by Nicole Fox
She tentatively set her hands on his waist, worried if she was doing the wrong thing. Kenzie didn’t want to anger him and ruin all her carefully laid plans.
But Xavier pulled her hands further around him so that she embraced him fully from behind. It felt like such an intimate position for someone she barely knew, but it sent a new thrill through her body as she pressed herself against his back. His body was warm and strong, something firm to hold onto as they bolted out of the parking lot. He smelled of cologne and gasoline, and she wanted him more than ever.
He hadn’t been kidding about the road, and she squeezed him tightly as they bounced along. By the time they made it back into the city limits and stopped at a light, she was giggling. Not giggling because she was trying to be flirtatious but giggling because she was actually having fun.
Xavier turned slightly in his seat to speak to her, resting his hand casually on her thigh as he did so. “You’ve spent all night serving drinks to everyone else. How about you come back to my place and have a drink for yourself?”
She was supposed to say yes because her father wanted her to. She was supposed to say yes because she didn’t have a choice. But when she answered him, Kenzie gave him the most honest answer she had all night. “That sounds great.”
Chapter Seven
Kenzie
Kenzie hadn’t expected much from a biker’s house, but she was surprised when he pulled into a nice place on the other side of town. Instead of some shabby apartment or a big clubhouse where all the bikers lived together, he had a gorgeous two-story in a nice neighborhood. She thought she might have caught a hint of landscaping in the front yard, but it was difficult to tell in the dark.
Xavier held out a hand to help her off the bike and led the way into the kitchen. The cabinets were stained a dark cherry and topped with granite. While it wasn’t the massive industrial kitchen she had at home, Kenzie recognized quality when she saw it. She ran a finger against the edge of the gray granite, enjoying the smoothness under her skin. “This is a nice place.”
“You sound surprised.” He cocked an eyebrow at her.
Xavier had her there. “Sorry. I guess I just figured with the old bike and the tattoos that you’d have something a little more …” She searched for the right words. “Lower-class” wasn’t quite right, or even “fixer-upper.”
But he saved her with a laugh. “It’s okay. I understand. This was actually the worst house in the neighborhood when I bought it, but I had liked the place since I was a kid. It’s got a great backyard, and I used to ride by on my bicycle and hope I would have enough money to buy it someday. I didn’t see back then that it was a little rough around the edges, but I’ve managed to take care of most of that.”
Eyeing the hardwood floor and the custom trim, Kenzie nodded. “I see. Who’s your contractor?” She was used to workmen coming in and out of her house all the time to remodel a room or switch out the appliances and furniture. It was the same house she had grown up in, but it was constantly evolving. Her father liked to spend his money any way he could.
Xavier gestured with one hand toward himself. “I’m a firm believer that if you want a job done right, you have to do it yourself.”
She blinked at him, glanced at her surroundings once more, and then returned her gaze to the handsome man who had claimed to do all this by himself. “Seriously?”
He shrugged. “A few of the guys helped me carry materials in, but other than that, yeah. It’s taken some time, but I enjoy it.” He held out his hand, palm up, to show her the callouses that had been left by his hard work. “I can promise you those aren’t just from the handlebars of my bike.”
Unable to help herself, Kenzie reached out and touched his palm with the tip of her finger. It was rough and strong, rugged and enticing. Sparks of admiration jolted through her own palms, and her lungs were suddenly capable of holding far less air. “That’s impressive.”
“What do you like to drink?” he asked softly, not stopping her from touching him. “I’ve probably got just about anything you could ask for.”
She pulled her hand back and looked up at him, suddenly realizing what she was doing. Kenzie just needed to flirt enough that she could get him into bed, not worship him like a god just because he knew how to swing a hammer. She glanced at his hair and asked, “Know how to make a red rooster?”
He laughed, an easy sound that made her smile wider. “You’re damn right I do.” He set a shaker on the counter, filled it with ice, and tossed in the vodka, cranberry juice, and orange juice like a pro.
“You didn’t even have to measure,” she commented when she took her first sip. “Are bartending duties part of your job with the club?”
The biker poured the remaining contents of the shaker in a glass for himself. “Not officially, but I dabble. Making a drink for someone who does it professionally is pretty risky. Do I pass?”
“Absolutely.” She set the drink down on the counter, and their eyes met. The light was much brighter in here than it had been in the bar. More than once, she had seen the lights come on and reveal the truth about people, from the circles under their eyes to the smoking lines around their mouths. With Xavier, he was only more beautiful. With his red hair, arched eyebrows, and that little twitch of his lip, he looked devilishly handsome.
They moved toward each other as if magnetized, their bodies pulling together in an animal attraction that neither one of them could resist. His lips were on hers, his hands tangling in her hair, and Kenzie felt more alive than she had in a decade. All thoughts of her college career, her future, and her father flew off into the night as though they had never mattered. There was only her body and Xavier’s, and she only existed where he touched her.
