Steel 3: Blackthorne MC

by Cox, Carrie;

  Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Blurb

  1

  2

  3

  4

  5

  6

  7

  8

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  Carrie's Books

  STEEL #3

  Carrie Cox

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  Copyright © 2015 Carrie Cox

  All rights reserved.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the author.

  STEEL by Carrie Cox is an addictive new motorcycle club romance novella serial perfect for fans of Fifty Shades of Grey and readers of Nicole Snow.

  Once you’ve had your first bad boy biker, there’s no going back…

  Ella Anderson had no idea what she was getting herself into when she gave into temptation and agreed to a one night stand with hot, tattooed biker, Nick Steel.

  Drawn into the Blackthorne Motorcycle Club, Ella finds it hard to work out who she can trust. Is Ella going to finally be allowed to go home and will Nick leave with her?

  (This romance contains steamy love scenes and lots of twists and turns.)

  ebook categories

  —> Romance Anthologies

  —> Outlaw romance

  —> Motorcycle Club romance

  —> Alpha Male

  GENRE: Contemporary Romance

  1

  Ella

  Nick didn't return. I sat on the bed propped up by the pillows unable to sleep.

  I had tried calling Claire earlier, using Victor Blackthorne’s cell phone, but she hadn't answered, and my call went straight to her voicemail. I tried to convince myself that it didn't necessarily mean anything bad had happened to her. But my mind kept returning to the dreadful thought that she could be in trouble, too. I had no proof of that, though. Maybe Claire had gone back to New York, assuming I was still happily hooking up with Nick.

  I stared up at the ceiling. As much as I would have loved to believe that, I couldn't convince myself. Claire wasn't like that. She was a good friend and would try and find out if I was okay. She would be worried because she hadn't heard from me.

  I glared angrily at the cell phone and snatched it up. I dialed her number again. After a few moments, I felt a split second of hope when I heard her voice. My hopes faded when I realized it was the recorded message again.

  Hi, I’m sorry I can’t take your call right now. I’m probably out on a date with Brad Pitt. Leave a message and I’ll get back to you.

  I could handle this situation so much better if I just knew she was okay.

  I knew I wouldn't be able to get to sleep now. Finally, with a sigh, I climbed out of bed and pulled on a pair of jeans. I could feel the beginnings of a headache and needed a drink — just water this time. I’d had more than enough alcohol.

  As I left the room, I paused in the corridor. The whole place was quiet. I hadn't been expecting that. I had imagined that Victor's meeting with his subjects would continue into the early hours of the morning. I'd assumed that was why Nick hadn't returned.

  I frowned. If he wasn't talking business with Victor, then where was he?

  I sighed. It didn't matter anyway. Soon enough I would be out of here, and I wouldn't have to worry about Victor and his crew.

  I made my way to the kitchen, which was situated behind the bar. It was pretty modern — stainless steel countertops gleamed in the moonlight and huge refrigerators were set back against the far wall. The kitchen smelled of lemon-scented soap and old fried food.

  I didn't bother to turn on the lights as it was a full moon, and I didn't want anybody to notice I was wandering around on my own. Alerting Victor’s crew to my presence would only cause them to check up on me, and that was the last thing I needed.

  I rummaged through the cupboards, trying to find a glass. Eventually, I found one, and as I returned to the sink to fill the glass with water, I heard a movement behind me.

  I turned rapidly and collided with a wall of rock hard muscle. My heart leapt in my chest, and for a moment, I think I forgot to breathe.

  The wall of muscle stepped into the light. The moon highlighted his smooth skin and his pale hair. It was Jackson.

  My heart was still pounding. I put a hand against my chest.

  “Jackson?” I glared at him angrily. "Why are you creeping around?"

  Jackson smirked. "I could ask you the same question, Ella."

  I was immediately on the defensive. I put the glass on the counter and folded my arms across my chest, continuing to glare at him. "I needed a drink.”

  Jackson leaned back against the steel counter. I don't know why but his proximity made me nervous. He didn't scare me exactly, but he seemed to emanate a raw power that set my nerves on edge.

  "Did you get through to your friend?"

  "What?" My hand shook as I reached over to fill my glass with water. Why did he care about Claire? Was it a trap? I was so close to getting out of here. I didn't want anything to ruin it.

  To gain myself some time before answering, I sipped some water. Then I set the glass down on the counter, staring at the wet ring it left behind, instead of looking at Jackson.

  "I didn't get through," I said. "She didn't answer."

  Jackson nodded. "And that worries you?"

  Dammit, why all this interest in me all of a sudden?

  I couldn't trust him. I shrugged and tried to look relaxed. "She was probably just out."

  "I'm going to need Victor's cell phone back,” Jackson said.

  I sighed. I'd been hoping he'd forget about it for a while so I'd be able to try Claire again tomorrow morning.

  "Sure," I said, attempting to smile brightly. I reached into the pocket of my jeans, pulled out Victor's cell phone and handed it to Jackson.

