by Jessie Cooke
“Well, that can’t be good.”
Manson laughed, “You think? The gym isn’t making money yet, but despite that, we’ve got eight people on that payroll. The garage made about thirty grand, legitimately, last year, but we paid out over fifty in salaries. There’s a lot of money coming out of the warehouse, but we can’t claim any of that. I can see where Granite funneled some of it into repairs and upkeep on the timeshares, but I’m not sure where the hell the rest of it is. He was supposed to be here to explain all this shit. It’s like looking at Chinese, and I’m the one that’s going to have to explain it to the tax man.”
Wolf opened the ledgers, pulled up the calculator on his phone, and started typing in numbers. He was still there three hours later when Manson found him, but by then he was staring at the wall at a picture of Coyote and shaking his head. Some days it seemed like his old man’s ghost would haunt him forever. He almost asked him out loud...What have you done now?
Manson could read his boss’s face a mile away by now. He sat down next to him and said, “What’s going on?”
“I have a theory.”
“Okay.”
“I don’t like it, and you won’t either.”
“Okay.”
Wolf sighed. He’d gone over the books another three times just that morning. It was the only explanation that made sense. “I think Granite was siphoning money and Coyote figured it out.”
Manson frowned. “Granite’s loaded.”
“Maybe. What we know about Michael ‘Granite’ Parker is what Coyote and Michael himself have told us. Maybe it’s all bullshit. Maybe he was stealing from the club to support that outrageous lifestyle of his.”
“So Coyote just let him get away with it?”
Wolf hadn’t figured that part out yet. It didn’t sound like his old man, but then again, he didn’t know the situation. He could be completely wrong, but his gut was telling him he wasn’t. “I don’t know, but hear me out. What if Granite took the money and Coyote found out? For whatever reason, instead of outing him to the club, Coyote covered for him...he did take those guns, but he didn’t sell them, Granite did.”
“I just don’t understand why Coyote would do that.”
“Look.” Wolf turned one of the ledgers around so that Manson could see the dates and the numbers and then he pointed at the next month...and then the next... “Every month from the time those guns went ‘missing’ until you noticed that it looked like we were paying out too much in payroll, there was a $5-10,000 deposit to the cash fund, all at different times of the month...and look at the notation next to them.” The note next to the deposits said, “Harley store.” The club used space behind the one of the Harley dealerships to “customize” the classic cars they then sold on the showroom floor. But there were two things that didn’t make sense about the deposits. One was that those sales, despite where the cars and parts had come from, were done legitimately through the dealership. That money should have gone into one of the business accounts. The second problem with it was that even if they were making that kind of money off the cars each month, and they weren’t, why would it suddenly stop when Granite was no longer there?
“Son of a bitch,” Manson said. “He would have been my last guess.”
“Mine too,” Wolf said. “We need to talk to him.”
“I’m ready.”
“No. He’s not going anywhere. Let’s go up to the property and watch Beck ride first. I need to get up there early and make sure these bozos set up a safe course.” Manson chuckled.
“You’re as attached to that girl as Coyote was, aren’t you?”
“Maybe not as attached, but yeah...I like her. She feels like a little sister.”
“She’s a pretty little thing,” Manson said. “Meaner than a snake, though.”
Wolf laughed. “That she is,” he said. “It’s another reason I feel like she’s another sister. You ever seen Sabrina pissed off?” Manson laughed again.
“Yeah...and dad and big brother. Beck would fit right in.”
23
When Beck got to the property in the foothills, the obstacle course was set and the crowd had already gathered. She’d been a little nervous before the shooting competition. It wasn’t that she doubted her abilities, but she had gone in cold, not knowing what they expected of her and that had been slightly nerve-wracking. The obstacle course didn’t worry her in the least, though. She was even more confident in her riding skills than she was in her skills with a gun. Twice, while she was on leave she’d run the course used to qualify the Phoenix police officers and after the second time, the captain had actually invited her to help teach. She’d turned him down because the last thing she wanted to do was deal with more sniveling, whiny men than she already did in the Navy...but she’d been honored that he asked.
