Daddy Protector: MC Romance (Pythons MC)

by Sadie Savage

  “What do you think you’re doing, little man?” Blade shouted. “If you know what’s good for you, you’re going to get the hell out of here!”

  Michelle cringed, but she knew she couldn’t let Blade fight her battles. She would just go home with Alan and pretend the whole thing had never happened.

  “I just…I need to know that she’s all right!” Alan said desperately. “I want to see her.”

  “You’re not going to see anything ever again, where you’re going,” Blade threatened.

  “Stop!” Michelle cried.

  “Aw hell, Michie! I told you to stay upstairs!”

  Michelle descended the staircase quickly and looked Alan squarely in the eyes.

  “Alan, you need to leave. These men are going to hurt you if you don’t.”

  She backed away from Alan and raised her voice so that everybody in the MC could hear her.

  “I don’t want any of you laying a hand on my husband. Do you understand me?!”

  “Michie!”

  She glared sternly at Blade, who clamped his mouth shut unhappily. She was doing it to protect them. If any of them laid a hand on the chief of police, it would be the end of the line for them all.

  “Leave, Alan,” Michelle warned.

  “Come with me!” Alan exclaimed. “You belong with me! Not in this bar full of pathetic thugs!”

  “Listen to what I’m saying to you,” Michelle said, her voice quavering. “I am going to file for divorce. I’m not your wife, Alan. I’m nothing to you. And I’m not coming home. Now you can be a man about this and respect my wishes, or you can be a coward. But I have to tell you, the men in here don’t think too highly of cowards. It would take a lot more than my pretty words to hold them off if they set their mind to something.”

  Alan glowered, looking helplessly around the room for some way he might gain the upper hand. Even if he had every squad car in the city outside the MC, he had no grounds to take her away and he knew it. He had come here as a spoiled brat wanting to take back what he thought was his, but now that she had challenged him, he would feel that his manhood was on the line. Was he going to act like a spoiled little bitch in front of an entire gang of bikers? Even Alan wasn’t that stupid.

  “You’re all going to pay for this,” Alan said, his voice quavering. He didn’t look at any of the bikers. He was talking only to Michelle. She was going to be the one he punished. He probably didn’t give a damn about the MC, as long as he was able to put his wife in his place.

  Alan turned away from her and stomped out the door and Michelle sank back against the wall, sighing heavily. He had been ballsy to come in there and try to order these men around like that, but that only served to show what a fucking lunatic he was.

  “Are you all right, Michie?”

  Blade’s strong, comforting voice suddenly enveloped her and she felt her body become weightless as Blade’s well-muscled arms scooped her up against his broad chest. She was carried up the stairs and laid down gently in the nearest bed, in Blade’s bed, and a cool cloth was applied to her forehead.

  “It’s going to be fine,” Blade whispered, his voice deep and soothing in the cool, darkness of the bedroom. It smelled like him, and Michelle suddenly had the urge to hold him close, or be held by him, and never let go again.

  ***

  Michelle woke up with a start. She hadn’t realized that she’d fallen asleep and panic welled inside of her. She had been dreaming that she was falling down a long, spiraling hole, with no end in sight. It was exactly the way she had always felt with Alan.

  “That little slime ball really did a number on you, didn’t he?”

  She was surprised by the deep rumble of Blade’s voice in the darkness.

  “Could I have some water, please?” she asked. She didn’t want to answer the question, to acknowledge all of the ways that Alan had harmed her over the years. Some things he’d done might never stop hurting her, really. It would be impossible for her to feel like she once was.

  “Of course,” Blade said, moving quietly through the room. A few moments later he returned to her side with a glass of cool water and she sipped it gratefully.

  “What happened?” Michelle asked. She had fainted a few times before but usually only after a beating. This time had been different. Unnerving.

  “I reckon you weren’t quite ready to see that ugly mug of his again,” Blade said with a wry chuckle. “Decided to go and pass out on us so you wouldn’t have to look at it anymore.”

