Grit (King's Harlots #1)

by J. M. Walker

  Angel pulled the bike out of the parking lot, driving at the speed limit until we reached the outskirts of town. Once we hit the open road, he sped up, forcing me to hold onto him tighter. I smiled, knowing it was intentional.

  My hands moved to his chest, grazing over the bumpy ridges of old scars. The times we had been together, I never paid attention to them. But they told a story. A memory of what happened.

  I held onto him like he was only thing that mattered. The one thing that existed in my world. It was just him and me in our journey. Those thoughts surprised me. We had gone into it for the sex. It was amazing and delicious. I had tried to disperse my feelings but I wasn’t stupid. Even I was woman enough to admit that I was attracted to the guy. Who wouldn’t be? He was all Spanish, hard male. A sex god who could make me weak in the knees from just his words. I never believed in that instalove shit; it wasn’t realistic. Of course there was such a thing as instant attraction. We were human. It happened. But it would be a long while before I allowed myself to fall in love again. And even then, I would never say those words unless I was absolutely sure that was it.

  A half an hour later, Angel pulled onto a long gravel driveway until we reached a large farmhouse. It was surrounded by trees, hidden from the world by nature.

  He shut off the bike, letting me get off first before he put the kickstand down. “This was my parents’ place,” he told me, breaking the silence. “Once I became old enough, I contacted a lawyer and did everything I could to find out as much about them as possible. This house came on the market, and I bought it. Buck and I have been here ever since.”

  “I like how it’s not near anything,” I told him, hanging onto his every word. “It’s quiet.”

  “It is, but the silence can be loud sometimes.”

  I watched him head up the steps and sit on the porch swing. He patted the empty spot beside him.

  “Does the silence ever get too loud for you?” I asked, joining him. I curled my feet under me, leaning into his side, and breathed in the spicy scent of his cologne.

  “It can.” He kissed my forehead, letting his lips linger. “Want to tell me what happened?”

  “I wish I could, but even I don’t know what’s going on.” I sighed, rising to my feet. “The Kings are saying shit, accusing Vice-One of using girls as bait.”

  “Well, that’s not exactly true.”

  “I didn’t think it was.” I paced back and forth. “I don’t expect to know everything. I know it’s classified information.” I met his gaze. “But I need to know that you will do anything to get these girls home.”

  “I won’t lie and say we will get them home, but I will tell you that we will do everything in our power to put an end to this. No matter how long it takes.”

  A sigh of relief washed over me. “I’ll take whatever I can get.”

  “You have to do what you can, Jay,” Angel said, unlocking the door to his house. “Buck,” he whistled. “Come here, boy.” He flipped on the hallway light.

  “I have help,” I reminded him. But he was right; I needed patience. I wasn’t God and even then, I wondered if God could save these girls.

  “I know you do but you need to remember that these people are evil. They will do everything they can to not get caught.” He whistled again. “Buck,” he repeated. “Lazy fucker.”

  I gasped when a large Rottweiler came barreling toward me. “Hi, Buck.” I crouched down, smothering Buck with hugs and pets. He licked my face, causing me to laugh. “Oh, you are a handsome boy. Yes, you are.” He panted and snuffed, giving me all the kisses he could.

  Angel chuckled. “Hey, stop kissing my woman.”

  I giggled, rising to my feet. “Jealous, baby?”

  “You know it.” Angel grabbed my hand, pulling me against him and smacked a hard peck on my mouth. He swatted my ass, rubbing the slight burn.

  I yelped, laughing even harder. “Thank you.”

  He cupped my nape, gently tugging my head back. “No thanks needed, princess.”

  My heart skipped a beat at the heat in his eyes. Standing on tiptoes, I placed a soft kiss on his mouth.

  “Hmm…” His hand moved down my spine to the small of my back, holding me firmly against his hard body. “Your mouth is fucking delicious.”

  I smiled, kissing him again, and stepped out of his embrace.

  Angel winked at me, heading to the kitchen, and whistled along the way.

