"It's nothing. Everly thought you needed something nice, and I told her I'd pass it along."
I nod slowly. "This was all Everly's idea." In the short time I’ve known him, I’ve never seen Scout back down and seeing that it's me that's making him lose his words gives me power. "I would have thought such a nice gift would have come from the man who hoped to appreciate it."
Scout drops the spice bottle he's holding to the counter and crosses the kitchen to stand in front of me. He fingers the material in my hand before his soulful eyes fall on mine. "Most men don't care about the wrapping, India. We only want what's inside."
I want to ask why he chose it for me then, but the answer hits me when he gives me a firm once-over with his eyes. He didn't buy the gown for him. He bought it to make me feel sexy. The way he sees me.
"Put it on," he nearly growls the words. "Maybe I'll change my mind seeing you wearing it."
I turn to leave for the bathroom when his voice stops me mid-stride.
"Put it on, here."
"In the kitchen?" I ask.
"Why not? No one is watching but me."
I swallow hard. That's the part that has me scared. Yes, we've had sex. Once. In the dark. I've never exposed myself to a man.
Scout crosses his arms over his chest and leans his hips back onto the center island. "I can help if you like."
"No," I answer quickly. "I can do it."
My fingers are shaking. I'm a grown-ass woman. There is nothing wrong with taking my clothes off in front of a man. It's my body. My right. And I'm not afraid of what Scout will do. Heck, I have dreams of what he might do to my body almost nightly now.
I'm more worried about what he will see. In the dark, it is easy to hide my curves. In the full daylight of the kitchen, my body and all its flaws will be on full display.
I reach for the hem of my shirt and start there, pulling it up over my head. Then I kick off my shoes before I undo my jeans and pull them completely off. I pause, giving Scout the chance to take me in and decide I'm not worth his beautiful gift. But he only stands and stares, waiting for his show.
I unclasp my bra and let it fall to the floor. The cold air hits my nipples, and they instantly harden.
Scout growls from deep in his throat, and his gaze moves from my breasts to my eyes then back down my body. There's pain hidden behind his dark expression. The man is in agony. He doesn't make a move to touch me, only studying me with his deep, dark eyes, but I can tell by his expression he's holding back, and it's killing him.
Seeing his need renews my sense of purpose. I want to make him feel better. I need to with every ounce of my flesh. Slowly and with deliberate teasing, I slide my fingers down my sides and hook then in my panties. I take my time pulling them down my legs and off my feet.
When I stand again, fully exposed. it's not the look of judgment or disgust I'd anticipated greeting me, but something far scarier. Scout looks like he could dominate me in any way he chooses. One corner of his mouth rises, and his tongue flicks out to run along his lower lip. His eyes are so narrowed they are hooded, and his fist is balled around the fabric of my gown.
When I glance down, he seems to remember he's holding it. He pushes off the counter, and steps close, holding the fabric up over my head. The silk glides over my hardened nipples, making my core clench. It's a pain I've come to expect around Scout. One only Scout knows how to cure.
"What do you think?" I ask, my voice shaking. It's not from the chilly air or the way Scout is devouring me with his eyes. It's the adrenaline rush that is causing my whole body to shiver. I like the way he is taking me all in. Memorizing every little detail. I don't feel exposed. I feel gorgeous.
Scout fingers the fabric at my belly, sending shockwaves of sparks along my skin and down deeper to my core. He bunches the silk in his fist and pulls until I'm off balance and have to step forward to keep from falling over.
"I think," he says, his voice husky and thick. "You couldn't be more perfect."
Scout
Everly didn't show me what she’d picked out for India, and I never thought to ask. My only goal was to show India how sexy she is.
When India came into the kitchen, clutching that nighty like it could burn her, I had to do something to show her the truth. She's drop-dead gorgeous. Sexy as hell. And just my type.
Now that she's in front of me with her nipples puckering the fabric and the outline of the V at her legs already damp, I can't motherfucking control my desire. I have to have her again.
