Filthy Ride: A Motorcycle Club Romance (Iron Bones MC) (Whiskey Bad Boys Book 3)

by Kathryn Thomas

  Her face paled when I said that, but I wasn’t going to make excuses. I didn’t want that pathetic piece of shit anywhere near my woman ever again.

  “We’ll take out the extras,” Quin spoke up. Tanya avoided looking at him. I had the idea that she was terrified of him. Any person in their right mind would be. He was a nasty piece of work, and his size was just the cherry on top.

  “You following?” Butch asked Tanya. He took care to speak to her nicely. Good. He understood what this meant, what she meant, and he knew how I could get if I was protective over someone.

  Tanya nodded. She still looked nervous, but that was good. We wanted her to look scared if Sherman was going to buy the idea that this was real. Rodeo produced a length of rope and tape from somewhere. The guy was good, I had to give him that. I took it from him and the men disappeared.

  “They’re going to set up so they can keep an eye on the place,” I said to Tanya when she watched them walk away. I knew each of them carried heat. We all had guns and knives on us, but I wasn’t going to tell her that. She didn’t have to know until it was absolutely necessary.

  “I’m going to tie you up, okay?”

  She swallowed and nodded.

  “Where do you want me?”

  “Right in the middle, right here. You can sit on the floor if you want, but I’m going to have to make sure you can’t run. Make it look real.”

  She nodded and eyed the tape. I pointed at one of the offices.

  “You see that one, second from the right? I’m going to be right there, and I’m going to be watching you. If anything happens, anything at all, I’m going to come out there and save you. I’m not leaving you.”

  She nodded and swallowed again. I taped her wrists and her ankles together when she sat on the concrete. Her hands were behind her back. I tied a rope around her body, pinning her arms to her sides, and then I put a piece of tape over her mouth.

  “Chances are that he’s going to take this off the moment he sees you,” I said. She nodded, but her eyes were wide and she looked nervous. I kissed her on the forehead.

  “Don’t worry. I’m right here.”

  I looked at my watch. Ten minutes.

  “I’m going over there now. You just wait until you hear them coming, and then you start screaming and squirming.”

  She nodded and made a mumbling sound I couldn’t understand. I touched her hair and then walked away. It was damn near killing me to leave her there on the floor in the dirt like that, but I had to do what I had to do to make all this go away.

  Sherman was early. I was hardly inside that office when a low whistle from one of the guys warned me we had company. It took a while before there was a movement that I could see. I assumed he was stationing men all around. My guys would take care of that; I wasn’t worried about that.

  As if she knew what was going on, Tanya started squirming on the floor, screaming as best she could through that tape. The sound was heartbreaking.

  The little door swung open, and Sherman walked into the room.

  “Tanya, oh my God,” he cried out and ran to her. She squirmed a bit more and whimpered when he got to her. He pulled her to him and fumbled to the edge of the tape over the mouth, ripping it off. She cried out when he did and then started crying. It was a hell of an act, I had to admit.

  “Kenneth,” she sobbed, heaving and hiccupping like she’d been calling for hours. I was impressed.

  “Come on, baby. We’ll get you out of here.”

  “I don’t know where they are,” she said in a strained voice. “What if they come back?”

  Kenneth started fiddling with the knot in the rope. “Don’t worry. I’ve got guys all over the place, making sure it’s clear. I’ll get you out of here.”

  He untied the knot, and the rope slackened and then fell down her arms. He undid the tape on her ankles and then around her wrists. The moment her hands were free, she covered her face and it sounded like she was crying again. Her shoulders shook, and it was hard to believe it was just an act. Maybe it was real, maybe she was really terrified. Her act was that good.

  “Come on, let’s get out of here,” he said, standing up and pulling her with him.

  “Where are we going?”

  “Somewhere far away, baby, where they can’t find you again.”

  He took her hands in his and pulled her closer—as if he wanted to kiss her. There was another low whistle from somewhere above, the signal that all was clear. They’d taken out the guys and it was just me and Sherman now. And it was just in time because he was honing in on my girl and there was no fucking way he was going to touch her with me watching.

  I kicked open the door with a loud bang and strolled out of the office. Sherman looked up at me, startled at first, but then his face changed. Hatred, confidence, and malice, all flickered over his features.

  “Well, if it isn’t Saxon Gage. The Vandal, right?”

  So he’d done his homework on me.

  “Let her go,” I said, and my voice was hard and dangerous.

  Sherman smiled as if he had the upper hand. “This place is surrounded with my men,” he said. “You’re not going to get away with this.”

  It was my turn to smile, and when I did, Sherman’s faltered. Maybe he knew that something was up. Maybe my face told him so.

  He took out a phone and dialed a number, holding it against his ear. He waited, and the longer it took before someone picked up, the more he worried he looked—until it crossed over into desperation.

