Every Breath You Take (Bayou Devils MC Book 3)

by A. M. Myers

  “Jesus.”

  I laugh as he shakes his head. “See, baby? The Taser wasn’t that bad at all.”

  “You’re terrifying,” he whispers, standing up and stalking over to me. “And gorgeous, magnificent, enchanting, and so many other big words that I can’t think of right now because all I can think about is kissing you.”

  I grin as he lowers his lips to mine and the moment we connect, I sigh, feeling more at home than I ever have anywhere else. This is the kind of feeling that I could get used to, lose myself in, and despite what my mind is telling me, it doesn’t scare me. Lincoln is quickly becoming my everything.

  A knock at the door has us pulling apart and I’m reaching for the gun behind me when he stops me.

  “It’s Storm and Chance and their old ladies.”

  I scowl. “Why?”

  “Because you wanted to play board games and these guys are my family.”

  “Oh,” I whisper, a smile creeping across my face as I drop my hand. “Okay.”

  He plants a kiss on my forehead before going into the living room and opening the door.

  “Thanks for coming, y’all,” he says, holding the door open as I creep out of the kitchen, suddenly nervous. These people are important to Lincoln and I’ve never been all that good with first impressions. I just hope I don’t make a total ass out of myself.

  “You must be Tate,” someone says as a gorgeous blonde walks over to me and wraps me up in a hug. I meet Lincoln’s eyes across the room and beg for mercy as I hug her back.

  “Yeah, that’s me.”

  “Well, I’m Ali,” she says, taking a step back as a man with dark hair and piercing gray eyes wraps his arm around her, “And this grumpy bastard is Logan. Or Storm, whichever works. I’m so happy to meet you.”

  I force a smile to my face. “It’s nice to meet you, too.”

  “He didn’t tell you we were coming, did he?” the other blonde asks as the man at her side smirks.

  “Uh, no.”

  “Jesus, Kodiak,” Ali groans. “You can’t just spring things like this on a girl. Fucking cavemen, all of you.”

  I laugh and she flashes me a smile as the other blonde steps forward and holds out her hand. “I’m Carly and this is Chance.”

  “It’s really nice to meet you guys.”

  “So,” Chance says, clapping his hands. “What are we playing?”

  “Strip poker?” Lincoln asks, a mischievous grin on his face.

  “Not a fucking chance,” Storm growls and I laugh as Lincoln steps up beside me and wraps his arm around my waist.

  “Let me go grab the games.” I walk into the hallway and Lincoln follows behind me.

  “So, in hindsight, maybe I should have warned you.”

  “You think?” I hiss. “That was maybe the most awkward I’ve ever been in my life. I don’t make a good first impression, Lincoln. People need time to warm up to me.”

  He laughs, pinning me to a wall as he brushes his nose over mine. “I thought you made a fantastic first impression with me.”

  “Yes, well, you’re insane,” I whisper with a giggle and he grins as he leans in and kisses me.

  “Dude, I thought we were here to play games, not watch you make out with your girlfriend,” someone grumbles and we both turn to find Storm and Chance standing in the entrance to the hallway.

  “I’ve had front row seats to your disgusting love fest for the past year so you don’t get to complain,” Lincoln tells them and Storm rolls his eyes.

  “The games are in there,” I say, pointing to the dreaded closet. Thankfully, Theo and I managed to get it cleaned up when he was here or we’d never get to them.

  Lincoln plants a kiss on my cheek before turning to the closet. “Go wait with the girls; we’ll get the games.”

  Nodding, I slip into the kitchen and stop in the doorway to the dining room. “Y’all want some coffee or sweet tea or something?”

  Ali smiles up at me. “Some sweet tea would be amazing.”

  “No, it fucking wouldn’t,” Storm snaps, walking out of the hallway with a couple games in his hand. I scowl as Ali sighs. “You can’t have the caffeine.”

  “Logan, if I have to tell you one more time that some caffeine is okay, I’m going to lose it.”

