Protector (Grim Legion MC #1)

by Brook Wilder

  “Tell me you like that shit.”

  She retreated a few steps, but I kept coming until she was pressed up against the wall with nowhere to go.

  “Fox, I-I have to get back.”

  I braced my hand above her head.

  “Tell me you like doing this shit, and I will let you go.”

  She swallowed, and I leaned down, brushing my lips over the shell of her ear.

  “Or I could ravish you right here, right now, and give you a few moments of what you really want.”

  She shuddered.

  “J-just a few moments?”

  I chuckled, using my other hand to brush her hair away from her face.

  “You… God, woman, you kill me.”

  Nat’s hands found my face, and she forced me to look at her. In her eyes I could see the indecision, the heat she was trying to hide and failing miserably.

  “Make me forget, Fox.”

  “I plan to,” I growled before capturing her lips with mine.

  My kiss was not tender, but full of the rage and pent up emotions she had dragged me through over the last week, at being close but unable to touch her. She moaned in my mouth, her arms winding around my neck to pull me closer.

  Hell, yes!

  I slid my hands over her sides and to her hips, my cock hard against my pants. I was drunk on her, feeding off the passion she was giving me, and wishing we could stay in this fucking room all night, away from the reality that lay behind that locked door.

  Tearing my lips from hers, I trailed down her neck, inhaling the sweet scent of her perfume.

  “Do you know how you drive me crazy?”

  She chuckled against my jaw, where she was nibbling at the sensitive skin.

  “I-I have a clue.”

  I pulled back, framing her face with my hands.

  “When you stepped into that room tonight, you took my breath away.”

  I wanted her to know that, while everyone else was critical of who she was or what she looked like, I hadn’t seen anything else more perfect.

  Her eyes shimmered with tears.

  “Fox.”

  I rubbed a thumb over her cheeks.

  “I just wanted you to know. To me, you are perfect.”

  She drew in a breath before pulling me toward her, pressing her lips on mine. I knew I had gotten to her, given her something to think about, and that was enough for now. With a growl, I slid her dress up to her hips, just like I had imagined earlier, and found that she wasn’t wearing any panties underneath.

  “I’m going to fuck you against this wall,” I said against her lips. “And you are going to scream my name.”

  “Fox,” she breathed. “Adam.”

  A bolt of lust went through me, and I pulled my zipper down, releasing my raging cock.

  “Nat.”

  Her eyes warmed as I hefted her up, urging her to wrap her legs around my waist before driving home. Nat gasped, and I held her there, her body trembling around me. I could blow my top right now, her warmth driving me insane with the need to do so.

  But I waited, feeling her nails dig into my shoulders. My hands flexed at her hips as she looked at me, her eyes full of intense heat that mirrored my own.

  “What you do to me,” I whispered, pulling back just a little to slide back in place again. “I can’t describe it.”

  “Adam,” she whimpered, clutching at my shoulders. “Please, don’t stop.”

  I knew she needed this as badly as I did, so I didn’t stop, driving her to scream my name as the orgasm hit her. A flood of warmth ran over my cock, but I didn’t stop, gritting my teeth to hold on just a little bit longer and give us both what we needed.

  My whole fucking world was in my hands, and I never wanted to let it go.

  Nat sobbed, her fingers digging into my shoulders as I drove into her again and again, feeling my own release imminent. My leg started to cramp, but I ignored it. Nothing short of a shot to the head was going to stop me now.

  And when it happened, I roared her name, pumping hard and fast into her.

  For a moment, I held her there, not wanting to put her down. The moment I did, I knew it would be over, that another stolen moment would be ending.

  The cramp got worse, so I was forced to lower her to the ground, flexing my leg to ward off anything serious.

  “It seems I’m not as young as I used to be.”

  Nat wiped a hand over her face.

  “Oh my god.”

  I fastened my pants, stepping back to give her some breathing room. My heart hammered against my chest, and I felt like I could sleep for a solid week.

  But it was the look on Nat’s face that had me pausing, concern flooding my veins. I watched as she adjusted her dress, pushing her hair out of her face.

  “Nat.”

  She held up her hand, finally pushing away from the wall.

  “This will not happen again.”

  That was what she had said the first time.

  “You feel it,” I accused her. “We can’t stay away from each other.”

  “But we have to,” she exploded, covering her face with her hand. “You need to leave, Fox. Now.”

  I took a step forward, warning signals firing off in my brain. She had wanted this, there was no doubt in my mind, but I felt like I had just pushed her over the edge.

  “Don’t do this. Don’t push me away.”

  She let out a miserable laugh, shaking her head.

