“Fuck,” Nate whispered.
Love made people do some crazy shit, didn’t it?
twenty-six.
Mia’s wrists hurt, again. This time it was from the scratchy, tearing feeling from the rope Uncle Jake had put on her wrists. She was against the back of the van. Her heart raced and tears were still streaming down her face. Right behind her in the van was the body of Jacob. And somewhere out there in Frelen was Nate and Back Down Devil MC. Mia had no idea if they’d ever find her. If Miller would allow Nate to try and find her.
Uncle Jake ended a call on his cell, talking so calm and normal, rescheduling some appointments, saying he needed a couple days off for personal reasons.
Twenty feet away from him stood three men with guns. They had no shirts on but leather cuts were on their wide bodies.
Coast Road MC
Uncle Jake walked to Mia, smiling. He touched her cheek for the tenth time since they got there. And, yes, Mia had been counting. Because she knew that eventually touching her cheek wouldn’t be good enough. That he’d want more from her and he would fucking take it.
“Oh, be still,” Uncle Jake whispered. “I took a few days off for us. So I can take you home and take care of you. I’ll start with you in my bed. That big bed I used to share with that cunt of woman you called an aunt. Maybe we’ll even play a little in Jacob’s room, just for fun.”
“You’re a fucking pig.”
Uncle Jake slapped her across the face. It stung and Mia sucked in a breath, refusing to scream. She then looked at her uncle again.
“What? What else do you have to say?”
“How can you do this? With Jacob in the van behind me.”
A barking laugh escaped Uncle Jake’s mouth. “You think he’s still in there? Please.”
He grabbed Mia by the shoulder and threw her out of the way. He opened the van and pointed. “Look. All gone.”
The van was empty. And the sight of the empty van hurt almost worse than if Jacob was in there.
“Where is he?”
“Oh, Mia, he ran away. Remember?”
Mia stepped back. She shook her head. “You’re sick. So fucking sick. You can’t get away…”
“What? I can’t get away with it? I did. I’ve been. I’ll get away with anything I fucking want. Stand in my way and I’ll take you out. Got that?”
“You’ll pay.”
“You know what? Fuck this.” Uncle Jake whistled. The Coast Road guys turned around. “Hey, Mav, come here. Why don’t you show my niece what it’s like to have a gun shoved up her ass.”
Mia screamed. She shook her head and screamed.
Uncle Jake charged at her. He had his hand around her throat, stopping her scream and cutting off her air. He then walked her around to the van. He pushed and Mia went into the back. She instantly began to kick, picturing Jacob’s corpse there. The entire thing freaked her out. Even with Uncle Jake’s hand away from her throat she still couldn’t breathe. It was like a panic attack.
He was then on top of her. Crawling up her body. His hand moving along her side.
“Relax, Mia,” he said. “And nothing will happen to you. And when it comes time for you to disappear, it’ll be quick. You’ll shut your eyes and be…”
A gunshot rang out.
Uncle Jake kicked off Mia and out of the van. Mia sat up and looked out. The guy that Uncle Jake had called - Mav - lay on the ground, dead.
“What the fuck?” Uncle Jake yelled.
The other two men were spinning in circles. Looking for the shooter.
Another gunshot rang and another guy fell to the ground.
Mia huddled at the edge of the van, her knees drawn up, wishing she could hug them.
“Get them!” Uncle Jake cried. “Fucking get them!”
The Coast Road MC guy ran toward a gate and that’s when Mia saw Nate. He kicked open the gate, gun drawn, eyes on fire. The biggest, sexiest, most powerful man she had ever met. The man she loved dearly. He was here to save her.
Uncle Jake reached back for a gun.
Fearing Nate’s life being cut short, Mia jumped up and lunged from the back of the van. She landed on Uncle Jake’s back, wrapping her legs around him, still unable to move her hands. He dropped the gun. He then bent over and threw Mia over his head. She landed on the ground hard, her hands behind her back hitting first and hardest.
She gasped for air, the wind knocked out of her.
She strained to look back as Uncle Jake bent to reach for the gun. That’s when Blaine appeared, ramming his shoulder into Uncle Jake, sending him flying back.
Blaine then hurried to Mia’s side.
Another gunshot rang out and that was the last one. Nate had taken out all the Coast Road MC guys.
“Fuck,” Blaine said. “I’m not going to lie… I’ve been fantasizing about you tied up like this… but under the circumstances…”
“Cut my fucking hands free,” Mia growled.
“Christ, she’s feisty now.”