  Carly grins, folding her arms over her chest as she watches them banter.

  “Why wouldn’t she be able to have caffeine?” Chance asks, following behind Storm.

  “Kitten,” Storm growls, ignoring everyone else. “Don’t push me on this.”

  “No, Logan. You don’t push me on this or I will murder you before this baby is born.”

  My mouth falls open as the rest of the room falls silent, every pair of eyes on Ali and Storm. Lincoln drops the games on the table and starts laughing so hard that he has to grab onto the chair to stay upright.

  “Oh, shit, you’re so screwed,” he teases Storm through his laughter and Chance joins him.

  “Imagine if it’s a girl,” he adds, nudging Lincoln and they both start laughing harder as Storm rolls his eyes and Ali beams.

  “It’s going to be a boy,” he grumbles and the boys laugh harder, tears building in their eyes.

  “It’s so going to be a girl and she’s going to be just as pretty as her Mama,” Carly says, getting in on the fun and Storm plops down in a chair, losing all the color in his face.

  “Fuck. I’m going to have to buy some guns.”

  Lincoln wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me closer. “You can have some of Tate’s.”

  “Don’t go giving away my guns!” I yell, shoving him and he just keeps laughing.

  “Wait, wait,” Storm hollers, holding his hands up. “How many guns do you have?”

  “In this room?” I ask and five pairs of eyes widen on me. “Three.”

  “Jesus,” Chance breathes out and Lincoln beams down at me.

  “She could also kick your ass without breaking a sweat so be nice to her.”

  Rolling my eyes, I grab the deck of cards off the table and hold them up. “Y’all want to keep cataloging all my weapons or should we play some cards?”

  The girls wander into the kitchen to get snacks and drinks and as I grab the other deck of cards and start shuffling them together, Storm slaps Lincoln on the back and whispers, “She’s a keeper, brother.”

  His eyes meet mine and he smiles. “I know.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Tatum

  “I brought you donuts!” Mia yells as I open the door and grab the bakery bag off the seat before I climb into the car. Opening the bag, the scent of sugar and bread hits my nose and I moan, my stomach grumbling.

  “Thank you. I’m starving.” Pulling out a maple bacon donut, I take a bite and my eyes roll back in my head as I let out another moan. “It’s so yummy.”

  She laughs as she pulls away from the curb. “What was that? I couldn’t understand what you said around half the donut in your mouth.”

  “It’s not half,” I mutter with a scowl as I glance down at the two thirds left in my hand. “Besides, I’m hungry. I didn’t get breakfast this morning.”

  A mischievous grin stretches across her face. “And why is that? A little too busy with a certain biker to worry about sustenance?”

  “No,” I shoot back, a blush staining my cheeks. That’s a lie. Ever since Sunday night when he took me over to his house, Lincoln and I haven’t been able to keep our hands off each other. We still haven’t had sex but I’ve experienced more orgasms in the last four days than I did for the two years I was having sex in high school.

  “You are such a little liar,” she teases, her gaze flicking between my face and the road. “Lincoln’s been giving it to you good, huh?”

  I shake my head. “We, uh… we haven’t had sex yet.”

  “What?” she shrieks, her eyes wide. “How the hell have you not jumped that man? And what the fuck are you waiting for?”

  “I don’t want to be just another girl to him.”

  She pulls
up to a stoplight and turns to me. “Sweetie, you’re not. He made things official with you after you tased his ass. That man is yours.”

  I laugh as she turns back to the steering wheel and the light turns green. “I’m just not ready yet.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know.” I shrug. “I guess I’m just nervous. It’s been a really long time for me.”

  “Yeah,” she sighs, nodding. “I get that. Just don’t wait too long, okay? ‘Cause you’ll keep building it up in your head and making it harder than it needs to be.”

  “I thought being hard was the whole point,” I say with a mock scowl and her mouth drops open as her gaze flicks in my direction. I smile.

  “Oh my god, for such a prude, you’re a little pervert.”

