Steel: Bracken Ridge Rebels MC (Book 1)

by Mackenzy Fox

  I jump out and come around the back to her door as she climbs out. She doesn’t get far as I push her back into the closed door and claim her mouth.

  “What was that for?” she says when I eventually pull back, she’s breathless.

  “Do I need a reason?”

  She puts her arms around my neck and smiles. “Never.”

  I yank her hand and pull her to the back of my cage, I move to the cab and pop the back ledge down and unhook a double swag. I roll it out in the back as I turn to her; she’s assessing me with a smug smile.

  Without words, I lift her up by the hips and plop her on the edge, her legs swing off the side. We have a perfect view from our position, and a comfy place to sit and lie when we make out while the sun sets.

  It’s beautiful up here with nothing but the desert for company. Next to riding, this is my other guilty pleasure, the thing that I enjoy the most. Despite appearances, I feel more like myself when I’m out in nature, at one with the landscape and the fresh air. There’s nothing like feeling the wind in your hair, on your face, and the smell of the earth up in the ranges. I feel totally free here, like all my stresses or worries can just melt away.

  Up here, you can do anything, be anything, but most importantly, you don’t have to do anything at all, just live in the moment, and I’ve been flying by the seat of my pants for a while now. I push the back window down so the dogs can pop their heads out if they want, which Rocky does, I give him a big scruff around his face, Lola is already asleep, she’s seen too many sunsets to care.

  I jump up next to Sienna and the whole car rocks, she giggles. I set the bag I’m clutching, with the burritos I bought on the way, next to us.

  She’s looking straight ahead and I see Bracken Ridge Gorge has turned on another skyline of absolute magic. It’s stunning tonight.

  The sky before us is turning from the brightest of orange as the sun slowly disappears to a smoky peach streak across the horizon that will almost always turn into the most delicious shade of pink. Colors no painting could ever capture.

  I glance at Sienna. She’s prettier than any sunset and she seems pleased by my impulsive surprise.

  “Like it, princess?”

  She nods. “Yes,” she’s still looking in awe at the show nature has put on, it’s a beauty, “it’s the most beautiful thing I ever saw.”

  I rest my forehead on the side of her head. “No, you’re the most beautiful thing I ever saw.”

  I feel her smile; she moves her hand to my leg. “Flattery will get you everywhere.”

  “I certainly hope so.”

  I lift off and swing an arm around her as we sit in companionable silence for a while, just watching, listening, the crickets are out in full force and it feels for the first time in a long time like I’ve not got a care in the world.

  “Thank you,” she whispers, it’s barely audible.

  I move my head sideways. “What for?” I lift my chin.

  I brush a hand over her cheek.

  “For this, it’s better than anything I could ever imagine.”

  I pull down and lean back on one elbow and look up at her. “You sure about that, angel?” I can’t keep the insinuation out of my voice.

  She laughs. “Well, almost everything.”

  I know right then and there that I’m in love with her. It fucking hits me in the face like a runaway freight train. I don’t even push the feelings down, I’m done with that. I’m Jayson Fucking Steelman and I take what I want.

  They say that’s how it happens, you just know, and I always thought the guys that said that were pussies. Now, as the realization hits me, I am completely at her mercy. It’s a dangerous place to be—vulnerable. Somewhere deep inside me, I know it’s right though, we fit.

  “Come here and give me some sugar,” I say to distract myself.

  She leans down and presses her lips to mine. She has the lips of an angel.

  I hold her closer, not letting her escape, my tongue is in her mouth and I hear her breath hitch as we kiss like teenagers. I pull her down so she’s on top of me; my hands are greedily pulling the back of her shirt out of her jeans and there is no mistaking my hard-on pressed into her stomach.

  “Steel, we’re gonna miss the sunset.” She bites her lip which just about sends me over the edge.

  “You feel that, babe?” I say, ignoring her, bucking my hips up into hers.

  “I always feel it.”

