The Ties That Bind 1

by D. A. Young

  “How old are you again?” Tawny asked suspiciously. “You don’t sound like any eighteen-year-old I know.”

  “That’s because death has a way of changing your perspective and taking you out of your comfort zone.” Billy tried to keep her voice light, but the sadness managed to trickle in. Hearing it made Tawny reach over and pat her hand comfortingly.

  “I know the feeling. When my old man, Hondo, died, I thought I’d never recover. I just focused on one day at a time until eventually, I realized I wasn’t standing at the starting line of my grief stage anymore. You’ll get there, hon.”

  “Do you still think about him? I still feel like my mom is here with me. I’m terrified of losing that feeling. Of one day waking up and not feeling her at all.” Even now, Billy could feel Melody’s approval that she was making nice with Tawny.

  “I’ll always carry Hondo in my heart along with our memories, but no, I don’t. I like to think it’s because he knows I’m okay now, Billy.”

  The two women exchanged an understanding smile, and it was Billy’s turn to squeeze her hand gratefully.

  “What’s with the Hallmark moment over there, ladies?” Claudia called out impatiently. “Get your asses over here and play!”

  Billy sat sideways on Ransom’s motorcycle, listening to him joking with some of his brothers. She enjoyed the easy camaraderie between the men who obviously respected each other. Everyone was headed to bed but not all to sleep. Billy watched as Shakes left with two women, their arms wrapped possessively around his waist. He passed by his parents and Blaze looked on proudly while Lucy was exasperated.

  A large portion of her time was spent with the Old Ladies, but Ransom was always in the vicinity. He checked on Billy occasionally, especially when another biker wandered too close, but needn’t have worried. Claudia and Lucy were quick to shoo them away. Billy got the distinct impression that Ransom was testing her.

  She stifled a yawn, shivering under the night’s chill, unused to how drastically the temperature dipped after sunset. She didn’t have to wait long. Ransom noticed her yawning and said his goodbyes. He hung his cut on the handlebar and took off his plaid shirt, draping it over Billy’s shoulders, making sure to steal a kiss in the process. “Is my baby tired?”

  She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his chest, making her lips accessible for more kisses, which he readily gave. “I’m straight. Finish talking with your friends. I can hang.”

  Even in the darkness, Billy saw the wicked purpose in Ransom’s eyes that made her inner sex fiend that he’d brought to life sit up and preen. “They can wait. You and I are going to leave and take care of unfinished business, wildthing.”

  Unable to resist him, Billy’s hands slid under his Henley and trailed lightly down his back. She purred at his instantaneous response poking at her middle. The music changed from hard rock ‘n’ roll to a softer tempo. Ransom grabbed Billy’s hand, tugging her off his bike and into his arms. He placed it on his chest, so it covered his heart. He was in constant awe of their perfect fit, and the way Billy’s body eagerly molded to his. She wrapped an arm around his neck, and Ransom kissed the side of her forehead.

  It’s late in the evening; she’s wondering what clothes to wear

  She puts on her make-up and brushes her long blonde hair

  And then she asks me, Do I look all right?

  And I say, “Yes, you look wonderful tonight

  “I didn’t take you for a dancer, babe. What song is this?”

  He laughed softly. “I do alright. Haven’t broken any toes yet. This is Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight”. Why? Do you like it? We’ll make it our song.”

  “Not my usual genre but it’s nice. Doesn’t make my ears bleed, unlike that other ruckus,” she joked.

  Billy placed her head on Ransom’s shoulder as he wrapped her in his arms. They gently swayed to the strains of the beautiful guitar playing accompanied by the warmth of the singer’s voice that altered between gritty and soft. Ransom’s hands couldn’t stay still. They stroked Billy’s back, dipping perilously low, past the concave dip just shy of her ass, before gliding back up to her nape, fingers weaving her lustrous strands around his fingers and teasing her scalp. Ransom’s face heated, hearing the snickers behind him yet, he smiled. Billy had his ass out here, like a chump, thinking he was Fred Astaire. And the most mind-boggling part about it was Ransom gave zero fucks about anyone’s opinion save hers.

