Cocky (Spartan Riders Book 5)

by J.C. Valentine

  Right now, he was going to make his little mouse squeak.

  ***

  Rena had made a couple new friends. Male friends with starched, collared shirts and shiny pompadours and Converse paired with expensive, made-to-look-rugged jeans.

  College boys.

  She hated them.

  But they had Daddy’s charge card and knew how to keep the booze flowing.

  She liked that.

  What she liked more was the attention of the man in the corner. He’d had his eye on her since the moment she walked through the door. She’d had hers on him too. He was laid back, dressed nicer than these wannabe loser frat boys and had that dark and dangerous vibe hanging over him. And he was exotic. She couldn’t place his origins, but it was definitely somewhere south of the border. Yum.

  Several glances his way, she’d noted all that delicious caramel colored skin, that inky black hair, and those piercing eyes.

  She’d always loved her brown boys.

  In Rena’s experience, they were the ultra-flirts, the romantics, and the type to sweep a woman straight off her feet with just a few words and the ability to destroy her just as easily. They always knew what to say, how to say it, and no matter how big of a player they were, she never failed to fall for it.

  That man had “player” written all over him.

  Would that stop her from falling into his expertly-crafted web? Not a chance. She knew the instant she laid eyes on him that she was going to trip over both of her feet to get into bed with him.

  If only he’d get up and come over.

  She was giving him two more bad nineties songs before she went over to that table and introduced herself.

  “Rena, do a shot with us!”

  Matt or Max or Maddie, whatever his name was, was like a puppy begging for treats. Every time she tried to just sit and enjoy her drink, he called her over again. And Rena? Well, beggars couldn’t be choosers, and it would be wrong to look a gift horse in the mouth, yadda yadda.

  With a put-upon smile, Rena left her barstool once again and joined the little group of barely legals. Before she could even accept a drink, though, she was grabbed around the waist and hoisted up onto the bar top.

  Jack or Jake or whatever grinned down at her as he pressed a hand to the center of her chest, urging her to lie down. “You’re the centerpiece,” he said with a lascivious wink.

  As they filled her bellybutton with booze, Rena sighed and rolled her eyes. Body shots. That was so college frat. And it was, ultimately, what made her decision for her.

  After the boys all had their turn, Rena swung her legs over the side of the bar and hopped down, snagging the half-empty bottle of tequila on her way. “Thanks for the fun, gentlemen,” she said with a smile as she held it aloft. “But it’s time for me to grab a chair and chill. Don’t have too much fun without me.”

  She didn’t entertain their half-hearted pleas for her to come back. She just kept walking.

  In the direction of that dark and dangerous man in the corner whose eyes hadn’t left her for a second. How did she know that? Because she’d been watching him too.

  Those eyes scanned her from head to toe and back again as she approached, and Rena couldn’t help adding a little extra oomph with each step. When she reached his table, she stood before him in all her confident glory and plunked the bottle of booze down on the wood top.

  “You look like you could use a drink. Wanna help me finish this?”

  “Are you lost, little girl?”

  Rena. Nearly. Collapsed.

  That accent was killer. Just like that cocky little half-smile that broadcasted he knew he was a badass and he wasn’t afraid to own it.

  Close enough for intimate inspection, Rena noted that his suit was indeed expensive, probably tailor-made judging by how well it fit him. The shirt underneath, a blood-red silk left unbuttoned to reveal smooth, bronzed skin, was equally expensive. She’d bet even his haircut had cost him a pretty penny.

  Everything about the guy screamed money. Power. And she wanted a piece of it.

  With a sultry smile of her own, Rena took a chance, betting on her prowess and the way he’d been watching her all evening that he wasn’t going to shoot her down.

  When she stepped to the side to slide into the booth, a man she hadn’t paid any mind to nor noticed before stepped out of nowhere, his intent clear. Rena hesitated, but Mr. Expensive lifted a casual hand to wave him off.

