Burning Ember

by Darby Briar

  Bodie, being smart, decides to stay out of it. He glares up at Taz who’s standing at the end of the table spinning a toothpick around in his mouth. “Shut the fuck up.”

  “Fuck that. I’m a cherry pie man or I’ll eat Pumpkin too. Either way, I’m all over it.”

  Dozer smiles broadly after taking another bite. “Especially if it’s fresh and sweet like this.”

  White-hot anger spears through me. I pull my hands from Ember and turning, I reach across the table, grab Dozer’s collar, and lean close into his face. “You just don’t know when to shut the fuck up, do you?”

  “What?” He glares back at me. “Did I say somethin’ wrong?” He laughs. “Or is it ‘cause you don’t like where my mouth’s been?” Sneering, and rising from the bench, he says, “It must eat at you that I got a taste of her first.”

  I jerk him forward so we’re nose to nose. “She’s made her choice though, hasn’t she? Now you’re stirrin’ up shit, because it wasn’t you.”

  “Mav, stop!” Ember begs and I feel a tug on the back of my cut.

  But it’s too fuckin’ late. This shit has been building between Dozer and me for a while. It’s about time it comes to a head. Especially now. He started this shit out here in front of everyone and it needs to end here too. Doll doesn’t realize that in my world when someone blatantly disrespects you, you can’t let that shit go unanswered.

  His eyes move from me to Ember. “He’s only ever treated you like trash. Can’t you see that?”

  I shove him back. Growling, I say, “Don’t fuckin’ talk to her! Don’t even fuckin’ look at her!”

  But he keeps going. “If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t be here. He thought you were a rat. He fuckin’ called you trash. And he wanted me to kick your ass out on the street. Is this the kind of guy you really want?”

  I make rapid strides around the table. I don’t waste time with words. Instead, I launch my fist at him and when it connects, a bone-jarring tremor rattles my arm. A second later, a woman screams and shouts ring out as Dozer launches his massive body at me. His vice-like arms wrap around my waist and we stumble back a few feet, until we fall to the ground. Dozer gets to his knees first and throws his fist forward, slamming it into my cheek. My head snaps to the side as fire barrels into my face. Shaking it off, I roll and get to my feet and barely make it in time to dodge the body shot he throws.

  We’re both breathing heavily, glaring at one another, and circling, looking for a weak point, an opening. When I find one, I strike fast and land a solid blow to the softest part of his stomach. He curls over my fist and a gasp of air puffs out of him. I push him back and he staggers off balance.

  I vaguely hear someone close holler, “That’s enough! Pull ’em apart!”

  My arms are wrenched back as I’m grabbed from behind. The same happens to Dozer. Then Edge is in his face trying to talk him down. But looking around him, Dozer shouts, “You weren’t savin’ her for Edge you self-righteous fucker! You were savin’ her for yourself!”

  Trying to push away from the men holding me back, the truth rips out of me. “You’re damn right I was!”

  At my admission, Dozer struggles and breaks free. He rushes at me, but he’s stopped short and hauled back. “You piece of shit!”

  “Yeah? I’m the piece of shit? I’m the one blowin’ off the club and leavin’ my brothers all fuckin’ hangin’?”

  He growls, “Fuck you! You don’t know shit!”

  Suddenly Ember’s standing in front of me. She places one hand on my chest. “Mav! Stop this!” It takes me a second to focus on her and shake off the fury riding me.

  “Doll, get back.”

  “No! This is crazy.”

  “Someone get her out of here!”

  Griz grabs on to her arm, but she fights him. “No, Mav, I won’t stay here if this is what it’s going to be like. You swore you’d prove it. Is that what this is?”

  I sober instantly. My eyes fall from an enraged Dozer to Ember. Her eyes are sad and yet fierce. She’s dead serious. I can see it. She’ll leave before we’ve even really had a chance to make this work. Because of this. Because of Dozer and because I can’t keep my fuckin’ temper under control.

  “I’m done!” I shout still staring at her. “It’s okay. Let me go.” Taz and Goose let my arms go and back off.

