Watching her sleeping, I thought of her lying on the ground bleeding. I’d thought I lost her, and those few minutes, well, they about killed me.
I woke Emery up. “You alright?”
She felt her forehead. “I think I need to get cleaned up.”
I handed her my canteen. I’d already cleaned her up some while she was sleeping.
“Little girl’s room?”
I pointed to the woods, and Emery scowled before disappearing.
When she got back the sun was setting, the sky streaked with yellows on dark blue but not a cloud to be seen. “What do you think about this one?”
“As beautiful as any other,” she said, but I was looking at her beauty as she got that twinkle in her eye.
“Still say you need some clouds.” Even with the gash in her head, she was breathtaking as usual.
Emery sat back on the blanket. I moved to sit with her but she scooted away. Fuck! She’d seen me slit Dixie wide open. Did it scare her? I tried to put my arm around her.
She shrugged me off and got up to stand. “That woman back there…”
I hung my head. “Didn’t choose this life, it chose me. You knew I was a killer.” I looked at her dead on. “Why didn’t you shoot her?”
“I didn’t want to shoot one of your friends again.” Emery gave me a sullen look. Her voice shook, “I walk after California, right?”
“Walk right now if you want.”
Fuck—she turned around and walked. I waited, but a man can only wait so long. I followed her, caught up with her and slung her over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes, taking her back to camp. Emery fought, that fire in her flickering once again. Hell, she fought and hollered so much I went to my bike for my chain. I sat her down and wrapped the length around her, tying her to a big tree.
“You gonna kill me too?”
“Thought that’s what you wanted.” I regretted the words soon as I’d said them.
“Fuck you,” she all but spat.
I softened, “I’m not going to kill you.”
“Yeah, really? I know about Halley.”
I glared at her. What did she know? Just when I thought I was sure… Had I been wrong about her again? Was she really after me and mine? “What the fuck do you know?”
“I’m not stupid. I can put two and two together. You need a hundred grand to save your woman, and I’m worth that much.”
“My woman? You’re my woman,” I bellowed, barely believing my roar.
“No, Scar. I heard the Banshee, even though I tried to tell myself it wasn’t true. Then I heard you on the phone with Halley and her captor. Why else would you need me to go to California?”
“You don’t understand.”
“Sure I do. I have myself all figured out. I’m too easy. I fall too easy. I fell for a killer.”
“I’m not going to kill you.”
“Don’t matter. Mark my words, I’ll be dead before you can trade me off for your whore. I won’t make it back to Manul alive.”
“You’re wrong. Halley’s my baby sister.”
Emery looked like she didn’t believe me.
“Listen here. Sons of Satan MC, Serpentine, their Prez—the one who did this.” I lifted my shirt to remind her the nasty mess I was. “He killed my parents and took her. She was only five. It’s been ten goddamn years since I found out she was still breathing. Known she needed me. I promised my mother I’d take care of her, and I’ve failed. Instead, I’ve been a good solider. For ten fucking years I’ve listened to my President make excuse after excuse for not being able to go in guns blazing and rescue a little girl from Satan. Do you know how insane that is?” I hit the tree beside her head, scaring her even more. “But I’ve finally woken up. It only took years on my own to do it. I’m rescuing her. The General don’t own me. I’m not one of them.” I was breathing hard, saying more than she’d even been looking for.
Emery’s eyes were wide. “So, you’re not trading me in.”
“No.” I kicked the dirt. “I’m not saying I didn’t think about it, but I was a damned fool to. You killed my friend, and fuck, I don’t know why the hell the mob is after you but I’m not trading you. I’m fixing to kill the devil. Then I’m leaving the Gods for good. Halley and I weren’t made for this life.” We were meant to live the kind of life my parents had. No killing, or orders, or double crossing bullshit. I had Emery tied to a tree for god’s sake. I was tired of a fucked up life. I let Emery out of the chain. “You could come with me.”
Emery shook her head.
“Is that a no?”
