“I would bet my life your record is as clean as the white panties you’re wearing now,” he said, sticking a key into the door and then pushing inside.
I followed him inside. “Wait a minute. How do you know my panties are white?” I demanded. He might have had his hands under my dress in the restaurant, but he didn’t see them, so why would he assume they were white?
He came up beside me and lifted the hem of my skirt, revealing the white cotton boy shorts that I was wearing. “Like I said, white panties.”
“I do own other color underwear, you know. It just happens that, every time you see them, it’s because I’m wearing a dress and want full coverage.”
“Why don’t you just go without any?”
I gasped. “I couldn’t. I wouldn’t want to pull a Paris Hilton.”
“A who?” he asked, and I realized that I wasn’t in Kansas anymore. Paris Hilton might not have been relevant in the news as much as she was a decade ago, but who didn’t know who she was?
“The socialite? The heir to the hotel chain? How do you not know who she is?”
He shook his head, his eyes unamused. “And she’s relevant because…?”
“Well she’s not. But she’s famous for not wearing underwear and getting her bits plastered across the tabloids every time she got out of a car.”
“Her bits?” Cash laughed. “Did you really just call her pussy, her bits?”
“Not all of us are as vulgar as you are.”
“You love it and you know it,” he said, grabbing my ass and pulling me against him. “That’s why you can’t resist me, admit it.” It was one of the reasons. I loved how he said what he was thinking, and how he didn’t care what others thought. But, I would resist the urge currently crashing through me because there was a game still at stake, and I wasn’t about to give up so easily.
“That’s where you’re wrong.” I pushed off of him, and spun toward the row of pictures hanging on the wall. They were slightly yellowed with discolorations and sun faded, making it obvious they were older photos.
The wood frames had a layer of dust on them, and it was obvious he didn’t like to clean. “Who is this?” I asked, pointing to a picture of a young man in military garb. From my guess, it was at least a few decades old. There was a pin pushed into the wood and hanging from it a purple ribbon with two bordering white stripes and a medal of gold surrounding a purple heart and a silhouette.
“My old man,” Cash said, swiping my hair off my back, and pressing kisses to my neck.
“What war was he in?” I asked, recognizing the medal as the Purple Heart, the same my grandfather had from fighting and getting wounded in the Korean War.
“Vietnam,” he said against my skin, swiping his tongue across my earlobe and causing sparks to shoot through my body.
“He’s handsome,” I said, noticing Cash had a lot of his features, from the light green eyes to the strong lines of his jaw.
“Ladies loved him.” Cash spun me toward him, pressing my back against the wall, and pushing his hardness into my center.
“Loved? Did he?” I didn’t finish the sentence mostly because I didn’t know how to ask without being too blunt, but also because the way he nipped at my neck made any words disappear. Still, he was telling me things and I wanted to know more. “When?” I asked, because he didn’t need to answer the other question.
“Two years ago,” Cash said, dragging his tongue down my neck and cupping my breast.
“How?” I muttered, trying to keep my focus and not let the path of fiery kisses derail me.
He molded my breast between his hand; only a few pieces of material keeping his bare touch away. “It’s not important,” he growled hot against my ear.
“Cancer?” I guessed, considering if he was eighteen in the Vietnam War as he looked in his picture he’d have to be in his sixties… way too young to die by today’s standards.
“No,” he said harshly, and shoved his knee in between my legs parting them. He reached under my dress, and grabbed my ass, digging his fingers deep into the soft flesh. Pain mixed with pleasure, and a moan rose in my throat until it poured from my lips.
His mouth ran down my shoulder and I grabbed his face, pulling him back to me. I captured his lips with mine, and plunged my tongue into his mouth, relishing in his taste. I slid my tongue against his, absorbing every mind numbing thrust.
He tore my hands from his face, and pinned them up against the wall. “I think you’re losing,” I managed. “Your restraint is waning.”
