by Nicole Snow
Firefly sat at the bar and fixed his eyes on Meg as we stepped inside. We exchanged a look and he nodded. He wore that tired, satisfied glaze in his eyes that he always had after he'd fucked his testosterone calm for awhile. I noticed Blondie snoozing in his lap as we walked by, heading for Dust's office.
“Leave the talkin' to me,” I said between taps on the door. “This is club business, baby, even though it involves you too.”
“Yeah, about that...I was hoping we could get some reassurance from your boss about what's going to happen to me.”
“What?” I shot her a sharp look, just as the door opened.
The Prez had a beer in his hand. He squinted at us like two trick-or-treaters who'd just shown up on his doorstep on the Fourth of July.
“What's she doing back here?” His eyes instantly fell to the big black bag in my hand. “Holy Moses. Is that what I think it is?”
I nodded. All it took for the Prez to reach for Meg and pull her into his office without another word, while I followed them in.
He walked behind his desk, sucking down his beer and hurling the can in the garbage. The bag hit his desk with a plop. His thick, scarred hands landed on it and I watched his fingers give it a squeeze, shaking almost imperceptibly while he went for the zipper, looking like a man about to pull down a lady's dress.
Fat stacks of twenties and hundreds wrapped in bands spilled out the opening. He pursed his lips and whistled, so sharp and unexpected Meg barely suppressed a laugh.
“It's all there, Prez. You can count it down to the dollar. She says it is, and I trust her.” Smiling, our eyes met, and I tried to lay off thinking about how bad I wanted to be inside her just then.
Come on. Hurry the fuck up. You've got your business here, man, and we've got ours.
The excitement in Dust's cool gray eyes raged louder. Then he said the words I dreaded.
“Skin, have a seat. Help me count this loot and get it inventoried for the vault.”
Megan took one look at the sparks in my eyes turning to smoke. This time, she couldn't hold it. She laughed, high and sweet and beautiful, and kept on doing it when the Prez looked at her like she'd lost her mind.
* * * *
About an hour later, I couldn't get the stink of fresh money off my hands. “It's all there, Prez, see? Just like I told you. Right down to the final dollar.”
“Yeah, yeah. You weren't bullshitting. We've got our second chance for this club right here, and it's all thanks to turning your mistake into a miracle.”
“Mistake?” Meg spoke for the first time in forever, sitting in the corner, next to the club's old filing cabinet.
“My words, not his, beautiful.” Dust thumped his chest. “Our boy's got too big a hard-on for him to realize you're trouble, sweets. You oughta be thankful.”
“Yeah, trouble...about that.” She stood up and walked over.
I grabbed her hand, trying to stall her out. She wanted her assurances, but there was a right way to approach the Prez and a wrong one. I didn't want him chewing into her, no matter how good his mood was from our newly fat cash supply.
“Now that you've got your money, I need to know that you're never going to come after me again, Dust.” She walked past me and stared at him like a wildcat. “I want assurances that we're good on both sides. I need to know I've paid my debt, and whatever trouble Skin caused is done.”
“Assurances?” The Prez glared at her, considering her request.
The girl had courage, I had to give her that. 'Course, she didn't realize what he'd done. She hadn't seen him throttle bastards to death with his bare hands, or take rival prospects out back when his old man led the club, making them scream louder than anybody else could, 'til they sang and gave us whatever we wanted.
Dust didn't get to be Prez thanks to his daddy. He'd gotten the patch because he was as hard, uncompromising, and relentless as he was reasonable.
“Yeah, sure, I'll give you my word. Here, girl, reach out your hand and shake.”
I watched him take her by the wrist. I couldn't breathe 'til I saw the familiar handshake I'd seen him use before when deals went down. Dust grabbed her wrist and pressed his fingers deep, like a Roman soldier feeling for a dagger.
I'd read about that when I was growing up, going through a spell where history's badasses intrigued me. Didn't have a clue where the Prez picked it up – it had to be intuitive, because I'd have bet every dime I had against him ever paying attention in any history class.
