by Chiah Wilder
“I don’t owe you anything. Actually, you have a lot of gall coming over here.”
Tank tightened his grip around the beer bottle. “Just tell me what the fuck I did, then I’m outta here.”
“So you can go see Quinn Fitzgerald?”
He jerked back. “Quinn? What the hell does she have to do with this?”
“Everything,” Lena said in a quiet voice.
“Like what? Quit with the bullshit games and just tell it like it is.”
“I know you’re seeing her, and who knows how many other women. I know we never talked about being exclusive, but you acted like I was the only one you were interested in. I guess that comes easy for a lot of men.”
“What the hell are you talking about? I’m not fucking Quinn, and I haven’t even seen her since the engagement party. She’s been blowing up my phone for the last week or so, but I haven’t answered her calls. I don’t know why you think I’m with her.”
Lena sat still, her gaze scanning his face.
“I know you don’t know me too well, but lying’s not my style. If I were with her, I wouldn’t have been with you ’cause cheating’s not my style, either.” He leaned over and slid his cell across the coffee table. “Check out the missed calls and unanswered texts.”
For a second, she hesitated, then she reached over and picked up the phone. Tank brought the beer bottle to his lips and took a deep gulp. He had no damn idea why Lena thought he was banging Quinn. There was no way in hell Quinn could ever hold a candle to Lena.
Without saying a word, she pushed the phone toward him, then pulled up her legs and tucked them underneath her.
“Satisfied?” he asked.
“So you’re not dating her?”
“No. I told you at the engagement party that you didn’t have to worry about her, and I’m saying it again. Quinn and I met back in high school, and she was different back then. Anyway, we went out for several months, then her dad put the kibosh on it, and that was that—no big deal.”
“So you haven’t dated her since?”
“Date? No. Fucked from time to time? Yeah, but that hasn’t happened in a long time.” He laughed. “Even though she likes bad boys, she likes her daddy’s money more. She’s engaged to some rich dude in L.A.”
Lena’s eyes widened. “She’s engaged?”
“Yeah—it’s fucked-up. They’ve got an open relationship, but their families don’t know it. Anyway, Quinn isn’t my type of woman. There’s no fuckin’ way I’d be in anything permanent with her.”
“What is your type of woman?”
“You,” he said, smiling over the rim of his bottle.
A reddish color stained her cheeks, and she turned her head away.
“As far as other women go, I haven’t hooked up with one since I met you at the party.”
She rolled her eyes. “And this comes from a man who carries condoms in his pockets.”
“Don’t be doin’ that shit. If I were hooking up with some chick, I’d tell you. I’m not. And I carry a condom ’cause I don’t trust a chick who tells me she’s on birth control. Women have a tendency to lie and manipulate a guy to get what they want.”
Lena listened to him with an incredulous stare.
“What? Do you think men are the only ones who lie?”
“Who hurt you?” she asked.
The question took him by surprise, and left a sour taste in his mouth.
“It’s just that it sounds like you don’t trust women in general. I know you’re close to your mother, so I’m figuring someone you once loved must have hurt you.”
The muscles in his face tightened as he met her gaze.
“I didn’t come over here to talk about me, only us.”
“But to know each other better so there is an us, we have to know what makes each of us tick.”
A small smile played at the corners of his mouth. “What makes you tick?”
“You’re changing the subject. Wait, you’re deflecting.” Lena frowned. “At least that’s what I think my therapist would say.”
“You have a therapist?”
She laughed. “Yeah—I’m a bit fucked-up.”
“Who the hell isn’t? Does it have to do with your parents’ deaths? I can imagine that must be hard to handle.”
“It is,” she whispered. “I’m doing better with it. I go a couple times a month to my therapist. It helps me to keep things in perspective. I’m still working through the grief.”
“Where did the plane go down?”
