Steel Love: Alpha BBW Motorcycle Romance

by Rider, P. J.

  Maggie suddenly remembered Prentice and looked up at Ash. She did her best to swallow some saliva, trying to clear her throat.

  “Ash.” Maggie coughed, fresh tears coming to her eyes.

  “Ssshhh baby, don’t talk, its ok. I got you.”

  Maggie shook her head, trying to make Ash understand.

  “Prentice.” She managed to squeeze the word out through her damaged throat.

  Ash looked down at Maggie understanding rushing to his face.

  “It’s ok Maggie. He’s ok. The bullet went through his arm and just grazed his temple. I guess the way he was sitting with his hands behind his head saved him from a direct hit to the head. It was enough to knock him out for a second, and spill a lot of blood, but he woke up when Reef was putting you in the car and driving away. He called me right away. I tried to get to you as fast as I could baby but I had to call Ghost to have him track your GPS. Thank God you hadn’t changed your clothes. I’m guessing it’s still in your bra?”

  Maggie nodded her head. She was so relieved to hear Prentice wasn’t dead. She didn’t know what she would do if he had died while trying to protect her.

  “When we confirmed where you were we hauled ass.” Ash lifted his head to see the men that had come with him file out of the house. Maggie looked their way. She was relieved to see them moving slowly almost too casual. As the men reached Maggie and Ash, the oldest of the three spoke. He wasn’t as tall as Ash, just under six feet, and he had dark hair that was liberally peppered with grey. Even in her current unbalanced state, or maybe because of it, Maggie could tell he was still a very attractive man.

  “He’s dead. Looks like she got him in the throat with a shard of glass from a broken mirror. Pretty messy in there. We’ll clean up…”

  The man stopped speaking and looked at Maggie appraisingly. Then moved his eyes back to Ash.

  “Take her home. I’ll stop by tomorrow and we’ll talk.”

  Ash nodded and moved his hands to Maggie’s shoulders, then down to her hands. Maggie had to force her eyes off the older guy and back to Ash as he tugged at her hand guiding her toward his motorcycle. Ash climbed on then helped Maggie, pulling her arms tight around him.

  “Hold on tight baby. I don’t want you falling off ok? If I feel your arms loosen at all I’m gonna assume you’re goin’ unconscious and I’m gonna pull us over. So hold tight baby.”

  “OK” was all Maggie could get out. She leaned her weight against Ash, laying her head on his back and fisting her hands together in front of him. Ash started the bike and put it into gear. He maneuvered the bike in a U-turn until they were pointed toward home. Maggie turned her head so she could watch the men make their way back toward the house as Ash gunned the motor and the bike took off putting Reef and everything that happened that night out of her sight and behind her.

  Chapter 22

  MAGGIE

  When they made it back to Maggie’s place Ash carried her up to the house. The door was still unlocked so he was able to maneuver her inside without putting her down. When they reached the stairs she made him put her down, but he followed closely behind her. When they got to the bathroom Ash helped her out of the t-shirt that was now covered in Reef’s blood. He pulled off her bra and panties and then undressed himself. Maggie was about to tell Ash she didn’t want sex, but Ash shushed her before she could speak and gripped her hand to pull her toward the hall. It was a testament to her state of mind that she barely even ogled his hot ass when he was walking in front of her.

  When they reached the bathroom he left her standing in front of the sink as he turned on the water in the shower, adjusting the temperature to what he knew she liked from their previous shower. When it was perfect he took her hand again and led her gently into the spray.

  Maggie sighed when the water hit her skin. Then she felt Ash’s hands on her, pulling her hair from the bun, lathering her body with soap to clean the blood from her skin and massage her muscles. When her skin was washed clean from her body, and her muscles had finally relaxed enough Maggie let herself lean into Ash’s strength. They stood there for a while under the warmth of the spray. Maggie never wanted to leave this shower. She never wanted to experience anything in life outside of Ash’s arms. So when Ash finally reached behind her to turn off the water, and let go of her to grab the towel hanging outside the shower she couldn’t help but sigh softly.

