Enemy (The Aces Book 3)

by A. J. Macey

  I was speechless. Here was Brooks ‘Boss’ Abbott, President of The Aces MC, groveling on his knees. Literally. He didn’t give me a chance to say anything, seeming to sense how fragile the peace was right now, how tenuous the silence. Instead, he kissed my knuckles and stood. After pressing one final kiss against my lips, his calloused fingers traced over my cheek before he stepped back and left the room.

  As soon as he was out of sight and I was alone, I took a shuddering breath, a race of emotions swirling within my chest. The rage was there, as it always was, but it was quieted, overpowered by sadness and longing. Six months away, six months running from everything that had happened, and I finally had to face the music.

  Face that despite my carefully constructed walls and attitude, I let the three of them in; let them own a little piece of my heart right next to Chase and Ciar.

  And that I loved them, even now. What could those six months have been? How many moments like that could I have had?

  “Ugh,” I grumbled, tossing my jacket on. “Now I’m all fucking itchy.” In an attempt to shake the uncomfortable emotions that built and made me feel all sorts of funny feelings that I didn’t like, I walked back through the bar and toward my truck.

  “Old Lady looks good on you, Kiera!” Cheryl hollered out as I walked past, chuckling as I flipped her off.

  What better way to blow off steam than to get lost amongst the Nevada desert, I thought, flooring my truck against the dirt road as soon as I was out of the main gate.

  Dirt flew behind me, clouds of dust rising from the ground as I pushed my truck as fast I could. Adrenaline started to pump, numbing the uncomfortable sensations enough for me to no longer be drowning in the wash of sadness or aching from the longing to feel Brooks, Garrett, and even Stone’s arms around me. I had only been back for two weeks; that wasn’t nearly enough time to get over the anger and hurt I had been harboring for months. Was it…?

  I cut off that line of thinking, determined to not let my pussy do all the thinking. Being turned on and forgiving were two different things, I reminded myself. Brooks was the only one who had truly tried to apologize, tried to make it right, so I gave myself a little leeway to be all right with him. The others though, they can still fuck all the way off.

  “Wait,” I muttered, the hair on the back of my neck standing up as I started back toward Reno. As discreetly as I could, I scanned my mirrors, wondering why my internal alarm bells were going off. After a second and third pass, I finally found what had caught my attention.

  A tan Jeep idled in the distance. Keeping a portion of my focus on the road, I turned into the city, waiting to see if the person would follow because I hadn’t been too far out of the city and it wasn’t uncommon for people to go racing or driving on the worn dirt roads. Hell, it may have even been the three prissy bitches Brooks had kicked from the compound, hoping to get revenge, but if the years had taught me anything, it was that I could never be too careful. Especially knowing we hadn’t seen or heard anything from fucking Jace Corden, and Agent Venry had knowledge we didn’t.

  So, the next several hours were spent running menial, boring tasks throughout the town only after I slipped on an ugly as fuck turtleneck and gloves to cover my tattoos. But no matter how long I was out running errands, I still had the sneaky sensation that I was being followed, even though I had long since lost sight of the Jeep.

  Whoever thinks they can follow me has another thing coming when I figure out who it is, I growled as I pulled into the driveway of our home, because despite what Brooks had said,

  The Cat’s claws are always out.

  Chapter 7

  December 15th

  Sunday Afternoon

  Kiera

  A bead of sweat built on my brow, trickling down my temple and cheek as I hoisted myself up another foot. The material was rough beneath my hands, burning my inner thighs and legs as I dangled precariously almost fifty feet in the air, nothing securing me other than my grip on the climbing rope.

  Brooks’s emotional speech and being followed for several hours had rattled me yesterday, and although I’d worked out some of the nerves, both things were still on my mind. As much as I wouldn’t admit the Brooks part, Chase had known something was bothering me, and after explaining what happened with the Jeep, he was willing to practice in the basement with me for the day.

  At least until we hear back from Stone’s contacts and for the new equipment to be installed on the compound, I told myself as I moved farther up the rope. Can’t be all play and no work.

