Ghoster

by KJ Dahlen

  It took him all of twelve minutes to collect his things. With three minutes to spare, they were on their way back to Saratoga Springs. They stopped by her apartment to collect her things which weren’t many then stopped at the courthouse where she grabbed her to go bag from the trunk. James pulled her car to a hiding place, so no one would notice it was still there.

  Then they drove to Troy. James didn’t want to come to this town but if he was going to keep Sydney with him, he had to leave Saratoga Springs. Troy was at the very edge of his range, so he could still use his equipment and he wasn’t sure he wanted to get in touch with Deke just yet.

  Deke and the Sin’s Bastards were trying to go straight and this job might just interfere with that but James was wholly committed to doing this. These men needed to go down and he couldn’t forget his mission. Only after Oden Connors and his boys were taken care of and he uncovered the source of Sydney’s fears, then hunt down whoever haunted her... then he would he stop.

  He found them a motel just outside of Troy.

  After they got settled into a motel room, Sydney went over to the bed and flopped down on the mattress.

  When James finished stowing away his gear, he laid down on the same bed as she was on and she stiffened.

  “What are you doing?” she screeched as she tried to get away from him. “I don’t even know your name!”

  He laughed softly in her ear as he wrapped his arms around her and wouldn’t allow her to separate herself from him. “Well, not many know it or even know I exist, but it is James. So now, you know it. I’m going to get a few hours of sleep and I need you to stay right where you are. I have a feeling if I let you go, you’ll be gone when I wake up. And right now, I don’t have time to track you down again.”

  “You should have just let me go,” she reminded him.

  “I can’t let you go,” he whispered.

  Sydney shivered slightly and snuggled down into her pillow. Moments later, she was sound asleep.

  James laid there waiting for her to fall asleep. He hated that she didn’t want to be with him but he couldn’t just let her disappear on him. He’d been searching for her all his life but never knew it. He knew he was older than she was but he also knew she was the one woman for him. She looked to be mid-twenties and he was close to forty, but he didn’t care. He had a feeling she was the only woman that would matter to him in the long run.

  He also knew he should call in his position and let the others know what was going on but she felt so good in his arms he couldn’t let her go. Instead, he closed his eyes and fell asleep breathing in her scent.

  Chapter Three

  A few hours later, James’s eyes snapped open and he knew something was wrong. He bolted up and looked around the room wildly. Then he glanced down at the bed and noticed Sydney wasn’t there with him. He looked toward the bathroom and noted the door was closed. He got up, went over to the door, and listened carefully.

  The shower was running and he had to smile. He pulled his clothing off and slipped through the door. The room was warm and misty and he could see her shadow as she stood under the hot spray of water. He slipped in behind her and when he reached around her and pulled her close to him—she screamed.

  He reached up, covered her mouth with his hand, and whispered in her ear, “Hush, it’s just me.”

  Sydney froze at his whispered words. “You scared the bejesus out of me.” Turning her head, she stared at him. Then she swallowed hard. He was naked and as she stared at his naked chest, her eyes widened. “What are you doing? You’re naked and I’m naked. This is not good.”

  James chuckled softly. “Well sweetness, I usually don’t shower with my clothes on. I thought we could share the water this morning.”

  Sydney closed her eyes as the water cascaded over them both. When his hands began to roam over her body she flushed. His hands cupped her more than ample breasts and she felt his fingers cupping their heaviness. He was touching her in places no other man had ever touched her. Oh, they had wanted to but she didn’t trust anyone to touch her without hurting her before.

  One of his hands dropped down to skim over her soft belly and she tried to fight him but James wouldn’t allow her to. He whispered in her ear, “Don’t be ashamed of your body, it’s a beautiful thing. You are my woman and I will not let you deny me this.”

  Sydney flushed as his hand reached down to her core. He groaned when he found her wet. Her lower lips were swollen in anticipation and he grew harder than he’d ever been before. His cock was long thick and at the moment, it was weeping with want for this woman. He ground it into her full ass and it was her turn to groan.

