by Voss, Deja
“I know, I know,” I said. I needed to get my head in the game. Needed to get my shit together. I couldn’t get my eyes off of Sage, though. That outfit she had on made my jeans a little tighter than I wanted to admit. The mask had to go, obviously, but everything about the way that tight black leather squeezed her curves was absolutely delicious.
Sharky began to load up a tray with the vodka and red bulls he’d poured for the girls, and I fixed a jack and coke, setting it in the middle. “You want to win brownie points with your idol, give her this.”
He shrugged and trotted off, and I couldn’t help but chuckle when I realized he was holding the tray directly over his junk. Apparently he really had a thing for whoever the hell this Sabine character was. If only he knew.
“I’m actually on my way out,” Athena said, raising her eyebrows at me. “Thanks for your concern.”
“I didn’t mean it that way, Athena,” I said. “I know ya’ll love that baby more than anything. I’m just having a rough night. Didn’t mean to take it out on you.” Or Dana. Or Sharky. None of this was making me feel better. Not even the thought of punching Kevin in the face repeatedly was making me feel better. My anger was running deeper. My anger was at the agency. Always had been, always will be. Why would they put her in a position like this?
“I know sweetie,” she said, shooting me a wink. “I just heard a rumor that Sabine was in town. Haven’t seen that girl in forever. Haven’t heard from her since she fell off the face of the earth. I’ve been kind of worried.”
I was more than kind of worried. Things were going to go sideways real quick if Athena realized Sage was just playing a part.
“I don’t think it’s her. I think it’s just some publicity stunt for Kevin, personally. I can tell you for certain in about five seconds, though.” The vein in my head pulsed. To my horror, Sage was heading right this way, an empty drink in her hand. I tried to discreetly wave her off, but she ran up to Athena and gave her a giant hug, and I didn’t know if I should’ve been relieved that the girl did her research, or if I should still warn her off. Athena wasn’t a dummy.
“How’s retirement treating you, pretty girl?” Sage asked in this heavy German accent I hadn’t heard since way back when we took linguistic training together. It was kind of cute, kind of sexy, and absolutely flawless.
“It’s good. Life is good. I have a baby. I’m getting married soon.”
Sage tapped her long red fingernails on the bar and slid her glass towards me. “Do you mind, darling? One for me and one for Athena, please? Are you still a Bloody Mary girl?”
Athena laughed. “I’m drying out, Sabine. Used up all my reserves the other night. I don’t need baby Harley on the sauce just yet.”
I fixed Sage’s drink, just the way she liked it, lots of Jack, a splash of coke. I watched in fascination as these two ‘caught up.’ I forgot how electric it was when Sage worked. She could be anyone or anything on the drop of a dime. She was the best in the business, and in some sick way I was super proud of her for being able to keep her composure around Athena.
She was the best in the business, and I had the pleasure of working by her side for many years. I had the pleasure of being with her. Inside her. Close to her. She was as much a part of me as my brain, my heart, she forever held my dick in her hand. She was perfect.
She winked at me as she sipped her drink, and my thoughts grew darker. I needed to get her alone. She’d hang me from the rafters if I blew her chance at collecting intel. I needed to play it cool. I gave her a cool nod and she mouthed ‘thank you’ to me as I wandered off to talk to my brothers.
“What do you think?” I asked Miles, who was standing in the corner by the pool table, with his cool stoic gaze. He was a weird one, didn’t say much. He was always just watching, like there was a whole different world going on in his mind than what was going on in front of us. He was a valuable member of our crew, because when he did talk, the stuff that came out of his mouth was exceptionally intelligent. He knew when to be cautious. He knew when to be callous. He just had this air of distance about him that must’ve been exhausting. He could never let his guard down and just enjoy the ride.
“Girls seem nice. Ain’t never judged anybody for using what they got to get money.”
If anything these women were a lot more intelligent than the usual broads who hung around with us. Money was something we had to give. Love, trust, stability, that was something we struggled with extracting from our coffers. Obviously I’d give it all to Sage on the drop of a dime. All it took was the right woman to unlock that fierce and protective warrior inside of each of us.
I could tell none of these women were ringing his bell, though.
“That Kevin seems like a straight up douche,” he said, reaching into the pocket of his cut. “This fell out of his pocket.” It was a plastic baggie tied off at the top filled with little pills. I didn’t even need to take a closer look to see what they were.
“Was he planning on using those on us?” I asked, trying to figure out why that man would be carrying around a handful of roofies. No professional would drug their talent. That was the fastest way to catch a reputation. Either he was going to use them on us, or he was going to frame us. I guess he could’ve been that dumb. I just thought some guy with multiple mansions and a multimillion dollar business would’ve known better than to let something like this slip.
“You think he’s ever tried one before?” Miles asked with a mischievous smile on his face. “Probably slow him down a little bit.”
It would definitely slow him down a little bit. Definitely give me a chance to get some alone time with Sage. Get the rundown on the situation, even though all I could think about was getting her out of that leather outfit and up against the first wall I could find.
