by Brair Lake
“I just don’t like seeing you without your smile.” I lean in closer. “Or greeted without a kiss. Because whatever he said–It’s pissed you off, Mia.”
Mia walks away and I follow her to one of the empty sofas. At this time of day, like the casino. The saloon is empty, but it’ll not be long before the brothers make their appearance known and I wrap my hand around Mia’s, tangling her fingers with mine. Mia rubs her thumb over the back of my hand and the familiar tingle in my blood makes itself known.
“Is Delaney, here. In Noir Valley?” she asks.
My body stills as I look at her, searching her face. “Is that what Jono told you.”
Mia shrugs as she continues to gaze at my hand. “He might have hinted.”
“I haven’t heard anything. But I’ll send someone into town to see what they can find out.” Mia nods, then looks at me. Her smile is in place and the sparkle in her eyes teases my cock. “Wanna go back to the cabin?”
“You promised me a ride.” Mia pouts and I yearn to lean over and kiss her.
I wiggle my eyebrows at her. “I did.”
“Not that kind of ride.” Her chuckle soothes my burning blood.
“You’re a hard woman, Mia.”
“Take me for a ride and I’ll not be the only one hard.”
“I’ll need something on account.”
Mia’s giggle rings in my ears as her lips brush against my mouth. I’m not sure what went off this morning, but I’ll find out. I also need to find out if Delaney is here, and if he is, when he arrived. I don’t like surprises and just thinking that Delaney is in Noir Valley while Mia was in town on her own, this morning, does nothing for my blood pressure. I’m infatuated with the woman and even if I wasn’t. I wouldn’t want to be the one responsible for her death. As Mia’s lips tease me, my fingers slip through her short silken blonde hair and I close my eyes as an image of Jo-Leigh spread out on the bed torments me. She had been too young to die. Younger than Mia is now. The kiss hardens and deepens as I thrust my tongue into her mouth to rid myself of Jo-Leigh’s image. I wasn’t going to let the same happen to Mia. Even if it means handcuffing her to me at all times. Not until this mess with Delaney is over, will she travel on her own.
Mia’s lips are soft and pliable, and a moan rises in my throat as the blood slips to a lower part of my body. My hand slips under her tee-shirt, tracing the flesh along her spine. My moan turns into a groan at the discovery she is braless.
“Are you sure you want to go for a ride?”
Mia nods without breaking the kiss.
Chapter 22
Mia: Demon’s Lair Noir Valley
My head aches and I am past bored. In a moment of stupidity, I had asked Alex for a tour of Demon’s Lair and that’s just what he’s given me. “You know, Alex. I hope you don’t plan to start a second career as a tour guide.” Alex steps aside as he pushes open the door to the room at the top of the riverboat. I don’t know how many steps I climbed, but it feels as though I have reached the summit of Butt Rock Mountain.
“This is the Pilot House. Day has a license. So does Copper and Neat. This is the room which controls Demon’s Lair as she sails down the Mississippi. Compared to the Mississippi Queen, which the owners scraped in 2011. Demon’s Lair is a newt of a riverboat. The Mississippi, she had two hundred and eight state rooms. Demon’s Lair has forty-five ordinary rooms.”
“You’re a floating hotel.”
“It’s a working riverboat, Mia. The brothers who live on her pay rent.”
“And the women.” Alex leans against the closed door. His warm gaze caressing me and the slow, steady throb of the pulse in my clit twitches. To break the magnetic pull between us, I turn to one of the windows, losing my breath at the view. It is the first time I have seen Noir Valley in its entire layout and the surrounding area. “It’s beautiful.” Alex steps closer; I hadn’t heard his soft tread. It’s the heat of his body surrounding me which tells me he is close without touching me.
“It’s not the only beautiful thing.”
My stomach tightens and my heart clenches. “Sweet talker. The women, Alex.”
“Who’s asking Mia. You or the journalist?”
