My day dreams took over once again and I could see me and Luke at a standoff with these guys. This time I had some cool power that kept them from moving; freezing their limbs while Luke hypnotized them making them think they were puppies.
“Hey! Snap out of it, princess. This isn’t the Wild West and it’s not T.V. You seriously could have gotten hurt. You don’t realize who these guys are.”
“Yeah? Well, I’m aware that I could have gotten hurt, but I didn’t and I wasn’t going to just leave you out there to get jumped or whatever the hell it was that they had planned to do to you,” I said getting defensive. He should have stopped at “thank you.”
“They were not going to hurt me, Dallas. Maybe rough me up a little bit, but that would have been the worst of it,” he said unconvincingly.
“Oh, really? Well, I think you are a liar. These men are mad with you about something and if it’s enough to follow you- wait they tampered with your truck didn’t they?” The realization hit me like a ton of bricks. I remembered the look on Luke’s face when he came back to the truck. He knew what was going to happen. Luke stared straight ahead, not looking at me. “Tell me. You knew this was going to happen, didn’t you?” I asked shocked.
“Of course I didn’t know this was going to happen. Do you honestly think that I would intentionally put you in danger?” he asked completely taken aback by what I had said.
“No, I mean, you knew once you looked at the tire that someone had messed with it,” I answered correcting the miscommunication.
“I had a feeling,” he said, not looking at me once again. Was he always this bad of a liar or was it just with me? “Dallas, I told you that I would tell you everything, and I will, as soon as we are home and I can lock you in a room, so you can’t run,” he said exasperated.
Why was this suddenly my fault, and why was he afraid I would run? Memories of my past flooded me. There was a lot that Luke didn’t know about me, either. If he were completely honest with me, it would only be fair for me to share my past with him. I didn’t want that. I was poison. If Luke dug deep enough, he would find a lot of skeletons in my closet, then it would be him running, not me.
I had already assumed what was going on anyway. He was into something illegal, and was afraid to drag me into it. I got it. I’m sure something had gone wrong and these guys wanted to hurt him because of it. A lot of normal people would cut their losses and leave, but not me. Luke was the first real thing in my life, since I was sixteen. He made me feel alive and whole. I would not let anything come between us.
I didn’t want to know his secrets. Well, I did, but I wanted him to tell me on his terms; not because he felt like he was forced to. One day, I would tell him everything. I would tell him about the kind of person that I really was, and it was not the person he met in a bar a month ago. Right now I wanted to keep my secrets buried inside of me, and the only way to do that, without feeling guilty, was for him to do the same thing.
“I don’t want to know, Luke. We both have secrets and that’s fine with me. When the time is right, you’ll tell me, until then, all I want is us. I want to spend every minute that I can with you and when bullshit like this happens, we’ll deal with it together.”
The relief on his face was so tangible that I started to take back what I had said. Was it that big of a deal for me to know?
“You seem a little too relieved,” I said eyeing him. He shook his head and smiled.
“Some secrets are not mine to tell, but to keep you, I would tell you everything.”
“You have me. I am not going anywhere.” And I wasn’t. I was his, as long as he would have me.
Luke pulled me to him and once again, I snuggled into his side. “I sure do love you, Dallas Knox.”
I smiled up at him smugly, “I know.”
We pulled into a gas station before we hit the interstate and I smiled when I saw all of the motorcycles lined up outside in the parking lot. These were ‘our guys’ and it warmed my heart that they had come to meet us. I knew that they were really meeting Luke and could probably give a shit less about me, but it was nice to think about. We got out and I stretched my tired, sore limbs before following Luke to the pack of waiting bikers. Everyone greeted us with opened arms, like always. Smiles, nods of approval and shock crossed every face as Luke told the story of what had happened. They were proud of what I had done, but they were pissed that this had happened.
“It’s been a long day for me and a tough week for Dallas, so we’re gonna go home tonight, and we will hold church tomorrow to discuss the next steps,” Luke said to all of them.
“A couple of the PROSPECTS and I will crash at the club house tonight. I don’t feel comfortable leaving you alone right now.” Tiny announced.
Luke nodded his head in agreement, “Thank you, brother.”
More hugs were exchanged and goodbyes were passed between our club and the support club. It wasn’t long before we were back in the truck and headed towards Hattiesburg. “Do y’all have a lot of support clubs?” I asked Luke, stifling a yawn.
“A few. This is a love-hate world we live in babe. We take care of the ones who love us. We watch out for them and they watch out for us. We take care of one another. It’s a brotherhood. As for the ones who hate us, well, if they have a good reason to, then we try to come to an understanding, but some just hate us because of the power we have.”
“And just how much power do you have?” I asked him curiously. I mean, really. What could they do? Move mountains or some shit? “Enough,” he said smirking. “You sleepy?” I let out another ridiculously long yawn and nodded my head. I had gone from being poisoned to bed rest to a bitch with a gun who had warned off a bunch of bikers. I was tired.
“I bet you think that I sleep more than anyone you have ever met,” I said trying to smile my adorably cute sleepy smile, although I was pretty sure that I looked like an idiot.