  I caught the large bulge in his jeans before he had a chance to turn away. That was one thing I liked about him. No matter how turned on he was, he made a point of letting me know exactly how hard I made him. A shiver of desire slid over my skin.

  “Beer?” he asked, handing me a bottle.

  I took it, brought it to my lips, and sighed once the brew hit my tongue.

  He grabbed my hand, sitting on the couch and pulled me onto his lap. “Feel better?”

  “I do.” But something was still missing. An idea came to mind. Sliding off his lap, I placed the beer on the table and started stripping.

  Surprisingly enough, Angel didn’t say anything, but I could feel his eyes burning their way into my skin.

  “Can I wear your shirt?” I asked him, my cheeks heating at the odd question.

  “Of course.” He pulled off his hoodie and white t-shirt, handing me the thin cotton.

  My mouth watered at the half-naked sight before me. I slid the soft material over my head, savoring the feel of it brushing against my bare skin. The scent of him tickled my nose, my core clenched.

  He grabbed the hem of the shirt, pulling me onto his lap and laid us back on the couch. His body curled around mine, his hands softly rubbing up and down my side. The touch was so gentle, so sweet—it made my eyes well up with tears.

  Angel pushed his hand beneath the fabric, cupping my breast and kissed my neck. “I enjoy when you smell like me.”

  “I enjoy it too,” I whispered, playing with a hem on the cushion.

  “Do you feel it?”

  I turned onto my back, staring up into his beautiful dark eyes. “I don’t know what it is, but yes, I feel it.”

  “It is something new.” He cupped my cheek, brushing his thumb over my bottom lip. “It’s something between you and me.”

  “Why?” I breathed, kissing his palm.

  “Because neither of us have felt it before. It’s new for us. A new journey. A new mission.”

  “It scares me,” I confessed. Not even what I had with Tyler scared me so much.

  “As it should.” He replaced his thumb with his mouth, brushing his lips over mine.

  I breathed him in, taking his scent deep down into my lungs until all I could taste was him.

  His mouth moved fluidly over mine—slow, passionate. It was everything I needed and everything I craved. But I wasn’t sure if whatever it was that I had with Angel would be enough.

  I WANTED to dive deep into her soul, taking away the hurt and pain. Take away everything that had harmed her in her life. Destroy the monsters. Protect her from the evils of the men she trusted. She was a woman, and she was looked down on because of that. I would show her she was strong. She was everything that I was not. She was soft where I was hard. She was pure where I was tainted.

  She slid her slender but firm body beneath mine, wrapping her legs around my waist.

  We kissed. For minutes. Hours. Who knew? I didn’t care. I became hard as a rock but I didn’t want to ruin the moment, the connection, just yet. It was more than sex. It was more than lust. It was passion. It was raw. It was real. And it was ours.

  I swallowed her moans every now and again. Heat soared between us, igniting our bodies in a raging inferno of desire.

  “Angel,” she purred into my mouth.

  “Yeah, baby?” My lips brushed down her jawline, kissing and sucking until the taste of her skin was ingrained in my mind. I no doubt would dream of her. Her touch. Her sounds. Her taste. Everything that was Genevieve Gold would be in my thoughts.

  “Your kisses ma
ke my knees weak.” Her fingers brushed through the hair at my nape.

  “Your taste makes me delusional,” I responded, smiling.

  Her eyes flashed, growing bright with lust. “I was told to stop looking for the girls,” she said, her brows narrowing.

  I kissed her swollen mouth, rolling us over until she was on top of me. “By who?”

  “Tyler.” She sighed. “We have a history. But we’re over. It’s over.”

  “Are you reassuring me I have no asshole to compete with?” I asked, forcing the bile of jealousy down.

  “Yeah. I am.” Her eyes darkened. “Are there any other women I have to deal with?”

  “Ha. No,” I scoffed, running my hands up her inner thighs. “My relationships don’t last because of my job.” I flipped us over, covering her body with mine and brushed my mouth along the shell of her ear. “Don’t worry, baby. I am all yours.”

