Every black cloud has a silver lining, they say. Well, that’s true today. The delicious aromas had alerted me Cowboy was having a bad day, and I’m not surprised to find there’s a fucking three-course gourmet meal on offer.
“I wish there was something we could do for him,” I murmur into Swift’s ear.
She glances over to the counter where Cowboy’s plating up amazing looking and smelling food. “I don’t think there’s anything that will take his hurt away.”
As I tuck into my beef wellington, cooked to perfection, a mushroom duxelles sitting atop of a prime filet steak, encased in light and buttery puff pastry, I muse Cowboy should be running his own restaurant, not here, cooking for the likes of me.
“It hits Cowboy harder some days,” Swift confides. “I think hearing the Tucson members talking about their kids and old ladies brought home to him what he’s missing.”
Knowing Cowboy’s story, I wish there was some way we could bring him peace. Of course, it might just be that I’m in that sickening place where I want everyone to be as happy as me. So, I’ll never raise the champion’s cup, but that no longer matters to me. How can that compare to saving people’s lives and doing that with Swift beside me?
“Let’s go back to your house tonight.” I know I’m challenging her, that she’s wary of returning, even with me. We’d slept in her room at the clubhouse the last couple of nights, but her home is something she needs to face.
“Something may come up. I’d rather be here.” That she won’t meet my eyes shows she’s grasping for excuses.
“I’ll be with you.” I signal with my eyes my place is by her side, and I’ll never leave.
Thoughtfully, she puts food into her mouth, chews and swallows. After a moment, she turns to face me, and a hesitant word comes out of her mouth. “Okay.”
An hour or so later, stomachs filled and feeling completely replete, we ride side by side through the streets of the city, turning into the driveway to the single-storey house on the outskirts of town. I take a moment to breathe in the fresh air, then turn to the house as though I’ve not seen it before.
Of course I’ve been here, but I wasn’t in the state of mind at that point to take it in, more intent on searching for clues as to who had taken Swift and where she could be. I try to push that out of my mind now and instead concentrate on the house which I hope will become my permanent home too.
“You did well. It’s a great place,” I tell her.
She aims a remote and the double garage door starts to rise, then we turn our bikes and paddle walk them inside, drawing up alongside her jeep.
With my arm around her, we walk to the door that leads to the kitchen, and I can feel her shaking.
“Nothing’s going to happen, Swift,” I say firmly, taking off my cut and finding a hook to hang it on. Then I kick off my boots. There’s just something about this place that immediately relaxes me.
She’s heard my words but doesn’t acknowledge them.
I give her space to process her thoughts and look around. Swift’s room at the clubhouse is bare, utilitarian. Here, there are photos dotted around. I point to one. “Your folks?”
“Yeah. That’s my mum and dad. And my Uncle Bob. He was the one who encouraged me to follow my dreams.”
I take a closer look. Uncle Bob looks like a soldier himself, I notice. Her mom is petite and fair, and her dad is clearly where she got her looks from. She’s got the same shaped nose and dark colouring.
“I’ll need to go visit them soon. Would… would you come with me?”
I’d like nothing more than to meet her folks and be introduced to them as her man. “They going to be happy that you’re with someone like me?”
“Mum will love you.” She grins. “She’s got a thing for men with long hair.”
I lean into her. “She’s going to be disappointed. I’m already with the only woman who interests me.”
She chuckles and bats my arm. “Dad will be okay, and my uncle will question you about your intentions.”
“All evil,” I tell her. “Right now my intention is to get you into bed.”
She shudders, a perfectly normal reaction when she eyes the room where she’d been abducted from.
I turn her around to face me. “When you’ve got your ears, you can take on anything, Swift. When you haven’t,” I shrug, “you’ve got me. And in time, you’ll have Apollo. No one’s going to sneak up on you ever again.”
“Have I really got you, Road?”
“For as long as you’ll have me.”
