Monroe, Marla - The Edge of Night [The Protectors 3](Siren Publishing Classic)

by Marla Monroe

  Tyler chuckled and went back to switching channels. Amanda debated on how to get out of bed without flashing Tyler. Then she nearly laughed out loud. She’d slept with him like that last night. She’d had sex with Morgan in the same room as Tyler the other night. Why was she worried about him seeing her in her bra and panties? They were probably more decent than most of the bikinis were nowadays. She didn’t wear thongs.

  The sound of the shower cutting off saved her from getting out of bed. She’d wait until he came out, then run inside and close the door. She gauged the position of her pack as it lay next to the bed and the pathway to the bathroom door and figured she could make it past Tyler with the barest of shows.

  Nearly five minutes later, the bathroom door opened, and Morgan stepped out in jeans and socks, but bare-chested. The sprinkle of dark hair from his chest down to the waistband of his jeans, where he hadn’t bothered to button them, drew her eyes. Her face, once again, grew warm with embarrassment. She was really being silly. She’d not only slept with him, but she’d had sex with him in front of Tyler—and enjoyed it. She had to get control of her hormones. They were acting crazy. It had to be the pregnancy.

  “Morning. Glad to see you awake. Thought we were going to have to go get breakfast without you,” Morgan teased.

  Her stomach growled, and they all laughed, breaking the tension.

  “I’m going to grab a quick shower and be right back out.” She slipped from the bed, holding the sheets till the last possible moment, then grabbed her pack and escaped into the bathroom.

  It smelled of Morgan. She wasn’t sure if it were the soap he used, his aftershave, or if it were just him, but it smelled like him. She drew him deep into her lungs and smiled, then frowned. She had to get over him. Once this was all over with, he would be gone. She’d be alone again, but with a baby to take care of. A little heart-racing fear took over for a few minutes before she managed to regain control. No use in getting scared now. It was a done deal. She had to live with it.

  Amanda made short work of taking a shower and drying off. She had a little trouble getting into her bra. She realized her breasts were much bigger now. She needed a bigger size. When could she manage to get a bigger bra? They were running from Guy. She wiped her eyes as tears began to seep from them. She didn’t have time to cry. The boys were hungry, and she needed to eat, too. The cracker had settled her stomach. Her jeans hung on her despite her bra shrinking and her stomach having a little rounded area now. It didn’t poke out so much as feel firmer.

  She ran her hand over her stomach, then cupped her breasts through her bra. They felt heavier too. Yeah, she had to figure out some way to get another bra. She pulled on a T-shirt and grimaced, and maybe a couple of tops as well. This one clung to her major assets a little too tightly for her peace of mind.

  When she walked out of the bathroom a little while later, Tyler took one look at her and groaned.

  “I’m taking my shower now. If you can’t wait to go eat, go right ahead. I’ll follow when I finish.”

  Morgan’s eyes missed nothing about her. He walked over and ran a finger across one nipple through her clothes.

  “Looks like you need a size bigger,” he said.

  “Yeah.” She sighed and plopped down on the messy bed. “If you don’t mind, I need to stop somewhere and pick up a few things once we get to a large enough town.”

  “No problem. Cavern is big enough to buy a few things.”

  Morgan leaned in and kissed the side of her mouth. “You smell delicious. Are you hungry?”

  The switch in topics confused her for a second. “Um, not really. I was a little sick-feeling when I woke up. Thanks for leaving the crackers out for me. They helped.”

  He wrapped his arms around her and held her for a few seconds before letting her go and packing up his things.

  “Soon as you get your pack ready, we’ll head on over to the diner Tyler was talking about. He can meet us there once he’s ready.”

  “Are you sure? I hate to leave him like that. It seems, I don’t know…mean.”

  Morgan grinned at her. “Believe me, he’d be happier knowing we left him here to shower—alone.”

  Amanda suddenly got it and turned around fast to start stuffing things into her pack. She heard Morgan’s soft chuckle and wanted to kick him in the shins. Tyler’s problem could be from someone he was thinking about and not her. Really, it could. She wished she didn’t turn red so easily. It was her curse for being redheaded and fair-skinned.