  I kiss her nose then look up at her, the smile reflecting back at me is better than any sunset, greater than any masterpiece. She’s the vision.

  “Then I’d better make it my best, hadn’t I, baby?”

  We lay in bed as I lie and stare at the ceiling, it’s late. We made out in the back of my car for a while, kissing, touching, and rubbing and came back here to finish things off, several times. She likes my place and the bed is bigger here, plus she can also cook which is great because I can’t. The sheet rides low as I take in her body; she sleeps naked now because I don’t allow clothes in my bed. I trace her bare skin with my finger, her skin is so soft. She stirs under my movement and blinks a couple of times then smiles, snuggling up closer to me. She takes my breath away.

  “Never knew you’d be a snuggler when I first laid eyes on you,” she says, stifling a yawn.

  “Never knew you’d be a giant pain in my ass either,” I chuckle and kiss her on top of her head as she rests it on my chest.

  “You don’t seem to be complaining.”

  “That’s because I’m usually busy shuttin’ your mouth up.”

  “Did anyone ever tell you how romantic you are?”

  I kiss her hair. “Go to sleep.”

  She rubs her hand down to my abdomen, she seems to like that area, she spent a lot of time in that vicinity tonight in the back of my pick-up. I stir at the memory.

  “You’re the one who woke me up,” she reminds me.

  I grunt into her hair. “Not my fault you’re a light sleeper.”

  “I sleep just fine; you take up all the bed.”

  “You just can’t keep your hands off me, it’s alright, babe, you’re only human.”

  We both look down as my appendage moves on its own accord against her leg and she giggles.

  I roll over her and shut her up with my mouth, then settle between her thighs.

  “How do you expect me to keep my hands off you when you have a body like that?”

  I kiss her and she still tries to giggle while I’m doing it. “No, seriously, have you always been such a smooth operator? Do you say this to all the girls?”

  “Shut up.”

  “That’s a no then.”

  I buck her with my hips. “You remember what happens to lippy girls, they get punished.”

  She pushes against me with her hips. “I think I like your form of punishment.”

  I snuggle into her neck then come back to her face.

  “What?” she says, pushing my hair back out of my face. “Something on your mind?”

  My heart races a little. “I want you to come on the run with me on the weekend,” I blurt out.

  “I came last weekend, didn’t I?”

  That she did and it was a surprise to everyone. Not claiming her yet, but for damn sure I’m thinkin’ about it, she just has to get used to the idea of being on the back of my sled and being my woman. Things have changed rapidly in a short space of time.

  I love her like this, underneath me, looking up with those big blue eyes. She’s no idea how sexy she is.

  “You think about what I said at the bonfire, ‘bout staying?”

  She’s got nowhere to go right now pinned beneath me, so she has to give me some sort of answer.

  “Steel,” she whispers. “You said you’d give me time.” She runs her hands down my back and I move my face to her neck and kiss it lightly.

  “You know I’m not a very patient man.”

  I know she just rolled her eyes at me. “This is hard for me.”

  “That’s because you d
on’t let me in,” I say, kissing her pulse point as her hands still. She knows what I’m referring to; every time I bring it up, she shuts me down. I have to know. I need to know, and I can’t exactly tell her I know about the battery and assault charges. Why won’t she tell me?

  “It’s not something that I really like bringing up, it’s in the past.”

  I murmur into her neck. “But it’s stopping you from goin’ forwards, babe, you know it is.”

  She bites her bottom lip and then lightly begins to stroke my back again.

  “I don’t want us to have any secrets, so if I tell you something secret of mine, will you tell me about what happened to you?”

  All she’s given me is that small piece of information the day we were out at Max’s garage, but it’s not enough to really know what went down.

  She looks like she’s considering it. “What’s your secret?” she asks quietly.

  I brush one knuckle over her cheekbone.

  “I did bad things when I was deployed in the Middle East,” I say, watching her eyes go wide. “Really bad, awful things, probably not going to heaven kind of things.”

  She blinks a few times, her voice low. “What kind of things do you mean?”

