"Is this what you really want?" he asks. His eyes are fixed on mine. His jaw is tight as if he's still holding back.
"Yes," I whimper.
I'm laid out on the bed, and he crawls up my body until his thighs are between mine one knee is pressing into my core. Starbursts of pain-laced tingles fan out and grow until I know I will combust.
I undulate my hips, pressing myself harder into his knee, forcing the tingles deeper into my body. Michael answers by cupping my face between his large hands. His eyes spark something dark before his mouth forms a grin.
I want him to take me fast and hard. I want to end the ache, but he's determined to move slowly. He rolls the fabric of my shirt up with his palm until my bra is exposed, then he lifts the lacey cup and drops his mouth over my already stiff nipple, and his beard scraps the flesh near my neck.
I arch my back, pressing myself into his scorching mouth. My nipples are swollen, and when he takes the second in his hand and squeezes, the thread that connects their sensitive flesh to the bud of my clit pulls tight, and I squeeze my thighs around Michael's knee.
It's all he needs to know I'm ready. Hell, I've been prepared since I spotted him at the back table in the bar. I've wanted to know what his fingers would feel like on my flesh. I tried to wrap my hands around the thickest part of his upper arms. I wanted to trace each of his several tattoos with my tongue, committing each to memory.
I'm brought back to him when he lifts off me to pull down my jeans and panties before he undoes his belt and pants. He slides them down his legs and lowers his boxers until his cock bounds free and points right at me.
I'm trying to lick him, but before I can, he wets two fingers with his mouth and rubs them over my throbbing clit before he presses his thick head into my entrance.
Slow. I'm not sure if I say the word allowed, or only whisper it in my head, but Micheal obeys. He anchors himself with a hand on either side of me and his arms straining while he hovers. Inch by inch, he glides deeper, giving me time to stretch and take him in until there is no more room, and his tip hits the spot that makes me moan his name.
I'm moving with him, pushing against his thrusts repeatedly until I press my head into the bed. My eyes roll back, and I come so hard my stomach tightens, and my walls grip onto his in a spasm that has me clawing at his back and screaming his name.
Micheal speeds up. He thrusts into me three more, hard, excruciating times before I'm filled with warmth, and he loses his grip on reality and falls beside me.
His face is strained, and his eyes are closed when I glance at him. We're both covered in sweat and panting for air.
I'm almost afraid I've made a mistake until he rolls to his side and pulls me into his chest. He kisses the top of my head and lowers his chin, so it rests on my crown.
I'm so satiated I can't move. Can't even think of getting up or kicking Micheal out. I know this was probably a one time deal, and by morning we'll be right back to being strangers, but for the next, however long we have, I want to lay with him and remember what it's like to be appreciated.
Tomorrow, I face reality. A new job in a new town, newly single. For tonight, I just want to keep pretending.
Gunner
I wait until she's asleep before I pull my arm out from under her head and replace it with a pillow.
She's cute when she sleeps. Her cheeks have dimples, and her lashes are long enough to leave shadows under her eyes. I rub the back of my hand down the side of her face and tuck one loose curl behind her ear.
Alexandra stirs, but only enough to turn onto her stomach and drift back off. That's my cue. I grab my stuff and head out the door.
The air is crisp on my ride back to the club. I could go home instead, but I don't feel like being alone.
Bear's at the bar when I walk in. He's been camped there most nights lately. The growing tensions between our allies, the Dark Angels, and our enemy the Devils have most of us losing sleep, but being the prez, Bear's taking things to heart. Even talking him into a night of drinks outside the club took concerted effort.
I slap him on the shoulder before I take the stool next to his. The bar is never closed to the members, and I easily reach behind the counter and grab a mug before filling it from the tap.
"You got missing real fast tonight," he says over his shoulder before he jabs me with it.
"That wasn't my plan."
Bear glances at me from the side "You've earned a little r and r, Gunner. Don't be too hard on yourself."