  “Push you away? You shouldn’t even be here.”

  I grew angry at her forced words.

  “So, you're telling me you want nothing to do with me, then? That this is all some crazy fucking misread?”

  Nat looked up, and I clenched my jaw tightly.

  “Tell me to my fucking face, Nat.”

  Her eyes filled with tears, before she blinked them away and set her jaw tightly.

  “I am getting married in a week, and it’s not to you.”

  “No,” I laughed harshly. “It’s to an asshole you don’t love.”

  She stepped around me, her arms wrapped around her stomach.

  “Of course, I don’t love him. This has nothing to do with love, Adam. It’s all about the money.”

  “You aren’t that shallow,” I forced out.

  She let out a hollow laugh as she reached the door.

  “I am that shallow. I want the money and Bryan… He’s the man I have to marry to get it. He’s a suitable husband, and that’s all I care about.”

  I straightened, feeling the barb without her saying the words.

  “So, I’m not?”

  She looked at me, a hardness to her eyes that I hadn’t seen before.

  “No,” Nat finally said as she opened the door. “You’re not, Fox. Stay away from me.”

  I let her go then, the sound of the door slamming behind her echoing in my ears. She had just told me I was worthless, some dirt under her nails that she could flake away because she wanted whatever money she was due.

  In the same breath, I hated her and loved her.

  “Shit,” I said to myself, running a hand through my hair.

  It was clear to me that I wasn’t going to ever be enough for Nat. I was just some low-down biker who was looking for a handout to take care of his mom. I had nothing to offer her, no fancy mansion or diamonds to put around her neck.

  What I had wasn’t enough.

  With a growl, I stalked out of the room, not giving a shit if I was walking out of the job early. I couldn’t go back to that ballroom and watch Nat pretend to enjoy being there.

  Hell, I needed a stiff drink and a good fight.

  Chapter 13

  Nataliya

  “Here you go miss. Thank you for shopping with us today.”

  “Thank you,” I answered with a wide smile, accepting the bag full of shoes that I didn’t need.

  Hell, I didn’t need any of packages that were in my hands, but they made me feel marginally better anyway.

  The rehearsal dinner was two days aw
ay, which meant the wedding was three days away, and every time I thought about marrying Bryan, I threw up. What had sounded so appealing nearly a year ago was no longer something I was looking forward to, nor was it going to be something I enjoyed.

  I was trading one cage for another.

  “So,” Alice stated, carrying her own bags. “Do you care to tell me why we are spending a down payment on a house today, or do you think you really need more shoes?”

  I sighed.

  “Can’t a girl just go shopping for the hell of it?”

  “Sure,” Alice replied. “But typically not in this fashion. Something is up with you, Nat.”

  Spying a table at the coffee shop, I marched toward it, dropping my packages near the chair. Alice did the same, and after ordering a steaming cup of coffee loaded with sugar, I looked at my best friend.

  “Do you think I am making a mistake?”

  Alice’s eyes widened.

  “Do you want the truth, or do you want me to lie to you like everyone else has?”

  “The truth,” I replied, already knowing the answer.

  “You’re making a huge mistake.”

  I half laughed, half groaned aloud.

  “Thanks.”

  She shrugged as our coffee arrived.

  “You asked, I told you. Don’t ask unless you want to hear the truth, Nat.”

  I stared down at the inky black liquid and bit my lip.

  “I slept with Fox again.”

  “Again?” Alice squeaked. “When? Where?”

  “At the dinner party,” I sighed, feeling the weight of what I had done heavy on my shoulders.

  The look on his face had been hard to swallow when I told him he wasn’t good enough for me, so bad that I wanted to take it back. But taking it back would mean I would be keeping a door open to the possibility that we could be together, and we couldn’t. There was no feasible way we could be together.

  “Good lord, Nat,” Alice breathed as I took a sip of my coffee. “What were you thinking?”

  “I wasn’t,” I admitted, the bitter liquid burning my tongue.

  I knew the moment Fox started toward me that our time together was going to hurt, but I had let him do it anyway, wanting that moment of peace in my life that I felt whenever I was with him. I wanted to forget that I could no longer stand my own fiancé’s touch or his kiss. I wanted to feel like someone cared, and I knew that Fox did.

  “It doesn’t matter. It’s over now.”

  Alice sat back in her chair, a knowing look on her face.

  “So, that’s why he’s been stalking around the mansion. I knew something was up, but I didn’t think that was what was eating him.”

  I sighed, sitting back in my chair. I had stayed largely out of his way, and though he wasn’t right in the vicinity today, I knew he was here. I could feel him.

