“Stop teasing and suck me,” he demanded.
Sasha licked her lips, slicking them, then leaned forward and took him in her mouth, her tongue flicking back and forth as she swallowed him down. Viper reached out and grabbed a handful of her hair and forced his cock down her throat. She gagged and he pulled back, then surged forward again. Her nails bit into his thighs as he fucked her mouth with long, hard strokes.
“That’s it, baby. Take it all. Every fucking inch.”
She gripped his thighs as he forced his cock down her throat again. She swallowed on him and he came, bucking his hips. When he was finished, he pulled away and zipped up, pushing Sasha away. She sprawled on the floor and glared at him, but she knew better than to open her mouth. He didn’t have a hard-on anymore, but he still wasn’t satisfied. If anything, the experience had left him feeling empty.
We betrayed our mate, his wolf grumbled. Mate? No fucking way. Viper wasn’t settling down, even if the wretched beast inside him did think Scarlet was theirs. She had a body made for lovin’, and she was easily the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, but that didn’t mean he was going to claim her. The sooner his wolf realized that, the better.
His phone jingled in his pocket and he pulled it out. “Home” flashed across the screen. What the fuck could Scarlet possibly need? He hadn’t been gone that long.
“What?” he barked into the phone.
At first, all he heard was heavy panting and then a whine. “Please don’t,” Scarlet begged.
What the fuck? “Scarlet?”
“Don’t hurt me.” She whimpered. There was a crash and a growl.
“Scarlet? Answer me, dammit!”
Viper heard the phone being picked up.
“Scarlet can’t come to the phone right now. She’s busy.”
The hairs on his nape stood up. He knew that voice. “Slash.”
The Red Devil chuckled into the phone. “I’ve missed my little cash cow, so I thought I’d swing by and pick her up. I knew it was only a matter of time before you left her alone. Don’t bother sending anyone by the house. By the time they get here, we’ll be gone. Does it make you hot thinking of her spreading her legs for all of the Red Devils?”
“You fucking touch her and I’ll kill you!”
Viper was already out of his chair and out the door. He heard the thump of boots behind him and glanced over his shoulder. Reaper was running to his bike. Good. If he was going up against Slash, he could use a little back-up. He watched as Reaper tucked his cell back in his pocket and knew his brother had called in reinforcements. If the Red Devils wanted to play, the Loup Garous would be happy to bring the pain. If they harmed so much as one hair on Scarlet’s head, the streets would be bathed in their blood before the night was over.
Viper pulled into his driveway, taking note of the open door and silent alarm. He didn’t know how the bastard had gotten around the system, but once he got Scarlet back, he’d make sure it couldn’t happen again. He pulled the Desert Eagle from the back of his jeans and cleared the house one room at a time, Reaper right on his heels.
“I have to get her back,” Viper said.
Reaper leaned against the bedroom doorframe. “Are you sure you want to? Think of it man. This solves your problem.”
“Problem?”
“With her history, you can’t pass her around. And for whatever reason, you aren’t fucking her yourself. Let the Red Devils have her.”
A red haze settled over Viper’s vision. “So I should leave her to be raped and tortured just because she doesn’t have a place in our M.C.? I should turn my back on her and pretend I don’t know the hell she’s going through, or that she’ll die a slow painful death at their hands?”
Reaper smirked. “Your wolf about to tear free? Good. Now let’s go save your mate.”
“She’s not my mate.”
Reaper rolled his eyes. “What-the-fuck-ever. Every last one of your brothers has been waiting for you to come to your senses and claim her.”
“The two of you done socializing?” Scorch asked, pushing his way into the room. “Because it looks like we have a damsel to rescue.”
Bone snorted from his position behind Reaper. “That little hellcat? I saw what she did to that Prospect. No way is she going down without a fight.”
Viper picked up a knife off the floor. “I gave her this. If she doesn’t have it, then she’s defenseless.”
