by Sadie Savage
But when she looked up at him, the look on his face was haunted.
“What is it?” she whispered, reaching up to touch his cheek. Blade flinched away from her touch and he refused to look her in the eyes.
“It’s not right,” he grumbled. “I’m taking advantage.”
A bubble of laughter burst from Michelle, surprising them both.
“Only we can decide what’s right for us,” Michelle said, trying her hand at Jo’s philosophy. “It’s going to be all right. Unless you leave me hanging like this. Then you’re going to regret it.”
Blade grinned down at her, his face glowing. Was that adoration she caught in his eyes? But he had averted them far too quickly for her to tell, and suddenly his soft lips were hot against her flesh once again, and her breath was caught in her throat as he slowly, almost lovingly, moved his lips along her skin. They left fire in their wake, and she closed her eyes tightly, overwhelmed by the sudden explosion that erupted deep inside her loins. No man had ever made her feel this way before, and suddenly, his cock seemed to know exactly where to go.
The inferno inside of her was stoked by the friction of Blade’s member, and Michelle breathed heavily as, again and again, he brought more fuel to the fire. Soon, every nerve in her body was bursting with the explosive rapture of Blade’s body, and she threw her head back, a deep groan resonating from her throat.
She could almost feel Blade grinning down at her as he moved his body on top of her, the warm comfort of his broad muscles enveloping her as he moved his body expertly until she couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Fuck,” Michelle breathed as Blade quickened the pace of his hips, letting out a little growl as he felt her body tense up beneath him. She was on the edge of the most powerful feeling she’d ever had, and she was almost too scared to give in to it.
But running away wasn’t an option and Blade buried his lips in the nape of her neck, the contrasting feeling of his soft lips and the stubble of his beard sending her over the edge, into an earth-shattering climax. She shuddered beneath him as he moaned appreciatively, speeding up the rocking of his hips until there wasn’t a thought in her head anymore – just the pure sensation of her climax.
The power was intensified when a sudden explosion of heat erupted inside of her and Blade groaned deeply in her ear, his cock fierce as he emptied every last drop of his own orgasm into her body. He emptied himself completely inside of her, prolonging her orgasm until they were both completely spent.
Blade slowly pulled out of her body and rolled onto his back beside her, staring at the ceiling, his broad chest heaving powerfully as he seemed to consider what they had just done together.
Without a word, he rose from the bed and disappeared into the small bathroom connected to the room. Michelle took the sound of the shower running as her cue to go, and left to her own room without another word.
***
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Michelle asked Jo as they spread a red and white checkered tablecloth over a picnic table in front of the MC.
“I think it’s a great idea!” Jo exclaimed. “What’s more all-American than a barbeque for the Fourth of July?”
“But the cops are still out there,” Michelle said under her breath, nodding toward the single police car posted outside of the MC.
“All the more reason to show them that we have just as much of a right to freedom as they do, don’t you think?”
Michelle smiled and nodded. “I guess so.”
The grill was smoking heavily, with Jackal manning the hotdogs and hamburgers, and the yard was a bustle of activity as burly bikers came and went, some with beers in their hands, others with bags of potato chips or bottles of ketchup. It was kind of cute, in a way. It was probably the most normal thing that had happened since she’d arrived at the MC.
Michelle’s heart lurched suddenly when she spied Blade in the doorway, overlooking the scene with an unidentifiable look in his eye. He took a swig of the glass beer bottle sweating in his hands and then disappeared back inside the MC.
“Everything all right there, Michelle?” Jo asked, an annoyingly knowing lilt in her voice.
“Perfect,” Michelle said brightly. Jo laughed to herself and Michelle’s insides seemed to shrivel.
In truth, it had been nearly two weeks since her tryst with Blade, and he hadn’t looked at or spoken to her since then, except maybe to be polite or grumble for her to pass the salt. He was still making breakfast for them both, but he ate his in the common room and left hers on the table. There were no more good morning knocks on her bedroom door, and she had never felt more miserably lonely in all of her life.
“Who’s got the plates?” Jackal shouted.
A few men mumbled and supplied Jackal with the necessary tools to serve the first round of burgers and hot dogs, and soon the picnic tables were full of burly Pythons and the women who loved them as they ate their meals, enjoying themselves pointedly in front of the pathetic asshole in the cop car who was stationed to keep an eye on them.
“Michelle, come on and get something to eat, girl!” Jackal called. “Let’s show these pigs you’re not here against your will.”
Michelle smiled and walked over to the grill. She was feeling really hungry, especially after working all morning with Jo on the preparations for the barbeque. Jackal gave her a plate with both a hamburger and a hotdog on it, and she filled her plate before sitting back down with Jo.
“So how are things going out here, anyway?” Jo asked as they started eating. “I know things are probably stressful with these clowns watching over your every move.”
“It’s not that bad,” Michelle said dismissively. “I’ve started being able to ignore them. Now instead of thinking of Alan – “
Jo raised a stern eyebrow at her and Michelle laughed.