  Ash wiped his own body off quickly, then stepped out of the shower and wiped Maggie down. When she was completely dry he stooped down to look under her sink where he found some sterile cotton and antiseptic ointment in her little medical kit. Maggie didn’t know if sterile cotton had an expiration date, but she was sure this would work for the cuts on her fingers from the glass she’d used on Reef. After Ash slathered the cuts with the ointment and wrapped her fingers he guided her back to the bedroom. By this time Maggie was so tired she even let him dress her in her requisite boxer shorts and tank top. When he pulled back the covers to put her in bed Maggie placed a hand on his upper arm. “Water please?” Her throat was so raw she could barely get the words out, but she felt like she desperately needed something to sooth the ache.

  “Cold?” Ash asked and Maggie nodded her head.

  “I’ll be right back babe.”

  She watched as he threw on his boxers and made his way out of the room. Maggie lay in the bed staring up at her ceiling trying not to think about what it was that Ash’s friends were doing back at Reef’s house. Shouldn’t they be calling the police? Shouldn’t she be giving a statement or something? The older one had said she’d killed Reef.

  Tears slid from her eyes and choked Maggie’s throat making it even harder to breath then it already felt. She didn’t even know why she was crying. She hated Reef. She was surely better off with him dead than alive. She just didn’t know what the next step was. What would happen now? Would she go to jail?

  “Baby, please, don’t cry. Everything will be ok I promise.”

  Maggie hadn’t heard Ash come back in. It made her jump which caused him to rush to her and pull her into his arms leaving the glass of cold water on the nightstand.

  “I swear to you. You will NEVER have to worry about anyone hurting you again. Do you understand? I won’t let it happen.”

  Maggie lifted her head to look at Ash. Her eyes were wide with his words. How could he promise something like that? They couldn’t be together twenty-four hours a day every day. They would need time apart. Time for themselves. But she also understood that he meant it. Even if he couldn’t truly promise something like that, Maggie felt in that moment that if there were ever a person on the planet that could, it was Ash.

  Maggie gestured for the glass of water and when Ash handed it to her she sipped it slowly, letting the cool water slide down her throat. It felt amazing. Immediately she started to feel better. She sipped slowly and after a minute she’d finished the entire glass.

  “Thank you.” Maggie whispered to Ash, her voice already sounding better.

  “Don’t talk baby. You’ve already got bruises all over your neck. I didn’t know what was wrong at first, but…” Ash paused. Maggie could see him trying to get his anger under control. It was a physical reaction for him reining it in. “I can see he choked you… You need to rest your throat. I’m not leaving you tonight. I’ll be here baby ok? I’ll take care of you.”

  Maggie nodded her understanding and then scooted away from Ash so she could lie down in the bed. Ash lifted his body onto his arms and moved over her like he had the first time they’d laid together. Ash positioned himself behind her, wrapping his arms around her torso and tucking her against his chest. Maggie snuggled down, then felt him reaching over her to turn off the light.

  “Sleep baby. I’ll protect you.” With Ash’s words in her ear Maggie snuggled down into the covers and the security of Ash’s arms and promptly fell asleep.

  When Maggie woke the next morning she was alone. Ash had left a fresh glass of water and a note o
n the nightstand.

  Maggie,

  Gone to grab a bag of stuff from my house. I’m staying with you. Jack is downstairs. He’ll take care of you till I get back.

  Love, A

  Maggie read the note several times before she sat up in the bed. She reached for the glass of water and drained it before making her way to the bathroom. Her throat felt significantly better this morning, but it was still super sore. She brushed her teeth, doing her best not to go too far back with the brush on her tongue. Then went back to her bedroom and put on a bra, panties, and her comfiest yoga pants and tank top. She tried to pull her hair up into a bun, but the bandages on her fingers kept getting in the way, so she just left her hair down and made her way downstairs.