“I can’t tell you how hard it was to watch you back at the bar,” he whispered as he trailed kisses down her neck, his left hand drifting down to her lower back. He pulled her harder against him, so she could feel his need. “You’re so beautiful, and you had all those other men watching you. I wanted you all for myself.”
She arched her body toward him, encouraging him to continue as his lips moved down to explore her cleavage. Kenzie curled her fingers in his hair. It surprisingly soft for a man who was hard everywhere else. “What would you have done to them if they had tried to take me home?” It was a loaded question, but she wanted desperately to hear the answer.
“You don’t want to know.” Xavier had her up against the fridge now, his fingers reaching under her shirt and deftly springing open the back of her bra.
“Yes, I do.” She tipped her head back and gasped as he held each of her breasts in his hands, and it was her own hands that whisked her shirt off to give him all the access he needed.
“I’d have beat them to a bloody pulp,” he growled as he sucked her nipple into his mouth. When it was hard, he moved to the next one. “Or killed them. Whatever I had to do to make sure you came home with me.”
Her core tightened at his words. She needed to feel wanted, and Xavier certainly knew how to do that. Kenzie grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head, tossing it on the floor. She grew wet as she took in the firm muscles of his shoulders, the smooth planes of his chest, and the carved shape of his abs. The wings from the eagle on his back wrapped around his biceps, mingling with several other tattoos she was too busy to study. Auburn hairs that matched the ones on his head made a tantalizing trail down into the waistband of his band. “God, I want you.”
She hadn’t even realized she’d said the words out loud until he roared his agreement and scooped her arms underneath her ass. Instinctively wrapping her legs around his waist, Kenzie paid no attention to the house around her as he flew through it and carried her up the stairs; she was too focused on the sex god who held her in his possession.
As soon as he set her down on the bed, Kenzie worked frantically at his belt buckle. The trail she had noticed on his abdomen didn’t disappoint her. His package was big and hard, and she thought she might come just looking at it.
Xavier, though, wasn’t about to let her try. He ran his fingertips down the curve of her buttock as he stripped her shorts and panties from her and flung them aside, and he pushed her up toward the pillows as he climbed on top of her. “I don’t know what it is about you, but I want you so badly that I can’t wait another second longer.”
Kenzie rolled out from underneath him, her chest heaving with excitement. “I want you, too, but I want to do something else first.” She turned around and straddled his face, plunging his dick into her mouth.
He groaned and his hands gripped her waist as he slid his tongue down her sex. “Goddamn. I had no idea you were so dirty.”
The word sent a shiver of pleasure down her spine. She pulled her mouth off of him with a wet pop. “I’m usually not,” she breathed as she dove back down on him again. But she wanted so much more than just a quick fuck, and she was going to give him just as much as she got back. Kenzie concentrated on her work, sucking in hard as she pulled out and then sinking him all the way to the back of her throat. She flicked her tongue down his member, eliciting more groans of passion from him that translated to pleasant vibrations as he worked at her velvet folds. He grabbed each of her cheeks in his hands, digging into the flesh as he at her like a ripe peach. Her entire body buzzed, her veins filled with dizzy bees as she came closer to the edge. One last flick of his tongue and he pushed her right over.
Her body convulsed, her legs tightening and her hips thrusting her slit against his mouth. Xavier lapped up her nectar, which only made her come again. Her orgasm took over her entire body so that she could no longer perform her half of the job as she screamed her satisfaction.
Xavier’s strong arms swiveled her around and tossed her onto the mattress so that he was on top of her once again. “Now it’s my turn.” He plunged inside her, his wet cock filling her. She ground against him as he thrust, selfishly eager for more of what he had already given her twice. Kenzie dug her nails into his back as her body shivered for the third time. She felt every contour of him as she undulated around him, and his member responded with contractions of its own. They held each other, their bodies tight and slamming together. He roared as he filled her, and they collapsed together in a sweaty tangle of limbs.
Chapter Eight
Xavier
When his phone beeped at him the next morning, Xavier pulled himself out of a sleep so deep he wondered if he had been drugged. With a grin, he realized it was only the natural drug of the most amazing sex he’d ever had. When Kenzie had agreed to come back to his place, he had expected to have to work a little harder to get her into bed. But there was an undeniable passion in her eyes, and he knew it was reflected in his own. And he hadn’t been disappointed by the hotness of her body once he’d finally gotten to see her in her naked glory. When they had finished, he had told himself he would wake her up in an hour to do it all over again. Apparently, his body hadn’t felt it was necessary, since he didn’t wake up until almost noon.
Rolling over, he found that the bed next to him was empty. He sighed with pleasure as he hauled himself out of bed and headed for the bathroom. She was perfect enough with that body, that smile, and the things she wanted to do to him in bed, but it was even better if she wasn’t the kind to stick around and insist that they have coffee together in the morning. Kenzie hadn’t wanted to stick around to talk about what their lovemaking had “meant” or how they “felt” about each other. It saved him from having to lie about being busy and find a way to get rid of her.