“Fuck restraint,” he grumbled before smashing his mouth back to mine. Our lips moved as one, our tongues syncing as we slid back and forth against each other. My body quivered with need, but I wouldn’t lose. Besides, I wasn’t done asking questions.
I forced my lips away from his, and took in quick gasps of air, trying to catch my breath. “Heart attack?” I asked.
He smacked his hand on the wall, shaking the pictures. “No!” He ripped the top of my dress down, exposing the white lace of my bra. He dipped his head, licking a path across the round mound before pushing the lace away, and taking my nipple between his teeth.
My body arched at the delicious assault, and I knotted my fingers in his long hair. My eyes fluttered shut, and I absorbed every luscious swipe of his tongue.
His mouth closed over my nipple, and he moved up my body. My panties were soaking wet with want, and it was killing me that he was keeping his attention elsewhere. It dawned on me then that he wasn’t losing. He was winning. He was pushing me to the point where I was so consumed with desire that I would be begging for him to touch me the way I so desperately wanted him to.
I took a deep breath, trying to stay strong. I focused my energy back on talking. “If it wasn’t cancer, or a heart attack, what was it?” I asked, and his mouth stilled. I laced my fingers into his dirty blond strands, and brought his face to mine.
“Drop it,” he spat.
A storm brewed in his light green eyes, causing them to darken. Pain etched at the corners, and his jaw ticked.
“Tell me,” I pleaded, running my fingers up his neck.
“Damn it, Aubree!” he yelled, and hit his hand against the wall again, this time causing a picture to fall to the floor. I didn’t know what I was more shocked at: the fact that he remembered my real name or the anger pouring out of him in waves.
He buried his face in his hands as he visibly shook with rage. He walked away from me, and sat down on the arm of the sofa. I didn’t know what to do, or what to say, but I couldn’t just stand there. I walked over to him, and rested a hand on his shoulder.
“I’m sorry. I just want to know,” I said.
He shot up then, his face red with fury. “You just want to know!” he yelled and moved toward me. I backed away until I was trapped between him and the wall. His eyes were wild, and the pain from moments ago was amplified mixed with a disturbing darkness. “Do you want to know that my old man was shot and killed by a rival club? That I was there, and I wasn’t able to protect him? That he died in my arms, and there was nothing I could fucking do about it? Do you? Is that what you want to know?!” He rammed his hand into the wall again. “Do you?”
Fear passed through me, but was only momentary as it was replaced with heartbreak. He wasn’t going to hurt me. It was the complete opposite, actually. He was the one who was hurt. This big burly tattooed man, with a take no shit attitude, was broken. I didn’t know in how many pieces, but I wanted to. More than that, I wanted to help him in some way. I just wasn’t sure how to do that. Cash was an enigma. He lived in a world I really knew nothing about. Regardless, I still felt the pain of his loss and needed to do something.
I reached out to him, wanting to comfort him, to try and take the pain away, but he swatted at my hand. “Don’t fucking touch me,” he seethed.
I should have walked away and never looked back. Found the strength to leave him behind, but, instead, I decided it was best for me stay. I dropped to my knees in front of him
, and took his hands in mine.
He snatched his hands out of my grip, but I didn’t let it deter me. He was trying to push me away, and I wasn’t going to let him. So, I reached out again, taking his hands back in mine.
He looked at me like I was crazy, and maybe I was, but it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he knew I wasn’t going anywhere. I was exactly where I needed to be. “You’re going to have to try a lot harder than that if you want to get rid of me,” I said, looking up into his eyes.
He smirked and shook his head. “Even if you left, you’d still be here, he said, smacking his hand against his head. “You’re in my fucking head. No matter what I do, I can’t stop thinking about you. It’s making me fucking crazy. I’m losing my edge and that is dangerous in my world.”
“Good, because I can’t stop thinking about you either,” I said, a slight smile tugging at the edges of my mouth.
His lip curled, and he shoved my hands at me. “Good? Good! It’s not fucking good. I told you. I don’t do monogamy, but, ever since you walked into that bar, you’ve knocked me on my fucking ass. So, no, this isn’t fucking good. This is a goddamned nightmare.”
