by Harley Wylde
“I know,” she said softly. “I’ve known you’re nothing like him since the day we met.”
“You can have your own room if you want,” I offered, even though it about killed me to say the words. As large as this place was, there had to be several bedrooms. Even if the kids had to share one, I knew they wouldn’t mind if their mom felt better in her own space.
She pressed her body to mine and curled her hand around the back of my neck. “I was hoping I’d get to share yours.”
God, this woman! I wanted to kiss her, claim her, press her against the wall and take what I’ve wanted for a damn year. The only thing holding me back were the kids upstairs who could appear again at a moment’s notice. Maybe it was being here at the compound again, but I could feel parts of my old self creeping in already, the man who would have made a move on Jacey long before now, the guy who’d always taken what he wanted. If I’d done that months ago, I could have saved her so much pain.
“You’re welcome in my bed anytime, Jacey, but I don’t know that I can have you lying next to me and remain a gentleman. I know you have this image of me, the do-good cowboy who is sweet and charming, and maybe that’s a part of me… but I’m also a man who’s used to taking what he wants. I only held back because of Beck, and now that I know what he’s done to you, I won’t be holding back anymore. I wish I had gotten you away a long time ago.”
She pressed her lips to mine in a brief kiss. “It’s not your fault. I didn’t tell anyone what was happening. The neighbors, Beck’s coworkers… none of them would have believed me, and I was too humiliated to tell you. I didn’t want you to look at me and see… see…”
She swallowed hard and couldn’t even finish her sentence, which was just as well since it was complete bullshit. If she thought for one second I saw her as less than before, then she was wrong.
“I meant what I said to the kids. I love you, babe. I think I have for a while, but I kept my distance out of respect for you. I knew that Beck didn’t deserve you, but I could see you were the type to be loyal. Don’t ever for one second think you’re less in my eyes because of what happened to you. You’re a victim, Jacey, and none of that shit is your fault. You trusted the wrong man. That’s your only crime in all this, and I’ve seen Beck in action. He’s good. Damn good.”
“But you knew, didn’t you? Knew who he really was?” she asked.
“Yeah, I did, but then I’ve dealt with monsters most of my life. People don’t see Beck for who is truly is because they expect him to be good. If you can’t trust a cop, then who can you trust? They want him to be a hero, so that’s what they see when they look at him. They can’t see the darkness inside.”
“I was so stupid falling for all his lies,” she said.
“No, honey. You weren’t stupid. You thought you were in love. Men like Beck can spot someone sweet like you a mile away. You were like a little lamb being led to the slaughter. I don’t blame you, and no one else will either, not if I have any say in the matter.”
“I wish I could have met you before Beck.” She ran her hands up and down my chest, pausing to run her fingers across the name Cowboy on my cut.
I smiled at her and smoothed her hair back from her face. “Sweetheart, when you were eighteen, I was thirty-three. You wouldn’t have looked twice at me back then.”
“Then I would have been an idiot,” she said. “Age is just a number, Ty. Or am I supposed to call you Cowboy?”
“You can call me Ty. To you, I’ll always be Ty. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“What happens if Beck finds out where I am?” she asked.
“I’ll handle it. He’s not getting anywhere near you.”
She nodded and cuddled against me, pressing her cheek to my chest. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her tight and wishing I could take all the pain and suffering away. I hadn’t seen the videos Wire mentioned, and I didn’t think I could stomach watching them. It was bad enough hearing what was in them. Knowing that countless men had watched those, had listened to her scream and gotten off on it, made me want to track each and every one down and make them suffer. It sickened me that men like that were out there in the world. I was no angel, but I’d also never hurt a woman or kid, and I never would.
There was a knock at the front door and I reluctantly released Jacey to see who it was. When I opened the door, a petite woman and two little girls were standing on the front walkway.