“I mean pigmeat,” she corrected herself. “I just think about how pathetic he is to feel like he has to keep tabs on me like this and pick a fight with a powerful as hell MC.”
“That’s the truth!” Jo exclaimed, holding her beer up for a cheers. Michelle smiled and reciprocated it, grateful that even without Blade being on speaking terms with her, she was still able to find a friend among the MC.
“I don’t know what I would do without you guys,” Michelle said, biting into her hot dog. “It’s been so hard…”
A sudden wave of nausea overwhelmed Michelle, and she frowned and stood up with her hand over her mouth.
“Are you all right?” Jo asked, rushing to Michelle’s side.
Michelle nodded, but retched again, and ran from the yard and locked herself in the upstairs bathroom, where she proceeded to get very sick.
She finished and washed her face, looking at herself in the mirror. What was that all about? She must have eaten something strange. But she ate the same thing everybody else at the MC ate. Maybe just a bug.
“Are you all right?”
A confusing mixture of feelings overwhelmed her when she stepped out of the bathroom and nearly bumped into Blade’s broad body. He was standing just outside the door, concern etched all over his face.
“I’ll be fine,” Michelle said, shooting a faltering smile at him. “It’s probably just a stomach bug.”
“Hm…” he said. The way he was looking at her made her uncomfortable. Not just because it brought back the memory of his lips all over her body, but because it seemed that he didn’t quite believe her.
“Michelle!”
Jo’s voice echoed up the staircase and Blade’s face took on the quality of someone who had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He quickly retreated back into the common room, just as Jo rounded the top of the staircase like a bat out of hell.
“I’m fine!” Michelle insisted as Jo forced a glass of cool water into her hands and placed a damp towel over her forehead. Her concern was truly touching, but the truth was, she felt completely fine now. As if whatever the bug had been had been expelled from her body immediately.
“Well w
e’re not going to be taking any chances with you, ya hear me? What would Zeke say?”
Michelle smiled sadly at the ground. She had been close to her father, calling him in secret every chance she got, but she had never gathered up the courage to go back to the MC to visit. They were so controversial, and Alan, being the chief of police, had a lot to say about Michelle’s family. It had just been easier not to go out to see him.
Zeke had risked his freedom to come and see her, though, and every month he would go downtown and meet her for lunch on the days that Alan thought she was grocery shopping while he was at work. It always had to be a very secretive affair, but it was one she now treasured. She just couldn’t believe she had let such a horrible man rob her of time with her family.
“I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, Jo,” Michelle said, allowing Jo to lead her to her bedroom and lay her down. “It’s been difficult for me.”
“Well there’s no need to worry about that, M. You’re with us now.”
Michelle smiled. She wished she had really earned her place in the MC. Sure, her father had been a Python, and it was so comforting to be there under the biker’s protection, but was she a Python? Or just a burden?
At first, she had felt like the MC was her home again, especially when things with Blade had been going well. But now that they could barely stand in the same room with each other for longer than three minutes without it getting awkward, the MC just felt empty and lonely.
“All right,” Jo said with a kind smile. “You drink that right up and get some rest. Come down if you’re feeling better. We’re doing some fireworks tonight. I’ll come check on you to see how you feel.”
“That sounds great,” Michelle said quietly.
Jo winked at her and left the room, leaving Michelle in bed feeling more alone than ever.
Chapter 12
Blade woke up early. There would be a lot of cleaning up to do after the celebration the night before. He had been worried sick about Michelle, but when she’d finally emerged from her bedroom, she looked as healthy as ever.
They had stood beside each other under the dark night sky, gazing up at the fireworks in silence. The presence of her body so close to his made him want to run away, but he was too worried to leave her side. He would be there if anything happened to her.
Fortunately, nothing did, and just as the fireworks were coming to a close, Michelle gripped his hand tightly in hers.
“I don’t want things to be so strange between us,” she whispered. “It’s tearing me apart.”
Blade had grimaced and pulled his hand away, but she was only speaking the same thing he had been feeling. It felt awful for them to be on such distant terms. Even if Zeke hadn’t wanted them to get together, he would have liked this less. He was such a family-oriented man. The last thing he’d want was an estrangement.
And so, Blade had decided that he would clean up the place and then make breakfast for Michelle, and actually eat it with her, just like old times. Maybe from there they would be able to figure out just what in the hell they were doing.
Blade crossed the hallway, heading to the kitchen, but a strange rustling sound halted him in his footsteps. The sound was coming from Zeke’s room. Nobody had been in there since his friend had passed away and Blade had been designated to find the perfect suit in Zeke’s closet for his burial.
The hackles on the back of his neck stood up as he thought about the police cars that had begun setting up shop outside of the MC. If they thought they were going to pull a fast one over on him, then they had another thing coming.
Blade crept forward silently, relying on the stealth training he’d received early on in his life from his own father who had been in the army and had wanted to make sure his boy could survive in any situation. If the damn pigs were looking for some incriminating information, they sure as hell weren’t going to find it in a dead man’s room.
He reached into his back pocket, his hands tensed over his knife, and burst through Zeke’s door.
“What the hell?!”