“That woman’s still out there. That’s what worries me. That this isn’t over.”
I grasp her chin, forcing her to look at me. “You can take on anything, Swift. You’ve been knocked off balance, but Duty and Honor were here while we were out today and have already installed failsafe devices on your security systems. Between what they set up, with me and eventually Apollo, you’ll have nothing to worry about, whoever this woman is, and whether she’s got unfinished business with Pip.”
“I hate this. Hate feeling unbalanced.”
Placing my arm around her, I guide her into the room she’s trying to avoid entering. Holding her to my front, I let my hands find her breasts, small and perky, and one hundred percent right for me. As I dip my fingers into the neckline of her t-shirt and from there move them inside her bra and tease her nipples with my fingers, some of her tension begins to recede.
I nuzzle her neck, sucking that point that drives her wild, loving the moans that come from her mouth.
Putting my hands to the hem of her shirt, I soon have her top half naked for me.
“Too many clothes, Road. You’re wearing too many clothes.” Her voice is breathy.
I rectify that in moments, and while I do, she removes her jeans. Soon we’re falling naked onto her bed, and not long after, I have her screaming my name.
It’s only then I slide with ease into her wet warm depths.
Never in my life have I taken a woman bare, not until Swift. It’s a whole new, forgive the pun, ball game. Each time I take her like this, I have to fight to hold off until I know she’s coming with me.
When I do let go, I have nothing to compare with that moment of ecstasy I achieve with her. It’s not just a release, it’s an outpouring of emotion from her to me, which I reciprocate in spades.
She’s sleepy when I finally fold her into my arms, pulling her to me.
Then, my beautiful Swift looks up into my eyes. “I think I love you, Luc.”
“Babe, Karen. I love you, too. You stole my heart from the moment I saw you sitting in church.”
She sits up, pauses, then takes her hearing aids out. When she says goodnight, I know she can’t hear me repeat it, but I tell her anyway.
I’ve done my best to relax her, but it doesn’t work. She twists, turns, rolls this way and that. When she finally falls asleep, she drops into an uneasy dream.
I hate this. Hate that her security has been taken away and know I’ll do everything possible to make her feel safe again.
I come awake fast. Alarms are screaming and lights are flashing and the bed’s vibrating. I’m off the bed and in my jeans as fast as Swift. Guns appear in both our hands, and Swift has her hearing aids in. But we don’t speak, and still those alarms sound. It’s like waking to a nightmare.
Opening the door, I sidle around it, Swift right behind me. Together we search the house, checking windows and points of entry.
I waggle my hand, showing nothing here, seeing Swift doing the same.
The alarms don’t stop until Swift hits a panel by the side of the door.
“Clear,” I tell her, now I don’t need to shout as I look into the guest room.
“Clear here,” she says from the living area.
The backyard is floodlit, lights coming on with the alarms. Swift indicates the back door, I’m right by her side as she opens it…
“Guess you’re going to have to do something about your fencing before we get Apollo,” I te
ll her, as my adrenaline starts to fade.
“Will you just look at that? A fuckin’ coyote.”
We watch as the animal easily jumps the fence and disappears into the night.
As we stand in the doorway, I pull her close, feeling how hard she’s breathing, and know her heart’s beating fast like mine.
It’s then we hear motorbikes racing up the street.
“Your neighbours are going to love you,” I tell her, noting the time on my phone says four am.
“So are they.” She jerks her head toward the front of the house.
As I accompany her to the front door, I stop her forward progress to tell her, “Everything worked, babe.” As it would, even if her electricity was cut. Honor and Duty had modified her system so it switched to a battery-powered backup system now.
“False alarm,” Swift calls out after she opens the door. “There was a coyote in the yard.”
Snatcher and Thor look relieved, Bolt murmurs about being dragged out of bed by a fuckin’ wild dog. Honor and Duty give her a salute as they turn their bikes around and leave.
