We continued to dance, and before I knew it, they were calling for the last dance. At the end of the song, Shaker dipped me before yanking me back up to meet his lips in a passionate kiss. The crowd erupted in cheers around us. Shaker grabbed my hand and started for the doors. It was then I noticed the guests were lined up and blowing bubbles for us to run through. As we approached the end, the doors were pulled open, and we slid into a waiting limousine.
I laughed excitedly, “I think that was the best part of the night.”
He winked, “The night’s not over yet.”
Chapter Sixteen
Shaker
I wasn’t sure how I was going to keep my hands off of her when we slid into the car after the reception. The night went better than expected, and I found myself enjoying every second Keegan was by my side. When she wasn’t, my eyes were searching for her, needing to make sure she was okay.
When we climbed into the car, Keegan sat a few seats away from me. I didn’t care for the space she put between us, but I didn’t say anything to her or make a move to get closer to her. Once we were settled and on the road, I glanced over to find her fast asleep. Pulling her to my side, I put my arm around her and rested her head on my chest. I enjoyed the feel of her pressed against my body. She was a good woman, nothing like the ones from my past. I wondered what it would be like to have a real relationship with her. Even if I could get over my issues, I couldn’t act on my feelings because of our marriage. We couldn’t start dating if we were already married, and if we had sex, well that would mean getting divorced so we could date. I snorted at the thought. I had managed to get myself into the most unusual situation.
Shaking my head to myself, I shut down that line of thinking and called Byte to tell him about the conversation Keegan overheard between Lawrence and Hensley. I had a feeling we might get some information from the bug we planted in his office over the next few days.
“Do you want me to see if I can dig up anything on the senator or Hensley while we’re waiting?” Byte offered.
“Yeah, brother, if you have time, I’d appreciate it,” I said.
Next, I called Coal. He answered on the first ring. “I assume everything went off without a hitch?” I asked.
Coal laughed, “Piece of cake, brother. Fucker damn near pissed himself when we walked into his house. How was your night?”
“Good. No problems, though I think we’ll have something to work with after tonight. I’ll fill you in when I’m back in town,” I said.
When we arrived at my mother’s house, I carefully cradled Keegan against my chest and carried her inside. She must have been exhausted. She didn’t stir when I carried her upstairs, changed her into her pajamas, and tucked her into bed. I watched her for a few minutes, taking in her beauty before I kissed her forehead and left the room.
The next morning, I had several missed calls and texts from Byte. I didn’t bother reading the texts; obviously, it was urgent. He picked up before the first ring ended. “Shaker, got some info for you. When are you going to be back?” Byte asked, sounding worried.
“I was planning on spending the day with my mother, but I can come back now if needed,” I said.
“Yeah, I think that would be good,” he said and paused before lowering his tone. “Don’t let Keegan out of your sight, brother.”
“Understood. I’ll see you in a few hours,” I said and ended the call. Byte’s words put me on edge. The only reason I would need to keep my eyes on Keegan is if she was in danger. He must have heard something or found something to make him believe that she was.
Not wanting to waste any more time, I went straight to the room Keegan was staying in. I skipped knocking and barged into her room. She was awake, but I could tell she hadn’t been for very long. “We need to get back to Croftridge. We’re leaving in 30 minutes,” I told her and walked out of her room.
Next, I went in search of my mother. I found her downstairs at the table finishing her breakfast. She took one look at me and asked, “What’s wrong, son?”
I sighed and dropped into a chair beside her, “I’m not sure yet. Keegan and I need to head back to Croftridge immediately. I had a friend checking into a few things for me, and he called this morning to tell me he found something.”
My mother straightened in her chair and pinned me with her eyes, “Your motorcycle friends will help keep our Keegan safe?”
I blinked stupidly at my mother. I didn’t know what to address first. Our Keegan. Motorcycle friends. I decided to ignore the part about Keegan being ours. “You know about the club?” I asked.
