by Rayne O'Gara
Pulling out my phone I check the time and make my first stop the hardware store. The front door opens as I reach it, my father beating me to it first. Confusion scrunches his eyebrows and I give him a large hug. His arms center me in the whirlwind my life has become. I take a deep breath to calm down before easing my way out of his arms.
“What’s the matter?”
“Life has become so complicated,” I answer his question. Dad shakes his head and crosses his arms over his chest.
“Now, darlin’, just spit it out. You come up here driving like a bat ‘outta hell. Somethings the matter.”
“I need help. Well, my boyfriend needs help.”
“The big one you’ve been seeing? He okay? I like him.” Oh God, this is about to get awkward. But I need to get Wood out of there.
“Um, no. Caveman is actually out there right now tracking Stephanie down who got my, um, other boyfriend arrested.” My checks are flaming; I know without the use of a mirror. Dad’s beetled brows slowly climb up his forehead before his head shakes a bit and his eyes find the floor.
“Please, Dad. I love him. I love them both so very much. I’m not cheating or anything like that. It’s a different kind of relationship. Wood knows about Cave and Cave, well, he is actually thrilled we got through to Wood and he finally joined us. God that man has been through enough as it is and now my past is the one biting him in the ass.” Dad’s hand comes up and stops my verbal diarrhea. How do you explain ménage relationships to your father?
“You love them?”
“Very much.”
“They love you back or are you some kind of plaything to them?” His soft voice grows hard as stone with his question.
“Caveman, yes. Wood, he cares about me, but I understand why he is wary with letting a woman into his heart. But I’m not going to give up trying because it’s hard. They are my men and I will do everything I can to make us work,” I answer assuredly.
“Then what do you need me to do to help?” His smile eased a pressure inside of me, but it couldn’t be that simple.
“You are alright with this?”
“Darlin’, you will always be my little girl and I want to really meet these two if you ever want me to relax or even give blessings. But I know what a ménage is and I’m not an idiot. Plus, my baby is a grown woman and in love, I won’t stand in the way of that. Another plus, I really dislike that Stephanie chick and if she is fighting against your men, then that’s a good sign of character. Now how much you need to get him from the clink?”
Dad walks over to the safe behind the counter and I cannot wipe the surprised but extremely happy smile off of my face. He hands me some money and I hope with my nest egg, what little of it there is, I can get Wood released. With one more hug and a promise for a family dinner where I invite the guys, I jump back into my car.
I arrive at the police station in record time without breaking any road laws, need to get my man out of the clink, I don’t need a ticket for something right before going in. The reception desk is covered in scratched up bulletproof glass, like the plexiglass you see at ice hockey rinks, a board looking female officer sits behind the desk.
“Hello.”
“Yes, how can I help you?”
“I’m here to bond out Dillon ‘Wood’ Gentrey.”
“Have you contacted a bond agent?” The officer looks up in question from her paperwork. Yeah, that would be a no.
“Not yet. Any recommendations on who would be the quickest?” I ask.
She points over to the right at the counter edge at my elbow to a business card holder. Good Lord there are like twenty bail bond agents. Pulling out a card from the middle I call the number and explain the situation. I find out that normally the jail would call one or if they had someone already there, but because I came right on the heels of his arrest, Wood hasn’t even been all the way through booking yet. Maybe with my quickness we can get out of here soon.
I take a seat on an uncomfortable wooden chair lined up against the wall across the room from the reception desk and wait for Mr. Seever. He said he would be by shortly since he is already in town. He didn’t sound sleazy over the phone, thank goodness, I cannot deal with that at the moment. I am relieved a few minutes later when shaking the hand of the bondsmen. A younger man, probably around my age, wearing a clean pair of jeans and button down shirt, his right shirt pocket pronouncing the company logo, and tan boots.
