by KB Winters
“I’ll put the word around town to keep an eye out for anyone who doesn’t belong. Coming from a native, they’ll understand.” Holden grabbed his keys from the hook and left.
“Me and Cruz can keep an eye on Peaches. She won’t question it,” Slayer said and I wondered just how close he and Peaches were. Was she just playing me so I’d help her?
“I wanna say yes,” Saint began, eyes focused intently on the ground. “But what if I can’t?”
“You can,” I assured him. The kid had a bad case of PTSD so I’d decided not to be a hardass, at least not too much of one. “Just keep your eyes peeled on the property for anyone who doesn’t belong, who looks like military or feds. Report what you see. Got it?”
“Yeah,” he nodded. “Thanks, Gunnar.”
“No problem. Think about what I said, guys.” They all nodded and less than a minute later the office was empty. I locked it up, walking back toward the big white main house with a grin.
Opey really was starting to feel like home. Maybe it was Martha’s home cooked meals six days a week or maybe it was the peace and beauty of the land, I didn’t know, but I felt more relaxed than I ever had in my life. Sometimes that peace made me resent Peaches for fucking it all up, but as much as I wanted to, I knew I couldn’t turn her away.
Wondering what she was up to and what crazy, barely there outfit she’d have on, I ran up the front steps and entered the house, finding it dark and empty, which was odd for this time of day. Martha had gone to do some shopping, leaving Maisie with her daughters, which meant Peaches was likely lounging around somewhere half naked.
I didn’t mean to eavesdrop but after pouring a tall glass of fresh lemonade, I went outside and sat down on the porch. Before long I heard a voice coming from inside that rooted me to the ground. “Where’s your mommy and daddy, Peaches?”
She sighed, a sad wistful sound. “My mom is dead, and I don’t remember her much because she was too sick to take care of me, and she never got around to telling me about my father. Where’s yours?”
I clenched my teeth, angry with her for bringing up memories that Maisie didn’t need to relive. I was tempted to go inside but my feet wouldn’t move. “My mommy is dead, too but I have Gunny.”
At least Maisie still loved being around me. Her sweet smile and those little girl kisses that always contained just a little too much slobber always made me feel ten feet tall. No one else in the fucking world had to like me as long as I had her love.
“You’re a very lucky girl,” Peaches told her seriously. “He’s grumpy, but he loves you very much.” I didn’t know why hearing her say that hit me the way it did, but dammit, it made me proud to know someone could see it. I stepped up to the window to peer into the sun room where they sat talking.
“I love Gunny too. He’s the bestest big brother ever.”
Peaches laughed at her exuberance, and I closed my eyes and let the sound wash over me. Warm me right along with the sun.
“For his sake, I hope you remember that when you’re a teenager and he chases away all the boys who want to date you.”
Maisie giggled. “I don’t like boys.”
“Smart chica. Boys are trouble, every last one of them.” Her words— though playful—held a note of truth, and I wondered what her story was. Not enough to ask but just a general kind of curiosity.
“Even Gunny?” I could always count on Maisie to look out for me.
“Especially your precious Gunny.”
I stepped back from the window with a smile that I was glad no one was around to witness. It was good to know Peaches was affected by me too. I turned away and ran right into Martha coming up the steps. “Hey, uh, Martha.”
“Eavesdropping ain’t nice, hon.”
“Yeah, I know.” There was no reason to deny what we both knew to be the truth.
“But you’re infatuated and you can’t help it, so eager to learn every little thing. I understand perfectly.” I wanted to deny it but Martha smacked her lips and patted my chest. “You could try being nice. Women like that in a man.” She walked into the house with her grocery bags and a knowing smile on her face, leaving me with nothing but thoughts of Peaches as I made my way up to the shower.
Alone.
***
The dream was damn near a reality, that was the only thing on my mind as I stood in front of the red and black barn and watched the guys raise the sign above the entrance. The twisted metal sign sat above the door, dramatic and welcoming. My fingertips tingled with excitement thinking about the club finally opening its doors.
