by Echo Slater
Running around an army of gnomes to reach the semi-safety of the oak tree, I call back, “Don’t fall, baby!”
“Stand still, then!” Cameo yells back while laughing.
“Pay for your sins, biker!” Hagan cries, throwing another balloon and nailing me in the knee.
Four more balloons rain down on my location, splashing against the tree and mostly missing me. When they stop, I poke my head out and smile at Cameo.
“Feel better?”
“Of course not. You’re even sexier wet.”
“How’s that not a fucking win?” I ask and shake my hair like a dog let in from the rain.
“I want you to suffer.”
“But it’s not really my fault.”
“I know, but I bet you did that chick before we got together. She seemed to know some specific things about your anatomy.”
“What things?”
“Girth, mainly,” Cameo says, laughing with Hagan now.
“Did she hurt you?”
“Only my heart.”
“Don’t forget the ICEE,” Hagan says and shoots me a dirty look. “I had to throw half my drink on the ground to stop your sloppy ex-lover from slapping your sexier current one.”
“I am his lover,” Cameo says, grinning like a horny little fox. “But I’m still angry. I need time to adjust to not being angry. Go away and come back in an hour. We’ll go somewhere, so I can satisfy you. That way, you’ll never let another woman bang you.”
“Wait, don’t guys do the banging?” Hagan asks.
“No, banging is like a drum,” Cameo explains, demonstrating with her hands. “And drums are flat like a vagina.”
“No, I don’t think that’s right. Ding dongs bang the cervix and your tonsils and—"
“Hagan, stop talking!” Arlene yells from somewhere inside the house. “For the love of God, please!”
“You ought to listen to your mommy, Hagan,” I say, and she flips me off. “However, you’re right. I’ll be doing the banging.”
“But the drum thing,” Cameo whines and gives me a sexy wink. “I need time to talk my parents into letting me be with you again. I think they got upset about the part where you broke my heart.”
“Was your heart really broken?” I ask, stepping closer and staring up at her pouty face. “You didn’t really think I’d hook up with some scummy chick, did you?”
“How do you know she was scummy?”
“The Roosters got her to lie. That’s a scummy thing to do.”
“Maybe they threatened her. She might be a victim.”
Rolling her big brown eyes, Hagan mutters, “Yeah, we should totally set up a GoFundMe in her honor. Wouldn’t hurt for her to get some better extensions.”
I instantly know who the Roosters paid to lie. Lora and I hooked up a long time ago. She was always more into Cash, but he said she reminded him of his mom. Lora spent a lot of time at The Cherry, desperate for attention. Wouldn’t have taken much to talk her into messing with Cameo.
The Roosters pulled something similar with Raqui back in the day. Of course, Grizz’s woman is more prone to throwing punches than ICEEs. Though I assumed the Roosters learned their lesson, they lost nothing from Raqui’s overreaction.
Well, they’ll learn plenty once I hunt them down for some payback.
Until then, I can only do what Cameo wants and let her talk down her pissed mommy and daddy. While she gets the family situation settled, I ride to the Ranch to change clothes. I also plan to hit up Grizz for ideas on how to fuck with the Roosters in a way that won’t start an all-out prank war between the two clubs.
CAMEO—ADDICTED TO LOVE
Mad Dog didn’t cheat on me. That’s what I choose to believe. I’m probably naïve or even stupid. But I’m willing to accept his word and my gut over what might be more logical.
I do spot recognition in Mad Dog’s eyes when Hagan mentions the woman’s bad extensions. I decide he wouldn’t need an “oh yeah” moment if he cheated on me over the last few days. Like, he’d just know who it was. Sure, that sounds logical.
“I want to hang out with Mad Dog tonight,” I tell my parents, who stand in the kitchen.
“It’s a school night,” Arlene says rather than focusing on her disapproval of Mad Dog.
“I’ll be home by ten.”
“So, you believe him?” Phil asks.
“That woman didn’t seem believable. Mad Dog came here and told you he didn’t cheat. Did you believe him?”