“I’m Ridley, Venom’s wife, and these are our girls. I don’t know if Torch mentioned it, but there’s a playground here at the compound and we thought we’d see if your kids wanted to come run off some energy. After being cooped up in a car all day, I thought they might want to stretch and play.”
I motioned for her to come in. She eyed me up and down and smiled a little.
“So you’re the infamous Cowboy. I’ve heard mention of you a few times over the years, along with Joker and Hammer. Incidentally, I’ve heard Hammer may be returning to us soon. Venom says his time is up, but Joker has another year or so,” Ridley said.
Jacey came closer and leaned against me.
“Sweetheart, this is Ridley and her girls. They belong to Venom, who you haven’t had a chance to meet, but he’s the VP for the club. She wants to take Jackson and Danica to the playground.”
I felt Jacey stiffen and I held her closer.
“It’s okay. Ridley says they’ve added a playground to the compound so it’s inside the gate and the kids will be safe,” I assured her.
Ridley nodded. “Venom plans on joining us too. He just had to talk to Torch for a minute. I saw Dad and Darian with their two kids over there already, so they can play with Isadora and Foster too. Um, I should mention I’m Bull’s daughter. I don’t remember if you were around back then or not, but I used to come to clubhouse sometimes when I was little.”
“Bull has more kids?” I asked, vaguely remembering a blonde little girl.
She nodded. “Oh yeah, and he’s such a teddy bear with them. He missed out on a lot not getting to be around me when I was younger, so he’s making up for it. I like to give him shit about his wife being younger than me, but I honestly like Darian.”
“Your dad has little kids?” Jacey asked.
“Yep,” Ridley said. “Foster is getting close to six and Isadora is not quite three. They’re adorable, and nothing at all like my two hellions.”
Jacey blinked at the little girls standing docilely by their mom. “Hellions?”
“Don’t let them fool you. These two terrors strike fear into most of the guys around here. Just ask Tank. One of my girls jumped at him from a tree, and that’s one of the milder things they’ve done,” Ridley said.
I snickered because I could honestly see Venom having kids like that. He’d been something of a hell-raiser from what I remembered, and Wire had already told me what a firebrand Ridley could be. There was no way in hell two people like that would produce meek kids.
Jacey seemed to make some sort of decision about the woman and girls standing in our entryway, and called up the stairs to Jackson and Danica. The kids came racing down, then halted when they saw the girls.
Ridley waved. “Hi. I’m Ridley and these are my daughters, Mariah and Farrah. Farrah’s the oldest, and the most trouble, so don’t do anything she suggests or your mom might kill me.”
Danica tipped her head to the side and studied Mariah and Farrah, and Jackson hid behind his sister a little.
“I’m Danica and this is my little brother, Jackson,” she said, moving closer to the girls and Ridley. “I’m ten and he’s six.”
Farrah smiled, showing off a missing tooth. “I’m ten! Mariah’s six.”
“Six and a half,” Mariah corrected.
“Do you want to come to the playground with us? There’s swings, a slide, and stuff we can climb on,” Mariah said.
Danica and Jackson looked up at Jacey and she gave a nod.
Ridley herded all the kids outside, then paused in the doorway. “Venom and I t
hought you could also use some adult time to work things out between you two. I’ll keep them occupied for a while.”
I shut and locked the door behind her and turned back to Jacey.
“She’s…” Jacey didn’t seem to have the right words for Ridley, and I wasn’t sure I did either, other than devious. Winning her way in here claiming to want to let the kids stretch their legs, and then that parting shot. Yeah, I knew why she’d come by. Everyone at the compound probably knew by now how I felt about Jacey and that I hadn’t made much of a move before now.
“She’s one hundred percent right. We could use some adult time,” I said, gathering her in my arms again. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re no longer married to Beck. In fact, I bet Wire could make that a reality with a few keystrokes.”
“Who’s Wire?” she asked.
“The best hacker in the damn country, possibly the world, and he’s a Dixie Reaper. Say the word and you’ll be legally divorced from Beck by nightfall.”
