He pulled out of her and then rolled from the bed, pausing to remove a condom she was glad to see. She watched him tug his jeans up from where they had settled on his thighs, fastening them partway, leaving the top button and belt undone before he prowled from the room. She moved to her side, then the edge of the bed, looking around with a shake of her head to see her clothing scattered on the floor all around. Exquisite.
Dressing quickly, she was tucking her tee into the waist of her jeans when he reentered the room, a dark scowl on his face. He jerked his head to the front of the house where she caught individual voices speaking low, not able to make out words, but thought she heard four or five men. “Slate,” was all he said, but the fact his jeans were done up and belt fastened said enough. He had gotten shit for fucking her, which meant this conversation wouldn’t be going the way she wanted. Fuck.
With a nod, she made to move past him, but his hand shot out, gripping her arm. She set her eyes to that connection, and then slowly lifted them to his face, amazed when she found only concern and no regret there. “It’s not bad, Katie.”
She felt her mouth twist sideways, and then deliberately swiped her tongue across her lips. “Not in that bed anymore, Domino.” His head jerked backwards slightly, brows drawing together, and then his face relaxed as he grinned, lips turning up in a sexy way that made her shiver.
“Still in my bedroom, Katie.” Persistent. Damn. Dropping his head, he pressed his lips to hers. “I claim dibs on your name in my bed, bedroom, house, on my bike. You’ll get Annie when we’re out.” In her shock, she didn’t fight him when he pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. “You get Nathan any fuckin’ time you want, baby. Long as you want.”
“Dibs? What the fuck?” she muttered with her cheek pressed against his chest, which seemed to limit the effectiveness of her retort because he laughed. When he did, she found herself snuggling a bit closer, liking the rumble. “Give me Annie when your brothers are in your house.” She made this ask softly, hoping it took any sting out because she found she liked more than that rumble. She wanted this whole thing, the entire Nathan she’d found tonight.
“I’ll give you that,” he responded quietly, and then his arms tightened around her once, twice, before he released her. Tipping his head down, he looked into her eyes, expression serious. “Slate’s got news on your girl. One of my brothers picked up the guy, a local dealer. Not a friend. Not club. We’re going to take you to our clubhouse, and you decide the play you want. You’ll be the shot caller. You want it, you have the trigger. You can deal with the trash or I can. Either way he’s fucking done. You up for that, baby?”
“Yes. Fuck. Fuck, yes.” Her answer was immediate, and he nodded. Arms falling away, he turned towards the door, and then grinning, looked back over his shoulder at her. “Annie, got your gun?”
That damn grin started a fire in her belly, but she shoved that down. Time to deal, take care of shit. Honor her sister. Give respect. Coates deserved it, she would give it. With a somber nod, she gave it back to him. Taking the hand he had reached out, she threaded her fingers securely through his. “Fuck yeah, always. You got it, Nathan.”
Chapter Six
Domino
He stood, watching with pride as Katie dealt with the men in his kitchen. She hit the absolutely right combination of strength and deference, letting everyone in the room know she understood the respect they were offering her with this but holding her own in the conversation. Deke flicked a glance his way and winked, which was better than his reaction earlier, when Domino had walked into the kitchen having obviously just fucked the woman he was supposed to be protecting. That had been the start of what would probably have been an epically blistering set-down, but he’d put a halt to that with one word, “Mine.”
Not a day had passed since Dionne died that he hadn’t mourned her. He would still have that sadness, because they’d been good together. She’d liked being married to a cop, liked the feeling of being protected by who he was, by his brothers in blue. What she hadn’t liked were the hours, the danger, and the way corruption on the force churned in his belly. She had still been what he’d needed her to be, a cop’s wife, kissing him goodbye every time he left the house, knowing it might be the last time.
The wreck had changed everything for him. Already teetering on the cusp of leaving the force, he’d been growing increasingly unwilling to give any of his time and blood to an organization run by the kind of crooks they were supposed to be putting in jail, when the accident that killed Dionne had pushed him to make a move. Once he was out of rehab and cleared for work, he’d resigned, taking the stipend they’d offered. Quitting hadn’t fixed his problems, because without working, all he’d done was look at want ads daily, never finding anything that fed his sense of wanting to make a difference.