“Of course, I do, dear. I’m your mother. I don’t know why you felt the need to hide it from me. I’ve only ever wanted you to be happy. After what that dreadful girl did to you, for a long time, I worried you would never find happiness. It seemed like you found a version of it with Phoenix Black and his friends,” she said, patting my cheek. “I’ll have Suzy pack up some breakfast so you can eat on the road.”
I sat there stunned. My mother knew about the club. How long had she known? How did she know about Phoenix? Did it matter? No, it didn’t. I had foolishly been trying to keep the two very different parts of my life separate, and clearly, I had no reason to.
“I’m ready,” Keegan said from behind me.
We said our goodbyes and were on the road sooner than I had expected. Keegan didn’t hesitate to tear into the breakfast Mom sent with us. I loved that she wasn’t shy about eating in front of me. After we finished, she asked, “Why did we have to leave so early? Did something happen?”
“Byte called this morning and said he had some info for me. He said the sooner I was back, the better. I don’t know any more than that,” I explained. I debated whether or not to tell her about his concern for her safety, but decided to wait until I heard what he had to say. There was no sense in worrying her for no reason.
When we pulled into the forecourt at the clubhouse, I instructed Keegan to wait in the common room while I went to talk to Byte. Her response was a sarcastic, “Yes, sir.”
I found Byte in his room in front of his computer. “What do you have for me, brother?” I asked, taking a seat beside him.
“He was in his office talking to someone on the phone after the party last night. It must have been a landline because his cell phone records didn’t show any calls made or received. It didn’t even occur to me to consider a landline. Who even has those anymore? I’m trying to get the number to it now. If I can find it, we can put a tap on it and hear both sides of the conversation,” he explained.
“I’ll ask Keegan if she has it or knows where to get it. What did you hear last night?” I asked.
“He was talking in some kind of code. He said he was in the midst of securing a new financial resource, one with less red tape than the last. He mentioned having 30 days to finalize the deal. Then he reassured whoever he was talking to that he would have the finances and the product ready to go at the designated time, the same location as before. He also apologized for the ‘mishap with the original purchase.’ I don’t know what he is talking about, but I don’t have a good feeling about this, brother,” Byte said.
“What the hell?” I mumbled.
“I don’t know, brother, but I have a distinct feeling they weren’t talking about anything legit…” Byte trailed off.
Yeah, I didn’t think they were talking about anything legit either. “Me, too. Thanks, brother.”
“Let me know if you can get a number for the office from Keegan,” Byte reminded me.
“She’s here. Hang on, I’ll go ask her,” I said.
“She said she didn’t even know he had an office in the home, much less a phone number for it. What about Bernie?” I suggested.
“Already checked with him. He only had a cell phone number,” he replied.
“Thanks, brother. I appreciate your help,” I mumbled, turning to leave.
“Keep an eye on her, yeah? This isn’t sitting well with me,” Byte said. His concern was out of
character for him. He was typically the last one to be overly worried about anything.
I went back to the common room to get Keegan and take her home only to realize she was in the middle of what appeared to be an intense game of pool with Ranger. When I came out to ask her about the phone number, I assumed she was keeping him company while he played by himself, which he did almost every day.
I stood back and watched as they went back and forth with jabs between shots. Ranger was by far the best at pool in the clubhouse, which is why none of the brothers would play him. But Keegan was giving him a run for his money. When she won the game, Ranger was not having it. That turned into a rematch, which led to them playing for the best two out of three, then three out of five. I was going to draw the line at best five out of seven, but they agreed to part ways on a three to three tie.
“Where did you learn to play pool like that?” I asked on the way back to her house.
She giggled, “Promise you won’t tell Ranger?” I gave her my word. “I’ve never actually played before.”
“Say again?”
“I’ve watched other people play, but today was my first time playing.” She smiled widely, “It’s a fun game.”
“You’ve never played before, and you tied with Ranger?” I asked in disbelief.
“Is that a big deal or something?” she asked.