  “Ready?” Morgan asked.

  “Yeah, I’m ready.” She pasted a big smile on and turned around.

  Morgan stood directly behind her and had to grab her to keep her from losing her balance.

  “Easy there. Don’t fall.” He leaned in and kissed her. His lips sipped softly from hers. Then his tongue traced the crease of where her lips met until she opened them. He dove inside and sparred with her tongue until they both were breathless.

  “We’d better go if we’re going to go,” he said.

  She couldn’t say anything, so she nodded her head. He turned her toward the door and gently pushed her forward, but not before she noticed he had to adjust his cock in his jeans before he buttoned the top button. With a knowing grin, Amanda took the helmet from him and strapped it on while Morgan mounted the bike. She climbed on after him. He gunned the motor, but eased out of the parking lot and headed toward the diner.

  Chapter Twelve

  It wasn’t exactly a greasy spoon, she decided, but close. Still, the food smelled good if nothing else. They chose a booth in the back, and Morgan sat next to her, leaving the opposite side for Tyler when he showed up.

  They had barely picked up the menus when the waitress, a fifty-something, round woman, came up with a coffeepot to fill up their cups.

  Amanda put her hand over her cup. “None for me. I’ll take milk and orange juice, please.”

  “Ready to order then, or do you need a few?” she asked.

  “Give us a few minutes.”

  “See anything appetizing?” he asked.

  “I’ll get toast and eggs again.”

  The waitress returned to take their orders. She took Amanda’s first.

  “Okay, what about you?” She turned to Morgan.

  He ordered the Rancher’s Breakfast off the menu and laughed when Amanda rolled her eyes at him.

  “Hey, I’m a growing boy.”

  “Growing hair on your ass, you mean.” Tyler walked up and slid in across the booth from them. He grinned at the waitress, who just shook her head.

  “What about you? Want coffee?” she asked.

  “Yeah, coffee and whatever he’s having sounds good.”

  She turned and hollered out the order as she walked back to the counter.

  “I checked out of the room so we can hit the road after this,” Tyler told them.

  “Good. We need to stop at a store before we have to meet up with the gang,” Morgan said.

  “What do you need?”

  “Amanda needs a larger bra and some tops,” Morgan told him.

  “Morgan!” Amanda couldn’t believe he’d said that out loud to Tyler.

  “Sorry, babe. I’m used to sharing everything with Tyler.”

  “Yeah, I know,” she groused.

  They discussed routes and other things that Amanda tuned out as she thought about how to get Guy off her back. Would he keep coming after her even after she was too far along to abort the baby? Would he try to kill her? Would he go that far? She was almost certain he would since he had tried to force the abortion on her. What was another life in the equation? The more she turned it around in her head, the worse she felt. Maybe there was no way out except to go to Canada or Mexico.

  They finished their meal. Amanda needed the bathroom again.

  “I’m going to the bathroom before we leave.” She waited for Morgan to get up so she could slide out.

  “Don’t be gone too long. We need to get on the road,” Morgan warned her.
/>   “I’m not going to be putting on makeup,” she said sarcastically.

  She knew they would start talking about her and the mess she’d landed them in the minute she left, but it couldn’t be helped. Her bladder was slowly getting smaller, she decided. After finishing, she hurried back to find them deep in conversation.

  “I’m ready,” she said.

  “Good, we’re going to stop at a store to pick up some clothes for you,” Morgan said. “I want to call Dodge first, though, see what he’s been able to find out.”

  They stood outside by the bikes while Morgan put the call in to Dodge. Amanda couldn’t hear what Morgan was saying since he walked off a ways from the bikes. Whatever he learned wasn’t good. He came back with a frown.

  “Okay, let’s go.” He looked pointedly at Tyler before he climbed onto the bike.

  Amanda climbed on behind him and looked over where Tyler was shaking his head as he mounted his bike. Something wasn’t going as planned. She felt her belly began to roll.

