BEASTLords of Carnage MC

by Daphne Loveling

  Then Cas is lifting me up, with him still inside me, and carrying me to the couch. We stay like that, joined together, me wrapped around him and his arms engulfing me. He continues to devour my mouth as we pant and gasp for breath, our hearts racing next to each other.

  “Holy fuck,” he breathes.

  “I’m pretty sure they heard that downstairs,” I say, having recovered just enough to be embarrassed at the thought.

  Laughter rumbles from his throat. “Let them hear. Gives them something to aspire to.”

  He kisses me again, deeply, and then pulls away to look at me. “You’re one hell of a woman, you know that, Jenna Abbott?”

  “That so?” I ask happily.

  “Yeah, that’s so. Thank Christ you’re my old lady. Otherwise I’d have to fight someone for you.”

  “Old lady,” I sigh. “Funny how that sounds so nice when you say it. Never thought I’d be happy for someone to call me old.”

  He grins and dips his head down to nip at my neck. “You’re not fuckin’ old, baby. Shit, even when you are old, you won’t be old. You’ll still be the sexiest fucking thing on wheels.”

  “You’re just saying that to get tail,” I smirk.

  “No, I’m not,” Cas says, his face turning serious. “You are gonna be the hottest old lady any man has ever seen.” His thumb comes up to graze my lower lip. “And I plan to be around to see it.”

  His eyes bore into mine. I try to think of something jokey to say, but the air between us has shifted. “You mean, even when I’ve got wrinkles and cellulite?” I manage to stammer.

  “And gray hair and crow’s feet. The whole nine yards.” His lips brush mine. “I love you, Jenna Abbott. I told you you were mine. That means for keeps.”

  It’s like the oxygen’s been sucked out of my lungs. I can’t breathe for a second. Cas Watkins — the boy I’ve been crazy about for years and years — just told me he loved me.

  “Cas,” I whisper, fighting back a sudden lump in my throat. “I love you, too.”

  “I think I knew that,” he says with a devilish grin. “But it’s nice to know for sure.”

  I laugh, happy tears springing to my eyes, and fling my arms around him. We kiss, with an intimacy I’ve never felt before. This is us, I think dizzily. He loves me. We’re together.

  He pulls away from me then, with an amused smile. “Sorry to wreck the moment, but we’re about five seconds away from leaving a giant wet stain on your couch.”

  “Oh, shit!” I say, scooting to my feet.

  Cas grabs the boxer briefs that are lying in a pile next to the couch and hands them to me. “Here, use these.”

  “That was the shortest romantic moment I’ve ever had,” I complain, taking them from him to wipe myself.

  “I promise to make it up to you,” he says with a twinkle in his eye.

  As we get dressed, Cas tells me he’s got some business to attend to at the club. “I’m sorry to have to leave you, babe. But I promise I’ll be back tonight,” he says.

  “I hope so,” I sigh. I tug at the leather cut he’s just shrugged back on. I miss him already.

  “Just as soon as I can get away,” he promises me. “And while I’m there,” he continues with a slight frown, “I figure maybe it’s about time to tell Angel about us. May as well get it over with.”

  “Okay,” I nod slowly. He’s got a point. There’s really no point in keeping this a secret any longer.

  The time for secrets is over.

  It’s time to stop pretending, Jenna. A shadow crosses my face as I realize it’s time for me to come clean with Cas, as well. I need to tell him about Noah. Tonight.

  Cas sees me frown and mistakes the reason for it. “It’ll be okay,” he murmurs, reaching up to caress my cheek. “I promise. Whatever happens won’t change anything between you and me.”

  I hope you’re right, I think, suddenly feeling a little sick.

  As I walk out with Cas, I notice that Charlie Hurt is outside in his driveway, hammering at something. When he sees us, he stops hammering and glances our way, watching to see what we do. A shudder of disgust runs through me, and I resist the urge to stick my tongue out at him. I do stop and stare pointedly at him, though, and he quickly looks away and starts hammering again.