“In Peru, over the Andes Mountains. My parents offered free medical services through an organization called Doctors Helping Others. They joined the program when I started high school, and I always went with them. It was an amazing experience.” Looking down, she fiddled with the hem of her shirt. “I wasn’t with them on that trip because I was away at school. For a long time, I wished I had been with them on that plane. Sometimes, I still do.”
In three long strides, he was kneeling down in front of her and wrapping her in his arms. When she rested her head on his shoulder, he squeezed her tighter.
“I’m sorry for your pain. You can lean on me anytime, darlin’.” He brushed his lips against her hair, a light caress she wouldn’t feel. Her hair smelled of orange and coconut, reminiscent of a day at the beach, her skin warm and soft under his touch.
“It’s just so hard sometimes,” she murmured.
“Shh.”
She tipped her head back, and he saw a glimmer of tears in her eyes.
He swiped his thumb across her cheek. “Lena…”
Brushing his lips over hers, she moaned. The sound shot straight to Tank’s dick. Afraid to spook her, he nudged her head back against his shoulder and held her.
A few minutes later, Lena pulled away and smiled. “Man, you really know how to change the subject, but you’re not getting off that easy.” She pointed to the couch. “Go back over there, sit down, and tell me about the woman who broke your heart.”
He frowned, but a smile danced along his lips. “You’re like a damn dog with a bone,” he grumbled as he rose to his feet. “I’ll go back there on the condition that you join me.”
“Now you’re setting conditions?” she said in a playful tone.
“You can’t call all the shots, woman.”
Tank stood rooted to the spot until she pushed up from the chair—with a very audible and exaggerated sigh—and trudged over to the couch, plopping down at one end of it. Taking the spot at the other end, he turned toward her.
“The story is, my ex-wife was a conniving, cheating bitch.”
Her hand flew to her mouth. “You were married?”
He laughed. “Don’t sound so shocked.”
She giggled nervously. “Sorry. I mean… I don’t know. You don’t strike me as the marrying type.”
“Yeah, well, I was young, and dumber than fuck.”
“How long were you married?”
“Too long.”
“No, really.”
“Almost six years. Trisha and I met in our last year of high school. We got hitched when we were nineteen—too horny, young, and stupid.” Tank picked up the empty beer bottle. “You got another one of these?” Lena started to get up, but he gestured for her to sit down. “I can get it. Just tell me where to find it.”
“There’s a door to the left of the pantry. The bottles are in the mini fridge.”
“Do you want anything?” he asked, heading toward the kitchen.
“A glass of white wine would be great. The glasses are—”
“I know where they are. I cooked you breakfast, remember?”
After securing two bottles of beer in one hand, and a wineglass filled with pinot grigio in the other, he walked back into the living room and put the drinks down on the table before resuming his seat.
“Was the divorce one-sided?” she asked, picking up her drink.
“I’m the one who filed, but I guess we both wanted it. Things were good the first year, but after
that, Trisha got full-on possessive and jealous. She also turned into a nag, always complaining about everything. She wanted to change me.” His jaw tightened. “And I don’t go for that shit. She knew who I was before we got hitched.”
“So she thought you were fooling around?”
“Yeah. She thought I had a chick in every bedroom in town. It was crazy shit. I tried to understand it, and I know it’s hard to understand the whole cl—” Tank stopped mid-sentence. He didn’t think Lena would understand about the club girls based on her actions concerning Quinn. He also wasn’t too sure about revealing his involvement in the Jagged Outlaws. Most citizens changed their opinion of him when they found out he was a member of an outlaw MC. Though he was just a nomad at the moment, he didn’t want to muddy the waters right now. If things between them started getting serious, he’d tell her about it.
“The whole what?”
“The whole thing with women. I’m not bragging, but women have always come on to me. When I was with Trish, I never thought about cheating, or even flirted with another chick, but she never believed me.”
Lena sheepishly looked away. “And I did the same thing with Quinn.”
“Pretty much.”
“Shit.”
He chuckled. “Why did you think that?”
