by Eve R. Hart
I looked over at Crow and he gave me a knowing nod. Then we all headed back out the way we came. Leading the pack, I checked the main road before pulling out. I didn’t see anything that seemed suspicious, but I still reached back and felt for the gun in the waist of my pants. I had checked it several times before leaving the motel room, so I knew it was good to go. I pulled out, determined to take the straightest route to the highway.
As I pulled onto the main road, four shots rang out in succession. I ducked, and my bike wavered a little. I regained control and saw Bocca’s bike go down in my mirror. His body rolled a few times and then went limp as his bike continued to skid away from him. The sound of metal scraping against pavement almost overshadowed my loud heartbeat.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Reagan
The bar was pretty quiet. By eleven it was only Brand and me. Nate said he was going to be back tonight, but I still hadn’t seen him. I was hoping he would stop by at least for a few minutes. But, to my disappointment, he didn’t. The night went by so slow and quiet. The hours seemed to drag out longer than they should have.
The first few hours, Brand tried to keep it light. He chatted as he nursed his beer. He even convinced me to play a few games of pool with him. Seeing as there were no customers and nothing to stock or clean, I complied. He beat me both times, but just barely. Or that would be how I would tell it if anyone asked.
Then the night took a weird turn. But I wasn’t sure why. Brand took a few phone calls outside and after that, his demeanor was a complete turnaround. He didn’t seem to want to talk. He got another beer and picked at the label with worry etched on his face. I wanted to ask him what was wrong, but I knew better. I wasn’t part of the club and I sure as hell wasn’t sanctioned to any information regarding what was going on. All I knew was that some of the guys had gone on a ride. That’s all. A ride.
In my mind, I pictured them all cruising down the highway just for the hell of it. But I was a smart girl. I knew that wasn’t what was going on. Deep down I knew it was something dangerous, even if Nate had assured me it wasn’t.
As I sat in my car after I closed down the bar, the panic started to grip me tightly. What if something happened to Nate? What if he hadn’t stopped by because he was hurt? Or dead? The air became thick and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I looked over and saw Brand sitting on his bike, watching me, waiting for me to drive off before he headed on his way. I nodded and started my car with a shaky hand. The last thing I wanted to do was go home, but I didn’t know where else to go. So I ended up driving around for an hour. Deciding that I wasn’t going to sleep anytime soon, I drove to the diner along the highway. I knew it was going to be the only thing open at that time of night within twenty minutes outside of town. I wasn’t feeling adventurous enough to drive all the way to the city.
The place was pretty empty. Only a handful of patrons were scattered about. I sat down in the booth in the far corner and when the elderly waitress approached me, I ordered a coffee. I don’t know how long I zoned out, watching the black liquid ripple every time someone walked by. The steam dissipated and the cup became cold in my hands. Finally, I grabbed a bill out of my purse and tossed it on the table. I didn’t even bother seeing how much I’d left. I knew there was nothing smaller than a ten in there and figured that should be good enough. My mind was numb as I made my way back to my car and then back home. The whole ride I kept telling myself that Nate was fine; that they all were fine. By the time I turned onto my street, I felt like I was starting to believe it.
It was well after two in the morning. Everything was quiet. The downstairs light was still on in Nan’s place, just waiting for me to get home. I glanced over at Nate’s house and found it still dark and lifeless. His truck was still in the same spot it was in yesterday. His bike was still nowhere to be seen. I sighed and dragged myself out of the car.
Something caught my eye. I squinted my eyes in the direction of his front porch. I could hardly make out the faint outline of his dark figure. With tentative steps, I made my way over to him. He was sitting on the steps, hunched over, beer bottle dangling from one hand. He either didn’t hear me or didn’t want to acknowledge the fact that I was there because he didn’t move. Even when I was three feet away from him. There was a six pack of beer sitting beside him, and I noticed that only two had been open, including the one in his hand. I knew he wasn’t too drunk to know I was there.
