by Harley Wylde
He stroked my back and pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “Why didn’t you say it?”
“Say what?”
“Bunnies. I kept thinking you’d use your safe word at any moment. Why didn’t you?” he asked.
I pressed my face into his chest. I didn’t know why I hadn’t, except… I’d liked everything he’d done to me. Well, minus the part where he kept demanding I be his and only his. But the sex? It had easily been the best of my life. I liked how wild and untamed he’d seemed, even when he was trying to punish me for not giving him what he wanted.
“I’m not giving up, Alora. You’re mine, whether you admit it or not.”
“You don’t even know me.” We’d just met! I didn’t understand his need to keep me, to make me his. Yeah, it sometimes worked like that in books and movies, but this was real life and not fiction.
“I know more than you think,” he murmured. “There’s not another woman like you in all the world. I refuse to let you walk away. I’ll just have to prove to you that we’re supposed to be together.”
It would have been the sweetest words I’d ever heard, if I didn’t think he was completely crazy for saying them to a woman he’d just met. Either way, I had to admit I liked having him around. At the very least, my dry spell would be over.
“If it includes more sex like what we just shared, then I’m game. Take as much time as you want to convince me.”
He chuckled. “Remember you asked for it.”
I had a feeling I was going to be incredibly sore, and I’d probably love every second of it. Too bad for Rooster I was stubborn as hell. Just because he wanted me to be his, didn’t mean it would happen.
Chapter Four
“Sex pretty much cures everything.”
-- Chuck Palahniuk
Rooster
Stubborn ass woman!
I leaned against my bike at the curb outside her house, ankles and arms crossed, as I tried to find a way back inside. After I’d held her most of last night, I’d decided to be nice and step out for breakfast while she slept. Imagine my surprise when she answered the door, snatched the box of donuts from my hand, and slammed the door in my face. I’d heard the lock twist into place and her snickering on the other side.
Good thing I thought she was so damn cute.
Celeste pulled into the drive, took one look at me, and burst out laughing. “I never thought I’d see the day you wanted a woman this bad.”
I ignored her and kept watching for Alora. Every now and then, I’d see the curtains twitch. I knew damn well she was checking to see if I was still here. Celeste knocked on the door and tapped her foot while she waited. It only took a few minutes before Alora let her in. The feisty woman gave me a glare before slamming the door again.
Fuck this shit. I pushed away from my bike and went up to the house. I kept a lockpick set on me and pulled it out then set to work on her front door. It wasn’t too difficult to open, and in less than a minute, I was letting myself in.
She poked her head out of her office and stared me down. “What the hell are you doing in my house?”
“Clearly I didn’t do my job right and you need more orgasms because you’re being a cranky little shit this morning.”
She gasped and her eyes went wide. “I can’t believe you just said that to me.”
I heard Celeste laugh from inside the office. “Believe it. That one doesn’t let anything stand in his way when he really wants something.”
Alora glanced back into her office, her brow furrowed. “So what? I’m a game?”
“No.” I strode forward and didn’t stop until I was right in front of her. “You’re not a fucking game, Alora. You may have only met me yesterday, but I’ve been watching over you for weeks. I know your favorite foods, favorite wine, the types of books you write, and the ones you read. I know you like romantic comedies as much as you like action films where they blow shit up every fifteen minutes.”
“Stalker!”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I’m not a fucking stalker. I was making sure you were safe. Jesus. This is why I’m still single.”
“As much fun as it is to watch the two of you circle one another, can this wait, Rooster? I need to get the files and books from her so I can drop them with the auditor.”
“You’re done?” I asked, holding Alora’s gaze.
“Mostly. There’s still a few I need to track down and bookmark, but I thought he could get started on what I’d put together so far.”
“You need to work the rest of the day?” I asked.
She nodded. “I’m seriously behind on my deadline, and I still need to finish finding the scenes in my books for the auditor.”
I rubbed my hand along my jaw. “How about this. I’ll have Chinese delivered and while you work on your new book, you give me a list of what needs to be found for the auditor. I can work on that while you get caught up.”
She blinked at me a moment. “You want to read my books and find scenes where my character talks about, reviews, or uses sex toys? You realize I wrote romances, right?”
I leaned in, dropping my voice so Celeste wouldn’t hear. “Honey, I’ve read all of them. Bought them online and read them on my phone over the last few weeks.”
Her gaze softened and she nibbled her bottom lip. “Really?”
I nodded.
“All right. I’d love your help.” She smiled softly. “And Chinese would be great. As long as there are lots of egg rolls. Those are the best part.”
“You got it. Tons of egg rolls.”
She moved closer and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Thanks, Rooster. No one’s ever offered to do something like this for me. It means a lot.”
Celeste poked her head out of the office. “None for me. As soon as she hands me everything, I’m out of here. Besides, I have a hot date tonight.”
“Wouldn’t by any chance be with Phantom, would it?” I asked.
She lifted her chin and stared down her nose at me. “Like I’d tell you.”
