by KB Winters
It was a sad state of affairs, but it was absolutely fucking true. Politicians cheated on everyone from their kids and wives to their constituents, but no one cared as much when there were important stories out there, like which starlet stole which pop princess’s boyfriend.
No fucking thanks.
“Do you have anything else? I’m willing to pay you for your information, Terry.”
He shook his head. “You seem to already know what kind of guy he is.”
“Let’s just say I found out some things I shouldn’t have and he’s not too pleased about it.”
“Well I have some stuff,” he said. He got up and rooted around in his desk before coming back to his seat. He gave me a long look as if confirming something about me in his mind and then slid a flash drive to me. “Think about this; he’s governor with no good excuse to have underage girls surrounding him. How is he getting his fix?”
I had a feeling Terry had the answer. I took a pull from my beer while Jag sat silently beside me and got comfortable. Whatever Terry was willing to share, I needed to hear.
And we had all the time in the world to listen to him.
Chapter Nineteen
Jag
“You wanna tell me why the fuck a bunch of our prospects were attacked at Shandy’s?” I opened the door to find three pissed off bikers, Cross, Gunnar and Savior, darkening my doorstep.
“How in the fuck should I know?” I stepped back to let the guys enter now that I knew what in the hell they were doing on my doorstep at eleven at night. Without a fucking call.
“How about because that asshole Rizzoli is claiming you stole from him,” Cross spat at me. “Tell me you didn’t.”
His words sent a white-hot rage pulsing through me. “If you have to ask then it doesn’t matter what the fuck I have to say, does it?” I led them into the kitchen and took up the spot against my fridge. Waiting. Angry and waiting.
“Come on, man just tell us. You and Blue Hair planning on taking the Roadkill cash and blowing out of town?” Gunnar leaned back and put his big fucking boots on my table.
“Get your fucking feet off my table.” I wasn’t in the mood for bullshit, particularly Gunnar’s brand of bullshit. “Is there anything else you need to accuse me of or are you ready to get the fuck out?”
“We had to ask, Jag.” Savior, attempting to be the voice of reason, was laughable.
“You really didn’t but I guess it’s good to know where I stand.” I would never fucking tell the guys but hearing them say that shit, hurt. I never once, not since I became a Reckless Bastard, felt like an outcast or an outsider. No one gave a damn that I was black or that I was the only black member. But right now, I felt like an outsider and it had nothing at all to do with the color of my skin. “We done?”
“You gonna act like a pussy now?” Gunnar stood.
“Pussy? Fuck you, Gunnar. You vanish for more than a year and come back with a chip on your shoulder acting like an asshole and the rest of us put up with it because you have a kid to deal with. Well so fucking what and fuck you too!”
“And the money?” Cross’s voice was deadly quiet.
“I told you I didn’t fucking take it but I guess Vigo’s words carry more weight than mine. Fine, believe what the fuck you want. Just get the fuck out. Now.”
“Jag be reasonable,” Savior tried again.
“Reasonable? Is it reasonable to come to my motherfuckin’ house and accuse me based on the word of a man who wants us dead? Burned our fucking plants just to get the feds off his back?” I glared at Savior. “Yeah, I didn’t fucking think so.”
“So who took the fucking money?”
“I did.” Vivi stood in the doorway of the kitchen wearing a hell of a lot more clothes than she had on when I left the bedroom.
“Why?”
She shrugged. “Why shouldn’t I? I’m not part of your little biker club and I don’t answer to any of you. I do what I need to do for me.” She smacked her chest with the palm of her hand to drive the point home and damn, that chick really did have a piece of me. She was tough as hell, took no shit from anyone and didn’t back down from a fight she could win.
“No matter who it hurts?” Gunnar stared at her, his eyes angry and full of fire and accusation.
“You deal with your shit and I’ll deal with mine.”
“Your shit seems to be causing problems with our shit,” Cross reminded her.
