by V. Theia
Right then, the back-door window whirred down, startling him. He hadn’t known someone else was in the car. “For God’s sake, stop taunting the biker, Marco, or he might kill you and I don’t have time to attend your funeral this week.”
Tag released him and stepped back.
Marco was grinning like a damn lunatic, rubbing his throat, he beamed a sappy grin at Tag. “Sorry, Boss. Just wanted to feel how strong a champion was.”
“Forgive my boy, Tag. He’s a damn pain slut and will get a fix anywhere he can. Get in the car, you little shit.” He said it with affection.
Tag would never understand these New Yorkers.
Marco climbed into the car, winking at Tag, and making the ‘call me’ motion with his hand.
He switched his gaze to Jay Benz, who asked. “Is everything satisfactory?”
“Yeah,” Tag answered, “thanks.”
“Happy to do business with the Renegade Souls. You know how to reach me if you need anything else. Give my best to Penn.” The window whirred up, and the car pulled away from the curb. He watched it until it turned the corner away from his street, and then he headed back inside.
Dumping his coat and boots, he climbed the stairs, knowing who he was going back to had his stomach muscles tightening.
As quiet as he was when he dropped his clothes to the bedroom floor, she still stirred beneath the sheets when he slid himself into bed. As badly as he wanted to tell her what he had for her, he knew she needed her rest.
“Go to sleep, darlin’.” He said, gathering her in.
She whimpered, and it was no sex whimper.
“What’s wrong, Anna?”
“Headache.”
Poor love.
He kissed her forehead, holding her extra tight as he massaged the back of her neck. She all but climbed on top of him, making Tag pump out a satisfied grunt.
Her face found a place on the side of his neck, she burrowed in and something dirty snapped inside Tag. He should encourage her to go back to sleep. He’d already gone too hard on her.
But what kind of man would he be if he didn’t sort out her pain, huh?
A hand slid down into the back of her little panties.
She whined without words. Her breath stuttered when his fingers nestled between her legs and found her wetness from behind.
Ah, fuck. God. So nice.
It wasn’t about turning her into a monster, though he enjoyed when she went wild. He plied pressure to her clit, soft circles enough to make her sigh into his neck. It took next to no work to get her there. She came whimpering.
He was hoping the flush of feel good endorphins were enough to help her headache.
He gathered her in again, covering them both up, and kissed her forehead.
“Sleep, Anna darlin’.”
“Okay, baby boy.” She replied in her sexy husky voice.
He was in love with her.
It wasn’t news to him, but it was the first time he let it filter through his mind.
He was in love with this woman. So fucking deep in love.
And he was gonna do whatever he needed to do to keep her.
A despicable biker had no limits where it counted.
* * *
“Come and sit down, Anna.” Tag said after watching her flit around his kitchen. On her way past him, he grabbed her by the waist and brought her down to his lap, looping an arm over his shoulder. “Feeling better?” He asked.
“Mm. Da. I had some very nice medicine last night.” She smiled, and he laughed against her cheek. “Good, darlin’. Now I want to tell you something.”
She looked at him suspiciously, he couldn’t help smiling. Such a cautious little thing, his woman.
“Give me a kiss.”
“Luke.” She blushed like he hadn’t fucked her ten ways to Sunday yesterday. He squeezed the back of her neck, waiting for the signal when her eyes shuttered with pleasure before her mouth dropped to his. It was closed lipped and so damn sweet.
“I reached out to one of my brothers who knew someone that could help.”
“Help?” She questioned. “What do you need help with? Are you in trouble? What can I do?”
Damn, this woman.
No questions asked she would help him with anything, he knew that.
He kissed her again, a little dirtier this time, stroking her tongue with his. She purred, and it killed him to pull back. If he went on, he’d be screwing her on the kitchen table.
“No, I’m good, darlin’. It’s to help you. My brother knew a guy who could get legal documents for you. I took those passport sized pictures you had and…” he tapped the envelope and watched as she shook. “Luke.” She opened it like she thought it might be a bomb. Feeling the thump of her heart through his own chest wall.
“They’re legit, no one will know the difference. We can get them sent to Galina with FedEx and we’ll book the flights from this end and have her pick up the tickets.”
He knew it was a lot for Marianna to take in when she sat on his lap, barely moving.
“Breathe, baby.” He smiled, “look at them. You now have a social security number, an ID and a passport.”
“Luke.” She breathed after looking at them like she was inspecting jewels. “Why did you do this? I can’t believe you did this.”
“You need to have your kids with you.” Was the simple answer.
Because I fucking love you, worship you, would do anything for your happiness. The more complicated answer he didn’t know if she was ready to hear yet.
His girl, who did not let him into her emotions often, put her head forward on his chest. It was only when her shoulders started to shake he knew she was crying.
“Are you happy, Anna? I can’t tell if I made you happy or pissed off.”
When she lifted her head, tears were rolling down her cheeks, she’d never looked so beautiful, he thought. He cupped her face, kissed them away.
