Reaper: Devil's Mayhem MC Romance

by Mary Potter

  It’s the only thing I can do right now. As much as I hate it, Jessica’s death had shoved our investigation into an entirely new direction, and there’s no way that I can handle a murder on my own.

  I only hope we don’t get too caught up in it all.

  ********

  I don’t know how much time it is before we’re allowed to leave. It’s late when I step into the parking lot, breathing in the fresh air after being cooped inside for hours. The lights of several police cars are flashing, lighting the area up in blues and reds, and officers are scouring the area, interviewing employees and ushering curious onlookers away. Jessica’s body has already been loaded up into a van and taken away, and the police are scouring her office for clues.

  As the one who found the body, Kyra underwent more intense questioning, as did I. I half thought that she might fold, too shocked and upset to craft our story so that the police didn’t suspect we were at the club for anything other than pleasure. To my surprise, she spun her story without a hitch, holding my jacket around her shoulders the entire time.

  Kyra hasn’t said a single word to me since we left the building. As I hand her a helmet, however, she clears her throat.

  “Thanks,” she says quietly.

  I’m not sure what she’s really thanking me for. For being there during the investigation? For trying to help her get to the bottom of what’s happening here? For loaning her my jacket? Instead of questioning it, I just nod and fit my own helmet on my head.

  “Viper will be waiting for us at the house,” I say to her as I swing my leg over the bike. “We’ll try to figure out what to do next.”

  “Sounds good,” Kyra says, getting on behind me.

  On our way to the club earlier, the feeling of her body pressing against mine had been a pleasant sensation, but the majority of my thoughts had been taken up with what we might find at the club. Now, however, with the most recent memory of the feel of Kyra’s skin still hanging around in my mind, the feeling of her pressed so intimately against me makes my breath stutter for a moment before I clear my throat.

  “Let’s go,” I say unnecessarily, kicking the motorcycle into gear.

  I try to think of what we can do next, but it seems like every cell in my brain has decided to devote itself to feeling the heat of Kyra’s hands as she tucks them around me, the tips of her fingers lightly brushing my stomach, the press of her breasts against my back, and the way that she shifts closer to me as we ride, fitting perfectly along the line of my own body.

  Fuck. It really has been too long since I’ve been with anyone. Every nerve in my body is on edge, reminding me, without fail, that Kyra is right there. It’s almost a struggle to keep my focus on the road.

  When we finally arrive back at the house, I force myself not to leap off the bike until Kyra has slipped out from behind me. I am both relieved and disappointed when the warm weight of her body disappears. I mentally shake myself. Now isn’t the time to be thinking about any of this.

  All logical thought is blown out the window when I turn to see Kyra standing behind me. She is clutching the lapels of my jacket in a white-knuckled grip, and she looks oddly small and lost. I haven’t known her for very long, but she’d given me the impression of being strong, determined, and larger than life. To see her looking so frail and unsure doesn’t seem right.

  “Are you okay?” I ask.

  “Do I look okay?” she snaps back, fire briefly flaring in her eyes.

  “No,” I say bluntly.

  The truth seems to take her by surprise, and she blinks at me for a long moment. Then she sighs, her shoulders falling from the automatically defensive position she’d drawn them into.

  “I don’t get what happened,” she admits. “Why was Jessica killed?”

  I’ve got a lot of ideas about that, but there’s one main thought that springs to mind. For a second, I hesitate to voice it, but she probably won’t thank me for trying to protect her from this.

  “Jessica was obviously under orders to give you to that other guy,” I say. “But greed got in her way, and she accepted my money instead. I’d say that her superiors weren’t happy about that.”

  “But murder?” Kyra looks ill. “Is all this really so important that they’d kill someone over it?”

  I don’t say it, but yes, they would kill over that. In the world that Chains and I live in, money and power are essential tools in our box. There are many in this world who would freely kill in order to keep both.

  “Let’s go inside,” I say instead. “If you feel up to it.”