  “Lookin’ good up there, Kittycat!” Chase called, his smiling face angled up toward me from where he was standing on the ground. Letting out a small chuckle, I looked down at him.

  “Damn right I do, my little assassin. Now, just wait there and enjoy the view. I’m almost to the top.”

  “Oh, you know I will,” he said, but it wasn’t as quiet as he thought, the comment making me smile. Maneuvering myself up a few more feet, I reached the top of the rope, ringing the bell we had secured to the ceiling.

  The climb down wasn’t any easier, and my muscles trembled as I finally lowered myself close enough to the ground that I could just release the rough rope and drop to the mat. Chase’s sexy grin curled his lips, the tension and stress from the last couple of days completely gone, meaning he’d forgiven himself. Finally. Though there’s nothing to forgive since it’s something that wasn’t even been his fault in the first place, I thought as I stood from my crouched landing.

  “What do you want to do now?” I asked, unhooking the utility belt that held my chalk and a small bottle of water before dropping it to the ground.

  “Want to spar a bit?” he offered, hitching his thumb over to the open mat next to this one.

  “Sure, be prepared to get your ass kicked,” I teased, smacking him on the ass as I nearly skipped past him. There was something about Chase that always soothed me, made me feel less alone. A little less me versus the world and I enjoyed our training because it always led to more… naughty activities.

  And what kind of girl could say no to that?

  Not me, that’s for sure.

  “Oh, you sure about that?” he countered, pulling off his shirt. His lean muscled torso was sculpted and defined, the V in his hip bones disappearing under the waistband of his gray sweatpants.

  Mmm, I do love a man in gray sweats.

  “My eyes are up here, Kittycat,” he murmured, stalking forward. “Best to not get distracted, never know what might happen.” As he finished his statement, he moved, swinging a swift punch toward my face. Blocking, I raised a brow in a silent challenge. The fight was on after that, neither of us talking as we threw strikes, blocks, and dodged out of the way.

  “Wait.” Chase held up a hand to stop the sparring. I was confused until I realized what was happening, observing the subtle changes within his expression and movements.

  “Hello, Ciar,” I greeted, taking a step back and grabbing the towel on the wall to wipe my face.

  “Hello, Dove,” he murmured. The gravel in his voice was deep, seeming to radiate off the concrete of the walls.

  “You’re quite chatty lately,” I noted. “Any particular reason as to why?”

  “Well, currently it’s because you’re leaving your right guard down when you duck to the left,” he explained quietly, stepping over to me and grabbing my wrists to position them where he wanted. “Keep this one up. It leaves your face and throat exposed otherwise, and while that’s the non-dominant side for most fighters, there’s always a risk.”

  His steel gaze was intently focused on me, his calloused fingers holding tight to my hands and wrists as he talked. It was sweet… well, as sweet and loving as Ciar ever got. Thoughtful too, I noted absently, for considering working with me on my weaknesses instead of exploiting them.

  “Anything else?” I asked quietly. He smirked ever so slightly, the challenge in his gaze cluing me into his next move. Twisting my arms, I loosened his hold and blocked his elbow as I shi
fted backward. “Cheater.”

  “There’s no cheating in real life, Dove. It’s you or them. Kick them while they’re down because you know they would do the same to you,” he stated as if it was a simple fact of life that normal people dealt with.

  But then again, we’re not normal.

  “What would you do if you’re outnumbered?” he questioned, expertly throwing strikes, low kicks, and feints as we went back and forth.

  “Identify the best way out of a situation, even if it’s an unconventional one like screaming and acting scared. People love to come to the aid of a damsel in distress.”

  “Good, little Dove,” he whispered. “I’ll let you have Chase back. He has some other… less violent means in mind.”

  Chuckling, I slowed my movements, keeping my guard ready, but when Chase held out his hand, I felt my eyes narrow and my hands fall to the side.

  “Where are we going?”

  “You’ll find out, Kittycat, or would you prefer I tossed you over my shoulder like Brooks?”

  I gaped at him. How the hell did he know about that?

