by Amy Cecil
“Wait, Emma, there’s more,” Hawk said.
“He’s ok, isn’t he?” I asked, afraid of the answer.
“He’s fine. Really. But he doesn’t want you staying in that apartment anymore. He wants you to stay at his house with Ari and Honey.”
His house? I didn’t know Caden had a house. I thought he just lived at the clubhouse. But now that I think about it, where would Ari stay when she was home from school? I guess he would need a place for her.
“Hawk, I am fine here. I don’t think there is anything to worry about now that Mark is dead.”
“Emma, please. Don’t fight me on this. This is what Ice wants. You know as well as I do that when he wants something done, it gets done. Don’t make it difficult for us. You know that if you don’t go quietly, we’ll come and carry you off. And it won’t be pretty.” He was right about that. I looked around my apartment. I was living alone, and it would be nice to see Ari again. Hawk continued, “Why don’t you get some bags packed? Rebel will be by in about a half hour to get you. He will have his bike, so leave your bags in the living room and the door unlocked when you leave. I will send one of the guys with a cage to collect them for you. I think you should plan on staying at Ice’s indefinitely. You know that once he gets back, you most likely will not be leaving.” He chuckled into the phone. I found it endearing to see how his attitude had changed now that he knew Ice was alive.
He was probably right, too. And in actuality, I wanted it that way. I’d missed Caden so much over the last week. “Ok Hawk, tell Rebel I will be ready.”
“Good girl! Talk to you soon.”
After Hawk hung up the phone, I looked around the apartment again. What do I need to pack? I went to the closet and grabbed a suitcase. I spent ten minutes rummaging through my clothes, grabbing as much as I could fit in the suitcase. I knew that once Caden got back, we would get everything else moved. I then took a smaller suitcase into the bathroom and just dumped everything in there. Twenty minutes later, I was ready to go. I looked around the apartment for anything else that I might need. I had already packed my laptop. I looked in the refrigerator. It had been so long since I had been home, it smelled like a trash can in there. I got a trash bag and dumped everything from the refrigerator in there. There wasn’t much, but it had all spoiled and needed to go.
Ten minutes later, Rebel was knocking on my door.
The drive to Caden’s house was long and curvy and very secluded. As we approached the end of his driveway, it appeared that we were looking at the back of the house. I assumed the front faced the lake. There was a two-stall garage, and there were very few windows on the back. Rebel parked the bike and we walked around to the front of the house. As the front of the house came into view, I realized why I hadn’t seen many windows before. They were all in the front. The house was absolutely gorgeous. It was a cedar and stone two-story mansion. The house had three balconies with stone pillars going down to the main level. The entire right corner of the house was all windows with an incredible view of the lake. Toward the center of the house was the main balcony, opening into a huge great room that spanned the entire height of the house. To the right of the house was a stone walkway that led to a breezeway underneath the balconies that led to the door. This wasn’t a house, it was a freakin’ hotel. I hadn’t even seen the inside yet and I already loved it.
When we got inside, I was even more amazed. A large great room encompassed the downstairs, with vaulted ceilings, a huge kitchen with a bar off to the right, and a game room with a pool table to the left of the kitchen. The surface of the pool table had a TV screen built into it. It was unlike anything I had ever seen. The living room part of the great room had a huge, floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace, and there was a smaller fireplace in the game room. On the other side of the living room was a small staircase that only went up partially. I realized then that the house was not a two-story home, but a three-story home. This house was totally unbelievable. Where did Caden get all this money? I thought to myself. This house was easily a million-dollar home. Obviously the MC life had been good to him. The small partial staircase led upstairs to three bedrooms, each with their own bathroom. Off to the right of the kitchen was another staircase that led to the third floor.
It appeared that nobody was home, which I thought was odd because Hawk had told me that Rebel was dropping Ari off first before he came to get me. Then, like a hurricane, Ari came running down the small staircase.