“I feel like I might burst open,” she shared. And then, “it’s happiness, Luke. I can’t believe you did this for me.”
“Can’t you? Would do anything for you. Any-fucking-thing to see you happy. Though, maybe not with all the waterworks ‘cause it’s making me itchy.”
She smiled and kissed his lips suddenly. “How much were they?”
“Don’t remember.”
“Tag! I need to know what I owe you.”
Narrowing his eyes, Tag took her chin between finger and thumb. “Not a fucking penny, you got it?”
“Luke, I have to.”
“I wanted to help you and it turned out I knew someone who could do that, so it all worked out fine.”
“I can’t let you pay. It’s my responsibility.”
“Darlin’.” He started, rubbing his lips over her soft cheek, holding her hip to keep her close. “I have a lot of money and I don’t spend it on jack shit. You’re important to me, your family is important to you. I wanna see you happy. That means you’re not gonna be stubborn about this. It’s done.” She was gonna go off when she knew he was paying for the flights too.
Her tears started again. He didn’t know what to do. He’d wanted to see his woman’s emotions, but he couldn’t deal with tears. He wanted to wrestle bears and bring her balloons and books to make them stop. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him the tightest hug he’d ever felt in his life.
“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Tag. I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for me.”
“My pleasure, darlin’. You wanna go throw some clothes on and we can head down to the FedEx place to get them sent off.”
She said a slew of Russian he didn’t understand as she jumped up. “Oh, my god.” She switched to English. “Will they… will they really work?”
He had confidence or he wouldn’t have told her about them. “Yeah,” he grinned, “move your little butt.”
She flung herself at him again, kissing all over his face. “Thank you, baby boy. You really are a good man.”
He smacked her on the ass, and she giggled. His sad girl giggled, and he felt like a titan. “That’s an awful thing to say to me. When I’m fucking you later over my bike, your ass high in the air while you hold on to the seat, dare call me a good man again.” He threatened with a grin and a snap of his teeth.
Fuck, she was beautiful.
He could say it every minute of the day, and it still wouldn’t be enough.
Her eyes sparkled, and she smiled until her cheeks stretched over her bones. Marianna leaned down and pressed their lips together. “I will pay you back somehow. Thank you so much, Luke.”
She scurried off, muttering Russian to herself. He heard her upstairs a few minutes later, talking on the phone. From the shrieks, it sounded like her family were excited too. They’d seen him a few times in the background, she’d introduced him as her friend and boss.
By the time her family got here, he wanted to be firmly planted as her man.
The rest of the day went just as good.
After he drove them home from the FedEx place, he fucked her in the garage as promised. And like he said, she didn’t call him a good man once. She couldn’t. By the time he was done railing her, then pulling free to come all over her bare ass, she was so worn out she all but climbed into his chest for him to carry her inside.
“My Prince Charming.” She purred.
Damn fucking right.
They booked flights. He stopped her protest by hitting confirm. Then he took Marianna on the couch, lifting her onto his lap, he told her to ride the fuck out of him.
No wonder he was loose-limbed by the time he strode into the club later that night after a call from Rider. He slapped hands with his prez.
“You let him come to you then?”
“Worked like clockwork, brother.” Rider smirked.
They’d only needed to give Rex a personal invite to his fight the other night and he all but fell over his ass to offer Tag a sponsorship.
They’d take his money. Gladly.
The man wasn’t gonna be around long enough to reap any rewards.
Shit sucked for Rex.
But life for Tag was looking rosier and rosier by the second.
Especially when he went home and found that Marianna had stayed. She was fast asleep in his bed.
Not for long, though.
His mouth kissed a path up from her feet until he reached the paradise between her legs. He sucked her awake while her little clit pulsed on his tongue.
“Prince Charming, you are so wicked.”
Now that title he’d claim.
She didn’t know how wicked he could be yet.
THIRTY-ONE
“We fell in love in an airport. It’s not original but it’s ours.” – Marianna
Marianna spent the next six days in a strange limbo.
Terrified to hope.
Too excited to keep it at bay.
For the first time, since she’d been parted from her family, this felt like genuine hope.
She tracked the package harder than the elves tracked Santa Claus on Christmas Eve.
Hardly sleeping. Too wired.
Pestering poor Galina, who was getting things ready on her end.
Galina only needed to pack the children’s clothes and certain toys they wanted to bring. Whatever they needed once they were here could be bought once she had her babies with her.
She’d all but forgotten she worked at the gym, and Tag seemed okay with that.
What with the fact he stuck to her like glue for the past few days.
He took her on a run every morning to burn off her excess energy.
She had too much, could hardly keep still.
Tag found another way to help.
He fucked her to calm her down.
Miraculously, because she never thought she was that woman who got soothed with a good dick, it worked. It didn’t take any effort from him to get her pulse knocking, or to turn her a little frantic, pulling at his hair, demanding of his body.
Attentive man.
The most perfect distraction.
He was a perfect man that existed in the real world – in her life – and not conjured from her fantasies.
