Sting

by Cassie Wild

  Eleven

  Trice

  I was way too aware of him.

  He sat on the couch in the other room, and I suspected he’d done it to give me some measure of privacy, but he might as well have been standing right next to me, that big body of his dominating the space and making me feel a lot smaller than I really was.

  Hurry it up already, I told myself. I needed to call Suria and have her come get me. The sooner I got away from any place where Ephraim might find me, the better.

  Picking up the handset, I punched in Suria’s number. It rang. Once. Twice. Pick up, Suri…

  It clicked over to voicemail, and I all but sagged against the counter, my mind spinning. As the message came to an end, a half a plan formed in my mind and I started to talk.

  From the corner of my eye, I could see Lane sitting on the couch, elbows braced on heavy thighs, head downcast. He had his cellphone in his hand and was flicking his thumb across the screen.

  Lowering my voice, I turned away from him. “Suria, it’s me…listen…” Shit. What did I tell her? I locked Ephraim in my bedroom and ran away? I got saved by a total stranger who kissed me, and I spent the night with him, and we ate Chinese food and watched Captain America? No. Too complicated. “I’m…not at the house now. I left last night, and I stayed the night with…a friend. I need you to come pick me up.”

  I hesitated a moment, wracking my brain as I tried to figure out what to do next. Why hadn’t Suria answered her phone? It wasn’t like I could just wait here for her.

  An idea hit, and I continued to talk.

  “There’s a Mexican restaurant…” What street had it been on? I finally remembered and named the store that had been across the street just in case. “I’m going to head that way and wait there for you, okay?”

  I darted another look at Lane.

  “I wish I had a phone so you could call me. But I’ll see you soon. Love you, Suri.”

  I hung up the phone and Lane looked up at me. “I guess she wasn’t there?”

  “No. I had to leave a voicemail. It’s okay.” I headed over to the door, bending to grab my backpack. Oddly, I wasn’t quite ready to leave him. “I guess I should go. I’m going to meet her at the Mexican place we passed on the way here.”

  He rose to his feet, his big body uncurling from the couch in a lazy, graceful line. “I’ll take you. It’s not the best neighborhood to be walking around in if you’re not familiar with it.”

  “You don’t have to do that.” I thought about the area where I lived, not all that far from there. It wasn’t the best neighborhood either. That didn’t mean I had stayed locked indoors. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

  “I insist.” He gave me a steady look that made me suspect he’d follow along behind me on his bike if I decided to walk. I was tempted to do it, just to push the point, but then something occurred to me.

  What would I do if one of Ephraim’s men saw me?

  He cut around me, and I heard the jingle of his keys. Shifting the weight of the backpack on my back, I turned, the words Thank you hovering on the tip of my tongue.

  His phone rang.

  A look tightened his face – it was the kind of look that would have made me leery to be near him if he hadn’t already proven himself to be a nice guy. As it was, my heart skipped a beat or two, and I clutched the strap of my backpack a little tighter.

  “Hello.”

  I shivered at the change in his voice. There was no emotion, no inflection in his voice. It matched the look in his eyes, and I decided that I wouldn’t want to be the guy on the other end of the line.

  “We already talked about yesterday,” Lane said in a short voice.

  Whatever else was said on the line made him narrow his eyes, and he lowered the phone, staring at it for a few seconds before pushing it into his pocket.

  His eyes met mine.

  “When do you think your cousin will be there to pick you up?”

  I shifted as I thought it over. “Probably not for a while. She’s been staying in Monterey.”

  “Good. I’m still going to drop you off, but I’ve got a stop to make first.”

  Twelve

  Trice

  I should tell him no.

  As we walked from his apartment out to his bike, I kept trying to make myself speak. He had things to do, and I had places to be, but I was seriously uneasy about the idea of being by myself out there because I knew Ephraim was looking for me.

  We weren’t that far from where I lived.

  And it wouldn’t just be him or a couple of his men either.

