by Liz Crowe
My eyes followed his hands as he lifted his t-shirt over his head to reveal the hard muscles of his chest and abs. Oh god, a girl could get into trouble because of those muscles.
I shifted so I could catch his lips in a kiss and then said, “First you need to take care of my pussy and then you can do whatever the fuck you want.”
He grinned at me and said, “I can manage that, but babe, not until you make me a promise.”
“What?” I asked, ready to give him anything he wanted as long as he gave me his goddamn cock.
He roughly grabbed my face and pulled me back for another kiss. When he ended it, he bit my lip. Not too hard, just the way he knew I liked it. “Promise me you’ll never lose that fuckin’ dirty mouth of yours.”
I grinned back at him and threw one of my legs over him before swiftly moving so I was straddling him. Arching my back and giving him an eyeful of tit in the process, I promised, “Yeah, baby, I promise.”
His eyes had already been coaxed to my breasts and he reached up to grab hold of one.
Hell yes.
No fucking way was I letting go of Kick again.
Ever.
*****
The next day, Kick came with me to see my father. To tell him his debt had been settled.
He answered the door with a look of surprise and we followed him into his kitchen. “You want a drink?” he asked, watching us warily. His gaze followed Kick’s arm as it came around my waist and pulled me close.
Kick shook his head to a drink and I said, “No thanks, Dad. We’ve come to talk about your debt.”
He pulled a teaspoon from the drawer and as he shovelled coffee into a mug, he pointed it at us and asked, “You two back together?”
Before coming here, I’d asked Kick to let me do most of the talking, and he kept quiet now and let me answer. “Yeah, we are.”
A scowl crossed his face. “You sure that’s for the best, Evie?”
His words angered me, and my body tensed, ready for a showdown if necessary. “I don’t think it’s any of your business. Not after all these years where you couldn’t care less about me.”
Kick’s hold of me tightened and I heard his muttered, “Fuck.” He didn’t say anything else, though, and that impressed me. The Kick of three years ago would have been straight into an argument and fight if necessary.
Dad continued to make his coffee, remaining silent for a moment. Eventually, he stopped what he was doing, and asked, “Do you know what Kick’s involved in these days?”
The look on his face told me he didn’t think I did. “If you’re referring to Storm, yes I know he’s part of the club.”
Dad’s gaze flicked to Kick and the look he gave him was pure hostility. Then he looked back at me and said, “No, I mean the fact he bails me out of situations that involve thugs and criminals you don’t ever want to be tied up with. I don’t want you involved in that kind of stuff, Evie.”
My blood boiled and I stepped forward. Kick loosened his hold on me but refused to let me go completely. “If you didn’t want me involved in that shit, Dad, you should have stayed away from them. I do know what he’s done for you and I also know that because of you, he could be in trouble now. That shit’s on you, not him,” I snapped, my eyes blazing the anger I couldn’t control even if I tried.
He was taken aback, obviously not expecting me to fire up like that, but memories of too many years of being let down by this man rushed at me now.
Kick finally waded into the conversation. “Evie and I are together now, Peter, whether anyone else likes it or not. And as far as her knowing what I’m involved in for you, I haven’t told her the half of it, but I’m more than happy to if you’d like me to.” I couldn’t see his face but I could feel the fury in his voice and the hard set of his stance against my back.
Dad stared at him in silence for a few moments before turning his stare to me. “I’m sorry for dragging you into it.” The room swirled with his regret. “I’m a weak man and I’ve let you down.”
“Oh my god, Dad, yes, you’re a weak man, but if you want to change your life, the only person who can do that is you!” Frustration at his excuses cut through me. He’d been full of excuses as long as I’d been old enough to understand what one was. “Stop making your pathetic excuses and man up. Yes, Mum cheated on you and your life went to shit after that. And yes, you lost a child . . . we all did, but we’ve all found a way to cope with that and live our lives . . . it’s time you did, too. Find the good in your life and put the bad behind you.”