“What’s the kid drinking?” I asked Elaine who had resumed her position behind the bar. She was definitely not amused by the onslaught of new talent stealing her attention, looking down her nose any time someone came up to the bar for a drink.
She fixed his cocktail, something with way too many ingredients, two of which were different flavored juices. I wasn’t sure if this guy could get any more unlikable. While I stood there, I pulverized the pills into a fine powder in the plastic baggie. I slipped her a five for her troubles. I slipped a little bit of the powder into the drink, using whatever self control I had not to just completely dose him out of his mind. I didn’t need to make Sage’s job any harder than it was. Dead bodies in the clubhouse while an active investigation was going on was probably not a kind of heat the club needed. Baby dose would have to do.
“I think we got off on the wrong foot, man,” I said, handing him the fruity concoction. “Shit’s been a little crazy around here lately. We don’t really take kindly to strangers coming around. Gotta be a little suspicious, you know.”
He took a long hit off his e-cigarette and blew the vapor right in the face of whatever redhead was currently flanking him on the left. She giggled politely, but I could tell she wasn’t impressed with him, either. “Enforcer, huh?” he said, reading my patch. “Makes sense. Seems like you were put here to make sure nobody has any fun.”
I clenched my fist in my pocket. Miles was standing behind me laughing as Kevin took a sip of the drink.
“Trust me, old Law here knows how to have a really good time. He’s one of the funnest guys I know.”
I had to laugh at that. Both Miles and I were pretty serious men. We weren’t known for our practical jokes or our senses of humor. Hardened by the worlds we came up in, we were definitely built for our positions as enforcer and sergeant at arms. Still, we had our own idea of fun. Watching this guys eyelids start to droop was just the tip of the iceberg. Within a couple minutes he was swaying back and forth like he was standing on a boat out at sea.
I really shouldn’t have drugged him, but it was better him than us. Better him than any of these poor girls who were feigning interest in him just so they could keep working in the business.
“Sure is,” I said.
“You guys might be tough, but I’m smart. Crazy smart. I know how to do things with technology that nobody else is doing right now. I know more about computer hacking than most people on the FBI’s most wanted lists.”
“Hm,” I said. I’d let him dig his hole.
“You guys let me do the brains and you do the muscles, and I’ll make you some very rich men.” His words were starting to slur and his eyelids drooped lower and lower. “I need protection. The women in my house need protection. I need security over there 24/7.”
“And this is all completely legit?” I asked. “Everything you do, it’s all legal?” Sure I was going out on a limb, but while I had him talking, I knew I needed to take advantage of the situation. If I knew anything about my time working with violent criminals and terrorists, it was that they loved bragging about their accomplishments to anyone they thought might be impressed.
“That’s the beauty of it,” he said, his eyes closing all the way. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m really fucking sleepy.” The redhead shrugged and smiled as Kevin walked over to the nearest couch and just flopped down on it, falling asleep immediately.
“Must be past poor baby Kevin’s bedtime,” she said with a laugh. “Now the party can really start?”
Miles slipped his arm around her waste and shot me a wink as they walked off together.
Maybe I didn’t get the information I was looking for, but I did buy myself some alone time with Sage. Now the party could really start.
Chapter Fifteen
Sage:
“Psst,” I heard the voice whisper from the hallway. I had to admit, Fawn was right. These bikers were absolute sweethearts. Most men I’d interacted with were complete dogs when it came to how they treated sex workers, but these guys seemed to treat these ladies with more respect than I’d seen a lot of guys treat their mother.
The music was good and the drinks were strong.
For a moment I forgot what I was even doing here. I felt right at home. No wonder Law was so happy. You put a bunch of outsiders in a closed space, and suddenly you feel like you’re maybe not so weird. I didn’t even feel uncomfortable in my leather outfit. I had more clothes on than most of the women here, and that wasn’t including the ones I’d showed up with. Of course if anyone here had any idea who I was, that might’ve all changed. I didn’t forget for one minute what a dangerous position I was putting myself and Landon into.
Which is why I nearly jumped out of my skin when I turned to see him standing in the dark hallway, beckoning for me to join him. I excused myself from the people I was talking to under the guise of needing to use the bathroom, and stepped into the long corridor that came off the side of the bar area.
My heart raced when I saw the way he was staring at me, like he simultaneously wanted to eat me alive and hug me and tell me everything was going to be okay. Like he wanted to spank some answers out of me while telling me I was the prettiest girl he’d ever seen. I’d take it all from him. Either I had a few too many drinks or this place was really getting to me.
“Landon,” I whispered as he grabbed my hand, “we can’t be doing this. I’m going to be in deep shit if I go missing too long.”
He pulled something out of his pocket, a ziplock bag of crushed up powder. “Don’t worry, your boy is going to be detained for at least a couple hours.” He had this goofy smirk on his face, and it took everything in me not to run my fingers over that sexy stubble framing his chiseled jawline. Was it the way I was dressed? The drinks? The dark hallway? The man? The closer he got to me, the further away the mission drifted from my mind. The hallway was dark, but my desires grew darker.
