by Sam Crescent
Evernight Publishing ®
www.evernightpublishing.com
Copyright© 2015 Sam Crescent
ISBN: 978-1-77233-512-5
Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs
Editor: Karyn White
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
DEDICATION
I want to think all of my wonderful readers. You guys make everything worthwhile. Also, I want to thank the amazing team at Evernight Publishing, with a special mention to my editor, Karyn. Thank you all so much.
NEED
Trojans MC, 4
Sam Crescent
Copyright © 2015
Chapter One
Crazy watched his daughter, Strawberry, as she played in the park with the other kids. Without his ex-wife around his neck, things at home had become a hell of a lot easier. Suz, his ex, had been a club whore who’d trapped him into a marriage for the sake of his daughter, and Strawberry was his. He’d done the paternity test to confirm that. Running fingers through his hair, he watched his little girl play, sliding down the swings, and generally enjoying life. When he had a chance to reflect, like he did now, he couldn’t believe what a fucking asshole he’d been. In the time that they’d been together, Suz had nearly destroyed him, turning him into a kind of whipping boy for her need.
“I thought I’d find you here,” Daisy said, taking a seat beside him.
“What’s got you looking for me at a damn park with a bunch of kids?” Crazy glanced over at his friend, seeing the struggle going on inside him. What was wrong with Daisy?
“I’m not in the mood to be around the club whores today.”
“Did something happen?” Crazy asked.
“No. Nothing happened, I’m all good. I heard you were with your daughter today, and it has been too damn long since I saw Strawberry.”
Crazy laughed. When he was with Suz, he’d stopped Strawberry from visiting the club. He’d not wanted Suz at the club at all. It was bad enough his brothers knew he’d been caught by the evil bitch. “Nah, you can’t pull that shit with me. This is you, Daisy. You’d come to my place rather than to the park. What the fuck is going on?”
Silence met his question. Staring at Daisy, he waited, and waited, until finally, Daisy gave in.
“My sister is coming to town to visit.”
“So?”
“So, she’s bringing her friend, and I’ve got to put them up.”
“Then speak to Duke. He’ll make sure they’re at the club, and protected.”
“That’s my fucking problem.”
Crazy growled, frustrated with his friend. “What the fuck is your fucking problem?” He had enough problems of his own, and he didn’t need to start thinking about Daisy’s issues.
“She’s bringing her friend, and I want to fuck her. I’ve known Maria since she was a fucking tomboy kid, but I can tell you, she’s not a kid anymore. She’s fucking hot, and she hates this life. I can’t have her near me.”
“Ignore her then.”
“I want to fuck her, Crazy. I want to bend her over in front of the brothers, and fuck her until I brand her with my dick. I don’t want any other man to have her. I want to stake my claim, and never let her go. How the fuck am I going to resist that kind of temptation with her close to me?”
Daisy was speaking low enough that only Crazy heard what he was saying. Shit, Daisy didn’t just want to get off with Maria. He wanted her as an old lady. That was a big step, a huge one, and it wasn’t a decision that was to be taken lightly, or quickly. It had taken Crazy the last couple of months to finally decide to stake a claim on Leanna, the woman who babysat his kid.
He wasn’t in the mood right now to think about his woman. Leanna was proving to be … difficult. All of his life he’d snapped his fingers, and bitches had come running to him, and now, he was having to do all the running. The experience wasn’t exactly thrilling. He had to do all the hard work. She wouldn’t even accept any gifts from him, and refused to go on any dates. How was he supposed to impress a woman when she wouldn’t even go on dates?
“Shit, man, I’m sorry. How’s it going with Leanna?”
“I’m here alone. How do you think it’s going?” Crazy ran a hand down his face. “I’m sorry. It’s just hard right now. Strawberry adores her, and she’s perfect, and I can’t get her to come out with me.”
“Have you asked Strawberry to help you?” Daisy asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Get your daughter to invite her out to dinner. Make it an invite from Strawberry rather than an invite from you.”
“I’m not going to use my daughter to get the woman I want,” Crazy said.
“I wouldn’t call it using her. I’d call it ‘getting a little help’. Leanna’s not going to budge on you.”
“She thinks I just want a mom for my kid.”
“Don’t you?”
Yes, in the beginning what he’d wanted was a mother figure for his little girl. Suz, Strawberry’s real mom, had been a piece of shit. She’d used their daughter to keep him in place, turning him into a pussy, and using him for money. Looking back over the last couple of weeks, he realized that he’d been a shadow of his former self. It pissed him off. Suz had turned him into a fucking pussy, and what was worse, he’d let her. No, that shit wasn’t happening. He was a fucking man, and he’d put Suz in her place, and she was now gone.
She wasn’t dead.
Suz had taken the road of divorce, and getting the fuck out of his life. He was still pissed about that. Crazy had wanted to end her miserable life once and for all. Suz didn’t strike him as the settling down kind of woman, or leaving. So far, she’d not come back, and Crazy wasn’t going to go looking for trouble.