“I don’t know.”
“If I may,” Hagan says, wrapping her arms around me from behind. “Those ladies today seemed stupid and fake. But imagine if Mad Dog did bang the one with bad extensions. So, he sleeps with her, and she knows about you and then decides to make him angry by confronting you. What’s the point of that plan? Doesn’t make a lick of sense. Now, if those other bikers paid her to upset you, that feels more correct. Wait, correcter?”
Arlene shakes her head at Hagan’s terrible grammar. “But his problems affected you. Assuming this was a prank, it wasn’t life-destroying. But you can’t forget how Mad Dog rides with the Wet Dicks.”
“I knew all that when we started dating.”
Arlene and Phil fight their urge to dominate me with parental worry. The other night, I heard them whispering about how best to handle my relationship with Mad Dog. Arlene wanted to dig up dirt on him as a way to turn me off. Phil warned their disapproval might make Mad Dog seem more appealing. My mom admitted she liked how her own parents disapproved of my dad.
That part made Hagan and me giggle. Phil has a lot of qualities, but he’s no bad boy. I can’t believe my grandparents felt he was a negative influence.
Phil and Arlene decide they can’t really keep me from going out for a few hours. They do seem relieved when I don’t dress up sexy for Mad Dog. Wearing pink sweats and a school-printed T-shirt, I look ready for my period rather than a date with the sexiest man alive.
In contrast, Mad Dog is smoking hot when he arrives to pick me up. Avoiding his lips, I climb on behind him and wrap my arms around his waist. I’m afraid I’ve fallen for a man I’m too immature to handle.
Rather than force me to kiss him, Mad Dog rides to the Ranch. I don’t know if this is where I want to go, but I can’t think of anywhere else private.
Before reaching Mad Dog’s house, I spot Cash and Horse on the basketball court. I wonder if they all know about my ICEE incident. If so, did they laugh when they heard?
I climb off the Harley once it’s parked next to Mad Dog’s house. His hand immediately clasps mine, guiding me inside. His hostile stance and movements make me want to go home.
Mad Dog looks around the family room before frowning at me.
“Are you thirsty?”
“No.”
His furrowed brow intimidates me, but I force my fingers to caress his forehead.
“I don’t get involved with drama,” I explain softly. “I avoid all the high school cruelty and mean-girl behavior. Well, I gossip with Hagan, and I know the popular kids talk shit about us. But I remain above it. Today, I couldn’t.”
Mad Dog opens his mouth to speak, but I cover it with my hand. “I know what happened seems silly to you and your friends. No big deal, right? But I’m not a wild person. I’ve never had a real boyfriend. You know you’re my first. That woman confronted me and called me names and told lies. Even if I figured she was probably lying, it still made me feel bad.”
I hesitate, trying to find the words. “I feel beat up inside. I’m not strong like you. My parents are kind. I wasn’t really bullied except for being called a dumpster-pail baby or have guys talk about my lips and blowjobs. But life never toughened me up. That’s why today hurt more than it probably should.”
“I don’t want you to toughen up,” he says as his dark eyes study my face. “I want you to be you. No one besides my Cameo would rain down hell in the form of water balloons.”
“Were you terribly injured?” I murmur, shuffling closer until our bodie
s are pressed together.
“It was touch and go for a while, but I’ll survive.”
I lift my lips, letting Mad Dog get a taste of what we both crave. He sweeps me up in his arms, wraps my legs around his waist, and kisses me breathless.
Soon, Mad Dog walks to the dark leather couch and sits back. I straddle him and continue our kiss.
When my lips free themselves, I stare into his dark eyes and try to see our situation from his viewpoint.
“Do you think I’m mature enough to be with you?”
“If I didn’t, would we be together?”
“You might just want to enjoy my sweet peach.”
“Don’t,” he groans, reaching between us to adjust his hard dick. “I’m trying to be sensitive, and I can’t do that if my cock is in control of my thinking.”
Sliding off his lap, I remove my shoes before sitting with my knees against my chest.
