Ignite

by Bliss, Chelle

  Boyd Weaver is in for a world of hurt.

  * * *

  “Tam!” the guys yell when Tamara walks through the front door, carrying a giant white shopping bag.

  Eagle’s quick to take it from her hands before I have a chance to make it halfway across the room, leaving my mother with Morris.

  “Thanks, Eagle.”

  He nods to Tamara before making eye contact with me as he stalks back across the room to my mother.

  “Princess, I’ve never been so happy to see your face.” My hands find her ass, and I hold her tight.

  She throws her arms around me and smashes her lips to mine. “Sorry I wasn’t here earlier. My professor didn’t want to stop talking,” she murmurs against my mouth, smelling like sunshine and everything sweet.

  “I’m just glad you’re here now. Don’t apologize.”

  She tilts her head toward the bar, eyes narrowing. “What’s up with that?”

  I sigh and close my eyes. “Morris is cozying up to my mother, or maybe she’s cozying up to him. Whatever it is, I don’t like it.”

  Tam laughs and pats my chest. “It’s just Morris being Morris. I wouldn’t worry about anything. I mean, your mom isn’t really old lady material or a side piece of ass.”

  I grumble under my breath. “Did you think you’d still be here with me?”

  Tamara bites her lip. “Well, I always had a wild side, baby. Your mama wouldn’t know wild if it hit her in the face.”

  I grimace.

  “What?”

  “Her boyfriend was beating her.”

  Tamara rocks back, eyes as big as saucers. “He was what?”

  I nod. “It’s why she’s here. She took matters into her own hands, and the slimy bastard had the balls to call the cops on her.”

  She blinks. “What?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Wait. So, he hit her, but the cops want her?”

  I nod again. “He used to be a cop.”

  “That doesn’t make sense. Why would they want her?”

  “She had enough and made him pay. Now there’s a warrant out for her.”

  Her face twists. “Did you call James and Thomas?”

  “Didn’t even think about it yet.”

  “You call them. They’ll set that shit right.”

  “All right. I’ll do that tomorrow. Morris and I are going to take a little trip to visit her ex too.”

  Tamara takes a step back and crosses her arms over her chest, dropping one shoulder. “You’re going to do what?”

  “Princess, don’t get upset.”

  She raises an eyebrow. “You’re telling me you’re going to go give payback to this man. Payback which will be violent and could land your ass in jail, and you’re telling me not to get upset.” Tamara closes her eyes, pausing, drawing in a deep breath and holding up a finger. But when she opens her eyes again, there’s nothing but fire there. “This coming from a man who lost his shit when I went to visit a friend in prison. I thought we were a team. There are certain things we do or don’t do because of that team. I didn’t hear you asking me if you could go.”

  I grab her finger which is still between us and push her hand down, trying to grab a hold of her. “Baby. Come on.”

  “Don’t come on me.” She wiggles free of me.

  I laugh. “Don’t come on you,” I tease, loving how dirty it sounds and how I want nothing more than to come on her.

  Her mouth flattens, and her eyes turn into tiny slits. “I’m dead fucking serious, Mammoth.”

  “Okay. Okay.” I throw up my hands, surrendering to her. “He punched her in the face,” I tell her, explaining where I’m coming from.

  “What?” Her gaze moves to my mom and then back to me. “How can someone hurt Jessica? Can I come? Obviously, he needs a woman to teach him the lesson.”

  “Ma took a sledgehammer to him.”

  She rocks back again, dropping her arm from her hip. “No shit?”

  “Yep.”

  “Fuck. That’s some powerful shit.”

  “I know,” I agree, reaching for her and finally getting a grip on her shoulders. “So, can I go? Do I have your permission?” I don’t grit my teeth or flinch when I ask the question. Tamara needs to feel included in my decisions when the club isn’t involved. I’m no longer just a me, but part of a we.

  “You do. I’ll stay with your ma.”

  “You can’t stay here.”