Too excited to wait, I stepped inside and my shit-eating grin grew even wider. It looked like a club. A sensual place where adults could come to satisfy their sexual desires, explore different kinks in a safe, discreet environment. It was the perfect place to be on a Thursday night.
And it was all mine.
Inside Saint had his sleeves rolled up, helping screw leather cuffs to the walls because you never know when the mood to get bound and fucked would strike. The oversized bird cages sat on the floor, ready to be hoisted into the air the moment the doors opened. “Looking good, Saint!”
“Thanks Gun! We’re so fucking close, man.” It was the first real hint of excitement I’d seen from the kid since I arrived in Texas months ago.
Everything was coming together and the worry and stress I felt didn’t seem quite so un-fucking-manageable anymore. The big bar up front was in place with black studded leather, and I knew there was a smaller matching bar in back. The jacuzzi room was set up, complete with big leafy trees and the stripper poles had already been installed in two of the private rooms.
Inside the security office, Peaches sat with our new security guard, Ford. He was barely on the right side of legal. He was a big motherfucker, at least six foot five with shoulders as wide as a goddamn hummer. He was a bear of man from the neck down, and fresh from the Army, which meant he could handle himself if the customers got a little too excited. And because he was tough, he wouldn’t take any shit.
“How’s it going in here?”
Peaches looked over her shoulder and arched a brow. “Excellent. Ford is a quick study, and he’s already got the security system down.”
I looked to Ford for confirmation, and he gave a discreet nod. “Glad to hear it.”
“Can we talk a minute?” Peaches stood and shimmied her way out of the tiny room, careful that none of her touched me or Ford.
“Sure, what’s up?”
“Security for the club and the property is set up, streaming to an external hard drive that only you have access to. Ford knows how to update, search footage and maintain day to day security, but I told him he could call if he needed help.” She wrapped her arms around her body, completely unaware of how her t-shirt dress highlighted her curves. “I’ll be out of here in two days, max.”
“You can stay.” It was just three small words but they felt monumental. Important. Too important for a chick I barely knew and only fucked once, though I couldn’t deny how badly I wanted to fuck her again.
“We both know I can’t do that, Gunnar.” She gave the club one last sweeping look. “Your new life is shaping up just fine. Don’t worry about me.” She walked away, so confident and determined that she was leaving Hardtail Ranch.
If nothing else, I’d have fun watching her try.
Chapter Fourteen
Peaches
Packing up my shit took less than five minutes. Still I took my time, two days’ time to be exact, so I could spend more time with Maisie before taking off, and maybe so I could just soak up being around people who were somewhat familiar to me. Who knew when I’d be surrounded by so many people again, especially people I could trust?
Enough time had passed and no one had been to my old apartment in weeks and if they’d somehow managed to bypass the surveillance system, then they could be closing in on me while I stood in the middle of the guest room gathering dust.
Time to get a move on, so I grabbed my backpa
ck and laptop case first and set them beside the front door before making the trip back upstairs for two small boxes containing more digital equipment. All piled together by the door, it would seem that I’d acquired more things than I realized while I was here. Another sign it was time to move on.
With my keyring looped around my middle finger, I jogged down the stairs and made my way to the gravel square behind the bunkhouse where all the guys parked their rides.
Slayer’s Harley sat in one corner, daring the other cars to get close enough to breath its air. Cruz’s black pickup truck was shiny all over and parked at an angle to keep the paint job safe and clean. And then there was an unfamiliar black SUV parked exactly where my car should have been. “What the fuck?”
There was only one reasonable explanation and it had nothing to do with my car magically evaporating on its own. An angry thought that propelled me to retrace my steps and go in search of the overbearing jerk who ghosted my ride.
My boots were loud on the polished hard wood floors inside the main house but I didn’t care. If Martha wanted to lecture me about her floors, she could get in line. I had a bigger problem at the moment. As I pushed the door open, I was vaguely aware of two additional people in the room, but they weren’t my target. Yet. “You!” I pointed right at Gunnar and walked inside.