Wolf and Jace were stepping out of the gate they’d set up around the course as she got off her bike. She tried to keep her eyes on Wolf. Jace had been discreet and so far, no one knew they were fucking, except for Cubbie of course, but he was proving that he knew when and how to keep his mouth shut. Beck got the impression that the kid slightly hero-worshiped Jace, and that worked to their advantage. He wouldn’t want to do anything to upset the big guy and that was fine by her. Whatever it took, she had to make sure that everyone else around the club thought of her as one of the guys. It was the only way she’d cement herself a place as a Skull and she wanted that...so badly.
She knew being with Jace was a risk, and for any other man she wouldn’t chance it. But there was just no denying the chemistry she felt when she was around him, or when she just looked across a room at him, or thought about him...hell, even when she dreamed about him. It was crazy strong and she wasn’t sure she could deny it if she tried...so doing it on the down low was the next best thing. It was the first time in her life that Beck had ever experienced such strong feelings toward a man. She didn’t know what to call it, but there wasn’t a part of her that didn’t want him. She even enjoyed talking to him and listening to him talk, and that part was especially new. Usually she wanted them to shut up and get out as soon as they rolled off her, but with Jace it was almost painful to watch him go. Every so often a tiny little part of her brain wanted to insist that it was love...but she shot that down, and quickly. She had known for a long time that she wasn’t the type to fall in love. Falling in love meant rearranging your life and your dreams for a man, and she had no intentions of doing that, for anyone.
“Are they ready for me, Boss?” she asked Wolf.
“The course looks good,” he said. “Are you ready?”
Beck grinned. “Always.” She couldn’t help it. It was like Jace was some kind of fucking magnet. She looked directly at him, and he was looking back at her. His face was completely neutral, but she could see the desire in his gray eyes and it made her core tighten. Pulling her focus off him was hard, but she forced herself to look back at Wolf. “I’ll get geared up,” she told him. With one last glance at Jace, one that she, again, couldn’t control, she went back over to her bike and started donning her protective gear. She didn’t normally wear all the leather, but this was a tight course and if she dumped the bike, it was likely to land on her. She was sure she could handle the weight but getting burned by the pipes did worry her. Once she had on her chaps, leather jacket, and leather gloves, she climbed on the Harley Road King and put on her helmet. Right before she slapped down the shield, Jace caught her eye again. Wolf wasn’t looking, so she winked at him and blew him a kiss. His expression did change then, he smiled, and something inside of her melted. Fuck, I’m acting like a damned teenager.
She started the bike and looked at Bruf, who was standing near the gate. She gave him a nod and he looked at Cubbie, who was keeping the time today. Bruf opened the gate and raised his hand. When he dropped it, she moved. The time would start as soon as her front axle crossed the plane of the start line and she had both feet up off the ground. The object was simply to make it through the course and cross the fini
sh line without touching any of the cones or putting her foot down as she made the tight turns.
As she rounded the first cone it was only then that she truly realized how tightly the course was set up. She had to immediately prepare for rounding the next and she had to pay close attention to her speed. It was a balancing act and she was balancing a thousand-pound machine. There were ten cones from start to finish and she didn’t touch the first eight...but by number nine her arms were getting tired and even shaky, and she let the bike tip just half an inch too far to the right. She didn’t knock the cone over, but the bike touched it. She was so pissed off at herself that she almost blew number ten too. Thankfully she pulled her shit together and missed it, but she was still angry with herself. It wasn’t perfect, and she wasn’t ever satisfied with “almost.” She had to get out of her head and focus, however, because she was running the course again immediately, and this time it would be much harder.
