by London Casey
“I’m a murderer,” Jace whispered. “I’m not exactly sorry for that either. Why? Because if I didn’t kill, they would have killed me. You’ve seen it. So you need to understand that I'm going to do whatever is necessary to protect you from harm.”
Jace twisted the leather belt and tugged a few times. It slowly began to release from the headboard. Jordyn was kneeling, her pants and panties down to her knees, her shirt still on. Jace untied her wrists and gently rubbed them.
They were very sore, but all she could focus on was the passion throbbing in her body right now. Before she could even say another word, Jace put his hands to her ass and pulled. Jace was against her body and then he dropped Jordyn to her back. He ripped Jordyn’s clothes off and spread her legs wide open. This time when he came forward, he eased himself into her body.
Jace didn’t lower down to Jordyn’s body, but rather made fists around the sheets. His eyes didn’t leave Jordyn’s eyes at all as he loved her. And that word came to Jordyn’s mind again and again.
He’s loving me… making love to me…
As Jordyn reached an explosive climax, she reached up to grab Jace’s shoulders. Jace thrust and grunted a few more times before pulling himself out of Jordyn again. This time was for good reason. Jace placed his thickness to Jordyn’s abdomen and began to come. Jordyn wrapped her hand around Jace’s wet shaft and moved up and down. She felt him spilling all over her and her body continued to thrust at him.
Never once did Jace look away.
After he finished coming, he slipped a hand behind Jordyn’s neck and lifted her. He met her halfway and kissed her.
It was the greatest kiss of her life, but also the scariest. Because in that moment, all her defenses disappeared and she fell completely in love with Jace.
seventeen.
Jace had no idea what had gotten into him. Catching Jordyn in Blaine’s room was like the final straw for his out of control emotions. Seeing Jordyn’s blushing cheeks at the sight of a woman tied up in Blaine’s bed really pissed him off. After a day of being followed and bothered by Strokner, Jace just wanted to hold and protect Jordyn. But then she started opening up about her feelings about the club, which she was entitled to feel, and Jace felt pushed away, so he tied her up with his own damn belt. He touched her sweet center. He touched her ass. He fucked her. But when he looked into her eyes, something clicked. Before Jace knew what was happening, he was untying her and making things more complicated by making love to her.
Now it was morning and Jace looked to his left and saw that Jordyn was sleeping in the same position. She hadn’t moved at all. She only had her shirt on Jace lifted the covers and admired her silky curves, still nude from the waist down.
There was knock at Jace’s door and it slowly opened.
Blaine smiled and Griffin gave a thumbs up. Jace threw the finger.
“Sorry, bro,” Blaine said. “About last night, too. She walked in…”
“I don’t care,” Jace said. “What do you want?”
“Chief Jerry wants to talk with you in private,” Griffin said.
“Private?” Jace asked. “Last time anything private happened, I was taken to prison and forgotten about.”
“I’m going with you,” Blaine said.
“Me too,” Griffin said. “Miller is out on a run at the coast with Gaige and Nate. Landon and Shay are working their way along the Eight Under area, just to make sure they aren’t dipping into the drug bullshit. We are out there, man. We are trying. But right now, the chief wants you.”
“I’m supposed to just trust this?” Jace asked. He gently eased out of the bed, leaving Jordyn to sleep. “You know what I’m up against?”
“We all are,” Blaine said.
“No, you all aren’t. She’s in my bed. I get that it looks good, but what you don’t get is what she’s doing for the club. What Strokner is doing to her. What I’m trying to protect her from. If I don’t get some answers and I don’t get her away from Strokner soon, he’s going to hurt her. I can’t let it happen. I made a promise not to let that happen.”
“Bro,” Griffin spoke softly, “we are all trying here. Chief called for you. If you don’t show up, he will come here. With backup to make it look legit.”
“If he puts me in a cell, I’m fucked,” Jace said.
“I know,” Griffin said.
“There’s something bigger going on,” Jace said. “Tell me you both know that."
“I’m right there with you,” Blaine said.