“Me.” I turn to face him. The citrus of his aftershave reminds me of the shower Alex, and I shared earlier. “If I plan to do a piece on The River Demons, I only have to ask Jono. I’m sure he’ll be willing to spill the dirt on Day and the club’s shenanigans.” I lick my lips. “Including all the juicy bits on you.”
Alex chuckle as he strokes the flesh over my cheek, then he pulls a piece of paper from one of the internal pockets in his jacket. “As much as Jono hates me. He’ll not talk about The River Demons. Not while he’s still planning another coup.”
“I think you’re wrong. He has his new club now.”
Alex shakes his head, “The River Demons is his true love. Nothing will ever make him give that up. He’ll always be hoping he can return.” The hollowness in Alex’s voice makes me wonder if he is referring to himself. That in the underlining message. He is warning me no matter what, Jo-Leigh will always be his first true love.
“What about you, Alex. Jono hates you. What can he tell me about you?”
The warmth in his eyes fades and my body quivers at the drop in the temperature in the small room. “Nothing you don’t already know, Mia.”
The teasing lover of moments ago has disappeared and I turn to gaze out of the window. Growing up in Noir Valley, listening to the gossip about the River Demons, doesn’t mean I know Alex. I’ve followed him, watched him. Shit, I’ve been crazy about him since we spent our first night together five years ago. He’s let slip some information to me. Bits about himself and there are a few things I know about him. But do I know Alex. I know he’s a wonderful lover. That he is loyal to The River Demons.
“Mia.”
“Yeah,” I blink as I turn to Alex. His scent tickles my nose and I curl my fingers, forcing myself not to reach out and touch him.
“I need you to sign this.”
I glance down at the folded piece of paper he removed from his jacket pocket and withdraw it from his hand. When I open it, I scan the contents, blink and read it again. “It’s a contract.”
Alex nods, “I know. As the women aren’t officially members of the club, they sign an NDA.”
My heart slips and my throat constricts on a sharp pain. “I’m not asking you to love me Alex. But you have to trust me.” I hold the contract back out to him, which he ignores it. His gaze on me as he shakes his head.
“You’re living on the riverboat. Shit, Mia, the casino draws in some very important people who expect us to respect their privacy. You’re a journalist. How do you think they would feel if they thought their identities were at risk?”
“The story I’m working on has nothing to do with the River Demons or Demon’s Lair.” Okay, I’ve hooked up with Cole to find out more about Delaney, It isn’t a complete lie, I tell myself.
“The choice is simple, Mia. Sign the damn NDA or remain locked in the cabin while you stay on Demon’s Lair.” Alex watches me and a flame flickers in the shadow, heating the glow in his eyes, turning them from ice to a blazing inferno. “I wouldn’t mind keeping you locked up” He steps closer, his finger a slither of a stroke against my cheek, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake.
He’s done it again. After freezing me out, he is seducing me, and my knees are about to give way. “I can always go back to Poppy’s.”
Alex shakes his head. “There’s no need to put Poppy in any more danger than she’s already in.” His smile deepens as he steps closer. “Unless you want me to move in.”
I shake my head. My room has too many secrets hidden in it, and I cannot afford Alex to find them. I glance at the NDA. There are things at the house which Alex might misunderstand. “I prefer the riverboat. I don’t have a pen on me.”
Alex smiles and the door to the trap rings through my head as it closes, and the lock turns. “I have one.”
“I should read it properly before signing.”
Alex’s sigh is heavy. “There’s nothing hidden in the document, Mia. It just says you won’t repeat to anyone what you see or hear at Demon’s Lair, or about the River Demons and their business.”
“No. No hidden clause that I willingly allow you to murder me if I break the contract.”
Alex chuckles and my stomach aches. He has his hands cupped behind my back, trapping me as his lower body thrust against mine. He is too close. How the hell am I supposed to concentrate when he is seducing me. We are high up on the riverboat. Away from anyone and as I watch Alex, the beat of my heart echoes in my ears. Even the seabirds which constantly fly overhead are missing.
“Your body is too delectable to damage that way, Mia. All you lose if you talk, is everything you own.”
“I don’t own anything.”