Every time he put his mouth on her, or pried her legs open with a dirty boy smirk before he lashed her with his tongue into a screaming mess, it took her brain about five seconds to check in and realize this was real.
Six manic fueled days she cleaned like a demon, cooked until Tag’s freezer was bulging with food. She ran miles. She danced late at night in the gym while Tag’s hungry gaze watched her from the corner.
Inevitably resulting in sex.
To her surprise, Tag installed a free-standing ballet barre for her.
Though, she later found out it was for him too, because after a stress relieving dance, he’d used that barre to anchor her leg out straight and to fuck her from behind in front of the mirror.
“I think you planned this, baby boy.” She’d panted, taking what he was giving as she watched their erotic images in the mirror.
“You caught me,” he’d grinned at her before sucking a sweet mark on the side of her neck.
Things were falling into place, finally.
All her puzzle pieces, the jagged edges, and emotional wreckages inside her were finally righting themselves. Her family were on the way, and she had the affection of a truly wonderful man.
She felt too lucky.
Like it was a dream, and she’d wake any moment.
And then, oh god, the day finally came.
At the airport, hardly believing Galina, Pasha, and Lily were on the plane to Colorado.
“Relax, darlin’, drink your coffee. They won’t be here for a while yet.”
“Do you think they’ll really come?”
“You spoke to Galina, Anna, check-in went fine.”
A lot could go wrong between now and then.
Her heart wouldn’t stop its panic-stricken thundering until she laid eyes on her children. Tag did what he did best, and that was calm her when she was too full of nervous energy and gravity felt too heavy on her legs. He cuddled her into his side while they sat on uncomfortable bucket seats, watching the arrivals monitor.
His mouth touched the side of her head, breath warm and lovely brushed her ear. “Anna, I can’t calm you down here by fucking you, you gotta relax, baby, or you’ll pass out once you see them.”
God, she probably would. Melting against him, she felt how he rumbled his praise. What did it say about her that she loved pleasing him?
That was thoughts for another time because oh, my god.
The plane was arriving.
Her nerves tripled, growing like a pack of rowdy dogs.
She’d held herself together with sticky tape and hope for months, praying this day would come. That all her horrid mistakes would eventually level out into something good.
It felt like forever waiting, holding onto Tag’s shirt sleeve.
She turned her face up to Tag, found him watching her, unsmiling and thoughtful.
There had been so many words bouncing between them this week that neither of them had gave voice to. Instead, they filled the moments up with their bodies.
She wanted to know where they went from here.
Was it a fling or did he want a life with her, with her kids?
It was a lot to ask. So much to hope for.
Was she being greedy, wanting it all?
She was too afraid at that moment to even ask.
“Breathe.” He smiled. “Hey, Anna?”
“Da?”
“You look beautiful.”
Her face flushed as she smiled back at him.
He tipped his head down a little, “and I think those people over there are waiting for you.”
She whirled around so fast she almost toppled over. Thank god for Tag holding onto her.
The most beautiful screams of, “Mama!” burst her heart wide open, and she took off into a sprint, landing hard on her knees in front of Ga
lina and her babies.
The moment was surreal, one she hadn’t been able to envision ever happening. And yet, here they were. A mass of arms, the tightest hugs, and lots of crying.
“Thank you, thank you. Thank you so much, Galina.” She repeated over and over into Galina’s shoulder, who was crying too.
“Oh, Lapushka, we are so happy to be here with you. Thank you for sending the things so we could be here.”
In Russian, she asked quietly, “was everything okay, you were not stopped at all?”
“No, Lapushka, I was worried, but everything was fine. The children slept most of the way.”
“And Anatoly doesn’t know you came here?”
“No, he lost interest quickly.”
The fear she’d held in her stomach forever melted away, leaving behind this overwhelming feeling of happiness. It was Lily who spoke first once Marianna eased from kissing their little faces.
They looked so grown up already, her heart pinched.
On her knees, Lily looped her arms around Marianna’s neck, bringing their faces together. “Mama, you’re here.”
“Da, Lily-pad. Mama is here. I missed you. I missed you so much. I’m not going anywhere else, this I promise.” She told her daughter in a mix of English and Russian. Her Lily smiled so big. Though Pasha let Marianna sweep him up in their initial happiness and pepper kisses over his face, he was now hanging back, clinging to Galina’s leg. Peeking at her with his solemn face.
“I missed you so, so very much, my Pasha.”
It would take time to earn his smiles again, she realized that.
Marianna would do anything she needed to, to make it right.
Leaning over, she brushed a loving hand on his sweep of dark hair. “I love you more than the moon and the birds.” She said the same thing she told them every night at bedtime. “Are you ready to see our new home? We have lots of toys for you.” He didn’t flicker any emotion other than to stare at her with his dark-dark eyes. It was Lily who stepped in and took her brother’s hand. “Ready, Mama.”
Oh, her heart.
She turned away for a second while she swiped at her tears, and found Tag, quiet as could be, standing with a trolley of suitcases.
She’d forgotten about Tag!
“Tag.” She breathed, feeling calmer for seeing him.
