by Lilly Atlas
During church on Thursday, some of the single guys, Rusty included, had pleaded with him to ban ol’ ladies from the party. That earned Copper some seriously pissed off glares from the men who were shackled. Back in the day, it wasn’t uncommon for the club to have a party the ol’ ladies weren’t invited to. But back then, more of the men were unshackled. A lot had changed since Rusty’d last been around, namely the number of men in monogamous relationships.
In the end, he’d done the only fair thing and put it to a vote. But he’d be lying if he said he was relieved the result swung in favor of the ol’ ladies being present. He wanted, needed to spend the time with Shell. He hadn’t made any official claim on Shell, so even if the club had voted against ol’ ladies attendance, Shell would still be invited, but he knew her, and she’d never show up without her girl posse.
Rusty sat at the bar, drink in one hand, a Honey’s ass in the other, and his face planted in the tits of yet another Honey who stood between his legs. He certainly wasn’t looking to be entertained by Copper right then. That meant Copper was free to corner Shell and put an end to her evasive behaviors.
She stood with the girls, beer in hand, laughing at something Stephanie said. As usual, she was boner-inspiring in tight black pants, knee-high black boots, and a skimpy red top that hugged her every curve and made his mouth water for her tits.
“Hey, gorgeous,” he whispered in her ear as he came up behind her.
With a gasp, she started then spun around so fast, she needed to plant her hands on his chest to keep from falling.
“You trying to get close to me, babe?” he asked as her face turned an adorable shade of pink.
She cast a glance at the girls who were all gaping at him as though he had spiders crawling out of his head. “What?” he asked. While he waited for an answer, he turned Shell and snuggled her back against his stomach. She stiffened at first then melted into him. One of his large hands rested on her low belly. The strip of skin just beneath the hem of her shirt was too tempting to resist, and he strummed his fingers along her skin, eliciting a gentle shiver from her.
“You…well, you…” Stephanie pointed to him then shrugged. “I got nothin’.”
Izzy, never afraid of speaking her mind, piped up. “We’ve never seen you like this. You’re usually the gruff, slightly grumpy—no offense—MC president. Tonight, your all…cute and shit.”
Copper let out a rough chuckle while Shell giggled. Hell, if Izzy’s teasing made her laugh, he’d take the ribbing all day long. “Cute and shit, huh? Rusty accused me of growing a pussy.”
At the mention of his brother, Izzy and Toni shared a look Copper couldn’t decipher, but it certainly wasn’t favorable. He made a mental note to ask Shell what the deal was later. Those girls were as tight as he and his brother. She’d know what was up.
“Gonna steal her for a bit,” he said trying to keep a straight face. Shell would be frowning for sure. She wasn’t much on being told what to do, especially in front of her girls. Well too fucking bad. He’d allowed her to put him off for three days.
That shit ended now.
“You bet,” Stephanie said. The smile on her face was so big it almost looked fake. Jesus, was his love life really that fascinating? “Take her for as long as you want. You can even keep her if you’d like.”
“Stephanie,” Shell said in a harsh whisper.
“What?” The innocent look wasn’t fooling anyone. That girl spent too much damn time with Maverick.
“Come on,” he said, dropping an arm across Shell’s shoulders. She shot him a scowl, but it only made him chuckle. Probably wouldn’t do to tell her she was damn adorable when pissed.
Copper led her to a square table along the right wall of the clubhouse. Basically, it was his table. Anyone who’d been to the clubhouse knew to keep their asses out of his spot unless invited. It was also the table he’d sat at with Shell during his birthday party last week, or so he was told. Those memories never fully resurfaced. He sank onto the bench seat along the wall then pulled a slightly resistant Shell onto his lap.
“What are you doing, Copper?” She wiggled, trying to scoot off him, but it only served to grow him from half chub to full hard-on.
“Relax, babe,” he said, settling her against him.
They had a tiny bit of privacy. At least there weren’t’ bodies jammed in around his table like they were on the dance floor.