“Alright, let’s get the paperwork all done and your boyfriend out of here. I do, or wish, look I know it’s not my place to say anything, but looking over the charges I worry—”
“Bogus charges. They will be proven. He has never risen a hand to me, and I have seen him furious, I know he would never hit a woman. Just because he rides a Harley and is with a club, it doesn’t mean he or the club are bad or evil and woman beaters. But thank you for your concern.” I smile at him and with a nod he goes off to do whatever he needs to do to get Wood the hell out of this place.
Crap balls… I feel like I’m in a Spongebob episode…
Three hours later…
My butt has gone completely numb from these stupid damn chairs. I pull out my phone and hook up to my Netflix, seriously I cannot take any more daytime television from the little screened TV hanging in the corner of the room. Every ten seconds I think I hear a buzzer so I glance over at the white painted steel door hoping it will open and bring out my man. The bondsmen had already completed paperwork, I’ve signed everything, and ran out to the ATM, giving him the customary ten percent…and what a large chunk of my savings that was. Five thousand. Five freaking thousand dollars for bail. First, the bondsmen scored lucky with me randomly choosing his company. Second, Wood better find some seriously ingenious ways to pay me back, not with money, I would never take it, but he is inventive, I know he will figure out something.
Three more hours later…
I’m now pacing. And I’m pretty sure pissing off the reception officer. The new one. Because shift change was apparently an hour and a half ago. I couldn’t concentrate on the movie I tried to watch and no games apps can keep my attention. All I can think of is what they are doing to Wood behind that steel door that could possibly be taking so damn long! I contemplate counting floor tiles and ceiling panels, but I don’t have the patience…the time obviously, just not the patience. I texted Cave a few times to see how that side of things are going, but I only received a quick short ‘Taking care of it’ from him. Alright then, I will leave it in their capable hands. I don’t know how connected these guys are, I just know they are in fact connected somewhere. Or just cocky and oozing superficial confidence. Either way they got this.
I hear another buzz and the door of my soon-to-be nightmares finally actually opens, surprising me. I spin around and run into Wood’s tattooed arms as soon as he clears the doorway. Thank fuck he is finally out.
“Whoa.” He pulls me away from him after returning the hug. “What are you doing here, Sweets?” The look on his face shows how much of a surprise it is to walk out and find me there and not one of his club members.
“Like I would not be here to spring my man,” I tell him as an ugly thought hits me. Maybe he didn’t want me here. Last night just could have been about sex for him, after all I did tease him to the brink last night. What if I saw something deeper in last night than he intended? Oh God, I don’t think I can go back to how we were before.
Wood must read the look on my face, which I think I schooled pretty well, guess not. But the results are awesome. He pulls me into his arms and hugs me tightly. “I’m glad it was you waiting for me. But I’m damn sorry you had to be here in the first place. Where’s Cave? Everyone?”
“I told them to go fix this bullshit and that I had you.” His eyebrow raises at this.
“And they all just listened to you, did they?”
I know I am blushing; I can feel the heat in my face. “Yeah.” Then I can’t help going on the defensive. “Look, he should never had tried to tell me what to do
in the first place. Just jumped right on in and started ordering me around, like I follow his orders. I don’t think so. And who is he to keep me from my man anyway?”
“Who’s this he, baby? Cave? I figured you would listen to him. Please don’t tell me it was Steel you talked to like that.” His eyes look down at me seriously. Why all the drama if it was Steel?
“What if it was Steel, no biggie. Cave took me home and they all departed for places and answers unknown.”
“Let me get this straight. You told my President how it was going to be and that he couldn’t tell you what to do, and then you gave him orders. Do I have that right?” Geez, why does he have to look at me like that? Like the world is imploding, I’m in serious trouble, and he wants to burst out laughing…or has to go to the bathroom.
“That would be correct. Hey, why did you just go pale?” He wraps his arm around my shoulders and pulls me toward the door without a word. What the heck? “Wood? What’s the issue?”
I hand him my keys and we climb into my car. Once the doors shut us in he turns and looks at me. “You have no idea who Steel is or what he’s capable of.”
