by Davis, Jen
Within five minutes, they’d drained the pasta and tossed it with the chicken, vegetables, and a dressing of olive oil, lemon, and Greek seasoning. He eyed the feta cheese as she carried it to the table. He always used to call it the stinky stuff.
“Don’t worry.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll keep it on the side.”
They ate in companionable silence the first few minutes, their mutual hunger keeping their attention on the food in front of them. It wasn’t until her plate was clean, Amanda took a sip of her wine and leaned back into the chair.
“Dinner was amazing,” Kane announced as he wiped his face with a napkin. “Whoever gave you cooking lessons deserves some kind of medal.”
She balled up her own napkin and tossed it at his head. It flew past his ear as he evaded the projectile. “I like cooking. The class was originally only something to pass the time, but it ended up being more than just another distraction. I needed a lot of those at first.”
“I get it.” He tried the wine and wrinkled his nose before returning his glass to the table. “My distractions were a little less…constructive…but I did the same thing.”
“You know what I miss?”
“The amazing sex?”
She searched for another napkin to throw but came up empty. “Dancing with you.” One of her favorite memories was Charlie’s Fourth of July party, where they ended the night dancing under the stars to an old Journey song.
“A problem we can easily fix.” He got up and bowed slightly. “May I have this dance?”
Amanda bit her lip. She had the entire album on her phone. With a few swipes of her finger, the opening strains of “Lights” drifted from her small, mounted speakers.
His eyes closed briefly as he took in the music. “You remembered.”
She took his hand. “I’ll never forget.”
Stepping into his arms felt like going back in time. She was reliving one of her best memories, but now it was even better. It meant more because this time she knew to savor it. Even if they only had this night, she would treasure every second. Resting her head on his chest, she breathed in his familiar scent. She reveled in the feel of his strong arms around her.
They didn’t do much more than sway; they never had, but it was a thousand times more satisfying than the perfect waltz her father’s connections loved to show off at their fancy Christmas parties. When he started singing into her hair, she wanted to melt into a puddle on the floor.
As the song ended and another ballad began, she lifted her head.
His eyes were fathomless. “I want to dance with you for the rest of my life.”
When he leaned down to capture her lips, it was so much more than a mere kiss. It was a reassurance, a promise, a claiming.
What started as a gentle brush of his mouth intensified in seconds. His tongue slid in her mouth, and she answered with all the longing and passion she’d suppressed for years. It was perfect, yet she was greedy for more. Nothing would be enough. Forever with this man would not be enough.
She broke the kiss only long enough to lead him to her bedroom. Immediately, she went to work on his clothes, pulling his shirt over his head. This time, she allowed herself the luxury of touching his beautiful skin. Her fingertips ran up his arms, over his wide shoulders, and down over his chest to his puckering nipples.
He held himself still while she explored him, his body pulled taut as a bowstring.
She could see in his face, the exact moment he let himself go, his gaze reflecting hunger and heat.
He had her shirt off in seconds as she worked her pajama pants to the floor. In two strides, he backed her up to her bed and climbed on top of her, blanketing her body with his.
The weight of him felt different, heavier, but she would have known the feel of him anywhere. The way he kissed her neck, the way he worshipped her collarbone as he worked his way down to her breast. He’d refined his technique a little, but it was still classic Kane.
Her hands moved over him with urgent desperation. She needed his pants off, his thick cock driving into her body. The foreplay was sweet torture.
Lifting his hips, he gave her access to the button of his jeans, and once his fly was open, he tugged them down and kicked them off before returning to his ministrations.
He licked and sucked at one nipple while rolling and twisting the other between his fingers. His dick pushed insistently against the thin barrier of her panties.
She groaned and lifted her hips to meet his thrusts. The pressure and the friction only drove her need higher. “Kane, please.”
His head dipped lower, giving her a clear picture where he was going. Yes. Finally, she would feel him where her need pulsed so desperately. But when his face was just inches from her panties, he didn’t take them off as she’d hoped.
Instead, she felt his hot breath over the silky, damp material. Her body quaked as he slid his finger around the elastic, directly inside her. Her muscles clenched around him, grateful for the invasion, but still needy for more.
That’s when he fastened his mouth over her clit. He sucked at her straight through her panties, and her body almost came off the bed. It was amazing; it was masterful; it was pure fucking torture. “Stop teasing me,” she cried.
He looked up, his dark eyes hooded. “You always liked my mouth on you before.”
“Later,” she pleaded, reaching blindly for her nightstand. When her hand found the foil packet she was looking for, she held it out to him. “I want all of you. Don’t make us wait any more.”
With a growl, he ripped the side of her panties, revealing her to him completely. “Just one taste,” he gritted, before delving back between her legs. His tongue swept a path over her core up to her now-aching clit. Then he pulled the condom from her hand and covered himself with practiced ease.
Before she could dwell on how many times he’d done the same with countless other women, he plunged inside her with one stroke. As wet and wanting as she was, her body offered no resistance. She cried out with the rightness of it.