  He couldn’t relax tonight. His nerves were high strung as he impatiently waited for Billy to confront him with disgust. Ransom watched her trying to absorb and understand the merry chaos his MC reveled in, her expression thoughtful. Purposefully, he hung back and risked letting her make an informed judgment instead of trying to persuasively cloud it.

  We go to a party and everyone turns to see

  This beautiful lady that’s walking around with me

  And then she asks me, Do you feel all right?

  And I say, “Yes, I feel wonderful tonight”

  “It’s almost like his voice accompanies the music instead of vice versa, isn’t it?”

  “In my opinion, that’s pure Clapton. The man rocks a guitar like no one’s business, but his voice acts as a backup singer.” Affection lacing his voice, he explained, “This is one of Claudia’s favorite songs. Whenever he’s in the doghouse with her, Prez always tries to end the night on a good note.”

  “What’d he do to get there?”

  “Any and everything if he can swing it,” Ransom replied darkly. His good mood was dampened by the things he’d noticed between his parents at the shop. Claudia normally took her lunch with Slade, locking the door behind her and sometimes coming out in different clothes that she kept stashed in his closet. Lately, she’d chosen to eat at her desk or with Marnie. “He’s got the Midas touch when it comes to pissing his woman off.”

  “Ah, so that must be where you get it from,” Billy murmured.

  Ransom tensed up. Underneath her palm, his heart rate kicked up a notch and he jerked his head back, glaring down at her. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  “Hellooo? Albuquerque? Everything was going great between us when you suddenly switched up and turned shitty on me. Until we clear up the why, these legs are staying shut.”

  Billy felt the growing strain emanating from him. “So…what’s up with you?”

  Ransom’s lips captured hers, his tongue tangling with hers in a wild, heady kiss as his hands slipped into her hair, holding her in place while he devoured her sweetness. Billy clutched at him, desperate for more. They both knew what this kiss meant. It was Ransom’s way of letting her know that he controlled her body, and there wasn’t a damned thing she could do to stop it. The escalating catcalls from his brothers spurred her to tear her mouth away with a gasp.

  Ransom smoothed the dark waves from her forehead, and she angrily knocked his hand away. Breathing raggedly, Billy shook her head in disappointment. “Don’t.”

  “Don’t what?” Fuck, he knew he’d messed up with that bullshit move.

  “Don’t ever use my feelings against me!” she fumed. “I want you and can’t or won’t ever deny that, Ransom. Another fact that can’t be denied? I stay ready for you. But you don’t get to use it against me or dismiss what I say!”

  “You want to talk? Fine, we can talk!” He snatched the helmet he’d bought for her, placed it on her head carefully, and snapped it in place. “Just not here, Billy. Let’s go.”

  “No! We talk here and now, or not at all,” she threatened. “I’ve let you control everything since arriving to town. I feel like a kept woman, confined and waiting for you to come see me in your free time, and you’re as single as they come! You don’t want me down by the shop or associating with anyone that associates with you, besides Shakes. You fought tooth and nail about me coming here and meeting your mother—”

  “Christ, Billy! What do you want from me?!” Ransom hissed, panic striking, making his temper flare. “Spit it ou
t once and for all!”

  His anger knocked the wind out of her sales. Yet, Billy refused to back down. Head held high, she proudly admitted, “I want what you seem hell bent on denying me! Everything. Starting with a real relationship. There! Now, you know, Ransom Lawson. The question now is, what are you going to do about it??”

  From the doorway of the clubhouse, Claudia felt a pang of envy. It was inconceivable to her that she’d be jealous of her own child, but even from across the yard, what Ransom and Billy shared couldn’t be denied. She’d bet money Stevie Wonder could see it. Whether he knew it or not, her baby was in the throes of his first love, and it was returned tenfold. The couple was unable to stop watching one another. There were at least two hundred people surrounding them, yet, the lovebirds seemed only to be aware of each other. Claudia hoped Ransom did and fought like hell to keep it. That he fought even when Billy was his, so he’d never take advantage of her and lose sight of them. She wished Harley also had someone like Billy. The stability would help to center him. A good woman would do wonders for him.