“Did you drug him?” I asked with a laugh.
“He was the one that brought the party favors, I just happened to be the one handing them out.”
“Landon Albreight did you seriously roofie a man so that you could spend some private time with me?” He scooped me up in his arms and wrapped me in the biggest, warmest bear hug. I squealed with laughter, blissfully ecstatic to be in the arms of the man I cared for more than anyone in the world. “That’s really romantic,” I teased.
He heaved me over his shoulder with one swoop and I didn’t even begin to complain. His hand was firmly wrapped across my nearly bare ass as he started to walk down the hallway.
“You know me, Sage, Mr. Romantic.”
Right now it was more like Mr. Caveman, but I didn’t care. I was reunited with my favorite person. I felt complete. Free. For one blissful moment, I felt like there was nothing else in the world but the two of us. I could’ve really gone for a night of wild sex, no holds barred, shelving the mission for another day. Maybe he had turned over a new leaf. Maybe he was really going to let this thing drop and just indulge me for the night.
He knocked on a door, pressing his ear to it before swinging it open. He flicked on the light. I’d never seen an uglier room before in my life. The carpet was orange shag, like something out of the early seventies, and the bedspread looked like somebody stole it from one of those motels you rent rooms by the hour in. “Please tell me this isn’t your room,” I said.
“I don’t live here, babe,” he said, setting me to the ground. “This is just a guest room.”
“You mean a room where people come to fuck.”
He shrugged, smirking at me the whole time, and slipped his thumbs underneath the inside of my mask, pulling it up over my head. “Does that bother you?” he asked.
“You know it doesn’t bother me. How’s it make your girlfriend feel, though?”
I took a deep breath and shook my hair from the tight ponytail it was in raking my fingers through my scalp.
“I wouldn’t exactly call her that. Dana’s a nice girl, but…” he sat down on the edge of the bed and motioned for me to join him. Sure, I wanted him, and I didn’t know Dana from Adam, but that’s not what I was worried about. I didn’t want to do one more thing to stand in between Landon and his happily ever after. It wasn’t fair to him, no batter how much I craved him. I had serious qualms about rolling in here and just fucking up his life. As jealous as it made me seeing him with another woman. As powerful as I felt knowing that he was at my beck and call.
“Don’t let me get in the way,” I said.
“It’s your fault in the first place, love. I was just taking your advice. Finding myself a nice woman and trying to settle down, that was all your idea. You got me fucked up in the head Sage. I tried. I really tried. It was never going to work out.”
“You’re not just saying that because I’m here now?” I asked. “I’m working. I might not be here for long. You know the rules.”
“In my world, there are no rules. Now get your fine ass over here.” He reached for my hand and I took it, straddling his lap as our lips touched. Kissing him was like hot chocolate on a cold winter morning. Like sitting in the sand and letting the waves kiss your feet. Pure. Familiar. Bliss. Comforting. All things good. And yet, I knew in my heart this would only lead to all things bad. I knew as usual tomorrow I was going to feel like shit. Sad and lonely. Knowing that this big giant thing we have was never going to work out.
“You know the whole time I was about to lick that motherfucker’s boot all I could think about was how jealous I was of that woman holding your hand? If you
didn’t step in, I probably would’ve done it just to smite you.”
“You wanna smite me now?” he laughed, licking his perfect lips. I wanted to do a lot more than smite him. Smite definitely wasn’t even the proper word for what I had in mind, although a solid hate fucking wasn’t out of the question.
“You know there’s nobody’s boots I’d rather kiss than yours,” I purred. I meant it, too.
“I can think of a million things I’d rather do with that pretty mouth of yours than have it on my dirty boots, Sabine.” I could feel his cock hardening in his jeans, and my pussy trembled and clenched at the thought of having it in my mouth.
“That feeling, when I saw you with her? It didn’t just make me angry,” I said, dropping to my knees between his parted legs. I reached for his belt, staring into his eyes as I slowly undid the clasp.
“Did the thought of me with another woman turn you on, pet?” he asked. There was concern in his voice, but fire in his eyes. I knew that voice. It was the one he used when he thought he was going too far. Thought he was going to hurt me too much. That voice he used right before I begged him to do his worst.
I nodded. “You know I love it when you hurt me.” That painful admission was somehow so liberating, and somehow it turned me on even more.
He pushed my hand away from his zipper, catching my wrists in his hands, just to the point of slightly painful. “I’m afraid that’s a kind of pain I’m not willing to indulge you in,” he said somberly.
The look on his face was a mixture of confusion and compassion, but his grip was telling. I knew if I pushed him just a little further, I could get the spanking of a lifetime out of this deal.
“How many times did you fuck her, Landon?” I asked, watching his cock swell even harder in his jeans.
“Never fucked her. Maybe used her body, but every time I did, all I thought about was you.”
“Even when you thought you were never going to see me again?” I asked. I didn’t know what I was feeling now. Was this what love felt like? The acceptance of an admission so fucked up and knowing in your heart it was true? Would a normal woman be as flattered as I was?