Vivi laughed. “Bullshit. When I pulled up you were knee-deep in shit. Cops, guns, helicopters and ambulances. Seems like you had problems with them before I showed up. As a matter of fact if it wasn’t for me and my shit you wouldn’t know that it was your little friend who burned your fucking plants, would you?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Exactly, so maybe you should take a fucking chill pill. I took his money and I’m not giving it back until I’m good and fucking ready. When I know I’m safe and don’t need to control that piece of shit, I might give it back.” She leaned against the wall and glared at each man, including me. “Or maybe I’ll just take the cash and blow out of town.”
Cross took a step forward and Vivi took a step back, hand sliding to her back pocket and I knew the shit would hit the fan in a minute.
“Put. The. Money. Back.”
She shot me a look, those grey eyes boring into me. “Jag, you need to calm your boy here. And as long as I have it, I might make it out of this shitty town alive.”
“No. Fuck that,” Savior piped in. “These assholes won’t stop until they have their money and now we’re caught up in your bullshit.”
Vivi laughed. “You want the money? Then go fucking get it.” She turned and left the kitchen but instead of heading back upstairs, she slammed the front door, which meant I was sleeping alone tonight.
A big ass sigh escaped because I was tired. Dog fucking tired of always fighting, always going. Always fucking on. It hadn’t stopped over the past year and I was just beat. Whether they realized it or not, all three of my brothers had just made everything more difficult than it needed to be. “Happy?”
“She can’t keep that money, Jag.” Cross’s words were insistent and bordered on an order, but I only stared. “You know that.”
“What I know is that I spent the whole fucking trip back from LA trying to convince of her that and thanks to your so-called help, Vivi is going to do exactly what the fuck she wants. When she wants.”
“Naw, man. That ain’t good enough, brother.” Gunnar smacked his hands together and went to the fridge, grabbing a beer.
“Now we’re brothers? Five minutes ago I was a fuckin’ thief.”
“You on your period, Jag?”
“Fuck you, Gunnar. Shouldn’t you be babysitting?” He flipped me off but I’d already turned back to Cross. “I didn’t know about the money until Rizzoli called, pissed as fuck. But I won’t ask her to give it back until I can be sure Roadkill won’t fuck with her.”
“That’s if she’s telling the truth and from where I’m sitting that’s a big fucking if,” Savior said, following Gunnar to pull a beer from the fridge.
“You didn’t believe Mandy either until she took a beatdown in the parking lot of her job. Maybe you should try learning from your mistakes.”
He growled, pissed that I’d brought it up but I was beyond caring. “Is that how this club works now? We have to make sure Savior believes someone before we take care of it?”
Cross sighed and dropped down into one of the kitchen chairs. “Jag we’re in a bad position here.”
“Don’t you think I fuckin’ know that? If you don’t want any part of this, fine. But I won’t abandon Vivi. And even if she isn’t around, Roadkill is still a problem. You fucking saw what Rizzoli did, but you took his word over mine, anyway.” I was so fucking done. I wanted to walk away but we had more shit to discuss. “That’s not all.”
“Did you also get married while you were in La-La Land?” Savior asked me and took a seat at the end of the table.
“Fuck you, Savior.�
� I replied, and the son of a bitch laughed. “It’s about Blaise. The guy is a fucking scumbag.”
“Says Vivi?”
“No Gunnar, says me. Asshole.” I didn’t know what his problem was, but I was past giving a shit. “We went to see a guy who used to be a journalist … until he tried to run one too many stories about Blaise and his penchant for underage pussy.”
“And?”
“And Vivi is working on a plan to get him to stop. I just need to know if I can count on the club for help or not.” The room fell silent except for the sounds of four angry bikers breathing heavily.
“Vivi is working on a plan? She gonna steal from him too?”
“Since he’s tried to kill her at least three goddamn times, I’d say she’s in her rights if that’s what she chooses. What the fuck would you do if it were Maisie?”
“But it’s not,” he barked at me, pounding the table with his meaty fist.