When the sound of the motorcycles fades into the night, I give a massive yawn.
“Let’s try to get some sleep.”
“No, I’m awake now. I’m going for a run. When I get back, we’ll both go to the club and hit the gym. You’ve got to work on that leg, Road.”
I cock my head toward her, my eyes signalling, Really?
The mention of the gym doesn’t bother me, I work out when I can. I think Swift will be even harder on me than Peg, she’s as invested as I am in my leg mending. But if I ever had pictured myself with an old lady, it wouldn’t have been one who thought a six-mile run at dawn was fun.
I suppose when I saw my brothers settling down, it was into the bliss of domestic harmony, and that’s what I didn’t see as being right for me. I never envisaged there could be a woman like Swift, and instead of her being my old lady, I’m her old man.
I belong to her. She doesn’t belong to me.
“See you later,” she calls out, with a wave of her hand.
As she sets off, the sound of her footsteps pounding the ground rapidly fading, I calculate I can get in another hour’s sleep, then cook her breakfast while she’s showering. And you know what? That makes me content and happy.
I’d set out with one simple task, to make a trip to Utah and check out the chapter. Instead, I feel like I tripped into an alternate universe, and one that’s perfect for me.
Coming Soon
Grumbler
I’ve given this club more years of my life than I care to remember, serving as sergeant-at-arms under three presidents now. My life is settled and just the way I like it. I’m too old to change now.
I’ve never had a woman to call my own, nor fathered kids, and never felt I missed out. My brothers sometimes joke my motorcycle is my old lady, and I can’t argue.
So when a photographer wants to feature my baby, I can’t resist showing her off. It should have been simple, instead it brought complications that I never dreamed off.
Mary
I’m a frazzled single mom of a seventeen-year-old girl. Her life seems to revolve around trying to challenge me. She’s not quite adult, but doesn’t see herself as a child, constantly pushing at boundaries.
I spend my time trying to keep one step ahead of her, but if I give an inch, she takes a mile. Her latest endeavour? To model for a perfect stranger. Oh, the battles we had when I said she wasn’t going without me as chaperone.
I was right, something was off about the situation, but what it was took a while to emerge. I can’t imagine how I’d have coped if it hadn’t been for Grumbler.
Other Works by Manda Mellett
Blood Brothers – A series about sexy dominant sheikhs and their bodyguards
Stolen Lives (#1) Nijad and Cara
Close Protection (#2) Jon and Mia
Second Chances (#3) Kadar and Zoe
Identity Crisis (#4) Sean and Vanessa
Dark Horses (#5) Jasim and Janna
Hard Choices (#6) Aiza
Satan’s Devils MC - Arizona Chapter
Turning Wheels (Blood Brothers #3.5, Satan’s Devils #1) Wraith and Sophie
Drummer’s Beat (#2) Drummer and Sam
Slick Running (#3) Slick and Ella
Targeting Dart (#4) Dart and Alex
Heart Broken (#5) Heart and Marc
Peg’s Stand (#6) Peg and Darcy
Rock Bottom (#7) Rock and Becca
Joker’s Fool (#8) Joker and Lady
Mouse Trapped (#9) Mouse and Mariana
Blade’s Edge (#10) Blade and Tash
Heart Mended: A Satan’s Devils MC Novella
Truck Stopped (#11) Truck & Allie
Satan's Devils MC Boxset 1 Books 1-5
Satan’s Devils MC Boxset 2 Books 6-8
Satan’s Devils MC Boxset 3 Books 9-11
Satan’s Devils MC - Colorado Chapter
Paladin’s Hell (#1) Paladin and Jayden
Demon’s Angel (#2) Demon and Violet
Devil’s Due (#3) Beef and Steph
Devil’s Dilemma (#4) Pyro and Mel
Ink’s Devil (#5) Ink and Beth
Devil’s Spawn (#6)
Satan’s Devils MC - Next Generation
Amy’s Santa (#1) Wizard and Amy
Hawk’s Cry (#2) Hawk and Olivia
Satan’s Devils MC - San Diego Chapter
Being Lost (#1)
Acknowledgments
Acknowledgements and Author’s Note
I’d referred to Road transferring out from the Tucson chapter of the Satan’s Devils a few books back, but never said where he’d gone to. For months I’ve known the answer but didn’t let on. I knew he’d gone to Utah, and that Utah was a very different club.
