by Nikki Wild
I scooped her up and carried her to my room, slamming the door with my foot behind us, leaving Bear whimpering on the other side.
Gabby
Our clothes melted away and in seconds we were tangled together, our flesh meeting with desperation, grasping, pulling, pressing, our one raw need to be as close as possible overshadowing all else.
This was how it’s supposed to be, I thought.
Hungry. Aching. Obsessive.
The need to touch Dante’s flesh - his face, his lips, his hair, the smooth tight skin that stretched across his rippling muscles - possessed me. As soon as he kissed me again, all my worries melted away, right along with my inhibitions. Hot, searing fingers found my center, sliding through my resistance quickly, easily. My hips flew up to meet his hand, my thighs clutching around him, begging for more, demanding more, desperately needing as much of him that he would give.
“Please,” I cried, his lips caressing my ear, his tongue darting inside, sending shivers of electricity shooting through me.
“Please what, Gabby?” he whispered, my name on his lips sounding so delicious to my ears. His lips captured my ear lobe, sucking softly, gently, as I leaned into him, moaning as his teeth scraped against my flesh, his fingers slowly sliding in and out of me as he teased me mercilessly.
“Dante…” I whispered, my voice breathy and desperate. He kissed me again, his tongue delving into my mouth, searching, finding, his fingers curling inside of me, pressing up, pressing deep into me as his kiss devoured my scream. He pulled his lips away, searing me with hot, feathery kisses down my neck, slowly trailing down my chest, his lips engulfing my nipples, sucking softly and then harder, biting, scraping them between his teeth as I cried out into the darkness.
“Oh, baby,” he groaned, his kisses moving down my stomach, so soft, so gentle, until he was pushing my thighs apart, his mouth kissing the inside of my right thigh, teasing me as he started at my knee, moving up excruciatingly slowly, my stomach quivering in the sweetest anticipation.
He knew exactly what he was doing to me, and he loved it.
The heat of his breath caressed my clit as he hovered over me, before he slowly began trailing kisses down my left thigh, leaving my pulsing clit throbbing in unanswered frustration. My hips raised towards him seductively, attempting to silently pull him back, begging for his touch. I needed his mouth, his lips, his heat. I looked down at him, meeting his teasing gaze as he stared up at me across the landscape of my naked, quivering, hungry sex.
The sexiest grin I’d ever seen spread across his face, and then silently, skillfully, deliciously, he finally gave me exactly what I was dying for.
Salvation was sweet, his mouth devouring me like he’d been sent straight from God, or the devil, perhaps. Within moments, he had me writhing on his tongue like a woman possessed and by the time I’d crashed over the edge of intensity, I was convinced he’d sold his soul to the devil for that mouth.
I gasped, crying out, my thighs gripping around him as he kept going, his tongue, his lips, never stopping until I spilled over the edge and slowly came down, my body crumpled in a spent heap below him. I opened my eyes, his face slowly coming into view.
I gasped again, the hunger I saw there so intense that I couldn’t help but be frightened for a fleeting moment. If anyone else looked at me like that, I’d have run away as fast as I could.
But this wasn’t just anyone. This was Dante.
Dante, the boy who’d saved me from flying bullets behind the tent.
Dante, the man who’d taken on a bar full of dangerous outlaws to save me.
Dante, the man who made me feel alive…
The look in his eyes was more than hunger. Raw, savage, unleashed lust. The eyes of a beast, the eyes of a man who had only one, burning need. The eyes of a man who would let nothing get in the way of fulfilling that need.
Maybe I should have been more afraid. Maybe another woman would have been.
I reached up to his chest, my fingers sliding over the soft hair, feeling the strength of this beautiful, good, amazing man above me and every ounce of fear melted away.
“I’m all yours,” I whispered, our gaze locked together as he slid into me smoothly, purposefully, roughly. We rocked together, wrapping around each other, our bodies tangled together until we were possessed with one purpose, one need, one fire that could only be extinguished together.
