by Nina Levine
“Yeah. I fucked around for a while doing random handyman type jobs until private investigation work fell into my lap. A friend hired me to work with him while I did my study, and I never looked back.”
He crossed his arms and planted his feet wide. “Keep talking. You need to get to the point.”
“My parents and brother were murdered ten years ago. Tortured for hours and then had their throats slit. The day after Boxing Day, I came home to find them. I’ll never get the blood and horror out of my mind. I had no faith in the cops to find justice for their deaths. The idea of life behind bars for someone who killed my family didn’t sit well with me – I wanted blood for blood. And I believed I knew who the killer was.”
“Who?” Still that hard look on his face.
“Marcus.” I paused, taking in the flicker of surprise on his face. “My father had been investigating Storm and their involvement in drugs. I’m fairly certain he was close to arresting Marcus at the time of his murder. The investigation into Storm never really went anywhere after his death, which only convinced me further of Marcus’s involvement, but after eighteen months of my own investigations, I couldn’t pin him for the murders.”
“This isn’t adding up, Griff. You didn’t join Storm until three years ago, yet the murders were ten years ago.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I walked away from it all after eighteen months…left town and tried to move on from it because, fuck, it was changing me. I was doing shit I wasn’t proud of so I got out before I lost what little of my soul I had left. But revenge has a way of running your life, and I came back four years later determined to get justice. When I couldn’t do that outside of the club, I found a way in. I found a way to get close to the people I thought had killed my family.”
His wild eyes were glued to mine and his body was tied up with tension. “Fuck,” he swore. “So none of this means anything to you? What the fuck are you still here for? Marcus is dead so you’ve got no reason to still be here.”
Scott’s anger fueled my frustration. My chest tightened with the need to get everything out, and my head began to throb with a growing headache. “Storm means everything to me. Fuck!” I paced away from him towards the window. Balling my fists, I took some deep breaths, trying to get myself under control. Turning back to him, I said, “Marcus wasn’t responsible for my family’s deaths. I worked that out within a year of joining Storm. By then, I’d also worked out that Storm meant more to me than most of my own family had. There was no way I was walking away from that.”
“Your cop family, who you’re still fucking close to!” he spat.
I shook my head. “No, I don’t have any ties to my family anymore, Scott. Except for an aunt who also has no ties to them.”
“Don’t fucking lie to me, Griff!” he roared. “I’ve seen photos of you meeting with your cop cousin – this fucking week.”
“Did Ricky tell you about the Bond case? I assume that’s how he found out my past.”
“No. He only filled me in on your true identity.”
“Danny, my cousin, asked me to investigate the murders of Leon Bond and his girlfriend. With Bond being a high profile drug dealer, Danny wanted the real murderer exposed, but didn’t have faith in his team to do that because he’d discovered his partner was dirty. I’d just come back to Brisbane to look into Marcus, and Danny decided I was the only person he could trust. Foolishly, I agreed to do it.” I raked my fingers through my hair as I recalled the investigation. If I could go back and change anything in my life, taking on this case would be it. “In the course of my investigation, I witnessed another murder, and long story short, that’s coming back to bite me in the ass because it’s key evidence in the Bond case now and they want me to testify. That’s why I met with Danny this week. To tell him to back the fuck off and that there’s no way in hell I’m getting on that stand.”
Scott stared at me in silence as he took all that in. Eventually, he said, “Jesus, Griff, what a shit fight.” He appeared to have calmed down a little, almost as if he was reconsidering his anger at me, but wasn’t sure whether that was the right move.
I nodded in agreement. “Yeah, it is. You’ve gotta believe that while I did mean to deceive you to get into Storm - and I don’t regret that because I had to do what I did for my family - I wish it could have all happened under different circumstances. My loyalty lies completely with Storm now.”