Then Grant waltzed in, grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and forced him to look at his life in a way he really didn’t want, but needed. His brother had come back as Deke, the persona fitting him like a second skin, and he’d brought Rebel members with him that Nathan knew and respected.
A week later Deke had come back again, dragging Nathan to a dealership to buy a replacement bike for the one mangled in the wreck, telling him it was like riding horses; you had to get right back on. Even with his brother there as support, climbing on the bike had been one of the hardest things Nathan had ever done, and his palms had been so sweaty they’d slipped on the grips. But he’d done it, and in the end realized his brother was right. Dionne had enjoyed riding, not as much as he did, but she would have hated to know he’d quit because of her.
She’d have hated a lot of things I’ve done over the last few years.
His gaze settled on Katie again and he felt the corners of his mouth curling up. Hot as a firecracker in bed, and as different from Dionne as night is from day. His thoughts didn’t mean Dionne wasn’t passionate. She’d been an active participant in everything he’d wanted to do, but she’d always let him lead the way. Dionne would have liked her. Not something he’d be saying to Katie soon, if ever. No woman would want to know her man—he grinned at the words in his head, her man—was holding her up against a previous partner, no matter the outcome of the comparison. But believing that eased the tinge of guilt he’d carried into that bedroom with them.
His next thought banished any guilt entirely, because he suddenly realized that Dionne had been perfect for the man he had been. They’d been married right out of college, and he’d still been finding his way in his career and his role at home. She’d given him the confidence to settle into who he’d wanted to be.
Katie? She was perfect for the man he was now. Not that I’m old, fuck no. But losing Dionne had aged him inside, maturing him in ways he couldn’t have predicted. If Dionne had survived, no doubt she would have changed along with him. But she didn’t, and that had left him to find his own way. It’s been a dark few years.
Katie’s neck twisted and she angled her chin over her shoulder to throw a soft smile his way, clearly feeling his gaze on her. Beautiful, intelligent, firecracker in bed, and a mouth on her that was so fucking sweet and hungry he felt his cock fattening at the memories. My Katie Kat.
~ Fini ~
THANK YOU FOR READING Gun Totin’ Annie!
First published in a charity anthology, this version is much expanded to include Domino’s point of view. I hope you enjoyed this story featuring new characters in our Rebel Wayfarers MC world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Raised in the south, MariaLisa deMora learned about the magic of books at an early age. Every summer, she would spend hours in the Upshur County library, devouring stacks of books in every genre. She still reads voraciously, and always has a few books going in paperback, hardback, on devices! On music, she says, “I love music of nearly any kind—jazz, country, rock, alt rock, metal, classical, bluegrass, rap, gangstergrass, hip hop—you name the type, I probably listen to it.
“I can often be seen dancing through the house in the ea
rly mornings. But what I really, REALLY love is live music. My favorite way to experience live music is seeing bands in small, dive bars [read: small, intimate venues]. If said bar [venue] has a good selection of premium tequila, then that’s a definite plus! Oh, and since I’m a hand gal, drummers are my thing—yeah, Paul and Alex—you know who you are!”
ADDITIONAL SERIES AND BOOKS
Please note each book is part of a series, for the most part featuring characters from additional books in the series. If the books in a series are read out of order, you’ll twig to spoilers for the other books, so going back to read the skipped titles won’t have the same angsty reveals.
It is strongly recommended they be read in order.
Rebel Wayfarers MC series:
Mica, book #1
A Sweet & Merry Christmas, short story #1.5
Slate, book #2
Bear, book #3
Jase, book #4
Gunny, book #5
Mason, book #6
Hoss, book #7
Harddrive Holidays, short story #7.5
Duck, book #8
Biker Chick Campout, short story #8.5
Watcher, book #9
A Kiss to Keep You, novella #9.25
Gun Totin’ Annie, short story #9.5
Secret Santa, short story #9.75
Bones, book #10
Gunny’s Pups, novella #10.25
Never Settle, short story #10.5
Fury, book #11
Cassie, book #12 (2018)
Road Runner’s Ride, novella #12.5
Occupy Yourself band series:
Born Into Trouble, book #1
Grace In Motion, book #2 (2018)
What They Say, book #3 (2018)
Neither This, Nor That series:
This Is The Route Of Twisted Pain, book #1
Treading The Traitor’s Path: Out Bad, book #2
Other Books:
With My Whole Heart
More information available at mldemora.com.
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