He stared at her. She was so… young. She looked like she could be a friend of Lex’s. He didn’t know how he could put his life, his trust, in her. “How can you have any experience? You’re like what…twenty-five?”
“Thirty-two, actually.” She shrugged. “I have good genes. But to address your question, I was second chair on several federal trials as an assistant district attorney, before I started taking my own cases three years ago. And I observed three dozen or so in law school as a project. Altogether, I have eight years of experience.” She pushed her glasses further up her nose. “Do you have any other objections to me representing you?”
A high-powered law firm had hired her, and she seemed very qualified. Fine by him. Besides, sitting in an interrogation room wasn’t the best place to shop for another attorney. “I guess not. If you’re as good as you say you are.”
“I am. Now, that we’ve established my role, I need to know something, and please speak freely. I made them shut down the microphones and video cameras.”
He glanced at the wall, sure enough the red light had gone off.
“Are you an idiot?” she asked.
He blinked, his mouth falling open. “What the fuck did you say to me?” No one had talked to him like that since he’d been a prospect.
“You heard me.” Then she paused, her brow creasing. “Oh, I’m sorry. Was I being rude?”
He stiffened. “You don’t know?”
“No,” she admitted, fiddling with the watch around her wrist. “Disclosure. I have Asperger’s. When I’m being impolite, I don’t actually mean to be. Please tell me and I’ll correct my behavior.” Then, she continued on. “According to the voicemail you left the firm, you spoke with the FBI without legal counsel present. Mr. Cooper–“
“Call me, Captain,” he said.
“Please call me Jane, Captain. As someone who narrowly survived a RICO conviction, I’d think you’d be smarter. Never speak to law enforcement again without me present.”
“Okay, you were rude again,” he said.
“Sorry.” She tapped her fingernails against the tabletop. She seemed to be counting under her breath. Or maybe just praying for patience?
“And they aren’t investigating us, they’re looking at the Raptors. I shut down the Q and A session, when it got dicey.”
“That was intelligent, at least.”
He’d hit his limit. “What kind of bug crawled up your ass?”
“Let me put this into perspective for you. A RICO case is the legal equivalent of herpes.”
“Herpes?” What the fuck did an STD have to do with anything?
“Yes. Like herpes, it spreads fast, infecting everyone. Once they connect you to the club, you become responsible for all the crimes committed by your brothers, simply by association.”
“Yeah, I saw it in action.” He’d seen a lot of brothers hauled away to prison. The rest had gone to the morgue.
“But you didn’t have any real consequences for your actions back then. You skated without any charges that time. It won’t be like that now. You’re the president, so you are definitely going down, if they come after your club. Try to be less cavalier in the future.”
Shit. Nothin’ like havin’ his ass handed to him by a kid. What she’d said made a lot of sense, too, so he couldn’t even argue with her. Fuck. “Got it,” he said.
Jane continued her tirade. “And I have more bad news for you, the federal government is following the activities of all outlaw motorcycle clubs. They may not have come here initially to dig into your club, but they’d love to find some dirt on you. It would be a high profile win for the justice department. Unlike the secretive terrorist crap, RICO cases are sexy and get a lot of press. The feds love to posture in front of the media, talk about how they’re protecting the public from dangerous criminals.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “And do you defend other clubs too? The ones who run drugs and traffic in women and children?”
She crossed her arms over her chest and assessed him coolly. “I only take cases I can win. I don’t judge my clients, I defend them. Having said that, juries aren’t sympathetic to drug dealers, rapists, and pimps. I personally don’t take those cases on, because they’re losers.”
Hmm. She didn’t have a moral objection exactly. For her, it was about winning and about the optics. Interesting.
“Your case, for example, has potential,” Jane informed him. “According to the report, your club allegedly released the women being held in a brothel. I can use that. Vigilante good guys stepping in to save citizens, where the government has failed them. But I’d prefer to head this off, before we even get to court.”
“Agreed.” Having the government sift through his life, searching for evidence had been stressful as hell. Captain had no desire to go through it all again.
And he sure as shit didn’t want to put Eddie through it. The last time had nearly killed her. The FBI had made a mess of her life. They’d frozen her assets, seized her property, questioned her for hours, and grilled her relatives and friends. It’d nearly broken her.
“Good. If I do my job, no one from your club will be charged. Having said that, I have a few rules. No one speaks to the police without me present. No one has contact with the Raptors. If you are currently engaged in any illegal activities, you need to stop, at least while the FBI is here.”
Luckily, he’d already taken care of the Raptor problem. “Agreed.”
“And I will need to stay in town until this blows over. Driving from Dallas every day isn’t practical.”
“The club owns a hotel, Hades. You can stay there.” Captain grabbed his phone and fired off a text to Voodoo while he was thinking about it.
“Excellent.” She stood up and grabbed her bag. “I’ll inform the agent you have nothing further to say until he charges you with something or hands you a subpoena. Then, I’ll rip the locals a new one for using lights and sirens to bring you in for questioning.”
He sat back in his chair and blew out a long breath. She might be unconventional, but seemed to be a good attorney. Thank the Lord.
They needed all the help they could get.