“Nate?” I called out in a soft tone. After a sad, deep sigh he lifted his face to look at me. Even in the glowing light of the night, I could tell something was wrong. His face looked more like a lost, defeated little boy than the hard man I knew.
I moved to him, taking the four stairs with hesitant feet until I stood on the one his feet were on. His eyes tracked me the whole time. I had no idea what I was doing. I felt a pull to him, even stronger than before. I wanted to wrap him up in my arms and bring back the strong man I was used to. His head tilted up, looking into my eyes.
Something had happened on their ride. He didn’t need to tell me, I could see it. But he was alive. I could breathe a little easier.
His head crashed into my stomach as his arms wrapped around my waist. I ran my fingers through his hair before cradling the back of his head, holding him to me with a firmness we both needed. My shirt rode up and his day-old scruff rubbed against the exposed sensitive skin on my hip. The air shifted around us and I felt it all the way through to my bones. He clung to me like I was the last life raft. And I held him like I would never let him drown.
Without warning, he urgently pulled me down to straddle his lap. The bottle dropped from his fingers, causing a bang and a few thumps as it hit the stairs and rolled down. The noise echoed through the quiet night. He fisted my shirt as he buried his face in the crook of my neck. We stayed there, wrapped in each other, for what seemed like forever. His scent filled my nose and breathed it in deeply. I shifted my palm and rubbed my thumb back and forth along the stubble on his jawline.
“Fuck,” he whispered into my neck, his breath tickled me and sent a fire through my veins. Then I felt his lips, soft and sweet, kissing up my neck to that spot that made me shiver right behind my ear. I was putty in his hands, and I was glad to be. I would have given anything, any part of me, to help make this man whole again. And that was the moment I knew I was in love with him. I felt it in every part of me.
He pulled me in closer, his fingers biting into my back, until there the air between our bodies was snuffed out. My back arched into him as he kissed my shoulder. The air blowing over the wet line from his mouth leading up to the base of my throat made my skin prickle. My breath hitched and my head lolled back as he made his way up. The roughness of his stubble made me even more aroused. A whisper of a kiss graced the underside of my chin. I tilted my head back down to look at him. There was a brief pause like he was waiting for me to tell him it was okay. Running my fingers through his hair, I pulled him into me. I kissed him delicately, bouncing slowly over his soft, full lips. I parted and his tongue slipped in, searching for mine. I moaned into his mouth as he deepened the kiss.
Everything about that moment felt right. I was too caught up to over analyze it. My body was too on fire to think about what it would all mean tomorrow. My head was too dizzy to imagine how badly it all could end. Instead, I let go and just felt for that moment. However long it lasted.
His hands slid into my jeans and with a low growl, he grabbed my ass. With a firm, jerk he pulled me in until I felt the hardness of his erection against my core.
“I need you,” he whispered into my ear, his voice deep and soft at the same time. It was a plea, not a demand. His desperation and sadness ran through to my soul. Warmth flowed through me at his choice of words. I tried to shake off the thoughts of what it meant.
“Take me,” I insisted, looking into his eyes.
He stood, his hold still firm on my butt. My legs and arms instinctively wrapped around him as he carried me inside and up the stairs. He kicked a door open and I guessed
it was his room. I didn’t have a second to look around before he lightly laid me down on a huge bed. He lifted my shirt and sat up so he could pull it free. His fingers danced along my skin as he unclasped my bra and slid the straps down my shoulder. My eyes never left him as he knelt down and removed my shoes. The heat of his hands left a trail on my skin even through the thickness of my jeans. Next, he slipped the button free and pulled the zipper down. I could feel every tooth of the zipper as it was set free. He pulled my jeans and off almost painfully slow. His lips like feathers on the inside of my thigh as he made his way to my core.
Hooking a finger on the inside of my panties, his knuckle grazed my wetness. My back arched and my eyes closed. I needed him to touch me. I needed to feel him.
Before I could breathe again, my panties were off and his tongue was swirling my clit. I became a moaning, writhing mess as his finger slipped inside me. I rocked against his face without shame until my body couldn’t take it anymore. One hand fisted the sheets as the other grabbed his hair.