  “I want you, right here, right now.” He turned her to face the shower wall and placed her hands on the wall. He widened her legs and moved closer to her. “Do you want this?” he finally asked her.

  Sydney nodded as she couldn’t seem speak. Swallowing hard, she finally was able to speak, “I want this, but I’ve never done this before. I have trust issues and I’ve never allowed anyone this close to me.”

  James froze for a moment wondering if he heard her right. She was a virgin? Then he moved ever closer, crushing her against the wall. Her scent wrapped around him and now there was another scent mixed in, the sweet scent of her arousal.

  He wanted to be noble and back away but he just couldn’t. His desire for her was just too great. He slipped his cock between her legs and rubbed it up and down her slit. Her own juices coated him and he loved the feeling of her sweet, silky folds. “I know I don’t deserve this but I can’t stop. I want you that much.” Then he positioned himself and allowed himself to take what she offered. His cock slipped into her tight warm channel and he wanted to slam himself home but he took his time and inched his cock into her slowly. He controlled his body, it didn’t govern him but this time he was close to losing that iron clad control as he felt her wrap around him.

  “Forgive me,” he finally whispered and then pushed himself all the way into her. He felt her barrier give way and she stiffened but he reached around her body and found her clit. He held himself still until she bypassed her pain.

  He finally began to move again and she was with him all the way. When he would push himself in, she would push back against him heightening both their pleasures. Soon, he was ramming in and out of her and all she could do was hang on.

  Moaning and whimpering in pleasure, Sydney kept up with him then her entire body tightened she flew over the edge screaming his name and he roared as he began falling over the edge. Hot cum filled her as he pushed himself in deep.

  James groaned as he came inside her. He wasn’t expecting this but he also wasn’t sorry it happened. He also wasn’t worried about pregnancy, as he’d just claimed her. It might sound savage and it might even be that, but he knew deep down that this was right. He would be keeping her.

  He pulled out of her slowly then supporting her when her own legs wouldn’t hold her up. He reached over, shut off the cooling water and assisted her out of the tub. He dried her slowly, enjoying the toweling off process very much.

  When he looked at her while he dried her off, he could tell she was enjoying it as well. Her eyes were hooded but he could smell her arousal again. He knelt at her feet and leaned forward. His lips touched her skin and Sydney groaned as she felt his breath on her core.

  His lips licked her from front to back and she groaned. Pressing him closer, his lips and tongue licked and sucked on her. She pushed his head closer to her and he pushed a finger inside her.

  Sydney’s legs buckled and before she could fall, James scooped her up in his arms and carried her out to the nearest bed. Laying her down carefully, he covered her body with his and his cock found the place he wanted most.

  He couldn’t believe he was this hard again so soon and he pushed himself in deep. Sydney screamed, not in pain but in pleasure as he began slamming in and out of her again. James lost control and he couldn’t stop. Each stroke was harder and deeper than before and it didn’t take the
m long to reach the pinnacle of pleasure. This mating was quick but pleasurable nonetheless. As she clamped down on him, he let loose with a long low groan and emptied himself inside her sweet haven.

  James collapsed on top of her. He’d never come so hard in his life and never after the second time. She did something to him that had never happened before. Sex for him had been nothing more than a release before her. But he knew this wasn’t just sex, this was making love and he was a smart enough about life to know the difference.

  When he moved away and settled at her side Sydney didn’t move. “That was beautiful,” she whispered after a long moment of silence.

  “It was heaven pure and simple,” James agreed. Sighing deeply, he added, “But now we have to talk.”

  Sydney groaned. “I was afraid of that.”

  James reached over and cupping her chin, he brought her face around to his. “I need some answers.”

  Sydney closed her eyes and whispered. “Why? Why does my past have to interfere with this? And right now?”

  “Honey, your past doesn’t affect what I’m doing here and I won’t let it but we will revisit this. I have to know everything about you and that includes your past.”