  As important as he was, he could drag half the clan into it, if he wanted.

  I needed to stay in crowded places and with somebody until Suria and I could hook up. Maybe I could talk Lane into stopping at a store where I could buy one of those throwaway phones. I just needed something cheap and easy so I could get in touch with my cousin if I needed her. I hated to spend money on that, but some things were a necessary evil.

  And some things were a guilty pleasure.

  Like riding behind Lane on that big black and chrome bike of his. If that wasn’t a guilty pleasure, nothing was. The bike itself made me a little nervous but clinging to Lane as he wove in and out of traffic, it was amazing how safe I felt.

  We headed in the opposite direction of where I needed to go, and we probably hadn’t been riding more than ten minutes before he slowed and turned, pulling into the parking lot of a low-lying, simple looking building. I caught sight of a sign. Devil’s Firstborn.

  Just the sound of it made me shiver.

  There was a long line of bikes parked in front. I looked around as Lane added his bike to that line.

  Maybe I should have insisted on walking.

  Lane stopped the bike, and I slid off, clinging to one of the backpack straps nervously as he dismounted and turned to look at me. “We won’t be here long,” he said softly, his voice oddly gentle. “Don’t worry. Nobody will bother you while you’re with me.”

  “I wasn’t worried,” I said, looking up at him. I wondered if the words sounded as empty to him as they did to me.

  He didn’t give me a condescending smile and didn’t say anything either. All he did was rest a hand on my shoulder and squeeze gently. Together, we walked toward the building.

  The moment we stepped inside, I knew I was in over my head.

  All eyes came our way, slid away, then returned almost in unison, and I could feel any number of the people inside the building staring at me. Lane still had a big hand on my shoulder, and he nudged me into walking forward. I forced my suddenly heavy feet to move and swallowed the knot in my throat.

  There were maybe fifteen people in the bar, even this early in the day.

  Most of them were men, but I noticed a few women. I was either seriously underdressed – or way overdressed – depending on how you looked at it. My simple blue slip dress was way out of place compared to the micro minis and skintight leather pants that left nothing to the imagination.

  I smiled weakly at one particular blonde.

  She didn’t smile back.

  There was nothing but pure venom in her eyes, and she looked me up then down with an expression of pure scorn.

  “Here.” Lane came to a stop at the bar, and I blinked, looking around. A gray-haired man glanced at us, and Lane asked, “You want a drink?”

  I shook my head. “No. I’m fine.”

  “Okay. I’ll just be a few minutes.”

  “Hey, Lane…”

  A man’s voice had me glancing over as I settled on a stool. Two men had come upon us, and I hadn’t even noticed. One was about my height with blond hair and a scar that cut a groove into the right side of his face. He grinned at me and edged in a little closer. “Hello, beautiful.”

  Lane pointed a finger at him. “No, Sully.”

  The man – Sully – just shrugged and grinned again while the other guy, a big, broad man with a bald scalp and a full, reddish-brown beard nudged Lane on the shoulder. T
hey spoke in low voices, and I barely caught more than every other word.

  “What’s your name?” the blond asked.

  “Um…”

  “Leave her be, Sully,” Lane said, his voice hard.

  Sully rolled his eyes and nudged the other guy in the ribs. “He’s protective of this one. What do you think about that, Zeb?”

  “I think you should leave it alone,” the big man said, reaching up to stroke his beard. He glanced my way and offered a polite nod, then focused his eyes on Lane again.

  “I need to talk to TU,” Lane said.

  I kept my attention focused on the hands I’d folded in my lap while they talked, and when Lane walked away, I told myself I wasn’t going to freak out. I was so out of my depths here.

  I could feel the hot eyes of the blonde woman from earlier boring into me, and I casually looked up.

  She’d moved in a little closer, leaning on a high-top table, her elbows braced on the surface, her blue eyes cutting into me.

  I looked away.

