by Unknown
He was like any of the Devils were with their women, possessive. So when Pearl had threatened to do another dance at the next bonfire, Bear had suddenly remembered that Raven had come home with them to sleep in their guest room. Raven had been a bit surprised that the man had allowed himself to be twisted around Pearl’s finger so easily.
“Raven, come back into the living room. We’re all worried but staring out the window isn’t going to make them come back any sooner,” Annie said from beside her, making her jump.
“You startled me,” Raven told her, holding a hand to her chest.
“Sorry. I know it’s hard when they are out there but we need to believe that they’ll all come back safely,” Annie whispered.
“How do you do it?”
“Do what?” she asked.
“Stay so calm. I always feel like my insides are twisted in knots.”
“Ha, do I look calm? I’m not, trust me. I’ve just always had a good poker face I guess. Comes from dealing with my mother for so many years. I’m just as worried as you are, Raven,” Annie told her, tugging on her arm. “Come on, that’s why we all get together when they go off on these types of runs. To keep each other from going insane.”
“Yeah, I know. It’s harder now though,” Raven told her. It wasn’t harder just because she was in love with Travis. It had something to do with the things she’d seen from the Headhunters too.
“After the kidnapping you mean?”
“Yeah. I think it’s knowing the type of men they’re dealing with, you know?” Raven allowed Annie to tug her into the hallway headed to the living room where the rest of the women were.
“I can understand that but don’t let the way our men are with us fool you. They’re just as deadly or none of them would still be alive,” Annie told her as they entered the living room.
Raven nodded. “I know.”
“Here they are. We’re going to play poker. You two in?” Lisa, her hair a bright orange color this month, asked them.
“Sure,” Annie said sitting down at the table next to Katie who was dealing.
“Not me,” Raven said walking over to sit down on the couch beside Mia, who put her arm around her shoulders.
“You okay?” Mia asked. Raven nodded, laying her head on her friend’s shoulder even though she wasn’t really okay. Her stomach was in knots and she felt nauseated.
Raven must have fallen asleep because Mia was shaking her awake and she was grinning. The men must be back. Sitting up, she looked around seeing that most of the women were gone. Molly, Mia and Pearl were the only ones here.
“Are they back?” she asked standing up.
“Yes, and they’re all safe. Matt, Marcus, Ratchet and Tick,” Mia told her, her smile faltering a bit. “Everyone made it except for two of the prospects who died and Travis.”
Raven saw Mia’s lips move and knew she was saying something else but she felt like she’d just died. A ringing started in her ears and she swayed on her feet. Travis was dead. No, she couldn’t believe that, she wouldn’t. She heard Mia’s gasp and Molly yelling for someone to catch her as the world around her went dark. The only thought in her mind before she passed out was that it couldn’t be true, he couldn’t be dead.
Travis roared again when Doc pushed him back onto the table, screaming for someone to hold him down. Dog and Stick held him to the table but Travis didn’t give a fuck that they were trying to sew his chest back together. Bone had gotten a frantic call from Molly a few moments ago about Raven passing out. He didn’t give a fuck what they wanted at the moment. He had to know that Raven was okay.
“Hold him, damn it!” Doc roared.
“Get Tank in here, damn it! What the fuck is wrong with you, asshole?” Stick was screaming.
“Let me up, motherfuckers!” Travis bellowed at them.
“You damned fool! If I don’t get this wound closed, you’re going to end up in a damned body bag. Now lay your ass down so I can stitch you up,” Doc yelled.
“What the hell is going on in here?” Tank asked. Moving to the table he grabbed Travis, holding him to the table by the shoulders.
“I don’t know! He was fine till Bone got that call from Molly. Then he started going apeshit,” Doc told him. Travis continued to fight them and if they didn’t let him go, he was going to kill them all. Raven needed him and these fuckers weren’t letting him go to her.