We crashed over the edge of consciousness, the world melting away.
We knew no fear, no pain, nothing but the silky silence and the light from the midnight moon bathing our skin as we held each other as tightly as we could, neither of us willing to let go anytime soon.
Dante
“Maggie…?” I whispered. The cold misty was fog surrounding her face. She turned back, smiling at me over her shoulder, her eyes soft and laughing. She reached out a hand towards me, and I reached back towards her, but she was too far away, I couldn’t reach her. I ran forward and she ran faster.
“Wait, Mag…slow down,” I tried again, reaching out as far as my hand could stretch, her soft red curls sliding through my fingers like satin. She stopped suddenly and turned towards me. I froze. Silently, she raised her hand, caressing my face so lightly I almost couldn’t feel her touch. I leaned my face into her hand, and she pulled away, smiling at me again before she turned away and ran off again.
I followed her, but my legs were so heavy they could barely move, and she ran ahead, disappearing into the mist. My heart filled with sadness, her tiny frame dissolving before my eyes as I tried in vain to move faster.
“Maggie!” I called out, my voice echoing back to me from the emptiness.
My body jerked itself awake, the dream, the feeling of losing Maggie all over again too much to bear, even in sleep. I’d had this dream before. Dozens of times. Hell, fucking hundreds.
I hated it every single time, too. Not once had I ever been able to touch her again, no matter how much I tried. Each time I was cursed with it, I was left paralyzed and alone, my heart broken wide open again, the wound as fresh and bloody as ever as I woke up alone in my bed.
Only this time I shouldn’t be alone.
“Gab?” I called out, looking around the empty room for her.
“Gab!” I yelled again, fear gripping my heart instantly at the silence.
I jumped up out of bed and ran into the living room. The front door was wide open, and Gabby was nowhere to be seen.
“Fuck!” I yelled, running back into the bedroom and throwing on my jeans and grabbing my gun before flying back through the front door. Adrenaline shot through my veins, my heart racing as I tried to imagine every scenario I could be faced with. I’d learned to be mentally prepared for anything, first on the streets of New York, and then again overseas.
As I stepped out into the morning sunlight, my focus was razor-sharp. Nothing looked out of place, my bike was where I’d left it, and everything was quiet. But there was still no sign of Gabby.
If anything happened to her, I’d never forgive myself. Morbid thoughts invaded my brain, and I did my best to push them away. I couldn’t let my mind get clouded with that right now. I needed to stay focused and alert, prepared for anything, and not let my emotions get in the way.
Emotions. For fuck’s sake, I thought, my mind spinning wildly - now I’ve got emotions to deal with. Somewhere along the way, Gabby had gotten under my skin and I’d begun to have feelings for her. Was it just lust? Would I be worrying about someone this way if that’s all it was? I wondered.
“Fuck,” I muttered, as I made my way quietly around the side of the house, my gun drawn. I was halfway to the back of the cabin when I heard a branch snap. I stopped, listening, releasing the safety of my gun, my finger on the trigger, visions racing through my head as I began walking slowly forward again.
Footsteps. I froze again, wishing like hell one of my brothers was here with me. Confrontation was always easier in numbers. I had no idea who I was going to be dealing with. The fucking mafia. One of th
e Godz. Or worse, a whole fucking gang of the Godz. Or the cops.
Either way, it was probably not going to be good.
And where the fuck was Gabby? I wondered, as I began slowly moving forward again.
I swallowed hard as I reached the edge of the corner. Someone was around the corner, I was sure of it, I could feel it.
And I wasn’t about to let them attack first.
I rounded the corner quickly, my gun drawn, my finger ready to pull the trigger.
“Fuck!” I yelled, pulling my gun up and turning away, quickly throwing the safety back on.
Bear sauntered out of the trees alone, leaves and tiny twigs clinging to his furry paws, his mouth opened in a smile as he trotted towards me. Gabby followed right behind him, smiling like it was the most natural thing in the world and she hadn’t just scared my heart right out of my chest.