  More cautiously than before, Rena eased down onto the vinyl and dared to edge a little closer than she probably should, testing that invisible boundary line.

  Extending an arm across the back of the booth, he watched her as if she were some sort of science experiment, a curiosity he needed to satisfy.

  That was okay. She needed some satisfaction too.

  Up close, he was even more delicious than she’d realized. Rena felt the woman in her purr with delight and anticipation. She loved the thrill of the chase—loved to get her hands dirty and her adrenalin pumping. It’d landed her in her fair share of trouble over the years, but living life to the fullest was her goal at the end of the day. If she didn’t spend a night or two in jail now and then, she’d feel somewhat remiss.

  This man beside her? He was trouble. She could feel it vibrating off him, a pulsing wave of energy aimed directly at her.

  That got her heart racing.

  The longer she sat there, the more Rena wanted to conquer him. Something inside her told her he was a man who was used to doing the conquering, used to dishing out the punishments, but she was determined to show him what it meant to submit.

  “I’ve had my eye on you,” Rena admitted unabashedly.

  Expressionless, he said, “As I have you.”

  Rena’s mouth split into an uncontainable grin, and she held out her hand. “Rena Grace.”

  Instead of shaking her hand, he stared at it long enough to make her uncomfortable, a feeling she wasn’t entirely used to. Just as Rena’s smile faltered and she decided to give up and retract her hand, he released the top of the booth and grabbed hold of it. Instead of shaking it, however, he cradled her fingers in his in a show of gentlemanly manners that Rena had only heard about in old romance novels and brought it to his full, lush lips.

  Hovering just above her knuckles, he set those dark eyes on her and, with that sexy, accented voice said, “Manuel Contreras.”

  The pause of anticipation between them seemed to suggest that he was waiting for something, maybe a specific reaction from her, but damned if Rena knew what that was. It certainly piqued her curiosity, though. Was he rich and famous? Well known around here or abroad?

  Even more intrigued, Rena ran her teeth over her bottom lip and crossed her legs, angling herself toward him so her breasts played peak-a-boo. The ploy worked, and his gaze went to her cleavage before he revealed a perfect smile that did things to her body that made Rena struggle to hold back a moan.

  I bet he’s amazing in bed.

  “I am,” Manuel said with a cocky smile, and Rena suddenly realized she’d said that out loud.

  Oopsies!

  Clearing her throat, she recovered quickly and boldly said, “I can’t wait to experience it for myself.”

  four

  The textured wall scraped her shoulder blades through the cotton T-shirt, abrading her skin almost painfully, but the way Kade was kissing her? Angel didn’t give a damn. She’d take every bruise and scratch and relish it.

  He held her up easily, his muscular biceps flexing beneath her hands as he squeezed and massaged her butt. His mouth worked hers expertly, his tongue darting in and out of her mouth, his lips sucking and biting hers. There was no doubt he would leave marks, and she loved it.

  “I’m getting addicted to you,” Kade said as he moved from her lips down to her neck, nipping the sensitive skin below her ear. Another mark to add to the myriad she was already hiding beneath her clothing. At the rate he was going, she’d never be able to wear her hair up again.

  “Good,
” Angel breathed, gripping his arms tighter as he swirled his tongue over her throbbing pulse, making her pussy clench with need.

  She was so wet, she was afraid he would drown once he made his way between her legs to taste her—his favorite thing to do once he got her horizontal.

  “Good?” he said with a chuckle.

  “Yes,” Angel confirmed as she tipped her head back and moaned over a particularly nice spot he’d decided to focus on. “Means I get to keep you a little longer.” She had no misconceptions that he was going to hang around for the long haul. Men like him, who rode around on Harleys and dressed in leather and practically swung their dicks around as they walked, weren’t exactly the long-term relationship type.

  Although, she’d been noticing some of the top members of the Spartans doing just that. But they were older than Kade, so maybe that made all the difference. Kade, though, was so freaking hot, he could get any woman he wanted. She didn’t imagine he was going to just give up on that kind of play this early in the game.

