He leaned in and whispered in my ear. “You hear that? You are not alone. You do not have to do this on your own, Liza. We are all here for you.”
“Maybe you should take her upstairs,” Charlie suggested when my body sagged heavily against Tango, the grief too much for me to bear alone. My brother had screwed up more than once, but he was still the boy who made me sandwiches when we were home alone because our parents were at work. He was the same big brother who walked me to school every day even though his school was two blocks closer than mine. He had looked out for me all of our lives before that big screw up when we were younger, and now this. I couldn’t stop my heart from aching knowing that he proudly left this life thinking he was protecting me.
A part of me wanted to be angry with Michelle for putting our family in this situation, but I couldn’t because the heart wants what the heart wants. I knew that first hand now. Never in a million years did I think that I would ever willingly be able to be around an MC. Here I was, in love with a member, and loving the rest of them in their own special way.
Tango pulled me closer to the stairs, but before we moved to go up I turned to the guys who were still gathered around and watching us. “Thank you all,” I started, but had to clear my throat as emotion choked me. “Thank you for taking me in and for going there today to deal with those monsters. It means everything to me that you all did that.” I didn’t have it in me to say anything more, and from the looks of the faces staring back at me it had been enough anyway.
Once we were in the bedroom Tango sat me down and took my boots off my feet. Then he pulled my socks off, and continued like that until I was just in my panties. He tucked me in bed under the covers, and leaned in to place a gentle kiss on my forehead. “I need to go get a shower and wash the road off of me. You gonna be okay while I do that or do you want me to call Charlie up here to sit with you?”
“I’ll be fine,” I stated with no emotion. It all seemed to have clogged up inside me somewhere. “I need to call Michelle. Does she know?”
Tango gave me a sympathetic look then before nodding his head. “She was told just a little bit ago.”
“Okay,” I offered up a weak smile. “I should still call her, I think. See what she wants to do about…” I couldn’t say his name, but I also couldn’t call what was left of my brother ‘the body’.
“Why don’t you wait until I get back out here and I’ll sit with you while you make that call.”
“Okay.” I agreed as I felt the weight of the day pressing in on me.
~*~
Two days later the men and women of the Aces High MC – Dakotas Chapter, and the visiting members who still hadn’t gone home, all gathered with me out back where Tango had set up a memorial service for my brother. Crusher and Vanquish had taken the U-Haul the day before with my brother in it – inside a casket this time – to head back to Tallahassee where he would be received by my sister-n-law. She didn’t want to go back to Reno in case there were still any members of King’s Demons or men who would suffer as a result of their sex trafficking ring being closed down for good. I couldn’t blame her. I didn’t want to ever set foot in Reno again. As a matter of fact Tango was taking Fox and Rabbit out to Reno next week to close down my brother’s shop for him, and take care of packing up his things.
Today was for mourning though. It was touching that they were doing all of this for me. I couldn’t be there for the actual funeral that Michelle had planned, because the guys weren’t completely sure that Guy was on the up-and-up. They didn’t want to take the chance of us leading them back to Michelle in Tallahassee just yet. Eventually, I’d be able to go visit, though probably not until after my niece or nephew was born.
We were standing by the table that had refreshments laid out on it when the guys from Charleston walked up. “We just wanted to pass along our condolences again before we head out,” Double-D told me.
“You guys are leaving?”
“Yeah, there’s something going on with my youngest daughter. My wife told me to get my ass back yesterday.”
“Well, what are you doing here? Get going! Your wife and daughter need you.” Double-D grinned at me then before glancing behind me at Tango who was positioned at my back.
“You got a keeper there, Brother. Don’t let go of that.”
“Don’t intend to,” Tango informed him.
“Let’s get back,” T-Bone finally told his dad. “Anna’s never in trouble. I wonder what the hell she’s done that has mom in a tizzy?”
“Don’t know,” he answered his son with a worried look on his handsome face. “Better get going so we can find out sooner rather than later though.”
“Thank you, again, for coming here to help out with my problems.”
Double-D offered up a brilliant flash of straight white teeth. “No need to thank us, honey, that’s what family does.”
His words hurt my heart even though they weren’t intended to. My brother hadn’t just sacrificed himself for me. He’d given me a place to be and people to love before he left too. I wished I could see him one more time to tell him how proud I was of the man he had become. My anger was all gone now; replaced with the knowledge that he had put me in the best place I could possibly be to weather his loss. After meeting the guys from Tallahassee, I had no doubt that Michelle was being well cared for too.
Chapter 17
LIZA
“What can I do for you, babe?”
“Just love me,” I stated as he climbed in the bed behind me and curled his naked body around mine.
“I already do love you,” he told me as he brushed my hair aside and placed tantalizing kisses along my hairline at the nape of my neck. I immediately shivered as the euphoric feeling sent chills up and down my spine. “You want me lovin’ you like this or you need something more?”
“More,” I panted out huskily. My body had its own demands and apparently it was speaking for me.