  “I hurt people.”

  “Did you kill them?”

  “Yes,” I say. I never talk about my deployment; some things are just too raw.

  “By accident?”

  I shake my head. “No, but if it makes it any easier to digest, they were the bad guys, they deserved it and I don’t want to get into details about all of that because it’ll just dampen the mood, but shit like that sticks with you forever. I came back after I was discharged but I split with my ex shortly after.”

  “Why?”

  “She was cheating on me, the only reason we got married was because I knocked her up, she lost the baby but I doubt there even was one, she just wanted to trap me and have the life of a military wife until it didn’t suit her anymore.”

  Her lips part but she doesn’t say anything.

  “But her leaving was the best thing that could have happened to me, I started prospecting, went back to my trade, worked all the shitty shifts I could to save up coin for my first ride, then I did it up real nice, that’s when I got the love of restoration in my veins, makin’ something new again after it’s been beaten up.”

  “Do you miss it, the military?” she asks.

  “No, though I miss some of my brothers, we had some tough times, things that scar you for life, I told you about the PTSD and I got night tremors for a long time, it’s not a life I want to go back to.”

  “Did your ex scare you off relationships for good?”

  I smirk. “Yeah, until you came along.”

  She kisses me but it’s gentle, not demanding like it was earlier.

  “What about you?” I say, lifting up again.

  She sighs. “Can’t we just get down and dirty?”

  There she goes, deflecting again. “I think my dick can wait a little bit longer, princess.”

  She sighs. Her eyes look away and cloud over. “I met him at work.” She stills her hands again. “He was really nice at first, good-looking, well to do, very smooth, he had a way with women… knew how to talk.”

  Already, I want to punch him in the face.

  “We dated for a year and then I moved in with him, things were good for a while, then over the course of time, he began to change. He’d work longer hours, drink a lot, I think he started using cocaine, when he was like that, he’d be insulting and say some horrible things but it was just verbal stuff, I could never do anything right in his eyes.”

  Her body shakes underneath me. She’s afraid of him, it’s like all the warmth has left her body.

  “Did he hurt you physically, princess?” Of course, I know the answer to that.

  She swallows hard. “He grabbed me once, really hard, it left a mark, and then another time when I answered him back in an argument, he slapped me, then he’d do it a few times as if enjoying the sound it made, it got worse after he’d been on the booze. The next day, he’d be so sorry, he’d cry afterwards. I told myself it was a slap, not a punch, he didn’t beat me, so I was okay, he was sorry, he didn’t mean it…”

  She pushes up off the bed so she’s sitting up slightly, resting back on her hands; I lift off a little but remain over her. She’s shaking again; I pull the sheet up over us.

  “You’re afraid of him,” I say, my fury is palpable. I really wanna find this son-of-a-bitch and cut his nuts off.

  “I was for a long time, it was like living with a monster, never knowing who you’d get, walking on eggshells every day and an outsider looking in would think we were the perfect couple, he drove all my friends away so I had nobody to turn to, nobody to talk to, just him. On the last day, I saw something just snapped in him, that night, I’d had enough of his lying and his violent mood swings, that’s when he hit me, punched me this time, he…” she trails off and I rub my hands down her arms.

  “It’s alright, princess, nobody’s ever going to hurt you again.”

  She nods, wiping a tear before it falls. “He went crazy, throwing things, breaking shit, it was terrifying, the neighbors heard and called the cops. I was lucky, I got out. I have a restraining order against him and he got charged for battery and assault, spent six months in jail, lost his job, his friends, respect from his peers, it ruined his life.”

  I feel so much anger I have to hold back in fear that she’ll think it’s directed at her. I want to kill that crazy bastard. “Have you heard from him since? Has he tried to contact you?”

  She looks down and averts my eyes. Shit, she has then.

  “He’s found my number a couple of times, I don’t know how but he always seems to find me, and when he does, I get a mouthful of abuse about what he’s going to do to me when he finds me, I think he’s all talk, just trying to scare me.”