  Jackson took it. "Thank you, Ella."

  Then he surprised me by slipping an object out of his pocket and putting it down on the counter. It was a small cell phone.

  "What's that?"

  "What does it look like?"

  I bit my lower lip. What was going on? Was he trying to help me? Or was this a trap?

  "It's a prepaid cell phone. You can keep it."

  "To track my calls?"

  Jackson chuckled. "Are you always so suspicious when someone tries to help you?"

  "Only when those people have tried to kidnap me," I snapped.

  "I didn't do that, Ella."

  I looked away. His bright blue eyes were too penetrating. I felt like he could see right through me to all the secrets I was holding. He made me feel guilty even though I hadn't done anything wrong.

  "True," I said. "But you're still part of all this."

  "So is Nick Steel."

  "That's different."

  But it wasn't really different, was it? If anything, Nick was more responsible for my situation than Jackson.

  Jackson shrugged.

  "Use it or don't use it. It doesn't bother me,” he said, but the expression in his eyes told me the opposite.

  And just like that he turned and left. It was amazing how such a big man could move so swiftly and quietly.

  Alone in the kitchen, I turned back to the phone and stared down at it as I sipped my water. I could just leave it there. If it was a trap, then that would
ruin his plans, but I couldn't resist it. I picked up the phone and turned it over in my hand, examining it.

  I didn't want to use the cell phone in the kitchen as I thought Jackson might still be listening. Ideally, I would have liked to take it outside, but I guessed the doors would be alarmed at night. Security had been very tight this evening.

  So I rinsed up my glass and took the phone through to the bar and sat down in one of the booths.

  I dialed Claire's number, and for a second, my hopes were raised again when I heard her voice, but it was just the damn answer phone message.

  I hung up.

  I didn't leave a message because I didn't know if anyone other than Claire was checking her messages. If she was in a similar situation to me, the last thing I wanted to do was get her in more trouble.

  I had no proof that Chad, Tom or Damien hadn't taken her phone that night. They could be waiting to see if I left a message so they could go running to Victor and spoil my attempt to leave.

  I sighed and looked down at the phone. I could call someone else. Perhaps 911 or the local sheriff, but if I really was going home on Monday, I didn't want to screw things up.

  I decided to leave it for now and see how things played out. Clutching the phone, I headed back to the bedroom and slid in between the cotton sheets.

  The bed felt too big without Nick. My fingers itched to stroke his skin and run my hands through his dark, silky hair.

  I needed him to come back soon.

  After Monday, I would never see him again.

  2

  Nick didn’t come back that night. In fact, he didn’t come back for the next couple of days. I wasn’t sure if it was his own choice not to return or due to Victor Blackthorne’s orders.

  I couldn’t stop thinking about him, but I helped in the kitchen and chatted with the girls, trying to keep busy. I even saw one of their stripper shows. It was pretty raunchy, and the snake still terrified me.

  I’d used the cell phone Jackson had given me to try and phone Claire at least another twenty times. But every time I got no answer, and I knew that unless I got back to New York and found that Claire had lost her cell phone and was happily back in her apartment, I’d have to go to the police when I got back to New York.

  I didn’t want to get Nick in trouble. And although I hated to admit it, Chad and Tom had kind of grown on me, and I didn’t actually want to get them in trouble either if I could help it.

  But if Claire was missing, I would go to the police and tell them everything. No question. Of course, I kept that to myself. I didn’t want to give Victor any reason to keep me at the Blackthorne bar.

  Jackson was still around. He hadn’t talked to me again since that night in the kitchen, but I felt his eyes watching me whenever we were in the same room.

  I did my best to ignore him, but it wasn’t easy to ignore a man like Jackson.

  When Sunday night rolled around, I had pretty much come to terms with the fact I wouldn’t see Nick again. Actually, that wasn’t quite true. Deep down, I knew that seeing him again was very unlikely, but I couldn’t help quickly glancing at the door whenever anyone entered the bar just in case it was him.

  On my last night with the Blackthorne crew, I decided to watch the stripper show again. Tonight the star attraction was Tabitha with her python.

  I’d gotten to the bar early, way before the strip show, but I was determined not to drink too much tonight, so I sat there, nursing my bottle of beer, at a table right at the front beside the stage.

  By the time Tabitha came on stage, the place was packed.

  She stepped onto the stage and immediately catcalls and obscene comments were shouted out by the grizzly bikers. But to her credit, she kept her head up high, ignoring them. The albino python was draped around her shoulders, and I couldn’t help wondering what animal rights activists would make of this, although the snake did look perfectly healthy to me.

  I noticed Damien, Victor’s brother, sitting at a table nearby. He was staring at me. I shivered and turned away, trying to keep my gaze fixed on the stage.

  As she began her show, I was impressed. It was actually pretty artistic. I think most of the men watching weren’t there to appreciate the choreography, though, they were too busy staring at her breasts.