  “Then neither can she,” she argues, throwing that back at me quickly. “We can either both stay here, or she can come to our place or stay with someone else in the family. Uncle James and Thomas know how to hide people until she’s clear from her trouble with the law.”

  “I don’t want to get you or your family involved.”

  “I am involved. You are my family too, and they’d say the same. If your mom is staying here, so am I.”

  I grunt. “You’re not staying here.”

  Tamara throws out her hands. “Look around, sparky. These are your friends. You know how they are. You really want to leave her here?” She shoots a look over my shoulder. “I mean, Morris is already looking pretty comfy with her.”

  I can’t stop the growl from escaping my throat. “Fine. Take her back, but make sure she isn’t staying at your place. The cops may look for her there.”

  “Someone in the family will take her. It’s what we do.”

  I pull her close, sick of having space between us after being apart for too many days. “I love you, princess.”

  She touches my face, stroking my beard with her thumb. “I love you too. Now—” she smiles “—I could use a drink.”

  “You just got here.”

  “Point?”

  I nod, because I have nothing.

  10

  Tamara

  Mammoth’s kiss is slow and deliberate as he hovers above me. “I can’t wait to have this every day,” he murmurs against my lips, the hair on his legs rubbing against my inner thighs.

  “We’re another day closer, right?” I stare up into his gray eyes and force a smile on my face.

  I know we’re lying to each other. He’ll never really be out. Not in the way we would hope or many would think. A brother is a brother for life. He knew that when he prospected. But he couldn’t see beyond where he was, and that was alone.

  The club rescued him during a time when he needed more. The military life had suited him, and once it was gone, he was lost. The Disciples have been good for him. They gave him purpose. They gave him family. They gave him a home. But now, there’s no divorce or moving away without staying under their thumb.

  “Sure, princess.” Mammoth gives me a soft smile, resting his arms near my head, palms flat on the bed. “Another day closer.”

  “What’s it going to be like?” I ask, pushing his hair back and holding it in my hands to see his face better. “Are you going to be on call?”

  Mammoth laughs and then sobers. “Not quite like that, but I have to be available. And if—” he pauses, lowering himself enough to place his forehead against mine “—they start a club over by us, I have to be a member at least, if not the head.”

  My body stiffens, and I chew the inside of my lip to stop myself from saying something totally assholey.

  “Don’t worry about any of that right now. It’s a long shot and just their way of letting me know the rules beforehand.”

  “Don’t worry about it?” The asshole in me slips, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. “Morris and Tiny have us by the short hairs, and I’m just supposed to not worry about it?”

  He moves his arms closer to my head before he holds my face in his palms. “Princess, I get where you’re coming from. I know you’re angry. But this is life. This is life with me. If you want out, now is the time to do it before I give everything up, sink a shit-ton of money into a business, and move across the state.”

  My stomach clenches. Is he saying what I think he’s saying? I blink and push against his chest, trying to sit upright. “You wa
nt to break up?” I whisper.

  He holds steady, keeping me under him, pushing me back down with his chest. “Did I say that?” he asks with his voice flat and low.

  “Well, no.” I sigh, relaxing back into the bed. “But it sure as hell sounded like that’s where you were heading.”

  “I can’t control what’s out of my hands. I’m in the club. You knew this when we met. Knew this when we fucked. Knew this when you said you loved me.”

  I close my eyes, tears forming behind my eyelids. “I know. I just wish…”

  “Fairy tales are for kids, Tam. We’re adults. We have to deal with our shit instead of throwing a hissy fit every time something doesn’t work out.”

  The sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach vanishes and is replaced by a deep, searing burn. “A hissy fit?” I narrow my eyes, pushing at his chest with more force until he finally backs away. “Is that what I’m having when I’m concerned about your safety and our future? Are you really saying this stupid shit to me?” I quickly crawl to the end of the bed, wanting to be standing for this.

  He shifts, turning to sit on the edge of the bed, facing me. “Listen,” he says, placing his hand on one leg, looking chill as fuck during a time when he shouldn’t be.