“But everyone will see us. Even the Honeys. What if…”
Copper let out a loud laugh. “What if what? You think I give a shit what the Honeys think?”
Her head slowly moved from side to side, body still rigid in his hold. “Well no, but you’re the president. You get first pick and all.”
Seriously? Was she crazy? Maybe she was fishing? Probably not. Shell wasn’t one to play games for compliments. “Babe, I have no interest in any of the Honeys. Haven’t for years. You think I’d rather have one of them on my lap?”
“Well,” she began.
“I wouldn’t,” he said against her ear. “The woman on my lap is loyal, hard-working, sweet, gorgeous as fuck, and an amazing mother. She loves my club almost as much as I do and understands this world far better than any of those skanks ever could. Plus, I’ve never felt anything as good as her pussy wringing my cock dry. So, no, babe, I don’t give a fuck what the Honeys or anyone else thinks. You’re right where I want you.”
“Oh,” she squeaked, making him chuckle.
“The guys told me I sat here for a while with you on my birthday. Said we were all cozy. That I couldn’t keep my hands off you. You were on my lap, I was nuzzling your neck.” As he spoke, he brushed his nose against the slope of her neck then followed it up with a nip.
The tiny moan from Shell was music to his ears. Victory. As was the way she tilted her head and allowed him greater access. Her small fingers curled around the forearm banded across her hips. Touch was the perfect weapon to knock down her walls. She might be able to turn him away when he spoke to her, resisting when his hands were on her was another story.
“You told me nothing happened that night. Said we just chatted and you gave me a birthday hug. You keeping things from me, Shell?” He caught her earlobe between his teeth and tugged before sucking it into his mouth.
Shell’s blunt fingernails dug into his skin. “N-nothing did happen. We just talked.”
“Sounds like I couldn’t keep my hands off you.” He slipped a hand under her shirt, resting his palm on the soft, warm expanse of her belly. It’d be so easy to wander down just a few inches. Dive his fingers into her panties and find out if she was as slick as he was hard. But they were far from alone. Half of these men might get off on, or at least not give a shit about getting down and dirty in public, but Copper would be damned if even one of these jokers got so much as a glimpse of Shell drowning in ecstasy.
No, he was a possessive motherfucker, and Shell’s pleasure was for him and him alone. “Did you like it. My hands all over you? You get wet for me that night?”
“Yes.” Her eyes were closed, head resting on his shoulder.
“You go home and touch that pretty pussy thinking of me?” The dirtier his words got, the shallower her pants grew.
“Y-yes.”
Copper lifted her hand and kissed the tips of her fingers. “You shove a few of these fingers in that wet pussy imagining they were mine? Or did you use a vibrator, wishing it was just a little thicker so it’d be more like my cock?”
She whimpered. “Copper…” Tension was building. He could feel her need growing. Soon she’d be desperate for more than one hand on her stomach and his other holding hers. But he’d make her wait. If he could make it when his cock was like a pissed off bull ready to charge, she could hold out as well.
“Tell me.”
“I did…b-both.”
He groaned at the mental image of her fingering herself then fucking her own pussy with a buzzing vibrator.
“You need to do something, Copper. Touch me. I can’t
stand it.”
“This isn’t the time or the place,” he rasped. “And I’m not going to fuck you again until we set shit straight between us and there’s no way I won’t be fucking you tonight. So we’re talking.”
An adorable feminine growl left her. “Now?”
“Now. Turn around so I can see those baby blues.”
After a second’s hesitation, Shell wiggled around until she straddled his lap. He rested his hands on her ass and gave her his full attention. The rest of the crowd disappeared. The guys knew to give him and his woman space, even in the midst of a party. No one would interrupt them unless there was an emergency.
“What did you want to talk about?”
Like she didn’t know. That was all right. They could play it her way. He wasn’t going to beat around any fucking bushes so she’d know exactly what he had on his mind in about two point two seconds. “Want to know why you’ve been avoiding me since we fucked each other’s brains out.”
“What are—” Her eyes widened. Had she not realized he was on to her?