“Just sign the damn thing. Then we can get down to the important issues.” I giggle as Alex thrusts his hips against mine. The hard evidence of his arousal sends an answering message to my clit. As I accepted the pen he waves at me. Alex’s cell rings and he groans as he pulls away from me. “Shit, that was TJ. I have to go.”
“Alex.”
Alex takes back his pen, and the signed NDA. “We’ll pick up when I return.”
After leaving the pilot house, Alex heads straight to his bike and I turn towards our cabin. As I watch him from the deck, Kit, Day and Bastian, join him, and I frown as the bikes leave in a hail of flying pebbles and the echo of roaring engines. It’s early afternoon, soon the casino will be a hive of activity as they prepare for tonight’s games. Usually with one of the officers overseeing the preparations. Instead of returning to the cabin, I turn towards the casino. Leon and TJ are missing. Behind the bar is Melody and Firebird is talking to Candy. Non-disclosure or not, my curiosity is awake, and I stroll over to the redhead.
“Hi.” I glance around the casino. “Anything I can do?”
Firebird smiles, “Alex send you.”
I return her smile, “no. I just watched everyone ride off and thought you might be short-handed.”
“Thanks for the offer, but everything’s under control.”
I nod, turn my gaze to the window, then back to Firebird. “Where’s Leon? I thought he was working this afternoon.”
Firebird shrugs, “He’s supposed to be. But an emergency came up.”
I chew my bottom lip, “the same emergency as Alex’s.”
Firebird’s smile heightens the twinkle in her gold eyes. “Probably as they all disappeared at the same time.”
“This emergency, does it have anything to do with TJ?”
Firebird shrugs, “you’ll have to ask Alex when he gets back.”
Chapter 23
Alex: Noir Valley
I pull the bike into the parking lot of Samuel Colt’s garage, then take a swift sweep of the main street of Noir Valley. It’s not a large town. We have a population of just under three thousand if you believe the signpost on the outskirts. But it is a busy town with tourist visiting most of the year. Some of the attraction is Demon’s Lair and the casino. Just on the outskirts as we drove in, there is the foundation of a new Mall being built and as I glance at the stores on the main street, I wonder how much damage the local community businesses will suffer. There is also a planning meeting coming up for a new housing development. Noir Valley is changing. New money is being invested with the intent of bringing new people to a once sleepy town. My gaze drifts further up the street and I notice a To Let sign next to the post office. Outside the store is a 2019 Spider. Joel Delaney’s favorite model of car. TJ’s phone call could not have come at a more inappropriate time. I was hot for Mia. Walking her round Demon’s Lair, watching her ass as she sashay her hips, making sure I was always in the right spot so I could peep down her tee-shirt and watch the curves of her breasts as she moved had the blood pumping through me. Shit, we were in the pilot house, all alone, and I was ready to get down and dirty with my little vixen when he called. His news too important for me to ignore. Delaney has made his move and TJ was there to witness it. Jono’s taunts and whispers had been more than that. Delaney was here in Noir Valley.
“Are we going to do this now?” Day asks.
I turn to Day and shake my head. “There’s only one hotel he’ll be staying at. The Noir Valley Nights. He’ll not be straying far.” I glance to the hotel. The largest building in Noir Valley. Not in height but in width, taking up the corner of the main street and four floors high. “Sally works there. We can ask her which room he’s in. Then move someone in a room close by.” I glance over to TJ who is strolling out of garage carrying a bottle of oil and I raise my eyebrow ss he reaches us.
TJ smiles as he waves the oil at me. “You can never be short of oil.”
I shake my head at him. My lips in a half twist. “How long has he been in there,” I nod towards the vacant office.
“Long enough to sign a lease.”
“Are you sure?”
TJ nods, “watched him myself.”
“Shit.”
Day’s eyebrow rises and as I look over to him, I find Leon watching me. “What are you going to do about Mia?” He asks.
My smile deepens as I wink at the biker, “I can always keep her in bed.”
The other bikers chuckle. “And who’ll cover for you when you’re supposed to be working?” asks Bastian.