“Why? Because you might have to sleep with only one girl? God forbid!” I exclaimed.
“You were only supposed to be a one night thing.”
“What do you want from me? To apologize for it? Because I won’t. I will not stand here and tell you I’m sorry that I want to get to know you, or that I enjoy being with you. That you are everything my parents are against, and I don’t care. Because the only thing I care about is that I want you.”
“Then you’re a fucking idiot.” He shot up and stormed away, running a hand through his hair. He came to a stop, his back to me.
Heartbreak got pushed aside by the anger surging through me. I stood up, and walked over to him until I was only a few feet away. “So maybe I am. Maybe I’m a fucking idiot, but at least I’m not afraid to admit to what I want!” I yelled, letting the anger pour out.
He gripped his hair, tugging at the roots. He spun around, his hands latching on to the sides of my arms. “Don’t you fucking get it? My life is too goddamned dangerous for you.”
I shook my head, refusing to accept that. “I don’t care.”
His grip on me tightened, but then he shoved me away from him. “Goddamn it.” He took a deep breath, and the darkened fury that had engulfed him was slowly slipping away. “You should care. My dad was the toughest son of a bitch I had ever known, and all it took was one bullet to end that.” He held his finger up. “One.” He shoved his hands in his jean pockets. “Guns and violence are a part of me. If you want me, then you want that life, too. There are no country clubs and stylists in my world.”
“Good because I’m sick of that life.”
A rush of air pushed through his lips. “You think you are, but, once you’re done slumming, you’ll be dying to go back to it. And I’ll just be an embarrassing memory that you keep hidden. That you’ll do everything in your power to forget.”
‘That’s not true!” I yelled, grabbing his arm and yanking him to me.
He ripped out of my grip. “Yes, it is! I don’t know what the fuck you expect from me, but, whatever it is, you’re not going to get it. So, it’s best if you just leave.” He walked away from me, and the tears I had been fighting finally pushed their way to the surface. They spilled down my cheeks, and I hated that he made me cry. That I was weak enough to let him. Stupid enough to think a guy like him would ever want to be with a girl like me.
I was too good. Too pure. The most dangerous thing I had ever done in my life was getting on the back of his motorcycle. When I was around him, I stopped over-thinking everything. Stopped trying to be someone I wasn’t. He might not have wanted me, and it broke me to a thousand tiny shards, but at least now I knew there was more out there in the world. That my life wasn’t confined to country clubs and stylists and the likes of William.
I found him in the kitchen, guzzling a bottle of beer. Without thinking, I went up behind him and wrapped my arms around him, resting my head on his back. “I’ll never forget you,” I said as I relished in his warmth, and committing his scent to memory, so I could bring it back and savor it down the road.
I let go, knowing this was the end, and walked away, refusing to look back. Fresh tears fell from my lids as I accepted the loss of something I felt could have been great.
I got to the doorway when his hand clamped down on mine, and yanked me back to him. His other hand came to my face, holding me as his thumb brushed away my tears.
“Don’t go Sunshine,” he pleaded. “I need you right now,” he whispered and crushed his lips to mine. All the emotions that were swirling inside of me combusted and I poured them into the kiss. He reached for the hem of my dress and pulled it up. “Lift your arms,” he commanded. “I need this off of you now!” he barked as he gruffly tugged it over my head and threw it to the floor in a heap.
Wanting to feel his skin against mine, I hooked my fingers into the hem of his shirt, and yanked it over his head. His hand came back to my face as he guided us down the hall. I raked my fingers up and down his abs, absorbing his heat and feeling every hard ridge.
He pushed the bedroom door open, his lips on mine and his hands on my face. His fingers ran down my sides, and cupped my ass, lifting me into his arms. He carried me across the room, and placed me on his bed. I sunk into his soft comforter as he kicked his pants off and got in the bed on top of me.