If you’ve read Devil’s Spawn and Being Lost, you’ll know I’ve been setting up the groundwork for this story, and I hope you’ve been wondering just who the mysterious Pip and Stormy were. Well, now you’ve got your answers.
The reactions of the beta readers and those who received advanced reader copies put a huge smile on my face as I realised I’d achieved what I’d set out to do, which was to bring surprises and twists and turns your way. Do authors like toying with readers’ minds? You bet we do. If you’ve had a few what the hell? moments while you’ve been reading Road Tripped, then I’ve done my job.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about a different club and have questions you want answered about some of the characters. Does Stormy ever return and take the punishment he’s deserved? What is there between Honor and Duty? Does Cowboy get his happy ending, and does Bolt succumb to the Tucson disease and end up with an old lady? Oh, there’s more than enough material for a few more books in this series, and I’ll gradually be bringing them your way.
What I enjoyed most about writing Road’s story was introducing the kickass character, Swift. I think we can all admire how she forces herself into the male-dominated world, and now, as enforcer, she’ll be taking no prisoners—or when she does, it will be hard for them to resist her methods of getting information. I can’t wait to see how she grows into her new role.
With the mention of Swift, I must throw out a huge thank you to the admirable Kelly. Kelly is deaf and advised me on Swift’s character and also beta read the book to make sure I portrayed her correctly. I’m immensely grateful to people who help me get the details correct, and I’m also pleased to have her join my beta reading team.
I hate to bring the real world into this note, but have to mention the obvious, Road Tripped was written during the pandemic. With all the distractions, getting words onto the page was sometimes like squeezing blood out of a stone. It wasn’t that I didn’t have the story in my head, it was getting it out that was difficult. Hence it was written in dribs and drabs and I had inconsistencies all over the place. I have to give a huge shout out to my amazing editor and beta team who helped me get everything straight.
All my beta readers are a
mazing, but Sheri and Danena deserve special mention. Without their talents at spotting where I’ve gone wrong, this book wouldn’t have come together. Disappearing bikes and cuts come to mind, so thank you both for helping me sort it all out. Thanks also go to Tami, Alex, Nicole, Terra, and Zoe. Your reactions showed me I’d got a storyline which works.
What can I say about my editor, Maggie Kern? I was so cruel to her, showing her the first few chapters then refusing to discuss the rest of the book until I’d finished it. She was left hanging wanting to know how it was going to work out. Her encouragement was invaluable, and when she finally read the book, she worked her editing magic brilliantly.
Thank you to Martin Williams for the proofreading. A great job, thank you.
When I looked for a cover, I had an image of Road in my head wearing a what the fuck expression. Golden Czermak of Furious Fotog had the perfect model in Tyler Bland. Thanks to you both.
Dar of Wicked Smart Designs again brought the cover to life. I think it’s perfect.
Finally, last as always, but definitely not least, thanks to all of you, my wonderful readers who’ve taken a chance on this book. If it wasn’t for your encouragement, I wouldn’t keep writing. I have recently received messages and emails telling me how much you like my books, and I love reading every one. A positive message inspires me to write more.
If you’ve enjoyed this book, please consider writing a review. Reviews are essential to us authors, and I appreciate and read them all.
This book may be done, but don’t worry. There’ll be another Satan’s Devil coming along very soon. This time we’re heading back to San Diego and to Grumbler.
Stay in Touch
Email: [email protected]
Road Tripped: Satan's Devils MC Utah #1 Page 40