She blinked up at me. “Really?”
I nodded. “Pretty sure he could handle something like that.”
I could tell she was tempted. Even if she stayed married to Beck, she’d be a widow before long. I knew he’d come for her, and when he did, I’d make sure he never left. Just one problem. There wouldn’t be a body so any life insurance he had wouldn’t do Jacey and the kids any good. I had more than enough money to support them, and if it ran out, I’d earn more. It just felt wrong cheating them out of something Jacey had literally earned through blood and tears. Wire could probably hack into Beck’s accounts and siphon the money into one for Jacey, but I didn’t think she’d touch that money.
“Do it,” she said, her jaw firming. “Make it go away, make Beck go away. I don’t want to be his wife anymore, not even on paper.”
“You sure, Jacey?”
She nodded.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and shot off a text to Wire.
Jacey wants to be officially divorced from Beck. Can you make it happen?
It only took a minute before I got a response.
Consider it done. Give me an hour, two tops and she won’t be married anymore.
I smiled and showed the message to her. Jacey relaxed, the tension easing from her. I knew it wouldn’t be that simple, that Beck Lane wouldn’t care if they were legally married still or not. I knew it made a difference to Jacey, though. She’d held back in my office because she was a wife, but I’d just taken that issue off the table. Or rather, Wire would. I wasn’t going to ask how he accomplished it because I really didn’t want to know. All I cared about was the end result.
“I’m really free?” she asked.
“In a matter of speaking. He’s not going to back off, Jacey, not until I make him.”
“But… I’m free… to be with you,” she said softly, her curves melting against me.
“Yeah, babe. You’re free to be with me, and keep a clear conscience.”
“Then take me to the bedroom, Ty. I don’t want to waste any more time. We’ve already lost a year that we could have been together.”
She didn’t need to tell me twice. I lifted her into my arms and carried her up the stairs. There were three doors on the right of the landing, one directly across from the stairs, and another to the left. Instinct made me go left and I nudged open the door with the toe of my boot. The master bedroom was spacious and done in muted blues and gray.
I kicked the door shut and managed to twist the lock, just in case. I carried Jacey over to the bed and let her slide down my body. The pulse in her throat fluttered and her lips parted. I loved that she wanted me every bit as much as I wanted her. Slowly, I reached for the hem of her shirt and started to lift it. Her hand shot up and she wrapped her fingers around my wrist.
“Wait.”
“If you don’t want to do this, just tell me, Jacey. I would never force you to be intimate with me.”
“It’s not that.” She licked her lips. “I’m not eighteen anymore, Ty. My body isn’t… it’s not as pretty as it used to be.”
“Jacey, you are gorgeous and sexy, and I will love every part of you because I love you.”
She nodded and released me. I finished pulling her shirt up and over her head, then couldn’t contain the growl that erupted at the sight of what Beck Lane had done to her. There were scars along her torso, some looked like knife wounds and others were burn marks. Wire hadn’t mentioned this shit when he’d told me about the videos. My gaze locked with hers as I sank to my knees in front of her, then gently kissed each and every mark on her body. Her skin looked like a roadmap of pain, but also survival. Despite everything he’d done to her, she was still standing, and she was here with me.
Salty tears dripped from her cheeks onto my face, and it nearly ripped my heart in two, seeing firsthand what that monster had done to her, and knowing that no one had treated her right in a really long time, if ever. I vowed that no matter what it took, I would make sure this incredible woman knew that she was loved, appreciated, and that what Beck had done to her was far from all right. She should never have had to suffer for so long, not even for one second.
I worked her jeans down her legs and pulled her shoes off before removing the denim all the way. There were more marks on her thighs and I traced them softly. I wished that I could erase every one, and the memories that went with them. I hoped there would be a day that she wouldn’t think of Beck, wouldn’t remember the horrors she’d faced, but I knew that was a long road to travel. She’d taken the first step when she’d left him.