  “I-I don’t know what to do.”

  “But you ended it, right?” Alice asked softly, picking up her cup. “You’ve already made up your mind what you want to do Nat. I’m not saying I agree with it, but it seems like you have already made your choice.”

  She was right. I had made my choice, but I still didn’t get the warm and fuzzies about it. Suddenly, the money had lost its appeal, the need to get out of the mansion not exciting enough to keep my interest. After Saturday, I would be a woman who was married to a man she didn’t love, with a pile of money and no one to spend it with.

  Or, at least, no one that I truly cared about.

  “How did I get here?”

  Alice set her cup back down on the table.

  “Let’s see. You have a ton of money waiting on you and Bryan was the first guy that even remotely piqued your interest. If that guy had been Fox, would you be fighting for him?”

  I thought about the harsh words I had said to him, how I had told him he wasn’t good enough for me. Those words had been a lie. Fox was more of a man than Bryan could ever be.

  But suitable? Perhaps not to my grandmother or to my family. I couldn’t change the way they felt, nor could I mold Fox into what they wanted. The man he was was the reason I had fallen in love with him in the first place.

  Ugh, I was in love with Fox. Not my soon-to-be husband, but the one man I couldn’t be with.

  “It’s all futile,” I finally said, a hitch in my voice. “I-I can’t marry Fox and have the money too.”

  Alice reached across the table, her eyes soft behind her thick glasses.

  “But is the money worth it in the end? Me, I would rather be happy than be rich.”

  I looked down at the designer clothes I was wearing. How easy it was, to spend a thousand dollars in less than an hour without blinking. Could I live without that kind of lifestyle? If I could, that would mean Fox could be in my bed, by my side, loving me.

  I could have Fox permanently.

  Swallowing the lump in my throat, I shook my head.

  “I-I need that money, Alice.”

  Alice pulled her hand away, picking up her cup.

  “Then it looks like you are getting married on Saturday.”

  I sighed inwardly. I guess I was.

  **

  Two nights later, I stood next to Bryan as we greeted our guests, our hands entwined together. I was wearing a white dress tonight, a slinky number that dipped low in the front and lower in the back, showing off the smooth skin I had from the pampering day I’d had at the hotel spa with Alice, where I would be staying until the wedding next day. Diamonds glittered at my throat and ears, and I had a new diamond bracelet on my wrist, courtesy of my soon-to-be husband. When he had presented it in the limo, I had feigned a gasp, allowing him to latch it onto my wrist and kiss me until he was breathless, his hand wandering up my dress and touching me.

  Luckily, the limo had arrived at the house before he could finish, and I had never been so relieved in my life. It was a horrible feeling, to be disgusted by your own fiancé’s touch, but I couldn’t help it. I was torn between what I knew I wanted in life and what I should have.

  Bryan leaned over and pressed a kiss to my neck, his breath hot on my skin.

  “You look gorgeous, Nat. I confess, I’m hard just looking at you.”

  I gave him a tight smile, looking outwardly every inch of the lovesick bride. But inwardly, my stomach was rolling at the thought of sharing a bed with Bryan every night for at least the first year.

  I couldn’t do it.

  “Darling,” I said, squeezing his hand. “I need to go powder my nose. You don’t mind, do you?”

  He looked at the couple we were chatting with, shaking his head.

  “Women. You tell them they look lovely, and all they want to do is attempt to improve their looks.” Then he pressed a kiss to my hand. “Of course. Go on. I believe we have pictures in a little while.”

  I gave him a doe-eyed look before releasing his hand, nodding and smiling as I moved through the crowd. Everything was perfect, from the perfect appetizers to the perfect floral arrangements. I had chosen – well, my mother had chosen – to house everyone in the guest-house behind the main house, meaning I would be far away from the sanctuary of my bedroom and any sort of place I could hide out.

  I wanted nothing more than to just hide from the world, from the lies I was forcing myself to live in order to reach the future I had thought I wanted.

  A shadow stepped in my path, and I didn’t bother to look up, knowing instantly who it was.

  “I just need a moment.”

  “You can’t leave this building,” Fox replied evenly, no hint of emotion in his voice. “I thought we’d agreed on that.”

  I thought back to the conversation that my father and Fox had had prior to the start of the rehearsal dinner tonight, stepping up the security because there would be so many people present. He was also the one that had been assigned to guard the hotel suite, and I hadn’t known how I was going to get through the night, knowing that Fox would be right outside the door.

  “I wasn’t consulted, nor did you listen to me.�
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  “Nat, please,” Fox said quietly as I still refused to look up. “I’m only doing my fucking job.”