“Oh, Nate, fuck!” I moaned out as my body shook around him, coming like I had never come before. He kissed my mound one last time and I swear I felt him smirking.
He kissed up my stomach, leaving a wet trail of my satisfaction. My head was still a dizzy mess. His lips met mine as he settled between my legs. Tasting myself on him only aroused me more.
“You’re still dressed,” I said, once I was able to speak again. He chuckled against my neck.
“Because,” he said kissing my neck, “I wasn’t prepared for this.” Another kiss. What the hell did that mean? He must have felt my confusion because he continued without me asking. “I don’t have any condoms. Wallet is empty and I don’t keep any here.”
“You don’t keep condoms in your home?” I was confused. Also, not really wanting to have that conversation right at that moment. I just wanted him; inside me, deep and throbbing, until I was seeing stars again.
“I don’t… I don’t bring anyone here,” he said in a tone I couldn’t quite decipher. My head snapped to look at him, and I knew he could see the shocked expression on my face. It was hard not to feel a little bit special in that moment.
“Like ever or just not lately?” I had to know.
“Ever.” And the look in his eyes told me so. He was letting down his guard and I was the lucky girl who got to step inside. My hands made their way down his body until I felt my fingers graze the buttons of his jeans. I slipped the first few out of their holes and started to push his pants down. “Are you sure?” He was searching my face, reading behind my eyes to the truth.
“I have an IUD. I’m trusting you don’t have anything to give me other than a mind-blowing orgasm. Now, fuck me. Please.” I practically growled the last word. In a matter of seconds, his pants and shirt were gone and he was standing in front of me in all his naked glory.
As much as I wanted to run my fingers over every inch of him, I couldn’t wait any longer. He scooted me up on the bed so that my legs weren’t dangling off the edge anymore. His fingers laced in with mine as he stretched my hands over my head. I gasped as his cock pushed into me, slowly filling me like I’d never been before.
“Fuck, you feel so good,” he said in a heavy breath as he pushed into me to the hilt. He paused, letting my body adjust to him.
He started off slow, rocking in and out of me the entire length of him. As amazing as it felt, I needed more. I moved my hips faster and soon he was fucking me hard and fast. The sounds of skin slapping together filled the room around us. Our limbs and tongues tangled. Our skin was slick with sweat. I was standing on the edge, not wanting to go over, not wanting it to end.
“Come with me,” he whispered in my ear as if he could sense my hesitation. I felt him throb inside of me. My eyes started to close and my back arched off of the bed. “Look at me,” he demanded.
My eyes shot opened and locked onto his. That was it. That was my undoing. The world around me faded away as I shattered into a million pieces. I felt the blood rushing through my veins. I heard the beads of sweat trail down my body. Everything was alive in that moment. And then he plunged into me deeper. Then he stilled, sending another wave of pleasure through my body as he emptied inside of me.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Loch
She was gone. Her scent clinging to my sheets was the only thing keeping my mind from telling me it was all a dream. I woke disappointed but somehow deep down I knew she wouldn’t be there. I don’t know why. I had a feeling even after last night we were going to continue to keep each other at arm’s length. The fact that she wasn’t there only reassured that feeling.
I could still taste her on my lips. I could still feel her soft, delicate skin on my fingers. Her moans still echoed in my ears. It drove me crazy. I didn’t know what to do with the empty feeling I had. She came in and turned my fucking world upside down. And yet, I wasn’t completely convinced it wasn’t a dream.
After the most amazing sex of my life, I’d tucked her limp body under the covers. She curled up into me and I was pretty sure she was still too drunk off of her last orgasm to even realize what she was doing. But I didn’t complain. Hell, I welcomed it. I pulled her into my arms and held her tightly. She fell asleep that way. I lay there another hour or so wanting to hold onto the feeling of her there before sleep finally took me under.
I let myself stay lost in those thoughts for a long while. I knew as soon as I got out of bed the reality of everything that had happened would crash back down on me. My phone started ringing, keeping me from putting it off any longer.