“Hell, yes, it’s a big deal. That man is the best of the best. He used to hustle for large amounts of money. Then, he started playing in tournaments. And he usually won,” I explained.
She clapped her hands together and bounced in her seat, “I’ve always wanted to have a hidden talent!”
I couldn’t help but laugh at her child-like response. “You have to let me tell Ranger. He’ll want to help you develop your raw talent.”
“We’ll see,” she hedged.
We spent the afternoon opening the gifts from our wedding reception. Though we weren’t planning on using any of the gifts as we would be returning them when the marriage was annulled, Keegan thought opening presents of any kind was fun, even the ones she couldn’t keep. She made a list of who sent what as she tore into package after package. By the time she finished, we were sitting in the floor surrounded by a sea of wrapping paper, tissue, and empty gift bags.
“This is going to cost a fortune in postage,” she said flatly and burst into laughter seconds later.
I smiled and chuckled, “You’re probably right about that.”
When she pushed up to stand, her foot slid on a piece of tissue paper. Her feet slipped backwards while her body went forward, causing her to crash land on top of me, sending me to my back on her kitchen floor. On instinct, I protectively circled my arms around her and held her tightly to me. Her stunned face was mere centimeters from mine. Before I could give it any thought, I rolled us and put her back to the floor with my legs wedged between hers. Then, I smashed my lips to hers in a bruising kiss.
Her lips parted, and her tongue dueled with mine as her hands clutched my shoulders. With my weight braced on my forearm beside her head, my other hand moved to the juncture between her legs, pressing and rubbing over her jeans.
“Jacob,” she breathed. “We have to stop.”
I was beyond worked up and not thinking clearly. With my chest heaving, I pushed back so I could see her eyes, “Why?”
“Because we won’t be able to get an annulment,” she panted, blinking up at me with her beautifully flushed cheeks.
I cursed. She was right, but I decidedly did not want to stop. My dick was throbbing, and my balls felt like they were about to explode. Gritting my teeth, I rose to my feet and extended my hand to help her up. She sat up and shook her head. Without another word, she shifted to her knees and reached for my belt.
I should have stopped her. I should have known better. But I didn’t. I let her release my belt and undo my pants. When she reached for my cock, my reality shifted, and everything changed. My inadvertent self-conditioning kicked in like muscle memory.
I grabbed her wrist and yanked her to her feet. “That’s not how this works,” I growled and spun her around. Using some ribbon from one of the wedding gifts, I quickly secured her hands behind her back. Then, I turned her back to face me and pushed her to her knees.
I freed myself from my pants and grabbed a fistful of her hair. “Open,” I demanded.
She didn’t hesitate in the slightest. Those pretty lips parted, and she leaned forward to lick my piercing.
And I lost what little bit of control I had.
I held her head steady by her hair and shoved my cock to the back of her throat. I relished in the warm heat and tight suction of her mouth for a few seconds before I pulled back and began thrusting. I pumped myself in and out of her mouth over and over without pause, taking what I needed from her.
Minutes later, when my balls tightened, and my cock swelled, I pushed forward until I felt her nose touch my skin and shot my load down her throat. And it was more than I’d come in a long time.
When my cock stopped pulsing, I took in a deep breath as I stepped back and looked down to see her tear-streaked face. And that’s when reality came back and slapped me in the face.
“Keegan. Fuck!” I barked. What the fuck had I done?
She flinched back and looked up at me with fear in her eyes, causing my jaw to clench. Instead of comforting her or trying to explain my fucked-up-ness, I freed her hands and walked out the door.
***
Almost a week had passed since our rendezvous in the kitchen, and I went out of my way to avoid Keegan, making sure to come home after I knew she would be asleep. I wasn’t ready to face her, nor did I have any idea what to say to her. Though, there were no words to excuse what I’d done.
Needless to say, when I walked into Byte’s room for an update, I was shocked to find Keegan and Byte, side by side, two sets of wild eyes focused on glowing screens while their hands rapidly flew across their keyboards. “The fuck is going on in here?” I growled.