  Maggie slowed when she reached the bottom step. She could see the older man from last night sitting on her couch in the living room.

  “Jack?” Maggie’s voice was still a little rough, but at least she didn’t feel like crying from the pain. Jack sat forward on the couch, rested his elbows on his knees with his hands clasped together, and nodded to her. She watched as his eyes scanned her from head to toe.

  “How you feeling?”

  Maggie wasn’t sure what to say to that. At the moment she felt a little numb. And confused. She had a lot of questions, but wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answers. And most of all she just wanted Ash back. Since she couldn’t, or didn’t, want to address everything she was feeling and thinking at that moment she chose to simply be polite.

  “Want some tea? I would offer you coffee but I don’t think I should have that.”

  Jack stood from the couch and walked toward her. “I’ll pass on the tea, but I’ll join you in the kitchen.” He motioned for her to move ahead of him and she did. When she got to the kitchen she gestured to the table. Jack took a seat while Maggie put the kettle on the stove to boil and brought down her tea bin. She had a metal canister that she refilled regularly with all the different teas she loved. Coffee was her go to drink for waking up, but tea was her soothing comforting drink.

  Maggie pulled out a bag of Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime tea. She figured the chamomile and peppermint would feel amazing on her throat. She spooned honey into her mug and dropped a bag in with it as the kettle whistled. After she’d filled the mug she turned and brought it back to the table to sit across from Jack.

  Maggie noted to herself that Jack sat in the same spot Ash had the few times he’d been in her kitchen. She looked across the table at Jack and raised her eyebrows then smiled at him before lifting her cup to her lips and taking a small sip. She never let her water get too hot so she could always start drinking her tea right away. She had been right. The Sleepytime was the perfect choice. The warm peppermint soothed her throat even more than the cold water had.

  Maggie looked across the table at Jack but stayed silent. It seemed like this tactic, more than badgering him with questions helped to loosen Jack’s tongue.

  “I guess you got some questions for me.” Jack said. Maggie’s response was just to smile and nod at him.

  “Your father and I knew each other since we were boys. He probably never told you about me, and that’s ok, but I’ll tell you now he was my best friend. Hands down the only man I would lay my life down for. We went into the military together. Kept each other alive in Vietnam, and when we got back and realized what a fucking joke that war was and the men that were coming back were more fucked returning home than they were during the war…”

  Jack paused and looked out the back window of the kitchen.

  “I guess it gave us a purpose. Finding a place to belong in a country we no longer trusted. So we formed the Steel Breed Motorcycle Club. Your dad, me, and five other guys. In the beginning it was just a place to call home you know? We had our little club house, you know The Hole. And we had each other. But then we needed to figure out how to make money. How to survive. We chose to make our way… well… we chose a path that was not exactly the norm. Then your dad met, Lovie.”

  Jack’s eyes seemed to cloud over with nostalgia at the mention of Maggie’s mother.

  “I’ll let you know, your momma was one of the most beautiful women I’d ever met in my life. You look just like her by the way… Well I knew Seamus fell in love with her, and I couldn’t bring myself to step on that so I backed off. They got married, and Lovie got pregnant with you. Seamus started to change when she got pregnant. He didn’t want so much to do with club business. He started pulling away. The club was growin’. The more men that came back from the war fucked in the head, the more men we had wantin’ to find their way to something that felt normal again. So even though it broke my heart to watch him walk away from somethin’ we’d built together… I understood it too.”

  Jack looked back to Maggie and she could see moisture in the corner of his eyes. She could tell this man had loved her father, and it was the reason she reached across the table to grasp his hand in hers. Jack looked at their hands lying together on the tabletop and continued his story.