  Dozer’s not done though. “You’re done? Bullshit! We’re just gettin’ started!” His eyes are riddled with jealousy as he watches the two of us.

  “We’re done with this,” I tell him. “Fine. You’ve got your reasons for steppin’ down. I won’t bring it up again. But she’s mine. Stay the fuck away from her.”

  “Get the fuck off me,” he shouts and shrugs off the arms holding him before stalking off.

  “I can’t stay, be here, not like this. I don’t want to come between you,” Ember says. Her brows are pulled tight with tension.

  I snake my hand into her hair and pull her closer. “Don’t leave,” I plead with her.

  “I don’t want to.”

  “Then don’t.”

  She steals a glance in the direction Dozer walked off. “I don’t want to come between you two,” she says again.

  “You won’t. It’ll just take some time for him to get over the sting of it.”

  “I just . . . he’s the only one who looked out for me. I feel like I owe him. He was right, Mav. Where would I be if he didn’t convince you to let me stay?” Her eyes are clouded with pain and it nearly breaks me.

  Fuck. She’s right.

  If he hadn’t fought for her. God knows where she’d be or what she’d be doing.

  I hook my arm around her neck and bring her in close. Then circle my other arm around her waist and hug her to me. “You’re right. I’ll fix it. I’ll talk to him when he cools down. It’ll be okay. I promise.”

  She breathes out a relieved sigh and wraps her arms around me. And I know I’ll do any-fucking-thing it takes to keep her by my side. To have her just like this always, wrapped around me, near me, tellin’ me when I’ve done wrong. Making me be the man I should be.

  “This is not how I wanted this night to go, Doll.”

  “I know. Me neither.”

  “I had a different ending in mind.”

  She’s silent for a long time and then whispers, “Me too.”

  I pull back a little and look down into her face. “Come home with me,” desperation and need thicken my voice. “I need some time alone with you.”

  She does her little nod and rests her chin on my chest.

  “Will you ride on the back of my bike?”

  “Only if you go slow. I’ve never ridden on a bike before.”

  Thank Christ.

  I don’t think I could bear it if I knew she’d givin’ up that first ride to someone else. I may not have taken her virginity, but I’ll have plenty of firsts and lasts with her and I’m going to cherish every one.

  “I told you before, Doll. You control this. If you want slow, we go slow.” I rub her back and place my lips on her forehead. “Now let’s say our goodbyes. I wanna take you home.”

  We often ride a fine line between what will break us and set us free.

  EMBER

  The purr of the motor vibrates through every one of my limbs. We’ve been riding for a few minutes, and the anxiety I felt when Mav initially pulled out of the lot has faded. He handles the bike with cool confidence. Shifts gears with calculated precision. It also helps that he warns me each time we’re about to come up on a turn. Each time, he removes his hand from the handle bar and rests it for a few seconds on my thigh, something that sends chills spreading over my skin.

  I keep waiting for the air skating around me to cool down some of this heat building between our bodies. Or maybe numb the steady hum of anticipation flowing under my skin. But it does neither.

  The bike slows down, and I peek over Mav’s shoulder. We’re coming up to a rural side street. This time, when his hand leaves the handle bar, I inhale a steadying breath, bra
cing myself for the onslaught of desire that’ll hit from his touch. But instead of caressing my leg, he lays his palm over the hand I have covering his chest.

  My own heart begins to skip to an obnoxious beat. An erratic rhythm I didn’t know it was capable of.

  But too soon, his hand is gone and Mav takes the turn. I gently lean with him. Afterward, he accelerates but not to the speed he was going before. The next time the bike slows, it’s to pull into the driveway of a gorgeous, stucco two-story home, nearly the size of the clubhouse. The home is newer, has a three-car garage, and a huge yard.

  Mav parks and turns off the bike. After kicking down the stand, he twists to look at me.

  “Too fast?”

  “No. It was perfect.”

  The side of his mouth curls up. “So does that mean I’m gonna be able to get you on the back of my bike again?” His eyes slowly travel over my face and he tucks my hair behind my ear.

  “Only if you show me how fast this thing can really go.”

  He chuckles. “You sure you can handle it that fast, babe?”

