Chains

by Wilder, Chiah

  Then that wicked mouth slid down to her breasts, and when he sucked a pebbled nipple through the fabric, Autumn thought she’d lose it. She gripped the nightshirt and flung it over her head, craving the feel of his lips on her bare skin.

  With a satisfied growl, Chains flicked the throbbing nipple with the tip of his tongue before sucking it into his mouth, all the while his fingers pressed harder against her.

  Autumn gasped. Breathing him in, she grabbed his hair and pulled on it recklessly.

  “That feels good, doesn’t it?” His voice was husky and raw.

  “Yes, it feels so fucking good.” She moaned, opening her legs a bit more.

  As his tongue laved her breasts, he pinched her clit, rolling it back and forth, and then one of his fingers moved under her panties and slipped deep inside her.

  “Oh, shit,” she groaned, bucking against him. Autumn reached out and yanked at the button of his jeans and pulled down the zipper. She heard him suck in a gasp of air as she reached into his pants; his cock was smooth and hard, and she curled her fingers around it, squeezing tightly.

  “Fuck, darlin’,” he said, his voice hoarse.

  “I want you so badly,” she whispered.

  Chains bent down and kissed her hard and rough, then pulled away. His eyes never left hers as he kicked his boots off and shed his clothes. She stared at the broad expanse of his chest and licked her lips. He’s so damn sexy. Perfect, really.

  When Autumn saw him take out a condom, she said, “I’m on the pill, and I want to feel all of you.”

  A wicked grin spread over Chains’s face. “I’m all in for that, baby.”

  Then she remembered the club girls. “I have to ask if you’ve been tested though.”

  Two strong hands gripped her ankles and pulled until she was flat on her back. “Yeah—I’m clean.” Chains lowered his gaze to the lace panties. “You’re so wet, they’re clinging to you.” He glanced back up, eyes scorching. Then he climbed back on the bed and hooked a finger under each side of the material, slowly sliding them off her legs.

  His lust and desire enveloped her while his words inflamed her.

  Chains rocked back on his heels and took in every part of her body. “You make me crazy,” he whispered as he reached out and stroked her bare pussy. Leaning forward, he hovered over Autumn, then crashed his mouth down on hers. This time the kisses were deeper, more demanding, more possessive. Autumn gripped his shoulders and clung to him like a drowning woman welcoming a life raft. Being with Chains felt so right, so wicked—so perfect.

  As they kissed, his hands glided their way over her breasts, down her belly, and into the wet folds between her thighs. With those deft fingers, he began caressing her with pleasurable, circling strokes. Autumn lifted her hips toward his hand, never wanting him to stop.

  “I need to be inside you,” he rasped as he pulled away. Chains gripped one leg and placed it over his shoulder, then did the same with the other one. “That’s it,” he murmured while lightly stroking her sex with the tip of his cock before pushing inside her wet heat.

  “Yes,” Autumn whispered.

  Chains pumped himself into her while groaning her name. He bent over to possess her mouth and then lightly bit her nipples before pounding into her again. Autumn took in the sounds of their coupling and the scent of sex, relishing the feeling of the two of them together. He drove in harder, rougher—his pants and grunts music to her ears. Autumn could feel his desire, the heat from his body, and a connection to him in a way that she’d never had with a man before.

  When he pinched Autumn’s clit, the building dam of sensations inside her burst, and she came in delicious waves of ecstasy. Chains pounded harder, then stiffened, and a low feral growl erupted from his throat while he buried his face in her breasts.

  After what seemed like a long time, Chains rolled off Autumn and drew her near. His heart beat steadily against her ear, and within seconds, she heard his heavy breathing. Reaching over, she switched off the lamp, and the gray light of dawn weakly filtered in through the shutters.

  She nestled closer to him, realizing that it was Chains—this rough-around-the-edges outlaw biker—who made her feel safe and desired.