  “No answer?” I said. “Don’t bother trying the rest.”

  As I said that, my men came walking in one by one. They were alone, no other men being dragged with them. Which meant they’d either knocked them out cold, chased them off, or killed them. I didn’t really care which.

  “Come here, baby,” I said, holding my hand out to Tanya. She looked at Sherman, her face void of all emotion now, and walked away from him, coming right into my arms. Sherman’s face fell, mouth slightly opening as he watched her walk away from him.

  “You set me up?” he asked, looking at her. His face changed quickly from shock to rage. “You bitch,” he shouted.

  “Woah, now you might want to watch your language,” I said. “That’s no way to talk to a lady. You’re outnumbered, and your backup seems to have gone missing. Really, you don’t want to piss me off right now.”

  Sherman looked at Tanya, a mix of longing and hatred on his face.

  “You’re just a diner waitress,” he spat. “You’re never going to amount to anything. And now you’re his toy?”

  I glanced at Tanya to see what effect his words had on her. She still looked like she didn’t care at all.

  “I’m not a diner waitress,” she said. “I wouldn’t set foot in that hellhole again.”

  I nodded at her, kissed her hair, and then took her hand.

  “Baby, why don’t you head on out to the bikes. Quin will go with you so you’re safe, and you wait there while I finish business in here.”

  She nodded, turned to kiss me on the mouth, and then walked out. Quin flanked her like a bodyguard, and I liked the idea of someone going with her to make sure she was safe. Quin wouldn’t touch her, as big as he was. He was still scared of me. There was nothing as dangerous as a man protecting his woman. Sherman watched them walk out and then turned his attention back to me.

  “How do you want to play this?” I asked.

  Sherman’s face changed. All serious business, no trace of fear.

  “I know that we got off on the wrong foot there, but I think we can make a deal. We’re both reasonable guys, right?”

  Butch snorted behind Sherman. Reasonable. He knew me too well. I crossed my arms over my chest, ready to hear what bullshit he was going to sell me.

  “You’re a man of value, I can tell,” Sherman said. “What do you say you name a price, what is my freedom worth?”

  I chuckled. “You want to bribe me to get out of this?”

  Sherman shook his head. “N
ot a bribe, a deal. If you let me go, I’ll give you any amount of cash that you want.”

  Any amount? I eyed him, wondering if he was just talking through his ass. He looked confident and cool, but I knew that he had different sides to him. What is he worth? I wondered. I knew the kind of house he lived in and the kind of business he owned.

  “You’re bullshitting me,” I said after a moment. “I don’t think you have much money to speak of. Are you going to kidnap someone else and hold them for ransom to pay me down if I name my price?”

  Sherman didn’t answer me; he didn’t shake his head; he didn’t look nervous or anything. Instead, he changed his tactic.

  “Look, you and I, we can work together, help each other. I have contacts and I know that you need stepping stones to take care of all the things you and your gang deal with.”

  “Who is this guy?” Rodeo asked me. He stood to Sherman’s side. I shook my head. He shrugged. It was a good point. Iron Bones and all its affiliates didn’t need help from a pansy ass civilian.

  “We can help each other out. You don’t want to get rid of me. My diner is in the middle of a very busy district, and I have all sorts of customers coming in. I can create an income base for you, be some kind of middle man. There are a lot of people coming in who would want what you have to offer.”

  “And what is that?” I asked. Sherman hesitated. He didn’t know as much as he wanted to show. He was just trying to make himself indispensable.

  “You know what I’m talking about,” he said a moment later, back up to speed. I shook my head and laughed. Butch pulled a face.

  “Please,” Sherman changed angles again. “I’m just an innocent bystander. I know I fucked up, but what would you do for someone like Tanya? I was just trying to keep her safe. It’s the same as you’re doing, isn’t it? You can’t punish me for caring.”

  I had to admit, of all his acts the desperate begging was the least attractive.

  I shook my head. “Stop groveling,” I said. “You’re pissing me off.”

  “People are going to come looking for me when I don’t show up. The police are investigating a case for me. If I go missing, they’re going to start looking around, and you know they’re going to come straight to you.”

  I took a deep breath, rolled my eyes, and shifted my weight to my other leg.

  “I have contacts at the bureau,” I said. “I’m sure I can make the investigation go away, and no one’s going to notice you’re gone.”

  Sherman’s face changed, terror showing up for the first time.

  “Do you know what kind of girl you’re getting involved with?” he said. He did not just go there. “Do you think you’re the first guy she’s fucked who came into the diner?”

  I was getting angry. Sherman had been funny when he’d talked about money, amusing when he’d tried to worm his way in as a contact, pathetic when he’d been begging. However, talking about Tanya was something he shouldn’t have done.

  I shook my head and pulled my knife from my pocket. Sherman eyed the silver blade as it popped open.