"True," I nod and take a sip.
Since Everly's mother, I haven't been serious with anyone, which was over twenty years ago. Hell. I've had my share of sweetbutts and one-nighters, but over the last few years, even that's gotten old.
Now that the old guard is almost all spoken for with ol' ladies by their sides, I'm the odd man out. But I like it that way.
"It was just a thing. Poor girl just needed some reassurance."
"Hawk needed to blow off some steam, so it sounds like you both got something out of your system tonight."
I laugh and finish my beer. I slap Bear on the back after I stand.
"Oh." He says to my back. "I almost forgot. Everly's in your room. Something about wanting to make sure she was here in time to meet the new PT. She's worried we'll scare her off, I think."
"Great," I mumble. "Thanks for the warning."
I head for the stairs, waving to the last of the members in the bar. Upstairs, I open my door quietly, hoping to find Everly asleep. Sure enough, she is sprawled out in the center of my bed with one arm draped over her baby bump.
I lean down and kiss her cheek. Becoming a father was the best thing that ever happened to me, and I'm sure becoming a Papa to whatever sex is growing inside her will be a close second.
I know she's worried about her friend coming all the way from California to work with the club. She's talked of nothing else for weeks, and she's been hunting for an apartment for the new PT and her boyfriend to rent to the point I've never seen Everly so excited and exhausted.
And I've promised to be on my very best behavior, even though I've only ever had Everly work on my shoulders. The rest of the guys are on orders to be nice or face Bear.
I take the blanket from the foot of the bed and park my ass in my recliner, but as soon as I close my eyes, I can't stop seeing Alexandra in my arms. Alexandra underneath me. Alexandra screaming my name.
It's safe to say I'll be dreaming of Alexandra as soon as I knock out. I just hope I don't talk in my sleep, or I'll have hell to pay with Everly in the morning.
Chapter 3
Lexa
Nervous is an understatement.
Everly told me to tell the man at the guardhouse who I was and who I was meeting, but she didn't mention they'd be wearing leathers and patches and tattoos over every part of exposed flesh.
My Uber driver would only go so far as the gate with the large guardhouse and cement wall. I walked the rest of the way up the driveway leading to a two-story building resembling an old hotel.
Another guard stood at the entrance. This one at least smiled at me as he opened the door and pointed to a sunken room off to the left of what must have been the old hotel lobby.
In the center of the room sits a half-moon bar with stools occupied by men in more leather and denim and patches. There are also tables dotting the floor with men in leather and a few women.
All eyes move to me as soon as the heel of my sneaker squeaks along the tile floor.
"Lexa." I can't find her, but I'd know Everly's voice anywhere. We've talked so much over the phone lately and roomed together in college for a semester, I could pick Everly's voice out of a lineup.
She's coming toward me, and she's almost waddling.
"I wanted to meet you outside, but I'm too slow."
"Oh," I pull her into a hug. Mostly because I'm happy to see a friendly face, but also to block the half dozen sets of eyes staring at me. "You can't blame that poor baby. You were always late in school too."
She laughs and pulls away before taking me by the hand. "Come on. We can chat over breakfast. I'm starving."
Everly leads me to a table and pulls me into a seat. "Have you eaten yet? My dad makes the best pancakes and scrambled eggs. You're welcome to eat breakfast here on the days you work, or swing by on the days you don't."
My stomach grumbles at the smell coming from a kitchen behind the bar. I missed dinner last night, and after my run-in with Micheal, I'm sure I burned off anything I still had in the tank.
"Did you leave Luke back at the hotel? He's always welcome here too. The guys will be nice to him for your sake." She grins.
"Donovan and I aren't exactly a thing anymore."
As soon as the words are out of my mouth, she frowns. "Oh, no. What happened?"
I glance around the bar. "This happened. Luke decided to wait until the last minute to tell me he wasn't moving, and he didn't want a long-distance thing."
"That rat."