“Emma!” she cried. She ran right to me and hugged me. “It’s so good to see you! It’s been so long!”
“Ari, my goodness, look at you. You’ve grown into a beautiful young lady!” I couldn’t believe it, she was all grown up and stunning.
“Oh, Emma, I’ve missed you so much!” she said.
“I’ve missed you, too.”
As she grabbed my hand and encouraged me to walk with her, she said, “Come on, let me show you around.” She walked me around the house showing me all around the great room, the second-floor bedrooms, and the kitchen. Even with Ari here, I was still having a hard time believing this was Caden’s home. I’d always gotten the impression that he lived at the clubhouse.
She then took me up the stairs to the third floor. It was all one big bedroom. It was fantastic, and it was clear that this was Cade’s room. “I assume you will be sleeping here,” she said as she winked at me. “And, I might add, it’s about time you two worked through your shit.” Well, I couldn’t disagree with her on that. She leaned over the railing and called down to Rebel and Spike as they were bringing my bags in. “You guys can put Emma’s things up here, please.” They headed to the stairs. She turned to me and said, “I’ll let you get settled. Honey will be here shortly and hopefully, she will fix us some dinner.”
“I can fix something if you are hungry,” I said.
Ari smiled. “Let’s have Honey do it tonight. That will give us a chance to catch up.”
I agreed. It really was great seeing Ari again. It had been so long.
After the boys and Ari left, I walked around Caden’s room. He had a massive king-size bed with two end tables on each side. There was an armoire in the room, along with a huge walk-in closet. His clothes only filled up a quarter of the closet. There were also two built-in dressers in the closet. I opened the drawers and found them empty. At least there was a place for my clothes. I hoped there would be room for me in the bathroom as well.
I walked into the adjoining bathroom. It was bigger than the bedroom at my apartment. I had no worries about space in this bathroom. There was more than enough space in here for both Caden and me, as well as a football team or two. The shower was all in teak wood and completely open with four different showerheads coming through at different angles. There were all kinds of switches on the wall, with no indication as to what they controlled. I made a mental note to ask Ari about that.
Once I got everything settled, I headed back downstairs. The smell coming from the kitchen was intoxicating, letting me know that Honey had arrived. I’d always been proud of my cooking, but she was phenomenal.
I walked into the kitchen and greeted Honey. “Hey, Honey. That smells amazing. What’cha making?” I asked.
“Hey, Emma. Chicken Marsala—you are smelling the wine. It makes the whole meal,” she replied.
“I wasn’t hungry, but now that I smell that, suddenly I’m starved. You are a fantastic cook.”
“Thank you. I don’t know about being fantastic, but I do enjoy it.” She paused for a brief moment, then added, “So what do you think about all this? It’s like a slumber party of some sort.” She smirked, then added, “I’m too old for slumber parties.”
I laughed. “Aren’t we all? But I look at it this way: Cade is doing everything he can to keep the ones he loves most safe. I’m just thankful that he is still alive.”
“Yeah, me too.”
Just then Ari came to join us. We sat at the bar and watched Honey work her magic. We offered several times to help her, but she refused.
She insisted that she did best when she worked alone, so Ari and I didn’t argue.
I noticed that she was making quite a lot of food—definitely more than the three of us could eat. “Honey, why are you making so much?”
“I need to feed the boys, too.”
“Boys?”
“Yeah, Hawk, Spike, and Rebel stayed. Once they heard I was cooking, they weren’t leaving. I think they are already sick of eating at the diner.” She laughed, and then added, “They are out back sitting by the lake. I think Rebel is going to stay with us, just in case.”
“Just in case?” I asked curiously.
“Yeah, they want to make sure one of the guys is with us at all times. No worries, they are just looking out for our safety,” she said reassuringly.
“Oh. I see. Do you really think we are in danger?”
Ari chimed in and said, “If my brother believes we are, then we are. His instincts are right on, and I would never question something that he feels in his gut.”
Honey added, “She’s got that right.”