  I realize I have to get Linc onto this crazy son-of-a-bitch and fast. I have to track him down and shut him down. I wish she’d told me about this sooner.

  “So, you’re living in fear?”

  “Not since I came here, he doesn’t know anything about Max because I never spoke about him, he was dead to me even back then.”

  I look at her sad face and I want to take all of that away from her so she doesn’t feel it anymore.

  “Sienna, it doesn’t have to be that way, it wouldn’t be that way with me, I would never hurt you, you know that, don’t you?” I think back to some of the situations she’s seen me in and they were pretty violent.

  She nods. “Yes, I know, Steel, you’re a good man, you protect the women in your life, I know that.”

  She clutches onto my arms for dear life and I want to take it all away, I really do.

  “Let me make you forget,” I whisper. I kiss her stomach as her eyes drop to mine.

  “Then do it, make me forget, please,” she says as she slides back down underneath me, her hands in my hair as her lips find mine and I settle back into her hips.

  And I do make her forget, all of it, until the light of morning comes.

  20

  Sienna

  Cocktail Tuesday is somebody’s genius invention. I’m meeting the girls tonight for happy hour, it’s the most fun thing I’ve done with a group of girls in as long as I can remember. It’s been almost a month now and things have been going from strength to strength, there’s even been a couple of people looking through Max’s house.

  Jett, from another club, has been helping show him and Colt the basics for the new shop.

  Rocky’s settled in and that makes me happy, I can’t say for sure but I’m certain that he’s gonna be a foster fail. The little guy has really come out of his shell and shown his funny little personality.

  It really is so normal. We work, I’ll make dinner, we hang out watching a movie or drive out to the Canyon, and the sex has not slowed down—oh no, it hasn’t. The man is a God. I’ve never been with anyone so good in the sack, he can be s
o tender when he wants to be and so rough and ready too, depending on the mood.

  I step into Zee Bar which is the classiest bar in Bracken Ridge. Lily waves me over to her table and I see Lucy, Deanna, Kirsty, Angel, Summer, and a couple of other girls I don’t know.

  “Sienna!” Lily hugs me. “You seriously have to get some of these cocktails in you.”

  “Hi! I reply. “Hey, girls.”

  “Hi,” they say in unison.

  “Sienna, this is my friend, Katy, and this is Jessica from the salon,” Lily says as she sits back down. They seem nice, we say hi and I take a seat in between her and Angel.

  “What are we celebrating?” I ask as Lily hands me a blue cocktail and clinks my glass.

  “Tuesday,” Lily shrugs.

  Ting, ting, ting. “Well, actually, speaking of celebrations,” Lucy begins, dinging the side of her glass with a fork, “I do have some news, now that everyone’s here.”

  That statement alone warms my insides, I’ve not had a group of friends like this in a very long time, it’s kind of comforting.

  “Ooh? Do tell,” Deanna says, rubbing her hands together, settling herself in for some juicy gossip.

  “Wait,” Kirsty says, holding her palm up, “this isn’t another one of those kinky sex stories again, is it? If so, please pass me a bucket now.”

  “Yeah,” Katy chimes in, “I so do not need another visual of Rubble in handcuffs.”

  Lucy rolls her eyes as everyone makes puking noises.

  “Shut up, the lot of you,” she chastises, “you’re ruining my moment here, ya’ll.”

  Angel snickers next to me. “Get on with it then, happy hour is one hour you know.”

  She smiles widely and then shouts out, “We’re having a baby!”

  Everyone gasps, which is swiftly followed by shrieking, gushing, and claps and then hugs all around the table. I feel joy flourish my chest that Lucy’s waited to include me in her happy news, that is so sweet of her. We’ve been getting along well and she stops by once or twice a week to see how I’m going with everything.

  “I’m so happy for you,” I say when I get in line to hug her, Lucy’s in her element; she’s beaming like the cat who got the cream, dabbing her eyes with a tissue. I know from what she’s shared with me that they’ve been trying for a while.