  I cross my arms over my chest, tilt my head, and ready myself. “I’m listening. This better be good.”

  “You can’t lose your shit over everything. You just can’t.”

  “I’m not losing my shit, and I can do whatever I want when it comes to us.”

  “Yes.” He nods, running his fingers through his beautiful brown hair. “This is about us.” He throws his arm out toward me. “Not you. Not me. Us. But there’s also the club. I’ve gone over this shit ad nauseum. I’m done with the conversation.”

  I step forward, turning my gaze down at him, seething. “You’re done?”

  “With the conversation,” he growls. “I love you. I want a future with you. I’ll put up with whatever club shit I need to in order for us to be happy and give you everything you want and need. I can’t separate myself entirely. It’s just the reality. You in, princess, or are you out?” His thumbs stroke the tender skin near my biceps, giving me goose bumps.

  “In,” I say without even thinking.

  I’ve been stupid for the man since the moment I laid eyes on him. If I were smart, I would’ve run as far away from the Disciples as I could. If I weren’t so hopelessly in love, I wouldn’t have seen him again after the lockdown. But I can’t close my heart to him. He’s the only man I’ve ever really loved.

  When I almost lost him to the shooting, I knew he was everything to me. I mean, I knew it before, but that moment, the hell he went through, solidified everything in my mind. There was no questioning if we were right for each other or if we should be together. I couldn’t imagine a life without Mammoth.

  “But…”

  “There’s always a but.” He grunts, hardening his jaw.

  I shrug, giving him a smile as I step closer to him. “But you need to be honest with me. I need to know things.”

  His gray eyes meet mine. “Like what things?”

  “Well,” I say, talking super sweet as I move his hand and climb into his lap, straddling his legs. “Everything. You know?”

  “I don’t know.” He snakes his arm around my back, placing his hand on my ass. “There are things I can never tell you.”

  My hands find his shoulders as I settle in. “Like what?”

  “Club things,” he says.

  “I know a lot more than you think,” I tell him.

  “You do?”

  I nod.

  “How?” He digs his fingers into my ass cheeks.

  My belly does a funny flip as I slide forward and my pussy presses against his cock. “I don’t know. I just do.”

  He raises an eyebrow. “You eavesdropping?”

  I shrug. “Maybe.”

  “You tossing my phone?”

  Damn. I don’t want to admit it, but I’ve done it a few times. I felt such guilt afterward too. I never like my privacy invaded, but here I am, doing it to him. It is only when he is cagey about things. Which, in all reality, is a lot.

  I mean, I get it. He has to be.

  There are things in his life that are meant to stay inside the club. Girlfriends and old ladies aren’t in the know, and I’ve tried to accept that fact and failed.

  “Possibly,” I whisper, holding back a laugh.

  He tips his head forward, nuzzling against my neck. As his lips skate across my skin, I bend my body back, using it as a means to change the subject.

  “Possibly?” he murmurs against my skin. “Will you have an orgasm again tonight? Possibly.”

  I bite my lip, laughing quietly. “You’re being rude again.”

  “You can’t toss my phone.” Mammoth’s mouth slides down my neck to my collarbone. “It’s a hard line.”

  “You guys shouldn’t be texting anyway. The government can read them too.”

  He pulls back and stares at me with nothing but fire in his eyes. “No more. You understand?”

  “Yeah. Yeah. I understand,” I tell him, but I’m at war with myself. I knew before that he wouldn’t be happy, but I did it anyway. There are times when I just can’t help or stop myself. “Just promise me you’ll get better at communication.”

  “I’m great at communicating,” he argues.

  I roll my eyes. “You are not. You’re great at communicating when we’re fuckin’ or you want to be fuckin’. But other times…”

  The roughness of his palm scrapes against my skin as he adjusts my position. “I will try harder.”

  “Good,” I tell him, smiling, trying to ignore the deep ache I feel between my legs again.