“There, babe,” I said softly, running my free hand through Meg's dark brown hair as they broke hands. “Satisfied?”
“No, actually.”
Fuck. My eyes jumped to the Prez. I could see the cold, frustrated, predatory edge creeping into his eyes.
“I don't have time for games, little missy. You'd better name whatever the fuck you're after or drop it. I've given you my word, and any brother around here will vouch that it's pretty damned valuable. You think I'm a liar?”
Instinct took over. I stepped up, got between them, and looked the Prez dead in the eye.
“You know she isn't, brother. The girl wants to know she's safe, and I don't blame her, but you can't give her the assurance she's looking for. That's my job.” Meg's bright blue eyes flashed wonder and confusion.
I grabbed her by the wrist and jerked her into my chest, wrapping my arms snug around her sweet body, everything I wanted to own for the rest of my days.
“What's going on here, Skin?” Dust growled.
“I'm claiming her as my old lady. Right here, right now. Nobody's gonna stop me. This club won't ever make demands from a woman wearing a brother's brand.”
For a second, the whole world stopped. Meg tensed in my arms, scared and uncertain, but her eyes were wide. Filled with the desire, the need, the admiration I'd come to love.
The Prez just gawked, taking a few seconds to collect his senses. “Bullshit. You don't really mean it...do you?”
“You know me by now, Prez. I don't do idle talk. I don't say shit I don't mean, and I'd never even pretend with something like this. She's mine, dammit, I swear it.” I looked at Meg, ignoring his wild-eyed stare. “She was mine from the minute I saw her in that bastard's whorehouse. Mine from the instant I pulled her here and decided to get her home. Mine when she came back tonight. This is just making things official, putting a pretty formality on what we both knew. Now, I'm gonna make sure everybody in the whole damned world knows it – or at least every man in this club.”
“Jesus, Skin.” She whispered my name softly, her lips trembling.
Fuck it. I wasn't gonna let her break down or spit the confusion written on her face. I grabbed the back of her neck and pushed her to my lips. We kissed pure hellfire there in Dust's office, all while he watched in total amazement.
“I'd say you've lost your damned mind, Skin, but it's clear you've actually put some brains into this. Fuck me.” I forced myself off Meg's lips and looked at the Prez as he circled back behind his desk, shaking his head. “Listen, you two, before you make a big damned mistake...if she wants to get out of all this shit, this ain't the way to go about it. Does this girl even know what becoming an old lady means?”
I looked into Meg's deep blue eyes. No, she didn't, but I'd show her everything she had to know.
I'd lead her by the hand as sure as I'd master her in my bed every night. I already owned her, inside and out, and this was just making things official.
I claimed right here, right now, because I'd decided I couldn't let her slip away again. Not when she got scared of the club, or scared of me.
Not when she feared for her life, or wondered if she really fit in here. Not when she had any damned doubts about what I had for her beating straight through my ribs, the manic beat she put into my heart.
“I'll lead her every step of the way, Prez. That's between her and me. Give us twenty-four hours, and she'll be back here wearing my brand, PROPERTY OF SKIN.”
“Let your old lady answer for a change, if tha
t's what she really wants to be,” Dust snapped. He sat up in his scrappy leather chair and pointed a finger at her.
“You've got my assurances, whether you think I'll honor that handshake or not. You don't need to do anything rash with this poor, desperate bastard if you don't want to. Say no, and I'll make sure he doesn't ride your ass. This is my club, and I've got the final say when it comes to who gets to be part of it. You really want to get yourself in deeper? Because there's no going back once you've got his name inked on your pretty flesh. You're his property then, and one more extension of the club.”
Fuck, the Prez made it sound like lock and key with no rewards. He didn't tell her that becoming mine meant I'd kill for her, keep my loyalty to this woman in blood, surrender the wild I'd known my whole life for her embrace.
I waited for her reaction. The next five seconds were the most tense of my entire fucking life.
I'd done everything here on a whim, going by nothing more than the love in her eyes. Now, I was about to find out if that pure, sweet energy would be enough, or if the beautiful baby girl in my arms would panic, break, and go running back to the comfort and privilege she'd always known.