  * * *

  Autumn woke up blissfully sore later that morning. She looked over and stared at the empty spot, then the sound of water caught her attention. Just as she pushed up against the headboard, the bathroom door opened and a cloud of steam escaped into the bedroom. Chains stepped out, wearing a towel around his waist as droplets of water glistened off his bare chest and shoulders.

  “Morning,” he said, stopping in his tracks.

  Autumn smiled. “Do you have to leave?”

  “Gotta go to church, but I’ll be back.” A smile twitched on his lips. “In citizens’ language that means a meeting at the clubhouse.”

  “Oh. Can you tell me what the meeting’s about?” She stared at him, taking in his muscular chest, lean waist, slim hips, and corded legs.

  “No way, darlin’. Club business.”

  Chains stood by the bed, looking sexy as hell. He ran a hand through his wet hair, the ink around his sculpted bicep danced erotically.

  “Like what you see?” He bent down, planting his hands on each of her shoulders.

  She inhaled sharply. He smelled clean, like soap and oranges, and a small smile ghosted her lips when she pictured him washing his hair with her citrus shampoo. With her eyes still fixed on his, she slowly nodded.

  “I like what I see too.” He reached forward and stroked her cheek, his fingers lingering near her mouth.

  Slowly blowing out the held breath, Autumn grasped his hand and laced their fingers together. “I’m sure I look awful,” she said softly.

  “You’re always beautiful, baby. Icing your face all night has helped the swelling a lot. The bruises will take some time, though.” His jaw hardened as his eyes scanned her face.

  “Nothing concealer can’t cover.” She laughed.

  The lyrics from “T.N.T.” by AC/DC filled the room, and when Chains jumped back, she admired the way the strong muscles in his back moved, making the skull tattoo on his shoulder ripple as he walked over to the dresser.

  He spoke in hushed tones, and after he put the phone back down, he crossed the room and scooped up his clothes.

  “I gotta get going,” he said, dropping the towel.

  Autumn sat unblinking, as she sucked in a breath and held it. His body was impressive, and she’d never stop looking at it, relishing the beauty of it. Her gaze fell to his relaxed dick that hung heavily between his legs, and flutters swirled in her stomach as memories of their sex-fest flashed through her mind.

  Chains pulled up his boxers and her eyes cut up to his. Desire smoldered in those brown orbs, and she turned away, a bit embarrassed at being caught ogling him. A hearty laugh deepened the flush creeping up her neck.

  “No reason to be shy about admiring the goods, baby.” He winked at her, then shrugged on a pair of jeans.

  Autumn watched as Chains buckled his belt and then slipped on a leather vest. Patches adorned the front, and plastered on the back of it was the club’s logo: three skeletons on motorcycles with flames coming out the back tires. On the top it read Night Rebels and the initials MC were just under the image; on the bottom were the words SW Colorado.

  “That’s an interesting vest you’re wearing. What does the diamond with the one percent in the middle mean?” she asked.

  “It’s our way of saying that we don’t live like the rest of you,” he answered, winking at her.

  She reached down, picked up her nightgown and slipped it over her head, then pushed up from the bed.

  “Is it hard to become a member of your club?”

  “You gotta prospect first, but that’s not open to everyone. A member has to recommend you; then, the club decides if they want you to prospect. Being a prospect is a lowly job, but if a dude can get through it, he’s earned the right to wear a full patch.” Chains walked over to Autumn and ya
nked her against him. “You’re fuckin’ incredible,” he said, his hands gliding down her back and cupping her butt.

  “You too.” She kissed the base of his throat. “How long will you be at … what did you call it?”

  “Church.” A smile tugged at his lips. “About an hour, then I have to see a friend. I should be back in a few.” He pressed his mouth to hers, his tongue delving in deep.

  Autumn whimpered and leaned in closer, her arms looping around his neck.

  He pinched, then smacked her ass cheeks before pulling away. “Fuck, you drive me wild, woman. I can’t keep my hands off you, but if I’m late, Steel will have my head.”

  “Well, I don’t want that,” she joked, running her hands over his firm butt.

  Chains groaned, then stepped away from her. “I should be back around two or so. I’ll bring Thor and we can go to Dolores Canyon. Have you been there?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve read about it. There’s a lake there, right?”