  Kyra drew in a deep breath and then straightened.

  “Yeah, let’s go,” she says.

  The house is quiet when we enter. It’s late, so Carla will have put Emma down for bed by now, and she might have even followed, overwhelmed by everything that has happened in the last twenty-four hours. As we draw closer to the kitchen, I can hear the quiet murmur of voices, and I direct Kyra in that direction. When we open the door, I can see Viper and Mandy deep in a whispered conversation.

  “Reaper,” Viper says when he looks up, keeping his voice low. “Keep it down, okay? Emma and Carla are asleep in the next room.”

  “We made up some beds for them on the floor,” Mandy adds. “Some of the others came around, and the rooms are clean now, but Emma wanted to try and wait for her mom.”

  “I’ll go see her in a moment,” Kyra says with a soft smile, relaxing. “Thank you, Mandy.”

  Mandy shoots her a bright grin and a wink. “No worries,” she says as she stretches. “Well, now that you’re back, I’m going to head off. I hope you appreciate the work we did, Reaper!”

  “I do,” I assure her. “Thank you.”

  With a jaunty wave, Mandy leaves, and I hear the front door click closed behind her.

  “How did it go?” Viper asks. “You’re back later than we expected.”

  “There was a problem.” I scowl. “Someone was killed while we were there.”

  It doesn’t take long to fill Viper in, from Jessica spiriting Kyra away for work, to Rick’s warnings, to me stepping in to buy Kyra for the night, and then to Kyra discovering Jessica, dead in her office.

  “The weirdest thing was that we got a knock on the door from that guy,” Kyra says with a frown. “I didn’t recognize his voice.”

  “They were checking up on us,” I tell Viper. “Because we were just talking. We thought Jessica sent him, but…”

  “He might have been the one to kill her,” Viper finishes grimly. “Fuck, Reaper. This is way bigger than we thought it was.”

  “We always knew it was going to be rough,” I remind him. “We already know that they’ll stop at nothing to get what they want.”

  Lacey flashes through my mind once more. I’d walked away from all of this when the world took away the one person I loved more than life itself. I’m not yet sure whether I regret returning. But there’s also no denying the determined fire that’s beginning to burn in my chest. I’m going to fix this, no matter what.

  “So, are we thinking the manager was killed before she could talk?” Viper asks, drawing my thoughts back to the situation.

  “Yeah,” I say with a nod. “She let greed get the best of her. And maybe someone recognized me and didn’t want her to let something slip. Or they could have just been angry that she let Kyra go again.”

  “Why are they trying so hard to take me, though?” Kyra demands, scowling.

  “Because you know stuff now,” Viper says with a shake of his head. “You know where they’re place is, you can identify some of the people that were there, and you know who’s behind it. They either need to take you back or kill you if they want to keep their secrets.”

  Kyra stiffens. “Right,” she says in a strangled voice.

  alright, I think that’s enough speculation for the night.

  “We’ll talk about it more tomorrow when we’re all fresh,” I say, stepping forward. “It’s been a long day. We should all get some sleep and work out what we�
��re going to do tomorrow. Viper, gather the guys here in the morning, and we’ll come up with a plan.”

  “Do we want to involve the rest of the club yet?” Viper asks.

  “No,” I say, frowning. “They’re still divided after my takeover. In this, I need people who I can trust one hundred percent at my side.”

  “Right,” Viper agrees. “alright, then. You guys get some rest. I’ll be back in the morning.”

  When he’s gone, I turn to look at Kyra. She’s gone pale again. Without thinking, I step forward and put my hands on her shoulders, making her head jerk up to look at me.

  “They’re not going to get you,” I say firmly. “I won’t let them.”

  I don’t know what the future will bring, and I’ve broken promises before, but I fully intend to keep this one.

  Chapter Twelve: Kyra

  As I look up at Reaper, suddenly very aware of how much taller than me he is, I can’t help but feel oddly safe. His grip is firm but not crushing, and his eyes are intent on mine. He truly wants to protect me.