Kick, who had little patience, got straight to the point of our visit. “Gambarro’s wiped your debt, but so help me if you fuckin’ get yourself into anymore debt, Peter...That was the last time I’m stepping in for you.” His hand pressed hard against my waist and I knew in my soul that if Dad ever found himself in debt again, Kick would bail him out. Because he loved me, he would do anything for my family, or me, regardless of the words he’d just spoken.
“Thank you,” Dad said, struggling to meet Kick’s eyes.
“Did you see that counsellor I found for you?” I asked.
He hesitated and I knew if he said yes, he’d be lying. “Not yet,” he admitted softly, now avoiding my eyes.
Kick’s frustration sounded in the long breath he pushed out. “Jesus,” he muttered.
I pushed him. “When will you be seeing him?”
Cagey eyes darted back and forth between Kick and me before finally settling on me. “I’ll call him soon.”
My handbag had slipped down my arm, and I pushed it back up before saying, “Okay, you do that,” I snapped, way past angry at his failure to help himself, “and don’t call me until you have seen him. If you can’t be bothered to sort yourself out, I can’t be bothered to help you anymore.”
Before he could say anything, I turned and stalked out of his house. Heartbreak, anger and disappointment sat heavy in my gut, and I swallowed the lump in my throat and fought back the tears threatening to fall. It killed me to give up on him, but I couldn’t keep going the way we had been for most of my life. My father needed tough love now. I thought he’d hit rock bottom, but, obviously, he hadn’t. I shuddered to think what that would look like when it finally happened because he’d looked pretty bad the last time I’d seen him.
Kick followed me out and when we reached his bike, he pulled me into his arms and kissed my forehead. “You okay, baby?”
I pulled back a little so I could look in his eyes. Those beautiful eyes that blared his love for me. It had been there all along but I’d been too blind to see it. I smiled. “Yeah, because I have you.”
He planted a kiss on my lips and then said, “You’ve always had me, you just didn’t know it.”
My tummy fluttered and my heart expanded with happiness.
Even with all the sadness, grief, hurt and anger hanging over me, Kick helped take some of it away.
He gave me hope life could be good again.
Chapter Twelve
Kick
“Anyone else got anything to discuss?” King asked, casting his gaze around the room.
Church had been quick today, but we hadn’t discussed the one thing I thought we would have.
And then Hyde stepped in. “Where are we at with Gambarro, Kick?” he asked, his steely eyes boring into mine.
I sat forward. I’d been ready for this. “As far as I know, he still doesn’t know who I am. I’ve asked my contacts if they’ve heard anything and there’s nothing on the radar.”
“Gambarro’s not a fucking idiot, Kick,” Hyde asserted, “he’ll figure it out soon enough and we need to have a fucking plan to deal with this shit.”
King interrupted. “Our plan is what it’s always been.”
Hyde gave him an incredulous look. “What? Sit and wait for the shit to land at our feet and then defend ourselves?”
King’s hard eyes narrowed at Hyde. “You think it would be better to announce to Gambarro it was us?” he asked scathingly.
Hyde
shoved his chair back and stood. Shoving his hand through his dark hair, he bit out, “Fuck, King, I don’t know what the fuck we should do, but I hate sitting here waiting. Like a sitting fucking duck.” He glared at me. “We shouldn’t be in this fucking position.”
Devil, who only spoke when he felt it absolutely necessary, said, “Sit the fuck down, Hyde, and get your shit together, man.”
I eyed Devil and he gave me a nod. He approved of what I’d done. I’d never hear those words from his lips, but Devil’s actions always said everything you needed to know.
Hyde now turned his filthy stare to Devil. “Clearly, I’m the only one here who does have his shit together. I can’t fucking believe none of you are worried about this.”