  I bark out a laugh as we pull into the store’s parking lot.

  “What are we looking for in here?”

  Mia blushes. “Well, I need a dress.”

  “For?” I ask, polishing off my donut as she pulls into a space and parks the car.

  “I kind of have a date.”

  My eyes widen and I smile. “That’s great, Mia. Anyone I know?”

  “Uh…” she hums and I arch a brow. Oh, this just got interesting. “Shaun.”

  “Shaun? From work?”

  She nods and I beam as I picture it in my head. It’s not all that far fetched and she looks really happy about it.

  “Yeah. We’ve been dancing around each other for the better part of a year and I finally had enough and asked him out.”

  We climb out of the car. “Wow. I’m impressed. Where is he taking you?”

  “I have no idea. He just grinned and told me to wear something cute when I asked him what his plans were.”

  I hook my arm through hers as we walk toward the store. “We are going to find you something to knock his freaking socks off.”

  She’s bristling with nervous energy and I smile to myself as we walk into the store and we’re blasted with air-conditioned air. Mia had a pretty steady boyfriend until six months ago when he left her without much of an explanation. She was absolutely heartbroken so I’m glad to finally see her moving on. And Shaun is a good guy so no worries there.

  “So,” she says, releasing my arm to grab a shirt and hold it up. “Besides never leaving the bedroom, how are things with Lincoln?”

  It’s my turn to blush as I glance down at a shirt to hide my face. “Good. Really good, actually.”

  “Look at you. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy.”

  I meet her eyes. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy. He’s… incredible.”

  “Oh my god, your face right now… are you in love with him?”

  I suck in a breath and fight back a smile. “I think I am.”

  “Tate,” she whispers, grabbing my shoulder and pulling me into a hug. “I’m so fucking happy for you.”

  “Me, too,” I mumble, tears stinging my eyes but for maybe the first time in my life, they’re happy tears instead of sad ones. I don’t know if it was timing or the desperate situation I found myself in when Lincoln and I first met but all the stars lined up perfectly for us and I’m head over heels in love with him. He stole a piece of me the moment he glanced up from that booth and our eyes met. In that moment, I was his even if neither one of us knew it yet.

  “Let’s find you something to wear to knock him on his ass, too,” she says, pulling away and turning toward the racks. “And don’t worry about paying. I’ve got it.”

  “Oh, you don’t have to do that.”

  She glances over her shoulder and rolls her eyes. “Why do you always have to argue with me? I want to do this for you.”

  “It’s just… I can afford to pay for it myself now.”

  Turning to me, she scowls. “How?”

  “After my mom died, a lawyer showed up to the house with a check for Theo and me. Apparently, she had money tucked away for us.”

  “How much money?” she asks, her brow arching as she crosses her arms over her chest.

  “A lot.” When she motions for me to continue, I sigh. “Almost half a million each.”

  “What?” she shrieks, drawing the attention of everyone else in the store. I paste a smile on my face and wave them off before glaring at her.

  “Shh.”

  “Sorry,” she whispers. “But, what the fuck? Where did she get that kind of money?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t have a clue.”

  “And you didn’t tell me?”

  “How the hell do I just drop that into conversation one day? Oh, hey, by the way, my mom was loaded and left her money to me.”

  She nods. “Exactly like that would have worked.”

  “I’m sorry, Mia. It’s all been a lot to process.”

  After studying me, she sighs. “Any other secrets you’ve been keeping from me?”

  Pursing my lips, I look away from her and she slaps my arm with the back of her hand.

  “Spill now.”

  “It’s just these prank calls I’ve been getting. I’m almost sure that it’s just Reed being a dumbass but they’re starting to get to me.” Relief washes over me as soon as the words leave my mouth. I don’t like to admit it but the calls are really starting to bother me, especially since they just keep coming. I’ve lost count of how many times my mystery caller has sung my name over the answering machine in the past week.

  “Why would Reed do that?” she asks and I roll my eyes.

  “Because of the way I quit.”

