“Well, don’t do anything you’ll regret, brother,” Hawk responded. “Just get back here so we can get on with business. Covacks is having trouble with the Russians and needs our persuasive capabilities to get them off his back.”
It was my turn to laugh. “Funny, since Covacks is Russian. You’d think they’d be working together.”
“You know Covacks, brother. He’s always been a wild card. He likes doing shit alone, and on his own terms. That’s why he’s so filthy rich. The Russians fucking with him are in the mob, they want in on his underground fighting.”
“The fucking Russian mob, are you crazy? Covacks has enough mercenaries on his payroll to take care of this shit, why us? We’re small compared to his numbers.”
I heard Hawk expel a deep breath. “Said too fucking much over the phone.” His gruff tone revealed that he wasn’t too thrilled at my response. We both knew that I’d said worse before. I was his VP and it was my job to question his decisions. Messing with the Russian mob was a death wish. “Get yourself home and we’ll hold church.”
We ended the call. I leaned against my bike and looked out over the churning ocean. The club hadn’t had any trouble in a long time. Minor shit like protection runs gone bad, trouble at one of the clubs where we provided muscle, or a fight with a rival club were all par for the course. It kept club shit exciting and provided an outlet for unleashed inner turmoil. Covacks was one of our biggest clients, and we’d been doing business with him for years. Offing members of the Russian mob would bring heat down on the Phantom Riders, and some of us could end up in prison, or worse, dead.
Fuck, all of us could end up dead. Messing with the Russians would put our families at risk, too. I couldn’t see Hawk putting Audra and his kids in harm’s way, so whatever was going down had to be fail-proof. Shit, I didn’t usually worry, I usually looked forward to the action, but for the first time in my life I had someone else to think about other than my brothers. It made a fucking difference.
“Dad?”
I hadn’t even heard the screen door open. Turning my head, I saw Sam step outside. “The movie over, kid?”
He nodded. “Boy, is it gonna storm!” he said animatedly, looking toward the beach. The wind whipped his shoulder-length hair about his young face. There was innocent excitement in his eyes. “Mom and I love storms!” He made his way to me.
I grinned, recalling how had Allie loved the rain, how she’d loved to fuck during the worst of it as if the excitement of Mother Nature’s wrath had awakened a fierce need inside of her. She’d been wild and insatiable, demanding my balls as much as my dick.
It was growing darker by the minute. Sam was running his small hands over my bike, checking everything out with a concentration that caused a little frown to form between his eyes. I knew that he wanted to go for a ride, but until I got him a brain bucket that wasn’t going to happen. “You really like my bike, huh?”
“It’s awesome!” He touched the Phantom Riders MC logo that was painted on the gas tank. “This looks like the same picture you have on the back of your vest.”
During lunch I’d told Sam a little bit about what it was like to belong to a motorcycle club, when we’d played twenty-twenty. I ruffled his hair and stood away from my bike. “It’s called a cut, kid.” I indicated the vest he’d referred to. “This is our club logo.”
“Will I get a cut?” he asked with wide eyes.
I could just imagine Allie’s response to that. “Maybe some day, but you have to earn it first.”
“What would I have to do?” His eager tone indicated that he was willing to do whatever it took, and now.
I could understand and relate to his eagerness, it had taken me almost three years before I’d finally earned my place in the club. It had been a year longer than most, because I’d lost some time in jail for selling stolen car parts. I’d been young and stupid, having lived on the streets since the age of fourteen after running away from home, and I’d done a lot of stupid juvenile shit just to survive. I couldn’t say that I’d graduated once I’d been accepted into the club, but belonging to something, having a family, meant everything.
I stared at Sam as he checked out the instrument cluster, aware that he was waiting for a reply. There was no way in hell I was going to give details to an almost seven year old on the kind of shit he’d have to do to earn his way to becoming a member in Phantom Riders. “When you’re a little older I’ll tell you, okay?”
“Sure.” He nodded. “Were you serious about us moving in with you?”
“Sure.” I’d inherited from my grandparents an old, two-story farm house that had been built in the twenties. It had taken a small fortune to renovate it and update it with all the modern amenities it hadn’t had, including an indoor bathroom. With five bedrooms there was plenty of room for Sam and Allie. “I have a big house. You can pick which bedroom you want.”
“Cool!”
I felt the first drops of rain. “I think we’d better go inside now.” With a hand on his shoulder I turned him gently and guided him toward the door. “You hungry yet?”
“Yeah, I could eat, mom said there was left-over pizza. She makes it really good with extra cheese and pepperoni,” he said, as if trying to convince me that it was good. “Do you like pizza?”
“Sounds good, kid.” I closed the door behind us. Sam veered off toward the living room and I turned toward the small kitchen.
By the time I had warmed up the pizza and served Sam it was dark and stormy outside. I tried to control my anger over Allie’s absence. What kind of a fucking lunch date lasted into the dinner hour? I thought about texting her, but decided against it. Part of me was relieved that she wasn’t one of those mothers who called every five minutes when they were away from their children. It also showed me that she trusted me enough to take care of Sam.