Nitro sat next to me, his body tense, and his mouth firmly closed. No love was lost between him and Hyde, and I knew if he got into a heated discussion now, the fists would likely come out. Nitro was a smart man and extremely disciplined at keeping his mouth shut where Hyde was concerned, but today he lost the fight to contain himself. Cold eyes pierced Hyde and his voice was deathly calm when he spoke. “Clearly you’re the only one who is forgetting Kick’s loyalty to Storm. He’s done shit for us that no man should ever have to fucking do, and he does it without a fucking word of complaint. I think you need to step the fuck back, pull your fucking head in, and shut the fuck up.”
King smashed his fist down on the bench and stood, fury circling him. “Enough!” he roared. Pointing at Hyde, he yelled, “Sit down, Hyde, and don’t say another fucking word.” He watched as Hyde followed his orders, and then he turned to face everyone. “We’re not fucking announcing anything to the world. Everyone is to keep their ear out and if you hear anything, you bring it to me. We clear?”
I looked around the table and found everyone nodding their agreement. Hyde nodded but his body language screamed his resistance.
“Right, that’s settled. Anything else?” King asked, a look of impatience plastered across his face. He glanced around the table and when no one spoke, he brought the gavel down to signal we were done.
Hyde stormed out, and I watched King as his gaze followed Hyde. He’d always had a close relationship with his Vice President, but Hyde seemed to be causing him headaches lately. He eventually tore his eyes from Hyde and looked at me. “Don’t worry about Hyde. I’ll take care of him,” he said, mistaking my concern for something it wasn’t.
I shook my head. “I’m more concerned for you, Prez,” I admitted.
A frown creased his forehead. “Why?”
“Your VP doesn’t have your back and he’s the one who’s supposed to have it more than anyone else.”
He processed that silently. “Yeah,” he muttered, deep in thought. “He’ll fucking have it soon enough, brother,” he added, before stalking out of the room.
King could be persuasive, but I feared Hyde was in one of his moods at the moment and when Hyde was in a mood, nothing could get through to him.
Fuck.
*****
Kick
17 years old
I placed the joint between my lips and inhaled its magic. The magic that would help numb me and make me forget, for even just a few hours, the shit I had to deal with at home. I sucked it deep into my lungs and held it there for a long while before slowly exhaling and letting my head drop back against the wall. I passed the joint to Jeremy and heard him take a hit.
When he was done, he passed it back to me and stretched out on his back on the floor. It was three o’clock in the morning and his house was silent as his family slept. We’d just gotten back from a lame party. He turned to look at me. “That party was shit.”
I nodded. “Yeah, not one chick worth scoring.”
He laughed. “That’s one way to gauge it.”
My brows rose. “How else would you gauge it, dude?”
“The lack of alcohol there, for one.”
“Well, there is that, too, but I could have lived with that if there had been at least one hot chick, but there wasn’t even that.”
He turned silent and I moved my head from the wall to see what he was doing. Jeremy had been off all week and tonight his mood had shifted into something else again and I struggled to pick it. “What’s up, man? You’ve been acting strange all week.”
His body tensed but then he sat up and stared at me. The light from outside splashed across the room and I could make out the strain on his face and the rigid set of his shoulders. “Do you have secrets, Kick?” he asked, his voice heavy with burden.
“Jesus, man, we all have secrets. What the fuck’s going on?”
The moment stretched before us, long and deathly silent. Whatever the hell he had on his mind was eating him up. I’d never seen Jeremy so troubled. Usually, he was the kind of guy who was confident and not fearful of anything.
Finally, he spoke. “I’m gay.”
I stared at my best friend, taking in the torment he obviously felt over this revelation and hating that he felt that way. Hating that society made him feel that way. “I know,” I said softly.
His eyes widened but he didn’t say anything.
“I’ve known you for six years, dude, and for half of that time I’ve figured you were gay.” I shrugged. “So?”
Anger clouded his face. “So? Do you have any idea how fucking big this is?”
“It’s not big to me. Like, if you thought it would affect our friendship, it won’t.”
He sat and stared at me, and I couldn’t work out the thoughts running through his mind. When he eventually blew out a long breath, he said, “Fuck, I never knew you knew.”