  The shot I downed earlier, might be giving me a little courage or I just naturally want to test his control. “I guess we’ll have to try it and find out.”

  “Come here,” he says in a husky tone. Then I have no idea how he does it, but he grabs me and shifts me around so I’m sitting in front of him, my thighs over his, my chest facing his, and his erection hitting me exactly where he’s had me aching for hours.

  Holding my face, he stares into my eyes. “We don’t have to do anything tonight. I’ll be happy just to hold you.” Though his eyes are riddled with lust, a sincere expression covers his dark features.

  Raising a brow, I tease, “Will you?”

  The corner of his mouth twitches. “I’m trying to be good and patient, and soft, Doll, but you’re giving me the feelin’ that’s not what you need.”

  I slowly sneak my hands under his cut and under his shirt. He jerks as if shocked by my fingertips, then groans and closes his eyes. He whispers something so softly that I almost don’t hear it. But I do. He whispers my name. My real name. And it sounds so good coming from his lips.

  “Tell me what you really want to do, Mav. No more sweet lies for my benefit.”

  His eyes open and sear me with the heat they’re throwing off. Reaching up, his thumb sweeps over my bottom lip. I barely recognize his voice. It’s so deep. “I want to abuse this mouth, Doll. In so many ways. I’m obsessed with this fuckin’ mouth.” Lightning fast, he threads one hand through my hair and tugs my head back. He kisses me hard and fast. As he pulls back, he bites my lip and lets it slowly slip from between his teeth.

  Tendrils of lust shoot straight to my sex.

  “I want to explore every single inch of this freckled skin.” His tongue darts out and tastes me. He sucks on my skin roughly until I both gasp and flinch from the spark of pain.

  “And when I finally bury my face between your legs, Doll, I wanna make you lose your mind, the same way you’ve been makin’ me lose mine.”

  Image after image of him doing these things flashes through my head and my core tightens. Locking his hand around my waist, he yanks me closer and his erection grinds against me.

  “When you recover, I’ll fuck you, Ember, like we both need me to. Fuck you until neither of us has the strength to move anymore.”

  Every cell in my body is lighting up. I close my eyes and lick my lips. “God, Mav.”

  His hot breath does amazing things to my insides as he says into my ear, “Or do you want it nice and soft and sweet, Doll? It’s your choice. I’ll give it to you any way you want it.”

  My thoughts are jumbled and hazy. I can’t think of how to respond. At this moment, I don’t care how he takes me. I just need him to do it. I want to feel his skin, his body, his weight on top of me.

  “Just make it good.”

  “I can do that, baby doll. I can do that all night long.”

  Memories of my time with Warner try to creep in, but I push them far away and remind myself of two things. I promised myself the day I left Warner that I wouldn’t give him the power of being able to steal one more moment of my life. And I won’t make the same mistake Mav did. I won’t let my past keep hurting me and stop me from living. I won’t let it corrupt my future.

  He’s not Warner and I’m not Dana. And maybe together, we can heal from the scars we carry.

  Using the tight grip he has on my hair for leverage, he fuses our mouths together.

  His kiss takes me to another place, away from my thoughts and worries. Only this exists, him, and the way he leads but gives me enough room to follow and explore him too. One second, he’s licking at my mouth with soft caresses like he’s sampling a decadent dessert; and then next, like the complicated man he is, he’s groaning and eating at me like he’s famished and I’ve got exactly what he needs.

  He’s unpredictable and for the first time, it excites me. Being with him is thrilling. I have no idea what to expect from him next.

  “Wrap your legs around me,” he breathes against my mouth.

  I obey and he lifts me, and rises off the bike. A few seconds later, he’s at the front door, and cursing under his breath. “Hold on.” I tighten my legs around his waist and hold on to the back of his head. His hand digs into his pocket, until he produces a key and unlocks the door. Before he even steps over the threshold, he’s dropping the keys, kicking the door closed, and kissing me madly again.

  “We need a bed,” he growls. “I just hope to God they moved it in.”

  I look around to see a sparse room with a few pieces of furniture, a couch, one end table, and a lamp. The far side of the great room appears to open into a kitchen.