“Guys, this is Peaches, our resident expert in all things tech related.” He smiled that easygoing smile that didn’t come naturally to him, acting like this was just another regular day on the ranch.
“Yeah, hey, how ya doin’ and all that.” I pointed at Gunnar again, letting him know he wasn’t going to get away with this. “Where the hell is my car, Gunnar?”
“Getting repaired.” His big arms folded across his wide chest, and for just a second, my lady parts stood up and took notice of the tattoo on his right bicep, the dark hair dusting his forearms, and the mouthwatering bulge of his pecs.
“Bullshit. That car was in excellent condition when I arrived because I made sure of it. Return it. Now.”
“Can’t do that, Peaches. Vivi made me promise to keep you safe, and that means keeping you here.”
A tortured sound, half growl and half groan, escaped from my throat, making the men stare at me.
“News flash Gunnar, my freedom and safety are no one’s concern but mine. Not Vivi’s and definitely not yours, no matter how much you both think otherwise.”
His sigh revealed his frustration at my insistence, but I didn’t care, not while he was being so fucking high-handed. “Yeah, we’re the bad guys for wanting to keep you safe.”
“No one said you were good or bad, but this isn’t your choice. I’m leaving, the question is. . . will I fuck up your nice new security system before I do.” We stared at each other for a long time, the air tense and charged between us.
One of the new arrivals bolted out of his chair and stepped forward, breaking the eye contact between us. “Hey, I’m Mitch and this is my brother, Wheeler.”
I blinked a couple times to get rid of the anger, frustration and arousal coursing through my veins. “Nice to meet you Mitch. I’m Peaches.” His handshake was warm and friendly, soft hands that said he wasn’t a soldier or a tradesman. But Mitch and his brother looked a lot alike with dark hair and matching blue eyes.
His brother barely spared me a glance with his grunted greeting. “Yeah, hello.”
Just what this place needed, another grouchy asshole to make me glad I was getting the hell out of here. “Just tell me where my car is and you can get back to your life, Gunnar.” It didn’t make sense, why he was being so obstinate about this.
“If you leave the ranch, no one will have your six, Peaches.”
He was right about that, but it wasn’t his concern, and that was how I preferred it. “I have my back, like always.”
“Not good enough.”
“Well that’s too damn bad! Why do you even give a damn anyway? Last time I checked; you have a four-year-old kid you need to worry about. Not me.”
Anger transformed his features back to the surly bastard I’d met back in Mayhem. His blue eyes were so dark they might as well have been obsidian. His face contorted into a kind of anger that made me take a step back and had Mitch moving between us once again. Gunnar smacked the large wooden desk with his fists. “You’re not going anywhere. Don’t test me on this.”
“You can’t win this, Gunnar. Either I go in the safety of my vehicle or take my chances on foot.”
“Wanna bet?” There was a gleam in his eyes that I didn’t trust and took another step back.
“Hey, let’s calm down,” Mitch said and I knew instantly he was a doctor. A head doctor. “We need to be calm. All of us.”
“Stay out of it, Mitch.” Wheeler stood beside his brother, a hand of solidarity on his shoulder. “Gunnar won’t hurt her, this is a lover’s spat.”
“The hell it is,” Gunnar snarled.
“Doesn’t matter what it is because right now, it’s over.” I turned on my heels and stomped away like a child on the verge of a tantrum. I knew if I stayed I might do something crazy, like punch Gunnar’s rugged face or choke him out. Either one sounded pretty good at the moment.
Upstairs, I glanced around the room in search of any items I might have left behind. It wouldn’t do any good to leave any traces that I’d been here since it would only spell trouble for Gunnar and the people on the ranch. The door slammed behind me, startling the fuck out of me, and I turned, ready to fight. “Why the fuck are you so stubborn?”