“But it could be. Vivi is the victim here in case you fucking forgot. Either Blaise or Rizzoli want her dead because of what she’s seen, do you fucking get that? She’s seen some deep dark secrets about these assholes and I happen to be worried about her.” I stood. “You know what? I don’t give a shit. Get the fuck out,” I told them and left the kitchen, heading upstairs to my empty fucking bedroom.
There were so many thoughts going through my mind but not one of them could catch hold to become a fully formed idea. I couldn’t fucking believe it; my club didn’t have my back. After all the shit we’d been through together and this was where they chose to draw the line.
Vivi was where they drew the line.
Un-fucking-believable.
***
“I can’t believe they’re acting like this!” And now I was acting like a whiny little bitch in front of my woman and that didn’t feel good at all.
“Fuck ‘em, Jag. I mean the whole point of all that shit is that you have each other’s backs, right?” She didn’t even wait for a response. “Think of all the shit you’ve done for them, shit that could put you in prison. All that and they can’t get over their hate of me?”
“They don’t hate you,” I said automatically.
“Don’t kid yourself, Jeremiah. They hate me and that’s okay. I don’t really give a shit. But I care that they’re doing this to you.” She fidgeted with the hem of her black t-shirt and her eyes darted around the room, uncomfortable with any display of emotion. I loved that about her.
“They don’t. Hell, Lasso even likes you. It’s just that they’re worried. We’ve had a lot of problems with people lately and most of them have had to do with the women in our lives.” I told her about Teddy’s stalker who happened to be one of the Reckless Bitches and about Mandy’s problem with Roadkill thanks to a so-called friend. “And you already know Rocky’s story.”
She whistled and then smiled. “Well that’s what happens when you’re in a biker gang, Jag.”
“Motorcycle club,” I corrected even though I knew she only did that to get under my skin.
“Right,” she said and rolled her eyes playfully. “It’s getting late and I’ve worked hard all day. I think it’s time for a treat.”
I loved it when Vivi turned playful and I loved it more when she ripped her shirt off to reveal her delicious tits. They were round and perky with perfect pink nipples. Perfectly hard pink nipples. “I do love a tasty treat,” I told her and when she turned and headed up the stairs, I followed her.
And caught her on the stairs, making her laugh. “Tasty?”
“You know damn well you are,” I told her and spun her around, kissing the hell out of her right there on the stairs. Her lips were soft and pliant, moving with mine as I led the dance. One leg wrapped around my thigh so my hips sank against hers and she moaned, tilting her head back so I could taste her beautiful neck. She arched into me. I fucking loved it when she did that.
“Jag.” The way she sighed my name sent a rod of heat straight to my cock, which I pressed into her. Hard.
“Vivi. Babe.” The way she opened her legs a little more when she sighed told me exactly what she wanted. I snapped the button on her jeans and slid my hand inside until the wet warmth of her pussy touched my fingertips. “Damn you’re so wet already. For me?”
She nodded, mouth open slightly inviting me in for another taste. I devoured her mouth this time while two fingers slid deep into her tight pussy. She was so fucking wet, so tight, she clenched around me and I knew she was already close. “Yes.” Her hips circled into me and one hand clamped the back of my neck, her teeth sank into my lips.
“Someone’s feeling greedy.”
“Damn right, ah!” She sucked in a breath when my thumb found her clit and her other hand grabbed my wrist. “Jag!”
She was so close, and my fingers began to thrust deeper and faster, the only sound was her sexy fucking gasps she made when her orgasm was close. Her pussy clenched hard, the warning before the storm.
Just before she came, a loud explosion sounded outside. Close as fuck outside, like on my damn property. Unfortunately that sound and the fiery light that lit up the entire front of the house made Vivi’s orgasm a distant memory.
“Fuck! What the fuck was that, a bomb?”
I was already headed to the front window, the one in the corner with the table that held one of my guns. I pushed the curtain aside and saw two guys running away. “Close, a fucking explosion!”