  Michelle laughed weakly.

  “That’s a very scientific theory,” she said.

  “Hey, they call me Blade, not Beaker,” he said, laughing quietly.

  They were quiet for a moment and Michelle took the opportunity to study Blade’s form in the darkness. He was so well put together. Everything in the room was neat and organized. Even his beard was trimmed meticulously. The man knew how to take care of himself. And, apparently, he knew how to take care of her, too.

  “Do you think he’ll come back?” Michelle asked. She couldn’t bear the thought of leaving the MC again. Especially not now that she had just started feeling comfortable here. The idea of going back with Alan made her feel nearly mad with apprehension.

  “Nah,” Blade chuckled. “Not if he values his life. Did you see his face?!”

  Michelle laughed despite herself. Alan had always been quite the coward. He liked to pretend he was a big bad alpha male, but when it came down to it, he was just an insecure little boy. At first it had been a quality that had endeared Alan to her, ironically enough. Now though, it had nearly been her end.

  “I’m serious though. I don’t want any of you taking needless risks. You stay on your turf and he should stay on his. If anything happened to Alan because of me, they would crack down so hard on this place it would make your heads spin.”

  Blade shrugged.

  “We’ll see about that,” he said. “But it isn’t happening now, so don’t worry so much about it, got me? Just try to work on feeling better.”

  He bent down and kissed her on the forehead, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The soft warmth of his lips and the scraping of Blade’s mustache against her skin instantly set Michelle ablaze. The man was just trying to be fatherly, but somehow, the innocent little gesture had reminded her of just how much she had wanted Blade. From the moment she’d seen him standing on her porch to the moment he had stepped up for her against her husband, all she’d wanted to do was to feel more of the forbidden desires his body might have to offer.

  “I should really get back to my own room,” she said quickly, locking eyes with Blade. His eyes were dark, almost tortured. Or maybe she was imagining it.

  “Right,” he said, moving out of the way so that she could stand up from his bed.

  She didn’t want to leave. The masculine smell of the room, the smell of Blade himself, was tantalizingly comforting. It was like being in front of a campfire on a warm summer day. But she couldn’t be trusted with her feelings. If she allowed herself to be drawn in, they would both regret it. Not only was she married, but it was a horrific thought to be so drawn to her father’s best friend. The man was far, far older than she was. It just wasn’t right. In fact, her father would probably be furious at the both of them for it.

  Besides, there was no way that Blade was interested in her. He had known her since she was a child. All she would ever be was a kid to him. How would he ever see her as a grown woman? It wouldn’t work. It was all just too creepy to even consider.

  “Do you want me to walk you to your room?” Blade asked, his voice tight with concern. “I could bring you some dinner, if you want.”

  “No, it’s all right,” Michelle said quietly. “I’m feeling much better. Thank you though.”

  She swallowed hard. She would just have to work harder to fight her feelings for Blade, that was all. She couldn’t let the grief win out. There was no way that she would ever be able to have a healthy relationship with Blade, was there? They
were from two different worlds, and he would probably always see her as a child. It was time to accept it and put her crush behind her, once and for all.

  Chapter 8

  “Blade, you might want to come out here…”

  Blade sighed and pushed his chair away from his desk.

  “The hell are you interrupting me for? I’m almost done. Do you have any idea how goddamn drab doing this paperwork can be?”

  Jackal shrugged and Blade continued grumbling as Jackal led him to the windows.

  “Look outside,” Jackal said.

  “Aw Christ!” Blade growled. “What the fuck!?”

  Three police cars were parked outside the MC, each of them with their lights flashing red and blue. A small collection of bikers was gathered out front, smoking cigarettes and watching the cars suspiciously, but nobody seemed to dare to move, whether biker or cop.

  “Should we go out there and see what they want?”

  “Nah, ignore them. The stupid fuck trying to control Michie probably sent them here to try and psych us out. Don’t tell her about this.”

  “Too late,” Jackal said, nodding out the window. Blade looked again and cursed loudly.