“Because it pisses you off. Clearly.” The man had it in his head that everything I did was to piss him off or ruin his day, but really it was just a happy coincidence. “That’s the only reason I breathe, don’t you know?”
His growl was pure frustration but dammit if my nipples didn’t perk up at the sound. “You’re safe here.”
“Yeah and I appreciate that you give a damn about me, but I’m not your concern, Maisie is. The longer I stay here, the worse it will be if they find me.”
“Let me worry about that.”
I snorted at his typical male response. “Yeah and I’ll just sit around eating bon bons, not giving a thought to the men out there trying to find me. You don’t know where I’ve been, what I’ve seen. And I can’t play little lady and let you and a bunch of vets worry about me, Gunnar.” Although deep inside, I wished it was that easy.
“Worry your pretty little head all you want, but do it here at Hardtail Ranch. You went to Vivi first, so clearly you understand how serious this is.”
“I didn’t go to Vivi for protection. She’s the only family I’ve got, and as time goes by she’d wonder why she hadn’t heard from me. I went there to say goodbye, Gunnar.”
“Well there’s no need for that now, because you’re staying.” He was in my space, crowding me against the wall until he blocked out everything else.
“No, I’m not.” Our gazes collided for a few seconds, so much fire and anger and energy between us that it was hard to ignore. Even harder to ignore was our shallow breathing, the charged air between us. The anticipation.
Gunnar acted first, spearing his fingers through my curls so he could hold my head in the perfect position to accept his kiss, and what a fucking kiss it was. Hot and hard, the kind of kiss that let a woman know just how wanted she was. His kiss told me more than Gunnar would ever say or let me see, how much he craved me. How badly he desired me, and how frustrated he was that he couldn’t have me.
Being on the other side of his maleness was as intoxicating as I remembered and I submitted to his kisses, his frantic touches, like he was trying to memorize it all for later. Our kiss lasted so long I forgot where I was and what we were arguing about until finally, Gunnar pulled back with sleepy smiling blue eyes. “You feel as good as I remember,” he growled and pressed his lips to my neck, my collarbone, the spot on my neck that made my panties wet in mere seconds.
I tried to push out the sound of his voice and focus only on the way he made me feel, but
Gunnar liked to talk.
“So fucking soft,” he moaned after making quick work of my tank top and bra, groaning and making incoherent noises while his mouth did delicious things to my tits. He sucked and kissed, nibbled and licked until I writhed against him, fingers thrust through his short hair so I could hold him close, keep him right where I wanted him.
“Gunnar.” The moan slipped out but I felt too good to think about what it meant when he released me with a loud pop. His mouth was easily one of my favorite things about him, when it was silent, anyway.
“What is it?” His words came out on a pant, his dark eyes unable to look away from my tits, nipples hard and aching without his mouth on them. “Tell me what you want, Peaches.”
“What I want Gunnar, is for you to taste me.” His response was to lift me in the air like I weighed nothing, spin and drop me onto the freshly made bed. I watched him through heavy lidded eyes as desire licked up my flesh. In one short move my shorts were on the floor and my panties were in his hand and I watched, totally fucking turned on, as he inhaled the scent of me.
“Fuck, I can’t wait to taste you.” Then without hesitation, Gunnar sank down on his knees and pulled me to the edge of the bed, spreading my legs wide to accommodate his broad shoulders. He inhaled deeply and let out a purely masculine growl before his mouth was on me, licking slowly at first and then faster, with flicks of the tongue added that drove me out of my fucking mind.
My hips bucked and rolled against him but Gunnar held me down, tasting me like I was his favorite menu item at the best restaurant in town. His hands gripped my thighs so I couldn’t move while his mouth and tongue worked me like an expert. “Fuck, Gunnar!”
His deep chuckle rumbled against me, sending vibrations through my whole body until all I could do was pant and curse and seek out more and more pleasure. “Not yet,” he growled as his finger slipped inside me and hit that spot that temporarily stole all body functions.