“Neat and Sink owe me. If not one of them, Mia can always hold my hand.”
“Did she sign the NDA.” Day’s voice loses its teasing. His eyes searching my face and I nod.
“Yep.” I smile. “It just needs a witness.” I pull the NDA from my pocket. Leon takes it from me, signs it in the street, then hands it to Day, who glances over it, then slips it into his own pocket.
“Good.” Day looks at me. “You think you can keep her on the riverboat?”
I glance at TJ and shrug. “I doubt it. But if TJ keeps tabs on Delaney. He shouldn’t be able to get to her.”
TJ blinks, then frowns, “why me.”
“Because you found him, and he doesn’t know you.”
“You don’t think as a black man, I’ll stand out.”
I smile as I shake my head. “Nope. But there’s another empty office above Bert’s Barbers. The perfect place to set up your new business.” TJ glances towards the barbers. His gaze on the offices above the family run store. “Take Mal with you. Then it’ll look legit, and Delaney shouldn’t think otherwise.”
TJ’s brown eyes bore into me. “Why Mal and not Candy or Patch? Or one of the other women.”
“Because you’re there to work not play around.” The wit dripping from Bastian has everyone smiling.
“I like it,” Day said. His gaze also on the building. “We’ll put Tick in the hotel at night to keep an eye on Delaney.”
“And I don’t get a say in this.” TJ asks as he watches Day. All humor fading from his face.
Day slaps TJ on his back as he shakes his head. “No. You wanted the dating agency. You can run it from here. That way, it’s kept separate from the casino.”
As I had my attention on the office Delaney was renting, I was able to see when he left the building. As he pauses at the main door, he turns his head in our direction and our eyes clash. With a tilt of his head, he turns away to talk to the man standing next to him, then climbs into the Spider. As the car comes towards us, it slows down.
Delaney winds the passenger window down. “Alex.” My body turns cold as I nod at the man responsible for my personal hell. If I recognize Delaney. Delaney is going to recognize me, especially if he knows where I live and is in cahoots with Jono. After the car disappear down the road, I turn back to my brothers.
“I guess war was just declared,” said Day.
I nod. My mind already on Mia and how I am going to protect her.
The cabin is empty when I return to Demon’s Lair, and I take a beer from the mini fridge beside the bed and go for a shower. Although my body still hums
with unsated lust, I neither masturbate nor have a cold shower, but quickly wash myself before setting off to find my woman. When I find her, she is in the casino talking to Patch.
“Mia.”
She turns but does not smile. “I’m just checking the stock with Patch.”
“She can do that without you.”
“Alex.”
I tilt my head. “Mia.”
Her lips firm and with a deep sigh she hands the clipboard to the club whore, then follows me to the corner of the casino where I pull a couple of chairs off one of the tables. If Mia is going to have a meltdown, she’ll not do it here in front of the brothers and whores.
“What do you want to talk about, Alex?”
I study the woman I’m falling in love with. In the five years since our night, she has grown. She was beautiful and gangly then. All arms and legs. Now she is grace and lust wrapped in one body.
“Couldn’t I just want to spend five minutes with you?”
Mia smiles and my dick twitches. “If you want to spend time with me. Why don’t we go back to the cabin?”
Shit. The girl is smart. I forgot that. The smile I flash her has Mia wiggling in her chair. “I thought we’d chat.” I lean forward, lift her hand, turning it palm upwards and glide my thumb over the delicate flesh. The throb in my dick pulses faster at the slight quiver palpitating through Mia.
“I don’t want to be accused of wanting you for your body only.” I wriggle my eyebrows. “No matter how gorgeous your body is. I’m letting you know; I want more than your body or a quick fuck.”
Mia chuckles as she slips her hand out of my grasp. As she leans back in her chair, her eyes gleam with unsuppressed laughter. “Okay. Talk.”
“Jono’s threat about Delaney. It’s the real deal. I’ve seen him.”
Mia’s smile slips and the gleam in her eyes disappears. “You’re not going to do anything stupid?”