Axel intended to tell her how he felt. Today. Now. If he could just make his mouth open. “We need to talk.”
She looked up from her plate. “About what?”
Axel hesitated. He didn’t have a clue how to begin, and the last time he’d proposed a more serious relationship with a woman, she’d left him. Panic had made his tongue thick. All he could think about was the desert his life would be without her. He wasn’t sure he’d survive. Not as the president. His quiet little life beforehand, he could handle, but he needed a strong old lady at his side to lead this club. Axel needed a partner in life. Oh, fuck it. He just needed Charlie. End of story.
Stalling for time, he pulled her car keys from his cut then placed them on the Formica separating them. “Uh, Dani finished your car. I forgot to tell you, with everything that’s been going on.”
She put her fork down and bit her lower lip. Charlie made no move to pick up the keys, though. “Oh.”
“Uh, yeah. She did a great job. That’s Dani for you. She’s got talent,” he muttered. Stammering like a jackass, which was a common occurrence around Charlie.
She picked up the keys, jangling them. “I guess I can leave then, huh?”
Axel stared at her. If he didn’t say something, she’d get up and walk out the door in a few seconds. “Uh, what about your father?”
“My father?”
“His remains. Have you picked them up yet?”
Charlie tucked the keys in her pocket and took another sip of coffee. “No, but I doubt the police will release them for a while. It’s still officially an open case.”
“Yeah, but—”
Her eyes locked with his. “But what?”
This was it, the last opening he’d be offered. “I think you should stay. You know, so you can collect his remains. Give him a proper burial.”
Charlie watched him warily. “Is that the only reason?”
This time, when he poured his heart out to a woman, Axel prayed it would be different. “Hell no.”
“No?”
“I want you…I want you to stay, Robin.”
“Because?” Charlie asked, tilting her head to the side.
“Because I need you.” Damn, he’d gotten rusty.
“You need me,” Charlie repeated.
“Oh, fuck, you’re gonna leave, aren’t you? I should’ve spoken up a long time ago. I waited too long.”
“Shut up,” she said, but a smile had spread over her face.
Axel waited for her to speak again.
Charlie grinned. “No, I’m not leaving. This place is starting to feel like home, and I have friends here. I’d love to see what happens between us.”
He nearly collapsed in the booth. “I’d like that.”
“Oh, yeah?” Charlie grinned. “Would you more than like it? That’s a weak word.”
“I’d love it.” He loved that kissable, sassy mouth of hers.
“What else do you love?”
“You.” Axel leaned closer. He’d killed a man for her and didn’t regret it. That was a huge clue how he he felt. Her eyes filled with tears and for a second, he thought he’d fucked up. “Too soon? I mean, I…”
“No. Say it. Please.”
“I love you.”
“You’re the first man who’s ever said that to me.”
“I’ll be the last one who says it. The only one.” Axel wanted to make it clear that he was staking a claim. There’d be no kisses with Steele. “And how do you feel about me?”
“I love you, too.”
He grinned. “Okay, then.”
“Okay.”
And then they were smiling at each other and he couldn’t stop. No, things weren’t okay in his world, but with this woman at his side, anything was possible.
Together, they could work through it.
“So, what are we gonna do?”
Axel thought about it a moment. “Date. And I need to get a bigger place.”
She arched a brow. “Do you now?”
“Yeah, so I can get a dog from Ruby’s breeder. After we move in, of course.”
“You got this all planned out, huh?” she teased.
“Workin’ on it.” Yeah, that sounded right, maybe even a little normal.
She sighed. “You know, I’ve always wanted a dog.”
“Me, too. And we could go to school. I want to take some business management classes, to help me run the shop better.” Axel needed some balance in his life. He realized that now. Charlie would help him find it. “After you get your GED, we’ll take classes together.”
“That sounds perfect. I’m thinking English lit.” Charlie leaned across the table and planted a kiss on him. And he threaded his hand through her hair, pulling her closer. Fuck, at that moment, he wanted to lay her out on the table and pour some maple syrup on her. She looked way more appetizing than the flapjacks.
There was a roar from the other side of the room. Axel glanced over to find a crowd watching them. Voodoo, Shep, Pretty Boy, Daisy, Cowboy, and Duke started to clap. Axel had a feeling a lot of his brothers would be losing money on that ‘old maid’ bet they’d made about him.
Axel kissed Charlie again. That’d give ‘em somethin’ to talk about.
Epilogue
Six months later…
“I’m giving you fair warning,” Charlie said, pushing her sunglasses up her nose. It was a sunny spring day and they were seated in her dad’s car. They were about to go away for a long weekend. “If you crash Betty, I will never forgive you. And I bet the ghost of my father would haunt your ass, so be careful.”
“Not that you’re putting any pressure on me or anything.” Axel threw the car in gear and took off. They passed fields of wildflowers as they drove.