  Angel was telling herself to be content with what she could get from him while the getting was good. She knew she was going to get hurt when it ended though. That was the nature of it, and it was just who she was. She couldn’t stop herself from caring, but she wasn’t willing to change the present to prevent the future, so she was well and truly screwed.

  Kade had stopped his trail of deliciously punishing kisses and lifted his head to look her in the eyes. “Who said I’m going anywhere, Mouse?”

  Angel frowned at his words, unsure if she had gotten his meaning right. Did he…? He couldn’t. But what if…?

  Pressing in impossibly closer so that his hips fit snug up against her throbbing core, Kade propped one delicious forearm against the wall beside her head, bringing their faces so close, she could see the faint moonlight glinting in his copper eyes.

  “You think I’m gonna bounce on you, baby? When I’ve put all this work into making you mine already?” He shook his head slowly, the tension in the air between them growing thicker by the moment. “Not a chance, Mouse. I thought you knew by now that I intend on keeping you.”

  Angel’s lips parted on a small gasp, and she was certain now that she’d misheard him. No way in hell was a Spartan Rider choosing her over all the tail in the county. Unless…

  “I’m not saying I don’t want to be yours,” Angel said softly, her voice merely a whisper and filled to the brim with uncertainty, “but I’m not interested in being a one-sided, open relationship.”

  She’d heard stories—read them, too—about the women who hooked up with bikers. Things were always great, too good to be true, while they were still in the dating phase. But once the man locked the woman down, she became nothing but an anchor to the real world while he ran off boinking every female in the land as if he were still single. Meanwhile, the woman was expected to stay home and do her duties, wait for him to return home, and never ask questions or throw fits over his numerous infidelities.

  Angel was not about that life. No siree Bob.

  Kade had gone and gotten all serious, those heavy, naturally arched brows hanging heavily over his eyes as he stared her down. The heat between them had noticeably cooled. “Who the hell said that anything about this would be one-sided?”

  Angel wasn’t sure how to respond to that. There was the truth, and there was the “truth.” She didn’t like to hurt feelings or pick fights, and she sensed that at least one of those two things was about to happen.

  But how could she not express herself fully? Face-to-face, she felt compelled to answer, so she tempered her words. “I just don’t see myself being one of those complacent women who waits at home while you…do whatever you do.”

  Kade’s frown molded into a scowl. “You think I’m the type to run around on my woman?”

  “I mean…are you?” she asked, genuinely curious.

  “No, I’m not,” he snapped, seemingly offended. “I would have thought you’d know that by now.”

  “I hardly know you at all, Kade. That’s the point. We haven’t been seeing each other that long, and when we do, we do…well, this,” she said, motioning a hand between them.

  He still had her pinned to the wall, and even though they were in the middle of a serious talk, his dick was still hard and insistent between her legs. The heat was always incredible between them, but maybe that was all they had. She wasn’t certain.

  “What are you saying, Mouse? You wanna go on some dates?”

  She hesitated then shrugged. “If you’re saying that you want us to be together together, then it couldn’t hurt. I mean, we can’t spend all of our time having sex.”

  That wicked look he got whenever he had something to prove—usually something sex-related—sparked in his eyes and Kade’s dick punched against his fly—and her already overheated core. “Who says that we can’t?” he asked, his voice a deep rumble that did funny things to her.

  Angel adjusted her hold, curling her hands over the back of his broad shoulders, and locked her ankles tighter around his back, drawing him in even closer, tighter, until there was hardly a breath of air between their bodies. “Certainly not me,” she purred, “but substance would be nice too.”

  Playfully nipping the tip of her nose with his blunt teeth, Kade said, “My mouse wants substance? I’ll give her substance.”

  Pushing away from the wall, he curled those strong hands around her backside and carried her over to the bed, kneeling to lay her down with care.