“Let’s ride,” Scorch said. “The sooner we get to her, the less likely she’ll have been harmed.”
Viper pocketed the knife and stormed out of the room. If they had harmed her in any way, he wouldn’t stop until he was bathed in the blood of every last Red Devil. They’d fucked up by taking what was his.
****
Scarlet wiped the blood from her mouth and glared at Slash.
“You heard me, you little bitch. Strip!”
“I’d rather die than let you see my body. And I’ll tear out the throat of any man who thinks they’re going to fuck me.”
Slash laughed. “Little Scarlet has gotten a backbone since leaving us. Hey Thumper, why don’t you show our little club toy how you got your name.”
Scarlet watched as Thumper unfastened his belt and moved in closer. He unzipped his pants, opened them wide, and his cock fell out, hard and more than ready to cause her quite a bit of pain. Fuck if she was going to let him though. She’d rolled over before and taken whatever they’d given her, but she wasn’t going to do it again. Being with the Loup Garous has shown her that not all men were violent toward women, and a few had taken the time to show her how to defend herself.
Thumper reached her and she allowed him to draw her close. He leered down at her and she bared her teeth. As he reached for the hem of her shirt, she reached out and wrapped her hand around his cock.
“Oh yeah, baby. I knew you wanted Thumper to give it to you good.”
He thrust into her hand a few times, until Scarlet tightened her grip, then tried to bend his dick in half. She heard a snap and he screamed in pain before jerking away from her. Thumper’s dick was already swelling and bruising. With any luck, it was permanently broken.
Slash backhanded her across the face, sending her sprawling to the floor. “Just for that, I’m going to tie you down. Then the club is going to take turns with you all night long.”
That’s what he thought. While she’d been breaking Thumper’s dick, she’d managed to pilfer his pocket knife. She snapped it open and faced off against Slash, who had the audacity to laugh at her.
“And what you going to do with that thing, little girl?”
There was the sound of a gun cocking, but Scarlet didn’t dare take her eyes off Slash. It didn’t stop him from turning to look though.
“She’s going to distract you long enough for me to put a bullet in your ass.”
Viper! She chanced a glance in his direction before jerking her gaze back toward Slash, but the Red Devil wasn’t paying her any attention. Scarlet backed toward the bar until she felt the wood digging into her back. From the corner of her eye, she saw someone coming her way and turned with the knife brandished in front of her, but it was Switch.
“Easy there, girl. Let’s get you outside.”
She shook her head. “If Viper is going to kill Slash, I want to be here to see it. I need to see it.”
“All right, but I’m not leaving your side. Anyone comes after you, they’ll have to deal with me.”
She relaxed a little and smiled at him. “Thanks, Switch.”
Scarlet watched with rapt fascination as Viper faced off against Slash, both of them with weapons drawn. Four more brothers of the Ashton Grove M.C. piled into the room, subduing the rest of the Red Devils. Slash and Viper circled one another.
“Your boy is barely hanging on,” Switch said. “I thought he was going to shift when he got off his bike. I’m not sure who’s more pissed you were taken—Viper or his wolf.”
“I can shoot you and end this right now,” Viper told Slash. “
Or we can fight this out the old-fashioned way.”
Slash smirked. “You mean with our fists? That’s only fair if you keep that beast of yours locked up.”
“I’ve got control of my wolf,” Viper said.
Slash tossed his gun to the side and Viper handed his to Digger. Scarlet couldn’t take her eyes off Viper as his muscles flexed. He waited for Slash to make the first move, ducking the punch and catching Slash on the jaw with an upper-cut. Slash’s head snapped back and he stumbled back a step. Viper didn’t give him a chance to recover and went after him again, landing two blows to Slash’s ribs before kicking his legs out from under him.
The Red Devil went down and Viper landed on top of him, straddling his body. Punch after punch landed on Slash’s chest and face, his face a mess of blood and bruises. Slash was barely putting up a fight, but it didn’t stop Viper. She heard the crunch of bone and turned her face into Switch’s arm, not wanting to watch another moment.