“Oh, I get it.” Tank leaned down, his eye meeting Travis’s. “Slick, calm the fuck down or they’re going to sedate your ass. Your girl’s fine, she just passed out on the couch. They’re bringing her here to get her checked out and if you’ll calm down, you can see her when she gets here, okay.” Travis stopped struggling, his eyes meeting Tank’s.
“She okay?”
“She’s fine and she’ll be here in a bit. It’s likely the stress of waiting all day to find out what had happened,” Tank told him. Travis nodded.
“No drugs,” he growled and Tank nodded.
“No drugs,” Tank agreed.
Travis lay back on the table, allowing Doc to work on his shoulder where the stupid asshole had stabbed him. They’d thought they’d cleared out the warehouse and he’d been distracted by Luke, who’d asked where Bone wanted to put the drugs they’d found.
When three men had jumped them, he’d managed to get two of them down, but the third man who’d been deadly with the knife he’d been wielding had killed the two prospects. Travis had managed to take him down but he’d gotten stabbed in the chest before he managed it.
It wasn’t as bad as it could have been. If he hadn’t jerked the man’s hand up at the last minute, he’d have been dead. The knife had been aimed at his heart.
“You were a lucky bastard, you know.” Doc grumbled as he cleaned the wound. “If this had been three inches lower it would have hit your heart.” He echoed Travis’s own thoughts.
“I know. Just get it closed so I can go to Raven.”
“Sure thing, Slick. Next time you might want to avoid getting stabbed and you won’t have to put up with this kind of shit,” Doc grumbled, shaking his head at him as he began sealing the wound with the knit gun. He was glad that he didn’t have to deal with stitches and that the wound would heal faster. “You will also need some blood. You lost quite a bit on the way here.”
“Later, not until you’ve checked Raven out.”
“I don’t know why the hell I put up with you assholes. I never get any appreciation for what I do. I mean hell, I only save your sorry asses when you do stupid shit,” Doc grumbled under his breath as he moved away.
Travis watched Raven slowly blink her eyes before opening them wide and sitting up quickly. She looked at her brother who was on the other side of the bed, then jerked her head in his direction. Suddenly tears were streaming down her face and she gasped before she dove towards him. He caught her in his arms holding her tightly, pleased beyond words that she’d jumped at him rather than her brother.
Raven was sobbing so hard her whole body shook and she was blubbering out words that didn’t make sense to him between hiccups. He rubbed her back and looked at her brother, who was staring at them in surprise. He kissed her temple, holding her tightly to his chest despite the slight discomfort the sealed wound caused.
“Princess, you’re breaking my heart. Stop crying, sweetheart.”
“Th--they told me you--you were dead. Oh God. T--Travis,” Raven finally managed to get out between sobs, shocking Travis. Raven’s hands clutched him desperately. He felt anger pour into him as those words sank in. He heard a gasp from Mia who was on the other side of the room with Ratchet.
“No, Princess. I’m fine, hush, I’m fine,” Travis said, glaring at the other people in the room. Who the hell had upset her by telling her that he was dead?
“Who told you I was dead, Princess?” he asked rubbing her head, trying to get her to calm down enough to tell him so he could go and beat the shit out of that person for making her this upset.
“I didn’t tell her tha
t!” Mia cried, earning a glare from Travis. Ratchet moved in front of Mia, meeting his eyes with his own.
“It was a misunderstanding. It’s fine, baby. No one thinks you told her that,” Ratchet told Mia, turning to pull her into his arms after another warning glare at Travis. He continued to glare in Mia’s direction and he didn’t give a fuck if the other man didn’t like it.
“It’s okay, Raven.” Travis held Raven closer, whispering to her as she continued to cling to him sobbing. He didn’t care if it had been a misunderstanding, it had upset her and that pissed him off.
Raven held on to his cut. She knew she needed to calm down but she couldn’t seem to. Having his arms wrapped around her when only a short time ago she’d thought he was dead was all that was holding her together at this point.
She’d been so afraid that she’d never get to hold him again when she’d been an idiot all week because she’d hadn’t wanted to know that he was only using her for sex. She buried her face into his chest inhaling his scent into her lungs, wanting to crawl inside him and never come out again.