Don't do it, I thought, clenching my jaw. You know where you belong, babe.
Here. Now. Forever.
“Honestly, I don't know what I'm getting into here,” Meg said slowly, pausing just long enough to make my damned heart stop. She spun around, flattening her hands on my chest, smiling at me. “But if it brings us closer together, Skin, I'm ready for it. I'm ready to take on anything. You saved my life and taught me I didn't die back in Ricky's place. You showed me I could have another life. You're all I could think about at my parents' place. I dated plenty before the pimp took me, and I never found any man with a scrap of what you're offering.”
“Babe, fuck, just say the word,” I whispered, tightening my hold on her back, fighting to keep my hands off her perfect ass.
“I love you, Skin. And, well, I'm game for whatever this old lady thing means. No regrets. No going back.” She turned and looked at Dust, pushing her cheek onto my chest. “Just keep my man safe, Dust. That's all I'm going to ask from your club. If what he's telling me is true, then I'll be out of your hair for good, right?”
“Shit, you're sweet. Innocent and a little dumb. Nah, it's worse than that, girl. You haven't bought yourself a ticket outta anything.” Dust's smiled, and his shoulders straightened. “Becoming an old lady means you're part of this family. If anybody owes anyone else here a damned thing, it's the club promising you protection, the same as any brother.”
We both broke into a smile. I couldn't keep my lips off her. I didn't give a shit about the bulldog with the PRESIDENT patch watching us neither.
We plunged into a new flurry of kisses in the Prez's office, hungry as all hell, feeding the fire we shared, flames that wouldn't be dashed 'til we finally consummated this thing.
Hard, deep, and long. I wanted to fuck her so damned hard she'd forget the first time. This was a night to remember, the most important one of our lives, and I'd spend the next few hours shaking every curve so hard she'd weep from the pleasure.
“All right, kids, that's enough!” Dust snarled, standing up. “You've both got twenty-four hours to change your minds before I announce this to the rest of the boys. Skin, you'd better bring her home with your brand inked in her skin, or I'll tear your damned ears off for leading everybody on. You, girl, make up your mind for good after tonight. Now, kindly get yourselves a room, and get the fuck out of my sight.”
We stepped out and I closed the door, a split second before I grabbed her and threw her against the wall. We picked up right where we left off, out in the hallway, our lips dancing a desperate tango.
Tango? Fuck that. I'd never been much for dancing.
I shoved my tongue in her mouth, found hers, and dominated it. I pulled at my baby's bottom lip 'til I heard her whimper. Her breasts pushed into me, her nipples hard underneath all the fabric, and I stole the breath from her lungs.
My hips hooked to hers and I pushed. Hard. I wanted her to feel how hard and ready I was for her, how bad I wanted – no, needed – to fuck her.
Getting her branded was just the first step. Taking control and owning her, well, that was deadly simple, and also a helluva lot more fun.
“Come on. We've got one more stop to make before we can get the fuck outta here.”
“Huh?” She stopped and smiled, her eyes questioning mine. “You mean there's somewhere else we can go besides your room?”
“Yeah, there's a place not far from here, a family place I've had forever. It's a nice night, and not too cold.” I inwardly snorted, deciding not to bother dancing around this shit anymore. I leaned in close and hissed fire in her ear. “Obviously, I don't give a shit about the southern wind. This place doesn't have much for heat, but I'll make you burn between the sheets. You're mine, Meg, and that means I'm gonna spend every spare second fucking you senseless. I'm not stopping 'til you're soaked like a sauna, not 'til your sweet cunt's massaged my dick dry half a dozen times or more.”
“Oh, God.” Her eyes fluttered shut as my hand grabbed her thigh and squeezed.
Fuck if I could take a second more. Grabbing her again, I led her to the bar, praying Firefly would still be there, maybe a little more sober now that he'd gotten in his fun for the night.
I found him with Blondie's head on his lap, a beer in his hand, staring lazily at an old Western playing on the flat screen without any sound.