With wary eyes, he said, “I’m gonna need some time to work through this. To be honest, I’m knocked for fucking six and don’t know what to make of it. I trusted you, one hundred fucking percent, and now that trust is gone, and I’m not sure where that leaves us. I can’t have a VP I don’t trust. And I’m not sure the boys would want a member they can’t trust to remain part of the club.”
His words gutted me.
Threatened to destroy me.
Without Storm, I had nothing.
I was nothing.
As the ghosts of the past circled, and the demons clawed at the soul I did have left, I swallowed back my fear and nodded. No words came, though. There were none left to say. Scott would make up his own mind, regardless of anything more I might say.
“I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” he said before turning on his heel and walking out of the room.
I stood staring at the nothingness in front of me.
Scott had been the one person I’d hoped would understand.
Instead, he’d walked out.
And my faith in family died the death it should have had years ago.
15
Sophia
I dumped my gym bag on my bed, stepped out of my gym clothes and hit the shower. It had been a long ass day and I needed an equally long shower to wash it all away. After my encounter with my flat tyre and Griff this morning, things had not improved. Andrew had been in a bad mood all day at work and had taken it out on me, especially after I ditched half the day yesterday without informing him. He’d been pissed off about that and I’d had to listen to a fifteen-minute talking-to from him about it. Then, after work, Magan had informed me how disappointed our mother was that I was yet to visit her. And to top it all off, I’d had a run-in with a bitch at the gym over using one of the machines. She didn’t want to share and I refused to back down. Today was not a day I would let anyone walk all over me, and I’d stood my ground with her.
After fifteen minutes of standing in the shower and letting the hot water seep into my muscles, I stepped out and dried off. Then I dressed in shorts and a tank and padded into the kitchen to make dinner. It was late – just after eight – and I was starving. However, a knock at the front door interrupted me.
I opened the door, surprised to find Josie on the other side, smiling at me. “Hi, Josie,” I said warmly.
“May I come in?” she asked, but I sensed that with Josie, the answer ‘no’ wasn’t even an option.
I let her in and led her into my lounge room. We settled ourselves on my couch and I asked, “What’s up?”
“I wanted to talk to you about Michael.”
Griff.
“Okay,” I said slowly, not sure where she would take this.
Her face softened but there was a seriousness to it I’d never seen from her before, as if what she was about to tell me was one of the most important things she’d ever tell me. “Michael feels something for you. I’ve never seen him the way he is with you, and I wanted you to know that.”
I frowned. “No, he doesn’t. He’s attracted to me, but he’s not interested in pursuing a relationship with me.” At the frown that appeared on her face, I added, “Trust me, Josie, he and I have discussed it. At length. There’s no way anything will happen between him and me.”
“But you want something to happen?”
“I’m interested. There’s something about him that makes me want to see if we’d be any good together.”
The frown left her face and was replaced with a smile. “You’re going to have to be the one to make the first move, my dear. Michael’s a stubborn ma
n and doesn’t know what’s good for him most of the time.”
I sighed. “You’re not listening to me, Josie. He’s really not interested. Let’s just say that he and I have a difference of opinion on something fairly important.”
She leaned forward in her chair and that serious look returned. “Michael used to visit me twice a week at the most. These days he’s at my house every day. He asks me if I’ve seen you and whether you’re okay. He doesn’t ask me outright but he finds a way to get it into the conversation. I saw him change your tyre this morning, and I know he tried to give you those boxing gloves.” She paused. “He cares about you, my girl, and I’ve only ever seen him care about a few people. You can’t tell me that man is not interested in you.”
I stilled and my heart skipped a beat. She’d surprised me and I was stunned into silence.
It’s just sex he wants.
And yet, I knew that men didn’t go to such extremes for sex, especially not for sex they weren’t getting and knew they had no hope of getting. Griff could score whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted. He didn’t need me for sex.
“Well, that may all be true, but I don’t know what to do with it because, like I said, he’s been very clear about what he wants.”
