by Sam Crescent
Installing security cameras sounded easy enough, but he’d have to do it when the boys were away, or else try for discretion. He didn’t want anyone else to know.
If he tried to bring this to the table right now, without any proof, they could vote him out, and he wasn’t having any of that shit. Whoever it was, they were being sneaky about it, and he wanted to know why.
Now he just needed to head back to John’s house and see how he could help his friend.
****
It was a warm night, and John had set up the barbeque for them to have some grilled steaks.
Scarlett wasn’t home yet. She’d called that she had to stay behind at the day care center to help clean up after chatting with some of the parents. He had to wonder if she was avoiding coming home.
The past week he’d been watching Gunner and his wife. Scarlett didn’t have the first clue that Gunner was interested in her. She smiled, joked, and was polite, but in no way tried to lure him.
John had seen women try to seduce his friend. He’d watched some of them, and they were true masters of their craft. His wife wasn’t like that. She didn’t seduce.
Gunner came out with a bottle of beer.
When Gunner had called to say that he was heading over, he let him know the door was open and that he should just come through.
“My two boys are now living with me,” he said.
“They are? I thought you’d agreed for Cherry to have them?”
“I did, and now I’ve saved myself a fucking fortune. You should have seen her face, John. It was priceless. The only downside is the fact I’m not going to see it again myself.”
“You really don’t like your wife, do you?”
“She’s my ex-wife for a reason. It felt good.”
“Are you sure you want those boys at your house? I’ve heard from town gossip that they destroy everything.”
Gunner laughed. “They’ll be fine. They’re damn good boys, and they won’t test me on this. I know.”
“You gave them the old daddy warning type thing.”
“Yep, and it worked.”
He nodded. “Must be nice.”
Silence fell between them, and he checked on the coals. There were still a few minutes before he’d be able to cook over them. He didn’t like having those modern gas grills. They were useless anyway. He loved food that he could taste had been cooked over a grill. All the other fancy stuff was for people who wanted to change shit.
“What the fuck is going on with you?” Gunner asked. “I know you can’t have kids, but believe me, it’s not the end of the world.”
“You had two kids with a woman you can’t even stand,” John said.
“So.”
“I can’t even give my wife one, and I love her more than fucking anything in the world, Gunner. That’s my problem, okay? I see the way she looks at those babies she takes care of, and I know I can’t put a baby inside her. Her tits are not going to swell because of me, nor is she going to have a nice big, fat stomach, swollen with our kid, and it’s all because of me, because I’m firing fucking blanks.” He took several deep breaths, trying to gain control of his anger. Staring at his friend, he’d been planning something for a week, and he didn’t see any reason to wait. “But you could.”
Time seemed to freeze as Gunner stared at him. They’d been best friends all of their lives. They had done a lot of shit together, fought beside each other. Gunner had been best man at his wedding, just as he’d stood beside him, even though he’d tried to talk Gunner out of marrying Cherry.
Gunner had done the right thing though.
“What the fuck did you say?” Gunner asked.
“I can’t give my wife what she wants, but … you can. You can get her pregnant for me. You can give her what I can’t.”
“Dude, you’re so not thinking straight right now.” Gunner held his hands up as if to ward him off.
“I’ve done nothing but think clearly for weeks, Gunner. I’ve seen the way you look at my wife. You want her. I bet you’ve even imagined her completely naked, taking your cock.”
“John, enough,” Gunner said.
“She wants a kid. She likes you, and I know that I want this too,” John said.
“I said fucking enough.” Gunner stood up and glared at John. “I’m not going to spit my stuff into a damn cup to be inseminated into your wife.”
John smiled. “I didn’t say anything about going to the hospital and having treatment, Gunner.”
“What?”
“I want you to fuck my wife.”
He didn’t want Scarlett to go through the pains of having IVF or the drawn-out process of adopting. He’d done his research into everything. All of it came with problems.
“You’re crazy,” Gunner said.
“Crazy? No, I’m not crazy. What I am is desperate. I want to give my wife everything.”
“Then do this the proper way. Get the medicine or whatnot. Go to a donor, I don’t care.”
“You’re my best friend, Gunner. I can’t … I won’t put her through this. Our association with your club will cause problems for adopting. IVF is not easy either. It can also be very painful. There’s no one else I’d have to help me with this. Just you.”
“You do realize you’re asking me to knock your woman up with my kid. You think I’m just going to walk away from that, John? I married Cherry because she was pregnant with my kid.”
John knew this. He knew that Gunner wasn’t always a good man, but he had a list of priorities. He’d fought in the fucking military to defend his country.
He’s not the kind to just leave. John didn’t want him to, and he didn’t expect it either.
“You want Scarlett. I know you do.”
“For fuck’s sake, I’ve got to go.”
“No, you don’t need to leave,” John said.
“You’ve just asked me to fuck your wife. To get her pregnant. You don’t think that needs to put some distance between us?”
“No, I don’t. All you’ve got to do is think about it. We can work everything out.” John watched his friend shake his head and cuss.