“Aw, shit.” He took one look at Meg and stubbed out his smoke in the ashtray. “Your little toy's back? Did she bring the Prez the cash, or what?”
“You'll find out tomorrow, brother. All the club's business has been taken care of. Every man wearing this patch is gonna be pretty fucking happy, let me tell you.” I walked closer, tugging Meg with me, who'd suddenly gone shy in my grip. “Keep the bullshit on your tongue. If I hear you call her a toy, a whore, or a stray again, I'll put my fist in your face, and I don't give a single fuck if you know it's coming. I need ink, Firefly, if you're not too fucked up to draw. She's mine, brother, and I want my brand on her tonight.”
His jaw dropped. “No fucking way. Skin, the human calculator with a porno fix, settling down?”
He shook his head once, twice, three times. I nodded, coldly, staring him down. Why the fuck did everything take so long around here?
Finally, it must've sunk in. Firefly leaped up from the bar and caused his girl to jerk up awkwardly, losing her headrest.
“Congratulations, brother. I'm done giving you shit.” His big arms held us both, crushed us to his massive chest. “Let's get this woman inked up. It's about time this club had some good news.”
Amen to that.
* * * *
Meg watched me nervously from the padded chair. She'd chosen to take my brand on her shoulder, a perfect place for me to see it whenever I told her to wear something loose in the warmer weather. Better still when we were naked and I mounted her from behind.
I'd watch my brand appearing on her skin like a damned target, all the encouragement I needed to fuck her harder, mark her from the inside out. My balls churned, aching to unload inside her, watching as Firefly kept her arm pinned down with one hand, and used the other to scrawl the design we'd picked out with the ink gun.
“You're doing so good, baby. This is the last pain you're ever gonna feel for me. I promise.” I grabbed her free hand and laced my fingers through hers.
I couldn't tell if she wanted to laugh or cry. Her whole face twitched, on the verge of going to pieces.
Her smile said everything I needed to know.
We'd only talked about the design minutes before Firefly went to work. I watched him etch a heart on her shoulder made from iron bars, just like the gate in front of her home. The center was all open, and the Enforcer stenciled PROPERTY OF SKIN, DEADLY PISTOLS MC TENNESSEE onto her flesh one glorious letter at a time.
By the time he was working on the finishing touch
es, I couldn't hold it. I leaned in and crushed my lips on hers, tasting what belonged to me. Fuck if she didn't taste even better already – something I'd have thought was impossible.
“She's all good to go, brother.” Firefly turned off the ink gun and grinned, admiring his work. “Lucky man. The girl was hot before, but now? Shit, ya'll are lucky I've got somebody to keep me company tonight.”
I shot him a withering look. Joking or not, I didn't take kindly to other men sniffing around her, even my own brothers. Jerking her up by the wrist, I pulled her into me, holding onto her extra tight, grazing my stubble across her bare neck.
She shuddered. Fuck if it didn't make me imagine her rippling underneath me.
Christ, she'd get fucked tonight. Harder than a boulder dropping. I'd slam my cock in and out of her 'til sunup, marking her as mine, making her understand beyond any shred of doubt what her tight little body did to me.
“We're done here, Firefly. Thanks for playing artist for the night.”
“There's nobody better in this MC. You taking off for the night, or crashing here?”
“Yeah, we'll be back when the Prez says it's time for church. Or whenever this little lady wants to go home. Try to keep Dust from spending every damned cent of what we just inventoried. I know morale's been low, but fuck, we've finally got ourselves a second chance. We deserve it.”
I was talking about the club, but I held Meg's eyes the entire time. My new old lady never wavered, catching the hidden meaning in everything I said.
“Yeah, we do,” she whispered, just as we headed out. “A second chance, and a whole lot more.”
They'd be the last words I'd let her say tonight before I fucked her incoherent.
* * * *
We left the clubhouse and rode underneath the moonlight. It was going on two o'clock in the morning, a bewitching hour, but I wouldn't trade this ride for anything.
She pressed close to me in the cold, purring in my ear during the ride to my cabin. My cock pulsed in my denim each time I felt her breath, imagined feeling her tongue wrapped around me again.