  She shivered. “Good.”

  As much as I wanted to continue teasing her, I found that I needed to know why she had changed the subject. “You’re hurting.” I brushed a strand of hair off her forehead.

  She shrugged, squirming beneath me. She tried moving out from under me, but I was having none of that. “Angel, I’m fine.”

  “No, you’re not. If you were, you wouldn’t blurt out what you said while making out with me.”

  “I didn’t mean to blurt it out,” she insisted, pushing against my chest.

  “You can push me all you want, princess, but I am not going anywhere.” That was true for the moment and for the future. I could feel her tugging, pulling me in, and when I did, she shoved me away.

  “Angel,” she huffed, crossing her arms under her full chest.

  I chuckled, kissing her bottom lip. “Talk to me, beautiful. What’s doing?”

  “Tyler threatened me, telling me to watch my back if I continue searching for these girls. I told him that I wouldn’t stop until my sister was found. I also told him that he couldn’t boss me around anymore,” she said all in one breath.

  “Wait.” I shook my head. “Your sister is missing?”

  “Uh, yeah. She disappeared a couple years ago.” She swallowed hard. “People have tried convincing me that she ran off with a man or moved to the city because she was sick of our small town, but I refuse to believe it. My dad won’t even talk about her.”

  “I’m so sorry.”

  “Thank you.” She frowned. “The guys said your squad is in this when you shouldn’t be.”

  “Our boss sent us on a personal mission. A couple of months ago, we stumbled upon a warehouse…” My gut twisted at the memories. The scent of death.

  “Not a good outcome?” she finished for me.

  I shook my head.

  “I don’t know how you guys do what you do. It makes me proud to be your woman.” Her cheeks reddened. “If you want me to be your woman, that is.”

  Something passed between us. The feelings I had for her changed from lust to more. I couldn’t quite explain it, but it was a possessive need to make sure every man knew who she belonged to. And yes, she was my woman. The fact she admitted it made my inner-Alpha roar and come to life. The caveman inside of me wanted to beat against my chest and grunt.

  “Angel,” she panted, her breathing picking up.

  Was it the look on my face? Was it the erection between my legs that sparked her arousal? Was it her confession that she wanted to be mine? Whatever it was, the drive to push her over the edge of submission burned its way into my body. A powerful force took over and I flipped her onto her stomach. “Tell me who you belong to,” I demanded. My voice, deep and guttural, didn’t even sound like mine. I knew men could become dark with a possessive need to claim their women completely, but I had thought it was a joke. The guys and I joked that it would never happen to us. Well, I would be the first to admit that I wanted it to happen to me and since it had, I would accept it with open arms.

  She gasped, her long slender fingers gripping the arm of the couch but she didn’t say anything. She didn’t object. She didn’t ask what I was doing. She knew. She was smart. And she craved everything I had to give her.

  “Tell me,” I repeated, sinking my teeth into the flesh of her neck.

  “I’m yours,” she said on a hard moan.

  It was surreal to me how she knew that I needed to make her see that she would be mine and not just then but forever. That thought struck me as odd. I never went into it with the intention of making it a forever relationship, and I knew Jay felt the same way. But fuck, I was addicted.

  Pushing her hair off her nape, I kissed her neck. “You have no idea what you do to me,” I said, grinding my hips into the flesh of her ass.

  “I can feel it.” She licked her lips. “God, I can feel all of you.”

  “Can you?” My teeth sunk into the soft skin behind her ear. “Can you feel my cock growing for you?”

  “You’re so hard, baby.”

  “For you,” I corrected her. Reaching between us, I lifted the shirt to her hips. “Tell me.”

  “Fuck me, please…but…”

  “What?” I asked, unbuttoning my jeans.

  “I want to feel you.” She looked back at me over her shoulder. “No condom.”

  A growl of satisfaction escaped me. “You will feel me.” Ripping open my jeans, I wrapped my hand around my dick, beating the heavy weight against her ass.