  “You just bought this?”

  “Yeah, while I was gone. This is one of the homes my company built. The buyers’ deal fell through. I had my secretary draw up the papers and asked her to have our designer furnish it by today.”

  “Did she?”

  He scans our surroundings. When his eyes meet mine again, there’s a playful gleam in them and a smirk on his mouth. “Yeah. Looks like she did.”

  I try to get down and he grunts in disapproval. “Uh huh. Hold on.” He turns and carries me up the stairs.

  Pushing his limits again, I start kissing my way up his neck and Mav groans. When I bite his jaw he grates out, “Fuck. You’re killin’ me.” We pass room after room, until he finds the one he’s looking for. When we enter what looks to be the master suite, he rasps, “Thank fuck.”

  I twist to see that yes, there is a bed and it’s massive. It’s also black and gold, much like the man carrying me. It has a low footboard and a nice headboard, and on each side of it are end tables with lamps, both lit and giving off a soft glow.

  Finally, he sets me down on my feet, but only so he can forcibly back me up. His body is literally a wall of muscle herding me to where he wants me to go. Eventually the back of my knees hit the bed, they buckle, and I fall to my butt on the mattress.

  Mav remains standing. He starts to undress by first shrugging out of his cut, and then he reaches up behind him to peel his shirt off.

  Lust pulses through every part of me. I love looking at him. Especially like this. The sight of his abs has my core muscles throbbing, and his pecs and tattoos have me licking my lips.

  I’m taken off guard a second later when he falls to one knee in front of me. His position puts us at eye level. Reaching out, I trail my fingers over his chest. “Do you remember that day when you made Rigor bring me to your office? The day I was looking at the pictures on your wall?” I see that he does, and go on. “I was terrified of you. I knew you hated me, but—”

  He opens his mouth and I place a finger over his lips. “That was also the day I was convinced you weren’t all bad. In those pictures, I saw a different side of you.” I press my hand to his chest. “And I couldn’t help but wonder if he was still in there somewhere. Now I see he is.”

  My fingers travel up and around his ne
ck. I lean forward, tilting our heads, we work in sync and our mouths come together. The languid kiss snatches away another bad memory of him and replaces it with the way he makes sweet love to my mouth, and how he seizes another little piece of my heart.

  As the kiss slows, Mav presses his hand to my chest and lays me back. One foot at a time, he removes my sandals. His hands circle my ankles and his fingers slide leisurely up my calves. Dipping his head, he places soft kisses on my knee, first one and then the other. The ticklish pleasure has me flinching to pull away and at the same time practically begging for more.

  Who would’ve thought having a man kissing your knees could feel so good? I didn’t, but the way he does it, so affectionately, so endearing, sends a rush of warmth through my chest.

  “I told you that day to get on your knees and get ’em dirty.”

  How could I ever forget?

  Let’s break in those soft knees of yours . . . Show me you can do more with that mouth of yours than piss me the hell off . . . suck my cock like you like it. Lick it like it’s a goddamn lollipop . . . the best fuckin’ thing you ever tasted.”

  “I remember.”

  Coming back up to look me in the eyes, he massages my knees. “I’ll take care of you whatever way you need me to. Whether you do the same for me. You never have to get on these knees again, Doll. Not unless you want to.”

  Snaking his arm behind me, he begins to unbutton my shirt. After it falls away to the bed—like he’s done many times before—he sweeps my hair away from my eyes, and his knuckle lightly trails over my cheek. It keeps going down my neck and over my shoulder.

  “Your skin is beautiful.”

  “It’s covered in freckles.”

  “Which I find fuckin’ beautiful. It was the first thing I noticed about you.” The intensity of his eyes leaves me with no doubt of the truthfulness of his words. “Your eyes were the second. They fuckin’ gutted me every time you looked at me. But I was so fucked up, Doll. I wouldn’t let myself feel what I wanted to feel for you.”

  Without waiting for me to reply, he starts kissing a path up my thighs, shifting from one to the other and getting closer to my sex. His hands work on the button and zipper of my shorts. Slowly, he pulls them down my legs and throws them on the floor. His heated eyes fall on pink lace.