She rubbed her arms where I’d hurt her. “It doesn’t matter because I’m doomed anyhow. I’m broken. I don’t know if I want to live most days.”
“Life without the Gods won’t be easy. I’ll have to become someone new.” I took a breath. “You could disappear too.”
“Manul will always find me.”
“So what’s your plan? Give up and die? Or do you want to fight?”
She showed me her arms littered in cuts and the jagged scar in her wrist, the one I’d sewn up. “I’m losing the battle.” Tears stained her eyes and she looked upset she couldn’t stop them.
“Look at my scar.” I lifted my shirt to show her. “I survived.”
“But, I’ve always been weak. There’s only so much a person can take. Manul’s ruined the last eight years of my life and plans to ruin the rest of it. I’d rather die.”
Bones and Cowboy were back with food, their headlights highlighting Emery’s tear streaked face. “We ride to El Paso tonight. You coming?”
“Do I have a choice?” Emery wiped at her face, trying to pull herself back together.
“Nope.”
Our brothers were waiting for us in Horizon City, but we made it to El Paso with only a few stops and no trouble. I was beginning to think we’d left trouble far behind but that’s what I got for thinking. Trouble was riding our way in the form of the Coyote Ghosts MC. Fuck—I sort of liked my scalp. What were they doing down from Oklahoma?
“Looks like we’ve been followed,” I said as Bones got off his bike. I wanted to run. We were outside the hotel we’d planned on staying in for the rest of the night and day in until we rode on to catch Polecat before he made it to the Texas clubhouse. There went our plans.
Cowboy shut off his engine too.
“What the hell are you thinking?” I was about to peel out of there with Emery when Cowboy stopped me.
“Chill out. Bones called them.”
“What the fuck?” The Coyote Ghosts weren’t supposed to mess with us anymore, nor us them.
“They’re going to run interference for us. Cause a ruckus tomorrow night.”
“What about the truce?”
“As long as they don’t shed blood, they aren’t breaking it. I can’t control what our brothers will do, though.” Bones lit a smoke, shaking the match out. Talking out of the side of his mouth, he said, “Relax.”
“Why would they help us?”
“You’re not the only one who trades favors. We’ve got to survive and sometimes counting on the club isn’t enough. They’ve been good to us in Louisiana.” He added, “It’s the General who agreed to the truce anyhow. Why shouldn’t we do business? Plus, they’d love to see Serpentine dead.” Bones’ big grin said he’d like it too.
As I mulled over the fact he’d told others I planned to kill Serpentine, Bones saluted them as they pulled in beside us. There were only four of them. We were greeted by a silent nod, and Bones handed Bald Beak a brown paper package—drugs or money one. Favor my ass. He was buying us some help.
Bones smirked, and I shrugged. Whatever.
“Like your bike,” one of them told me. His cut read Cujo. He was talking about my Indian, and I didn’t know if he was serious or not. Their center pie was much like the emblem on my bike, but they all rode Harleys. Not one feather or long hair among them, they were all Native American—had to be to be a member. They wouldn’t stay to party, as Cowboy suggested.
When they drove off, I asked Bones what was in the package, not that I cared if he was selling drugs off the books.
“I cleaned something for him.”
“Gross,” Cowboy coughed. I’d been thinking it too. Bones had a bin of flesh eating bugs at home that helped in his collection of his namesake.
“You mean he gave you something to clean?” Cowboy asked, still grossed out, something meaning a body part.
Bones nodded, smiling.
I told him, “Man, next thing you know we’ll be calling you Hannibal.”
“Hell no. I don’t eat the flesh. That’s what the bugs are for.”
“Speaking of Hannibal.” Cowboy wanted to talk about our plan.
“Speaking of pussy.” Bones wanted to go to a strip club since we weren’t going to the clubhouse. “We’ll talk in the morning.”
“You two go on. I’ve got my pussy.”
Emery slapped my back. “Is that what I am?” She pouted as they rode away.