She tsk’d. “You need to show a man like Michael what he’s missing. And I’m not talking about sex here, Sophia. You’re going to have to figure out why he’s being so stubborn, and show him that he’s wrong.”
I had no idea on this, but I’d put some thought into it. “Okay,” I said with a nod.
Standing, she said, “He’s a good man. Just a little bit lost, but I know a woman like you can help guide him back.”
And then she was gone, but as she left, she placed a piece of paper in my hand.
A piece of paper with an address on it.
* * *
I sat outside Griff’s house for a good fifteen minutes, psyching myself up to go in. After Josie had left my house earlier, I’d tried to put this out of my mind, but when I was still thinking about it an hour later, I knew I had to come to his house tonight. I knew I wouldn’t sleep if I didn’t.
It was nearly ten pm but his lights were on, so I figured he was awake. After going back and forth in my mind, I finally said ‘screw it’ and headed for his front door. God knew how he would react to me being here, but Josie had given me the confidence to try.
He took his time answering the door, and the vision that greeted me when he did caused me to suck in my breath. Griff stood in front of me, dressed only in shorts, his body slick with sweat, his hair rumpled, and a ravaged look on his face.
“Sophia. What are you doing here?” he asked, and the pain in his voice blared like it had come out of a loudspeaker. Something was not right with him tonight.
“Can I come in?” I took one step forward to signal my intention of not leaving here without talking.
He glanced down at my foot. “It’s not a good idea. Not tonight.”
I wasn’t taking no for an answer. I pushed past him and entered his home. “There’s never a right time for things, Griff. Tonight’s as good as any.”
His home – if you could call it that because it seemed more like a place where he just crashed at night – was sparsely furnished. The only pieces of furniture in the lounge room were a couch, a television, and a TV cabinet. Cream paint coloured the walls, and not a painting or frame was in sight.
I turned to face him and found him watching me with an intense stare. My gaze travelled over his body, and I took in how rigid he held himself tonight. “Are you okay?” I asked, my eyes meeting his.
“I will be when you leave,” he bit out, but I didn’t buy it.
“No, I don’t believe that. You look like something is deeply troubling you.”
He forced his fingers through his hair, and muttered, “Fuck. Do we really have to do whatever this is tonight?”
I reconsidered. Perhaps he was right. Perhaps tonight was not a good time for him. It certainly didn’t seem like it was. “No, we don’t have to, but we do have to do it at some point, Griff.”
His eyes narrowed on me. “You sure about that? I think we’ve both made our positions clear to the other.”
I stepped closer, beginning to get frustrated as hell with him. “I’ve been thinking about it, and something isn’t adding up with you.”
“What?”
“You say you’re not interested in a relationship with me, but I feel something between us, Griff. And you can deny it all you want, but I know it’s there.”
His eyes didn’t leave mine, but he did close them for a moment while he drew a long, deep breath. When he opened them again, he spoke in a low tone that felt like a warning. “Sophia, I’m not the man for you. There are parts to me that aren’t good, and if you got to know the real me, you would walk away. Starting something would only cause you more heartache in your life. So please believe me when I say that you need to forget about anything happening between you and me, and you need to go and find yourself a nice man who will be able to give you what you need. I will never be that man.” He took a step away from me as if he expected me to leave. He didn’t know me very well.
I closed the distance between us and got in his face. “You think I’m a good girl who couldn’t handle being with you, don’t you?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“You didn’t have to say the words, I can tell what you’re thinking. I’m not asking you to marry me. All I’m asking for is for us to see what this could be. Why won’t you take a chance on me?” I said, my voice rising as my frustration worked itself out.
I saw the moment he snapped. Saw the moment his carefully constructed control gave way, and he let himself go. His hand curled around my waist and he yanked me to him, his eyes wild, his breathing erratic. He dragged me up against his body, and rasped, “Because I don’t want to hurt you, and make no mistake about it, I will hurt you. I won’t be able to give you what you need.”