I've never wanted to be a piece of fabric more in my life. I've also never wanted to rip fabric to sheds as badly as I want to grab this thing and tear it from India's body. But I hold back. She's already shaking, hopefully from excitement, and I don't want to scare her off.
I bend down and take one peeked nipple in my mouth and suck through the fabric. India rewards me by pushing herself against my mouth. Her hands fall to my hair, and her fingers pull harder the stronger I suck until I milk a delicious moan from her lips.
I'm not going to be easy on her. Not this time. She has me so fucking hard and aching it's going to take more than a little wham-bam to ease my pain. I need to taste her pussy and have my cock in her mouth. I need to feel her orgasm breaking, again and again, to soothe what seeing her naked has done to me.
My mouth leaves a dark ring around her breast and the fabric sticks to her flesh. I want to see the rest of her just as dark and fucked. I wrap my arms around her. Settling her ass in my hands, and I lift her up to the counter. She gives me that doe in headlights look, but it doesn't slow me down. I need that honey-filled pussy on my tongue. I push the silk up her outer thighs and bury my head between the apex of her legs, lashing my tongue out until the tip hits the warm lips of her core.
Flicking back and forth, I sample her, finding her as delectable as anticipated. India's fingers are back in my hair, sometimes playing, sometimes pulling. I press deeper, dividing her lips and sucking at the knob of her clit until her knees squeeze around my ears and her legs quiver. The orgasm is sudden though warranted after the lashing I've given her.
"Scout," she whispers, her voice so drained it's almost unrecognizable. "Please," she begs.
I stand, satisfied to see the thin silk fall over her core and darken with her release. "I'm not done yet," I tell her, my own voice as foreign as hers. "I want to see my cock in your mouth, India. I need to see you take it all."
She opens her eyes just enough to see me and nods. She doesn't fight me when I pull her off the counter and push on her shoulders until she's kneeling before me. Her mouth is too perfect when she looks up to me, and I realize I haven't kissed her. Not today, anyway. That won't do. I want her lips swollen when she takes me.
With my hand at her neck, I tilt her head up, and I take her, consuming her mouth with mine and slipping my tongue between her lips. She's as sweet here as she is between her legs, and I realize how starved I've been.
When I pull away, I'm surprised by India's reaction to take my shaft in her hands and rub along the length. Her eyes sparkle when she glances up to read my face before she brushes my cock head over her reddened lips, teasing me.
I can't take her touch without feeling her around me. I close my eyes, holding back from thrusting myself desperately into her mouth. I don't wait long before she opens those perfect lips and takes me whole.
"Fuck," I whisper, threading my finger through her hair and thrusting along with her sucking. My God, her mouth is heaven. "Indie, fuck."
I want to linger and enjoy every stroke of India's tongue over my cock, but my balls are already tight, and if I wait any longer, I'll shoot it down her throat. I can't leave India unsatisfied. Not when she's given herself over to me. I jerk myself free from her mouth and pull her up by her shoulders and lay her out on the couch before I straddle her and dip my length into her wet clit.
India reaches for me, too eager to wait for the teasing I plan to give her. She holds me in her palm and guides me to her entrance, sinking me dee
p into her warmth until I lose myself.
Her head falls back, and she whispers my name repeatedly, building in intensity until her body rocks with mine, and she tightens until my cock pulses and spills.
It's not my fastest fuck, or my hardest, but damn, is it my finest.
India rides out the last of her orgasm before I pull free from her and land on the couch at her side. Her eyes are closed. Her skin glowing in a sheen of sweat. Her hair splayed around her head like a crown.
She's way too good for a man like me, but if the prize is the rest of my life with India, I'll do whatever it takes to measure up.
Chapter 8
India
I have never felt as content as I do now. Sitting on the log cabin's front porch, holding a warm coffee mug while wrapped in the blanket from the bed and nothing else, is my idea of heaven.