  “Hello.”

  I started at the sound of the voice that came maybe an inch from my ear. Spinning around, I found myself staring into a pair of cold, pale brown eyes. A man stood there, light brown hair spilling into his eyes.

  “You’re a cute little thing, aren’t ya?” He looked me up and down like I was some sort of specimen. The way he did it was enough to make my skin crawl. “It’s been a while since Lane brought a piece of ass to the club.” His eyes lingered on the neckline of my dress, then raised back up. “What’s your name, honey?”

  I opened my mouth, then closed it, not sure how to answer that.

  Club.

  All the bikes.

  Shit. The pieces fell together in my head, and I realized this wasn’t some bar – or at least it wasn’t just a bar. It was a motorcycle club.

  The man in front of me leaned in closer and reached out, dragging a fingertip down my arm.

  I had to fight not to let myself shiver. I didn’t want him touching me, but something told me that smacking his hand away would be a bad mistake.

  “You not going to talk to me?” he asked. “That’s a shame. You got a real pretty mouth.” He winked at me. “You know what…I bet you’re real good with that mouth. You want to show me?”

  My face flushed red, the innuendo hitting me low and hard. Embarrassment squirmed through me, and I decided I didn’t want to be sitting there, half caged in against the bar while this guy leaned in over me.

  “Croft.”

  Lane’s appearance was more than welcome, and I slid off the stool, moving closer to him as the other man pulled back an inch or two.

  “Leave her alone, Croft,” Lane said, his voice tight.

  “Hey, I’m just being friendly,” the other guy said, his voice sly. His eyes slid toward me. “Ain’t that right, sweetheart?”

  I didn’t say anything. I wanted to get the hell out of there, like now. Since I figured it wouldn’t help things if I turned tail and ran, I leaned up against Lane instead.

  His arm came around me, and he hugged me close.

  That helped a little.

  Croft noticed, though.

  “She looks like a scared little mouse, Lane. You bring a scared little mouse in here, we’re going to want to play with her.”

  “You are going to want to back off,” Lane warned.

  Croft opened his mouth.

  A new, bigger voice fell across the room. “Who’s your new friend, Lane?”

  I don’t know if anybody else noticed, but I could feel a slight tension hit Lane’s body at the sound of that voice, and I slanted a look at him as he turned his head and looked at somebody else.

  I didn’t want to look.

  I wanted to leave.

  I wanted to demand that Lane take me to the restaurant so I could find Suria and forget about this place.

  Instead, I held still as Lane answered, “She’s with me, TU.”

  In a move so smooth I didn’t realize he was turning me, I found myself facing him, my chest pressed to his. As his fingers brushed my chin, I sucked in a surprised breath.

  It was a wasted effort. No sooner had I taken that breath than Lane reclaimed it, his mouth sealing over mine in a slow, drugging kiss.

  Startled, I didn’t even think to resist, and when his tongue traced the entrance to my lips, I opened for him. His tongue came into my mouth, and a weak noise rose to my ears.

  It never even occurred to me that it was me…moaning.

  Thirteen

  Lane

  If Croft got any closer, my temper was going to snap, and I was going to shove my fist down his throat.

  I was already on a hair trigger for what he’d said to her.

  Having TU staring down at me as I lifted my head from Trice’s was just another thing to piss me off, but I kept my face blank as I looked at him. “You wanted me here. I’m here.”

  And I was mentally kicking my own ass too. What in the hell had I been thinking, bringing a girl like Trice in here? I should have known better, and I was so disgusted with myself, it wasn’t even funny.

  I continued to stare at TU, but he eyed Trice, his attention avid.

  I wasn’t too happy with the way he was looking at her either.

  A hundred warning alarms started to sound inside my head, but it was too late to do anything now. All I could do was go with the flow and minimize the fall-out.

  “You know how it works,” TU said. “You bring a new girl in, I have the right to break her in.”