  * * * *

  Morgan led them to the edge of town where everyone was gathering. He noticed that there were several more gangs joining up with theirs. He didn’t like it. Someone might recognize Amanda and make a grab for her. He weighed the pros and the cons of sticking with the gang and decided they would risk it, but keep a close watch on her. He could easily keep her away from the other gang members. He hoped.

  “Looks like we have company,” Tyler said when he pulled off the road next to Morgan.

  “Yep. Looks that way. I don’t want Amanda near anyone we don’t know,” he said.

  “Not a problem. How big a chance is there that one of those gangs knows about the reward for Amanda?” Tyler asked.

  “Greater than I like. That’s for damn sure.” Morgan huffed out a breath.

  “Amanda, slide off, baby, and get on with Tyler. I want to feel out the others and see what they might know.” Morgan waited as she climbed off the bike and climbed on back of Tyler’s.

  “Stick close to our guys and keep someone between you and any outside gang member,” Morgan said.

  “Got you.” Tyler pulled off with Amanda on back to slide in between several of the other bikers in their group.

  Amanda leaned forward and kept her head down. Morgan smiled. She knew what to do. He concentrated on listening in to the gossip around him. Most of what he learned was that some of the gangs were doing some drug running here and there. There were some petty turf disagreements in the larger gangs, but nothing that would cause any trouble for them, he didn’t think.

  It wasn’t until he drove close to The Skulls that he heard anything about a woman someone was looking for. They were determined to grab her and turn her in for the money.

  “Word has it that the dude don’t care if we rough her up a bit either. She looks pretty good to me. I think I’d like a piece of her,” one of the gang members said.

  “Man, you want a piece of anything that moves,” another one said.

  “So, what do we do? Split up and start checking truck stops? It’s where they spotted her last time,” another one spoke up.

  “You’ve all seen the picture of her. She should be easy to spot with all that red hair and those blue eyes. I say after this run to the border, we turn around and head toward Memphis and check every truck stop and diner on the way. She has to have eaten somewhere, and someone had to have seen her at some point.” The first guy appeared to be the leader.

  Morgan moved on before they got suspicious of him. He would have to make sure they kept her away from The Skulls at all times. She’d need to wear her sunglasses all the time. Hell, things were getting even more complicated by the minute. Not only did they have Guy’s goons on their tails, they had every lowlife in the States looking to make a buck coming after her. Shit.

  It looked like everyone was beginning to mount up to ride out. Evidently everyone who’d indicated they were coming had arrived. He maneuvered his bike through the throng until he could ride up next to Tyler and Amanda.

  “Baby, stick with Tyler until the next stop. Then you can hop on over here with me,” he told her.

  She nodded, but didn’t look happy about it. He smiled at her, hoping to gain one in return, but she only nodded and dropped her head back down.

  “Baby, don’t take your sunglasses off around anyone but me and Tyler, okay?”

  She nodded, but didn’t look back over at him. She wasn’t happy about riding with Tyler. That’s okay. He wasn’t too happy about it either. He didn’t like her touching Tyler, much less hugging him. He knew only too well how she felt pressed up against his back. Now she was pressed against Tyler’s back.

  The bikes ahead of them took off two at a time, entering the road in a cloud of dust. Morgan was glad that Amanda didn’t have to breathe in the dust as long as she kept her face pressed against Tyler’s back. It should be his back, but they had to keep her safe. Tyler would do that. He’d have her back at the next stop. He needed to keep that in mind so he didn’t light into Tyler for no reason. His friend was doing what he asked him to do, nothing more.

  They rode for a good three hours before the lead bikes decided to stop at a truck stop for some reason. Someone probably had to take a leak. A lot of the guys in the lead group were older dudes and probably had bladder problems. He laughed. That would be him in a few years, he expected.

  As soon as they pulled into the parking lot, Morgan edged Tyler a little deeper into the middle of the guys they were with.

  He slipped off the bike and walked around to help Amanda down. Once Tyler had climbed off, he leaned in to talk to Tyler. Amanda wrapped her arms around Morgan and kept her head down.