“Nope. None.”
Charlie had convinced Axel to take her on a road trip along Route 66. She knew he was itching to get his hands on the car. Club life was hectic and they both wanted to get away for a bit, just the two of them. They’d left their new beagle puppy, Pearl, with Captain and Eddie.
They’d started taking classes online through Texas A & M, and they’d spent most of the winter doing a mountain of homework between their club duties.
“We deserve a leisurely pace today.” He hit his turn signal as they reached the light. “I think we should take our time.”
She’d also been working with the club over the past few months. The other day, she’d broken into a woman’s house and retrieved important documents, like birth certificates and insurance policies. Right under her abusive husband’s nose. Charlie loved using her thieving skills for a good cause, like Dani had predicted.
And she’d put her lying abilities to work too. She’d gotten some intel on the Raptors by sweet-talking the women who hand-stitched their club’s patches.
Charlie raised a brow. “What did you have in mind?”
“I thought we could find a cozy spot on the side of the road, make out a bit.”
He placed a hand between her thighs, right where his name was tattooed, and she primly put it back on the steering wheel.
“Keep those hands on the ten-and-two position when you’re driving Betty. Thank you very much.” Then Charlie raised a brow. “You only want to make out?”
“Well, I was hoping for more.” Axel took his eyes off the road long enough to leer at her and she smacked his arm playfully.
“Tell you what. I’ll give you a reward, after you demonstrate some successful driving skills, Mr. President.”
“Or we could find a hotel room…” he suggested.
“Hmm, maybe we could…and it’ll be on Beauregard,” Charlie said.
“Don’t talk about that fucker,” Axel stated with a groan. “You’re gonna make me lose my hard-on.” He gripped the steering wheel tighter, his knuckles whitening. “I still can’t believe we did his dirty work.”
After Cotton’s death, Beauregard had moved up a rung in the Dixie Mafia. He was more dangerous than ever.
She sighed, pulling a black credit
card from her pocket. “Pay attention,” she said, waving it in front of Axel’s face. “I said he’ll be paying for our road trip.”
“What did you do?” he asked.
“This morning, when he stopped by Hades to lord over the manor, I bumped into him and stole his wallet.” Charlie traced the digits on Beauregard’s black American Express card with her fingertips. “I normally don’t fool with credit cards, but this one is worth the effort.” And then she slid the wad of cash from her pocket. “And I think there’s a couple thousand here. That’s more than enough for a fun weekend.”
With a growl, Axel pulled her against his side and gave her a big kiss, ten and two be damned. “Have I told you how much fun it is to date a thief and a liar?”
“I’m only lying for a good cause now.” Charlie snuggled in closer against his side.
“I know. You’re using your talents for good. That makes all the difference in the world. So let’s collect an asshole fee from Beauregard, the fun way. And maybe I’ll take off a couple more days and we’ll do this up right. I’m thinkin’ we get ourselves steaks and lobster. Maybe a fancy-pants hotel.”
“Ooh! That sounds amazing,” Charlie said. “And we’ll tip the maids fifty percent. Because, as I’ve learned the hard way, they deserve it.”
“Damn straight they do, especially on Beauregard’s dime,” he agreed.
And then Axel pulled Betty onto Route 66 and they drove off into the sunset.
Shot to Hell
Steele spent his high school years under the Friday Night Lights in Poteet, Texas. He went from football star to Jarhead in a matter of weeks, taking his best buddy, Abe Calhoun, with him. After Abe died in combat, Steele quit the Corps and became a member of the Four Horsemen MC instead. Now, his brother and best friend, Coyote, has been taken and Steele fears the worst. To save his brother, he calls in a professional, Ashton Calhoun.
Ash followed Steele and her twin brother, Abe, into the Corps. She blames Steele for getting her big brother killed in the line of duty. She now works as a security contractor and specializes and kicking asses and crossing off names. Can Ash and Steele call a truce and find Coyote before it’s too late?
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Copyright
© Cynthia Rayne 2015
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review or book discussion, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part is forbidden without the written permission of the author.
Stock Photo
curaphotography via Can Stock Photo
Cover Art
© Sarah Laney 2015
Sweet Southern Creations
Disclaimer
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and events are the product of the author’s wicked imagination. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and frankly a bit creepy.
Editing
Kristin Scearce, Freelance Editor
MK Books Editing
About the Author
Cynthia Rayne is the Amazon best-selling author of the Four Horsemen MC series. Her first erotic book was written when she was thirteen. Of course, the most risqué scene involved kissing, but it was the talk of her middle school! She is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in education and writes whenever she can. In her spare time, she enjoys dating, shopping, reading way too many romance novels, and drinking a truly obscene amount of coffee.
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Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-Two
Epilogue
Hell on Wheels (Four Horsemen MC Book 6) Page 25