  I reached over to pick up my beer and noticed Jackson slipping into the seat beside me.

  He didn’t say anything at first, which made me nervous. I’d noticed he did that a lot. I think he did it on purpose to put people on the back foot.

  “Any idea where Nick is?” I didn’t really want to show my desperation, especially to Jackson of all people, but screw it, after tomorrow I’d never see him again.

  Jackson gave me a knowing smile. “I’ve heard from a source that he could be back this evening.”

  My heart flipped flopped in my chest. There was a chance I would see Nick before I left.

  “Has Victor been keeping him away from me?”

  Jackson didn’t answer directly with a yes or a no. Instead, he said, “That would be a good thing, don’t you think?”

  I scowled. “Why do you care?”

  “Good question.”

  His stillness unnerved me. He really was like a freaking statue.

  “Are you looking forward to getting back home, Ella?” he asked, moving the conversation onto safer ground.

  I nodded. “It will be good to get back to normal.”

  “And what’s normal?”

  I opened my mouth to speak, but then shut it abruptly. I didn’t want to reveal anything about my background. I didn’t want to give them any chance to trace me, although I supposed if they really wanted to find me, they could track me down in New York easily enough.

  Before I answered Jackson’s question, Victor entered the bar, walking past us, and Tabitha paused in her show.

  He winked at her, and she held the python aloft and started gyrating her hips to cheers from the audience.

  I shivered.

  Victor stopped beside our table and nodded at Jackson before heading off to a seating area reserved for him by the stage.

  “That’s my cue,” Jackson said and smiled.

  He left me sitting alone at the table.

  It was strange. The bar was heaving, yet I had a table all to myself. No one had approached me all night apart from Jackson. There were no wasted old bikers trying to hit on me, and no one had asked to share the table, despite the fact the bar was packed. I was pretty sure that Victor had warned everyone to stay away from me.

  I picked up my beer and took a sip. I’d had the same bottle for so long it had gotten warm. I didn’t care if everyone was keeping their distance.

  I would be gone tomorrow and that was all that mattered.

  ***

  Nick

  I knew exactly why Victor Blackthorne had given me the job. He wanted to keep me away from Ella.

  I suspected Victor’s brother, Damien, had played a role in building Victor’s mistrust. I wouldn't have been surprised to learn he had spoken against me, warning Victor that I was getting too attached to Ella.

  He was right.

  Victor had sent me to collect protection money from his west side properties. The job usually took two crew members four days. I'd gone alone and ridden hard through the night, sleeping only a couple of hours at a time, so I would be back before she left.

  Victor couldn't protest. I'd done the job he’d assigned to me.

  My body ached, and I was covered in dust from the road as I walked into the bar. Despite the fact, the place was full of people, I located Ella quickly. She was sitting close to the stage and looked fresh and beautiful amongst the leather and jaded old bikers.

  I took a moment to watch her as she tilted her head, watching the strip show.

  I glanced over to where Victor normally sat if he was in the bar, and sure enough, he was there. Sitting on Victor’s right was Jackson.

  Of course, Jackson had noticed I'd returned. He noticed everything.

  S
crew him.

  Usually, I'd report back to Victor first thing, but tonight, I had something more important to do. I made my way through the crowds until I was behind her. I stood beside her chair for a moment, hesitating, and then I trailed a finger on the soft skin along her neck and collarbone.

  She turned around slowly, and damn, my chest grew tight as she looked up at me and smiled.

  The smile lit up her eyes. She was genuinely glad to see me. After everything that had happened and everything she had seen, she was still pleased to see me. I didn't deserve it, but a deep need rushed over me, and I pushed those thoughts to the side.

  Somewhere in the back of my mind, I realized this was what it was like to actually fall in love.

  It was a first for me. I hadn't expected to feel it so physically. The lump in my throat, and the tightness in my chest all came just from being close to her.

  She stood up, and her eyes shone as she looked up at me. I felt an overwhelming need to ask her not to leave me, to tell her that I would go with her and leave all this so we could be together. I would change.

  I wanted to take care of her.

  But I swallowed those pointless words, and instead leaned down to kiss her sweet lips, slowly at first, then harder, more demanding, trying to communicate everything I felt in that one kiss.

  3

  Ella

  Nick took my hand and led me back through the bar. I could feel Jackson's eyes burning into us as we walked, and I didn't dare to turn around and check if Victor was watching us too.

  I was so glad he'd come back. I couldn't hide my excitement. I tried hard not to grin like a crazy person. What was wrong with me? Why did I have to have a crush on the most unsuitable guy I’d ever met? It didn't make any sense. I was beyond messed up.

  I followed Nick along the hallway, watching his tight ass beneath his fitted jeans. Damn, he was hot. He had on a dusty, black T-shirt that clung to his body like a second skin, displaying his broad shoulders and toned muscles and the tattoo on his right arm. Was it really so bad of me to want to feel his body pressed against mine one more time before I left?