“You ask a fucking lot, John.”
“Just think about it.” John ran fingers through his hair. He’d been thinking about it for an entire week. Each time he stared at his wife and remembered the way Gunner looked at her, it had gotten him hard as fuck.
The thought of his best friend touching Scarlett made him damn hard. They had fucked women in the military, shared women, taken turns, but like this, with Scarlett, it felt … right.
Before Gunner could leave, they both heard the sound of the door opening and closing, following by Scarlett’s greeting.
“Does she know?”
He shook his head. “No. I didn’t want to tell her yet in case you reacted like you did.”
“Can you blame me?” Gunner asked.
They stopped arguing as Scarlett came to the door. “You’re grilling?”
“I will be. Coals are ready. You want to grab the steaks? We can use up those leftovers from the other day,” he said.
“Yep, sure will.”
She left them alone and headed inside.
He and Gunner didn’t talk.
Scarlett came out with her hands full. He grabbed the steaks, and Gunner was there to help her with the rest of the food.
“Sorry, had a completely lazy moment there,” she said with a giggle. “That would teach me to make a couple of trips.”
“Long day at work?” John asked, gripping her hip and kissing her cheek. He glanced at Gunner, who was watching him.
See, I’d let you touch her like this, to feel how good she is against you.
“It was. We had to have some training on how to spot and deal with abuse cases. It was horrible. They gave examples, and it was just awful.”
John held her close. “I know, baby.”
“Anyway, I’m home now. What did I miss?” She removed her jacket. It was still warm, one of the last days of summer t
hat they got to enjoy.
“I finally got my boys,” Gunner said, filling in the silence.
“From Cherry? She just handed them over to you? Aren’t they teenagers?”
“It would seem they have no respect for her at all, and she couldn’t handle them. I’ve just saved myself a fortune by taking them back.”
“Well, congratulations, I guess.” She chuckled. “What about you?”
“Just the regular day at the office.”
The smile dropped from her eyes.
They were really struggling with this.
“I’ll serve us something up.”
She pulled out of his arms and went to the table. He watched her, aware of Gunner watching him.
Finally, when he couldn’t handle the scrutiny anymore, he grabbed the steaks and began to grill them.
Gunner talked with Scarlett, and he listened to them get along great.
John had never seen this coming. Not being able to give his wife something that she wanted more than anything else in the world.
Fortunately, it wasn’t brought up again. They sat, enjoyed food, talking about some of the stuff that was on the news. Scarlett yawned and excused herself, leaving him alone with Gunner, who was sipping his beer.
“You’ll think about it?” he asked.
“Yes, I said I would.”
“Good.”
****
Scarlett had been making excuses not to go home for a few days now. It wasn’t that she was afraid of John. She hated this stalemate. She’d tried to approach other options, like IVF or adopting, and he shut them down, telling her that it wasn’t going to happen.
She truly believed he didn’t want kids at all.
Why wouldn’t he just tell her that? She’d rather have him than any kids. There were times she’d wish for them, but she had her job, and her life with him. It was more than good.
Sitting out in the cold, wrapped in a jacket, she sipped her coffee and stared up at the night sky. It had been a long day, and she told John she’d walk home, and pick up some Chinese food, which she still had to order.
Cracking her neck from side to side, she wondered how she’d gotten to be in this position right now, not wanting to go home.
He didn’t make love to her like he used to. When he touched her, she felt him holding back. The other night he was talking with Gunner and they’d been having heated words. The moment she appeared, nothing.
Was he having an affair?
Was that why he didn’t want to touch her?
It wasn’t the first time that she’d thought about it since last night. All day she’d been wondering if there had been any telltale signs. She’d even looked online for advice on how to be sure your spouse was cheating. Nothing helped her.
She was thoroughly miserable, and if she asked him, she didn’t know if he’d tell her the truth. Then of course there was the trouble that if it came out he wasn’t and she thought it, and everything was a mess.
“Hey, are you okay?”
Scarlett looked up, quickly wiping the tears from her eyes. She never wore makeup, so she had no worries about smearing it.
“Gunner, hi,” she said. “I thought you’d be with John.”
“I’m heading over there now. I had some business to take care of.” Gunner moved to sit beside her.
She liked him. A lot of the women at the day care center didn’t like the local MC, but she didn’t mind it. Satan’s Demons MC wasn’t a bad place to be.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
“Then why are you sitting on a bench drinking whatever it is you’re drinking?”
“It’s not alcohol. It’s just coffee. Extra cream and sugar.” She’d wanted the calories tonight and the comfort. Screw diets or healthy eating. They were all overrated anyway. Pushing some of her hair off her face, she blew out a breath. “I’m going to get some Chinese food. I’ll be home in a minute.”
“You’re avoiding.”
“I’m…” She was about to lie, but the look on his face forced her to keep the lie in. “Yes. I was avoiding. Do you—no, it doesn’t matter.” She looked down at her drink, wishing all the bad stuff could just get wrapped up in a box, and thrown away somewhere. She was tired of dealing with it.