Her bra and panties were plain, but the curvy woman standing in front of me was mesmerizing. I wouldn’t have cared what she was wearing; she still would have been the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. I traced the lines of her body with my hands, marveling at how damn soft she felt. When my gaze met hers, I could see the vulnerability there, as well as the trust and love. The way she stood, bare and open to me, not trying to hide, told me everything I needed to know. Jacey knew that I wouldn’t harm her or humiliate her.
I took my time, worshiping every inch of her body, teasing her with kisses and little licks as I worked my way from her hip to her breasts. I slowly removed her bra and panties. Her nipples were hard and I couldn’t resist taking a taste. I lapped at the first one before sucking it into my mouth. I flicked it with my tongue until she was trembling, then switched to the other side. When she was whimpering with need and begging for more, I stood and removed my boots and clothes. My lips crashed down on hers, and I kissed her until we were both gasping for breath.
I needed to go slow, to make this really good for her, but it had been so damn long since I’d touched a woman and I’ve been craving Jacey for a year. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to hold back and would disappoint her. I’d never cared before, not really. Yeah, I’d made sure my past lovers, even one-night stands, had a good time, but it hadn’t mattered if I’d made it the best they’d ever had. Not until Jacey.
“Make love to me, Ty,” she said.
I closed my eyes a moment, reality setting in. I was far from prepared. In the old days, the clubhouse kept a fishbowl of condoms, but I wasn’t about to get dressed and head over there for a condom. It was no one’s business what happened in this house, not when it came to Jacey, and if I went fishing in the bowl of rubbers, then everyone would know what was happening right now. Just because Ridley had taken the kids so we could have some adult time didn’t mean that we were necessarily getting naked. If I went to the clubhouse, then everyone would know for sure what we were doing.
“Jacey, I don’t have condoms with me. I haven’t been with anyone since the day I met you.”
“I’m clean and on the pill,” she said. “And I trust you. Maybe I shouldn’t, not with my past, but I do.”
It humbled me that she could say that, and mean it. I tumbled her to the bed, and her legs wound around my hips. My cock brushed against her slick folds and I groaned as I sank into her. She was so damn wet, and we fit toge
ther perfectly. I wasn’t a small man by any means, but she didn’t flinch or utter a word of protest. I felt her nails bite into my shoulders as she lifted her hips, silently asking for more. I gave her every inch of my cock, then held still, just taking in the moment. I’d thought we’d never make it to this point, and I wanted to savor it, to savor her. Our gazes locked and my heart raced at the love I saw shining in her eyes.
I took her slowly, drawing it out as long as possible. The slick clasp of her pussy around my cock made my muscles tense as I fought for control. Jacey was pure perfection. I twisted my hips to give her just the right amount of friction in all the right places, and it didn’t take long before she was coming. The warm gush of her release had me groaning and clenching my jaw. The old Ty would have pounded into her, not stopping until he came. But then the old Ty had never been with a woman like Jacey, and I wanted everything to be just right. Making her come once wasn’t anywhere near enough, though, not knowing what I did about her. Sweat slicked my skin as I maintained a tenuous grip on my control. I rubbed her clit as I took her slow but deep.
Feeling her inner walls flutter as she came was both heaven and hell. I wanted this moment to be completely different from her times with Beck, but doing the soft and sweet thing was damn near killing me. This wasn’t about me, though, it was about Jacey, and I’d give her the world if I could. I made her come twice more before I knew I couldn’t hold back another second.
I shifted so that I could grip her ass with one hand, and I drove into her hard and fast, every stroke feeling as if I went deeper than the last. Every thrust banged the headboard into the wall, but I didn’t care. I needed her, craved her. Jacey panted and made the sexiest noises I’d ever heard, and when my cock jerked and I started coming, she wasn’t far behind me. I didn’t stop thrusting, not even after the last drop of cum had been wrung from my balls, wishing I could fuck her for hours.