  “It’s also why I understood when he pulled away from me as well. He wanted something for his daughter that we’d never had. A normal, healthy, happy family. It damn near killed him when Lovie died. Her funeral was the last time I saw him before he came to me two months ago. I’d heard around town he was sick, but I wasn’t prepared to see him like that. When he asked me to look out for you, told me about your ex… How could I say no? It was the least I could do. And I failed. You damn near died last night because I couldn’t keep you safe. I was so lost in my own grief after Seamus died. Anyway. I put Ash on it instead of lookin’ after you myself. I’m sorry for that.”

  Maggie sat forward, squeezing his hand as she took another sip of her tea and cleared her throat. “No Jack. Don’t. You can’t possibly know how right your decision to send Ash to me was.”

  Jack looked across the table at Maggie and nodded. “Yeah. You two seem… attached.” Jack cocked his eyebrow at her.

  Maggie couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Ash and her being attached. It was actually the most accurate word she’d heard for their current situation yet.

  “Yeah. We’re attached.” Maggie agreed.

  Jack nodded and moved his eyes back to the window. “I want you to know I took care of everything last night. There ain’t nothing that’ll lead back to you. I’m not gonna explain further than that. Makin’ sure nothing leads back to you means I gotta keep you in the dark on some of it. If you don’t like that you can take it up with Ash, but you ain’t gonna get more outta me. But I also want you to know that if you ever need anything, ever, you can come to me. The Steel Breed’s got your back Maggie Quirke. You got a lifetime mark from us. Understand?”

  Maggie nodded her head at Jack. She couldn’t help but frown at his words about taking care of the situation. She was grateful. She wouldn’t deny it. She just didn’t know how to take it all in.

  Jack reached with his free hand to pat her arm then pulled his other hand free of hers as he heard what Maggie assumed was Ash’s motorcycle pull into her drive.

  “I’m gonna head out now. You come by the club sometime. Don’t let Ash keep you locked up forever, ok girl? I’d love to see you sometime. I’ll buy you some drinks and tell you stories about your old man.”

  Maggie laughed as she followed Jack to the door. “Thanks Jack. I’d love that.” Her throat was feeling better after the cup of tea and her voice was almost normal. Before he opened the door Jack turned and wrapped Maggie in a tight hug then kissed the top of her head.

  Maggie watched Jack open the door and make his way across the porch and down the stairs. She stepped up to the door and rested her arms on either side of the frame to watch Jack leave and Ash arrive. When Jack passed Ash on the way to his bike he didn’t stop, just reached out and slapped Ash’s back before swinging his leg over his own bike. Jack gunned the motor on his bike and backed out of the drive. Maggie watched him ride away until he was out of site. When she finally loo
ked back to Ash he stood at the top of the stairs with a duffel bag in his hand watching her.

  Chapter 23

  ASH

  Ash moved across the yard, his eyes on Maggie as she watched Jack ride away. They must have had a good conversation. She looked content. She also looked a lot better than last night. Her throat was still covered in bruises. Ash could just make out the finger shaped bruises around the sides. It made Ash want to punch something.

  Instead he moved toward Maggie. He stopped when he got to her door and dropped the bag he was carrying. Ash took a deep breath and stepped forward. Maggie didn’t move as he met her at the threshold. He lifted his hands to rest on either side of the frame parallel to hers, and let his head fall until their foreheads touched lightly.

  Maggie sighed heavily and let herself rock forward moving to rest her head against Ash’s shoulder. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. As she let the air slip from her lungs she leaned her body forward letting her full weight rest against Ash’s body. She pressed her nose into the leather of his jacket and inhaled the smell of him. Leather, smoke, oil, and sweat mixed together to create a smell that felt so strangely like home, but no home she had ever imagined she would want or need.

  Ash let his right arm drop from the doorframe to reach over her shoulder and pull her hair forward so he could sink his face into it. As Maggie laid her head on his shoulder he took a moment to inhale his own smell of home. For Maggie it was his leather, for Ash it was Maggie’s hair. Her clean curly citrus scent that tickled his nose and made him want to wrap his arms around her from behind and bury his face in her neck for hours.