  “What exactly are you here to do?” she wanted to know.

  “Before I can tell you that, I have to have a promise from you that you won’t run away. That you won’t tell anyone what my purpose here is and that you won’t interfere with my job here. Someone’s life could depend on that. I need to know that I can trust you and for me that’s a hard thing to ask. My line of work depends on trusting no one but me.” He paused then added, “Although there are two other men that I do trust not only with my life but theirs as well.”

  Sydney stared at him and wetting her lips she admitted, “There was only one person I ever trusted in my life. That was my mother. Her name was Mary Abigail. She was my rock in a very difficult time in my life. But she was there for me when no one else was.” She sat up and looked away from him as she told him her story, “My name is Sydney Cross, but that isn’t the name I was born under. Telling you this is hard because I’m sharing my whole story with you. You asked me to trust you, well in my mind to do that I have to trust that you won’t betray me too. This way, we both have something to lose if we betray each other.”

  James nodded and waited for her to go on.

  “My real name is Sydney Elisabeth Dell. My father is Flynn Dell and I have three brothers, older than me. Flynn Dell runs the underground in Glen’s Falls. They call themselves the Raiders but all they are, is a band of thugs and killers. They rob and steal whatever isn’t nailed down and they also run with the local MC up there.” She didn’t look at him as she hung her head and confessed, “I left there ten years ago in the middle of the night. My father finally beat my mother to death two years earlier and he was going to make me use my gift to get the information he needed to bring the MC under his thumb so to speak. I wanted nothing to do with that and I refused to help him. I hated that life and I knew he would eventually force me to help him. When I told him I wouldn’t do it, he turned his temper on me and that was the last straw as far as I was concerned. He beat me so bad I couldn’t move for three days. The third night I gathered a few things and I walked out.” She shrugged. “Well, maybe walked out is the wrong term to use but I left. I crawled away from him and the Raiders and they have been searching for me ever since.”

  “Wait a minute... back up, you said something about a gift?” James asked her. “What kind of gift?”

  She turned her head and stared at him sadly. “I have an eidetic memory. I literally remember everything I read. He wanted my brother Liam to sneak me into the MC to break into their safe and record in my head their secrets so he could it all them against them. When I wouldn’t do it, he told my brothers to teach me some respect. My brothers are all bullies just like he is and they beat me bad.”

  James felt the cold inside him fill his soul as she told her story. He sat up and gathered her in his arms. He felt her sobbing more than heard it. Het tears dripped down her face and splashed on his arms as she wept silently.

  He just laid his head on top of hers and held her for a moment. He wanted to keep her safe from harm but he couldn’t chase her deep seated fears away so quickly. That would come with time. But he would free her from her family’s hold. That he could do.

  “Are they still looking for you?” he asked quietly.

  Sydney nodded. “Yes, they are and if they catch me they will hurt me again. You see... my father vowed that I would pay when he’d watched his youngest son being led off to prison because of what I did when I left.”

  “What did you do?” He felt the coldness growing in his soul.

  “I made a phone call and got my youngest brother Nash sent to jail for a year,” she confessed. “I called the cops on family and for that my father will never forgive me. They were able to hide most of what they were doing but I told the cops where the evidence was from the last heist and they grabbed that when they grabbed Nash. He only served nine months but now, he has a record.”

  James lifted her chin to look at him. Looking deep into her eyes, he told her, “Sweetness, I work with some very powerful men. They can and will protect you because you belong to me now.” He hesitated and then he laid his mission out for her, “One of the men I work with is interested in shutting down the Connors family. You see they are looking for his wife in regards to Oden’s oldest son’s death almost thirteen years ago. Jack was married to Sarah’s mother Ellen at the time and she beat him to death with a baseball bat when he was going to rape her then fourteen year old daughter, Sarah. The two of them had to run and hide but the Connors family has been looking for them the whole time. From what I heard last night, they plan to up their game and put a bounty out for them. They want to splash their names all over the place and publicly make them fall guys for justice. They plan to use this as a way for Jeremy to get a foot in the door to a political career headed for the Governor’s chair.”