Chapter Ten
That evening, Eddie and Captain were once again alone in her bedroom.
He’d come over after dark for guard duty. Like last night, she’d chosen sexless flannel nightwear. Though, she hadn’t bothered with a shower. She hit the lights and took refuge under the covers, hoping sleep would keep her from doing something stupid, while he’d sprawled out in the chair.
Neither one of them spoke for a long time, until he finally broke the silence.
“Fuck,” he said. The curse came as a low rumble, like thunder, velvety and deep in the darkness. “I’ve been imagining you in bed all day.”
It made her stomach flip over. Dear God, the man had a sexy voice.
Eddie could feel his eyes on her. She’d spent hours fantasizing about him, too. She wasn’t prepared to go to bed with him, but Captain made her melt like fresh honey on a hot biscuit. He’d made her body come back to life and she wanted him so much it literally made her ache all over.
Clearing her throat, she glanced away and tried to get a hold of herself.
“And what are you thinking about?” he asked.
For a moment, she thought about lying, but couldn’t find an appropriate one. Hormones clearly make you stupid. “You,” she murmured.
“What about me?” he asked, a teasing note in his voice.
“How much I like your voice.” That sounded innocuous enough, not overtly sexual, merely an observation.
“And what do you like about it?” Another throaty vocal embrace.
She refused to answer. Mostly because anything she’d say would come out like an inarticulate purr. Or a whimper. There were no words for how she felt about his voice.
After a moment, he spoke again. “Know what I’m thinking about?”
“What?” She was almost afraid of the answer. It certainly wouldn’t
lead anywhere good.
“About making love to you.” The words came out in a whispered rush. “You’ve no idea how many times I’ve touched you, kissed you in my dreams. My fantasies.”
She pulled the covers up to her chin, even though it wasn’t that cold, because she wanted a barrier between the two of them, if only for her own sanity.
“Do you want to know what I’d do to you?”
Oh God.
He wanted to tell her a sexy bedtime story. She staged a debate with herself. Yes. No. Yes! No! Part of her wanted to shut this down before it got too far, part of her wanted to know every single dirty thought he’d ever had about her over the years.
“Eddie?” he prompted.
Curiosity won out.
“Tell me,” she whispered.
***
Captain was hard and aching in his jeans, but he was used to it, especially around her. Usually, without much effort on her part either. The sway of her shapely hips, the way her blouse clung to her breasts. The sassy way she bantered with him. It was in her laugh, the sweet way she smiled, and her grit. Damn, but that woman was strong, a force to be reckoned with.
She twisted him up into little bitty knots.
Everything about her made him feel needy, reckless. Sometimes, he thought he’d die if he couldn’t touch her. Others, he was convinced if he actually did, it might fucking kill him. .
Either way he was fucked.
And here he was in her bedroom, about to tell her what he wanted to do with her. He felt like pinchin’ himself, just to make sure he hadn’t slipped into one of his daydreams.
But he didn’t want to scare her. Tonight, was about seduction. He’d better make this fuckin’ good. Make her curious, so she’d give him a try out for real. She was still playing the role of the dutiful good wife. He had to coax her into seeing him as a man who was worthy of her. He doubted that shit was true, but he’d do anything in his power to have her, and to make her happy.
He sucked in a breath, gripped the armrests, so he didn’t end up reachin’ for her. “Right now? I want to kiss you. You have the tastiest mouth, sweet. I could spend all night kissin’ on you. And then I want to sink my hands into your hair, curl it around my fingers. Then kiss you so long and deep, until I steal your breath.”
She made a little noise that nearly broke his death grip on the chair. But he stayed where he was. For the moment.
“I want to kiss your throat, the hollow at the base of it, and nip your collar bones. And undo your shirt, strip it off, and then bare your breasts.”
Fuck, he wanted that. Thought about kneading them, feeling the weight in his palms, and then taking her nipples into his mouth, teasing them with his tongue and teeth.
She sighed.
“I gotta feel you beneath me, your hips bucking up to meet mine, asking me for more. I want to part your thighs and feel how wet and hot your pussy is. I want to rub you, make you so slick for me. Make you come for me. God, I need that. With my fingers, maybe my tongue, if you’re feelin’ real generous. Would you let me taste you, Eddie? Put my mouth between your thighs? Suck your clit.”
Another gasp from the bed.
Fuck. He adjusted himself. His cock was going to poke through his jeans any minute. And his hips were steadily bucking, as he imagined being inside her, being a part of her.
“I want you all swollen when I put my dick in you. I’ll ease my way in, real gentle, and then make you come again for me.” He groaned. “The head’s thick, it’ll take some gettin’ used to, but I know we’ll fit together. You’ll be snug as a glove around me.”
She cleared her throat, but he could hear her ragged breaths. She wasn’t unaffected.
Eddie wanted him, too. And he had to fucking stay where he was and be a gentleman.
“I want to hear you again. I heard you once,” he confessed. “When I was on guard duty. I slept next door and Joker came home early.” He’d laid there in hell, listening to Joker take her, fuck her, choking on his own hatred and jealousy, but so fucking turned on, too.