“You’re so fucking beautiful, Sunshine. I need to be inside of you.”
“I need you inside of me,” I breathed as he thrust deep into my wetness. I closed my eyes at the delicious intrusion when a darkness fell over us. I blinked open my eyes to Cash, and watched his eyes dim as a look of pure evil crossed his face. My confusion was quickly replaced with sheer terror, as I saw the gun pointed at his head. The silver barrel glistened in the dark room, and every horrible thought I could imagine raced through my mind.
“Don’t fucking try anything, or I blow both your brains out!” someone yelled from behind us.
Fear wracked my body, causing me to shake uncontrollably. The terror consumed me, and the scream that was inside me desperately tried to claw its way out, but couldn’t find its way. I needed to keep my cool, or neither one of us was going to get out of this alive. I was not ready to die. I just started figuring my life out, and there was no way in hell I was going to sit here and let this guy kill me.
But, what other choice did I have?
Cash
Two things went through my mind. The first: Kade should have killed this fucking bastard when he had the chance. The second: If he laid a fucking hand on my Sunshine, I would kill him and I’d guarantee it would be a slow torturous death.
The pure horror in Aubree’s eyes ripped at my insides. This was the exact thing I had warned her about. If I would have just let her fucking walk away, she wouldn’t be here right now. She’d be on her way back to the life she was meant for, and this would be my problem. And mine alone. But, now, it was bigger than that.
I needed a plan. It didn’t matter what went down as long as, in the end, Aubree was safe. Like a fucking moron, I left my gun on the kitchen counter, which left me at a disadvantage. I had another stashed under my bed if I could just get it without this prick seeing me.
“Get up!” Anthony demanded, and I slid out of Aubree, seeing the humiliation and fear streak her face.
“I’m sorry,” I mouthed as I got to my feet.
Aubree grabbed the blanket, and brought it up around her, hugging it to her naked body. She pushed up against my headboard, and I caught her eye and mouthed, “Trust me.” I didn’t have a plan yet, and really had no fucking clue how I was going to get us out of this, but it was all I could offer her. No matter what happened, I would keep her safe.
I held my hands up and turned around. “What the fuck do you want?” I demanded.
“To chat. I’ve been waiting in here for fucking ever.�
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“My apologies for keeping you waiting,” I spat, trying not to lunge at the fucking bastard. I knew I could take him, but he was the one with the gun right now, and I was butt ass naked. This bastard was fucking dead, but first I needed to get Aubree out. “Now, why don’t you let the girl go? She has nothing to do with any of this.”
“I could,” he said. “But, after listening to your little fight out there, I’m thinking she’s worth more to me in here.”
Anger surged through my veins, and I flexed my fingers, trying to calm the rage. I needed to keep a clear head and, if I let emotions control a single move, we could both wind up dead.
“You want to talk, then talk,” I growled, keeping my eye on his gun, waiting to make my move.
“I’m here on business.”
“I didn’t think you were here for fucking dinner,” I muttered. “Now, get to the point.”
“You and your boys need to stop running goods, or you’ll start piling up on the side of the road like the Montamos pussies.” He had told me and Kade that he was the low man on the totem pole, but I was beginning to think that he was full of shit. Low levels didn’t come to deliver messages. “There’s a new Queen in town, and she’s taking over.”
I looked him straight into his dark eyes. “That’s never going to fucking happen. We’ve controlled this area for thirty fucking years, and we’re not going to let some immigrant come in here and rip that out from under us. Fuck you!” I yelled, spitting venom with my eyes.
He lifted his hand and pistol whipped me across the face, causing Aubree to gasp. The taste of blood filled my mouth, and I wiped the little bit that was spilling down my lip. He had to do better than that if he wanted to scare me.
“I don’t want to have to kill you,” he said, and the amusement in his voice pissed me off royally.
“What I find funny is that you break into my house, and tell me what I’m going to do in my town.”
Warrant (Righteous Outlaws #1) Page 8