His tone both frightened and excited me, and my heart began beating faster. Being this close to him while he was on edge like this was a huge turn on to me, and it only made me want him more. I pressed my body into his, enjoying the hiss that escaped his lips, and said, “You won’t hurt me, Griff. I trust you.”
His eyes flared – widened in an emotion I couldn’t quite put my finger on. “Don’t say that, Sophia. You should not trust me. I will fuck that up, and all you’ll be left with is hate. And I don’t want that for you.” His chest thudded with every harsh breath he took, but the thing I noticed was that although he was telling me no, he wasn’t letting me go. He still held me close.
His pain bled from him. I had no idea what it was, but I wanted to drag it from him and tell him this would be okay. I placed my hand on his cheek, and before he could pull away, I slid it around the back of his head and pulled his face to mine. Our lips met and it was like an explosion of chemistry. I’d expected him to yank his lips off mine, but he didn’t. Instead, he growled into my mouth, slid his hands around my body and onto my ass, and gripped me hard there while his tongue desperately searched for mine.
Oh, God.
Yes.
He deepened the kiss and it gradually got rougher and harder, and at the same time, he lifted me. I wrapped my legs around him, and he walked me until we were up against the wall. While his body held me in place against the wall, his hands moved to the bottom of my tank and he ripped it off over my head. He then grabbed hold of my bra straps and yanked them down to free my breasts. Without a word, his head dipped to take one of my nipples into his mouth, and he sucked and licked me. And then he bit me lightly, and holy mother of God that felt good. The pain intersected with the pleasure, and caused my body to jerk as I let out a loud moan.
His head snapped up and he stared at me through his lust. “Did that feel good?” he demanded to know.
“Yes.”
Holding my gaze, he took hold of my breast and kneaded it before squeezing my nipple. My back arched as the p
ain and pleasure shot through me. He narrowed his eyes on me, and suddenly let me go. His movements were swift, and a moment later, he had me on my feet with my back to him, face to the wall. He grasped my hands and placed them up against the wall. With a quick flick, he had my bra off, and then he reached around and undid my shorts and yanked them down. It all happened so fast, I struggled to keep up, but I loved every second of it.
“Have you ever fucked a man who likes control?” he asked as he ran his hand over my ass.
Excitement pulsed through me. “No.”
“Fuck,” he growled. “Does this turn you on?”
“Yes,” I panted, wanting him to keep going, needing him to never stop. Whatever Griff had to give, I wanted to take.
He pressed his mouth against my ear as his arm circled my body and took hold of me. “You need to be careful what you beg for, Sophia,” he ordered, and the dominance in his voice pushed me closer to the edge.
“I want you, Griff. Show me who you really are,” I whispered.
He took a long breath, and I wasn’t sure if it was to keep himself calm or to ready himself to do what I’d begged.
And then he stopped holding back.
He took a step back and I felt his hands on my ass as his fingers slid under the edge of my panties. And then he tore them off me. My pussy clenched at the sound of them ripping. And my body trembled, waiting for what was next. Hoping like hell he wouldn’t stop anytime soon.
His finger trailed down my back, from the base of my neck to my ass. And then his hand ran lightly over my ass. “You sure you want to know who I am, Sophia?” His voice was all kinds of dark, dangerous and hot.
I nodded. “I’m sure.”
Slap.
The sting of his palm against my ass caused my body to jolt. I dropped my head back and closed my eyes while my back arched my ass into his hand.
I need more.
“Fuck, you want me to do that again?”
“Yes.”
I expected his palm on my ass again, but it never came. Instead, he spun me around and pulled me to him. His eyes bore into mine, and I saw the war he waged. “You don’t know what you’re asking,” he ground out. His breaths were coming hard and fast now, and his features twisted in his own pain as his eyes begged me to say no, to push him away. But I couldn’t. I wanted him too much to do that.