They knew him so much better than I did, and I was the one that knew him the longest. Somehow, I needed to fix that. Just wait until you get home, Caden Jackson, I thought to myself.
After dinner, we spent the remainder of the night chatting. Hawk and Spike left not long after we finished with the dinner dishes. Rebel stayed, but he plopped himself down onto the recliner on the opposite side of the room. It seemed like he wanted to let us girls have some time together. I noticed on several occasions he kept looking over at Ari—not just looking, but staring. It kinda weirded me out at first, but knowing Rebel like I did—and I knew him better that I knew most of the other club members—I realized it wasn’t weird at all. Rebel was in love with Ari. So that is the girl he was talking about. Gee, I wonder how Caden feels about that.
At one point while we girls were gabbing away, Rebel’s phone rang. He spoke in a hushed tone and I could not make out what he was saying. He was only on the phone for a minute or so, then he hung up and put his phone away. When he didn’t say anything to us about his phone call, I let it go. It was probably about club business that we ladies were not privy to.
When we were all talked out, we decided to call it a night. I headed upstairs while Honey and Ari went to the downstairs bedrooms. Rebel was still sitting in the living room. I turned back and asked him, “Aren’t you going to bed?”
“Naw, not yet. I got a couple of things to do first. Don’t worry about me, Emma dear. It’s all good. Sweet dreams,” he said.
“Ok, if you say so. Goodnight, Rebel.” I was tired, it had been a long and exhausting day and that bed upstairs was calling my name.
Chapter 10
Caden
I waited patiently for Rebel to come out back to get me. Well, patiently was not the right word. I wasn’t patient at all. I was anxious to see my girl. I’d called him about an hour ago and told him that I wanted to come into the house once the girls had gone to bed. It was best that I didn’t just walk into my house immediately, just in case I was being watched.
“It’s about time. What the hell took so long?” I asked as he came out onto the deck.
“Sorry boss, they were up talking. You know how girls are when they get together, it turns into an all-night gab session,” he said apologetically.
“I know, I know.” I paused briefly then added, “So, did they all go to bed?”
“Yeah, about a half hour ago. I wanted to make sure that Ari and Honey were asleep before I let you in,” Rebel said.
“Good thinking. I’m not ready to reunite with everyone just yet. I still need to stay away. Hell, I know I shouldn’t be here. But I’ve been so worried about Emma…I just need to see her.”
“Ice, man, nobody could blame you for that. I totally get it. Come on, get inside before someone sees you. ‘Course, I really don’t think anyone of interest knows that this is your house.”
He had a point there. I’d worked very hard to keep this house off the radar. I wanted a place for Ari in which she would feel safe. I wanted her to know that she always had a home. Even though I preferred to stay at our old clubhouse, it had never been her home. This place was and would always be her home. And, if everything went as planned, it would soon be Emma’s home too.
I walked into the house and straight up to the loft, taking the steps two at a time. As I rushed upstairs I could hear Rebel downstairs, quietly saying, “You’re welcome. Have a good night.” He snickered.
Little fucker. I didn’t even thank him.
I walked down the hallway and quietly stepped into the archway of my room. The room was dark and moonlight shined through the window. It silhouetted Emma’s body as she lay on her side, facing away from me. Making as little noise as possible, I walked toward the bed. I could tell by her breathing that she was already asleep. I thought, I should let her sleep. She has had a rough day. I stood there for a few minutes just watching her. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. She was so beautiful.
After about 15 minutes of just watching my baby sleep, I turned to leave. I didn’t have the heart to wake her and figured it was probably best that I left her alone—for now. But as I started to leave the bedroom, I heard a whisper. “Cade? Is that you?” I stopped and waited. Then she asked again, “Cade?” She was silent for a brief moment, then she spoke again, “Please don’t go.” That was it; there was no way I could leave her after that.
I turned back toward the bed. Her back was still away from me and for a second I thought that perhaps she was dreaming and talking in her sleep. I wanted her to be awake so bad that I couldn’t help myself, and I answered her by saying, “Hey, beautiful.”