  Cas gets on his bike, and I get in my car to go pick up Noah. As I watch him drive away in my rearview mirror, I have a moment of panic when I realize that tonight might be the end of everything. A wave of nausea and dizziness comes over me, and I have to sit in the car for a moment and breathe deeply. My stomach has been bothering me for a couple of days now. I chalk it up to anxiety, what with everything going on right now. I’m scared that something’s going on with my father that he’s not telling me. I’m nervous about Angel’s reaction when Cas tells him about us. But most of all, I’m scared that when I tell Cas he’s Noah’s father, he’ll hate me, and everything between us will crumble like a house with no foundation.

  It has to be okay, I tell myself as I put a hand to my racing heart. It has to. If Cas loves me, he’ll forgive me.

  Won’t he?

  Putting the car in gear, I drive over to Jewel’s place, hoping all the way there that a mistake I made five years ago isn’t about to ruin the best thing that’s ever happened to me.

  29

  Cas

  As soon as I pull up to the club, the front door comes crashing open on its hinges. I look over in surprise to see Angel burst through the doorway. He comes stalking toward me, a murderous look in his eye that I’ve only seen a couple of times before.

  “Oh, shit,” I mutter. This can only be one thing.

  When Angel’s about halfway to me, he starts to yell and wave his arms in the air. “You fucking piece of shit! You fucking piece of shit!”

  He’s way too wound up and angry to listen to anything I have to say right now. So I know what I have to do. I swing my leg over the bike and stand to face him, bracing for the inevitable.

  “You’re fucking my sister?” Angel yells, the veins bulging in his neck. “You goddamn traitor! I’ll fucking kill you!”

  His fist comes flying toward the left side of my face, and I don’t move to block it. Instead, I take the hit, staggering back as he connects hard with my left cheek, right under the eye. Fuck. A lightning bolt of pain flashes through my head.

  That one, he gets a free pass on, because I deserved it. I’m not taking more than one hit without a fight, though.

  I get my feet underneath me, and then brace myself for the second one. He roars and flies at me again, but this time I feint and dodge him, grabbing his arms and pulling him to the ground with me. We scuffle as he struggles to get free and swears a blue streak at me. I manage to keep him from landing another punch, and eventually, when I sense he’s starting to tire out, I let him go and stagger back into a crouch. I watch as he scrambles up, waiting to see if he’s gonna charge me again.

  When he sees that I’m ready for him now, and that I mean business, he squints angrily at me but doesn’t make a move.

  “How did you know?” I rasp, breathing heavily.

  “Abe fucking told me,” Angel says. He’s still seething. “How the fuck does my fucking father know this before I do?” He spits on the ground. “Jesus, when you said no one would touch her, you didn't mean you, huh?”

  “Dammit, Angel,” I swear. “I know you aren’t gonna believe this, but I was coming here to tell you about Jenna and me.” Angel snorts, shaking his head in disbelief. “It’s true,” I persist. “Look, you can ask Jenna about that.”

  “Why the fuck would I believe Jenna? She goddamn lied to me, too. Both of you can go to hell,” he sneers in disgust.

  “I’m not lying, Angel. We’ve been trying to think of how to tell you for a while, now.” I take a breath and let it out, then continue more slowly. “It’s not something we planned. But this isn’t just a meaningless fuck, brother. This is the real deal. Jenna’s my old lady now.”

  Angel’s face changes when I say these wo
rds. It’s maybe the only thing I could have said that would calm him down.

  “I mean it when I said I was coming here to tell you, brother,” I continue. “You don’t have to believe it. But it’s true. I’m sorry we kept it from you for so long.”

  The smallest hint of a smile tugs at one corner of his mouth. “You’re serious? Jenna’s your old lady?”

  I chuckle softly. “Yeah. Never saw it coming, but there it is.”

  “Shit, man.” He stands motionless for a moment. “That’s… That’s pretty cool, actually.” He shakes his head and snickers. “Except now I gotta know that you two fuck.”

  I throw my head back and laugh. “Sorry. Kinda comes with the territory.”

  “Huh. I guess that means we’re brothers in more ways than one, then.” He grabs my hand and claps me on the back.

  “Guess so.” I grin, then wince a little at the pain.