He smirked, “Nah, I’m just boring.”
“You are a lot of things, Mr. Carmical, but boring is not one of them,” I said curling up on the seat and resting my head on the window. Luke grabbed my feet and pulled them into his lap, forcing my head to lie down on the passenger seat. He took off my shoes and with one hand on the wheel, began massaging my feet through my socks. “That feels good,” I mumbled.
He tuned the radio to a classic country station and turned up the volume. I fell asleep with the words from The Possums, “He Stopped Loving Her Today,” in my ears and the skilled hands of Luke on my body.
Chapter 22
In every romance movie that I have ever seen, the woman always wakes from a nap well rested and looking strikingly beautiful. Well, this was certainly not a movie. I woke up when Luke shut the truck door, only to open another one and grab my bags out of the back seat to haul them in. I saw that he had my luggage from The Abbey and I was glad that he thought of everything. I sat up and a puddle of drool had formed on my forearm.
Thank God, Luke had walked inside and I had a minute to get myself together. I wiped my mouth on my shirt, trying to twist the wet spot on my sleeve so that it wasn’t noticeable. Flipping down the mirror, I groaned as I saw the lines in my face that had formed from my wrinkled shirt. Man, I look like shit. I scrambled from the truck and made my way inside.
“Ooh baby, you look like shit,” Tiny said meeting me at the door. He pulled me into his arms and I went willingly. Something about him made me feel nurtured. “I’m proud of you,” he said leaning down and resting his head on top of mine. I nodded into his chest and he let me go, turning me toward the door and ushering me in. “Luke! I found this stray wandering around your garage.” He yelled to Luke who was somewhere in the house.
“What?” Luke asked rounding the corner. His face was scrunched up in confusion. Tiny pointed at me and Luke softened. “That’s no stray. She belongs here,” he said coming to me and planting a kiss on my forehead.
“We’ll be in the clubhouse, if you need us,” Tiny said and headed out.
“M
y baby has had a rough day. What do you need? I am at your beck and call,” Luke said holding my face in his hands.
“You have been at my beck and call since we met,” I said my voice still thick with sleep. I had only prayed for one damsel in distress moment. God was an over-achiever.
“I like taking care of you. It makes me happy, happy, happy.”
I smiled. Luke watched way too much T.V.
“How long do you want me to stay?” I asked looking up into his beautiful, smiling eyes.
“Forever,” he answered shrugging as if it were obvious.
“I mean, I have to go home and get some things if I’m going to be here a while.” He smiled.
“I’ll take you home tomorrow. Right now, there is someone who is dying to see you.”
He let go of me and opened the kitchen door. Neo came charging at me, sliding on the slick wooden floors. “Neo!” I said dropping to my knees so I could take him in my arms. His tail wagged and he licked me, squirming in my arms then tearing through the house showing his excitement. He rounded the kitchen and came back through the opposite side that connected from the living room and barreled into me once again. Neo had learned his way around here. The thought made me smile.
I rubbed his ears and head, then his stomach, as he flipped onto his back in front of me. I talked to him in that weird, high pitched voice people used when talking to a small child. Soon he became bored, and I was relieved. I didn’t have the strength to play too much. Luke helped me off the floor then grabbed my hand and led me through the house to his bedroom.
“Bed? Bath? Shower? Couch? What do you want, baby?”
At first, I thought he was talking about where I wanted him to make love to me, but as he saw the glint in my eye; his demeanor changed.
“Oh no, I mean, do you want to go to bed or take a shower or just lay on the couch?” I liked my idea better. It was sweet of him to let me know that he was willing to wait while I recovered. I would probably have to beg for it, but right now, even though I trembled at the thought of him touching me; I really needed a shower.
“Shower,” I said moving towards the bathroom. I looked in the large mirror that covered the wall behind the sink and sighed. How did my body change so much in just three days? It was only Saturday, yet it looked like I had been shut up in a dark hole for months. I was pale, thin and looked nothing like I did the last time I stood in front of his mirror. Had that been almost a week ago?
“Don’t, baby. You look fine,” Luke said coming up behind me and lifting my arms to remove my shirt. He carefully undressed me as I watched, unmoving, in the mirror. Every time an article of clothing left my body, he kissed where it had been. It was so intimate, but not in a sexual way. It was reassuring. I had never lacked confidence, yet when I was with him, I felt like I may not be enough. Maybe it was because I had finally found someone who I cared for and I cared about what they thought.
Once I was completely naked, Luke turned the shower on and walked up behind me placing his arms around my waist and resting his head on my shoulder; meeting my eyes in the mirror.
“I love you,” Luke said, never taking his eyes from mine.
“I love you, too,” I said, turning my face so I could kiss his cheek.
“How about I make us a picnic and we watch a movie on the couch?” he asked smiling. I knew that I would probably only make it through the previews, but just the thought of cuddling with him made the idea perfect.
“That would be great.”
He straightened, kissing me on my head, and then left the bathroom. I rummaged through my bags, finding my toiletries, and stepped into the steaming shower.