Fear and worry swirled inside me, mixing with intense relief and happiness all at the same time, overwhelming me with its quick intensity. Anything could have happened to her. Hell, I could have fucking shot her myself!
Anger welled up inside of me, a toxic cocktail of emotion that I couldn’t suppress.
“Fuck, Gabby!” I yelled, everything inside of me blowing up all at once.
“What?” she replied, her face full of surprise at my anger.
“Don’t just fucking leave like that, goddammit!” I yelled, my voice echoing through the tall trees overhead.
“What the fuck, Dante?” she asked, her eyes flashing with anger. “I was just taking a walk. I was letting you sleep and Bear needed to go out.”
“Yeah, well, there’s a lot of assholes out looking for you and they’d be real happy to find you wandering around alone in the woods. Fucking wake me up next time!” I growled.
Pain flashed in her eyes, and she looked at me with sheer disgust.
“Don’t fucking talk to me like that! I’ll do whatever the hell I want!” she replied, brushing past me angrily.
For fuck’s sake, I thought, irritation and frustration washing over me. I grabbed her arm and she turned towards me. That’s when I saw the tears in her eyes.
“Gabby, I’m sorry,” I said, my anger disappearing immediately.
“Nobody said you have to take care of me, Dante!” she said, her words laced with pain. “I certainly didn’t.”
“Maybe not,” I replied, “but here we are. Together.”
“Yeah, well hopefully not for long!” she sneered. “I’m so sorry to be such a fucking burden on you!”
“That’s not what I meant, Gabby!”
“Then what did you mean, Dante? What’s this all about, huh? Why didn’t you just drop me off somewhere when this all began? Why’d you even bring me here?”
“I don’t fucking know. I was trying to protect you.”
“Is that what you do? Protect people?” she asked, her eyes flashing, her words ripping right through me.
“Apparently I do a pretty shitty job of it!” I yelled back.
“What the hell are you talking about?” she asked, the truth dawning in her eyes. “Oh. This isn’t about me. This is about Maggie, isn’t it? You couldn’t protect her. So you’re trying to make up for it with keeping me here, aren’t you?”
“Back off, Gabby,” I said, every wall that I’d let down in the last few days shooting back up around my heart. She was seeing too much, getting too close.
What the hell was I thinking? Letting her in like that, letting myself feel something for her?
Hell, maybe her Daddy could help her. Maybe that’s just what she needed. Why the fuck I ever thought I could save her was now lost on me.
She was right, and I didn’t even realize it until now. She wasn’t Maggie. I was never going to save Maggie. Maggie was dead. There was nothing left to save.
I looked down at Gabby, allowing myself to drink in her beauty one last time before I turned everything off, remembering the feel of her plump lips on mine, the velvety softness of her skin, the smell of her hair…
“The guys will be here soon. This will all be over before you know it and we’ll get you out of here and back to your life.” My voice sounded like it came from someone else, far away, closed off somewhere in the darkness.
I turned away, leaving her standing there with Bear, the trees dancing around her confused face, but I couldn’t look back. I couldn’t allow myself to see the pain that I knew was there. I couldn’t face my own pain - I certainly couldn’t face hers.
Instead, I did what I do best. I turned away, turned it all off, and ripped off the scabs that had grown around my wounded heart.
It was best to keep it bloody and raw, to prevent it from healing.
That way, I wouldn’t forget who I was.
That way, I wouldn’t forget where I came from.
Gabby
What the fuck was that? I wondered, as I slowly made my way back into the cabin. At first, I’d thought it was kind of sweet that he’d been all protective, showing up with his gun drawn like he was ready for anything. To be honest, it fucking turned me on to see him like that. It reminded me of those first few moments at Otto’s, that look in his eye that was so bad-ass and confident, like there wasn’t anyone or anything he wouldn’t take on to protect me.