“Because she came into my business, acted like a spoiled bitch, and then when I was leaving, she called you. She had a whole conversation with you, and it sounded like you guys were together. It made me feel awful, hurt, angry, and a bunch of other nasty emotions. I felt like I’d been hit in the gut.”
“Quinn didn’t call and talk to me. I haven’t spoken to her since that night at Dawson’s engagement party. She was pretending to talk to me to rile you up and cause a problem between us. She probably knew I was going out with you. “
“How would she have known that?”
“Santa Teresita is big enough to make it interesting, but still small enough that people know your fuckin’ business. And her being a Fitzgerald? Yeah, she knows what the fuck’s going on.”
“And I just played into her spiteful hands.”
“Pretty much.”
“I feel like such an idiot. Fe—the friend I told you about—told me to just talk to you about it, but my pride wouldn’t let me. I’m sorry.”
He smiled. “That’s okay. But next time something bugs you about me, tell me.”
A happy glow radiated from her face. “Agreed.”
“You got any more questions?”
“So you divorced your ex because she was too possessive?”
“Nah. It was because she cheated on me.” He laughed when her mouth fell open. “Ironic as fuck, huh?”
“She was worried about you cheating, but she ended up being the one who did? That’s nuts.”
Tank nodded. “I figure the reason she kept nagging me was because she was doing it herself. I guess when she’d get on my case, she was deflecting.”
Lena giggled. “I really like you, Tank. I’ve been miserable without you.”
Her words warmed him. Damn, I missed her. He hadn’t realized how empty he was until that moment. Lena had gotten into his heart when he wasn’t looking, and he knew she’d stay forever if he made things right.
“Get over here,” he growled.
She flashed him a smile, one that made her cheeks flush and her eyes sparkle. Scooting across the couch, she fell into his waiting arms. He melded his mouth to hers and plundered it, exploring every inch while his blood pounded in his ears. She kissed him back furiously, passionately, their mouths meshing with escalating hunger.
“Let’s go into the bedroom,” she said against his lips.
“You don’t have to tell me twice,” he said before seizing her mouth again.
When Lena pulled away from him, he looked at her lips, swollen and red from his kisses. Rising to his feet, he helped her up and led her to the bedroom.
The minute they entered, he yanked her to him and kissed her deeply while his hands squeezed her rounded ass.
“I like the feel of you,” he growled before plunging his tongue into her mouth.
He pressed his thigh between her legs and she ground and squirmed against it, groaning when he slid a hand under her T-shirt. Her tits strained against her soft bra, and he shoved his hand inside and pulled out one of her breasts. Satisfaction crawled through him when he ran his finger over her pebbled nipple.
“Tank,” she murmured.
“I bet you’re soaking wet,” he said, pressing his thigh harder against her.
Lena pulled away and slowly yanked her top over her head, then tossed it to the floor. She unhooked her bra, and her breasts fell out, bouncing. Breathing heavily, Tank reached out and ran his thumbs over Lena’s stiff nipples.
“Fuck,” he rasped.
Gripping the sides of her sexy-as-hell leggings, she slowly slid them down then kicked them off. She stood before him in nothing but a hot-pink thong.
Tank ran his eyes over every inch of her body, his cock straining painfully against his jeans.
“Fuck, woman,” he said, his gaze lingering on all of her delicious parts.
“You like what you see?”
“Fuck, yeah.”
He licked his lips which brought a burst of giggles from her lips, and he couldn’t help but grin at the gleeful sparkle in her eyes.
“Now your turn.”
Lena came over to him and gripped the button on his jeans and slipped it opened. Her soft, warm hand slipped inside and wrapped around his throbbing cock. The admiring whimpers she made as she ran her fingers over him were almost his undoing.
He grasped the top of his undershirt, and pulled it over his head, then threw it beside her discarded clothes. Cupping the swells of her tits, he rubbed then pinched the taut buds with his fingers. She arched her back slightly and let out a seductive moan.