Nate scooped Mia up. Blaine cut the ropes and she was finally free. She quickly turned and threw her arms around Nate’s neck.
“I’m so sorry,” she cried. “I should have never went outside. I should have never…”
Nate kissed her. Stealing her words. Stealing her apology. Stealing her breath.
Mia opened her mouth, wanting to taste Nate. His tongue darted into her mouth, and for a second she forgot about all the destruction around her.
“Stay the fuck down!” Blaine’s voice yelled.
That’s when the kiss ended and Mia realized Uncle Jake was still alive.
Nate got her to her feet and then he turned, addressing Uncle Jake.
“You’re done,” Nate said.
“Fuck you, asshole. You have no idea how powerful I am. I’ll bury you.”
Nate grinned. “Actually, I’m going to bury you.”
Uncle Jake let out a scream and Blaine was right on him. He reached for the rope and tied Uncle Jake’s arms behind his back. Nate kept a knee to Uncle Jake’s back and a gun to his head.
In the back of the van Nate found a shovel. There was some dirt on it. The sight let Mia shivering with hateful fear, knowing that her uncle had buried his son somewhere.
Nate then brought Uncle Jake to his feet and walked him out of the abandoned lot to where the dirt began. Ten feet in, Nate swung his foot and dropped Uncle Jake. By now the man was crying his eyes out. Begging for forgiveness.
“I’ll work with you,” he said. “I’ll call all the deals off. It’ll be us together. We’ll take out that fucking chief and it’ll be us. The ultimate power.”
Mia stood and watched as Nate dug a hole. He moved efficiently and with purpose. It told her this was something Nate had been used to doing. Blaine stood next to her, a gun pointed at Uncle Jake, just in case.
“He’s good,” Blaine said. “Digging.”
“I can’t…”
“It’s okay now. This is how it works, okay? Right and wrong… it’s not the same for us. There’s no judge and jury.”
“Well, there is a judge,” Mia said.
Blaine laughed. So hard that he wiped the corner of his eye.
They were about to bury a man alive and Blaine was laughing.
And Mia was smiling…
I’m sick, she thought.
No. She wasn’t sick though. This was true justice.
Once the hole was done, Nate grabbed Uncle Jake and put him in it. With his face pointed toward the sky.
“Start with his face,” Nate said. “Let the sky be the last thing he sees as he chokes on dirt and suffocates.”
“Fuck you!” Uncle Jake yelled. “Mia! Please! Mia…”
Nate jammed the shovel into the pile of dirt he made.
Mia grabbed his wrist. “Wait. Just… wait…”
“Yes,” Uncle Jake said. “Yes. Wait.”
“Tell me the truth,” Mia said. “Did you kill them both? Jacob and Aunt Theresa?”
Uncle Jake nodded.
“Yeah. I did. Okay? Fine. I’ll admit it. Now get me out…”
Mia grabbed the shovel and threw the first mound of dirt to Uncle Jake’s face.
He instantly started to scream.
She turned and dropped the shovel.
Blaine put an arm around her and walked her away as Nate finished the job.
Uncle Jake screamed for a good minute… until he was completely covered… and soon… he’d be dead.
twenty-seven.
Nate had Mia by the wrists. She was against the wall. Completely naked. He was dressed and had full intentions of devouring every inch of her beautiful body. But when he started kissing her he couldn’t stop himself. He just wanted her. Everything she had to offer.
When he stopped kissing her, his nose teased hers. He moved down to her breast, playing with her nipple. He then gently kissed up her chest, back to her mouth.
“Fuck,” he said. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Nate,” Mia whispered.
“Everything is okay now,” Nate said. “I promise. It’s all gone.”
“What if they find him? You know there’s going to be a search party…”
“Then we cross that bridge later. I’m sure he had plenty of enemies. Think about it. Drug dealing, smuggling, working with other crews and gangs. Fuck. Coast Road MC is going to take some serious heat when the next delivery fails to show up. It’s all taken care of.”
Nate pressed his body to Mia’s.
“I feel like I have a purpose now,” Mia said. “I still don’t… I don’t know what it is, but if I’m near you, I feel okay.”
“Then you’ll just have to be near me all the time. Never leave my fucking side.”
“That’s hard to do, isn’t it?” Mia asked.
Nate grinned. He then pulled back and swung Mia by her wrists. She let out a playful cry. Nate dropped to his knees and reached under the bed. He then kissed just below Mia’s belly button and stood back up. In his hand, he had a set of chains.