“We’re not talking about me. Let’s get back on track here. What’s wrong with letting your sister stay, and getting the friend to trust you. It shouldn’t be that hard.”
Daisy collapsed back against the bench that they were sat at.
“I don’t know. Maria is, she’s a ball of fire, and if I get too close, I don’t know what I’m going to do. No woman should have that kind of power.”
Crazy chuckled. “You sound in love.”
“I am, Crazy. I’m in love with her, and have been for a long fucking time. The difference is, she’s a hell of a lot older now. She could take me on, and fight fire with fire. Beforehand, she was too damn young.”
“If you hold out, she may find another man she loves. If that happens, you’re never going to reach her. You can force the men to leave her alone, but you can’t make her love you. If you want her to love you, then you’ve got to get past your shit.”
Daisy stared out over the park, and Crazy followed his gaze. Strawberry was on a slide, and rushing down it. Her cheeks were bright pink, and the happiness in her face was amazing to witness. Seeing his little girl like this only brought home to him the shit life she’d been in with Suz.
“She’s doing good for Suz being gone.”
“Yeah, and that’s not supposed to be the case.” Crazy folded his arms behind his head, and watched his girl. “A girl is supposed to love her mother, not be thinking about other fucking women to take her place. What am I going to do when she’s older? It’s a woman’s place to talk about her cycles, and boys, and sex. Shit, no boy is coming near my little girl. This entire situation is fucked.”
“How are things going wi
th Strawberry?” Daisy asked.
“They’re going well. I mean, Leanna still takes her when I’ve got club business to attend to. She’s a hoot, she really is.” He’d not spent as much time with Strawberry in the last couple of years because the truth was, he couldn’t stand to be around Suz. His now ex-wife constantly pissed him off. If only he could get Leanna to start trusting him and not running off every chance she got.
“You know, you should get the club helping your ass,” Daisy said.
“Why the fuck would I want the club helping me?”
“Mary, Holly, some of the other old ladies, and even Zoe, they come across less threatening. They can bring Leanna around, and before you know it, you’re fucking her on a daily basis.”
“This is going to take more than a couple of women to get what I want.”
“Look, I’m helping you out here. No reason to not take the club’s help. Sure, the guys won’t be that good to you, but the women, they can help. Sheila can help as well. She’s been around some time, and knows women.”
Crazy ran a hand down his face, pissed off with the fact he may have to get the club women to help him out.
“I wouldn’t ask for help off the club whores though. They’re more likely to make sure you never get your dick inside that pretty little babysitter.”
“The last thing I’m going to do is let Leanna near the women I’ve put my dick in.” They were both speaking quietly so no one heard what they were talking about. Crazy hadn’t taken his eyes of his little girl. Vale Valley was a good place, and with the Trojans MC to keep it protected, it rarely had trouble. Crazy wouldn’t take any risks with his daughter’s life. She was the most precious thing to him, and there were people out there who didn’t give a fuck about the threat of being hurt by his club.
Strawberry glanced over at them both at that moment, and squealed. Within seconds she launched herself at Daisy, and Crazy couldn’t help but laugh. Due to his daughter’s young age, he’d kept her away from the clubhouse. The guys who wanted to could come and visit, but some rarely did. With Holly and Mary recently giving birth, the guys had calmed down their sexual exploits. Not that Crazy could complain. In the last couple of months before he divorced Suz, he’d been using the clubhouse as his own personal sexual drive-thru. He’d take whichever club whore he wanted to have, and fuck her until he was satisfied, then change for another one. Whatever he wanted, he took without care of what others thought. Now, he had his daughter to think about, and a sweet woman who’d go running if she ever caught sight of what went on in the club.
Shit, he had his work cut out for him, but his girl deserved the chance with a woman fit to be called Mom.
****
Leanna walked down the baking aisle in the local supermarket. She had Strawberry that afternoon, and she’d learned the hard way to make sure she always had things to occupy the young girl. Grabbing a box of cake mix from the bottom, she looked at it, turning it over. The mix itself wasn’t that great, but if it kept Strawberry happy, then Leanna was happy. When she found one with princesses all over, she picked it up, placing it in the trolley. Then figuring how long she would have the little girl, she placed two more boxes, different kinds, in her trolley.
She was so absorbed in what she was going to do that afternoon that she didn’t watch where she was going, and crashed into another cart.
“Crap, I’m so sorry,” the woman said.
“No, it’s me. I wasn’t watching where I was going.” Leanna looked up to see Holly, one of the Trojans MC women, holding a baby in her arms.
“I’m Holly by the way.”
“I’m Leanna, and I know who you are.” Everyone in Vale Valley knew who she was. After all, her old man was now the leader of the Trojans.
“Hols, I got the cake,” a young boy said, coming around the corner.
Holly rolled her eyes. “I’m going to make you a cake, silly. I asked for you to get lots of good quality chocolate, not candy bars.”
The boy chuckled. “I was thinking I could eat this on the way home.”
“Boys. Sure, put it in. That’s Matthew, my lovely, adorable, pain in the ass son.”
Seconds later, Matthew was gone. “I’m sorry about that. You’re Leanna right? You take care of Strawberry.”