I went to the front door and closed it when the rain began blowing in through the screen. An hour later the storm let up enough for Sam to grab a quick shower, an hour after that I was tucking him into bed. He’d said that he wasn’t tired, yet he couldn’t stop yawning while we’d been watching Tarzan. I checked him shortly after putting him to bed and he was sound asleep, in spite of the renewed storm outside.
I watched him for a moment, my heart swelling with fucking pride over how good my boy was. Allie had done a good job with him.
I’d have to remind myself of that when she finally got her ass home.
Chapter 9
Allie
It was raining cats and dogs by the time I made it home, and it was late. I knew Rock would probably be furious, but I didn’t care. He couldn’t just come into my life again and expect me to be happy with his demands. We had a life there and moving again hadn’t been on my radar, especially now that Sam was in school. Life in Cedar Key was quiet and the perfect place to raise a child.
I sighed heavily, thinking about the last seven years, and wondering how it would have been had I been patient and not moved away. People did stupid things when they were angry and hurt, and when Rock hadn’t made contact after our fight I’d been blind with both. I could only blame my rash and stupid decision to leave without at least notifying him on my inexperience in life at the time, because I knew if it were to happen today there would have been a totally different outcome. Now he just expected us to go back to Maine with him.
I didn’t want to delve too deeply into why I wasn’t fighting him harder about going.
My lunch with Tom hadn’t gone as well as I’d hoped. The quiet, easy-going man that I’d been seeing on and off for the last few weeks had taken the news of my leaving confused and dejected. He’d thought that our relationship had been going somewhere, and he’d had every right to think that way. I hadn’t misled him, but I hadn’t exactly been honest with him, either. I should have made it clear to him that he would never be anything more to me than a good friend. I’d never seen Tom angry, but he’d been that and more during our conversation. I’d felt so guilty that I’d spent the entire after
noon with him, trying to make him understand why I had to go, while he’d tried to convince me that I had to stay.
In the end I’d turned and walked away from a good man, but not before promising him that we’d keep in touch, reminding him that anything could happen. After Tom and I parted ways I’d decided to head to the Krab Shack to tell my boss that I wouldn’t be back. He wasn’t too happy over my lack of notice, but I knew there was a waiting list of waitresses who wanted a job. Jenny was working a shift at the time and she took a break so that we could talk.
“You know you could probably fight this,” she said after I’d told her that I was leaving with Rock. “You’re not married. He can’t just expect you to bow to his will.”
I laughed at that. Jenny didn’t know Rock. “Maybe not, but he is Sam’s dad and he has certain rights.” We were sitting out back at a picnic table where the staff came for their breaks. A privacy fence prevented the customers from seeing us. “It’d be easier to just give in and go with him.”
Jenny’s gaze narrowed on me. “What aren’t you telling me, Allie?” She reached across the table and took my hand. “I can tell that you’re hiding something.”
There was so much about my situation with Rock that I’d never told Jenny. She was my best friend, and would be hurt if I told her now. We’d already promised each other that we would stay in touch, and visit when we could. Of course, we both knew that staying in touch meant texting and the occasional phone call. Visits would be nearly impossible, especially for Jenny and her large family. And I couldn’t imagine she’d be able to get away without her kids.
“It’s, ah, complicated,” I finally said, looking out at the water.
“You love him!” she rushed out with surprise, guessing the truth.
Our gazes met. I decided to be truthful with her. “I don’t think I ever stopped loving Rock. Maybe that’s why I’m letting him dictate to me what he wants. You should see them, Jen, he and Sam formed an instant bond. It wouldn’t be fair to keep them apart. And there’s no way I’d let Sam go all the way to Maine without me.”
She shook her head with agreement. “Maybe you and Rock have a future together, hon.” She sat back, smiling. “Derrick and I had a rough start. You just never know how things will end up.”
It was a thought to hold on to, but I wasn’t expecting much. Rock’s unpredictable life within the MC was a far cry from the sedate life Jenny had with Derrick. He was a suit-wearing realtor. I’d have to tolerate club girls and club rules, which put me at the bottom of the barrel because I wasn’t Rock’s old lady. I doubted Jenny would survive watching Derrick being touched, kissed, or fucked by another woman.
I wouldn’t be able to watch Rock with another woman either.
“What about Tom, how did he take the news?” I’d already told Jenny that I’d spent the better part of the afternoon with him. “I bet he wasn’t too happy.”
I returned Jenny’s smile. “About as I’d expected-- he was hurt and angry. A normal reaction, I guess.”
“I imagine.” Her mouth turned down. “And you really can’t blame him. A man doesn’t usually invest weeks dating a woman only to end up on the friend list.”
“I know.” When she put it that way it made me feel guilty. “He’s been very kind and patient with me and Sam.”