“Like that shit with Caius,” Griffin said. “That’s what we’re going to be up against anymore.”
“Not if we just kill whoever is in the way,” Jace said.
Griffin put a hand to Jace’s shoulder. “Easy now. A lot of us want to take Strokner down. But the time has to be right. You know that. He’s not just some guy. He’s a big wig. Just like Caius. It took us a lot of effort to set up Caius’s death, didn’t it? To make it look like someone took him out after a deal gone wrong. We’ll be doing it again, I think.”
“I don’t care,” Jace said. “If he’s fucking dead, he can’t hurt Jordyn. And he won’t stick his nose in this club anymore. He’s setting us up. He had a meeting with some other suits about our land. He told Jordyn we put bodies there.”
“Oh fuck,” Griffin whispered.
“Yeah.”
“Just go see the chief,” Griffin said. “Then you’ll be back here.”
“Bullshit,” Jace said with a grin.
“We’ll be outside,” Blaine said. He pulled Griffin back. “Go take care of that beauty in your bed again.”
Jace shut the door and hung his head. Maybe this was the reason he had untied Jordyn from the bed. Because of this moment. He wanted to protect her, but that would be impossible if he was behind bars. That would mean he’d have to rely on one of the guys to do it. That pissed him off even more.
By the time Jace turned around, Jordyn had her eyes open. She was on her side, pieces of her hair sort of in her face. She was a goddamn dream. Jace touched his chest and felt his heart racing.
“Good morning, babe,” he said. “How much did you hear?”
“You’re going to jail,” Jordyn whispered. “And then you’re going to kill Mr. Strokner.”
“One is true and one is probably not true,” Jace said. He walked over to the bed and sat down. He touched Jordyn’s face, moving her hair behind her ear. “I have to go see the chief. I’ll have Blaine and Griffin with me.”
“They can’t help you if you’re going to be arrested,” Jordyn said. “What if this is about the evidence?”
“Don’t think about it,” Jace said. “I’d like to believe if there was anything new, it’d go the correct legal route. Lawyers and all that bullshit.”
“Do you think that would really happen?”
“No,” Jace said with a grin. “But I have to go. He’ll come here with officers and shotguns. Not fun for the clubhouse.”
Jordyn squeezed Jace's hand. “I’m scared. Of all of this.”
“I know you are. It’s okay to be scared. Because when I end all this and you see that I’m able to protect you, it won’t matter.”
“It doesn’t matter right now, Jace. The way I feel…”
“Hold onto that for a minute, babe. Okay?”
“Can you do something for me?” Jordyn asked.
“What?”
“My grandmother is dying,” Jordyn said.
"What? Is she sick?"
"Cancer. She's been a fighter for a long time now."
“Like you?”
Jordyn smirked. “Yeah, like me. She raised me my entire life. I took the job with Mr. Strokner to make her proud. I can't bear to tell her what he turned out to be. That's my fault. But I can show her that I made her last wish for me come true..."
Jace already started to shake his head.
Hell no…
“Jace, please. I want her to meet you. For a minute even. Just so she knows that someone is looking out for me.
That’s the least I can give her for all she gave to me.”
Jace opened his mouth to protest but he gritted his teeth together. There was something in Jordyn’s eyes he couldn’t resist. Something he couldn’t argue.
When Jordyn’s eyes filled with tears, Jace reached down and wiped a tear away.
“You don’t need to cry, babe,” Jace whispered. “I’ll be there. Whatever you need. Okay?”
Jordyn nodded. “It means a lot, Jace."
“I told you already,” Jace said as he stroked her face. “Hold on to those feelings until I get back." Jordyn nodded. “There’s food out there. I’ll make sure everyone leaves you alone but that you're taken care of. Emily, Avery, Kaity, and Ava will be here too. Get to know them. They’ll be your best friends around here. They get it. They’ve been where you are. They aren't strippers or relievers. They know what it’s like to feel like you do right now.”