Yeah, that pretty much was answer enough. She’d been tailing him for a while now. I wondered if Phantom had any idea what he was getting himself into with that one. Even if he did age well, I knew the bastard had to be fifty by now, if not older. Celeste wasn’t exactly fresh out of high school, but I knew she was only in her twenties. Then again, everyone in the club seemed to pair up with younger women. If I ever got Alora to stop giving me shit and let me claim her, I’d be following the same path.
I let Alora and Celeste finish up while I placed the food order. I remembered Alora not having much in her fridge, so I shot off a text to a Prospect.
Putting in a grocery order. I’ll forward you the info. Pick it up and drop by Alora’s place.
I got a thumbs up emoji in response and opened the grocery app on my phone. I put in all the basics I thought Alora should have in her kitchen, added a case of beer on the off chance she let me stick around this time, and a few easy dinner options. Once I had the order number and pick-up time, I sent the info to the Prospect.
“Don’t suppose you want some wine?” Alora asked.
“Nope. I ordered some sodas and beer in addition to the Chinese.”
“Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked. “Because I’ll understand if you changed your mind.”
I tugged her against me, placing my hand at her waist. “I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want to actually help.”
“When you said you knew me… it was because you’ve been following me on social media and reading my books, wasn’t it?”
I shrugged. “Partly. Charming asked me to keep an eye on you after we found out you were in the area. I paid attention.”
She rubbed her hands up and down my chest, leaning into me. As much as I wanted to kiss her, I also worried it might make her bolt. I’d come on too strong yesterday, and now I needed to do some damage control.
“You’re different from the men I’ve known,” she said.
“In a good way
I hope.”
She nodded. “Definitely in a good way. I’m not ready to be yours though, Rooster. There’s so much I want to see and do. I don’t want to settle down with anyone. Not for a while.”
“Why don’t you let me try to convince you?” I asked. “Might be fun. I can show you all the benefits of being mine.”
“Name one.”
I leaned down until our noses nearly touched. “Lots of orgasms.”
She snorted then giggled. “All right. Fair point. But I need more than that out of a relationship, Rooster.”
“Do you agree to keep an open mind?” I asked.
She drew back and eyed me. “Fine. I’ll keep an open mind. But that’s all I’m promising.”
Even if it wasn’t quite what I’d hoped for, it did give me an opening. Little did Alora realized what she’d agreed to. I planned to do everything in my power to make sure she agreed to being my old lady before it was all said and done. While she was beautiful, I was drawn to her for more than that. Her words had lured me in. The pictures she painted in her books had made me laugh, definitely made me hard, and the sappy endings had made me smile.
I enjoyed her wit, and even liked the bit of verbal sparring we’d done so far. I knew there would never be a dull moment with her around. It was hard to picture her as being related to Twister. I’d heard plenty about him and knew exactly why he’d been exiled from the Devil’s Fury. Alora seemed to be the opposite of her uncle. If there was meanness inside her, I hadn’t witnessed it yet. In fact, I’d watched her give up her place in line to a woman with small children, let an elderly lady take a parking space Alora had been waiting for, and even offer some money to a child who wanted to buy their mother a present. She might be feisty with me, but I’d seen her kindness.
I followed her to the office, and she handed me the receipts she hadn’t paired with books yet. I recognized a few of the items from the book I’d read last week, so I started there. She handed me a paperback of each title and I got to work tracking down the passages. Alora gave me post-it flags to mark each page and I noted the page numbers for the various items on the receipts. The doorbell rang about twenty minutes into our work, and I got up to answer it.
“I can get it,” she said, starting to rise from her desk.
“Stay and work on your book. It’s probably our lunch. Do you want to take a break and eat or have lunch at your desk?”
“I typically eat in here when I’m on a deadline.”
“All right. I’ll be back in a minute.” I smiled as she went right back to typing. At some point, she’d pulled up her hair with a clip and a few strands had escaped and hung in wisps near her face. Adorable.
The doorbell chimed again, and I went to answer it. I yanked it open, expecting to find a Prospect on the porch. Instead, I found Officer Murray. I narrowed my eyes and held back a growl. What the fuck was he doing here?
He scowled when he saw me. “Why are you here?”
I snorted. “I was just thinking the same about you.”
“I came to check on Miss Danvers.”
“Yeah, I just bet you did. Alora is fine. She’s working.”
He frowned. “Then why are you here? Doesn’t she need to focus or something?”
“I’m helping her.” I grinned. Let him make of that what he would. Asshole didn’t need to know I was marking passages of books for the auditor. For all he knew, I was here to inspire her. Although, I wouldn’t mind doing a bit of that too. “You’ve done your job, Officer. Alora is perfectly fine. Now, leave.”
I shut the door in his face and twisted the lock to be sure he wouldn’t let himself in. I couldn’t stand the pompous ass. Officer Murray didn’t realize I knew all about him. The local police had a few corrupt officers, and the chief could be bought with enough cash or donations, like the bulletproof vest we got for the department’s K-9 officer. Thanks to the generosity of the Devil’s Boneyard, the chief looked away on the small stuff. But the shit Officer Murray was into wasn’t something the club would ever condone. These days, we weren’t into the heavy shit anymore. Too many families in the club now.
“Rooster,” Alora called out.
