by RB Hilliard
Surprisingly, Taz came to his defense. “A cop who killed one of our own and two other people. His next miss could be my wife. I’m not willing to sit around and wait for that to happen.”
Jake pushed back from the table and stood. “Fine, it’s your fucking life. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He walked out the door and slammed it behind him.
All eyes turned to Steele. “If anyone else wants to go, I won’t hold it against you.” When no one responded, they started to plan.
Steele and Taz were going to approach Gamble. They would explain who Luciana was and her relation to the club. If he didn’t back off immediately, the club would consider it a declaration of war. In exchange for leaving her alone, they would keep quiet about what they knew. Ax, Loco, Buck, and Ink were going to surround the house. They were to stand down unless shots were fired.
“We’ll leave directly after dinner. I know I don’t have to say it, but thanks for having my back on this.” He stood, and his men followed suit. “One more thing, this does not leave this room. That means no drunk talk and no pillow talk. Tell your women we’ve got business at Spur’s tonight and we won’t be back until late.”
Steele took off for his office while everyone else headed up to dinner. He wasn’t hungry. Not only that, but he didn’t want to have to lie to Luciana again. He figured if he avoided her altogether, he wouldn’t have to.
“Hey, you,” she said from his doorway. “I got worried when you weren’t at dinner. Is everything okay?”
So much for avoiding her, he thought. Her hair was piled on top of her head, and she had on the jeans with holes that he liked and a cool-as-hell Zeppelin t-shirt he’d never seen before. Even casual, she was classy as fuck.
He patted his lap. “Come here.”
Her eyes sparked with interest as she stepped inside his office. “Want me to close it?” she asked, nodding to the door.
“You can if you like.”
She closed the door, then made her way over to where he was sitting and straddled his lap.
“I’ve got to go out tonight,” he told her.
“Oh, where to?”
“It’s club business. I may not be back until late, though.”
Her forehead scrunched. “Should I be worried?”
Yes. “No.”
Worry quickly turning to skepticism, she asked, “Will there be women involved?”
He liked when she got jealous. “What if I said yes?”
Her mouth dropped to his but halted right before their lips touched. “Then, I would need to stake my claim before you go.”
His cock pressed against his jeans, begging to get out. “And how would you do that?”
Her mouth hit his, and she gave him a scorching-hot kiss. He tried to pull her in for more but she jerked back and vaulted off his lap. “Do we need to be fast, or can I take my time?” she asked, toeing off her shoes.
As much as he would like to take it slow, they couldn’t. “Fast now, slow later,” he told her.
“Pants down, condom on,” she ordered, and his cock nearly burst in his pants. His jeans were down and he barely had the condom rolled on when she was back in his lap.
She slid down as he thrust up, and they both groaned. “Christ, you feel good,” he growled.
Lusty golden eyes stared down at him as she slowly began to work his cock. His woman had some serious moves. Her tongue was in his ear, her pussy gripping his cock, and he was right on the verge of blowing his load, when she stopped.
“Don’t stop,” he growled.
“Are there going to be other women tonight?” she sweetly asked. Oh no, she didn’t. His hands gripped her hips, and he began to jack her up and down his cock, while at the same time grinding his pelvis against her sweet, little clit, just the way she liked it. “No fair,” she half-gasped, half-whined.”
He didn’t let up until they both came. Then, lifting her off him, he quickly knotted the condom and tossed it in the trash, before jerking up his pants.
“Are you mad?” she asked, sounding surprised.
Damn right, he was. He gave her a scathing look. “I’ll let it slide this time, but the next time you try to use sex against me, I’ll spank your ass.”
“Oh my God, you can’t be serious.”
“As a fucking heart attack,” he replied.
With a loud huff, she jerked on her pants, grabbed her shoes from the floor, and stormed for the door. “I hope you get so much pussy tonight, you drown in it!” she screamed as she pegged her shoe at his head. He ducked, and it smacked against the wall.