The noises she’d made! These soft moans, and aching sighs. Over and over, he’d heard them every fucking time he touched himself, thinking of her.
“Oh,” she murmured. He could almost hear her embarrassment.
Like a selfish prick, he wanted her to get so excited she came harder, louder. For him. He wanted to know he was special to her, too. That she felt the same spark he did.
Soulmates. As fucking crazy as that sounded.
That word had echoed in his head over the ears, every time he thought of her. Like they were meant for one another. No one else would do. Lord knows he’d tried everything. Everyone. Even being married to another woman didn’t put this fire out. It blazed on, eventually burning his marriage to ashes.
He palmed the velvet ring box in his pocket. He ached to see it on her finger. Unable to stop himself, he’d taken it with him this evening. He must be a damn fool, but he wanted to give it to Eddie. He’d squirreled it away for her, had it for years. He wanted it to be an engagement ring, more than anything. As irrational as it sounded, he wanted to lock this down.
But they weren’t in a place for love tokens right now.
Without realizing it, he got to his feet, drifted over to her, staring at her in the darkness.
She peeked at him from beneath the covers. “I’m sorry, Captain, I can’t do this. Not tonight.”
“Why?” he asked, and he made sure to keep his voice even, trying not to show how sexually frustrated he truly was.
She shook her head and he could make the movement out in the shadows.
Then, he forced himself to widen the distance between them. He sat down in the chair again. “Tell me. Talk to me.”
“It’s…Joker. I haven’t slept with anyone else since he—”
“I get it,” Captain grunted. Mother fucking Joker. Again.
For a dead man, that bastard had an active presence in his life. He’d been fucked over by Joker for years. He wished he could tell her the truth about the bastard, but it would devastate her.
“I’ve never been unfaithful to him. It…it feels wrong.”
“Honey,” he said gently. “He’s gone. Has been for years. You aren’t being unfaithful.”
“Yeah, I know,” she whispered. “In my head, it makes perfect sense, but my heart…”
He had to ask the question, though he feared the answer. “Are you still in love with him?”
She paused a moment and he swore to God it lasted thirty years.
Then, she finally spoke. “A part of me is. I think I’ve been holding on to him, keeping him alive in my memories. He’s gone, but it’s not like we got divorced. If he hadn’t died, we would still be together.”
Captain bristled. If she only knew. “But he did die. Do you think he’d want you to be celibate for the rest of your life?”
“No, he wouldn’t,” she admitted.
“And don’t you think you deserve some happiness? Another chance at love?”
“I do.”
Suddenly, he detected movement. She was approaching him in the dark and he seized the armrests. He had to play this very carefully or he’d spook her.
She sucked in a deep breath. “Okay, let’s try this.” Then, she bent over him, and kissed him, hard. Like she was trying to push past it, thrusting herself in the middle of the situation, to find out what would happen.
So far so good.
And then she straddled his lap and Captain thought his head might explode.
Both of them.
It took everything in him to stay put. He wanted to carry her to the bed, push his cock into her. But she wasn’t ready. Not yet. He’d blow it before they ever got started. Instead, he stayed put, but allowed himself to fist his hands in her hair, kissing her back. With a needy sound, Eddie ground against him.
Christ, if she kept this up, he’d come in his pants. But paradise only lasted a minute or so.
As if burned, she scrambled off him, moving b
ack to the bed. “No, I can’t do this. Not right now. I’m sorry!”
If Eddie knew the true story, she’d stop this insane devotion to him. Move on with her life. “Don’t worry about it,” he said eventually, when he’d calmed down.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“You don’t have to apologize, if you’re not ready, you’re not ready. That’s all there is to it.” He didn’t want to compound this situation by being a dick, even though his body screamed at him. He’d wanted her for so long. It was time. Past time, really.
But he didn’t want her this way–uncertain, pining for another man. Captain wanted her to be thinking of him, needing him so badly she couldn’t stand it.
Figures.
He finally got to be in a ménage a’ trois and it was shittiest kind possible – the woman of his dreams, and the memory of her dead ex-husband.
So, he looked at the bright side. She wanted him, too. He just needed to be persistent and let her get used to him. Help her let go of Joker.
And hope he didn’t fucking die of blue balls in the meantime.
Chapter Eleven
The next day, Eddie was distracted at work.
The bar usually opened at noon and she was using the hour or so before to do paperwork. Typically, she loved being a small business owner. She often joked that Perdition was her third child and she loved giving it the care and attention it deserved.
But she couldn’t concentrate.
She couldn’t stop thinking about Captain and last night. She sat at the bar staring at her laptop. Ryker had sent several spreadsheets last night and she couldn’t even look them over.
She’d woken up to find Captain had already left. She told herself she wasn’t disappointed. He’d left a note lying on the pillow. It simply said: I gotta pick Lex up from school for dad / daughter time. See you later on today. I’ll be thinking about you. ~C.
And her thoughts centered on Captain. And Joker. Yes, she had a love triangle on her hands. Starting a relationship with Captain didn’t mean she was cheating on Joker. She shouldn’t be carrying on a relationship with a dead man. It wasn’t healthy. She thought back to what Elizabeth said about finding love, starting fresh. She needed to let go of Joker.
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