“Shhh!” they hissed simultaneously.
They stopped typing but were still staring at their screens. Then, I heard several shouts coming from the common room, followed by the sound of stomping boots. Byte and Keegan erupted into peals of laughter, but their laughter died instantly at the report of two gunshots filled the air.
Byte and Keegan rose and started toward the door. I let Byte pass, but blocked Keegan. No way was she going anywhere near gunfire if I could help it. With my gun in my hand, I pushed her back into Byte’s room and closed the door. “No, it’s not what you think. Let me out!” she screeched.
“No fucking way, Keegan! Did you not hear the gunshots?” I barked.
“Did you not hear me say it’s not what you think?” she growled. The little minx growled at me.
Before I could reply, Byte burst into the room carrying mangled pieces of...something in his hands. Keegan looked at whatever Byte was holding and shook her head, “Who shot it?”
Byte grinned, “Kellan and Carbon.”
Keegan cursed. “I’ll get my purse.”
“One of you tell me what in the hell is going on right the fuck now,” I demanded.
“We made a robot and dressed it up as one of the munchkins from The Wizard of Oz, zombie style. I wanted to make it walk into the common room and scare the crap out of people. Byte said they would shoot it. We made a bet. Then, we bet on who would shoot it, if it was indeed shot. I said Duke and Phoenix. He said Carbon and Kellan. I owe him $50,” Keegan explained.
Did I hear her correctly? I didn’t care; I wasn’t asking her to repeat whatever the fuck she just said. “Why are you here in the first place?’ I asked.
She placed a hand on her hip and pointedly informed me, “Because it is a free country, and I can go wherever I like.” With that, she handed a $50 bill to Byte and stomped out of his room.
I turned to face Byte, utterly confused by everything that had happened in the last 10 minutes. He shrugged, “I was in the common room when she showed
up with Ember. Ember went to talk to Phoenix, so I started talking to Keegan. We got to talking about robots, and before I knew it, we were building one, and you know the rest.”
I glared at him. He held his hands up in surrender. “Look, brother, I’m not after your girl if that’s what you’re thinking. It’s not often I meet someone with the same level of computer geekery as me, but I see her as a friend, nothing more,” he explained.
I nodded my understanding. There was nothing I could say to make myself look like less of an asshole. “Anything new with her stepfather?” I grunted.
“Not a thing. His office has been radio silent,” he said.
“Have you been able to dig up anything on Hastings or Hensley?” I asked.
Byte shook his head. “Sorry, brother. They’re either clean or clever. I’m leaning toward clever. The only thing that seems the slightest bit off is neither of them has a lot of money coming in or available in liquid assets. Whatever they are doing with their money, I can’t find it.”
“Thanks for your help, brother,” I mumbled.
Chapter Seventeen
Keegan
That asshole! He didn’t have to say it. I could see it written all over his face. He thought something was going on between me and Byte, something more than friendship. He couldn’t be more wrong. Byte and I shared a love of computers, nothing more. Well, maybe a love for playing pranks, too.
I was fucking sick of Shaker and the way he was treating me. I tried, I really did, to give him the benefit of the doubt in regards to what happened between us in my kitchen. I knew he wouldn’t hurt me, but I also knew those weren’t the actions of the man I knew. The glazed-over, distant look in his eyes while he mercilessly fucked my mouth was a prime indicator that something was very, very wrong. And that would have been perfectly okay, if he would have talked to me about it instead of running away from me and avoiding me at all costs.
I stormed through the clubhouse all the way to my car without so much as a hello or goodbye to anyone. As soon as I got into my car, I realized it was still full of the supplies. Ember and I had been out picking up necessities for the horse farm when her father called and asked her to come by the clubhouse. None of the supplies were immediately needed or perishable, so I decided to go home and drop the supplies off at the barn the next day.
Shaker (Blackwings MC Book 5) Page 11