  “Oh, fuck. Shit, sorry about that, man.” Angel’s brow creases. “You shoulda told me yourself. If I’d known…”

  “Nah, it’s okay,” I said. “You probably would have punched me anyway. I was ready for it.”

  He snorts. “Yeah, you might be right. Look, let’s go get something cold for your eye. It’s already starting to swell up.”

  I take a step forward as he turns toward the clubhouse. “As long as that something cold comes in a bottle…” I start to say, and then freeze in my tracks.

  Something’s not right.

  Now I know for sure that Angel didn’t know about Jenna and me before today.

  Angel didn’t tell Abe.

  Abe told Angel.

  Bells are going off in my head, and it’s not because Angel just punched me.

  Abe’s known all along.

  “I’ll take a rain check, brother,” I mutter hastily to Angel. “I’ve got somewhere I need to be.”

  I race back toward the bike and fly out of the parking lot like I’m on fire.

  I have to get to Jenna.

  30

  Jenna

  Cas is pounding on the door like a madman when I open it.

  “Sshhh! What is wrong with you?” I whisper crossly. “Noah’s sleeping. You’re going to wake him up!” My eyes go to his face, which is bruised under his eye and rapidly swelling. “Oh my God, what happened? Did Angel —”

  Cas brushes me off with a short wave of his hand. It’s obvious he’s not really listening to me. He looks like a man possessed as he pushes past me and starts to stalk around the room, his eyes dark and stormy. His boots clomp loudly on the wood floor, and I shush him again, but he doesn’t pay any attention. Suddenly, he stops, and stares fixedly for a moment at a spot in the corner.

  I’m seriously alarmed now. I’ve never seen him like this. “Cas!” I cry, forgetting about Noah. “What the hell is —”

  “Sshhh!” he hisses, and grabs me by the arm. He leads me out the front door onto the landing, glancing over toward the house next door as he does so.

  “We don’t need to be this quiet,” I say, folding my arms. “We just need to —”

  “I’m not worried about Noah,” he says, cutting me off.

  “Cas, what is going on? You’re acting like a crazy person.”

  “Who got you this place?” he demands.

  “My dad,” I reply, not understanding. “I’ve told you that before. Why?”

  “Has anyone else been in the apartment besides you and Noah since you moved in?”

  “You mean besides you?” Frowning, I think back over the weeks. “Well, yeah,” I say after a moment. “My dad was here the other night. And, oh, the landlord, of course. The man who lives next door. Charlie.” I suppress a shiver. “He came over about a week and a half ago. Said he needed to find the source of a leak or something. I guess water was coming through the ceiling to the tattoo place downstairs.”

  “Were you in here with him the whole time when he was in the apartment?” Cas is eyeing me intently.

  “No,” I reply. “Gross. That guy creeps me out. And besides, I had to go to work. So I let him in and then left with Noah.”

  Cas swears softly and looks back inside with a worried expression.

  “Cas, what is it?” I repeat. “Did you find something out?”

  “Nothing specific,” he mutters. “Just a hunch.” He stops to think for a moment. “Do you have a screwdriver? Flathead.”

  “I think so,” I say uncertainly. “Will a Swiss Army knife attachment do?”

  “Yeah. That’s fine. Okay, let’s go back inside. But don’t talk.”

  Don’t talk?

  I follow him back into the apartment, and go rummage in a kitchen junk drawer. Eventually I find the knockoff Swiss Army knife. I pull out the screwdriver blade and go back into the living room, where Cas is moving around the room, running his hands around the moldings and peering behind shelves.

  I hold out the knife and hand it to him. “This is the best I can do,” I whisper.

  Cal puts his finger to his lips wordlessly. He nods and takes the knife from me, then bends down. I watch him as he starts to unscrew the strike plates to the electrical outlets. On the third one, he lets out a huff of breath and stands up. He holds his hand out to me, and I see that in his palm is a small object. It’s about an inch and a half by an inch and a half, and black. It sort of looks like a square domino with no dots on it.

  “What is it?” I mouth.

  Cas crooks a finger and I follow him back out onto the landing. He tosses the object down on the ground and brings his heel down on it, smashing it.