“No, but I plan on fucking you so good you beg to come away with me.” I kissed her, and we made our way to our room. Bones had checked us in this nice hotel with one of his business accounts. One I’m sure the club didn’t know about. He wouldn’t have risked us being found. I cleared my head and concentrated on Emery’s ass swaying in front of me. I’d thought I’d needed a drink, but now I wanted to bury my head somewhere else.
Chapter 7
Emery
I knew he was looking at my ass and that was fine by me. He’d said he planned to fuck me so good, I’d come away with him. It was the sweetest thing a man had ever said to me, that hadn’t been a lie. I hoped it wasn’t a lie. Scar didn’t give me a chance to freshen up. Sweaty from the ride as well, he was kissing me right through door. His tongue twirled in my mouth as he clutched the back of my hair. His other hand squeezed my ass, but my pussy felt it. Before long, we were against the wall, him tugging down my leather pants. Scar’s warm breath hit my clit first. Then his tongue flicked it, turning me on even more. Then his tongue snaked in and out of me, causing me to unravel. I grabbed at his hair, feeling like I would come already. He came up, looking at me with his hazel eyes like he would devour me.
Scar was a big guy, six foot two inches of pure rippling muscle. He took off his shirt, exposing his scar that ran down his torso but also the tattoos that made him even hotter in my book. I went for his belt, not the delicious v of muscle that led down to what I craved but his leather one, undoing it with a fever. I wanted his cock in my mouth. He was happy to help as I sunk to my knees and swallowed as much of it as I could. Sucking and slurping him in and out of my mouth, I enjoyed him petting my head in appreciation.
Scar twisted my hair in his big hands and helped move me along, my mouth up and down on his dick until he was hitting the back of my throat. He pulled me away completely, trapping me against the wall with his huge body. “I need inside of you.” His voice was husky and serious. It made my stomach knot. He took off my shirt and bra, in between passionate kisses. “Are you ready to be convinced?”
“Yes,” I breathed.
Scar picked me up, his arms under my knees. He pressed me into the wall as he inched his cock into me extremely slow, making my breath hitch with each movement. “I thought I’d lost you today.”
I’d been thinking about that too. I’d tried to die so many times but when Dixie fired her gun, I didn’t want to die. Even though I’d thought he planned to trade me off, I longed to really be his woman.
Scar had me impaled against the wall, whispering in my ear, “Could you love a man like me, scar and all?”
“Could you love a mess like me, with all mine?”
“You first.” He thrust forward hard, hitting some button that turned me into a blubbering idiot.
“Oh, yes.” I’d been answering his question, sure, but the ride had also begun. I held onto his back as he pounded my pussy so hard I would have a cuntcussion in the morning. I wrapped my legs around him, giving him deep access as I floated on a wave of ecstasy. Soon, he was slowing like he was going to erupt, and I was bubbling over myself. He pulled out quickly setting me to my feet, strangely coming on my leg instead.
I went to the bed still naked. Collapsing beside me nude as well, Scar pulled me to him. I snuggled in close, whispering, “You didn’t answer.”
“Answer what?” He sounded out of breath.
I felt just as wore out, trying to catch mine. “About if you could love me with all my scars.”
His hands were running down my arms, then down my belly. “None of these make me love you any less.”
My eyes watered. Did he say he loved me? Just hours ago, I thought he planned to trade me away for his one true love.
Scar wiped at my tears. “What’s wrong? Not convinced yet?”
“Not convinced yet,” I said jokingly with a laugh, grabbing his half flaccid cock. “Too bad you aren’t ready to go again.”
I ran my hand over his scar.
He stopped me. “Don’t.”
I didn’t listen. I touched it again. “You were stronger than that evil man. And you’ll get your sister back.”
Scar kissed my forehead. “After a nap, I’ll convince you to come with us.”
“Did you say you love me?”
“I must. I don’t even know who you are, but I branded you, didn’t I?”