Scout's still sleeping with Nina tucked into his side. He's usually the first one awake and has breakfast and coffee waiting for me, but today, after a week of hiding in the woods and passing our time making love, it’s his turn to sleep in.
After growing up on the outskirts of a small town, I never dreamed I'd want anything but a big city life. I like the constant sounds of the traffic and the underlying hum of talking and laughing and the feeling of never being fully alone.
But here, in the middle of nowhere with Scout, I'm beginning to think my loneliness was less about the stillness of small-town life and more about lacking the perfect person to spend my life with.
Over the past week, Scout has opened up to me. I know about his past. His unstable childhood and his lack of family. I understand the draw to become part of something large, like the club. I can even see why he'd be attracted to the type of brother-like affection Cobra could offer. Scout is smart enough to see between the lines, and even though his need to belong was strong, his desire to do right won out.
He's quite a man when you peel back his many, complicated layers and see that at his core he's a gentle soul protecting others the way he wished he'd been protected.
The porch boards creak behind me, and I startle before Scout's large hand lands on my shoulder. He drops his lips to the crown of my head and circles me to stand between my chair and the endless view of trees and distant mountains. He leans on the porch railing and folds his arms over his bare chest. His boxers hang loose around his waist, and that perfect V of his pelvic bone has me licking my lips.
"You didn't wake me?" He smirks. "Tired of me already?"
"No." I bat my lashes at him in jest. "But a girl can think a sleeping man looks so peaceful she doesn't want to wake him."
Scout nods. "That's the story you're going with?"
"No." I lean forward and hand him my coffee mug. It's still piping hot, and we have been sharing all week. He takes it and sips heavily. "But you've been waiting on me for days. It's my turn to treat you to breakfast and let you sleep in."
Scout places the cup on the table beside the chair, and he pulls me up by one arm until I’m against him. My blanket begins to slip, but he catches it and wraps it around my shoulders. "Breakfast of my choosing, I hope?"
"Sure." I roll my eyes playfully. I know what's coming before Scout drops his mouth to my neck, and I bend, giving him full access.
"The only breakfast I want is right here in front of me. "
I hold his cheeks between the palms of my hands. "Somehow, I knew you'd say that. But that's not going to work today."
Scout shifts, so his legs are further apart, bringing his hips against mine and pressing his morning wood into my bare stomach. "It's worked every other morning."
He's playing with me, and he's oh so cute when he plays games. But not today. "You promised we could ride into town. I want to check on work and my apartment, and you need to see your brothers."
He huffs and shifts, grinding himself against me harder. My core clenches, and heat pools between my legs, but I will not lose focus. It's been a full week since we've had any word from the outside world. Scout's cell doesn't get reception in the hills, and other than an old radio for news and music, we've been living off-grid.
"Give me what I want first," he says, playing with the stray hair hanging free from my messy ponytail and tucking it behind my ear.
I laugh. "You're as bad as a little kid. No. I've given you what you wanted already. Many times. Now it's time for you to keep your promise to me."
He studies my eyes. He knows I'm not going to bend. Plus, I am dying to see Everly and thank her for the gift that broke the ice between Scout and me.
"Tomorrow," he says, still playing with my hair.
I grab his hand and lower it, smiling at him, so he knows I'm trying to be nice, but I'm also serious. "Today. What are you so afraid of anyway? If something had happened with Cobra, wouldn't your brothers have gotten word to you up here?"
He nods.
"Then what is it?"
Scout stalls. He wraps me in his arms and pulls me into him. The blanket falls with the action, but neither of us reach to stop it. Skin on skin, I'm standing in the crisp morning air while my body burns like a furnace.
"Say we do go back, and Cobra is no longer a threat. Where does that leave us?"
I frown and tilt my head. I'd never thought about the future beyond getting away from trouble, but I should have guessed Scout would have. Connections are hard for him to come by, and it makes sense he'd have a tough time breaking one, even if things between us aren't that serious.