  “That woman is going to be the fuckin death of me!”

  Before Jackal could respond, Blade was tearing down the staircase after Michelle, who was strutting confidently through the group of bikers and heading toward the police cruisers.

  “And just what in the hell do you think you’re doing?” Blade growled, gripping Michelle’s arm in his hand and pulling her back.

  “I’m going to tell them to get the hell out of here and mind their own business!” Michelle exclaimed. “They’re really pushing it!”

  “If you step foot near any of those fuckin’ cars, I swear to god…”

  “Let go of me!” Michelle exclaimed, pulling her arm away from Blade. He suddenly felt foolish. What was he trying to do by manhandling her like that? It was a good way to get her riled up after the trauma she’d experienced with her loser husband.

  “Look, I’m sorry. But if you go near them, those assholes are probably going to apprehend you or some shit.”

  “I haven’t done anything wrong,” Michelle insisted. “They can’t take me for anything.”

  Blade raised an eyebrow at her and Michelle’s fire wavered.

  “You know as well as I do how crooked these shitheads can be. Why don’t we just go back inside and pretend that they’re not even here. What we’re doing right now isn’t going to help anything. It’s just giving them a shit show to laugh about. It would be far crueler to bore them to death, don’t you think?”

  Michelle’s chin jutted defiantly toward the cruisers and Blade sighed. He wasn’t getting through to her. The woman was livid and she had every right to be.

  “You know that Alan jerk is probably just sending a few of his friends to keep tabs on you and look out for anything they can try to use against us in court. They’re sneaky bastards. They know that if they stepped foot outside of their little cars, they’d be torn apart for daring to show their faces here. Otherwise they would have come out and grabbed you by now, brought you back to your husband kicking and screaming. They don’t care about you!”

  Michelle’s shoulders grew heavy and she turned to face Blade, her features deflated and sad.

  “I know they don’t care about me. Do you know how many times I’ve tried to report Alan to the guy in the middle car? He just takes my statement and then brings Alan in so they can make fun of how hysterical and insane I am.”

  “They’re all going to pay for this, kid, but we have to give it some time. We’re working out a way to extract you from that guy’s grip completely. Trust me. The MC is powerful. We know a suit or two. But it’s going to be a process, all right?”

  Michelle furrowed her brow but nodded, scowling at the ground.

  “Let’s get the hell inside so they get their filthy eyes off you. They don’t know how lucky they are I don’t give them what they have coming right now.”

  Michelle sighed and leaned against Blade’s shoulder as he led her inside. It felt like the most natural thing in the world for them to do and Blade swallowed hard. Why was it so damn easy for him to feel this way? This was a young girl, half his age. His friend’s child! He was practically like an uncle, right?

  No, Blade realized. Actually, he had only seen Michelle a handful of times when she was young. Mostly he had been busy trying to find his feet, traveling the countryside on his bike and seeing all there was to see. He heard bits and pieces about her, enough to know a few little things, and had been there on some special occasions, like birthdays.

  Yes, he had seen the girl a few times when she was a child, but mostly he’d heard about her. He wasn’t an uncle so much as an impartial observer in her life. Truth was, he was uncomfortable around children and preferred adult conversation.

  The thought made him feel a little bit better as he led Michelle up the stairs, unable to tear his eyes away from the form-fitting skirt and blouse Jo had picked out for her. The woman may well be a goddess for all Blade was concerned, and when you messed with a goddess, the universe had a way of putting you in your place.

  “All right then,” Blade said once they reached the common room upstairs. He led Michelle to the couch and they sat down together. “Let’s talk some sense. I know you’re worried, but I’ve got a plan here that will make sure that you’re safe. All right? You listening?”

  Michelle nodded glumly and Blade cleared his throat.

  “I didn’t want to tell you because I thought it would get your hopes up and we’re not sure whether it’s a sure thing or not, but I have a friend who’s a lawyer. He lives in California, we met when I was traveling the countryside in my 20s.”