“No, but I do know that Jay is in love with him and having his baby. She would never, under any circumstances, put herself or her baby in jeopardy. You and Caveman have an allegiance to him and you two are good men. So I know he is a scary ass dude, but not to Jay, Stacy, or myself. And I am doubly sure because I saw the smile on his face after the shocked look wore off as I was climbing on the back of Cave’s bike.”
Wood looks up to the ceiling of my car. “No fucking clue. She’s stupid brave goin’ toe to toe with a motorcycle club’s Prez, no fear. Jesus.”
“Hey stop praying and kick it into gear. I’m hungry, I know you are, and let’s get to my place while your guys figure out the down low.”
“Why are you fucking talking like that?” he asks, but thankfully starts the engine.
“I’m working on my tough talk. Practicing my biker bitch.” I smile widely at him.
“Stop. It’s just wrong.”
“Oh come on, you don’t like my lingo?”
“Noelle.”
“Dillon.” I deadpan, looking at him looking at me. His head goes back and he bursts out laughing and I smile with him. He pulls out of the parking space and heads to a fast food place. We grab some food and arrive to my house before chowing down. We both are so hungry. I suppose I could have left the station and went to go grab me something, but I didn’t want to leave with the chance of him walking out and I wasn’t there.
“So, what do we do? What’s the next step in Noelle’s elaborate ‘Free Wood’ plan?”
“Free Wood? What are you, a whale?”
“Only below the belt, hot stuff.” His eyebrows waggle at me and I snort.
“Um, owww. You would never touch my vagina if you were hung like a whale, ever. The nookie ban would be in full effect.”
“Fuck. That would suck.”
“Having a monster dick or never getting back into my vajay-jay?”
“Losing this sweet piece of ass,” he answers and runs a hand down my backside to squeeze a handful. That is both sweet and crude all at the same time. “Also the monster dick, I’d have to get my pocket pussy custom made and quadruple my lube purchases, not to mention finding a woman who would even consider fucking an actual grand challenge.”
“Porn stars?”
“Geriatrics?
“What!?”
“Yeah, I mean they be old so no need to worry about being stretched the fuck out because when would they get to have sex again? And they would get to go around to all their old lady friends on bingo night and brag about how they got laid by a hot young stud with a whale dick.”
“Dillon. That’s awful,” I reprimand. How did these things even pop into his head? Shit, should I hide my grandmother from him in the future so he doesn’t try to seduce her?
“Yeah, it is. But you love me anyway.”
Gulp.
Chapter Eighteen
Noelle
“I, uh.”
“Come on. Where’s my fierce warrior princess? You need me to piss you off to get you to say it? I can do that if you need me to.”
“You like pissing me off way too much, you know that?”
“I do, and you’re avoiding the question. Or at least the answer.” I narrow my eyes at him. I do love him. I do. But is it too much to ask for him to say something about his feelings for me before I bust my heart out onto the floor?
“I know we don’t have the same set up as you and Cave, and that’s my fault.”
“No. No its mine. If I would have kept my mouth shut that morning things would have been different.”
“I can’t say that.” His hand cups my face, pulling my eyes to his.
“What do you mean? I pushed you away. You were there that morning and I pushed you away.”
“Yeah. I was thinking of giving you more than I have thought to give a woman in a long ass while, but I didn’t think of long term bullshit. I liked the way you fucked. Wanted more of it. But really, after taking what I wanted from you, I can’t say I would have looked any deeper. Your bullshit pissed me the fuck off and made me think of shit better left buried. Or so I thought. I needed to bring that, her, out and work through it before any woman could get another chance at me. I didn’t want to, it hurt way too fucking much, but you forced it. Pushed and pushed. Then you showed me the sweetness. The differences between that bitch and a good woman. You are a good woman. Wild, so fucking dirty and wild, but good. I needed that, you, to remember that I still had some good left in me too.”