“Yeah,” I answered in a gruff tone. I knew it was Cal calling, and I knew why.
“Get here. I’m callin’ church.” He sounded as tired and angry as I felt.
“On my way.” I dropped the call as I rolled out of bed and threw some clothes on.
Ten minutes later, I was pulling up to the clubhouse. The gates were closed, something we hadn’t felt the need to do in a long time. One of the prospects, Dane, was waiting there and pushed it open for me as I rode up. By then everyone had to have known what happened on the run. Cal met me outside and we walked around the back together.
“What in the fuck is goin’ on?” he barked as we stared at the back of the van. There were two bullet holes in the top right corner of the back door. It was almost like this was a warning. The shots weren’t meant to do any harm to the driver or merchandise. I looked over at Cal. We had been around each other long enough to pretty much read the other’s mind. He saw the same things I saw.
“The Dogs seemed spooked, but they didn’t go into detail. We need to talk to them,” I said, scratching the back of my neck. “How is Bocca?”
Bocca had been shot. But much like the van, there wasn’t any real damage. The shooter was no armature, that was for sure. Again, it felt like some sort of warning. Bocca had taken two of the four shots fired. The poor guy wouldn’t be able to sit for a while and the one that hit his arm was through and through. Things would hurt like hell for a week or so, but he would be fine.
My stomach clenched tight. Being in the dark about things was never good, and I felt like there were too many things around me in the unknown. First, the shit that is going on with Reagan, and now the club.
“He’s propped up on the couch, loopy on buncha pain meds. The girls are takin’ real good care of him.” He let out a short laugh. “Let’s get in there and get this shit started.” I nodded, taking one last look at the van before turning and heading inside.
Everyone sat around the table. The air was thick and the vibe was antsy. Cal got started right away. He threw out the notion of lockdown. It had been years since we last had one. Things usually ran like a well-oiled machine for us. In the end, the vote was to hold off for now. There didn’t seem to be any danger close to home. We all would be on alert and I was sure most of us would choose to stay closer to the clubhouse when not working. I told my side of everything and so did Crow and Stone. Axe gave a shake of the head not having anythin
g new to add to the stories. None of us saw a damn thing.
After Bocca went down on the run, I waved everyone off and stayed behind. We needed to get the merchandise out of there. Keeping it safe and away if the cops were to somehow show up was the number one goal. I dropped off of my bike and waited. No more shots rang out. When I finally stood, there was an odd calmness in the air. Nothing was around. I ran over to Bocca, who was groaning on the ground. After rushing him to the hospital, I called Cal and let him know what was going on. Cal handled everything else. In less than five hours he showed up at the hospital with Tank and two prospects. He threw me a change of clothes and told me to go home.
“Went to the Dogs house before I left town,” Cal glanced at me and I wondered why this was the first time I’d heard about it. “Place was empty and locked up tight. Looks like they cleared out in a hurry.” He paused, eyeing each one of us.
Shit. Something was going on. I felt like I was on the edge of figuring it out. But everything was hazy like I just couldn’t quite piece everything together.
“Do we think they were the ones who did this?” Stone piped up.
“No, but I think they know who’s behind it,” Cal replied. “This attack was carefully planned out and executed. It was a warnin’. Show us that there is someone out there that knows our business. And I have a bad fuckin’ feelin’ they are goin’ to try and get in it at some point. I wouldn’t doubt if they’ve already taken down the Dogs. There is a corner there on the coast. Someone, I guarantee, wants a big piece of the pie.”
“So we’re in the damn dark, then?” My voice was gruff and I knew everyone could tell I was on edge. Hell, the whole room felt that way. Cal shot me a warning look. I knew I had to keep my head level, but everything about this situation had me on the fringe of losing my shit.
“We keep our eyes and ears open. I’ll let the other chapters know. Gonna suggest we not make the rest of the run just yet. Keep everyone where they are.” Cal’s face was stern. Everyone nodded in agreement. Without information, we had nothing. Best thing to do was to sit back and figure it out.