There was a sickening wet sound, a bit of gurgling, then the room when silent. She felt the heat of Viper’s body as he walked over and stopped in front of her. She looked up into his eyes and saw the wolf lurking just below the surface. Blood spattered his chest and covered his hands. He reached past her and snagged a towel off the bar, cleaning himself off. She glanced past him at the carnage he’d left behind, and wished she’d never looked. The sight of Slash’s dead body sickened her, and yet part of her rejoiced in his destruction. He wouldn’t be able to hurt anyone ever again, and that was certainly cause for celebration.
He tossed the towel onto the bar and cradled her face in his hands, running a finger over the bruise she was sure had formed on her cheek. Viper ran his hands over the rest of her, as if he were checking for broken bones.
“Viper, I’m fine. He slapped me around a bit, but I kept away from him most of the time.”
“He didn’t rape you?”
“He was going to. When he demanded I take off my clothes, I refused. That’s when he knocked me to the floor, but I managed to get his knife out of his belt and defended myself. I’m really glad you came though. I don’t know that I could have held him off for long.”
Viper looked over at Switch. “Do whatever you want with the rest of the Red Devils. If you want to wipe them out completely, I have no problem with that and I doubt the Pres will either. I’m taking Scarlet home.”
Switch tipped his head toward the door. “Ask him yourself.”
Scarlet peered around Viper and saw Preacher walking through the door. As President of the Loup Garous, he was considered something of a bad ass, and if half of what she’d heard about him was true, he’d earned the title. But he’d always been nice to her, treating her gently. She knew the M.C. worried about her mental well-being after all she’d suffered at the hands of the Red Devils, but sometimes it was humorous that such big, imposing men could tiptoe around one little woman.
Preacher strolled up to them and slapped Viper on the back. “I see you got your girl back.”
“I was about to take her home, but I’d like to give her the good news that she never has to see another Red Devil in our territory again.”
“Our territory?” Preacher chuckled. “I think Gabriel Andrews might have something to say about that, but I know what you mean. I think we can make an example of the Red Devils so we don’t have to worry about another M.C. trying to move into the area. Get the message across that we don’t take any shit, especially from those who would abuse women.”
“How are you going to make an example of them without the pack getting involved? You know they only tolerate our presence in Ashton Grove. And with magick wielders in their pack, it wouldn’t exactly be a fair fight if we were to battle it out for the right to live here.” Viper pulled Scarlet closer. “I want to know that Scarlet is safe and has a place to live, that she can be in my home without worrying about someone abducting her. Think the pack will understand?”
“Why don’t you take Scarlet home and plan to meet with Gabriel in the morning? Explain the situation. Take Scarlet with you so he can see the Red Devils’ handiwork on her face. Might make him more sympathetic to our cause.”
Viper nodded. “I’ll see to it first thing.”
“Just don’t upset his mate. She’s expecting and the wolf is going to be overly protective of her. We want Autumn to be on our side, so that her mate will be on our side.” Preacher slapped Viper on the back again. “Get going. Report in after you speak to the alpha tomorrow. I need to know how much shit we’re going to catch over this.”
Viper wrapped an arm around Scarlet’s waist and led her outside to his waiting motorcycle. He cursed and stared at the bike a moment.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“No helmet. We’ll have to go slow.”
She smiled a little and had to admit that it warmed her from the inside out to know that he cared enough to want her safe, even while riding his steel horse. Scarlet waited for him to swing his leg over the machine, then she settled on the seat behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist.
For the first time since being won by Viper, she was glad to be with him. If he hadn’t come to her rescue, it was likely Slash would have ended up killing her, after torturing her for a while. She owed him her life, and by coming to her defense, he’d won her loyalty as well. She wouldn’t run, even if the opportunity presented itself. From now on, she’d wait and see what would happen with her handsome rescuer.