She rode back around to the start line where Bruf was waiting, now on his bike with his own protective gear in place. This was what they called a “chase” challenge. Bruf would be in front of her and she would have to stay within inches of his back tire without touching his bike, and still making it around the tight turns without touching the cones as well. Her palms were sweating as she watched him take off. She took off immediately afterwards, lining her back tire up with his as he crossed the start line. She crossed right after him...and the next two minutes, it was like poetry in motion. Instead of looking at the cones, she watched Bruf’s back tire. If he dipped right, she did too. If he went left, she was on it. She almost wished she were on the sidelines watching. It had to look pretty from out there. As soon as she crossed the finish line, she was grinning from ear to ear, and she almost wanted to do it again. Unfortunately she would be riding with Bruf one more time...but this time would be much harder.
The cones were rearranged and once the course was set, she and Bruf would ride in together again. This time, however, she would be in the lead. She would be free to choose which direction they went as long as she stayed within the cones. Bruf would have to follow her path exactly until they were in the corners and there he was free to try to pass her. The goal of this challenge was for either rider to force the other one to go out of pattern, place a foot on the ground, or make contact with a cone or obstacle. When that happened, the challenge was over, but the course would continue until it did. Bruf was a good rider, great even from what Beck heard. She knew he wouldn’t go down easily...but then again, neither would she.
Wolf dropped his arm this time and she took off with Bruf so close behind her that she could almost feel the vibrations of his bike. She cut a tight path through the course and when she came to the first wide turn, Bruf made his move. Beck stayed out wide until he tried to cut in between her and the fence and then she dipped the bike to the left. Bruf had to pull back to keep from colliding with her. After several close calls, Beck wasn’t sure if she was thankful for his skills, or if the narrow misses were part of his plan to tire her out. They ran the course five times before he managed to get around her...but within three more turns, she was back in the lead. She was getting tired, though. The tight course and slow speed forced her to work a lot harder to hold the bike up than out on the open road. She had an idea of how to end the challenge; she just hoped it worked the way she pictured it in her head.
She and Bruf did another four rounds and on the fifth one, she got so close to the fence when she turned that if she’d been wearing shorts, she would have gotten a splinter. Bruf took advantage and started to pass her, but at the last second she picked up her speed and pulled the bike to the right. Bruf’s only choice was to let his bike make contact with hers or pull hard to the right as well. They were both leaning so far right at that point that their bikes were nearly touching the ground. Bruf was concentrating so hard on holding his bike up off the dirt that he either forgot about, or simply couldn’t avoid, the first cone as they went back into the obstacle course. It flipped up in the air and landed on the other side of the fence. Beck felt almost lightheaded...she had done it, she’d beaten a veteran member of the Westside Skulls at his own game, and it felt fucking fantastic.
Two hours later, after everyone had finally gotten their praise and congratulations out of their system and headed back to the clubhouse for dinner, Beck and Jace finally had the mountain property to themselves. Just to be sure there was no one else lurking around, they took a walk up away from where the new buildings were going up. Beck stopped when they came to a cluster of trees and she dipped inside.
“We playing hide and seek?” she heard Jace say, with amusement in his voice.
“Yep, you’re it.”
“Do I get a prize if I find you?”
“Count to twenty.”
He laughed. “Seriously?”
“Yes. You can’t play hide and seek if you don’t give me time to hide.”
“You didn’t answer my question, though—do I get a prize?”
“Count!”
He sighed loudly. “One...two...three...” He counted quickly, but Beck didn’t need much time. As soon as he reached twenty he said, “Ready or not, here I come.” He ducked in the same way she had gone and she smiled as she watched his jaw drop. “Damn,” he said in a breathless voice. He shook his head, like he thought he might be imagining things, and then he smiled and said, “Well, I guess that answers my question about a prize. I must have won first place.”
Beck had taken off her leather jacket and stepped out of her jeans and panties. She’d spread them all out on top of a cushy bed of pine needles on the ground and she was lying on top of them, legs spread and wet pussy tingling in the cool, evening air. She smiled and said, “It’s all yours...if you want it.”