  Her eyes widen and she grabs my arms, shaking me a little. “Tate, you promised me that you didn’t hurt him.”

  “Uh… no. I promised you that I didn’t kill him and that is true but he grabbed me when I was trying to leave and I punched him.”

  “Anything else?” she asks, releasing me and planting her hands on her hips. I shrink back.

  “I may have also pulled a knife on him but I mean, I didn’t cut him or anything.”

  “Jesus Christ, Tate,” she breathes, shaking her head. “This is what I’ve been saying to you. It’s dangerous.”

  “What would have happened if I hadn’t been able to defend myself, Mia? He could have raped me or worse. I refuse to back down and make myself small to support these fragile fucking egos. Besides, Lincoln thinks it’s sexy.”

  “Or he’s scared you’ll gut him like an animal if he says any different,” she mumbles and I laugh as I poke her in the ribs.

  “Shut up, jackass. Lincoln offered to take the guys to have a chat with Reed and I might just let him.”

  Laughter bubbles out of her. “Oh, to be a fly on the wall when that goes down. Reed will probably piss himself.”

  “One can only hope,” I add and we giggle together as I pull out my phone and send a text to Lincoln.

  Me:

  You know that Reed thing we talked about?

  “Did you just tell him to do it?” she asks, trying to read the screen. I nod.

  “I’m about to.”

  Beaming, she turns back to the rack of clothes. “Perfect. Now, let’s find us some hot dresses.”

  We start sorting through the racks, occasionally grabbing a hanger and holding it up for each other but nothing feels right. As I reach for a little red flowy number, the hair on my arms stand on end and I can’t shake the feeling that I’m being watched. I glance around the store as my phone buzzes with a text.

  Lincoln:

  Yeah, I do.

  Me:

  Will you handle it for me?

  After pressing send, I blow out a breath and shake out my arms as I turn back to the clothes. It has to be just because I was talking about the whole Reed situation. As I start looking through clothes again, the sensation intensifies and I turn toward the large windows lining the walls, searching for anyone out of place but nothing stands out.

  God, I’m losing my mind.

  “So, speaking of money, what are you going to do now that you have some?” Mia asks and I turn back to her, shrugging.


  “I’m not sure actually. I had a meeting with a school counselor yesterday but things have changed for me.”

  She scowls. “How so?”

  How haven’t things changed?

  “When I wanted to go to school to become a nurse, it was only because it was a stable, well-paying job not because I loved it. Now, my options are wide open and I don’t know what to do.”

  She nods thoughtfully as my phone buzzes.

  Lincoln:

  Oh, it’ll be my pleasure, Darlin’.

  Lincoln:

  You free tomorrow night?

  Me:

  Thank you and yes.

  “What do you love to do, Tate? Like really, really love,” Mia asks and I glance up from my phone.

  “I don’t know. Read?”

  She scoffs. “Yeah, don’t I wish I could get paid for that.”

  “I actually really like working at the diner if it paid better.”

  She nods, humming. “You could always go for a manager position the next time one opens up.”

  “Yeah, I guess,” I whisper as a chill twists down my spine. God, why can’t I shake this? It was the same thing yesterday as I walked through the campus after my meeting with the counselor. I felt like I had eyes on me constantly and I didn’t feel safe again until I was in Lincoln’s arms.

  My phone buzzes and I glance down.

  Lincoln:

  The club is having a family bbq.

  Wanna go?

  I smile at the message, loving that he wants to introduce me to the people important to him. Mia is right about him – he’s mine.

  Me:

  Absolutely.

  “I’m going to go try this on,” Mia says, holding up a little black dress and I force a smile to my face. “Want to come with me?”

  My gaze flicks around the store again and I shake my head. “No, I’ll wait out here but show me before you take it off.”

  “You got it.” She bounces back to the dressing rooms with a grin on her face and I suck in a breath. As much as I would like to escape from this feeling, the thought of getting trapped back there with no exit is even more terrifying.