  “Don’t call her by her name anymore. She’s ‘baby’ to us. I don’t think it’s a good idea to even use ‘Mandy’ around any of these guys. Most of all, we need to avoid being anywhere around The Skulls. They’re actively looking,” Morgan told them.

  “Fuck. That’s all we need,” Tyler fussed.

  “Uh, guys, I really need to use the bathroom while we’re here.” Amanda spoke up.

  “We’ll take you in, baby. Remember, don’t take your shades off for any reason. Even in the bathroom.”

  She nodded and shifted from one leg to the other. Morgan smiled. She really had to go. He felt for her.

  “Tyler, keep close to her.” Morgan put his arm around her waist.

  They walked into the truck stop and headed for the bathrooms. They both stood guard outside the women’s restroom while she went inside. After about ten minutes, Morgan started to get worried, but she finally came out.

  “Sorry,” she whispered. “There was a line. I had to wait for a while.”

  “No problem, baby. How about something to drink?” Morgan steered them toward the back of the store to where the coolers were.

  Amanda chose a juice and a bottled water. After they paid, they stood outside by their bikes drinking. When she finished her juice, Amanda sipped on the water until the other bikers started climbing back onto their bikes.

  “I’ll store the rest of your water in my saddlebag,” Tyler said and took the water from her.

  About the time he opened the side, a bike rode close to them, looking Amanda over good. To her credit, she managed to casually pick up her helmet and put it on, taking her time to fasten the chinstrap. Tyler jumped onto his bike. Morgan climbed on and waited for Amanda to do the same. He watched the man ride away. The back of his jacket sported a skull.

  “Do you think he suspects me?” Amanda asked as soon as he’d driven off.

  “I don’t think so, baby. He’s trolling, but you don’t look like your picture anymore, with your clothes and brown hair. As long as he doesn’t see your eyes, we’re okay.”

  “Maybe we can get a pair of those contacts that will change the color of my eyes,” she said as they drove off.

  “If we had time to look for a place, I’d say that’s a good idea, but we need to keep moving for now,” he told her.

  They rode for
another four hours and stopped in a little town about six hours from the border of California and Nevada. He would need to call the twins and let them know when they would get to the meeting point. For now, they would lay low. Most of the gangs would hit a bar either there or in a bordering town close by.

  “Want me to grab the room?” Tyler asked.

  “Yeah, we’ll stick with the bikes until you get back,” Morgan said.

  Tyler strode into the office to wait in line behind several other bikers wanting rooms. Some of the gangs would set up camp in the vacant field beside the hotel. More than likely they would be doing that if they were going to follow the rally back around to Florida. Instead, they would grab hotel rooms all the way to Stillwater. Amanda wasn’t used to sleeping outdoors. She’d never rest, and the hard ground would be hell on her soft body.

  He groaned as her soft body pressed against his. He was more than ready for some relief after having ridden with a hard-on for the majority of the day. He suspected that she felt the same way by how she kept scratching his thighs until they drew closer to other members of their entourage. She was shy, but she was wild in bed.

  * * * *

  Tyler returned with a key card and a pained expression on his face. Amanda wondered what had happened to put it there. She waited for him to get to them.

  “What’s wrong, Tyler?” she asked.

  “They guys in there are animals. They’re fighting over who gets the room with the Jacuzzis.”

  “I take it we didn’t,” Morgan said.

  “Hell no. I wasn’t about to get in the middle of that dogfight,” Tyler said.

  “What room do we have?” Morgan asked.

  “We’re in 131. I tried to get on the end, so we got that, but the bad thing is that I think we have Skulls behind us.”

  “Fuck.”

  “Sorry, man. Best I could do. Most of the rooms with double beds were taken, and I didn’t want to cause a scene, since we’re supposed to be sharing her.” Tyler handed Morgan the key card.

  Amanda sighed in relief, double beds. As much as she liked Tyler, she didn’t want to sleep with him, if possible. Having him watch her and Morgan was one thing. Sleeping with him when they were exhausted was marginally okay in her book, but anything else was downright wrong.