“Don’t play dumb, babe. Not with me. I can read you like a book. You made up bullshit excuses not to see me the last two nights. I wanna know what gives.”
She turned away for a moment, gazing at a few of his younger guys talking to a cluster of women he’d never seen. Tourists probably. Not uncommonly, groups of women visiting the Smokies for the weekend partied at the clubhouse. They’d be away on a girls’ trip and looking to get a little wild. His brothers made sure they fulfilled that wish and more.
“I’m not sure what you want from me,” she said still focused on the room. “You went from never touching me, not even a hug, to…Wednesday. It’s a lot to take in.”
Fair enough. He sighed then took her chin between his thumb and forefinger. With a gentle nudge, she was no more than a breath away. He kissed her. Soft at first, but their out-of-control chemistry didn’t allow for softness, and the kiss soon grew wild and hungry. When he pulled back, Shell’s eyes were glassy and her breaths stunted.
“I’ve wanted to do that since you were eighteen fucking years old. You wanna know how much time I spend around you hard and aching? Not sure I could even count as high as the number of times I’ve whacked off imagining you on your knees before me. Or dreaming of the taste of your pussy. Or the feel of you squeezing me as you came. Fucking years, Shell. Even when you lived in New York, I wasn’t safe. One of the guys would tell me they spoke to you and bam I’d be fucking hard for days. Yeah, I never touched you, babe, but it wasn’t because I didn’t fucking want to.”
Owl-eyed, Shell blinked. “So…what? Why did you stay away?”
“Stayed away because you’re sixteen fucking years younger, baby. Stayed away because your pops made me fucking promise you wouldn’t become an ol’ lady. Stayed away because the shit I’ve done could catch up to me at any time. I’m the king of this castle, Shell. I’m the one any number of enemies would come for.”
Gorgeous blue pools of emotion held his attention. Shell might be confused but those eyes didn’t lie. She felt something for him, and it ran deep in her veins.
“And now?” she whispered.
With a chuckle, he slid his hand up her back until her curls were fisted in his hand. He held her head immobile then whispered against her lips. “I’m only a man, baby. You walked in my room, stripped off your clothes and taunted me with the sexiest body I’ve ever seen. You broke my resolve, and now you have to live with the consequences. And that’s me, taking you, every chance I get.”
Worry wormed its way into her gaze. There were still secrets buried in the ocean blue depths. Something causing her to hold back. As much as demanding answers and expecting his mandate followed was his style, it wouldn’t work with his stubborn Shell. She’d close down. Waiting it out was the only option. Showing her she could trust in him, trust in what he offered her enough to one day open up.
Hopefully, before it destroyed whatever they were building. Because now that he’d had a taste of her, he wasn’t sure he could survive without more.
“So you want a relationship with me?” Uncertainty tinged the words.
Moment of truth. Did he? Part of him was fully on board with that idea, but another part still screamed it was a mistake. The years between them. The club’s enemies. So many reasons to walk away. But goddammit, he couldn’t make his feet move.
“I want you, Shell. You and that beautiful daughter of yours. There’s only one thing missing from my kingdom. One thing I need to make it complete.”
“What?”
“A queen.”
Happiness should have been radiating from her. In his mind, she’d thrown herself in his arms, and they’d attacked each other with the force of their need. In reality, she gazed at him with the kind of sadness that fed off a person’s soul. Despair that ate away at a person until nothing remained but a rotting carcass. Whatever had a hold on Shell caused her severe anguish.
There it was, an itch at the back of his neck telling him to pull the plug. To be smart and think with his head instead of his dick.
Or fuck, his heart.
But all he wanted was to fix whatever had her eyes dimming. No matter what or how long it took. He’d fucking fix it.
“I’m not sure I can be that for you. Not sure I can give you what you want. There are things…” She curled her lips in and shook her head. Not able to give him the words yet.