  Billy had done well tonight. The girls loved her, and it was unanimous that she’d make a fine old lady if she accepted this lifestyle of theirs. Hell, she’d even managed to get on well with her man’s ex-lover, something Claudia had never seen done without an ass-kicking being delivered first. She snickered quietly, thinking about the anxious glances Tawny kept shooting her way. Claudia knew all about her and Ransom’s affair, she simply chose not to interfere. Neither one of them spread themselves around, and as far as Claudia knew, no one else was privy to the knowledge.

  Despite being married to a biker and living among them, Tawny had preserved her innocence, and Ransom was mature for his age. As long as everyone played nice and she didn’t have to smack a bitch up, Claudia let things play out.

  Slade came to stand behind her. Claudia refused to acknowledge him. Not even when he kissed her shoulder and his large hands slid into the pockets of her skintight jeans did she react. He squeezed her ass possessively. Like she was nothing more than his goddamned property.

  “Come to bed, babe. I got something you’re gonna love.”

  Sweet nothings intended to make her pussy quiver. Nights like these typically ended with them being a sweaty, horny mess, tangled up in their sheets until the sun came up. But not tonight. Not when Claudia finally saw what she was missing out on, the way he treated her sons, and especially not when she was still fantasizing about Rage Glover’s body pressed against hers.

  Claudia snorted her disgust and stepped away from him.

  “Give it to one of your whores. I’m over you and your used goods, Slade.”

  Pitch tried to control his labored breathing as he lifted the twenty-gallon black trash bag into the dumpster behind the clubhouse. He’d deliberately volunteered for clubhouse clean-up so that he could get rid of Rachel’s body. She hadn’t provided much entertainment for Harley and him and had cried the entire time they ran a train on her. Both times. Because Rachel was relatively new to the club scene, her holes had been almost virginal. In the end, the only way to silence her incessant crying and pleading as the party wound down was to choke her out while he busted his nut inside of her ass while Harley literally sucked her last breath out of her. A fact that Pitch was jealous of when Harley confessed that it’d been powerfully intoxicating, completely elevating his orgasm to a Nirvana-like state.

  All in all, it had been a good night.

  “You think anyone will know?” An agitated Harley was pacing furiously. The coke he’d snorted beforehand, provided by Pitch, was making him edgy. He needed to sleep it off, and Pitch planned to give him the sleeping pills as soon as they were finished cleaning up. He’d made the mistake of not providing them to Harley before leaving for his grandmother’s funeral. Because of his error, the other bitch got away with Ransom’s help.

  “No one will know, Harley. We’ve covered our tracks carefully. Let’s go inside and I’ll get you straight. You can sleep this off on the couch while I work,” Pitch cajoled, not wanting to set him off.

  Harley glared at him balefully. “From now on, no more substitutes! I want the real thing next time. I want her.”

  “That’s not possible!” Pitch snapped, losing his patience. “You’re going to ruin all of our hard work over some ass that’s not even yours!”

  “Make it happen!” Harley stomped off .

  Furious, Pitch kicked the dumpster. Suddenly, he didn’t feel so in control. The entire time they were banging Rachel, Harley kept calling her “Billy”. That bitch couldn’t mess things up for him.

  She needed to go.

  Billy stormed into her hotel room and threw her backpack on the bed as she toed off her ankle boots. She peeled Ransom’s shirt off and threw it at him as he quietly closed the door. Glowering at her, he yanked it off his face and tossed it aside. Yeah, she was royally pissed, and in case he was completely clueless, the deranged look she shot him confirmed he was screwed.

  Her dress careened toward him next, and Ransom ducked to the side. His own growing anger was momentarily diverted by the expanse of delectable skin now presented before him with little scraps of violet satin hiding all of his favorite parts of Billy’s luscious body. Pointedly ignoring him, she allowed Ransom to look his fill while carefully wrapping her hair up for the night. Once done, she grabbed her robe, preparing to head to the bathroom.