“I’ll chain you to my fucking bed then,” he growled. “So you can never get away.”
Mia grinned. She put her hands to the chains and gripped them, pulling them from Nate’s hand.
“You don’t need these. You have your chains around my heart. Always pulling me along.”
“Fuck, I don’t do this shit,” Nate said. “I don’t do romance.”
“I don’t need you to do romance… just do me…”
Mia jumped and Nate caught her. She wrapped her legs around him and he lowered her to the bed. And there he stayed, kissing her for what felt like hours. Until their lips were raw red. Until they were out of breath. Until Nate’s heart couldn’t pound any faster or harder.
But then he broke the kiss and stared into Mia’s eyes.
And just like that… his heart found a way to pound faster and harder. For her.
***
Miller couldn’t stop thinking about it all.
How the fuck did Chief Jerry get so fucked up? Especially considering their past. What should have been.
Miller looked at his hands.
In his memory he thought of that night. The night he had a diamond ring… ready to slide it on the finger of a beautiful woman. Someone who deserved it. Who deserved true love and happiness. He had squeezed the damn ring so tight it cut his skin.
The funny part… he wasn’t nervous about asking Ella for her hand in marriage. He was ready to do it. Hell, from the second they met, he was ready to do it.
What stopped him was someone else. A clean cut, young man who was rocking through the ranks of the Frelen PD. A guy that Miller knew all too well. A guy that rode Miller’s ass and busted him on every occasion.
That night Miller was going to corner Ella and give her everything.
But that never happened.
Instead, Miller threw the diamond ring into the ocean. He let the waves eat it up. He let it all go. And from the sideline he watched Ella fall in love with Jerry. Miller became President of Back Down Devil MC and Jerry rose up until he was Chief of Frelen. They shook hands, worked together, and Miller swallowed lump after painful lump, fighting off the feelings for Ella. He endured their fucking engagement, marriage, buying a house, buying a car, and even the pregnancy. The fucking baby… the little family that Miller always thought about.
But looking around the lot right then, what kind of life would that be? There were blood stains on the ground. Bodies underground that needed to be tended to. The gunfight had ended with one of Chief Jerry’s guys dead and the chief backing over the other, killing him. Then he sped away.
Nate came back with Mia; they were both safe.
The judge was buried and definitely dead by now.
“What’s on your mind, President?”
Miller turned and saw Griffin standing with two beers.
“Shit,” Miller said. “The past…”
“Ah, you can’t go there,” Griffin said. “It’ll kill you…”
Miller grinned.
There was a soft ping sound and Miller saw Griffin’s eyes go wide. His face went white. His neck then went slump. All of this before the blood started to pour from his neck. The two bottles of beer fell from his hands, hitting the ground shattering.
Griffin took two steps, his eyes already white and glossy, before he collapsed to the ground. He hit the seat of the picnic table on the way down and it flipped him to his back.
The blood poured from his neck.
A single bullet wound.
Miller then looked out and saw a car at the end of the lot.
The sunset in the background, Chief Jerry behind the wheel, some kind of rifle in the window.
Miller rolled back and off the table as another ping sounded.
He hit the ground and started to yell for help.
He looked through the table and saw Griffin… a patched in member of Back Down Devil MC… a fucking table member…
Dead.
“Brother…,” Miller said. “Rest in peace…”
He then shut his eyes.
And he saw Anne… the woman he once loved and used to call Ella. It hurt, bad.
Nobody killed a table member.
This was beyond war now.
This was going to be the end of Back Down Devil…
Thank you so much for taking this wild ride with me!
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(Note: all the books are stand alone novels and do not have to be read in order!)
Novels
OUTLAW REVENGE
CRASH & BURN
DARK FALL
SECRET MAYHEM
TWISTED PIECES
STEEL TEMPTATION
SAVAGE LOVE
VIPER’S KISS
Novellas
RIDING DARKNESS
WILD BLAZE
EMPTY SECRETS
BROKEN ROAD
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Chasing Cross
All Access
Broken Sound
&nbs
p; Bitter Farewell
Buried Notes
Last Song
Fallen Tuesday
A Voice to Love
A Song for Us
A Sound Like Hope
A Road to Let Go
A Time to Move On
Gone by Autumn
Off the Record
Under the Lights
Escape the Noise
Face the Music
Chase the Road
Willow Son
The Biggest Stage
The Loneliest Tour
The Longest Note
The Hardest Set
The Greatest Show
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STEEL TEMPTATION (A Back Down Devil MC Romance Novel) Page 19