Tango backed away momentarily before rolling me onto my back. He then climbed up over top of me and leaned in to kiss my lips while probing my mouth gently with his tongue until I opened for him. We hadn’t had the chance for intimacy since before he left for Casper, because there was just too much to do and too much sadness weighing me down besides. There was a bit of guilt too, because I could do this and my brother would never get to be with his woman again. The flip side of my own argument was that he died so I could live. I wasn’t living if I was too guilty to do all the things that made life worth it.
“Where’d you go babe?” Tango’s smooth voice rolled over me in a low-level grumble that awoke a hunger I couldn’t argue away.
“Sorry,” I whispered. “I’m here, with you. Just remembering and reminding myself that it’s okay to keep on living.”
He made a weird noise before blanketing my entire body with his far larger one. “We don’t have to do this,” he stated as he moved to roll us both to the side facing one another.
“I want to.” It was a simple statement followed by my lips on his this time, and me pushing my naked, warm bodies closer to his yet again. I tossed my leg over his hip bringing us even closer and opening me up to him. Tango wasted no time, and pushed inside. I wrapped around him, breasts squished into his chest, left arm trapped beneath us, and my right moving its way up his backside as he pumped slowly in and out of me. We didn’t have the best angle, but we had a level of intimacy in this position that I had never experienced with anyone before. I trailed my hand down his back once more feeling the muscles work as he moved us. Once his taut ass was beneath my palm I squeezed and pulled, effectively signaling to him that I wanted to roll into a different position.
He obliged my needs, and moved with me, lifting my leg up into the cradle of his arm as he went. Tango, having a better position for it, started thrusting deeper into me, leaving me nearly breathless as he plunged in on a sharp down stroke and then pulled back out so very slowly. Each movement was a tease that took me closer to my release as he dragged back over that sp
ot inside that demanded all the attention, but wasn’t quite getting there.
“T, I need…” I started to say, but his mouth came back down on me as he changed things up and swiveled his hips on the down stroke. When he pulled back from the kiss he was grinning like a loon.
“Do I have your attention now?” He asked as he did the hip swivel thing once again. I nodded my head enthusiastically causing him to laugh. “Good.” No more words accompanied that one as he picked up the pace and began thrusting in and out of me in earnest. My hands found his smooth, hard glutes and held on as he brought me to the point of no return and thrust once more tipping me over the edge. Tango followed behind me the warmth that shot into my body a reminder of the fact that we hadn’t stopped to use protection.
“Shit,” he hissed out after he pulled away a little to look into my eyes. “I didn’t use anything.”
“It’s okay. I don’t think it’s a particularly good time of the month for me to get pregnant.”
“That may be, but I want to get tested so that you know you’re safe.”
“T, you already told me I’m the first woman you’ve actually had sex with in over two years. I’m pretty sure you would have fixed anything you had by now.” I was teasing him, but it was true. The man hadn’t indulged in that way, and I didn’t think there was much danger from the few blowjobs he’d received either. If anything he should be worried about me, because I’d had definitely had one night stands here and there over the past couple of years. Not that I ever did without protection, but still. “If it makes you feel better, we can both go this week.”
“Yeah, we should do that, because babe, I never want to use a condom again with you. That felt incredible.”
“Have you never?” I couldn’t even finish the whole question, because jealousy kicked in and I didn’t want to think about him being with another woman, let alone the fact that he was about to propose to one before.
“Never been without before,” he confirmed quickly, probably sensing my discomfort.
“Oh,” was all I could manage to get out before he hopped off the bed and headed toward the bathroom.
“Be right back,” he announced. It was strange to think that we were both grown adults and yet we had just experienced a first together. When he got back with a washcloth in hand I told him as much.
“I’ve never done that either,” I admitted.
He just smiled and went to work cleaning me up between my legs. A part of me wanted to be embarrassed to have a man cleaning me up in that way, but he’d been the one to make the mess, and in such a wonderful way that I couldn’t complain or pull away from him no matter my slight discomfort. When he was done he tossed the rag on top of a small pile of clothes sitting off in the corner waiting to be laundered. Then Tango climbed in bed on the other side and pulled me to him so that my back was flush to his front.
“What the hell?” I giggled.
“I’m not laying in the wet spot, and neither are you. Lucky for us the bed is plenty big and we both fit on this side.” I had to chuckle at that. It was sound logic, and something I hadn’t thought of in my post bliss, worry-free moments.
“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do now,” I finally admitted to him. I felt Tango tense up behind me.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I was brought here and you guys were supposed to protect me, but I don’t know where I fit now. Am I supposed to go back to Reno?”
“Do you want to?” His voice was thick with something left unsaid as he asked the question so I turned to face him in order to see his reaction.
“I don’t. I don’t think I can ever go back there again.” His hands started rubbing up and down along my back easing some of the worry and tension that had taken up residence there again so quickly.
“Then you don’t have to. I don’t want you to. Liza, I thought I’d made it clear that I wanted you to be mine, to be here, with me.”
“I want that too, T. More than anything,” I admitted before he leaned in and took my lips in his.
