When he had heaved himself out of the truck and tried to climb the steps, she knew he had been in a serious brawl. Luckily, he seemed to have come out on top.
“What happened?” Jasmine whispered.
The tears were still welling behind her eyes and she felt beaten and bruised herself. Her soul, her feelings, her heart… they had all taken a pounding in the past twenty-four hours. And now, she felt lost and she didn’t have a clue what to do for the best.
“The other bikers that were there when you were, they were waiting for someone to arrive. A big, black car pulled up with darkened windows and this man got out. He was well dressed, and I mean impeccably, he was wearing a pin stripe suit, polished loafers, he was smoking a huge cigar and his head was shaved. He had a tattoo by his eye… even from across the road, I could tell he was a killer. He looked like an assassin. He was wild, shouting in Russian… and then the bikers, they all surrounded him, they held him there until…”
“Until what?” Jasmine could barely breathe.
“Until Brick came hurtling down Main Street,” she said with defeat. “He practically jumped off the damn bike before it had even stopped moving, he jumped through the crowd and laid into the skinhead before I even really had a chance to figure out what was going on.”
“Holy shit,” Jasmine exhaled.
“Exactly,” Cadence shook her head. “It was bad, Jas, I mean really bad. There was blood everywhere. He was so strong, you should have seen the way he worked his fists. I’ve never seen a fight like it,” she broke off and rubbed her temples. “It gave me nightmares.”
Jasmine’s heart was racing so hard she could barely hear anything over the sound of the blood pummeling through her ears.
What had she gotten herself into?
And did she even want to be out of it?
She started to pace up and down the apartment and she could feel Cadence’s eyes on her. She knew the reaction Cadence wanted. She wanted Jasmine to be horrified, to be afraid, for her to curse and shout and berate herself for falling into a trap. She wanted her to quit her job, she wanted her friend back.
But it wasn’t going to happen.
What Cadence had seen, and what Jasmine knew Brick to be, were two completely different people.
She had spent time with him at home, she saw how he was with Maddy. He was a loving, caring and wonderful father. He had raised that child on his own, and she was an absolute dream. He had done so many good things, all Cadence had seen was one bad.
He may have scared Jasmine a little, but she liked him more.
She saw something in him she had never seen in anyone before. She saw someone who had lived, someone who had traveled many roads and seen many things. She saw a man who had experience, one who had wisdom and honor.
“He nearly killed the guy, Jasmine!” Cadence said for dramatic affect. “I mean, come on, you can’t seriously consider going back to work for this guy? I was terrified for you last night… When he drove off in a truck, all I could think of was what if he’s going back to that house, where you are, in that rage. What would he do to you?”
Jasmine felt herself blush.
What Brick had done to her and the horror that Cadence had imagined couldn’t have been further from each other.
All Brick had done was make her feel alive.
“You don’t know him like I do, Cadence,” Jasmine said calmly. “I know what you saw must have been shocking, and I have to admit, I’m a little stunned too. I saw him come home and I know he was injured… But really, I don’t think he’s the monster you’re painting him out to be.”
Cadence snorted with a laugh and shook her head in disbelief.
“I am like family to you,” she said. “And you’re dismissing what I’m saying?”
“I’m not dismissing it,” Jasmine snapped. “But I can’t just quit my job. I need to speak with him and find out exactly how close all of this danger could be. I have a duty of care to Maddy now. I don’t want her to feel like she’s been abandoned.”
Cadence pouted and sighed.
“Well, you will only do what you want to do, I guess,” she said. “I just wanted to warn you. Seeing what I saw last night scared me shitless.”
“It was work,” Jasmine said. “I’m sure he’s done much worse…”
She bit her lip and felt her hands shaking again. She was trying to play it cool in front of Cadence, but to know a man she had kissed only minutes after he had done something like that was totally terrifying.
He was strong, he was big and brutal, and now she knew he was capable of serious physical harm.
He could have snapped her like a twig as the adrenaline coursed through his veins last night… But instead… well, he had been tender and had made her feel like no one ever had.
It was all just too confusing.
She stopped by the window and looked out across the alleyway and the little slice of Main Street she could see. She had a whole day to think about what in the hell she was going to do next, and she didn’t know how she was going to wait until 4pm before she went over to see him.
“I’m just looking out for you,” Cadence said as she took a step toward the door.
“I know you are,” Jasmine smiled. “And I’m not dismissing what you’re saying… my head’s just a mess… that’s all.”
Cadence nodded and reached for the doorknob.
“Well, you know where I am,” she said.
Jasmine nodded and gave her a grateful smile as Cadence backed out of the door and let it swing closed behind her.
Jasmine exhaled and collapsed down on the couch. It was only just approaching 9am, and she knew Brick would be getting Maddy to school, but she couldn’t wait until four o’clock before she saw him. She needed to speak to him soon. And without Maddy there.