“Shit,” he gritted.
Lena dropped to her knees in front of him and yanked at his pants, but he grabbed her hands and pulled her up. Confusion spread over her pretty features.
“If you suck me, I’m gonna blow. I want to be inside you.”
Tank quickly kicked off his boots and socks then pulled down his jeans and boxers. Stepping out of them, he chuckled at Lena’s fixed stare at his hard dick.
“Not even one taste?” she asked looking up at him.
“The next round. This one’s for you.”
In one fluid movement, he had her next to him, his hand sliding down her smooth flesh. When his finger went between her legs, he felt the wetness in her panties.
“Damn, babe. You’re craving my cock real bad.”
Skimming her top lip with the tip of her tongue, she buried her hand in his hair and pulled hard. Her heated gaze locked on his.
“What are you gonna do about it?”
Her sultry smirk wrapped around his dick and he eased her down on the bed, raking his eyes over her body. He pushed her panties aside and buried his mouth into her sweet heat. The scent of her arousal was intoxicating and he slipped off the thong and spread her legs apart.
“I missed this,” he said, gliding a finger through her folds.
“I missed it too,” she groaned.
Tank stroked light little touches on her engorged clit. Locking his gaze on hers, he sucked that sweet nub into his mouth, savoring her juices. Lena’s breath came in rapid pants as she pulled his hair again.
As he moved his finger round and round her clit, he thrust his tongue inside her, pulling in and out in quick succession. Writhing beneath him, her moans were music to his ears. When he slid his finger between her folds, Lena’s body jerked.
“Damn, baby. You’re fuckin’ soaked. You’re loving this, aren’t you?”
She squirmed, gasping. He slid his finger into her tight slit and she quivered. As his finger shoved in and out, his palm rubbed against her clit, and she arched her back. The deep groans escaping from her throat, fueled his desire, and he plunged more fingers into her. Panting, she rocked her
hips to meet his thrusts, and he leaned down and licked her sopping clit, then, with the tip of his tongue, he laved the side of her sweet spot with fast, light strokes while he finger fucked her deep and hard. He felt her warm walls grip him then heard her sharp cry as her head thrashed from side to side against the pillow.
As her breathing returned to normal, Tank pulled out of her and leaned back on his knees, a smile curling his lips. Locking his gaze with hers, he sucked her juices off his fingers, taking each one of them slowly in his mouth.
“You taste so fuckin’ good.” He scooted forward and hovered over her. “Taste how sweet you are.”
He captured her mouth with his, plunging his tongue inside her. She moaned and entwined her arms around his neck and yanked him closer to her. They kissed passionately as his hard dick poked at her thighs. Then he pulled back.
“Turn around, baby. I wanna fuck that sweet pussy good and hard.”
Lena bit her lower lip then rolled over and pushed up on all fours.
Tank jumped off the bed and grabbed a packet from his jeans. Before she could look over, he was sheathed and kneeling behind the most tempting and beautiful ass he’d ever seen. He ran his hand over the smooth skin, then bent down and peppered both cheeks with soft kisses, before licking and gently biting each globe.
“So fuckin’ perfect,” he said against her skin.
Lena reached under to grab him, but he gripped her wrist and placed it back on the bed. “Keep your hands there, okay?”
“Okay,” she whispered.
Tank held his cock in his hand and slid it up and down her crack as she squirmed under his touch. Then he lightly spanked one of her ass cheeks and smiled when Lena yelped and jumped. He slapped her again, that time a little harder, making her moan while she clenched her butt.
Pressing against her back, he whispered in her ear, “Do you like that?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you want it harder?”
“Maybe next time.”
Busting out laughing, Tank pulled up and squeezed her behind.
“You’re fuckin’ cute,” he said. Then he soothed the red marks with gentle caresses and cooling licks.
“Push your ass up a little higher, baby.”
She shifted around. “Like this?”