“Well, I’m sorry to see you leave, I’m gonna miss you like crazy−”“Break’s over!” Someone hollered out the door.
We laughed and got to our feet. “I’ll text you when we arrive in Maine.” We hugged each other tight.
“I miss you already,” Jenny said in a teary voice.
“Don’t cry, or you’ll make me cry.” My warning came too late, because there were tears in both of our eyes.
“Love you.”
“Love you, too.” We parted and I turned and walked away, determined not to look back. Goodbyes sucked.
Considering Rock’s mood when I’d left, I decided not to go home right away. I’d warned Sam that I might be back late, and I knew Rock would take care of him. The fact that Rock was insistent on taking Sam with him revealed that he was serious about being a father. The emotions simmering between us were right on the edge, and I had a feeling that when one of us lost control it was going to be disastrous.
I wasn’t ready to face the beast that Rock kept locked inside.
I went for a walk on the beach until the weather forced me to seek shelter inside. I found myself in a bar, sat down, had a couple glasses of wine, ignored the mild advances of a man on his way to being drunk, and finally left. If he’d have been a local that I recognized as being harmless I would have stayed longer and just ignored him, but I’d never seen him before. Besides, it was dark and late and I knew that I couldn’t put off going home any longer.
I should have called a cab, because halfway there it began to pour. By the time I reached my tiny house I was soaked to the bone. Someone had turned the outside light on for me and I could see through the sheer curtains that the light was on in the living room. Sam would most likely be in bed by now, so I unlocked and opened the door quietly.
I was greeted with, “Where the fuck have you been?”
My eyes went straight to the angry man staring me down from the kitchen. It looked like he’d been in the process of getting a beer, since he was holding one in his hands. “Ssh! You’ll wake Sam.”
“I shut his door.” He set the can down. “I didn’t know lunch dates lasted six hours,” he snarled.
I kicked off my wet sandals and hung my purse up on the hook by the door before turning back to him. “I don’t want to fight with you, Rock. I’m wet and I’m tired.” I wasn’t about to explain myself to him. His gaze narrowed on my breasts when I reached up to undo my hair. I glanced down to see that my nipples were rock hard and visible through my halter top. “I had other things to do.”
I didn’t realize before I said it how Rock might take that. I’d forgotten all about his warning before I’d left to meet Tom. Fuck him, I didn’t owe him an explanation for anything. I began to undo the buttons to my blouse as I headed toward my bedroom. “You can sleep in the guest room if you like. I’m going to get a hot shower and go to bed.”
I didn’t realize Rock was right behind me until I heard my bedroom door close and I was suddenly turned around and pushed up against it, face first. I caught my breath, turning my head to the side so my nose wasn’t squished.
“You remember what I said before you left?” he rasped into my ear.
I shivered when his warm lips brushed against my skin. “Something about me not fucking Tom,” I whispered. His big body was flush against mine, and I felt his hands at my waist.
“Is your pussy wet, Allie? If I reach down there and I find you wet with something other than your own juices I swear I’ll kill your friend.”
Rock wouldn’t hesitate from taking Tom’s life for touching what he considered to be his. I’d always known that he was a possessive man, and I knew that the first time his eyes had met mine again that he’d decided that I was his. It was as if the seven years separating us hadn’t existed.
A flash of lightning lit up the room, making me wince because it had seemed too close. The thunder that followed caused the windows to rattle. “You have no right−”
“You keep saying that, babe.” He ran his lips up and down the side of my neck, causing goose bumps to cover my flesh.
His hand moved to the hem of my dress. I panicked. “Rock−no!” He pulled the wet material until it was bunched at my thighs, and easily prevented my hand from removing his when I’d foolishly tried. “What do you think you’re doing?” I asked in a low tone.
His low rumble against me stimulated certain needs in my body. My hand remained over his as he continued slowly until he’d reached the elastic to my panties. I held my breath, listening to his heavy breathing in my ear. His fingers teased the crease where the elastic rested, before flicking over the small triangle of silk covering my mound. I released a moan of pleasure, my knees buckling.
“You like that.” He stated it as a fact, not a question, running his finger up and down the seam of my pussy lips over the material. I knew I was wet, and not from the rain. “You always did.” His tongue, teeth, and lips were moving over my skin as he said the words in a tone designed to ramp up the heat. I arched my neck to the side so he had better access. He made a rougher sound, taking the edge of my halter top in his teeth and pulling it down my shoulder.
All the while his finger flicked over my pussy. I wanted him inside me. I wanted him to ravish me like he used to do. The louder the storm turned outside, the more intense the storm inside me became.
“I’m going to fuck you, baby,” he said gruffly. At the same time he roughly grabbed my panties and ripped them from my body. Before I could make a sound his finger was on my bare mound, wiggling its way past my labia.
“No−” I whispered weakly, quivering wildly when his finger touched my sensitive clit.
No Mercy Page 6