She reached for her phone and opened up the text message before she hastily typed out her reply…
J: I know we need to talk… I can’t wait until four. Can I come over this morning?
She hit send and her heart pounded in her chest. She had never been so nervous in her entire life, but she knew this was the right thing to do. She had to make the move now, she had to see what was happening and know truly how she felt. Or she couldn’t continue to work for him. She had to make a decision once and for all.
Within a split second, she had a reply.
B: Yes. I’ll be home in ten minutes.
She exhaled heavily and held her palm over her heart so she could feel how fast it was beating. Brick made her so nervous, it was as if every time she even just thought of him she trembled with fear… or was it desire? The two were merging into one and she no longer could distinguish which was more prominent.
She was afraid of him, and yet, she knew she had to have him.
He was just out of reach, and it was so frustrating.
She typed one single sentence in reply…
J: See you soon…
Spinning on her heal, she dove into the bathroom. She was going to have a race against time to get herself showered and ready and over to him as quickly as she could.
Her heart couldn’t wait any longer.
She had to know…
10.
The walk toward the house seemed to take forever, and yet, when she approached the end of the street, she couldn’t remember it at all. She stood there in a stupor, shielding her eyes from the blazing sun and daring herself to go to him.
The front door was closed and his bike had reappeared at the foot of the steps that led up to the house. By the looks of things, the truck had been moved slightly and parked properly out of the way.
Just being there again brought back all sorts of feelings and memories from the previous evening, and the nerves began to creep up inside of her, and she had to take a minute and a few deep breaths.
She had no plan.
She didn’t know what the hell she was going to say when she knocked on the door, all she knew was she had to see him.
She had to know ho
w he felt too.
And she had to make sure he was okay.
She clenched her fists into tight little balls to release some tension and then she cleared her throat and began to march toward the house.
It was almost as if she were in a dream. Her vision was slightly blurred, and it felt as if she were walking on air. She knew she was so worked up and lightheaded that it was making her more confident, but at the same time, deep down inside, she was a mess.
She climbed the steps, but before she got a chance to knock on the door, it creaked open.
Brick emerged from the darkness and into the intense morning sun and his eyes were heavy and full of heartache. She could see it immediately. He put his hands up on the doorframe and looked at her, his heaving muscles perfectly sculpted and tanned, and threatening all at once.
She felt a pulse between her legs.
He looked even better than she remembered, and he was staring at her with an expression she could only describe as pure want and need.
Jasmine swallowed. Her eyes graced the cuts on his head beside his eye and at the small cut on his lip that was swollen. She remembered bathing them, tending to him, looking after him and wanting to give him more.
She took a step forward.
“Brick,” she said.
He motioned with his head for her to follow him and she ducked inside behind him, barely able to breathe.
The house felt fresh and vibrant inside, much nicer than it had the previous few times she had been there. It felt more like a home, almost as if he had taken on board everything she had done with Maddy and was trying to keep it the same.
She looked up at him and smiled.
“I’m glad you came early,” he said as he turned to look at her.
His demeanor had changed from the night before, he looked calmer, much more serene and relaxed. He had a softer look in his eyes along with all of the menace, as if he had an affection inside of him that was threatening to burst free.
“Last night,” he began and Jasmine’s heart began to race all over again.
Straight to it, she thought. There is no other way.
“I…” he trailed off and rubbed his knuckle along the scratchy stubble on his chin.
Jasmine took a step closer and could feel the electricity between them, it bounced from both of their skins and pulled them even closer together.
“I’ve been all over the place in my head today,” Jasmine spoke to cut through the silence. “I can’t explain how I feel, Brick, but I know it’s something strong, something completely unlike anything I’ve ever felt before.”
His eyes flashed up to meet hers and there was a look in them she couldn’t quite fathom. She didn’t know if it was because he couldn’t understand why the hell she was saying that, or whether it was because he felt exactly the same way.
He took a step closer to her, and she was so pulled in by his eyes. They were so enveloping and deep, she truly felt as if she could fall into them and never find her way back out. He reached up and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and then he let his fingers linger down on her chin. Just feeling his touch again awoke something inside of her and made her bones begin to shake.
It was like he was her ON button.
One touch and she was his.
“Since the moment you walked around the corner at the dance studio, I’ve been a mess,” he said. “I can’t explain it either. But the second I laid eyes on you, I knew you were going to be someone to me. I saw the way you spoke to Maddy, the way you slipped into conversation with her effortlessly, the way you seemed to know exactly what she wanted. But it wasn’t just her, you seem to know exactly what I wanted as well.”
She had to remind herself to breathe.
“Last night, when I got home… I expected you to take one look at me and run…” he gave a little half-laugh. “But you didn’t… You got stuck right in and tried to save me. Sometimes, I think that’s all I need… A good woman to help piece me back together.”
Jasmine’s heart was on fire. With every word he spoke, she was unravelling more.
“Why do you need to be pieced back together?” she whispered as he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her against him with a grunt.