I went to check on her and came to a halt in the doorway. “Why are you standing on your chair?”
“Spider!” She pointed at the floor. “I felt it crawl over my foot. Oh, God! I need a shower. And bug spray! Lots and lots of bug spray.”
I rolled my lips into my mouth and bit down so I wouldn’t laugh. I knelt on the floor and checked under her desk. If there was a spider, it had moved on. I didn’t think she wanted to hear that though. As much as I hated crawling around the floor, I checked the area as best I could. Until I noticed a daddy long-legs on the wall just above the baseboard behind her chair.
“Don’t move, baby girl.”
“You found it?” she asked.
“Yep.” I reached over and got the spider onto my hand then stood and carried it to the front door. I tossed it out into the yard and hoped it didn’t come back inside. I had a feeling Alora would demand it be killed next time.
“Wash your hands,” she yelled out. “Twice!”
I chuckled and used her hall bathroom to wash up. When I’d finished, there was a knock at the door. I hoped like hell Officer Murray wasn’t back. I was glad as fuck it was Carlos on the doorstep.
“Picked up your food and the grocery order. Where do you want everything?” he asked.
“Put the groceries on the kitchen counter and lunch on the table.”
“Want me to put the cold stuff in the fridge?” he asked.
“Yeah and toss out anything expired. I don’t know how the woman has survived this long.”
“You got it, Rooster.”
I put Gypsy out back so I wouldn’t have to worry about the kid letting her out. I went back to Alora’s office to see if I could pry her away from her book. Her glasses had slid down her nose and she had her bottom lip clamped between her teeth. Her fingers flew so fast over the keys, it sounded like gunfire. I leaned against the doorframe and watched her a moment.
“Lunch is here. I’ll bring you a plate in a minute.”
She stopped mid-keystroke and looked up. “Lunch?”
I shook my head. “Yeah, baby girl. Lunch. Remember, you asked for egg rolls?”
“Oh! That sounds good. See if they gave us duck sauce. I like to pour it over my egg rolls. And soy sauce for the rice please.”
Before I could respond she was back to typing. I went to the kitchen and started pulling out the cartons of Chinese food and sorting everything. Carlos finished putting the cold stuff in the fridge and let himself out. It was no secret I had a thing for the sexy author, but I had a feeling he’d be blabbing the second he got back to the clubhouse. Wanting in her pants, and playing house were two different things. Me calling dibs on her and deciding to keep her weren’t the same.
I piled five egg rolls on her plate, along with some fried rice and orange chicken. I dug through the kitchen drawers until I found a fork and got one of the sodas from the fridge. I carried her lunch to her office and set it on her desk before going back to fix mine. If she planned to eat in there, then I would too.
I let Gypsy back in and tossed her a rib bone from the large bag Alora had in the pantry. She carried it off to her bed in the living room, and I hoped she’d stay occupied for a while.
I settled back in the chair I’d used while looking up the passages of her books and kicked my feet out, crossing them at the ankles. I leaned back and dug into my food. Chinese food was my downfall. And tacos. I could eat both almost daily and never get tired of them. Of course, if I did that, I’d end up being soft and round. Last time I checked, the ladies tended to prefer my six pack. Alora certainly hadn’t complained last night.
“Oh. My. God.” She moaned and my dick went hard as granite. “This is so amazing.”
I looked over and saw her bite into an egg roll, her eyes closed and a look of pure bliss on her face. Maybe I could win her over with f
ood and orgasms. Although, the way she was going after that egg roll, and the noises she was making, made me wonder if she was going to orgasm over her food.
“I think I’m jealous,” I said.
Her eyes popped open. “Of what?”
“That egg roll. You sound like you’re seconds from coming.”
Her cheeks went pink, and her lips tipped up on one corner. “Maybe I am. But you don’t need to be jealous. You were better than the egg roll.”
“Good to know. In that case, maybe you’d like to head upstairs later. You still have a lot of toys I haven’t had a chance to play with.”
“Upstairs?” she asked, her mouthful of egg roll.
“Unless you’ve met your quota on orgasms for the week.”
She swallowed hard and coughed as she choked on her food. She patted her chest and sucked in a deep breath. “Really?”
“Only if you want to.”
She nodded eagerly. “I want to. I really, really want to. I haven’t written this much in… forever. I think the sex last night rewired my brain or something. I’ll take as many orgasms as you want to give me. It’s been a while.”
At least I now knew the secret to getting Alora right where I wanted her. Ply her with food and orgasms, and just maybe she’d be mine by end of the week. At the very least, I’d enjoy every second of our time together. I’d take what I could get.
For the moment.
Chapter Five
“Sex is not the answer. Sex is the question. ‘Yes’ is the answer.”
-- Swami X
Alora
I fanned myself as I watched Rooster. He’d made it through the rest of the receipts, and we’d handed off the books and list to Celeste after lunch. Now he’d kicked back in my reading chair and had grabbed my latest book. It wasn’t technically available yet, but I had a box of review copies to send to bloggers, newspapers, and libraries in hopes of generating some buzz before it released. Why was it so sexy that he not only read my books but enjoyed them?