  “Yeah—Arrow Lake. It’s not too far from here, and it hasn’t been overrun by tourists like Overland Lake.”

  “Sound great. I can pack a lunch for us and bring some treats for Thor.”

  Chains walked over and kissed her deeply. “Sounds good, baby,” he whispered. “I better get outta here, or we’re gonna end up spending the rest of today in bed.”

  “That wouldn’t be a bad thing, would it?” She ran her tongue along his jawline.

  “Fuck,” he rasped before breaking away. “That’ll be our plan for tomorrow.” He winked and took out a set of keys from his pocket.

  After kissing Chains goodbye, Autumn watched him ride away; then, she closed the door and went into the kitchen to give Cinder some food. As she poured the dry food into the cat’s dish, the phone rang.

  “Here you go, sweetie.” She set the dish down and hurried over to the table to pick it up.

  “Hello?”

  “Don’t hang up on me.”

  Her stomach roiled upon hearing Bret’s voice.

  “I’m so sorry about the other night. Please, Autumn, hear me out. I’ve been sick about it, I really have.”

  Her instinct was to hang up on him, but she pulled out the kitchen chair and sank down on it. “I’m listening.”

  “I don’t know what got into me. I’ve been using some new medication for an infection that I’ve had, and it didn’t agree with me. I was acting all kinds of crazy.” He let out a dry cough. “Like that night. You’ve known me for almost two years. I’ve never been violent toward you, right?”

  “That’s true,” she mumbled.

  “So, you know it’s out of character for me. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” There was another cough, then a long pause. “How are you doing? I didn’t break anything, did I? Please say I didn’t.”

  “No, but I look like hell. I had to miss a day of work, and I haven’t been out of the house since you hit me.”

  Bret groaned loudly. “I hate even hearing you say that. I’ve never hit a woman. I don’t know what happened.”

  “Neither do I. You seemed so angry about your brother.”

  “Yeah, well, he pisses me off. He thinks he’s some fucking stud around the ladies. Every girlfriend I had in high school just wanted to date him. I don’t know why women like men who are losers.”

  “The point was, you didn’t trust me. I never cheated on you—that’s never been my way. You should’ve known that.”

  “When it comes to him and women, I always wonder. I just lost it when I saw you with him at Chianti’s.”

  “You were with your ex-girlfriend. Anyway, you broke up with me.” Autumn stood up and walked over to the coffeemaker. If she was going to continue talking to Bret, she’d need caffeine for sure.

  “Teresa’s just a friend. I’m not back with her, and I never cheated on you while we were together—I swear it.”

  “Thanks for telling me that.” She inhaled the scent of the dark roast.

  “I don’t know, I freaked out about settling down for life, and my mom was really pushing me to get married.”

  “I was kind of freaked about it too.” Opening the cupboard, she took out a mug.

  “You were? You seemed so into it,” he said.

  “It was the hype from your mom and mine. Anyway, you and I were fighting too much for a couple who was about to be married. It just sucks that I paid for a lot of it already, and canceling everything is going to be a real time sucker. I’m grateful Sadie’s offered to help me out with that.” Are you going to offer to pay me back for some of the expenses? I bet not.

  “How’s the clinic going?”

  I called that one. Jerk. “Fine.” Grasping the handle, she brought the coffee pot over to the table, then poured the dark liquid into the cup. At the first sip, she closed her eyes, savoring the rich flavor.

  “I’m still on a business trip—I’ve been on this one for the last couple of days. I’ll probably be gone for a while.”

  “Oh.” Why the hell’s he telling me that?

  “If you talk to my brother, you can let him know that.”

  Huh? Strange. “I should be going,” she said before taking another sip.

  “Autumn, I’d like to take you out to dinner when I get back in town. I think I made a mistake … I miss you.”

  Didn’t see that coming. “You think? You don’t know?” Autumn chuckled softly. “The truth is, getting married would’ve been a disaster for both of us—I see that now. We don’t really mesh.”