“That’s settled then,” he stated clearly. “I actually had a plan to take you back to Reno this week to go pack up some of your stuff, and see to your brother’s place,” he informed me. “If you don’t think you can do that I can take Rabbit with me instead and go get everything done.”
“Are you sure that wouldn’t be too much of a bother?”
“Are you kidding? No, it’s not a bother, babe. The worst part if it will be leaving you behind while I go.”
“Aww, I thought the sweet talk was what you were supposed to before trying to get naked with me,” I teased.
Tango moved back just enough so that he could slap the top portion of my ass. “Yeah, well, I don’t always do the things the way everyone else does.”
“Thank God for that,” I mumbled causing him to laugh once more.
“Nah, more like, thank God for bringing you to me.”
“Aww, T.” I leaned in and took his mouth with mine this time. The man was just too much sometimes. My heart once again felt conflicted. This man before me was everything and he made me so damn happy. Still, the death of my brother haunted me, and the sadness permeated. Sensing my mixed emotions Tango held me tighter.
“It’s okay to keep on missing him and be happy with your life all at the same time. He brought you here, to me, to my club, to this place where you found a new home. Celebrate that with his memory, babe. I think that’s what he wanted for you all along.”
Tears poured down my cheeks as he spoke, because it was the same thought that had kept me sane just days ago. My brother was never one to be mistaken for a psychic, but it seemed like he knew a little something in advance when he placed me in this situation with Tango. “I’m in love with you,” I finally told T while looking into his eyes with my own tear-blurred pair.
“That’s good to hear, babe, because I am completely gone for you.”
“What am I going to do now though? I mean, besides staying here. I used to work for my brother when I wasn’t doing side jobs with the book covers and graphic design.”
“I’m glad you asked, because I have been meaning to talk to you about coming to work for me. You can have the office in the back that isn’t being used. When you’re not working on the books or designs with me you can still use the space for working on your covers and whatnot.”
I sat up a little then. “Seriously?”
“Yeah, babe. Kills two birds with one stone. You have a job and space to work and I get to have you close by during the day too.”
“You’re going to get sick of me,” I stated.
“Nah, if I’m ever feeling like it’s too crowded in there I’ll just shut the door to the office, bend you over the desk, and remind us both why it’s a great fuckin’ idea.” I laughed as I playfully smacked his chest.
“You are too much.”
“Nah, babe. I’m just enough for you. That’s all that matters.”
“I can’t argue with that.” I didn’t, in fact, argue with that. Instead, I leaned in and kissed him deeply. I wanted to commit the moment to memory and savor every juicy detail for the rest of my life. Tango was the man I had never dared to dream of, because I never thought my dreams deserved to come true. I still didn’t think I’d earned him. Instead, I felt as though I was lucky enough to be just what he wanted and needed right now, and I was beyond okay with my lot in life. So long as my lot kept him coming back to me day and night I’d have no complaints.
The End
Tango
(7 months later)
Glancing into Tango’s eyes I saw the way they crinkled at the corners with his amusement. He knew I was up to no good. Hell, pretty much everyone who had spent time with me over the past seven months had gotten used to my bullshit.
“Just give it to me!” My voice came out in a weird mix of far-too-happy and whiney that was making everyone around us laugh. They all knew something was coming too.
“I don’t trust you,” Rabbit i
nformed me.
“Mwah? Little old me?” I gasped in mock-horror at his revelation. “Why ever not?” I asked in an affected southern accent that was truly a horrible impersonation of Scarlett O’Hara from Gone With the Wind.
Rabbit quirked a brow and then grinned at me. “Frankly, my dear,” he started, but then he couldn’t hold a straight face either. “Fine! Go ahead and show me this fabulous thing you learned today.”
“Yippee!” I shouted as I clapped my hands together while bouncing up and down on the stool in glee.
“Oh, you learned how to ride T’s cock? Sweetheart, we all knew that. Heard you both earlier today.” Rabbit winked at me while slinging a beer to Shameless who had to know he’d walked too far into the danger zone to back out now.
I narrowed my eyes on Rabbit. “I already knew how to do that just fine, thank you. Give me a cherry, a lime, two…” I stopped to think about it. “No, three pint glasses and two shot glasses.” I did some fictitious math in my head and then smiled at the man who had become one of my best friends along with Charlie and a woman who danced at Renegade Ruby’s named Cherry. Rabbit eyed me suspiciously once again, and then did as I asked.
I proceeded to set up the three pint glasses in a row, and then I placed the two shot glasses on top of the pint glasses, balancing them where the rims of the glasses were almost close enough to kiss one another. Then I took the lime wedge – a nice fat, juicy one – and the cherry. I popped the stemmed maraschino in my mouth, made a production of chewing it up and swallowing while still holding the lime all innocent-like. Then I asked Rabbit to spritz some soda into the glasses while avoiding the shot glasses on top since he had banned me from touching the spray nozzles for the soda and seltzer. He did as asked, and then I asked him to pour some 151 Rum into the shot glasses on top. I teased Rabbit with a hint of cherry stem between my front teeth before I murmured one word. “Ready?”
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot: Aces High MC (Aces High MC - Dakotas Book 2) Page 16