For a moment, Kane’s eyes went hooded. He stopped moving entirely, his dick seated fully inside of her. “You’re perfect,” he whispered. Then his body let loose.
His hips pistoned, and he drove inside her with an almost frenzied pace. It was unmeasured, unrefined, and his lack of control only drove her higher. His hands touched her everywhere, as if he was starving, and she was a feast. But the best part, along with his recklessness and needfulness, came reverence and worship. He never stopped telling her how beautiful she was, how good she felt, how his dreams were coming true.
The last exaltation drove her to the edge. His weren’t the only dreams coming true. Kane was here, in her bed, and though he hadn’t said the words, he loved her. She knew it in her bones. With the gift of the knowledge in her heart, and his thumb working in tandem with his dick between her legs, her body crested in a shattering release.
His orgasm followed a heartbeat behind with a roar of her name. He didn’t pull out when he was done but levered the top half of his body onto his elbows and gazed into her eyes. His stare never wavered as his heavy breaths slowed into their natural rhythm. Finally, he rolled to his back, pulling her into his arms.
There was no need to talk for a while. She lay in the comfort of his embrace, listening to his heart beat in his chest. She never wanted to move.
He spoke first. “I told myself it wasn’t as good as I remembered.” He shifted slightly so he could pet her hair. “I convinced myself I’d built you up in my head so much, no one else could ever compete. I mean, if it was really perfect with you, how could I—what chance did I have to ever be happy again?”
His words could have come from her own mouth. For years, she’d tried to lie to herself too. “It’s so good because we were always supposed to be together. Anyone else, in my life at least, was only a placeholder. For a while, I pretended they were you. Eventually, it just hurt more, so I tried to pretend you never existed.” She kissed his warm skin beneath her
cheek. “Which was an even bigger failure. In the end, I was going through the motions, but really I’d just given up.”
“Is that what you were doing with the guy who hurt you? Going through the motions?” He kept his voice tightly controlled.
She didn’t want to talk about Nathan, but she had promised him honesty barely a couple of hours ago, and she’d meant what she said. “Nathan was a business arrangement with my father.” Wow, it sounded even worse when she said it out loud. “I asked my father for a loan to help out with the company. He offered me the money free and clear if I would be Nathan’s armpiece for six months.”
“Why?”
She sighed. “Because he’s politically connected, and my father wants to be governor. Because my father wanted to get an opening into Nathan’s good graces. Because I needed the money, and I didn’t care if it made me a whore. Like I said, I’d given up, at least on finding someone I could love. And with Nathan, there was really no chance I’d develop any feelings. It almost made it easier for him to be such a dick; I never felt guilty for the fact I didn’t love him. Who could love someone like him?”
From the corner of her eye, she watched him ball his fist and let it go. “Did he hurt you? When you were together?”
She shifted. “A little. Sometimes. Which is why I told my father I didn’t want anything more to do with him. My six months was up at Thanksgiving. But my dad tried to change the deal; he made me promise to give him four more weeks or he’d withhold the money. I said yes, but I never saw Nathan again until the night I broke up with him. The night you came here and kissed me.”
“He was the person on the phone.”
It wasn’t a question, but she answered him anyway. “Yes. I went there to end things for good, and he saw the beard-burns on my face. It went downhill from there.”
Kane sat up, pulling her with him. “He hurt you that night? Because of me?”
“He wanted to. But I knew it might happen, so I brought a gun.” She couldn’t hold his gaze, dropping her eyes to her lap. “I think he’s been stalking me ever since. I’m hoping the beat-down he got from Evan Ryan takes him down a notch or two.”
“Not good enough.” His eyes burned with fury. “I want to rip his fucking head off.”
She shook her head. “He’ll be waiting for it. You’ll only end up in jail, and I refuse to lose you again, especially because of him. I’m going to clean up my own mess and do it the legal way. I’m going to file a restraining order.”
His fingers found her chin and tilted her face back up. “This is not your fault.”
It was sweet of him to say so. “I don’t know if I agree with you. I opened the door. Nobody forced me. I’m ashamed I let him into my life, but I can’t blame anyone but myself.”
“Blame him. Only a bottom-feeding pussy puts his hands on a woman in anger.”
“Oh, I do, but what I meant—”
“And your father—”
“My father is a businessman,” she said firmly, “and I’m just another one of his assets. Or at least I was. He’s as pissed as Nathan is right now.” Oh, shit. How could she have forgotten her father’s threat? “It’s the reason I texted you earlier. My dad is gunning for you. He says he’s going to ruin you.” Her words started running together as her fear for him returned. “You’ve got to be careful. He’s furious we’re together again.”
He smiled.
What the hell?
“Then it really is like old times.”
She swatted his arm. “Not funny. My father is a powerful man. He was already working with the white supremacist freak I told you about. Now it’s personal.”
Kane blinked lazily and pulled her back to him. “Scarier men than Beau Griffin have tried to take me down. Let him try. With you at my side, I’m fucking invincible.”
CHAPTER
TWENTY-TWO
Kane
Kane couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so excited about Christmas. He didn’t have just one, but two invitations to celebrate this year. Neither was with his own family, of course. Nothing had changed about the way the club ignored the holiday.