  “What the fuck does that mean? We’ve been together for over a year, and have known each other for two, and you’ve just discovered that we don’t fucking mesh?” Anger punctuated his words.

  “Sometimes people stay together because they’ve been together for a while. I think that was our case. Face it—you never liked my friends or wanted to go out with them, and I thought your friends acted like they were still living at the fraternity house. It’s best that we go our separate ways.”

  Bret didn’t say anything, and if she hadn’t heard his rapid breathing, Autumn would’ve thought he’d hung up. A tense silence crackled over the phone, then he said in a low, terse voice, “You’re with Chet, aren’t you?”

  Autumn finished the coffee, stood up, and walked over to the sink where she rinsed the mug and put it in the dishwasher. Licking her lips, she looked out the window into the backyard. The bare branches of the oak tree swayed slightly, and she saw Tommy—the six-year-old from next door—running around his yard with a small green ball, laughing like a hyena.

  “Your silence means you are.”

  Bret’s voice echoed in her ear, reminding Autumn she was still having a conversation with her him.

  “My silence means what I do or don’t do is none of your business anymore. If you want to know anything about your brother, go ask him. I hope you have a good life.” Then, with a single tap on the screen, Bret disappeared. What an asshole. The decent thing would’ve been to offer to help me cancel all the damn wedding plans and pay for half of it.

  Bret’s call threw her off balance because it wasn’t in his nature to do something like that. He never apologized while they were together, so she couldn’t quite figure out what had prompted him to do so now. Maybe he was worried she’d call the police, or that Chains would come after him.

  Autumn snapped her fingers and nodded. Of course—he’s scared Chains will kick his ass. That’s why he told me he wasn’t in town. I wouldn’t be surprised if he were laying low at Teresa’s house. How ridiculous to be that afraid of a sibling. She glanced over at the wedding notebook she’d been keeping, and groaned. Come Monday, she and Sadie would have to start calling the various vendors and canceling the orders. “I’m going to take a real financial hit on this,” she muttered under her breath while walking out of the kitchen.

  When she reached the second floor, Autumn grabbed a large green towel out of the linen closet and stepped into the master bathroom. A nice hot soak in the tub was just what she needed, replete with scente
d candles and Enya playing in the background.

  She slipped out of her nightshirt, noticing more love bites than ever on her body. The one on her neck would have to be covered before she went to Eli’s Delicatessen to buy some things for their lunch. Turning on the faucet, Autumn sprinkled some bath salts that Sadie had given her for her birthday in the summer. While the soaking tub filled, she lit several candles, turned the music on low, and switched off the ringer on the phone.

  When the tub was sufficiently full, she sank into the steamy water, slipping beneath the surface to wet her hair. She came up blinking water from her eyes, then settled back and let the warm water swish around her.

  Autumn rested her head back and thoughts of Chains floated in her mind. How had he become such an integral part of her life in so short a time? And why the hell didn’t she feel one scintilla of guilt about dating Bret’s brother so soon after the breakup? Talking with Bret earlier made her happy that he was out of her life. What she needed now was to find out who the hell Ruby was and what the hell those club girls were all about. Suddenly, she found herself plagued by unfamiliar jealousy.

  Not wanting to think about Bret, or the strong possibility of Chains crushing her heart, Autumn closed her eyes and let the music take her away.

  Chapter Nineteen

  At a little after two in the afternoon, a barking dog roused Autumn from her nap. A car door slammed just as she pushed up from the couch. The barking drew closer and she shuffled over to the window to see what all the ruckus was about, and her heart did a flip-flop when she saw Chains swaggering up the sidewalk to her house with Thor in tow.

  Autumn quickly fluffed her hair, then glanced down at Cinder.

  “Be nice to Thor, okay?” Bending down, she scratched Cinder under her chin, then scooped the cat up in her arms and walked to the front door.

  She flung it open before Chains rang the bell, and Thor barked excitedly upon seeing her, his white tail wagging a mile a minute. Chains stood there for a moment, his gaze sweeping over her.