  “There are cameras in the bar. I may or may not have gone and dug up the feed this morning to see what had you all hot and bothered because I knew it was more than someone following you,” Chase answered, once again knowing my unspoken question.

  Grinding my teeth, I waved him forward, not wanting to be carried anywhere anytime soon. Chase started toward the stairs, the giggle he tried to smother reaching me as I walked behind him. I didn’t say anything to his troublemaking, settling on an eye roll instead as I followed.

  We moved through the living room and immediately up to the second floor, and when he headed into the bedroom, I felt my brow raise. Not because he brought me to the room, but because there were several ropes laid out on the bed. Hm, interesting, I thought, but I knew he wouldn’t have them out unless he had a reason. One that wasn’t solely because he was horny. Chase took our training very seriously… usually.

  Not that I blamed him if he wanted it to lead to that, I was horny as hell too.

  “Lie on the bed,” he told me. I crossed my arms in defiance, waiting for him to explain why. “If I wanted you tied up for sex, you know I would tell you. I want you to practice your ability to escape any kind of tie or restraint. Promise.” Chase crossed his heart with a little ‘X’ and pouted out his luscious lower lip until I obliged him.

  “Only because I love you, my little assassin,” I murmured, hesitantly crawling onto the bed and positioning myself the way he wanted me to.

  A wash of goosebumps pebbled on my skin as he wrapped the rope around my wrists and ankles. The anticipation of knowing where this was ultimately heading made me giddy, my blood pumping faster as he moved off the bed.

  “All right have at it,” he instructed. Wiggling, shuffling, and maneuvering for several long minutes, I slowly worked the restraints off until I was seated cross legged on the bed with the rough twine dangling from my finger.

  “That's all you got?” I taunted, tossing it back at him. The steel of his gaze melted into two pools of molten metal, his pupils blowing out wide as he stalked forward. My core tightened as he worked, leaving me sitting as he secured the rope around my torso.

  When I thought he was done, he pushed my legs closed, tying my shins and knees together. My eyebrows crept up as he smiled, but it wasn’t the same happy-go-lucky one he gave me. The expression piqued my curiosity and made me a bit hesitant as to what he was up to.

  “Ah!” My squeal of surprise bubbled out of me as he suddenly flipped me over, my cheek pressing into the bed and ass hiked into the air.

  “I think I like you like this, Dove,” Ciar murmured, his hand squeezing my ass before yanking down my leggings to bare myself to him. Explains why the smile wasn’t the same, I thought with an eye roll. “Though, I think you need some color.”

  “Color?” My question was breathy. When I tried to look back at him all I could see was my side meaning I had no idea what the hell he was talking about until he moved into my line of vision. My brow rose when I saw what he held—a lit candle inside a frosted glass holder. Tilted slightly, a bead of melted wax fell from the lip of the glass and dripped onto my skin. Almost mesmerized, I couldn’t tear my glance away from the flame, the drop falling almost in slow motion as my anticipation built.

  “Fuck,” I ground out, shivering at the stinging heat that blossomed on my ass.

  “You want it to stop? You get yourself out of my bindings.”

  I growled, getting to work as fast as I could. It wasn’t that I didn’t love the wax, but I wasn’t going to give in that easily. If Chase and Ciar wanted to play that game, then I would be more than willing.

  I had to muffle a moan when a few more drips hit my skin, the sting melting into a wave of need as the wax cooled. I needed more, but there was no way he was going to give it to me like this. By the time I finally released my arms, I was trembling. A few minutes and several more trails of wax on my thighs later, I freed my legs.

  Hopping up, I spun around and kissed Ciar. My body had nearly been engulfed by a flare of fire, and he hadn’t even touched me. I wanted—no, needed—more. Our locked lips and tangling tongues only broke apart for me to wrestle my shirt off, but before we could go any further he put the candle on the nightstand.

  “What? I don’t get to drip hot wax on you?” I questioned, getting off the bed and shucking my leggings the rest of the way off my legs. Ciar chuckled and shrugged, his cold gaze and deep voice transforming back into Chase’s manic timbre.