  She loved how gentle he was, so aware of her every need and eager to meet it.

  Digging his fingers into the waistband of her pants, he pulled the back of them down over her ass, taking her panties with it. Angel released her ankles from behind his back, allowing him to drag the material up her thighs, but he didn’t try to take them off.

  With her legs still high up in the air, Kade flashed her a little smile then dropped back, kneeling down at the foot of the bed. His large hands curved around the backs of her thighs, holding them up, and he pushed back on them, folding her knees almost to her chest.

  Then he dove in for the most intimate of kisses.

  Clamping her eyes shut, Angel moaned, her hands cuffed around his as she soaked in the pleasure of his tongue dancing across her clit. Kade was a master at eating her pussy. He flicked and swirled, switching from light to hard in a rhythm that worked her into a lather and got her heart racing out of control.

  She was seeing stars in a matter of seconds, and when Kade pried one of his hands free from hers and pushed three of those thick digits inside of her, Angel broke apart at the seams, her entire body trembling like an earthquake as he sucked her clit between his lips and pumped those fingers into her like it was his fucking job.

  “Oh, Kade,” Angel cried out, “harder. Don’t stop. Don’t stop,” she panted. He held both legs up as she writhed on the bed, twitches and spasms overtaking her, each breath sharp, each cry one of mercy.

  He refused to stop until she forced her legs apart and reached down between them, grabbing hold of a tuft of his hair and wrenching his head back, breaking his mouth’s suction with an audible slurp.

  “No more,” she pleaded. “No more, baby. Get up here and fuck me.”

  His smile was drugged, his lips wet and shiny in the muted light as he rose up and dropped his already open pants to the floor and crawled up onto the bed and positioned himself between her legs.

  “You’re so fucking sexy, Mouse,” he growled as he hovered above her, lowering his hips and aligning his cock with her entrance.

  He was a pro if ever she’d met one. Everything Kade did to her, every touch, every caress, every damn thing was fluid, effortless. As if he’d spent a lifetime honing his skills.

  She had to push away the thought that tried to follow up behind that, not wanting to acknowledge just how he might have gained those skills.

  “So are you, baby,” she breathed, and arched her hips, urging him to give her more.

  Angel wanted to be taken, d
ominated by this man. Repeatedly. Endlessly. One taste was never enough. From the moment they met in the club, and she decided to take him home with her, she’d been addicted. Now? She couldn’t imagine going a day without his attention. Angel craved him, the hunger pains so great, there were times it woke her up out of a dead sleep, demanding to be satiated.

  “You ready?” he asked, as he always did before entering her. Kade was a big man…everywhere. And Angel? Well, she was a midget beside him. The laws of physics shouldn’t work with them, but somehow they fit.

  Well, for the most part.

  Despite hooking up like rabbits in heat for weeks now, she still had to have a minute to get used to his size. Kade wasn’t just long; he was thick, too.

  “I’m always ready,” Angel said, as she always did.

  Slowly, Kade pushed his hips forward, inching his way inside her, stretching her walls, forcing her to accommodate his girth. It should be uncomfortable, painful even, but Angel loved it. She loved how tightly they fit together, the friction between them stoking the fire that already raged to newer and greater heights every time.

  “Relax, Mouse,” Kade reminded her, retreating an inch then giving her two more. Reaching between them, he thumbed her over-sensitive nub, which didn’t so much relax her as wind her right back up again. But the added lubrication that flooded from her was more than enough to wet the way, making it easy for him to slide all the way home.

  When Kade bottomed out inside her, he bent down and captured her mouth in a searing kiss, using his teeth once again to punish her already battered lips.

  As he fucked her hard and kissed her harder, he snuck a hand between them, latching onto her breast and squeezing. Everything Kade did to her was an act of pleasure and pain. Angel had never had a lover like him before, rough and tumble and at once sweet and caring. He was a dichotomy.

  She loved it.