  Trice stiffened, and I heard her breath catch. Please…just don’t say anything. TU was pissed off about last night and trying to push his limits with me in general. There was no way in hell I was letting him put his hands on Trice, but I needed her to be quiet while I got her out of this mess I’d pulled her into. Meeting TU’s gaze, I gave him an insolent smile. Playing nice wasn’t going to help things here.

  “The only reason you’re still the acting president is because I haven’t decided I wanted the position…yet,” I said calmly. “Everybody here knows that my father is the real president, and I’m the one he wants to take over.” I slid my hand down Trice’s arm and let my smile widen a little. “She stays with me.”

  I tugged her along with me and walked past the bar. Giving Dallas a look, I said, “Give me a bottle of Jack.”

  He passed one over, and I was tempted to turn around, smash it over TU’s then Croft’s head. I was mad now at both of them, and at myself, but the only way through this was forward. Keeping Trice close to me, I led her to the back of the bar and through a door that separated the public area from another part.

  There was a room back there with a bed, and as much as I hated to lead her back in there, I knew we had a better chance of getting out of here without getting shit if we just let TU think he’d pushed me into something I wouldn’t normally do.

  As we moved through the door, I slung an arm over Trice’s neck and tugged her in closer, as though to nuzzle her neck.

  What I did was whisper in her ear.

  “I want you to relax and just go along with me. That guy is bad news, but I’m not going to let him touch you. Just go along with me, okay?”

  Trice breathed out, a bare whisper of sound, “Yes.”

  I led her into the room and shut the door, turning and putting her back up against it. Once we were inside, I twisted off the top of the bottle, took one long drink before setting it on a nearby table and turning to Trice.

  I pulled her up close against me and pressed my mouth back to her neck.

  She smelled soft and warm. So sweet, it almost hurt.

  I had no business even touching her.

  Against my lips, her pulse rabbited, racing like crazy. “Listen,” I said, my voice rough. “There are cameras in the room. I’ve got to make them think we’re in here fucking. I’m sorry about this, Trice.”

  She went rigid against me, and in that moment, I’d never hated myself more.

  Against me, her lean body t
rembled, and I knew I had to get her to relax or this whole thing would be a bust. Dragging my lips down her neck, I trailed them over her cheek and sought out her mouth.

  Her mouth was open, her breath coming in harsh pants as I pressed one soft kiss to her lips.

  “Relax. I won’t hurt you,” I promised her, the words murmured against her lips. “Just…relax. We’ve got to make them think we’re going at it, okay?”

  “Oh – okay,” she stammered.

  But she still stood rigid, her hands limp at her sides.

  “Put your arms around me, Trice. It’s okay.” I kissed her again as she slowly complied.

  Her mouth had softened just a little now. Damn me, because my dick was anything but soft. The second she’d leaned against me, my cock had gone on red alert. I’d been way too aware of her from the get-go, and now, even though I knew she was scared, I was keenly aware of how good she smelled, how soft she was, how smooth her skin was.

  I fisted a hand around her ponytail, tugging her head back. “You’ve got beautiful hair, Trice,” I whispered, tangling my fingers in the long strands.

  She sighed softly and relaxed a little more.

  Licking her lips, I slid my tongue past them, seeking out her taste. She opened for me wider, a soft, startled sound escaping her this time. Sliding my free arm around her waist, I pulled her in closer, tucking her body against mine.

  My cock rubbed against her belly, and she shivered. It wasn’t the trembling that had rocked her entire form only moments ago, but rather a deliberate female response – desire.

  Lifting my head, I murmured in her ear. “I’m going to touch you. TU may be watching.”

  She darted a look up at me, her cheeks red. Some of the heat that had come into her eyes faded, but she gave me a jerky nod.

  Fourteen

  Trice

  “You know how it works,” the big guy said. He all but leered at me, but the words were clearly meant for Lane. “You bring a new girl in, I have the right to break her in.”