  “We gotta go out there.” He tips his head toward the door, and I sigh.

  “I don’t want to,” I argue.

  “Ma’s here,” he reminds me, and then he sighs. “Not exactly how I want to spend tonight, but it is what it is.”

  I unfold myself from his body and tiptoe across the room. “This was like old times.”

  Since Mammoth’s mom is going to be staying in his room for the night, we’ve been downgraded to Pike’s old room. It’s been empty for years, and Morris refuses to allow it to be filled by a new prospect. Now it’s a place for wayward travelers or visitors.

  “Old times?” he asks, watching me as I bend over and overtly show him my entire backside.

  “Fuckin’ in this old room.”

  “You mean good times,” he says, climbing to his feet.

  I’m unable to look away. His long, lean body covered in muscle shakes as he stretches. “The best,” I whisper in reply, but I’m not only talking about the memories of our time in this room.

  “Get that out of your head right now,” he tells me, reading my mind.

  “The night is young.” I waggle my eyebrows. “We just have to put your ma to bed.”

  “The night is too young for that. Now, we have to spend the next few hours keeping the guys away from her. They’re due back from a ride, and you know how they are about new women in the compound.”

  “They’re hound dogs, but as soon as they find out she’s your mom, they’ll back off.”

  He laughs. “Really? You don’t think a few would fuck her just to say they fucked my mother?”

  “Stop,” I tell him, covering my ears with my hands. “You’re being ridiculous and gross.”

  He blinks at me, serious as a heart attack. “Tell me they won’t.” He throws up his arms, letting out a loud, frustrated grunt. “Morris is already sniffing around. You saw it with your own eyes.”

  “Morris is just being nice.” I pull his old Mötley Crüe T-shirt over my head, which I stole from his closet the last time I stayed overnight. It’s mine now. He’s never getting the shirt back. It’s super soft and big.

  He shakes his head, eyeing the shirt, but doesn’t say anything before he grabs his jeans. “You’re too naïve.”

  “You think too much
with your prick.” I tick my chin toward his cock, which is waving around as he pulls up his jeans.

  “Just like every man out there.”

  He has a point. I won’t tell him he has that point, though, because I want to ease his tension, not feed into it. “They won’t touch her,” I promise him, although I can’t technically deliver on it. “Plus, do you think your ma would do the nasty with any of them?”

  Mammoth doesn’t answer as he sits down on the edge of the bed and yanks on his boots. “I’m done talking about this.”

  “Okay,” I mutter, laughing and getting a glare in return. “Seems to be the theme tonight.”

  We’re talking about Jessica. The woman wouldn’t know how to handle a biker in the sack if her life depended on it. Clearly, she’s had sex before. She did have Mammoth after all, but that doesn’t mean she’s ready to get down and dirty now.

  Mammoth stalks out of the room a moment later without another word. I toe on my sandals and run after him, plastering myself to his back as he walks into the main room of the compound. He stops as his boots hit the tile floor, and his gaze sweeps through the room, searching for her.

  “Motherfucker,” he whispers.

  I peer around him, following his eyes. “What?” I ask, seeing nothing but a sea of bodies and a lot of skin.

  “Look.” He ticks his head toward the bar. “I fuckin’ told you.”

  I grimace. “Well, at least they’re not bangin’.”

  Shit.

  His head snaps back and his eyes narrow. The gray is filled with so much fire, I can feel the burn. “At least they’re not bangin’?”

  I nod, smiling the most bullshit fake smile ever. “I’m not wrong.”

  “Christ,” he mutters under his breath, grabbing my hand. “Let’s go break that shit up.”

  “Oh, goodie,” I whisper sarcastically.

  This should be a fun time.

  Mammoth pulls me forward, and my feet follow, keeping up with his large strides. He’s determined. His eyes are laser focused on his mom and the way Morris is leaning over her at the bar, arm propped up, looking like he’s peeking down the cute scoop neck sundress I brought her.