  Ransom glided behind Billy and cocooned her in his arms, trapping her against the dresser and stilling her movements as he buried his face in the side of her neck. Sliding his neck along the delicate column of her throat, he inhaled her fruity-floral perfume. Billy hated her body’s natural reaction to him and the intense longing for his touch. His hair draped over her skin, and his masculine scent invaded her senses. In the mirror, she watched his large hand dominantly splay across her stomach, and her head lolled back against his shoulder.

  “How long you gonna be mad, fancypants?” Ransom nipped at her neck. Billy jerked in response, thighs clenching together as the vibrations traveled straight to her clit, making it pulsate as her core grew slick for him. She whimpered with need as his other hand caressed her thigh, his long fingers brushing against the triangle slip of satin that was dampening with each passing second.

  “I said we’d talk, and you come in here, daring me to fuck that stank-ass attitude out of you. Cut that shit out, Willamina.”

  “Because fucking me is such a hardship for you, huh?” Billy flung back at him defiantly. She reached behind him and fisted his hair, giving it a sharp tug. He retaliated by biting her neck. “I want you to tell me why you didn’t want me to meet your family! Did you think I wasn’t good enough?”

  Ransom stilled, in shock at her revelation and the underlying hurt within it. His eyes met hers in the mirror, and his chest caved at the unobstructed view of the pain reflected in her soulful black eyes. They resembled glossy inkwells as Billy fought to keep her tears at bay. It killed him to know that he was solely responsible for it. “Tell me you’re not serious. You don’t honestly believe that stupid shit?”

  “I don’t know what to believe right now! You made it obvious that you didn’t want me to go when I tried to discuss it with you!” Billy raged in a shaky voice, her chest rising and falling with rapid shudders from the combined mixture of her anger and desire for him. She could feel the tears forming and hated that Ransom had the power to make her feel so weak. Billy wanted to snatch that power back by ripping out her own heart and destroying it in front of him before he could do further damage to it.

  She yanked harder on his hair. “I don’t like feeling like this! Vulnerable ain’t me, Ransom! If this is just about sex then be blunt about it! Say booty calls and parents don’t mix. I understand that shit perfectly fine, and I’ll be out. I despise the microscopic bubble we’re in and how irrelevant you make me feel in your life by trying to compartmentalize our relationship. Well, no more! From this point on, you won’t have to worry about me crowding your space ever again.”r />
  “Shut. Up.” Ransom’s warning was issued in that same menacing tone from earlier as he tightened his grip. It made the hairs on Billy’s nape and arms rise. “Your thought process is mangled as hell if you think you could ever—”

  Ransom stopped and drew a long shuddering breath before releasing it in a whoosh as he searched for the right words to convey exactly how much she meant to him. Billy was everything to him. How she couldn’t see that confounded Ransom. He shut his eyes tightly, focusing on where he fucked up that she could think the total opposite of the truth.

  Billy watched his eyes flicker open to reveal the smoldering dark green embers that ensnared hers in the mirror. She wanted to look away because it hurt too much to look at his beautiful face but knew she would rather die than relinquish a moment spent together.

  “Shame is the last emotion I’d associate with you, sweet Billy,” he rasped, and Billy lost the ability to breathe at the longing mixed with sorrow in his eyes.

  “I didn’t want to see you in my environment because I didn’t want to be reminded of exactly how much you don’t belong here. You’re not meant for this life, fancypants.”

  “Stop it!”

  Rejection followed her everywhere she went. Billy was a fool to think Ransom was different. She slipped under his arms and spun away, seeking a reprieve from this emotional overload, but in the confines of the small room, there was none. For the last week, this place had suited Ransom and Billy perfectly, but the cozy love nest they’d hidden away in now felt like a death sentence because the inevitable was occurring. Their small world was being invaded by reality, and there wasn’t a damn thing either one of them could do to stop it.