Jace leaned down and kissed Jordyn. She put her hand to the back of his head and held on tight. It pained Jace to break the kiss and stand from the bed. He backed up and turned to grab his leather cut. Standing before the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life, he strapped on his holster and put on his leather cut. Normally he would get ready in private as not to scare Jordyn, but it was important for her to witness it.
Jordyn grabbed the bottom of his leather cut. “Be careful, Jace.”
Jace winked. “Hard. Fast. Forever.”
Jace left the room and unspoken words lingered in the air. With the possibility of going back to jail on the table, the last thing he wanted to do was tell Jordyn he loved her and then never be able to be with her again.
It may have been fucked up, but in Jace’s mind it made sense.
He stopped at the bar and grabbed something to eat on the go. He told the prospects he’d cut their heads off if anything bad happened to Jordyn while he was gone.
"Yes, sir," they all replied in unison.
Outside, Blaine was resting on his motorcycle, puffing on a cigarette, making smoke rings. Griffin was looking over some paperwork.
Jace climbed on his bike, starting it without saying a word to Blaine or Griffin. They scrambled to follow suit and then the three of them headed out onto the streets of Frelen. There were so many members of Back Down Devil cruising the streets right then that it was like an army trolling through town, seeking out an enemy. Jace knew it had to be making the people uneasy, but it was sure better than having drug dealers on every street corner.
At the station, Jace, Blaine, and Griffin pulled around back. Jace got off his ride and pointed to Blaine and Griffin. “Stay here.”
“Bro…,” Blaine said.
“Listen to me,” Jace said. “Stay here. Give me thirty minutes. If I don’t come back out, assume the worst and bust in to find me. I don’t want to piss Chief Jerry off anymore than he already is. I can handle this.”
The silence from Blaine and Griffin was answer enough. Jace walked to the backdoor and pounded a fist on it. An officer opened the door and curled his lip when he saw Jace standing there.
“Nice suit,” Jace said. “Where’s your boss?”
“Use the front door, asshole.”
Jace stepped into the station and smiled at the officer. “Thanks for the advice. I’ll work on that next time.”
“Motherfucker,” the officer whispered.
Jace walked down the hall and felt eyes upon him. Chief Jerry came out of his office. He looked like he was in a bad mood. A very bad mood. He charged at Jace and grabbed him by the arm.
“Turn around, asshole,” Chief Jerry yelled.
Jace turned and the chief slapped cuffs on him. This was just nothing but a dumb formality to make Chief Jerry look like he was in control and like he had power.
He walked Jace toward the cells and took him to a corner. He shoved Jace into a cold stone wall and put his hand on the back of his neck.
“You fucking stole drugs from a dead body,” the chief growled.
“What?”
“Those bodies. You took a baggie off one.”
“So what? I needed it to prove a point. I was helping you. Is that what this is about?”
“No,” Chief Jerry said. He turned Jace around. “But don’t fuck with I’m doing.”
“You called us, Chief…”
“To keep you in the loop. Not to have you tamper.”
“What’s it matter to you?”
“Matter? I had some fucking meat neck walk in off the street with a baggie of drugs. Told me you gave it to him. That you were trying to set him up.”
Jace smiled. “And you buy that bullshit?”
“Of course I don’t,” the chief said. “But it looks shitty in front of all my guys.”
“Okay. I get that. Sorry. I’ll take that on the chin, okay? But I'm done waiting around for you to find me answers. I was arrested right after I saw Coast Road make a deal. Then I was thrown in prison on purpose and left there. And now there’s bodies with drugs. It’s all connected.”
“Why don’t you handle the little club beefs and let me handle the drugs?”
“That won’t happen,” Jace said. “Miller wouldn’t allow it and the club wouldn’t vote it. We’re in this together. Now, is that what you wanted?”
“No,” Chief Jerry said. “I have something to show you.”
The chief turned Jace around and took the cuffs off his wrists. He walked Jace to a cell.
"Oh fuck no, Chief. You are not throwing me back in there. You've got nothing on me," Jace started to thrash to get out of the Chief's grasp.
"Will you calm the hell down and look?"