“Shh.” He cradled her face between his palms. “Just give me you for tonight. Then tomorrow, when you wake up, give me you again, for one more day. Then, the next day, we’ll do it again. One day at a time until you realize you own me, and I will do anything to keep you safe, even battle your own secrets.”
The blue of her eyes darkened as the tip of her pink tongue peeked out and swiped across her bottom lip. She pressed a hand to his chest, right over his hammering heart.
He had to taste her. Had to have her flavor burst through his system. Leaning in, he licked right under the angle of her jaw. There was a spot on her neck he’d discovered on Wednesday, right at the base where it gently dropped off to shoulder that turned her to putty in his hands. He kissed, then sucked on that spot. Instantly, her body went lax in his arms, and a mix between a hum and a moan crossed her glossy lips.
“Copper,” she said, breathy and wanton. “I’d give you pretty much anything with you doing that to me.”
He gave her the most wicked grin he could manage. “Fuckin’ know it, gorgeous. Think I’m not above playing dirty? I’ll do damn near anything to get between those silky thighs again. Take me home with you tonight.” He inhaled as he ran his nose along her neck. Goddamn, the woman smelled heavenly. Something fruity tonight. Peach, maybe? Whatever it was, it only ramped up his desire to take a big juicy bite.
She groaned and tilted her head to the side, giving him better access. “Yes.”
“What time do you have to pick up Beth?” He caught a tendon between his teeth making Shell cry out. She slapped a palm over her mouth.
Copper chuckled. “What time?”
“Uh, my mom is keeping her for the night. I’m picking her up after my diner shift tomorrow.” She blinked as though trying to focus her thoughts.
Damn, for a second, he forgot she worked Sunday mornings. It’d be nice to spend half the day lounging around in bed. In time, he’d work toward convincing her to cut back her hours. Fuck, she wouldn’t need to work at all, but that wasn’t his Shell. His woman was independent, hardworking, and driven. “How’d you get her to agree to keep her so you could come here?”
There was no love lost between Shell’s mom and the club. After her husband died, she cut all ties with the MC and tried to get Shell to do the same. Most of the time, she refused to help Shell with Beth if Shell was doing anything Handlers related.
Shell gave him a mischievous grin. “She doesn’t know I’m here. She’d wanted Beth for the night, and we’d scheduled this weeks ago. Well before the party was planned.”
“S
o, you’re all mine for the night? And I can make you scream as loud as possible since there won’t be a four-year-old in the next room?”
“Scream, huh? That’s a pretty tall order. Sure you’re up for the task, old man?”
He shifted his hips giving her a hard demonstration of just how much he needed her. “Yeah, babe, I’m up for it.”
“Well then, what are we waiting for?”
He patted her ass. “Give me thirty minutes. Then we’ll head out. Gotta speak to a few of the guys first.”
Her eyes narrowed. “What? Thirty minutes? But…you’re…” She sputtered and waved toward his crotch. “And now you’ve got me all hot and bothered.” Her voice lowered to a notch above a whisper.
Copper threw back his head and laughed. “Anticipation, baby.” After scooting Shell off his lap, he kissed her, then headed off to find Zach.
When he was about ten feet away, he turned to see Shell watching him, a hungry and mildly pissed off look on her face.
Damn, Zach had better talk fucking fast.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
WELL, WHAT THE hell am I supposed to do now?
Shell took in the atmosphere of the clubhouse. Tonight’s party was electric. Bodies—had to be close to two hundred—packed the open space in front of the bar. Some danced, some drank, and quite a few were breaking in their nightly hook-up. She shifted as uncomfortable dampness between her legs made its presence known. Damn Copper for getting her all worked up. Now she was stuck in what could amount to a low budget porn movie with soaked panties and no outlet for her tension. At least not for another thirty minutes.
With a sigh, she wormed her way through the writhing couples with the bar as an end goal. Might as well drink the next half hour away.
“What can I get ya, darlin’?” one of the new prospects asked. Thunder was his name, and since he was brand-spankin’ new, he got stuck with bartending the shittiest shifts. Explained why the poor guy was slinging drinks during the wildest party in ages.