call was sent out, and we wanted to make sure we had as much of their own supplies as we could get our hands on before we got there. We weren’t going to get caught between the house and gunfire to our rear.

  That was a mistake someone without as much experience as Jett would make. No, we were going to maintain the upper hand. We grabbed it from the beginning, and we were going to hang onto that lead no matter what.

  As soon as we were back on our bikes, we sped into the night. We all knew where Bud’s house was. It stood on the edge of town, far away from the general residences. Far enough away that he could tend to most of his illegal activities without anyone interfering.

  And now, he was far enough away to allow us to come down on him like a tornado, ready to tear apart his life and take back what was ours.

  We didn’t care if Katherine had been his wife. She was a free woman, and she hired us to take care of her. We hadn’t done our job perfectly, and now it was time to make amends. I could already feel Taylor’s arms around me when she knew we were home safe.

  And, I knew what would be coming after.

  But, I had to focus on the moment. I had to focus on the fact we were coming up to this house we all knew was filled with guns and ammunition, and we were ready to hit it hard.

  Jett had told us to come in fast and furious. We knew our engines would alert Bud and anyone else in the house to our presence, and it wasn’t going to take long for him to be ready. He wasn’t the kind of guy to ask questions – he would hear us coming, and he would be ready for us as soon as we were in range.

  The trick was to be ready for him at the same time. No one wanted to be caught off guard, and we knew if he had the chance to call for backup, then he was sure as Hell going to take it while he did. His house was on the line. Hell, his life was on the line, and we weren’t going to show mercy when we got there.

  We flew around the corner, taking the straight shot to his house. But, he clearly knew more than we had anticipated.

  I realized as soon as we were near the house that the lights were on. We hadn’t come up on him in the middle of the night to find him sleeping as we’d thought. No, he was ready and waiting. I wasn’t sure how he would have known we were coming, but it didn’t matter much.

  What mattered was that he had his house ready for us, and he wasn’t about to back down. As soon as we were in range, the gunshots started ringing out. Bullets whizzed through the air, cutting into the silence of the night like miniature explosions.

  It was dark, but the light of the moon and the lights from our bikes lit the way. Moving as one, we tumbled from our rides and hit the ground, scrambling to find shelter from the bullets as
we prepared our attack on the house itself.

  “Get ‘em, boys!” Jett shouted. He was already opening fire on the house himself, and I wasted no time getting ready myself. It was really happening. It was time to take down Bud Willis and save Katherine once and for all.

  I was putting my life on the line tonight, and I was okay with that. It was part of the promise I’d made to the MC when I was just a boy, and one I would keep now. I was meant to do this, and I would do it until the day I did die. That might be tonight, and that might be years into the future.

  Either way, I was going to fight tonight like it was my last night on the planet, and I was going to make my mark on Death’s Door. I didn’t care what the cost happened to be.

  I was doing this for the MC. I was doing this for my place among my brothers.

  And most of all, I was doing this for Taylor.

  Chapter 23

  Taylor

  I was going crazy as I paced back and forth in my apartment. I couldn’t possibly relax knowing what was going on, but not knowing exactly when it was going to happen.

  I knew the raid was tonight, but I wasn’t sure when Jett was going to lead the men down to the warehouse – then where they were going to go from there. I knew they were going to storm the houses of those who were in the MC, and I could only assume that meant they were going to start with my father’s house, but I wasn’t sure what that meant overall.

  All I knew was that it was going down, and when it did, it was going down hard. I couldn’t possibly relax knowing something could be happening right now, knowing I could be out there doing something about it.

  I continued to pace back and forth, wondering where Ryder was, wondering if there was a chance they would let me go with them. I couldn’t help but wonder what was going to happen if they did find my mother – or what was going to happen if they found her and she was already gone.