"Look at wha...," Jace froze when he recognized the little kid sitting in the cell.
His chin rested on his fists. His knuckles were covered in fresh blood. He looked like he’d been in a car accident.
“He said he wanted to talk to you,” Chief Jerry said.
“What the fuck happened to him?”
“Ask him.”
The chief opened the cell and Jace stepped in. When the cell shut and clicked, it sent chills through Jace’s nerves. He stood in front of Jacob wondering what he was supposed to say.
Jacob looked up and his face was beat up and bloody. When he smiled, he was missing a tooth.
“What did you do?” Jace asked.
“I fought back,” Jacob whispered. “Like you said.”
“Christ, kid. You look like you’re beat up pretty bad.”
“You should see what I did to them. I lured them into the woods. And then they started to punch and kick me. It hurt so bad, you know?” Jacob’s eyes filled with tears. He blinked and tears ran down his cheeks. “My father hates me. He hates that I’m not big and athletic. Like my brother is. But my brother does drugs. Dad gets him out of trouble all the time. So I figured he would do the same for me."
“What's going on?" Jace asked.
“You were going to hurt me that day, because of something my father did. I hate him even more for that.”
This was the problem with not finishing a damn job. The dead couldn't speak. But this kid could and he was making Jace's heart ache a little.
“What did you, Jacob?” Jace asked.
“I had a knife buried in the woods,” Jacob said. “I didn’t think they were all going to beat me up. At one point I closed my eyes and just wanted to die. But then I saw my father’s face. And I snapped. I started to kick and punch. I hit a few guys. I did good without the knife. But it was five on one. I needed the knife…”
Jace crouched down to look at Jacob straight on. “Fuck, kid, what did you do?”
Jacob looked at Jace. “I cut them all. I had to defend myself. I had to stand up for myself. You told me to do that.”
“Yeah, I did,” Jace said. “Did you kill anyone?”
“No. I wanted to. But I didn’t.”
“Okay. Chief brought you here?”
“Yeah. My father is going to get me out. I’m going to tell him I’m not weak anymore. I can’t
be strong and play football like my brother, but I can fight. I’ll always fight.”
Jace stood back up. He put a hand to the kid’s head and suddenly Jacob was sobbing. Jace knew the feeling.
“You’ll be okay, kid,” Jace said. “I don’t think those guys will mess with you anymore.”
“Are you going to kill my father?” Jacob asked through his sobs.
“I can’t answer that, kid. I don’t know the truths and I don’t like to lie. Just keep fighting. I’m sorry for whatever the hell you’re going to go through next.”
Jace turned and whistled. Chief Jerry appeared and looked angry when he saw Jacob crying so hard. He opened the door and Jace walked out. The door shut again and Chief Jerry spun him around.
“What the Christ did you say to that kid?”
Jace froze and looked over his shoulder. “I gave that kid a second chance, because of his fucking father's involvement in all this. The kid was getting picked on, so I told him to fight back and, well, he did.”
“He stabbed five people,” Chief Jerry said. “You know the mess…”
“I don’t care,” Jace said. “Good for the kid. And good for the kid’s father. Someday everyone will learn not to fuck with Back Down Devil.”
“Jesus Christ,” Chief Jerry said. “You just taught that kid… to be like you…”
“And he'll be much better off because of it,” Jace said.
He walked out of the police station without another word. Blaine and Griffin were standing there waiting for him. Jace put his arms out to show that he wasn’t wearing cuffs and that there were no bullet holes in his body.
“What the hell was that about?” Blaine asked.
Jace ignored Blaine and grabbed his cell. He called Jordyn and asked for directions.
Jace couldn't predict the future and he couldn’t live in the past. But at least he could take a breath and do something good for someone deserving.
He would tell her grandmother that he’d fallen in love with Jordyn.
eighteen.
Jordyn was nervous. She had always imagined this moment to be with a man in a suit and tie who would take her dear grandmother’s hand and ensure her that Jordyn would be cared for. That there was a great life waiting out there and he was going to provide it.