Maybe I should have stayed another night in the hospital. I was so damn tired. This shit refused to go away. I felt like every ounce of energy I had was depleted. I must have used it on our near death experience. At least it went to good use and wasn’t wasted on something like a shower. With a little effort and a lot of time, I emerged from the shower shaved and clean for what felt like the first time in eternity. I decided to pamper myself a little, even though I didn’t feel like it. I knew that I needed it after spending a few days in the hospital. I put an exfoliating mask on my face, lotioned my body and dried and fixed my hair back to its former glory. I found a pair of ridiculously short pajama shorts and a matching tank top. Maybe Luke wouldn’t have any visitors inside tonight.
When I walked into the living room, the scent of popcorn filled the air and I noticed movies scattered all over the couch. Luke was absent from the living room, but I found him digging through the cabinets when I came into the kitchen.
Luke was shirtless and wore only a pair of sexy pajama pants that had my mouth watering. The muscles in his back flexed as he reached into the top cabinet trying to find something that must have been shoved to the back.
“You need a chair or something?” I asked mesmerized by the way his body looked doing something as simple as grabbing something out of the cabinet. I tried to focus on anything but him. My panties were already wet at the thought of my nails running down his back as he drove into me.
“Nah, I got it. You have to hide shit around here or everyone…” He trailed off when he closed the cabinet door and his eyes found my body. They started at my face that was framed by my shiny brown hair, then to my hard nipples that poked out of the thin material of my top, onto my short shorts and down my smooth legs to my bare feet.
“Damn, baby. You trying to kill me?” he asked, finding my face with his eyes once again.
I bit my lip and shook my head, praying it would be enough to convince him that I wasn’t that sick. I could tell he was struggling. He didn’t want to be too forward or make me feel like all he wanted was sex, but I could tell by the burning look in his eyes that he wanted me just as much as I wanted him.
I walked to him and wrapped my arms around his neck. The stretching movement caused my shorts to rise and made the cheeks of my barely covered ass tingle from the air in the room. Luke placed his hands on my waist, a safe area, and shook his head at me. “This is not what I had in mind, baby. I just want to take care of you,” Luke said in a low voice.
“Then take care of me. Please, baby. I need this. I need you,” I begged, looking up at him desperately. He groaned in defeat as his lips found mine. I wasted no time invading his mouth with my tongue. I had missed this. Damn, he tasted good. Luke reached around me and slid his hands under my shorts. He groaned when he found the bare flesh hanging out of the bottom of my panties and squeezed tighter, lifting me and wrapping my legs around him.
My hands continued to roam his face and shoulders while my tongue caressed his as he carried me into the bedroom and gently laid me down and climbed on top of me.
“Make love to me, Luke,” I breathed, tilting my head back to let him kiss my throat and neck. He raised my shirt and found my hard nipples and took them into his mouth in turn. I moaned loudly as he gently sucked each one, while kneading his hands into my thighs and waist, then up my stomach and finally into my hair.
“You drive me crazy,” he said taking my mouth over with his. I lifted myself up off the bed, trying to find something of his I could grind into. I needed that connection or I would explode. His hand found the elastic band on my shorts and was instantly inside, rubbing me softly through my panties.
“Fuck, you are so wet.” He sat up on his knees in between my legs and looked down on me. My stomach arched off the bed with my deep breathing. I was completely breathless and it had absolutely nothing to do with what happened to me three days ago, but had everything to do with the man looking down at me. Everything about Luke turned me on; the tattoos that ran down his perfectly sculpted arms, the abs that were so cut you could count each once, the strong chest that rose and fell with every breath he took. But these were nothing compared to the eyes that were looking so deep into mine, I felt like he could read my mind. I could see all the way to his soul through his eyes. I could measure the depth of his love for me; endless as the ocean.
Luke seemed to remember what he was doing and slid my shorts down my legs taking my panties with them. I was left in nothing but my tank top, lying on the bed beneath him. He leaned down over me, pressing his length against my opening. My breath caught in my throat in anticipation of what was to come.
“I would move heaven and earth for you, Dallas. I will spend the rest of my days making you happy. I have loved before, but never like this.”
He rested his weight on his arms and leaned down so that his forehead was touching mine and we were nose to nose. I closed my eyes and inhaled the scent of him.
“I need you, Dallas,” he whispered to me. My heart clenched at the desperation in his tone.
“Please,” I begged, although I had no idea what I was begging for- for him to be inside me, for him to keep wooing me with his words, for him to never leave? He kissed me as he slowly inched inside my tight walls. I felt myself expand to accommodate him and once again, I felt whole.
He moved inside of me slowly, taking care not to hurt me or make me uncomfortable. This is what I loved about this man. He was always so thoughtful. I knew that he cherished me just by the way that he touched me.
Soon, he was buried deep inside me and my body rocked against his. The passion and love shared between us was like nothing that I had ever witnessed. I would be for this man whatever he needed and him for me. My nails dug into the skin of his back and his answering growl only made me dig deeper. He pumped into me over and over, bringing me to an orgasm that had my whole body convulsing. I moaned loudly into his mouth and when he felt me open completely; he drove harder, saying my name as he collapsed on top of me.
A Ride or Die Kind of Love Page 95