  “It’s a bug,” he says, turning it over in his palm.

  “What?” I cry. “Like, a spy bug?”

  “Sshhh,” he says urgently, and glances over his shoulder. “There might be more inside.”

  “Cas, what is going on?” I say urgently, trying to keep my voice low. “You have got to explain all this to me, right now!” My heart is starting to race. I’m being bugged? Does that mean someone’s been hearing everything I do?

  “I will,” he promises, grabbing my hands in his. “But first, let’s go back in and keep looking. I’m going to bet there are a few more of these around somewhere. Once we’re pretty sure we’ve got them all, I’ll tell you everything I know.”

  Cas finally seems to really look at me then, for the first time since he got here. He must see that I’m starting to panic, because his eyes soften and he reaches up to softly caress my face. “Jen. It’s okay,” he murmurs. “I’m with you. We just need to deal with this right now.”

  “I know,” I say. My voice is starting to shake and I can’t seem to control it. I already wasn’t feeling very well earlier, and now I’m starting to feel a little wobbly. “I know. I’m just… this is a lot to take in. I just feel kind of… sick, and violated, you know?”

  “I know, babe.” Tenderly, more tender than I’ve ever known him to be, he plants a soft kiss on my forehead. “We’ll figure this out. I’ll get to the bottom of this.” His eyes flash with anger. “And I swear to you, whoever’s behind all of this is going to pay.”

  “Yeah,” I say miserably. “But what if the person behind it is my father?”

  31

  Cas

  Jenna and I do a full sweep of the apartment. We check smoke detectors, wall and ceiling light fittings, lamps, and any other nook and cranny we can think of. We check all the baseboards and moldings. I look around the entire apartment, including Noah’s bedroom, for paint discolorations on the walls and ceilings, just in case someone’s planted a microcamera in here. We even turn all the furniture upside down and look for holes in the upholstery. It takes over an hour, and at the end of our search we’ve found three more bugs. I take them outside with me, one by one, and give them the same treatment I gave the first one. As I’m smashing the last one, Jenna comes out to join me.

  “Do you really think it was my father?” Jenna asks miserably.

  I feel like hell for her, but I can’t see anyone else it would be.

  “I think it
has to be, babe.” I run a hand through my hair and take a deep breath. “You know how I went to the clubhouse to tell Angel about us?”

  She nods. “I assume that’s what this shiner is about,” she says, looking at my cheek.

  I shrug. “Yeah. No worries about that, though. He punched me, I told him it wasn’t just a roll in the hay — that you’re my old lady now — and he’s cool with it.”

  “Seriously?” In spite of how scared she is, she giggles. “Men are so weird.”

  “But that’s not the important part right now,” I continue. “Here’s the thing: I never even got the chance to tell Angel we were together. He already knew.” My eyes lock on hers. “Your dad told him.”

  She frowns in confusion for a second, and then it hits her. “The bugs! Oh my God, you think he knew from the bugs!”

  “I do.” I wait as she processes this, her face changing from astonishment to dismay to horror. “Oh my God! Do you think he heard us having… sex?” She says this last word in a horrified whisper. I almost laugh, but I know she’s not in the mood to joke about this.

  “Probably not him,” I reassure her. “These listening devices are pretty cheap, low-tech versions. The kind you can pick up for less than twenty bucks. I’d be surprised if they had a range of more than half a mile.” I raise my chin toward the house next door, and wait for Jenna’s eyes to follow mine. “My bet would be him.”

  Jenna’s eyes widen. “Charlie?” Her face contorts in revulsion.

  “Yeah,” I say in disgust. “It stands to reason that he could be on your dad’s payroll. I know from talking to some of the guys downstairs at Rebel Ink that there are some pretty serious code violations down there. But somehow, the city always seems to look the other way. My guess is that Charlie Hurt and your dad have a mutually advantageous arrangement.”

  Jenna is nodding her head. “I could see that. Charlie is definitely a slumlord.” She glances back toward her apartment. “It was kind of hard for me to believe this place was up to code when I moved in.” She snorts. “Maybe it’s not.”