  “You have to be very careful what you say now,” I said. “Tanya is my girl, and you don’t insult a biker’s girl.”

  “Here, boss, this will work better,” Butch said and produced a gun. I pocketed my knife again and took the gun from Butch, checking the clip before pointing it at Sherman.

  “No, no!’’ he cried and fell to his knees. “Please, I didn’t do anything! You can’t kill me, please!”

  It felt good being at the trigger end of the gun. Sherman had his hands up, and every inch of his dignity was out the window now that he was begging like a fool.

  “You want to run that by me again? What you said about not doing anything?”

  “I fucked up, I’m sorry,” Sherman said. “I shouldn’t have caused her so much trouble. She was asking for it.”

  I walked closer, pushing the gun against his head. He whimpered, body bending forward like a questions mark.

  “Please, I’m sorry. It was all me. I was the one with the issues. I was wrong; she did nothing to deserve it. I’m sorry, please, I’m sorry.”

  “You’re pathetic,” I said, and my finger curled around the trigger. If I squeezed any tighter, he was a dead man. I thought about Tanya and her goodness and her kindness. What would she think of me if I killed him right now?

  I lowered the gun, and Sherman started whimpering again, mumbling something that sounded like a thank you.

  “What are you doing?” Butch asked. I could see the bloodlust in his eyes, the hunger for violence.

  “I’m going out there to take my girl home. I’ll leave you guys to it,” I said.

  Sherman started whimpering again. I walked up to Butch.

  “I don’t want him dead. I want him to remember where the hell he went wrong and what the consequences were. And take his wheels, make sure he has to walk out of this place if he ever wants to go home.”

  Butch looked unhappy with my request, but he was going to do it. I knew that much. If I found out he’d killed Sherman, there would be hell to pay, and Butch knew it. There was a pecking order, and Butch was below me in the hierarchy. I walked away, leaving Sherman with Butch and Rodeo. I heard the first punch being thrown just before I walked out the door.

  Tanya was sitting on my bike, talking to Quin. He was laughing. When he saw me coming, his face sobered.

  “Go on in, they’re playing games,” I said. Quin smiled, as if it was what he’d been waiting for.

  I took Tanya in my arms and pulled her close to me, kissing her hard.

  “All done, baby,” I said. “He’s not going to bother you again.”

  “You didn’t…?” she started, but she couldn’t finish her sentence.

  I shook my head.

  “He’s still alive, and he’ll stay that way. He might have to take some time off from work after they’re done with him, but I doubt he’s going to show face again.”

  She nodded, and she looked relieved. I’d made the right choice. Anything to keep Tanya in my life, to keep her happy.

  “Let’s get out of here,” I said. I got on the bike, and she got on behind me, leaning on my back. Her warmth seeped through me, as if I’d been frozen without her, and I started my bike, the sound overpowering everything else. I pulled into the scorching heat, following the trail we’d used to get here back to the main road.

  “Are we going to the cabin?” she asked.

  “We’re going home,” I answered.

  CHAPTER 36

  We finally got home just before dawn. We’d stopped twice on the way home because I hadn’t been able to sit on the back of a bike for so many hours straight on end. Saxon hadn’t complained about it, acted like I was weak, or gotten upset about my taking extra time. In fact, he’d been very caring, as if I needed extra care and attention.

  And the fact was, I really had. The events of the past couple of days were starting to hit me. Only now, but that was probably because it was all over and I was starting to relax and think about it. I wouldn’t say that I was in shock, but I was close to it. I had hot and cold flashes, and the two times we stopped, I kept looking over my shoulder. I was edgy, and when Saxon caught me off guard, I jumped.

  He was understanding. It didn’t fit his profile as a biker at all to be so caring and compassionate, but a lot of things didn’t fit the stereotype in our relationship anymore.

  And I was willing to call it that. A relationship. If he was willing to drive all the way to come and get me, and to make a plan to stop Kenneth from coming after me, I doubted he was going to just leave again after that. You didn’t just make that kind of effort for the people you cared about.

  He took me home to my apartment. When I walked in the door, Margo flew to me and grabbed me in a hug that was so tight it was almost a chokehold.

  “You scared me to death,” she said. I hugged her back.

  “I’m sorry.” It was an apology, but none of it had been my fault. I was just sorry she’d worried.


  Saxon came into the apartment behind me, and Margo let go of me, looking at him.

  “Thank you for bringing her back,” she said to him.

  “I take it you’ve met?” I asked. She nodded.

  “He’s been around to check on you. That’s how he found out you weren’t home, that something had happened. But not officially, I’m Margo.” She held her hand out to Saxon. He took it and shook it.

  “Nice to know your name.”

  I looked at Saxon and he nodded at me, a smile curling around his lips. My body grew warm. I hadn’t realized how much he really cared.