Leanna’s cheeks heated. She spent a great deal of time trying not to be noticed. Even when she was younger she’d never been the kind of girl who liked crowds, preferring her own company.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
“You know, you should come to a barbeque one day. We don’t bite. I can make sure all the men leave you alone.” Holly hiked her son onto her hip.
“It’s okay. I’m fine. I’m just getting some things together for Strawberry and me today this afternoon.”
The disappointment on Holly’s face was clear. The last thing Leanna wanted to do was upset the other woman. She could only imagine Duke coming to her, and yelling at her for hurting Holly, which was the last thing she wanted.
Looking at the little boy on Holly’s hip, Leanna smiled. “I want to offer you congratulations on your little boy.”
“Thank you. Drake’s a few months old now.”
“News got around town about his birth. I wanted to say something, or send a gift, but we don’t really know each other.”
Holly tilted her head to the side. “You do live in Vale Valley, right?”
“All of my life.”
“You can come and visit me at the old ranch, or even at the clubhouse. I don’t bite. I can’t promise some of the men won’t.”
Leanna held her hands up. “I’m not very good around people—”
“People or men?” Holly asked, smiling.
Gripping the handle of the trolley, Leanna took a deep breath. “I’ve never been good at making friends. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. We can take this in little steps. I’m a very nice person, and Matthew will even attest to the fact I’m an excellent stepmom. Also, Drake here is always smiling, and it’s not just because he’s breaking wind. I come with Mary, and you’ve got to meet Zoe. She’s finishing up college, so she only comes to the clubhouse every once in awhile.”
All of the names coming out of Holly’s mouth were making Leanna even more nervous. She wasn’t good around people or anyone. It was hard having to talk to Crazy, and now that he seemed to always be around with Strawberry, it made her embarrassed. Running fingers through her hair, she glanced over Holly’s shoulder. “I appreciate it.”
“No, you don’t. You want to run far away, and that’s okay. Like I said, we can take this in baby steps.” Holly tapped her arm. “So, let’s go back to the beginning of where we crashed carts, and I will start this.”
Leanna frowned as she watched Holly hike her boy up on her hip.
“Hi, I’m so sorry I bumped into you. I wasn’t paying attention, and I had Drake here, distracting me. I’m Holly.” She held her hand out, and for a second Leanna just looked at it.
This had to be one of the strangest moments of her life. The second strangest moment was when she turned Crazy down. Leanna doubted anyone turned that big scary biker down. Okay, he wasn’t all that scary, but she’d seen the way he looked at Suz a couple of times when they’d been together. The guy looked like he wanted to literally strangle his wife. He was sexy, sure, in a very bad boy, “I’m going to kill you” kind of way. No, that wasn’t it at all. Crazy was hot. His hair was long, and he hadn’t cut it in a couple of months so it rested on his shoulders. Then there were the crazy blue eyes that just captured her attention whenever she was in a room. She loved looking into his eyes. After you got past his eyes, it was his body as well. His arms were covered in tattoos. Some of the ink was just tribal, and dark, others were images of graveyards, and once she witnessed Strawberry’s name decorated on his chest. He was a guy who cared deeply for his club, and for his baby.
“Hi, I’m Leanna.” She wasn’t one of them. Leanna wasn’t ever going to be one of those things that he cared about.
When he’d started to seduce her, she’d known his intentions. It wasn’t like she overheard him or anything. Suz did warn her though after one of her nasty attacks, which Strawberry hadn’t witnessed, thank God. Crazy didn’t know about the slaps, or hits, and the vile threats that Suz liked to spit at Leanna. She would never allow Suz to hurt Strawberry.
On one of the last visits with Suz, she had been made aware exactly what was going on.
“Crazy’s going to try to seduce your fat ass. He doesn’t want you. He’ll never want you. All he’ll ever want is a free babysitter for his little shit of a daughter. Who would want a flubber like you?”
As if on cue, Crazy had been very seductive, talking with her, keeping his focus on her, and she’d seen the reality of her situation. No man was ever going to love her for her. It was always going to be an ulterior motive.
“I’ve seen you around town, and I know you’re Crazy’s babysitter. Do you want to get coffee some time?”
“Sure,” Leanna said, just wanting to get away. Remembering Suz always did that to her. “I’ve got to get going.”
She looked down into her own trolley to see she still had some stuff to pick up.
“It was nice meeting you.”
Without trying to appear rude, she gave the other woman a smile, then made her way up and down the aisles, picking everything she’d need for the coming day. On the way out she saw Holly was being held by none other than Duke. She wondered when he’d come to the grocery store.
Releasing a sigh, she packed her car away, gave Holly a wave, and then drove back home. She parked up in the available parking for her apartment.
Climbing out, she glanced up, and was caught by another couple who were also in some stage of embrace. A jolt of pain pierced her heart at the sight before her. Everyone was in love, and no one was ever going to love her. She’d grown up knowing she wasn’t loved, and then married a man who didn’t love her, and now, the one man who’d been interested only wanted her for his daughter.