Smiling, I snuggled in closer, barely believing how much my life could change so quickly.
“So, who are you Emery, and why did you want to die?”
I had to think about that. I wasn’t really sure who I was anymore. In Scar’s safe arms, his loving arms, I thought about my horrible past.
They shot my daddy dead on my front porch when I was fourteen. I didn’t see who. Daddy had stepped outside. I’d pulled back the drapes, looking out the front window when I heard the shots to see him crash against the front door. Lifeless, he slid down our white door with the tiny three rectangle windows, leaving a smear of blood on his way down. A black Cadillac car sped away. Manul was my stepdaddy the next week. He was exotic, brown and handsome with a smile to blind you, but he had an all-American accent. My mother was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed former beauty queen, hairdresser who’d just recently lost her gambler of a husband in a rain of gunfire. Go figure. Manul sent my brother clutching a wad of cash to live with the only other family we had, my mother’s brother in Reno, my crazy Uncle, but me, he wanted me to stay with him and my mother. I found out soon I was part of his collection.
From the beginning at Manul’s estate, I felt like just another blonde in the house, allowed to drink and party with everyone else since my mother was too busy for me anymore. I’d felt like Manul was collecting blonde women because it was never just my mother and me in the house. It was like he had a harem of fair women at his disposal. But my mother had told me more than once that she was Manul’s wife on paper, saying that kept us safe, and that was all that mattered. I’d remembered being scared my whole life but not much else, so the thought comforted me too.
Needless to say, I grew up quick, getting to do whatever I pleased. Manul never bothered me, but I could always tell he wanted to. The fact didn’t bother me enough. It was the way he looked at me. He’d buy me expensive revealing clothes then he’d be undressing me with his eyes. At least because he wanted to, he didn’t let any of his thugs.
My family had never been well off and now we were rich. It went to my mother’s head, then her nose, then her veins and finally her heart. My mother threw herself off a cliff at Manul’s home in Greece after I turned sixteen. All my hopes of living a normal life went over those cliffs with her. The next year was hell. Manul who usually traveled a lot, wouldn’t leave his Florida home, my home, and wouldn’t let up trying to woe me even the short weeks after my mother’s death. It was creepy as hell, and being a broken mess, there was no way for me to escape him. Gone were the hordes of women and all night parties. His men would roam the house as usual, but Manul would try his best to lure me into his bed, first
for comfort then for other things. But he never forced me. Finally, when I was seventeen, I gave in and became his dirty whore.
I couldn’t blame losing both my parents, my lack of an upbringing or Manul’s intimidation— it was because I was weak. I was tired of fighting him and maybe too scared to really fight. Not only weak, I was angry with my dad and mom, they’d left me with emptiness. The new experience of sex filled the void. The worst part was I enjoyed fucking Manul. He made me feel special. I’d not been special to anyone ever before. After another year of secretly fucking my stepfather, I thought I had him wrapped around my finger. For once in my life, I was no longer living in fear. But all that changed when I really fell in love.
Derayn, one of my stepfather’s guards would take me out to fire guns, out for pizza, watch movies with me when Manul finally got back to his usual routine and was traveling. I wasn’t allowed to go stay with my friends and few came to see me. Derayn asked me more than once why I didn’t just kill Manul in his sleep. Being a thug, the solution was simple to him. Eventually, we were sleeping together whenever Manul was away. He told me if I found a way to walk out the front door, him and his men wouldn’t stop me and he’d come find me. We’d run away together, be anonymous. Travel the world ourselves. One day after my high school graduation, I got up the nerve to tell Manul I was going out of state to college with my friend Vickie. He said he’d kill me if I left. I shot his bodyguard dead the next day, told him I’d kill him too if he didn’t let me leave. I walked out the door confident Derayn would let me leave. Him and his men rushed to Manul but didn’t bother me. I got into Vickie’s car with an AK 47 in my hands.
Seven Sunsets (Asphalt Gods MC Book 2) Page 6