  I can’t remember the last time anyone tried to help me. For so long, I’ve done everything on my own—raising Emma, struggling for money, working poor hours. It’s almost a relief to think that there’s some part of this situation that I can trust someone else to take care of.

  I notice that I’m leaning toward Reaper, and I pull back. His hands instantly fall from my shoulders, and I immediately feel the absence of his warm touch.

  “Mandy said the rooms are clear,” Reaper says. “I’ll take you up to one.”

  “One second,” I say.

  I creep into the living room. Emma and Carla are curled up on the floor, covered in soft blankets and pillows. I don’t want to disturb them, but I also know that Emma needs to know I’m back. I kneel on the floor and lean down to gently touch my lips to her forehead. Emma stirs, her eyes flickering open ever so slightly.

  “Mom?” she whispers groggily.

  “I’m here,” I say softly. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  She smiles and closes her eyes, dropping back to sleep. Feeling warm and content, I pull myself back to my feet and leave the room, quietly closing the door behind me as I do so. I’ll probably get her jumping on me in the morning, but that’s okay. I know this whole situation is affecting her too.

  Reaper leads me up the stairs. Whoever came while we were gone has done an amazing job with the cleaning. Most of the dust is gone, and it looks like the floors were vacuumed. I kick off my heels when we get to the top of the stairs, feeling the soft carpet beneath my feet.

  “Considering that apartment building we live in, I still can’t believe you own this house,” I comment as I follow him.

  “It’s not really somewhere I’d want to live on my own,” Reaper says with a shrug. “It’s too big.”

  “Maybe you’ll want to share it with someone one day,” I say with a teasing smile.

  Reaper doesn’t smile in return like I expected. He looks away, his eyes shadowed.

  “The only person I wanted to share this with is dead,” he says in a whisper.

  I stare at his back, shocked and dismayed. Suddenly, in this long, opulent hallway, the man looks oddly sad and lonely. It’s a startling contradiction to the suspicions that I had had of him earlier.

  Except, most of those suspicious have disappeared in the last few hours. He’d stood by my side the entire time the police questioned me, a solid, quiet figure giving me comfort. He’d made sure I was alright before we came into the house and before I had to face anyone else. And now he’d open his home to my daughter and me. He’s done so much for us in a very short time.

  It’s enough to make me feel a little bad about how I reacted at the club. Yes, Reaper had bought my time. But even if I’d briefly forgotten it in the force of my panic, he’d only done it to protect me. He’d wasted so much money when he hadn’t even expected to get anything out of it.

  “Here,” Reaper says, opening a door and shaking me from my thoughts. “I hope this is okay.”

  The room was obviously a guest room. It was empty of anything other than a freshly made bed and a dresser. It’s far nicer than my room back in our tiny, two-bedroom apartment.

  “It’s great,” I assure him.

  “I’ll leave you to it, then,” he says, turning to go.

  “Wait!” The word comes forth without permission, and we both pause. I feel incredibly embarrassed.

  “Yeah?” Reaper asks.

  “I…” I clear my throat. “Can you stay and talk for a little while?”

  I can’t bear the idea of being alone right now. So much has happened. It was only last night that I had been kidnapped. Now someone I’ve known for a long time had first betrayed me and then been killed, and there’s every chance that whoever killed her will be coming for me next.

  Maybe Reaper sees the vulnerability that I feel on my face because, after a moment, he gives me a short nod and turns around again.

  “First, do you have any clothes for the night?” he asks.

  I start. I hadn’t thought of that. I’m still wearing the skimpy outfit that I work in. I cough, oddly embarrassed and thankful that I have a large jacket covering me.

  “No,” I say. “I left my other clothes behind at the club. I forgot to get them from my locker.”

  “I’ll get you something,” he says.