  Jay arched her hips, spreading her legs for me.

  I couldn’t wait any longer and forced myself into the flesh of her body.

  She cried out, throwing her head back.

  I took that as my hint and circled a hand around the base of her throat. “I’m going to fuck you so hard, everyone will know it was my cock that made you feel good.”

  “Oh, God yes,” she whimpered. “Please,” she begged. “Make me feel good.”

  “I will. Fuck, Jay. You’re shaking.” I held her trembling body against me, covering her with mine and pumped into her heat.

  “I—” A cry left her lips.

  Her core gripped me tight. Holy fucking hell.

  “Oh,” Jay moaned, shaking her head back and forth until she screamed.

  A wicked smirk spread on my face at the fast orgasm I had so proudly given her. “That’s it, baby. Come for me. Come all over my dick. Make me smell like you.” Planting my foot on the floor, I gripped the arm of the couch and pounded into her with so much strength, spots danced in my vision.

  She called out my name, her voice becoming hoarse.

  “That’s it. Louder, baby. Make my ears fucking bleed,” I demanded, taking from her what I knew she could give me.

  “Harder, Angel. Please,” she begged between gasps.

  I gripped her ass, digging my fingers into her flesh. “Milk my cock.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, pulling her upright against me.

  She moaned, pushing back against me and met me thrust for thrust.

  “That’s right.” Reaching for the hem of her shirt, I lifted the fabric up and over her head, needing to feel her dewy skin against mine.

  “Come inside me,” she breathed.

  My balls tightened, a hot tingle shooting straight down my spine. I groaned, her name leaving my lips on a hard cry. My release shot straight into her warmth. My hips pulsed. Once. Twice. Three times before I fell over, covering her with the weight of my body.

  “I can never get enough of that,” she said, stifling a yawn and stretching out beneath me.

  I kissed her cheek. “I’m proud of you, baby.”

  “I didn’t do anything.” Her eyes fluttered closed.

  “You gave yourself to me,” I said between soft pecks on her neck.

  “Mmm… I think I’ve done that multiple times already.”

  “This time was different.” Wrapping my hand in her hair, I pulled her head back and continued kissing her exposed throat.

  “How so?” Her body clenched around me, pulsing with each touch of my mouth against her flesh.

  “You allowed
me to take what I want and give it back to you in return.” My hips started moving again. “I told you I would make you fall for me.”

  ***

  (Jay)

  The sex was amazing. He was amazing. But the words that left Angel’s mouth didn’t sit well. I didn’t want to fall for him. I didn’t want to allow myself to become vulnerable and to be ripped apart again. He could hurt me worse than Tyler did. Those scars healed. But with Angel, he would be the ultimate destroyer. But he didn’t know it, and I would never tell him for fear that he would take advantage. How I could think those things about the man still inside my body was beyond me. Something had switched between us in the last little while. We became comfortable. The attraction was instant, but the feelings grew slowly as each day passed. There had been a spark in the beginning. That little tingle of lust that promised you a night filled with pleasure. With Angel, it had been more. The pleasure was so great it took my breath away. He knew everything there was to know about my body. He had fucked me so hard I forgot my name. He was the Dominant to my submissive.

  “Jay,” his rough voice washed over me.

  I cleared my throat, hiding my face in the crook of my bent elbow.

  “Baby.”

  “What, Angel? What do you want me to say? Do you want me to tell you that I’m falling for you? Do you want me to say that I can’t think of anything else but you? That I go to sleep at night missing you so much it hurts? That every time you go on a mission, my stomach sinks because I worry I’ll never see you again just like I won’t see my sister? Is that what you want to hear?” My chest rose and fell with ragged breaths.

  “Is all of that true?” he asked, releasing himself from my body and turning me onto my back. “Is that how you feel?”

  “Is that how you want me to feel?” I threw back at him.

  “Of course it is, but only if you want to feel that way. I can’t force you to fall for me but I know you feel this connection between us. You can’t lie about that.”