“Princess, I’m fine. It was a scratch,” Travis told her, making her head lift. What was a scratch? He’d been hurt? She was about to demand he tell her where when her brother barked.
“A fucking scratch? You almost died of blood loss before we could get you here. Quit lying to my sister!” Marcus’s words made her gasp and she felt lightheaded again. She began wailing all over again, and she knew that she was stronger than this. What the hell was wrong with her?
Travis glared at the idiot who’d just made Raven cry again. She was running her hands over him likely searching for the wound. He wanted to get up and beat the shit out of her brother for making her upset again when he’d almost had her calmed down. She was almost hysterical now.
Doc came in with a sedative. “I think it’s best,” he told him as he injected her with the medication before Travis could protest.
“What the hell, Doc?” he growled, his fists clenched.
“What she’s been through in the last month is catching up to her all at once. No matter that she seemed fine over the last week. This was a very traumatic experience for her and she hasn’t let herself feel it yet. She needs to talk about it. Bottling it up like she has is going to cause more panic attacks like this one,” Doc informed him.
“This was about her thinking that I’d been killed and her idiotic brother saying that I nearly had been,” Travis told him angrily.
“No, this is about what she suffered at the hands of the Headhunters who took her. I know a thing or two about traumatic experiences. This is her holding it inside for too long. Let me guess, this isn’t the first panic attack she’s had,” Doc asked.
“No, it’s the fourth,” Travis said, the same time that Marcus said, “She’s only had one.”
Doc raised a brow at Travis. “Two while we were traveling here and one other before today.”
“What the fuck? Why didn’t you tell me that she was having panic attacks, asshole?” Marcus demanded.
“If she’d wanted you to know then she would have told you, idiot,” Travis growled. Marcus made a dive for him but Doc stopped him
“Stop, no fighting. His wound needs time to heal. I used the laser to knit it but he needs a few days or you’ll rip it back open. Travis, you need to make her talk about it and soon. This will only get worse if she doesn’t,” Doc told him, still holding Marcus.
“Why the hell are you telling him that? I’m the one who you should be talking to about this. She’s my damned sister!” Marcus roared.
“If you haven’t figured out that those two are together yet, I worry about your intelligence, boy.” Doc shook his head as he looked at the other man.
“What?” Marcus looked shocked.
“Hell, even I knew that, Marc,” Ratchet said from were he stood with Mia.
“You’ve been sleeping with my fucking sister?” Marcus demanded, anger evident in his face. “Is that why she’s been crying her eyes out?”
“That was likely her recent ordeal more than anything Travis might have done. She’s going to be overly emotional until she lets go of the fear she’s holding in over what happened with those men who held her,” Doc told them.
“Fuck, she’s been crying?” Travis asked, his heart squeezing that he hadn’t known so that he could hold her.
“Every night. I hear her whimpering and then she’s crying. I went in and she was sound asleep. It was heartbreaking.”
“Yeah, it helps when you hold her,” Travis whispered, wishing he’d thought about that before now. She’d needed his arms around her every night when they were on the road. He should have realized she wouldn’t be magically better just because he’d gotten her home.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of her,” Travis told Marcus as he lifted her off the bed.
“You’d better,” Marcus growled.
“Don’t even think of carrying her, Slick. Let Marc take her to the cage and into the house when you get there. And make her talk about it, soon,” Doc grumbled as he left the room.
Chapter 18
Raven stood next to the bed surprised to find that she wasn’t in the little hospital or her own room at her brother’s house. She looked around at her unfamiliar surroundings wondering where she was. She took in the navy and tan theme wondering whose bedroom she was in. The cherrywood headboard was a work of art, she thought, rubbing her hand across the swirled carvings. She remembered acting like a hysterical, blubbering mess when she’d found out that Travis was alive, but she had no idea what had happened between now and then.