He looked down on her from behind his aging eyes and she reached up and stroked the flecks of gray in his hair.
An older man.
A man who had lived…
Seen the world…
And had come home again.
A man who wanted her.
Brick didn’t answer but he pushed her back against the wall and grabbed her wrists before he pinned them high above her head. She gasped and felt a gush in her panties. Him taking control of her like that was like nothing she had ever known. It was so strong and powerful, he was such a force to be reckoned with… And now, she was at his mercy, and there was no other place she would rather be.
He pushed himself against her and she could feel him. Hot, hard and thick…he was huge, and she knew he was going to destroy her.
“Brick,” she panted as he leaned in to kiss her.
His kiss was even fiercer than the night before, and he took her breath away as he lifted her legs up and wrapped them around his waist.
She was so tiny next to him. He was like a giant. A huge, hulk of a man, with his big, thick arms, and his incredible height. He held her there effortlessly and ground against her, pushing his hard cock against her and making her moan.
He rubbed her through her underwear, and then he slipped his hand up the side of her skirt and pulled at her panties.
They were powerless to resist each other. The chemistry between them was too intense and chaotic. Jasmine hadn’t known what she was going there for, only to see if she still felt the same way. And the second she saw him, she knew he felt it too. It was all too much to bear. Not being able to reach out and take him had been torture, but now they were there together and the house was empty and she wanted him so badly it hurt.
She gasped as he slipped his fingers toward her pussy and teased it gently as he kissed her hard on the mouth. The contrast in sensations was so blissful it almost pushed her over the edge right there and then. She clung to his neck and he moved his lips from hers and up to her ear, down her neck and toward her collarbone.
He pushed a thick finger inside her and she moaned with pleasure. His touch was like nothing she had ever felt before, and from that alone she felt as if she were about to unravel and fall off the edge.
Brick held onto her with his free arm, clutching her under the ass as she held herself in place with her legs. He walked backward with her and kicked the door open to the hall and then the kitchen. She was still clinging to him and she still felt weightless. And when he lay her down on the central island in the kitchen and ripped open her blouse, she gasped and panted with delight.
He pulled his t-shirt over his head and revealed his torso. It was huge, bulging and covered in tattoos just as she had expected. And she ran her fingertips up each muscle, until she reached his pecks and then she scratched her nails up his neck.
He flashed her a wicked smile as he cupped her tits and pulled her bra down, letting them burst free.
“You’re perfect,” he said as he took a nipple in his mouth and sucked it greedily. “I’ve been watching you walk around this house and I’ve been wanting to do this every single fucking second.”
Jasmine threw her head back and gasped as he reached back up her skirt and slipped her panties down. Her pussy was wet and ready for him, and when he started to undo his jeans, Jasmine had to count to ten in her head to stop herself from disintegrating right then and there.
His cock was more perfect than she ever could have imagined. It was big, thick, hard and throbbing for her, and as he flipped her over and bent her over the island, she cried out in ecstasy. He was so strong, and he knew exactly what he was doing. He had experience and was an expert lover, he had years on her, and he was going to teach her everything.
When he pushed
himself inside her, Jasmine gasped and clutched onto the sides of the island. She was in heaven. Nothing had ever felt as good as he did in that moment, and as he thrust into her over and over again, and she felt his power consume her, she knew she was never going to be the same again.
Brick owned her now.
She was going to be his forever.
His weight kept her pinned there, and he clutched her hips as he powered himself into her. His dick was so strong he was opening her up in places she didn’t even know were within her. Each movement got harder and stronger, and when she felt his breath quicken on the back of her neck and his thighs tremble, she knew they were going to cum together.
Brick grunted as he thrust into her again and shot his seed inside her. Jasmine collapsed underneath him, her pussy contracting around him as she took every last inch of him, and savored everything.
She was a quivering mess, and he pulled her up to her feet and helped her rest them back down on the floor before he spun her around and kissed her again. He was hot and hungry for her still, and she felt as if she had been deflowered all over again.
“I’ve wanted you since the second I saw you,” she panted as he rested his forehead against hers.
“Me too,” he said as he kissed her again. “I just didn’t think… the age difference… I…”
“There is no age difference,” she assured him as she took hold of his hand. “Being with you has made me happier than any other time of my life. No guy my own age has ever made love to me like that.”
He flashed her a wicked grin and she noticed the cuts on his eyes again.
“But you scare me, Brick,” she said sadly as she traced her fingers over the wounds.
“No,” he whispered.
She nodded.
“Last night, it terrified me…”
“I had to do it,” he said sternly. “The Russian mob are about to ruin our town. I went in all guns blazing because they’ve taken some of our businesses, I had a score to settle and we did it man on man.”
He cracked his knuckles, and even though it still scared her, Jasmine knew she would always rather be with him than without him.
BRICK (Forsaken Riders MC Romance Book 17) Page 9