Blade jumped back in surprise at the sound of Michelle’s voice and she stood up glaring at him as if he were the most barbaric human being on the face of the Earth. And he might very well have been, for all he knew, because Michelle’s face was stained with tears. She had been looking through her father’s belongings, probably all night long from the looks of it.
“I’m sorry,” Blade mumbled, pocketing his knife and leaning against the door with a heavy sigh. “I thought you were the cops or something. You know the MC has a lot of enemies. You can’t be too careful. Especially with a lady like yourself sleeping just a door away.”
Michelle pursed her lips at him. “It’s all right,” she said. “I don’t think I want to be alone right now anyway.”
“Well better my company than the pigs,” Blade said, false cheerfulness slipping into his voice. The truth was, he was uncomfortable as hell. Death and feelings just weren’t really his thing. And he knew that death would be the biggest thing on Michelle’s mind. What if he said the wrong thing? The last thing he wanted to do was make matters worse with her.
“Did you know my dad listened to bluegrass?” Michelle said, changing the subject with a little smile. “I had no idea. I thought it was just a guilty pleasure for me. I guess I got it from him.”
“I’m sure the two of you are more alike than you know. I always got the impression that he thought you two would be the best of friends under the right circumstances. Family stuff is tough though.”
Michelle nodded. “I chose the wrong family.”
Blade grimaced. It was clear she was blaming herself for not spending enough time with her father before the end came, but from what he’d seen, it was better she hide in a hole than risk being touched by that cowardly son of a bitch she’d married.
“I don’t think you had much of a choice in the matter. People like the pigfucker are sneaky bastards, you know? They win you over with all this charm and pomp, make you feel better than you ever have before. Until they twist it all around on you. It’s not your fault. It’s his. And your dad understood you had to live your life. He was proud of you, in fact, for doing what needed to be done to keep your head above water.”
“I don’t feel like it was enough,” Michelle sighed. “I wish I could have seen him just one last time.”
“Wishing doesn’t help anything,” Blade said dismissively. “I have a thousand wishes, but you know what I get when I waste time on whining about them? A fuckin’ headache.”
Michelle scoffed. “You don’t wish you could talk to him one last time?”
Blade raised an eyebrow. “Your dad and I were best friends because both of us live in the now, Michie. We don’t waste our time on propriety and custom and all the other bullshit that makes hoity-toity people feel like they’ve got some semblance of control over their lives. He and I both knew that we were free, and the only thing that had any power over us was when our time came. And his did. He’s at peace with that and I think we should be too.”
Michelle considered this for a moment, before looking up at Blade with tears shimmering in her eyes.
“Do you think he would be mad at us? For what we’ve done?”
Blade sighed deeply. This feeling thing was just getting worse and worse. Maybe this was why he had never settled down before now.
“I’m not sure. Not mad at you, exactly. Me, probably,” Blade said, laughing softly. Michelle laughed, too, and Blade felt his whole body relax a little bit. Everything was all right in the world if Michelle was smiling.
“Maybe we can just start over,” Michelle said finally, standing up resolutely. “We can be friends and just friends. I think he’d like that.”
“Oh yeah?” Blade said, studying Michelle closely. God, she was beautiful. He’d never met a woman anything like her. it seemed like it was impossible to bring her down. Even after surviving being married to the biggest douche bag on the planet and going through her dead dad’s things, she
managed to find the courage to smile. He was in awe, really.
“Yes. What do you think?” Michelle asked.
Blade grinned, relief flooding through him. It was exactly what he had been hoping for. It would give him a chance to redeem himself and prove to the both of them that he wasn’t just a piece of shit who was taking advantage of a vulnerable young woman. He was an honorable man. That’s what he would want Zeke to remember. And if his buddy was looking down on them at any point, he’d want him to be proud, not horrified or ashamed.
“All right,” he said, taking her hand in his and giving it a decisive pump. “Friends.”
***
“Listen up everybody!”
The MC suddenly grew quiet as Jo burst through the doors, a smile stretched across her face from ear to ear.
“I want you to say hello to my cousin Brett. He’s from out of town and will be visiting for a few weeks. I want you all to treat him like one of the family, you got it?”
A slender young man walked into the bar, smiling timidly. He didn’t look quite like he belonged there, but he wasn’t exactly out of place, either. He had defined muscle, that was true, and his clothes were casual, but neat. There was something about him that Blade didn’t like very much, though what it was difficult to place. Maybe he would figure it out once he got to know him more.
“Hi, everybody,” Brett said, his smile going from timid to charming in about half a second flat.
Blade watched, his heart surging with fury, as Brett and Michelle caught eyes. Maybe that’s why he hadn’t liked the guy. He was around Michie’s age. And that meant the possibility of competition.
Blade shook his head. He wasn’t supposed to be thinking of Michelle like that anymore. She wasn’t some woman he could just up and claim like that. She had her own life to live, and it had to be one that she would be able to live with, just like Blade. And that meant not getting involved with an older biker man, and maybe, just maybe, following up on the strange sparks that seemed to be flying as Brett and Michelle fell into an easy conversation.