"He's a rat, alright." I smile. "But at least he told me before we made this move together. Now I only need an apartment for one."
"Well. We'll get you settled with a place in no time. And today, I'll show you around the club and the room in the back we have set up for sessions. Most of these guys are private. They only want in and out. It makes it easy."
"So, I should expect very little conversation?"
"If any at all. A few are real talkers." She looks up over my shoulder and watches a man pass our table. "Not that one, though. His name is Bear. He's the club president, and these days he's either with his girl, Bree, or he's in church with the members."
"Noted." I'm going to need a notebook to keep up with all of these guys and their quirks. Everly warned me the club isn't a friendly place, and I'd be an outsider to most of my clients here. She also knows I did most of my clinical hours in a minimum-security jail, so I know my away around tough guys.
"This afternoon, I'll take you to the clinic in town." She glances over my shoulder again, and her eyes go wide. "But first, breakfast."
Two steaming plate land in front of us on the table, and Everly wastes no time digging her fork into her eggs and taking a bite. I can't help but smile at her.
"Gezz, girl. You're going to choke." I hear from my side. It's hard to look away from Everly, but once I do, I'm the one who's going to choke.
Standing over me with a dishtowel slung over one shoulder and a white apron tied around his waist is Michael. I can tell he hasn't gotten a good look at me yet by the relaxed way he's telling Everly to slow down.
Everly takes a swallow of water before she points to me with her fork. "Lexa, I'd like you to meet my dad, Gunner. Dad, this is Lexa, the new PT."
I count the second it takes for him to move from watching his daughter to seeing me. It takes him less than one to realize who I am, but he keeps his expression guarded with only a hint of surprise in his eyes before he has them under control again.
"Lexa," he says. "Nice to have you here. Everly told me you'd be coming with your boyfriend."
He's digging, and I don't blame him. I glance at Everly to make sure she isn't picking up on the sudden tension before I answer. "He decided he'd rather stay in California. And be single."
I know what Michael, or Gunner, is getting at, and I want to let him off the hook as quickly as I can.
"While I'm out on leave, Gunner will be your right-hand man around here. He's already agreed to keep an eye out and see to it you have everything you need."
I nod while Everly talks. I know my cheeks have to be the color of ripe cherries, and they are so hot they feel like they are going to burn off my face.
"Is everything okay, Lexa?" Everly is tilting her head and staring at me. "You're flushed."
"I'm just," I stall and glance at Gunner. He won't even look at me. Great. An enemy already. "It's probably just nerves and excitement. I'll be fine once we get moving."
"You're right," she says.
"Let me know if you need anything else," Gunner says. He turns and disappears without saying goodbye, and I feel his absence down deep in my core.
This can't be happening. How? One night in the middle of nowhere in a bar. How did I end up sleeping with the father of one of my best friends? Me. The virgin until I was twenty-one, and after that, there's only been two. Luke, and now Gunner.
"Are you sure you feel okay?"
I bearly even hear Everly over the warning bells going off in my head.
"Maybe just a little jet lag. Is there a bathroom I can freshen up in?"
Everly studies me again. "Sure. Down the hall and to the left. If you reach the kitchen door, you've gone too far. Want me to come with you?"
"No," I say with too much force. "No. I mean, I'll be fine, and your food will get cold. I'm really not very hungry."
I'm relieved Everly doesn't join me. I take the hall she pointed to and pass the bathroom door headed to the kitchen. We have to get this figured out before we cause Everly any stress.
I'm almost to the door when Gunner steps into the hall and grabs me by the arm. He pulls me into the kitchen doorway and shuts it. Before I can ask what he's doing, he has me pinned to the door with his arms caging me in and his face hovering right over mine.
"Alexandra?" he says, his voice is so deep and rich his reverberates through my body.
"Micheal," I answer back, my gaze glued to his.
"What are you doing here?"