At least he hasn't acted like they are.
"Where do you want that to leave us?" I ask.
He drops his forehead to mine and softly kisses my lips. "I'm not sure, but I want more time alone with you to find out. Tomorrow is only one more day."
"You're right. It is only one more day. Is that enough for you to make a decision about us?"
"No." He slowly shakes his head. "I'm not going anywhere, but the longer time you have to decide if I'm worth the trouble gives me a better chance you won't run the second we hit the town limits."
I can't believe I'm the one having to assure him I'm not going to leave. He's a freaking Greek God. Men like him don't take second glances at women like me, but here we are. Naked in the middle of the woods with him, begging me to stay.
When did my world flip upside down, and I become the prey to be hunted?
"I'm not like that, Scout." He doesn't react, making me believe I haven't convinced him yet. I run one palm down the side of his stubbly cheek and tilt his head, so he has no choice but to look me right in the eyes. "There is something more here for me than protection from an angry biker."
His weight shifts to one side. "So, you think you could learn to love a guy like me?"
It's sincere the way he asks, almost as if he doesn't believe he is worthy of that kind of love. It's sweet and sad at the same time, and guilt swims in my gut. I've complained about my smothering family while Scout's been searching for a place to belong. Life simply isn’t fair.
"I think I'd be a lucky girl to have a guy like you."
It's slow, but I see his lips turn upward and the creases of a smile form at his cheeks. "And you'd be willing to spend another week or two locked away with me in this cabin?"
"Nothing would make me happier." I push up on the balls of my feet to kiss him. When I finish, I reach down for the discarded blanket and wrap it around us both. "But I would still like to check on home. Maybe pick up a few extra things, check the mail. I'd like to tell Everly thank you for the gifts."
"Fine." Scout pulls me in close. "I'll take you back into town, but under two conditions. We send two members to your apartment to pick up your mail while you stay hidden away in the clubhouse."
"Agreed, though I'd like to pick who goes to my apartment." Not that I have anything to hide, but a stranger in my underwear drawer is still unsettling. "What's the second?"
"We're back here by dark. I don't want any surprises to catch us off guard." He gives me a sideways glance. "I mean it, India. Before dark. These back roads
can be tricky, and once the sun goes down, there are too many hiding spots to keep track of."
I throw my hands in the air in mock surrender. "I will be on my best behavior."
"I'm sure you will." Scout hugs me back, and when I pull away, I don't see a friend reflected in his eyes. My pulse quickens, and my skin grows hot. He's looking at me like he wants to fuck me. Right here. Right now. A look I would have run from a few weeks ago, but now my body hums at the possibilities.
"Well, we don't have to leave just this second." I run a hand over Scout's hair while his head drops, and his mouth hovers at the nape of my neck. I breathe in deeply and drop my head to the side, giving him full access.
I know we aren't going anywhere for awhile. The front porch is one of few places we haven't christened, and I'm sure when Scout closes his hands on my hips and pulls me back into his hard erection, it won't be long before we've covered every inch of this cabin.
I'm looking forward to it. The sooner we exhaust all possibilities of new places to have sex, the sooner we can start all over again.
Scout
I don't have a good feeling about bringing India back into town, but she's right. No one from the club has contacted us in a week. There is an area in the woods that gets decent cell reception, though I haven't let India in on that fact, and I've checked it a few times over the last week.
I can't make calls, but I can check messages, and there have been none. I sent one yesterday to Bear with the news India has been restless, and I have a feeling she’s going to convince me to return. This morning, before I put her in the truck and headed down the dirt road, I checked again. Nothing.
The ride back is long, but the way India is chatting happily about plans for things she needs from her apartment to make the cabin more homely makes the time pass quickly.
She doesn't notice she's doing it, but she's begun calling me her babe, which I find endearing, as long as she doesn't slip and say it in the club.
Scout: Tempest Elite MC Page 7