  “I would much rather you bring that pretty ass over here, Kittycat,” he whispered, crooking a finger at me. I didn’t need to be told twice, closing the distance between us quickly. Eager to have my fill of him, I gripped the hem of his sweatpants and yanked them off.

  I dropped to my knees and took in his hardened length, my mouth watering with the urge to get Chase and Ciar back for all of their incessant teasing. With a smirk tossed up at him, I cupped his balls, his eyes tracking each movement with rapt attention. I lapped at the tip of his cock, a bead of pre-cum swirling around my tongue as I continued to torment

  He groaned, his fingers tangling in my hair. The grip was soft, Chase letting me do what I wanted without restricting me, so I licked and sucked, working farther down his shaft. Reaching between my legs, I couldn’t wait any longer. As soon as the tips of my fingers brushed my slick entrance, I moaned, my pussy clamping around them as they slipped in.

  I pulled off of Chase’s cock, shoving him onto the bed and climbing to sit astride his hips. Lining up, I sank down in one smooth motion. I needed him to be inside me like I needed air to breathe. My head was spinning with desire to the point I didn’t know what was up or down. A gasp left me as soon as I was filled to the brim, my skin tingling as I started to move.

  Rocking my hips, I rode Chase, his hips pumping up to meet me. The tingling built, curling around my core with each thrust. When I thought I was about to explode, my fingers clawing into Chase’s chest, he moved. He wrapped his arms around my waist as he sat up, keeping me from moving. His pace slowed until I felt the lusty fog pull back and anger swept in.

  “You think it’s fun to tease, hm?” I hummed at the end of my statement, my nails digging into his back.

  “Do it, Kittycat,” he murmured against my lips. “I love when you mark me.” Obliging him, I scratched, his hips thrusting forward as I did so. The guttural moan that rumbled in his chest urged me forward, and I pulled his hair sharply. Each violent move I made, Chase's hips pumped. Bite marks, scratches, and blood marred his back and shoulders by the time I finally neared that peak once more. On the very edge, I gasped, about to fall into the pleasure I was dying to find, but once again before I could finally fall into that blissful pool, I was flipped onto my back.

  "What the fuck!" I shouted, propping myself onto my elbows as I glared.

  "Chase may be submissive, but I assure you, I am not," Ciar hissed, his lip curling up in a cruel smile at
my snarl.

  "Well, then I suggest you fuck me like the top you're supposed to be before I find someone else or a toy to do it for you," I bit out, my anger only serving to fuel the lusty fog that surrounded me. Damn him and his fucking sexiness.

  "And if I don't?" he countered, stepping back from me and sinking onto the bed next to me, reclining on his palms. I gaped at him before I realized something. Chase, my little assassin, willingly gave control to his alter, and if that was the game they wanted to continue to play, then I would do so.

  But not by their rules.

  "Then you can have this," I said with a shrug, getting up from the bed. "I'm assuming you enjoy pain as much as Chase and yet oh so despise when I don't do what you say." Grabbing the candle that had burned down quite a bit, I poured the melted wax that had built onto his chest. Ciar's mask broke for just a moment, and I watched with a grin at his body’s reaction. His cock bobbed, and his moan was pure pleasure as the wax cooled against his tanned skin. Ecstasy etched into his expression as he panted.

  That's what I thought.

  "You can fuck me, Ciar, or you can get the fuck out," I whispered, leaning forward and bracing my palms against his muscled thighs. The steely gaze he gave me had me burning in anticipation. I wanted what Ciar had waiting for me; he wasn't the only one who could appreciate the need to be dominated.

  Gripping my jaw with one hand, his fingers held my cheeks. The grab was tight but not painful, holding me in place as he stood. I cocked a brow, wanting to push him further, so I circled my hand around his shaft, pumping roughly. It only took three pumps before he broke, his lips crashing into mine.

  "You want to be fucked, Dove?" he murmured against my lips. The icy tone in his words only made me want more. The fire burned hotter and I whimpered, unable to stop the noises before they escaped. The smile that spread across his face was coldly beautiful, promise and pain hiding behind the motion, but I wanted it.