She turned to face me, lying on her other side. I could barely make out the very pleased look on her face in the moonlight. She was fucking perfect and she was all mine. I could feel my jeans getting tighter as my dick got hard just looking at her. She reached down to the covers and moved them aside, inviting me to join her.
“How did you know I was here?” I asked her curiously.
“I could smell you,” she whispered.
“That bad, baby? Sorry.”
“Oh no. Not bad at all. You smell of leather and aftershave. You smell amazing. It’s sexy,” she said, clarifying her last remark.
“So now I smell sexy?” I sat down on the bed next to her and brushed the hair away from her face. “You’re beautiful, baby. You know that?”
She smiled, then said, “So, are you just gonna sit here and tell me how beautiful I am, or are you gonna show me how much you missed me?”
With her words, I got up from the bed and began removing my clothes, my eyes never leaving hers as she watched me intently. When I was fully undressed I crawled into bed next to her. Her body was soft and warm and for the first time in this house and in this bed, I truly felt that I was home. As I pulled her into my arms, I realized at that moment that everything I had was hers. Everything that I did from that moment on would be for her.
“God I’ve missed you,” I said as she nuzzled into my neck.
“I’m still waiting, Cade,” she stated.
“Waiting?” I asked curiously.
“Really? Do I have to spell it out for you?” She slowly ran her hand down the length of my naked body and suddenly my dick realized what she was talking about. It didn’t take my brain long to figure out what she meant.
“Who are you and what did you do with my shy, proper Emma?” I laughed.
She giggled. “Oh, baby … she’s still here. But you see, you have given her a taste of you and that incredibly sexy body of yours, and now, I’m afraid to say, she can’t get enough of you.”
Her words lit a fire in me and I had to have her. But before I could take control of the situation, she crawled up on top of me. Straddling me, she bent down and licked my bottom lip before devouring my mouth. Her tongue was warm and wet, and it only made me want her more. When she was done kissing me, she sat up and pulled her tank top over her head, exposing her b
are chest. Her tits were perfect. I sat up, bringing her body closer to mine, which allowed me to suck on her nipples. She moaned, and then she demanded, “Harder, Ice. Harder!”
What. The. Fuck! Where did that come from? She called me Ice! I hadn’t thought my dick could get any harder, but her words had proved me wrong. As my lady commanded, I sucked harder. She was in a trance, totally lost in the pleasure that I was giving her. I thought, I bet if I had more time, I could make her come by just sucking on her tits. I’ll have to remember that.
At that point, however, I could not take any more and I needed to be in control. I rolled her off me and at the same time positioned myself on top of her. She was lying on the bed underneath me looking at me with so much hunger in her eyes. I felt so much love for her, I could no longer hold it back. She needed to know how I felt. I leaned down close to her and whispered in her ear, “I love you.” I kissed her softly on her neck as my cock slid slowly into her sweet pussy. I moved as slowly as I could, because I wanted to savor that moment. I wanted to savor every inch as I pushed into her. We weren’t fucking. It was no longer about getting laid or having to have her. We were doing something that I had never done before. We were making love.
She was so fucking tight, and her pussy clamped onto my dick like a vise. I felt as if I was going to explode. I had to stop, so I drew out of her slowly and then waited before I slid back in. Carefully, I pushed into her again, trying desperately to keep control of my movements. I continued this several times and I could have sworn she clenched my dick tighter each time. I was losing control, and I thought she was too.
“Tell me, Emma. Tell me what I need to hear.”
Without hesitation or questioning, she responded, “I love you.” I moved my fingers over her clit. She was soaking wet around my cock and my fingers. I was about to come, but I needed her to ride it out with me.
“Give it to me, sweetheart, give me all you got.” With my words, she detonated beneath me and I watched her lose herself to me. Seeing her orgasm was my undoing, and I took my release with her as we rode out our passion together.