I was out the door in seconds, grabbing another gun before I aimed at one of the fuckers running away. Lining up my shot, I got the fucker and he fell down.
“Shit! Go!” a man moaned.
I recognized the voice but with all the noise and chaos I couldn’t place it. Not that it mattered. I unloaded my clip into the mother fucker.
“Shit!” Vivi said beside me, staring at the wreckage. “Holy fuck is that…?”
“The Crown Vic from the tow company? Yeah.” It was there in the middle of my fucking yard. On fire. “Those sirens are definitely headed here so we need to put what we need into your camper—”
“And get it off this fucking property.” She was already heading back into the house to get who knew what while I went to the guy lying still on the ground.
He didn’t look familiar but that didn’t mean shit. He could be a hired gun, or he could be a Roadkill rookie, well he could have been. Now he was just a body. Food for worms.
“Get his ID,” Vivi shouted from behind the wheel of her camper. “So we can figure out who the hell sent him! Now!”
I reached into his front pockets and there was nothing. “Back pockets are empty too!”
“Shit.” With a muttered curse, Vivi parked her camper at the end of the road and ran back, the sound of sirens growing louder with every passing second. “Did you look in his shoe?”
I looked at her over my shoulder. “Seriously, who in the hell are you girl?”
She grinned. “I am an enigma wrapped in a little mystery, chaos and charm and then rolled up in a pretty little hacker package.”
That much was true and she turned out to be right about the ID. “When this is all over Vivi, we’re going to have a serious talk.” I handed her the ID and she slid it into her own shoe.
“Maybe.” Finally the lights and sirens were on us. “Remember don’t say more than you need to.” She turned serious gray eyes my way until I nodded.
“This isn’t my first rodeo, Vivi.”
She shrugged. “I have to be sure, considering how clueless you were about the ID in the shoe thing.” Her smile took the sting off the words and seconds later we were inundated with police.
“Yeah well, just make sure you don’t give them the wrong ID.”
She frowned. “I’m not giving them shit.”
“That’s my girl.” I pressed a quick, hard kiss to her lips as two officers approached with firefighters and ambulances behind them. There was a big shit show in my front yard and I knew it would be hours before we were alone again. Especially with the dead guy in the yard. Tha
t wouldn’t go over well with the cops.
Turns out, it took even longer than I’d thought. But the self-defense story worked, and the cops told us not to leave town. Not that we would. I had a feeling this was the start of a bigger war with Roadkill—or the feds. Whoever the dead guy belonged to.
The first streaks of sun lit the sky before the last vehicle pulled away, with the crispy Crown Vic in tow. “Now where can we park this thing and get some sleep?”
“Sleep? I thought for sure you’d want another crack at that interrupted orgasm.” I hoped she did because I sure as fuck needed to relax after the night we’d had.
“Who said I don’t? I just need to recharge my batteries and wash the fire stank off me.”
“Come on, I know a place.” If the guys were still full of bullshit, I knew Lasso would let us stay at his place. But, I didn’t want to put him and Rocky in danger, so we made our way to the clubhouse first.
Chapter Twenty
Vivi
“Where in the hell have you been? I’ve been going out of my damn mind!” Jag was so adorable when he got all worried mother hen on me. No one had ever fussed over me before and even though it was kind of annoying, it was outweighed by just how sweet it was.
“I was out. Rocky told me all about Mandy’s new chocolate shop and I thought I’d check it out.” And I had. For about five minutes before taking a long, wandering circuitous route around the Siren Casino and Resort. The places looked exactly like the plans, which was foolish considering just how much cash a casino had on hand. Security or not, with the layout of the whole resort, a smart criminal could win big. “What’s up?”
“What’s up is that I’ve been calling you all afternoon and you weren’t answering. I thought something had happened.”
Dammit this man knew how to warm my cold black heart. “I’m sorry I worried you. I brought you some chocolate.”