I took another long drag of the joint and then passed it to him. After I blew out the smoke, I asked, “Did you really think I wouldn’t support you?”
“I didn’t know, but I should have.”
“Yeah, man, you should have. I’ve always had your back and I always fucking will.”
“Shit, Kick . . . yeah, I know.”
I eyed him, curious about something. “Does Evie know?”
He shook his head. “No, you’re the only person I’ve told.”
“You should tell her. She won’t care, either.”
“Thank you,” he said quietly, his hands fidgeting after he passed me back the joint.
“What for?”
“For always being there for me. You’ve never let me down,” he said, his voice uneven and his eyes showing me how much this shit was affecting him.
“Well, for the record, if anyone gives you any fucking grief over this, they’ll have me to deal with. So you like to suck cock. Who the fuck gives a shit?”
He stared at me in shock for a minute and then he grinned and shook his head. “Fuck, Kick . . .”
“It’s true, dude, and I’m okay with that, but don’t ever fucking ask me to suck your dick, ‘cause it’s never gonna fucking happen. I’m all for pussy.”
“I wish I’d told you sooner.”
I nodded. “Yeah, me too, ‘cause I’ve been wondering. You got any fucking idea how hard it is to think about your best friend being gay without thinking about cock? Thank fuck cock will never have to enter my mind again.” He laughed and I muttered, “Not funny, man. This is serious shit right here.”
“So you don’t want to come to a gay club and help me find a man when we turn eighteen?”
I slid back against the wall and closed my eyes. “Fuck, you know I can never say no to you. You and fucking Evie . . . always talking me into doing shit I don’t want to do.”
My eyes were shut, sleepy, but I heard his laugh.
Thank god we’d finally had that conversation.
I really didn’t want to have to think about cock anymore.
*****
That night, I knocked on Evie’s front door and reached my arms up to grip onto the doorframe, stretching the tension out of my back. It’d been a long fucking day and she was all I’d been thinking about for hours.
She answered the door and my dick instantly jerked. I stepped forwar
d, my arm circling her waist and sliding down to grip her ass. “That outfit is dangerous, baby,” I growled into her ear. She had on the skimpiest denim shorts that were really just a scrap of material rather than a pair of shorts, and a tiny, fitted red singlet that stretched across tits that were straining to escape it.
Moving into my space, she put her arms around me, and said, “I’m hoping so.”
I raised my brows and smirked. “Oh, really?”
She smiled. “Really.”
“A man might need to be fed if he’s expected to exert some energy,” I said, still smirking.
“Might he?” She played with me and I fucking liked it.
“Well, you could try not feeding me, but I doubt you’ll get much out of me. My woman drained most of my energy last night.”
A grin decorated her gorgeous face, and I loved that I’d put it there. “Okay, it’s a good thing I cooked extra. I was hoping you’d come over,” she said, grabbing my hand and walking towards the kitchen.
I let her lead me, my eyes never leaving her ass. “Sweetheart, I don’t want you going out in those shorts. They hardly cover your ass, and I don’t need to be dealing with motherfuckers checking you out, ‘cause that shit could lead to me ending up in jail.”
She turned and rolled her eyes at me. “No one will be checking me out except for you.”
I yanked her hand so that she was propelled backwards into my arms. She stumbled but I caught her. When I had her eyes, I said, “Where the fuck do you get the idea that no one would be checking you out, ‘cause last I looked, you’re a fuckin’ beautiful woman?”
Her face softened for a moment and she said, “Thank you,” but I wasn’t buying her belief in my words.
“You’ve got no idea, have you?”
“What? That you think I’m beautiful?” She seemed genuinely confused at my question.
“No, that every fuckin’ man finds you beautiful.”
Her mind hesitated to let her heart believe me; I saw it in her eyes. “Kick . . .” Her voice trailed off and she tried to move out of my hold, but I didn’t let her. No fucking way was she getting out of hearing this.