  He walks away before I can respond, leaving me standing in the middle of the room. I barely have the time to uncomfortably shuffle around before he’s back. He’s carrying a t-shirt and a pair of pants that can be tied at the waist. It’s clear that they are both too big for me, but at least it’s something.

  “Tomorrow, we can get some things for you and Emma from your apartment,” Reaper says.

  “Thank you,” I say.

  I sit back down on the bed and put the clothes beside me. Reaper hesitates for a moment before sitting down, too, far enough away that we’re not touching.

  “Are you feeling alright?” he asks after a moment.

  “No,” I say, shaking my head. “So much has happened. I don’t even know where to begin trying to work it all out.”

  “I’m not surprised,” Reaper huffs. “You know, it’s okay to be overwhelmed or to want to run away.”

  “Personal experience?” I ask with a tired smile.

  “Yeah,” he replies. He glances at me. “The person who I would have shared this house with, when she died, I ran. I’ve only just come back.”

  That fits in with why I’ve only started seeing him around recently. “I’m sorry to hear that,” I say.

  He shakes his head. “It happened a long time ago,” he says, though his voice wavers ever so slightly before he clears his throat. “But I just want you to know that no one would think less of you for being upset about all this.”

  I swallow past the sudden lump in my throat. “Thanks,” I say hoarsely, reaching out to cover his hand in mine, suddenly desperate for physical touch.

  He looks at me. His eyes are dark and intense. “I’ll protect you,” he promises quietly, repeating his earlier world.

  I believe him. I’m not sure why. He’s still a stranger to me, and I don’t know what he really wants through all this yet. At the same time, his gaze bores into me, stripping me from inside out, and I know, however illogically, that I can trust him.

  I’m not sure who moves first—I think it was me—but we lean in, my lips touch his, and I’m lost.

  There’s been a definite spark between us since we met. So much else has happened, but here, now, in this quiet room where we have nothing more to do other than talk, I can’t help but want to give into it. I press forward, deepening the kiss, and Reaper’s hands land on my hips, his grip firm and comforting.

  Then his tongue touches my lips, and fireworks explode over my body. I swing a leg over him, straddling his lap, and he holds me up as I open my mouth. Our tongues tangle, mapping out each other’s mouths. Reaper’s hips buck up against mine, and he groans agai
nst me as I sensually circle my hips on his lap, lifting myself onto my knees as I press myself against him. Reaper’s jacket falls to the floor with a muffled thump, but neither of us pays it any mind, too intent on each other to care.

  Reaper’s hand slides up my leg, his fingers moving beneath the skirt and fingering the lace of the panties I’m wearing. Part of me thinks that I should be protesting this more. We barely know each other, and this is very quickly heading in a direction that neither of us can come back from.

  None of that matters, though. Right now, his touch is grounding me, reminding me of the here and now. Reaper will protect my daughter and me, and I’m currently safe from Chains and everything going on at Night Pleasures. It’s all I need. We’re going to be alright. We’re going to figure out a way to keep everyone safe. We’ll save Nancy and the other girls. Everything will work out.

  Reaper’s movements tap out those words like a staccato beat on my skin, and I move with him, wanting to believe it so desperately that I surrender to the hope without a single hesitation. Reaper leans back, and I go down with him until we bounce softly onto the thick mattress. Reaper stares up at me with burning eyes as I lean over him, our chests heaving, and our sweat mingling.

  Any possible thought of backing out now is gone. I need to feel Reaper. Stopping isn’t an option.

  “Fuck me,” I gasp out as his hips jerk upward, sending burning electricity through my entire body. “Please.”

  But my words have the opposite effect to what I intended. Reaper freezes beneath me as I try to catch my breath. Something conflicted crosses his expression, and his grip on my hips loosens.

  “Kyra,” he says, his voice low and hoarse.

  No. I don’t need any stupid, if well-intentioned, attempts to push a wall between us. I want this. I’m going into this with my eyes wide open. I need to feel safe. I need Reaper as close as he can get so I can stop feeling like a dark shadow is hanging over my shoulder.