Chapter Three
Viper glared at the sky through his sunglasses and cursed the bright light. After getting Scarlet home, showered, and into bed, he’d stayed up pacing through the house. He’d checked on her countless times, had comforted her when she’d cried out in her sleep, but he’d never fallen into bed. Even though the Red Devils had been taken care of, his wolf hadn’t been convinced their woman was safe. And as much as he hated to admit the beast was right, after the way he’d gone after Slash, he had to admit that Scarlet meant something to him. He wasn’t ready to admit she was his mate though, that was going a bit too far, but she was definitely important to him.
Scarlet stood by his side and rang the bell for the second time. He gave her a smile, hoping to set her at ease. She’d been tense ever since they’d left the house. When the door opened and the rather imposing Gabriel Andrews glared out at them, Scarlet inched behind Viper. He supposed he couldn’t blame her; the alpha looked rather fearsome with his scowling countenance and scarred body.
“What do you want?” Gabriel asked, a growl in his voice.
“Preacher asked me to stop by and talk with you this morning. It’s about something that went down last night.”
“You mean the barbeque that was on the news this morning?” he asked.
Viper wasn’t sure what the hell his M.C. had done to the Red Devils, but a barbeque didn’t sound out of the realm of possibility. He shrugged, not having an answer for him.
Gabriel looked from him to Scarlet, who was still cowering behind him, then he pushed the door open. “You might as well come in and have this chat inside. Your old lady can have some coffee with my mate.”
“She’s not my old lady,” Viper said.
Gabriel’s eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared. “If you’ve brought one of those sluts here—“
Viper held up a hand. “She’s not one of the party girls. Scarlet is…different. By the laws we follow, I own her, but she’s not my mate or my old lady. She’s just…Scarlet.”
Gabriel leaned to the side, probably to get a better look at Scarlet, and the dark look that entered his eyes told Viper everything he needed to know about the alpha.
“Do you make it a habit of beating the women in your care?” Gabriel asked.
“The Red Devils did that to her. They were going to torture, rape, and possibly kill her. We did what we had to do.”
Gabriel nodded, then stepped back, allowing them entry into the house.
Autumn, the alpha’s pregnant mate came out of the kitchen, wiping her ha
nds on a towel. She gave Scarlet a warm smile and came forward to loop her arm around the smaller woman. Scarlet gave him a pleading look as she was dragged into the kitchen, but Viper just gave her a smile and then followed the alpha into the living room.
Gabriel motioned for him to have a seat and he claimed a spot on the sofa.
“I guess I should thank you for taking out the trash,” Gabriel said. “I know your brothers and you aren’t exactly law abiding citizens, but the fact you stepped forward to protect that woman tells me a lot about you. Are you sure you want to stay in the M.C.? You could always join the pack. Scarlet would be welcome as well.”
“I appreciate the offer, but I’m right where I’m supposed to be.”
“Your woman looks a little worn down. I would imagine it was a difficult night for her.”
“She’s tough and will pull through.”
Gabriel cocked an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t you rather give her up and allow her to have a normal life, than hang onto her and maybe have to go through the same thing all over again? How safe can she really be as long as she’s with you?”
Viper’s wolf brushed along his skin and peered out through his eyes. The beast didn’t like the idea of someone taking Scarlet away. If the alpha thought he was going to add her to his pack, he was sorely mistaken. Scarlet was Viper’s and she was going to stay Viper’s. At least, until he could figure out what to do with her.
“Or maybe there’s more going on than I know?” Gabriel asked. “Why haven’t you claimed her yet?”
“She’s not my mate.”
Gabriel smirked. “And how long have you been telling yourself that lie? Don’t get me wrong, even I wasn’t willing to admit Autumn was my mate when I first met her, but sometimes the beast inside knows more than the man does. You would be wise to listen to your wolf.”
“I don’t know that I’m ready to be a one-woman man.”
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