"I think that's pretty obvious," I question if he really missed the whole conversation outside until he narrows in on me. "And for the record, Everly told me your name was Gunner, and you were a big, burly, biker. I never could have guessed that about you last night. Well, except for the tattoos." I run my finger down the sparrow tattooed on his arm until he catches me by the wrist and holds it between us.
"I didn't see you as the very attached and shy physical therapist coming in from California on a plane this morning."
"I caught an earlier flight once I got dumped, and I may have been a little shy around Everly at school. She's a lot to keep up with. And I never led you on."
"No," he growls. "You didn't lead anyone on." He releases me and runs a hand over his face and down his beard while stretching out a fuck as far as the word will stretch. It's sexy as hell the noise he makes when groaning under his breath, and I rub my legs together to fight off the tingles exploding between them.
"So, what do we do now?" I ask.
Gunner is pacing the kitchen and still growling. "Well, we can't keep doing what we did. That's for sure."
I step into his path, and he stops to look at me. "We didn't know. We didn't do anything wrong."
He stares. It almost hurts how hard he looks down at me. "You're at least what, twenty years younger than me? We knew. We just didn't listen."
"And I don't regret it." The words tumble out of my mouth. He's making such a big deal about how wrong we were, I feel like I have to stand up for myself. "Now that we know, sure. It can't happen again. But, I don't regret what we did, and I won't start to now just because you're now Everly's father."
Gunner finally looks away, and it's like the sun going behind a cloud on a blistering summer day.
"Everly is my world. Nothing," he glances at me with a sharpness that cuts deep into my heart. "And I mean nothing will ever come between the two of us."
With that, he walks off, leaving me in the kitchen alone to tend to my new wounds.
Sure, I knew what I was getting myself into last night. It was a one and done hook-up, but I never expected to fall harder for the man protecting his daughter at any cost then I did for the guy who made me feel safe last night.
I take a few breaths to calm my breathing before I make my way out to Everly again.
What happened between us last night was a mistake, and if Gunner wants to forget it ever happened, well two can play that game.
Gunner
"What the hell, Gunner?"
I blow out a breath and glance over to the mug I'm filling f
rom the tap. Beer is cascading over the rim and falling into pools on the bar.
"Shit," I mutter under my breath before reaching for the bar towel on my shoulder.
"Where the hell are you today?" Doc takes the mug after I wipe it down, but he's staring me down too hard to ignore.
"Everly's new girl came in this morning and--"
"And Fuck me, she's gonna cause trouble around here." Doc cuts me off.
A growl builds in the back of my throat. Doc is taken. I know sure as I know my own name, he doesn't have eyes for anyone but Merideth. But there are plenty of other members who will take advantage.
Doc waves his hand in front of my face. "I'm worried about you, man. You are a million miles away from here today."
Damn, do I wish that were true? "I'm fine." And not really in the mood to talk, so I start emptying the racks of clean mugs onto the shelves to avoid Doc's next questions.
I'm just getting my rhythm when Everly's voice floats in from the hallway leading from the back rooms.
"How about some waters for two-thirsty workers," she says before the bar stools creak underneath them.
Fuck. I can't look Lexa in the eyes after what I said to her not an hour ago.
"She already has you working hard?" Doc says before Everly laughs.
"Just showing her the ropes and the room Bear set up for our sessions. We've met a few members, and I've taught Lexa the gut, instep, nose block you guys taught me for when members get too handsy."
Doc is laughing, and I'm overcome with the sudden impulse to punch him right off his seat.
"Listen to Everly," he says. "She's been keeping the membership in line since she was old enough to speak. Especially Gunner."
"I don't think Lexa will have much trouble. She used to work in a high-security prison. She could probably teach me a thing or two about keeping you guys in line."
I stop what I'm doing to fill two glasses with ice and water, and I glare down Doc hard enough that he shuts up. Lexa is blushing, so I force myself not to glance in her direction.
Gunner: Tempest Elite MC Book #3 Page 2