“Better?” I ask, offering him a soft smile.
“I’d rather have you rubbing against me, so, no. However, I can think better this way.”
“So, how come the Roosters messed with me? Did you wrong them? Will they target me again? Should I buy a gun for protection? Can I shoot bikers without getting in trouble?”
Mad Dog smirks at my last question. “I can get you a gun if you want, baby.”
“I don’t need your help. I’m eighteen and have money,” I reply, trying to sound tough. “Now, answer the other stuff.”
“Well, you can shoot bikers without getting in trouble but only in certain circumstances. Like shooting me for not bringing flowers on your birthday isn’t cool.”
“Are you planning on forgetting? Or maybe we’ll be broken up by then.”
“We’ll always be together,” he says, hiding none of his possessive tone.
“You could lose interest.”
“Why would I willingly walk away from you?”
“I could get fat.”
“More to love.”
“I could refuse to do full anal, and your dick might complain so loudly you need to end things.”
Mad Dog chuckles quietly. “Baby, you have other holes, and I’m more than my dick.”
“Well, I guess you wouldn’t leave me, then.”
Smiling softly, he murmurs, “No, I won’t.”
“Now, explain about the feud.”
“It isn’t complicated,” he says, resting his hand across my bare feet. “Grizz and Hoot are cousins. They came up with the idea for the Dicks. Ran the club together, too. Then, Hoot met a woman and started pushing for changes on the Ranch to make her more comfortable. Grizz called her Yoko, and Hoot freaked out. He decided to branch out on his own, and half of the guys followed him. See, not complicated.”
“What’s a Yoko?” I ask, wiggling my toes under his palm.
“John Lennon’s wife who broke up The Beatles.”
“Why would she break them up?”
“I don’t know.”
Frowning, I ask, “Was there money in it for her?”
“I don’t know.”
“If Yoko is why your club broke apart, shouldn’t you know more about her?”
“It was really between Grizz and Hoot.”
“But Raqui isn’t Yoko, right?” I ask, curious about the bikers’ male drama.
“This was before her.”
“Do you think Grizz was jealous?”
“I think maybe he didn’t understand why Hoot put Vivi on a pedestal. He just saw his cousin and club VP spending all his time with this young woman. When Hoot pushed back like he always did, Grizz assigned the blame to Vivi.”
“Do your friends dislike me like Grizz did her?”
“Horse thinks you’re a troublemaker,” Mad Dog says, shrugging as if he doesn’t care. “He’s really just afraid there’ll be more kids around the Ranch.”
“I could give you a baby. What if it’s a boy with my big lips? Will people make fun of him?”
Mad Dog smirks, and his hand wraps possessively around my ankle. “I’ll teach him to fight, and you’ll teach him to love what God gave him.”
“Why can’t I teach him to fight, and you do the body-positive thing?”
“Can you fight?”
“I threw an ICEE at a woman today,” I say, smiling proudly. “She was very intimidated.”
“Oh, I bet she was.”
“How soon would you want a baby?”
“I want you living here before we add a baby.”
Leaning forward and crawling into his lap, I whisper, “I have to finish high school.”
“And you don’t want to leave your parents’ house yet.”
“I like my home.”
“Do you not like this house?” he asks, looking around the masculine room with its dark colors and leather furniture.
“It’s beautiful.”
“You can change whatever you want.”
“Can I paint the walls pink?”
“Have at it,” he says, kissing my throat.
“What if I’m not mature enough to live away from my parents?”
“They’re less than ten minutes away.”
“What if I’m too scared to live ten minutes away from them?”
“I feel like with some practice, you could get the hang of it. Besides, I miss you at night.”
“Do you miss me, or does Horn Dog?” I ask, reaching down to give his dick a stroke. “I feel like you have a good life here with your friends. I don’t want to be Yoko and mess things up.”
“First, don’t stop that,” he says, smirking as my fingers trace the bulge in his jeans. “Second, my way of thinking about Vivi changed a lot after I met you. I bet Grizz knows he overreacted, too. He’s obnoxious about Raqui. Over the last few years, he’s probably realized his behavior isn’t so different than Hoot’s.”