“Do I what?” he asked.
“It’s fine.”
“A problem shared is a problem halved?”
“Do you think John is having an affair? Is that why you’re coming around a lot more?” She laughed. “Wow, I don’t sound like the paranoid girlfriend at all, do I? I’ve gone a step up and now the complete crazy one.”
Gunner took her hand. “John is not having an affair.”
“You know that?”
“There’s no way he’d ever do anything to harm you. He loves you more than anything.”
She took a deep breath. “You’re sure?”
“The moment he saw you, I even remember the phone call. He told me that he’d found the world’s only angel and that she was going to marry him.”
Tears filled her eyes. “I do love him so much, and now I feel just awful for thinking this. Ugh, what is wrong with me? I’m sorry. John deserves better, way better. It’s just this thing with the kids and everything. It’s not fair. I don’t want to lose him, and I feel like he’s slipping away, and I don’t know what to do to make everything better. We’re not close like we used to be, and I’m scared.”
“You won’t lose him. John will do whatever it takes to make you happy, Scarlett. That I can guarantee.”
“Thank you.”
“Now, how about we pick up that Chinese food and I take you home?”
“Okay.”
“No more hiding.”
She nodded. Finishing her drink, she threw the cup into the trash before linking arms with him. She ordered all of John’s favorites from the Chinese place, waiting as Gunner got his bike.
He secured the food on the back of his bike. The man serving them had been happy to put it in a box for them so they could ride home.
“I don’t like bikes,” she said.
“I’ll go slow. I didn’t expect to make a collection. Hold onto me. Don’t let go.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and gave a little gasp as he pulled away. The vibrations of the bike shocked her. She held on tightly to Gunner, and she tried not to think about how big and firm he was.
Gunner was a catch. She wasn’t blind to that. Even though the women were quick to judge the club, they had no problem saying who’d they’d love to be with. Gunner was at the top of the list.
She didn’t think of him like that.
John was her husband.
He’d been the only man she’d ever slept with. John knew her better than she knew herself, and she missed him so much.
Gunner parked in the driveway, and she climbed off. Her legs were a little wobbly, but she kept herself upright, which as far as she concerned was a huge bonus.
She grabbed the food that he handed to her and was about to go in.
“He’s not,” Gunner said.
“I know. Thank you. It was silly of me to think it.” She gave him a quick hug. “I’ll go and prepare dinner.”
Pushing her doubts out of her mind, she focused on food. Baby steps.
Chapter Three
“Is there a reason you asked me to come here late?” John asked the following Friday.
Gunner closed his office door and locked it so no one would enter. “I’ve been thinking about your proposition.”
“Okay.”
He watched his men in the window for a few seconds before dropping the blind and turning to his friend. It wasn’t like they’d never shared a woman before. They had plenty of times, long before John had ever met Scarlett.
They’d not shared a woman since he met her or since. That part of their life had been over for a long time now.
“Scarlett thought you might be having an affair,” Gunner said.
“What?”
<
br /> “Yep. We talked the night I came home with her and Chinese.”
“Fuck. She’s not said anything. I didn’t. I wouldn’t.”
“I know that. She’s struggling with all of this, John, and to be honest, so am I.” He held his hand up when his friend went to say something. “I like Scarlett. I respect her. Do I want to fuck her? Yes. I won’t lie to you and pretend I don’t. I want her. I want her so badly I can fucking taste it. I crave to know what she sounds like when she comes, or how her pussy feels as she does.” He saw John’s reaction. “You like the sound of that too?”
“I know what she tastes like and her voice as she begs for more. One taste won’t be enough.”
“You’re asking me to fuck her without a condom, fill her with my cum until she’s pregnant.”
“Yes.”
Gunner ran a hand down his face. “I’ll want to be part of the baby’s life.”
“You’re going to do it.”
“I want to be part of any kids you have with her, or I have with her. Fuck. I accept not being called dad, but you can’t push me away. I will kill you if you think of doing that.”
“I won’t. You’ll be part of it.”
He’d been debating this for some time. Each second, he’d wanted to just go ahead, fuck Scarlett, knock her up, and be done with it. Then he wanted everything else. To feel her stomach as the baby kicked, to watch her hold their baby. It was more than just sex. It was a partnership for life.
“No one can know,” John said. “We do this, it’ll stay between you, me, and Scarlett.”
“I want to fuck her whenever I feel like it,” Gunner said.
John stared at him.
“I won’t hide it either. I’ll take her in front of you, and I’ll do whatever you want me to do, but we do this, we do this my way. You don’t get to control this. You’re using me for my spunk,” Gunner said.
“We used to share our women.”
“I know.”
“We start off like that.”
“If you hurt her out of any jealousy, you’ll divorce her and she becomes mine,” Gunner said.
“Are we working out a contract here?”
“She can’t be hurt by any of this.” Gunner pointed between the two of them. “She may not even be able to handle me touching her.”