He’d meant it when he told Mandy he planned to patch out, but selfishly, he wanted to wait until after Christmas. They wouldn’t be sentimental about it, but he would. He didn’t want to face the holiday knowing he was dead to them. Plus, if he was there to oversee one last exchange with Ace, they’d have at least something to work with before they lost their drug connection. Because he had no doubt, without him, Ace and his products were history.
So, he kept his head down; he went to work every day and the clubhouse every night to see his mom. As much as she loved him, she’d choose the club when the dust settled. Her devotion to his father lived above all things, and Malcolm would never forgive his defection.
Mandy didn’t offer a word of complaint. After all the time they’d spent apart, he knew how much she craved his company. God knew, he felt the same way. But she also knew how serious it was to walk away from his brothers. In less than a week, he’d be all hers.
He worried for her safety, though. She’d filed the restraining order she’d told him about, but her ex, Nathan, was a loose cannon. A quick call to Mike filled her brother in on everything. His old friend hired private security on the spot, and at least two guys had quietly trailed her ever since.
He didn’t cut himself off from her entirely. In addition to texts and a few private pictures on social media, he’d surprised her with a quick visit and a few amazing kisses at her place Monday after work and more of the same in her parking garage Wednesday morning. He was tempted to crawl in her bed after he finished his club business every night, but after dealing with drugs and guns day in and day out, he felt too tired and dirty to face her.
Now his last deal with Ace was done. It was Christmas Eve, likely the last night he’d ever spend with his brother. Like all the others, Scott would shun him when he turned in his cut. For all the stupid shit the man said and did lately, he was family, and they had a lifetime of history. Kane loved him, and his heart hurt as he let himself into the clubhouse.
Scott was shooting pool by himself at the table.
“Got any room for me over there?”
His brother’s face lit at the offer, and he gathered the balls together to start a new game. Whatever disagreements they had over the drugs or with Mandy, Scott clearly welcomed the opportunity to hang together. “Wanna break?” He offered Kane his stick.
“Nah. You’ve always been better at it than me.”
Scott preened a little before taking his shot. The balls scattered, and the one-ball sank in the corner pocket. “Solids,” his brother announced and proceeded to drop two more balls before missing his third shot.
Kane tanked his shot on purpose to make his brother grin.
“Ha, ha. Out of practice, baby bro. Watch and learn. The master is at work.” Afterward, Scott ran the table, his smile growing progressively bigger with every ball he put in the pocket. Once he sunk the eight-ball, he let out a whoop and spun around on his heel. “Come out with me tonight, K. We’ll grab a beer at The Watering Hole.” He wrinkled his nose. “Unless Princess Bitch has you on too tight a leash.”
He let the dig on Mandy slide. “Sure, brother. First round’s on me.”
It wasn’t surprising to see the crowd gathered at the bar. If anything, he was shocked his father wasn’t there picking up a piece of Christmas ass. Thank heaven for small favors.
He bought his brother a beer, which turned into two and eventually three. They shot pool again, played a round of darts. He even paid to play Scott’s favorite song on the jukebox, so they could sing along together. What he wanted to do was explain why he was patching out, to tell him he loved him. To beg him to understand. He knew Scott too well, though, to even try. Instead, he bought yet another round of drinks; he sang more songs, and he laughed at Scott’s lame-ass jokes. Then he let his brother use him as a sounding board for his ideas about a new tattoo.
; “I was thinking a scorpion, man.” Grabbing a pen from Hangman, Scott sketched a design on the top of his hand. “Maybe we could get a matching set this year. Something special for my blood-brother.”
He doubted Scott would feel the same in a couple of days, but he nodded anyway. “Yeah, man. Sounds great.”
At closing time, he had to force himself to leave. When he dropped Scott back at the clubhouse, he walked him to the door and pulled him into a tight hug. “I love you, brother.”
Scott took it in stride, returning the embrace with a drunken smile. “I love you too, man. Thanks for tonight. Most fun I’ve had in ages.”
He rubbed his chest as his brother let himself in the house. Scott didn’t know this was the last night they’d spend together, but the knowledge burned a hole in Kane’s heart. With one last hug, he’d just told his brother goodbye.
***
Having lunch with Brick and his fiancé provided a welcome distraction from the cloud hanging over Kane’s head. The potluck meal gave him a chance not only to break bread with his only real friend outside of the club but some of the other guys from the construction site too.
Before they ate, he quietly thanked the man again for his help with Mandy’s ex. They’d talked about it once already this week, but it bore repeating. He owed Brick, Cyrus, and Evan more than he could ever repay.
Brick waved his words away. “You’ve done plenty for me. I wouldn’t even be here without you. Wouldn’t have my girl, this house. You don’t owe me shit. It was my pleasure dragging his sorry ass off the property. I only regret Evan got a crack at him and I didn’t.”
He told no one about his plans to leave the club after the holiday; instead, he absorbed the laughter and the love in the room like a sponge. As fun as it was, though, it was only the warm-up for an afternoon at the Cooper house.