Someone must have said something to her in the hall because he heard her shout, “You can all suck dicks!”
Ax and Ink stepped into the office with surprised looks on their faces. “Don’t ask,” he said.
“This is why I play the field,” Ax stated.
“Same,” Ink agreed.
Steele sighed. Yep, he definitely could have handled that better.
Chapter Twenty-One
IT WAS A twenty-minute drive to Gamble’s place. Steele opted to ride in Taz’s Jeep, while the rest of the group followed in Ax’s truck. It had been well over a week since he’d had a decent night’s sleep, and exhaustion was beginning to set in. Hopefully, this little visit to Gamble would pay off, because he was beyond ready for this shit to be over. If Gamble was smart, he would back the fuck off. Otherwise, they were going to break the asshole’s operation wide open.
A few blocks from the turnoff, they spotted the flashing lights.
“Whoa, pull over,” he cautioned.
Taz pulled onto a side road, and Ax pulled in behind them. A moment later, Steele’s phone rang.
“Want us to check it out?” Ax asked.
“Taz and I are going in. I want you to sit tight.” Ax started to argue, which Steele had no patience for, so he hung up on him.
It didn’t take long for them to reach Gamble’s street, or to find the three police cars, ambulance, and firetruck sitting in front of his house. They waited until they saw a body appear on a stretcher before heading back to the car.
Ax rolled down his window on their approach. “Gamble?”
“Not sure, but someone’s toast. Let’s go. I’ll call Carver on our way back,” Steele replied.
“Maybe they figured out he’s a cop killer and took him out,” Taz suggested as they steered back to the main road.
“Either that or our fourth guy’s been the one pulling the strings all along,” Steele responded.
Carver answered his call on the first ring, and Steele filled him in. After chewing Steele’s ass for doing exactly what Carver said not to, he said he would check into it and call him back.
The call came right as they were pulling into The Cave, and it was precisely as Steele thought. Gamble was dead. This time it was a bullet to the head. Carver said he would call when he had more details before ending the call. Three of the five people were now dead. That left Luciana and the fourth player.
Turning to Taz, he said, “Gamble was found with a bullet to the head. We’re talking execution-style. Tell everyone we’re meeting downstairs in five.” Then he slid down from the Jeep and strode to his office. Once he was inside with the door shut, he let the punches fly.
It took all of ten minutes for him to calm his shit down. It was one thing to take on the enemy he knew, but he was flying blind, and his nerves were starting to unravel. Something had to give.
The room went silent as he stepped inside. The expectant looks on his brothers’ faces made his gut twist. The knowledge that this shit was still hanging over them was beyond infuriating.
The meeting started with a quick recount of his conversation with Carver.
Loco was the first to respond. “Looks like the fourth player’s running the show.”
“Not necessarily. For all we know, there could be a fifth or a sixth player,” Ink argued.
“Or, they figured out Gamble’s a cop killer, took him out, and it’s over,” Ax added.
&
nbsp; Steele let out a long, frustrated breath. “Carver’s still digging. Ax, you’re back on Luciana. When she’s not with me, she’s with you. No excuses this time. The rest of you, keep alert. I’ll let you know as soon as I know something.”
As Steele watched his brothers file out of the room, he considered leaving. He could hop on his bike and ride until his head cleared. Luciana did not need to see him like this, and talking to her about it would only scare her. Before heading upstairs, he stopped in to speak with Grover, only to discover Buck already there.
“Got anything yet?”
Grover tore his eyes from the computer long enough to snap, “How about a shot of calm-the-fuck-down.”
Steele’s brow shot up in irritation. “Is this any way to talk to your president, old man?”
“Only when he needs it,” he popped back. “Now, have a seat and let me show you what I’ve got.”
Grumbling about respect, Steele sat. Buck handed him a bottle of Gentleman Jack whiskey, and he took a few swallows, while Grover fiddled with his computer.