He dropped to his knees and he was already between her knees as he said, “I’d have to be crazy not to.: She could feel his warm breath against the tender flesh of her pussy and the roughness of his palms against her knees as he pushed them open wider. She was shaking all over and before he lowered his face he said, “Are you cold?” She shook her head from side to side. She was afraid to speak. She was afraid she’d say what she was thinking out loud. No man had ever caused her to quiver like that before, by barely even touching her. He ran his hands down from her knees to her thighs and let his fingers slide along the outside of her pussy lips. Her body convulsed and she reached up and put her hands on the back of his head and brought his face the rest of the way down, where she wanted it. He brought his tongue out and licked her lips, softly at first, and then harder and with more urgency, forcing her lips apart at last and pressing his hot tongue into her folds. She was gripping onto his hair and lifting her hips up off the ground and Jace was sliding his tongue up and down, swirling it around, thrusting it in and out and taking her to heaven while driving her crazy at the same time. He began to flick her clit back and forth, fast and hard. It was swollen and incredibly sensitive.
Her head was pressed back into the ground, and her eyes were rolling back in her head when he reached up with one hand and slipped a finger into her soaking-wet tunnel. She let out a cry that probably startled every animal on the mountain and she moaned when she felt the other hand snaking up underneath her shirt. She loved the contrast of her soft skin against his rough hands and when his fingers inched up underneath her bra, she felt her breaths growing shorter and the fire burning deep inside her core flaring up. Once he had the bra out of his way, he took hold of one of her nipples and began to twist and pull on it. He was still moving the fingers of his other hand in and out of her and his tongue hadn’t missed a beat. Just as she reached the point of no return she clutched his hair harder in her fist and rotated her hips, grinding her pussy into his face. She felt her muscles tighten and that fire in her belly was burning everything inside of her, laying ruins to her organs and turning them into liquid pleasure that snaked through her veins and caused her arms and legs to shake almost violently.
“Jesus, Jace! Fuck, you’re goo
d at this.” His response was to flatten his tongue and lick her one last time from the bottom up. She groaned and let go of his hair so that he could pull up on his knees. His face was glistening with the evidence of her climax and as he unbuttoned and unzipped his pants, he cleaned it off his lips with his tongue. He stood up and pushed his jeans and shorts off and once again he got down on his knees, this time on top of his own clothes. He pressed his hands into the earth on either side of her head and Beck reached down with both hands and wrapped them around his cock. She loved how it was hard as a rock, but silky soft against her skin. She arched up and lined his tip up with her drenched pussy and he gave it a little push, sliding in with little effort and ecstatic results.
Beck’s neurons were all firing at once, and she reached up and grasped his shoulders and held on while he began to glide in and out of her. He leaned down and kissed her and she wrapped her arms all the way around him and held on and kissed him back. They shared a searing, passionate kiss while Jace increased the pace and strength of his thrusts. Beck finally pulled out of the kiss, gasping for breath, but as soon as she’d sucked in enough, she pulled him back down into another one. They were making a lot of noise, and Beck loved it. She could not only hear and feel every one of his moans as she kissed him, but she imagined that she could taste them as well...and they were as sweet as he was. It was ironic because when she first laid eyes on Jace that would have been the very last word that she used to describe him.
Jace pulled out of the kiss that time, panting hard and trying to get enough air to form a sentence. He finally forced it out and the deep, raspy way he said it was almost as sexy as the proposition. “Let me get under you, baby. I want you on top.”
Beck sat up slightly and Jace reached underneath her and flipped them over. His cock popped out of her pussy but she quickly had it back inside of her and she didn’t waste any time. She used her knees to push up and down, bouncing on top of him, every blow striking deep and vibrating through her body. He had his hands underneath her blouse and bra and he squeezed and groped her breasts as she rode him. For a while Beck felt like they were the only two people on earth and she was almost frightened by how appealing that actually sounded.