  “It’s hard to imagine you in your 20s,” Michelle said with a quiet laugh.

  Blade pursed his lips at her. “Watch it, kid.”

  Michelle’s eyes danced and once again he was trapped within them, a slave to his agonizing desires, but he was able to fight through it and get his mind back on track.

  “What kind of lawyer is your friend?” Michelle asked.

  “He’s mostly into business law, but he knows quite a few people who could help out in a situation like this. Get the divorce papers arranged and notarized quickly. And, probably, get you the majority of this piece of shit’s money.”

  Michelle exhaled in disbelief. “That sounds impossible.”

  “It’s not,” Blade said, looking seriously into her eyes. “You’re just too used to bad things happening. But you’re with me now. Try to have some faith in the MC. We’re here for you.”

  Michelle shook her head and fell back against the couch, looking up at the ceiling with tears in her beautiful eyes.

  “I can’t believe any of this is actually happening,” she whispered. “It’s all felt like such a nightmare. This is the first time I’ve felt safe since I was a kid.”

  “Bikers tend to have that effect on people,” Blade teased. “At least, the people that they like.”

  Michelle laughed and sat up, peering into Blade’s eyes. She put her soft, gentle hand over his and squeezed it.

  “Thank you for everything,” she said, her face radiant with gratitude. “I think you might very well be saving my life.”

  Blade swallowed hard and shook his head. “That’s a bit of an exaggeration, I think. But you can always count on the MC. I know Alan probably had his own idea about things, but he’s about to find out just how wrong he’s been.”

  The two studied each other and the air between them seemed to crackle with life. Blade had waited all his life to meet a woman who could put him under her spell, but nowhere, in all of the country, did he find a person like that. Not until he saw Michelle. It was wrong. He knew it was wrong. She probably didn’t even feel the same way about him.

  But the energy between them was impossible to deny. The thought that maybe, just maybe, she might reciprocate these intense feelings, was enough to inspi
re the man in him to act. He shoved away all thoughts of right and wrong, and surrendered to the moment. And the moment was fucking sweet.

  Michelle gasped in surprise and pleasure as Blade’s mouth suddenly pressed against hers, and he felt her body surrendering beneath his touch. He gripped her close to him, the feeling of her breasts pressed firmly against his torso sending a wave of fire to his loins. She moaned when she felt the hard mound of his cock against her, and they broke away from the kiss, both of them breathing heavily.

  “Fuck,” Blade said, cringing. Zeke was probably rolling over in his grave right about now. “I’m sorry.”

  He stood up quickly from the couch and retreated from the room, leaving Michelle, gasping and hot, behind him.

  Chapter 9

  Michelle’s entire body was trembling after the brief rapture of the kiss, and she felt like if she stood up now, she would just end up falling over.

  She put her head in her hands and closed her eyes, replaying the overpowering ecstasy of Blade’s lips – his entire body – again and again. But when she opened her eyes again, tempted to follow him into his bedroom, she felt suddenly sick inside. Wasn’t it wrong of her to be feeling like this? The man was twice her age. Her father’s friend.

  And even if those things weren’t important factors, wouldn’t it be impossible to overlook the fact that she was getting a divorce? What if she was just feeling vulnerable and using Blade as a rebound? And who was to say he was going to take Michelle seriously anyway? Wasn’t her father always saying how Blade wasn’t the type to settle down? He was a man who was always looking for his roots, her father had said. And that was why he was gone most of the time she was growing up.

  Finally, Michelle steadied her breathing enough to walk shakily back to her own bedroom. She sat down on the bed, unsure of whether to smile or cry. This whole thing was a complete disaster. The police were sitting outside, just waiting for her, or anybody at the MC, to fuck up, and she was just making matters worse. She was giving in to the forbidden feelings she had been feeling toward Blade ever since he had shown up on her doorstep. There were so many reasons why this was wrong. She couldn’t just succumb to something that would ultimately turn out to be another horrible mistake. The last thing Michelle could live with was another life like the one she’d had with Alan. Enough was enough.