“Here we go,” Grover said, and a still shot of the shooter appeared on the screen. The face was pixelated and nowhere near recognizable.
Frowning at the screen, Steele said, “Don’t tell me this is all you’ve got.”
Grover huffed. “This is what we’ve got until the program is finished running.”
“How much longer will that take?” he asked. Grover started explaining what it would do in technical terms, and Steele’s eyes nearly crossed. Cutting him short, Steele said, “So, what you’re saying is that you’ll have it for me in a few hours.”
“Or more, but definitely by tomorrow,” Grover answered.
Buck leaned back in his chair, his eyes on Steele. “I don’t see what it matters anymore. We know it’s either Dario or Gamble.”
“What if it’s not? What if Loco’s right, and it’s our fourth guy?” he countered.
“You wanna know what I think? I think Dario was pissed that Luciana was at his house putting shit into the kid’s head about college and doing better. When he saw her lurking outside that fence, he took it as an opportunity to do something about it. Gamble didn’t even know who she was. She said so herself. Either way, they’re both dead, which means your woman is free and clear.”
Steele considered Buck’s words, then asked, “But what if that’s not the case?”
“Then, we tighten her protection and hope this shit clears before anyone else has to die.”
“It’s not over ‘til it’s over,” Grover inserted.
And here lies the crux of the problem. How in the fuck are we supposed to know when it’s over? Steele thought.
“Here, have another pull,” Buck offered, shoving the bottle at him.
Steele took a generous drink and passed the bottle to Grover. “So, if this were Reyn, you’d relax your guard?” her directed at Buck.
“Fuck no. You saw what happened when I let down my guard.”
“No one could have seen that shit coming.” A look of pain shot across Buck’s face, but the words needed to be said. “It fucked with your head. Hell, it fucked with mine, too. We all felt the loss, but no one blames you for what happened. It’s time to stop blaming yourself. We need you here. I need you here. The place isn’t the same without your whiney ass.”
“Christ, play me a fucking fiddle,” Grover muttered, bringing laughter from Steele and Buck.
Steele left the two men arguing over some technical something or other to go in search of Luciana. On the way to the game room, he ran into Doc.
“I was looking for you. Your test results came back clean, and I’ve got Hannah’s ashes. What would you like me to do with them?”
Steele shrugged. “Shit, I don’t know. I would say give them to Treena and let her decide. Have you seen Luciana?”
“Try upstairs. If you see Glenda, tell her I’m looking for her.”
He found Luciana in the upstairs living room giving baby Jade a bottle. As he leaned against the doorway to watch, his chest twinged at the thought that this could be them one day.
Taz stepped up beside him. “She’s a natural. Think she’d be interested in a babysitting job, ‘cause I sure as hell would like to get laid more than once a week.”
Steele shot him a sideways glance. “From the way I see it, you have at least fifteen babysitters under this roof right now. Get creative.”
Luciana’s smile fell when she clocked him standing in the doorway.
“Looks like I’m not the only one who needs to get creative,” Taz murmured.
Steele canted his head toward the door, indicating he wanted to talk.
“Creative is my middle name,” he shot back at Taz, as he watched her hand the baby over to Lucy and head his way. When she reached them, Steele took her hand and escorted her from the room.
They made it downstairs and into the hallway outside his office before she shook off his hand. “Look, about earlier, I’m not an insecure person. I never have been, but the thought of you with another woman makes me do stupid things. I was playing, but then I wasn’t, if that makes sense.” It made perfect sense because he felt the same way. “I wasn’t using sex against you. At least, not intentionally. I just—”
He backed her against the wall and her words turned into a moan as he kissed her. It took everything in him to end the kiss and not take her right there. Staring down into her lust-dazed eyes, he said, “You want reassurance, ask for it. I’ll do the same, but when my cock is buried inside you, it’s just you and me. No games, no manipulations, just us. Are we clear?”