Except that he really was busy that day. He showered, grabbed a quick breakfast, and fired up his Harley in less than half an hour. It was going to be hard to concentrate on his work, since the images of Kenzie’s naked body both on top of and under his were still very clear in his mind, but he had an important job to do.
The sun warmed his back and the wind rippled through his hair as he dodged traffic and threaded his way toward the industrial sector of town. Crocodile was waiting for him at the docks, along with a few other members who had been chosen for this mission. “There you are. For a second, I thought you might be skipping out on us.”
Xavier scanned the water for the boat that would be pulling in any minute. Everything seemed to be normal. “Are you kidding me? This is one of the biggest deals we’ve had in a long time, and I’m sure as hell not going to miss out on business we stole from the Labriolas. Those fuckers think they run this town, and I’m sick of it.”
“The truck is all ready to go. Wrench is driving, and Spider and Slime will keep up the flank. I figure you and I will be in the lead.”
“Sounds good to me,” Xavier said, nodding his approval. They’d already had things set up to run smoothly, but it was nice to see his plans carried out in real life. He noticed movement on the water. “There’s the boat now.”
More than a dozen crates marked as motorcycle parts were quickly offloaded from the boat and into the truck. Hardly a word was exchanged between the bikers and the drug runners, because there was no need. The bikers and the men on the boat all carried weapons, and they all knew how this could go down if someone didn’t cooperate. A briefcase full of cash was handed over, and the Reapers fired up their engines.
Xavier led the way. He checked his mirror a couple of times, feeling confident when he saw the old black truck right on their tail. It wasn’t far to the warehouse the Reaper’s Hearts owned, where they would repackage the drugs and sell them at a significant profit. He had plenty of plans for that money, and he knew the president would be pleased. It hadn’t even been difficult to convince the runners to work with him instead of Labriola. Xavier had offered a small percentage over the original price, and there were no further questions after that.
But when he next checked his mirror, he saw something that made his heart drop. A black SUV swung out onto the road behind the last two bikers. There was always a chance that it was an innocent citizen, but Xavier highly doubted it. Someone had given them up, or else the mob had better surveillance than the Reapers imagined. The vehicle rode too closely behind them, and the windows were tinted to match the paint. He threw a signal with his fingers up into the air, one they had practiced well before the mission. It was a sign for them to ride fast, ride close, and follow him even if he veered from the planned route. They had to get this shipment back to the warehouse, where reinforcements would be waiting for them.
Xavier dodged onto a side road without signaling, the truck bumping along after them and the motorcycles close behind. The crack of a gun sounded behind him, and he felt the bullet whiz past his ear. The family was after him and the drugs, but maybe that would at least keep the rest of his men safe. He tucked himself a little lower on the bike to reduce his profile.
He hit another side road, counting on Croc’s quick reflexes not to get in his way. The truck fishtailed as it swerved around the corner, but it stayed on track. There was a good reason Wrench had been chosen to drive. Xavier reached down with one hand to loosen his pistol in his holster, but he knew he would have little chance to shoot it. The Labriolas already had the advantage of being behind them, and if he pulled over it would give them a chance to get out of their vehicle and take them down in less than a minute. If they had been traveling only on their bikes, they could have gotten away easily. The truck and the shipment were holding them back, yet they were the most important part of this mission.
No, his best bet was just to get back to the warehouse as quickly as possible. Several more shots cracked through the air, and he cursed at the situation. He heard the roar of his own engine as he made the last turn and pushed his bike to the limit. They were almost there. But the sound of squealing brakes and crunching metal made a wave of doom crash over him.
The other Reapers had heard them coming, and the overhead door had been opened. He zipped inside, followed almost immediately by the truck, just as the other members closed in on the SUV. It turned tail and zoomed away, the mobsters knowing they were outnumbered now. Several bullets pinged against th
e reinforced glass of the back windows. Crocodile pulled into the building, but there was no sign of Spider or Slime.
Xavier cast an inquiring look at Croc, and he shook his head sadly. “Ran them right off the damn road. They’re gone.”
“Fuck!” His voice echoed in the big building. “Take half the guards with you. Retrieve their bodies and their bikes so we can give them the burial they deserve. The rest of us will stay here and work on this.” But Xavier could no longer think about what a big deal they had done or be happy that they had gotten it back to the warehouse. It had cost them two lives, and they weren’t the first ones to be lost during dealings with the Labriolas. “Those fuckers are going to pay.”
Chapter Nine
Kenzie
Kenzie put her key in the lock and silently slipped into the big house. Her father couldn’t be mad at her for staying out all night, not given what he had tasked her with doing, but she wasn’t ready to deal with him yet. She could only hope that he didn’t expect to drag every detail out of her. She needed a shower and a cup of coffee at the very least, and even then she doubted the jumping feeling in the pit of her stomach would go away.