I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t fucking hot.
But then, he’d just turned into a straight-up asshole. Maybe I shouldn’t have said that bit about Maggie, but all of a sudden it was really clear what was going on. I mean, maybe I was wrong, but from his reaction, it sure did look like I pushed one of his buttons. And not a good one.
By the way he stormed back into the cabin, it didn’t appear as if I was going to be able to un-push it anytime soon, either. Which was a shame, because I was hoping for another amazing session in bed with him this morning before everyone came back. My body was still buzzing from his touch.
When I walked back into the cabin, I was shocked to see him talking on a cell phone.
“What the fuck?” I mouthed to him, as he put up a hand to silence me. Anger welled up inside of me. He told me he didn’t have cell service out here! Another fucking lie, apparently.
“All right, Gino, thanks for checking on her,” he said, before hanging up the phone and turning to me.
“You bastard!” I yelled at him, crossing the distance between us. “You lied to me!”
“About the phone? Yeah, I guess I did,” he said, shrugging. “Sorry about that.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I yelled. “How could you fucking lie to me about that? I’ve been asking you for a phone this whole time. All I wanted to do was call my dad!”
“What did you expect me to do, Gabby? Think about it!” he yelled back. “If I let you use my phone to call your dad, it would be traced within seconds, then the whole fucking mob would be here, along with the cops. How do you see that ending? You think I’m fucking crazy? I value my life, thank you very much.”
“I wouldn’t let anything happen to you!” she cried, her eyes full of disappointment.
“I’m sorry, Gabby, but there’s no way it would go down well. Men like your father shoot first and ask questions later. We’ve already gone over this. Don’t tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about. We grew up in the same place.”
“But he wouldn’t —,” I began.
“Gabby - we both saw it. We were just kids and we saw what he’s capable of doing.”
“But you didn’t even know who I was the first night. You still didn’t give me your phone. You still lied, Dante! Before you knew who my father was!” I yelled.
“Well, you weren’t exactly up front with me, either, goddammit!”
“That’s no excuse!”
“I didn’t know what I was dealing with, Gabby. I had to wait till morning to make any decisions.” His jaw clenched together, the muscles flexing as he stared down at me. I looked up at him, matching his anger.
“Nobody told you that you needed to make any decisions for me!”
“Maybe
not,” he replied, “but here we are.”
“Yeah, here we are,” I snapped. “So now what the fuck do we do?”
Darkness flashed in his eyes and he drew in a slow, short breath as he peered deep into my eyes. I swallowed hard, every emotion under the sun washing over me. I wanted to be mad at him. I wanted to hate him. I wanted to slap him. I wanted to run away. I wished none of this had ever happened.
And yet, I’d never wanted another person to touch me more in my life.
His lips came crashing down on mine, my world falling down around me, everything I’d ever known now colored with his existence, with my feelings for him.
There was no turning back. There was nothing but now.
There was nothing but him.
And whatever future we were hurtling towards.
Bella
“You can do this,” I said to myself, an ache forming in the pit of my stomach. I opened the door to Otto’s, leaving the bright sunshine behind as I allowed the darkness of the bar to envelop me.
I stopped just inside, letting my eyes adjust to the darkness.
It looked completely different during the day for some reason, even without the sunlight to remind you it was daytime. There were less people here, the music wasn’t so loud, and it was much less rowdy than the last time I’d been here. I told myself one more time to relax and I put one foot in front of the other, slowly making my way to the bar.
Even though there were only a few people in here, I still felt all eyes on me. I was out of place, there was no denying it and everyone knew it. But I didn’t care. I wasn’t here to get laid this time. I was here to gather information.
To help find my friend.
My very stupid friend.
I still couldn’t believe she’d come here on her own, but the guilt I’d felt from the beginning had only grown, which had brought me here today. I’d tossed and turned in bed all night, waking up with the certainty that I had to do something to try to find her.