“I can live with that.” Her husky tone made his cock throb.
“Good, let’s go.”
Pretending ignorance, she asked, “Where to?”
He laughed. Then he took her downstairs to their room, where he gave it to her nice and slow.
_______________
The next morning LuLu woke early. It was the day of Hannah’s remembrance party and there was a ton to do. It was also the first morning she’d awakened before Steele. As she stared down at his peaceful face, her mind wandered to what they’d done the night before, and she blushed. She may not be able to tell Meg the truth about where she’d been, but she sure as hell could tell her about all the sex she’d been having. Crazy, wonderful, out of this world sex. She’d had more sex in the past five days than her entire life, which was kind of pathetic, but who was counting? She’d finally found her guy, and he was insatiable.
Her eyes drifted to his muscular chest, then dipped to his chiseled abs. They reached his cock and widened at his erection tenting the sheet. She jerked them back to his face and let out a surprised gasp when she discovered him watching her.
The next thing she knew, she was flat on her back with him on top of her, his hard length pressing against her core, asking for entry. He slowly pushed inside, and her body ignited, her heart pounding inside her chest. A moan tore from her throat when he shifted onto his elbows and began to thrust in and out of her body. His lips crashed to hers, their tongues dancing wildly, as she met him stroke for stroke. Her spine began to tingle, her breaths coming in short, choppy pants. She was close. As if sensing this, he ground his pelvis against her core. Her orgasm crested, and she screamed as she fractured into a million pieces. With one last thrust, he drove in to the hilt and let out a sexy as hell groan as he came.
A long moment passed before Steele pulled out. He flopped to his back with a satisfied sigh. “It just gets better and better.”
Luciana was about to agree when she felt the gush between her legs. Shit! “Please tell me you used a condom.”
His head turned, and their eyes met. “The test results came back. I’m clean.”
She blinked. Did he not understand? “That’s great, but I’m not on the pill.”
His mouth ticked up into a smile. “So what? Would it be so bad if we have a kid?”
Was he serious? “We’re barely together, Arlan.”
“You’re living here
and sharing my room. I don’t consider that barely together.”
Oh my God! “Don’t you think we should discuss it? A baby is a lot of work.”
“You don’t want kids?”
“Of course, I want kids.”
“Then it’s discussed.”
His weight lifted as he exited from the bed and started for the bathroom.
“Wait, you’re serious? We can’t have a baby! We’re not even married!” she called after him.
He stopped mid-stride and pivoted to face her. “Is that a prerequisite?”
She laughed. “I can’t believe we’re having this discussion.”
“Answer me,” he ordered.
Her heart stammered when she realized he was being serious. “Well, yeah. I want a family, don’t you?”
“With you, hell yes. Plan it, and we’ll get married.”
Her mouth dropped open as he stalked the rest of the way to the bathroom, and she couldn’t help but think, Did he just propose to me?
Chapter Twenty-Two
LULU WALKED STEELE to his office and gave him a quick kiss before heading to the kitchen—where she spent the first half of the morning helping to prep food for the party. She’d wanted to discuss their earlier conversation in greater detail, but she was already late to meet with the girls, so it would have to wait until later.
The second half of the morning she spent helping with decorations. Sage, Aimee, and Montana decided to split it up into sections. After helping Montana tackle the living room, LuLu found Sage in the dining room—which she wasn’t even aware existed—and took the opportunity to question her about Ax.
“Sooo, what’s the story with you and Ax?”
Sage handed her the roll of streamers. “We’re friends.”
LuLu’s brow arched. “Really? Because I’m pretty sure he’s into you.”
“Alex is into anyone with tits and a vagina, except for me,” Sage bitterly replied.
“Alex?” LuLu asked.
“Sorry, that’s Ax’s real name. He and Gibson were close.” At LuLu’s questioning look, she laughed. “Gibson was my husband’s name. The guys called him Gibby, but I called him Gibson or Gibbs.”