“Maybe they can be friends again.”
“Maybe, but we like the rivalry.”
“But those guys were your friends,” I mutter, frowning at him.
“Yeah, and we used to fight a lot. Not guns-and-knives fighting. Just punches and rough wrestling. Shoving their heads into the mud. Fun shit. Not so different than now.”
“Will you tell me if I’m acting like Yoko?”
“Sure. But I wasn’t kidding about missing you at night.”
“I know. I miss you, too. But I have my parents and Hagan. You have your friends. We aren’t ready.”
“No, you’re not ready.”
Though I hear the judgment in his voice, I can’t be anyone except me. “No, I’m not ready. I’ve spent my entire life hearing how lucky I am to have parents who won the chance to love me. It feels disloyal to leave them.”
“Once you move in here, you’ll still see them all the time.”
“Especially since I’ll work at Dad’s office.”
“Until the babies. Then, you need to stay where I can protect you.”
Resting my hands on his wide shoulders, I frown hard at Mad Dog. “Are you planning to lock me down at the Ranch once I turn into a babymaker? If so, I might never stop my birth control. I like going places.”
“Go places with me.”
No longer sensing we’re in teasing mode, I ask, “Wait, will I never get to leave, for real?”
“Do you ever see Raqui leave?”
“I barely know her.”
“She wants me to knock you up,” he says, placing his hands on my hips. “That way, she’ll have an age-appropriate friend here at the Ranch.”
“Well, then we have no choice,” I murmur and offer a shrug. “Raqui has spoken.”
Mad Dog smiles at my tone. “You’re young, so waiting feels like nothing. But I’ve been alone for a long time. Until we met, I never felt I was missing out on anything. Now, I’m in a rush. Sure, that’s not fair to you, but give a guy some slack, okay?”
“Okay,” I whisper and kiss his throat before sucking at the flesh.
When Mad Dog moans approvingly, I suck harder, trying to mark my man, so Cheap-
Ass Extensions and all other women will know he’s taken. No doubt Mad Dog walked around plenty of times with hickeys and no woman to call his own. Yet, in my mind, I’m branding him.
“How do I know if it’s worked?” I ask after pulling my lips free. “I’ve never given a hickey before.”
“You gotta suck harder.”
“You always say that,” I tease, and his grin widens.
“Suck hard enough to pop when you let go.”
“Do you have a vacuum cleaner I can use?”
“No, baby, just suck. Your pretty lips have plenty of power behind them.”
“What if I hurt you?” I ask, stroking his jaw.
“I get into fistfights for fun,” he says softly. “Nothing you do will faze me.”
Rather than mark his throat, I kiss my man and let my earlier fears slide back into the shadows.
When Mad Dog wraps his arms tighter around me, I feel how much he worries about losing me. Since we met, he’s been so cool and tough. It’s easy to forget he has a big heart, too.
Mad Dog lost his friends over a feud he didn’t start. Those former buddies messed with his woman, leaving him wet and sexy in my front yard. Mad Dog might not cry or pout, but he still feels pain and fear.
In my heart, I swear I’ll always treat him right and kind.
MAD DOG—WHAT IT TAKES
If Cameo was any other woman, she’d been living in my house already. I give zero fucks if I’m moving too quick. The girl owns my heart, and I hate when we’re apart.
As I take her home, I fantasize about Cameo finishing school and moving her things into my house. When I relax alone in bed tonight, I imagine waking up to her messy hair and sleepy eyes. Still feeling her pussy wrapped around my cock, I’m itching to spend our days together. I still have a million things to learn about Cameo.
Nothing will be a dealbreaker. She can hate my music. Hell, Cameo can think my every taste is crap, but that’s not what matters. I’ve known women with the same interests as me, but we never shared the connection I feel with Cameo.
And those shit-eating Roosters nearly scared her off!
“I want revenge,” I say as soon as I sit across from Grizz at breakfast.