Oh.
My.
God.
“Dillon?”
“Yeah, my Sweets.”
“I—”
“You know I was fucking jealous of Caveman last night.” He was? Why on earth?
“Why? I don’t understand.”
“I saw what you had between you, and then he entered you fucking bare. Shit, I was fucking jealous. I wanted to be in you bare, to feel nothing between us. But I know that it was me that fucked my chance up.”
“He, he hasn’t slept with anyone since being with me.”
“Neither have I, baby.” What? No, that’s not true. Why is he lying to me? He is here with me, why try to convince me of things I have seen with my own eyes?
“Dillon, I saw you with those other women. I’m not upset. I don’t care. We weren’t actually together so I wasn’t expecting faithfulness.”
“Baby, like I said I fucked up. I played. I saw you watching me and I didn’t want you thinking I was fucking mooning over you, which I admit I fucking was. So I played it up, walked away with those bitches. Never. Fucked. Them. I couldn’t, and isn’t that a mindfuck in a half? There was one pussy that caught me. One.”
“Baby.”
“Yeah. At the time that pissed me off because I didn’t want to admit you were getting to me.”
“I get to you?”
“I love you, Noelle.”
“Dillon,” I sigh and launch myself into his arms before meshing our mouths together. He’s mine. Oh God I can’t believe it, he is mine.
“I love you, so much,” I whisper between kisses. No more fear over revealing my emotions.
Wood pushes away from me only long enough to stand, tug me back up into his arms, and carry me down the hallway and into my room. I don’t know what’s up with my men and carrying me everywhere, but I sure as heck am not saying anything about it. I have found being carried into bed is pure fantastic-ness. And yum.
He lays me down so gently before following me down to rest on top of me. His normal bossiness and rushed attitude has fled. Our hands move slowly as we remove each other’s clothing, dropping each article onto the floor, not caring where they fall to. The only thing on my mind is feeling his skin under the palms of my hands. I explore every inch of his smooth skin covering tight, hard muscle. Raised lines from his tattoos tickle my fingers as I trace the most beautiful of
his ink. His body is a side of perfection to me. His mouth teases mine with whispered words and deep kisses.
He makes love to my entire body, leaving no inch of my skin untouched by his mouth, his hands. Making me feel worshiped. Our smiles to one another are abundant. Dillon has me moaning his name twice in orgasm before donning a condom and sliding inside of me in one long glide. We both agreed on testing first, even though he hasn’t been with anyone since, but he wore protection before. His body is pressed on top of mine so closely I don’t know where I end and he begins. We climax together, our mouths close, breathing in each other’s pants, our eyes locked together. One of the most beautiful experiences of my life.
Basking in the afterglow, we snuggle under the blankets, his arms wrapped tightly around me with my head resting on his chest listening to his rapid heartbeat slowing under my ear.
“Tell me more about Stephanie,” his chest rumbles and I grimace against his skin. I don’t want to think of her while I am in Wood’s arms.
“She wasn’t always a bitch of epic proportions,” I tell him.
“You know she’s the one behind all this assault bullshit, right? She still in your heart, your head? Because I need to know right now, baby. I don’t think I can stop the club, but I can at least make sure they don’t come down too hard on her, for you.” I wait a moment to let all of his words sink in. God, this man. After the shit she pulled, the money she has cost us, the chance of prison time…and he would lessen her punishment…for me, if I still cared for her.
God.
This man.
“Wood, Dillon.” I tilt my head and look up into his brilliant jade eyes. “Whatever happens to her is what she has brought onto herself. Only someone with major issues would have someone beat them up like that to pin it on someone else. We may have a history, but she’s been gone for a long time. And she never had even a part of the love I have for you and Sam. I loved her, the only way I knew how to love at that time in my life. Now, I know that wasn’t love, it was twisted and wrong, nothing like the happiness, pureness, and scariness of my love for you two. And now she has fucked with my man.”