She was in a man’s t-shirt and her underwear. She saw her shorts beside the bed and slipped them on. She headed to the door, hesitating. She felt foolish for the way she’d freaked out again. She didn’t understand when she’d become so weak. She’d always been one to roll with the punches, but somehow when the Headhunters had taken her they’d turned her into this; a woman who cried hysterically and overreacted to a few simple sentences.
She sighed and padded out into the hall. She headed down the stairs calling out, “Hello?”
Travis poked his head out of a door at the bottom of the stairs. “In here, Princess.”
Raven went to the door and pushed it open to see it was a kitchen, a very clean kitchen with white marble counters and stainless steel appliances. Travis was at the stove cooking something that smelled delicious.
“Um, why am I here?” she asked, staring at him and wondering why her brother had let him bring her home. At least she was assuming this was his home. She sat down at the bar watching him at the stove, waiting for him to tell her why she was here.
“It’s where you belong,” was his reply as he filled two plates with food. “Sit down, I know you have to be hungry. Mia said you didn’t eat last night.”
“I’m confused. What’s going on here?”
“You live here now,” Travis told her, setting a plate of stir-fry in front of her.
“Um, I’m pretty sure I don’t. My brother would kill you,” Raven told him, looking at the plate of food. It looked really good and her stomach growled.
“Eat. Your brother will be fine.”
“Oh my God! Did you kill my brother?” Raven demanded. She was horrified because she knew Marcus, he would never have let her stay here without a fight.
“Princess, eat. I didn’t kill your brother. We didn’t even fight,” Travis growled, pushing her plate towards her.
Lifting the fork, she took a bite. Flavor exploded in her mouth and she moaned. “My God, that’s divine,” Raven told him, taking another bite.
Travis grinned. “Thank you. It’s my mom’s recipe.”
“It fantastic. I still don’t understand why I’m at your place though,” Raven said between bites.
“I told you. You live here now. No arguments either, Raven. You know as well as I do that we’re good together,” Travis told her, eating his own dinner.
“I didn’t agree to moving in with
you, Travis,” Raven told him, staring at him with a fork hovering near her mouth.
“Yes, you did, Princess. You agreed when you let me screw you against the clubhouse wall. Then again when you threw yourself into my arms last night when you were upset. There’s no taking it back now,” Travis told her, pushing her fork towards her mouth with a satisfied grin.
“You do know that none of those things actually mean I agreed to move in with you, right?” she asked him, her mouth hanging open at the man’s assumption.
“Nope,” Travis told her. “Those were you telling me that I was your one and only true love and you want to be mine forever. I agreed when I took you home and put you into my bed. You belong here with me. Now, lets finish dinner before we go back upstairs and you show me exactly how much you missed me while I was being cock blocked by your brother for the past five days.”
“You can’t be serious?” Raven demanded, her eyes narrowed on the shamelessly arrogant man.
He leaned forward, taking her fork. He lifted the last bite of her meal to her mouth. She took the bite, a bit overwhelmed by his closeness.
“Princess, I’ve never been more serious in my life. You’re mine now and you’d damned well better get used to it,” he growled, scooping her off the stool the second she swallowed the last bite and carrying her up the stairs.
“This is insane! You can’t just say I belong to you and then force me to live with you,” Raven yelled, shocked that her brother had agreed to allow this.
“Yes, I can. I already did,” he growled, dropping her onto the bed he’d carried her to. He fell on the bed beside her, his lips finding hers. “No more talking, I need to remind you why you belong to me.”
Raven tried to push him away but he was having none of that and began kissing her in deep devouring kisses that had her moaning in abandoned pleasure in seconds. She really needed to learn to resist the man and his magic touch.
Travis finally had Raven beneath him after five days of what felt like starvation. He was desperate to touch, kiss, and caress every inch of her. His Princess, he thought, savagely. He knew that telling her she’d moved in was the wrong way to go about getting her to stay but he couldn’t seem to help himself. With Raven, his normally gentlemanly self became a cave dwelling neanderthal.