  Sydney gasped. “Oh, my god... that’s horrible.”

  “It is.” Sighing, he dropped his head. “That was why I was there last night, at the courthouse I mean. I was setting listening devices up to catch whatever we could use against them.”

  She stared at him unblinking seeming to take it all in.

  “We want to bring the Connors family down and shred them so they can’t come back and hurt Sarah or her mother. Her mother is finally out of their reach but Sarah isn’t. She’s here in New York and she’s very much in love with Theo. And believe me when I say Theo is not a man you want to cross and he’ll do anything to keep her safe. The Connors are going down and it won’t be pretty.”

  Tears fell down her face. “I’m afraid,” she finally confessed. “Growing up the way I did, with a bastard for a father and three older brothers following in his footsteps was tough. My mom protected me the best he would let her but when she was gone, so was that protection. The hardest thing I ever did was make that phone call and leaving them behind me. I’ve lived with some kind of fear every day of my life. I don’t know any other way to feel.”

  “If you’ll let us... my friends and I will rid the world of people like your father and brothers. They will go down,” James vowed.

  She nodded. “But sometimes when you cut off the head of the snake he can grow another one, this one meaner and even more deadly than before.”

  “Then we keep cutting his head off until the snake finally dies like he’s damn well supposed to.” He laid his forehead against hers. “I’m in this for the long run not just the short term.”

  She looked into his eyes close up. “Are you sure? I mean men usually—”

  James placed his fingers on her lips. “I’m not most men. I want you with me. I know that eventually, you’ll see that we do belong together. I will keep you safe, you hear me? I will.”

  For a long moment, Sydney gazed into his eyes. “Wow, someone there for me? I could get used to that.”


  “I hope so because I’m never letting you go. I’m keeping you.”

  She reached up and held her fingers over his lips now. “Don’t make promises. They can be broken.”

  “It is not a promise I intend to walk away from.” James’s eyes narrowed. “You gave me a gift a woman can only give once in her lifetime, now you belong to me and I’m not letting you go.”

  She stared at him for a moment. “You’re right.”

  He was puzzled for a few seconds at this statement.

  “You aren’t the usual man. I never knew someone like you existed.” Then she nodded. “Ok...I’m good with this. I hope it’s real. I need it to be. I have never trusted a soul in the world before. Just my mom.”

  James kissed her temple and moved away. “I’m good for it. You will see.” He gave her a wink.

  She giggled. “Yeah, you’re good all right.”

  He grinned then smoothed her hair gently. “God, you have such beautiful hair, Sydney.”

  “Yeah, my best feature. Maybe the only good one.”

  James lowered his hands and grabbed her ass cheeks with both hands. “Nope this...” He caressed her cheeks. “Is one of many you have.”

  Her face went pink. “Come on. I’m fa—”

  He smothered her words and kissed her hard. Then bit at her lip gently as he moved his mouth from hers. “You will never say that word again. God, woman, you are heavenly made. I get hard just looking at you.”

  Her eyes went wide.

  He nodded slowly. “Hard, like right now.”

  She glanced down and then smiled. Then more pink crept up her cheeks.

  James laughed and patted her sweet butt again. “Ok, I have to make a phone call to check in with my partners and let them know what the situation around here is. I also have to tell them I’m no longer in Glens Falls.”

  Sydney watched him quietly as he made his phone call. Her insides were all knotted up, not because of what she told him that released a certain amount of stress in her. She really needed to let someone know about her family. No that wasn’t the reason her belly was churning. The reason for the tension was the fact she knew something that would help James and his friends bring down the Connors family. The night she found the safe open she’d read his tally book and with her memory being what it was, she knew every page in that book. Every name and the amounts Oden paid them...all of what she’d read was still in her head. Now she didn’t know if she should share it or not.