“Yes. A woman that looks like you,” his eyes trailed up and down my body as he spoke, “and yet you dress like that, and ride, too? You're a rarity.”
“Oh, that. Yes, I suppose so. I grew up around motorcycles, riding on my daddy's Harley before I took my first steps, and I just fell in love with the feel of the wind ripping through my hair. It's addicting, as I'm sure you are well aware of. I've just never been much for frills and lace.” I took a step closer to him, my fingers trailing along the side of his cut. “I like leather much better.”
He reached up with a smile and removed my hand from his jacket gently.
“You're not afraid of....leather?” He asked, his eyes glinting with amusement. I knew he wasn't talking about leather. He brought my hand up to his lips, pressing them gently against my palm. My legs weakened as the heat of his lips burned my palm.
“I'm not afraid of much at all,” I replied, jutting my chin up a little as I gazed up into his eyes.
Those eyes! Sky blue with thick dark lashes fringing them, coupled with the midnight black of his long, soft hair - he was a vision that shouldn't have been legal. My heart sped up as he looked at down at me thoughtfully.
He chuckled, his deep laugh echoing through my apartment.
“You're something else, aren't you?” He asked.
“I'm just me,” I replied. “A simple girl that likes to ride.”
“Well, I don't usually run into women like you. That's all.” He released my hand gently. “Lucky you.” I replied, leaning into him.
“Yeah,” he said through his laughter, “lucky me indeed. Shall we ride, then? Or would you like to go to dinner first?”
“Nope. I already ate. Thank you.”
He downed his beer and put the bottle on the kitchen counter as he walked towards the door.
“Let's get to it, then.”
“After you.” I said, grabbing my jacket, helmet and keys from their resting place by the front door.
I watched him lead the way after I locked my door, his jeans hugging his muscular ass. I smiled, and decided that I would do my best to walk behind him as much as possible. Without a word, Crow put on his helmet, mounted his bike and started it up with a thundering roar. I did the same, and within seconds we were on our way. Trailing through the curves that cut through the forested hills on the way to Dog Mountain, I let him lead the way again. His backside proved to be more entertaining than the scenery around us, and I drunk in the vision of him as he effortlessly maneuvered his bike up the winding roads.
The sun was setting ahead of us, and the pink and purple sky behind the towering tops of the trees was the perfect backdrop for our night.
Crow oozed masculinity, and the vision of his perfect blue eyes kept dancing through my head. I was having trouble reconciling the stories I had heard about him, and the gentle way he looked at me. So far there had been no hard evidence of him actually committing any crimes, and while I was there to find some, a small part of me began to hope that none existed.
He pulled off to a scenic overlook after we reached the top of the mountain. Parking our bikes to the side of the road, we took off our helmets and locked eyes as he both shook out our hair.
“Don't you just love long hair?” I said jokingly. “Mine is constantly a tangled mess.”
He looked at me seriously, cocking his head to the side, then reaching out and grabbing one of my newly dyed black curls in his fingers and slowly wrapping it around his hand and pulling me in close.
“Sometimes, a tangled mess can be a whole lot of fun to make.” He winked at me and released my hair, leaving me breathless for a moment as I looked at him in mild shock. He was moving fast, and I knew I was going to have make some quick decisions on just how far I was going to let this go.
I had come into this assignment knowing it could go one of many possible ways, and yet without any real plan, other than to call Tommy if I needed help. I had known it would be obvious if I had gone in with a rigid idea of what I wanted to happen, and so I had decided early on to just go with the flow and let it all happen naturally. I certainly didn't expect that I would find myself attracted to Crow, and yet that was quickly becoming the case.
He grabbed my hand, and led me over to a bench overlooking the valley. Streaks of purple and pink clouds spread across the sky, the orange sun setting in the horizon, creating a haze of purple light that bathed the city below us. I couldn't believe I was sitting here watching the sunset with the president of the Crow's MC. Shouldn't he have had me bent over the pool table in his clubhouse by now? The paradox of the situation was not lost on me and luckily the loud patches on his jacket served as a constant reminder.
“This is one of my favorite places.” Crow said quietly next to me, his gaze focused miles away. “I come here often - it's quiet. There's never anyone else here. It gives me a chance to think. Watching the sun fade, knowing that every day it's going to come back up and go back down, a constant cycle, never changing. It's reassuring, you know? Everything else changes in this life. Usually for the worse.” His eyes clouded over with sadness as he spoke.
“A lot of times, sure. But the changes aren't always bad, sometimes good things happen.” I said.
He smiled, slowly turning to look at me.
“Sometimes.”
His eyes met mine and his sad blue eyes melted my heart. He brought his head down and his lips met mine in a feathery gentle kiss. I closed my eyes and leaned into him, inhaling his fragrance of musky soap and leather. His warm hand cupped my face as he kissed me for several long moments, his finger trailing along my jaw seductively, the light breeze causing his black hair to caress my face.
I felt like a teenager at inspiration point, my palms sweating, my heart racing, my breathless smile sneaking across my face as we broke apart to come up for air. There was no trace of the cop on a mission and the hardened criminal. After several long moments filled with many marvelously sensual kisses, our sun had set and we sat quietly on the bench, staring down at the twinkling lights of the city below us.
Crow held my hand, the warmth emanating from his body as I leaned into him. So few words had passed between us, but I felt like I had known him forever already. I found myself trying to push thoughts of my assignment to the back of my mind, and wanting to just enjoy this moment for what it was. Or, rather what it wasn't. Either way, in the moment, it felt damned good and if it wasn't for that piece of black leather slung across Crow's back and my badge that was back in my apartment, we could have been any other man and woman in the world.
“I'm glad you aren't afraid of me, Krys.” As if reading my mind, he spoke in the dark beside me.
“Why should I be afraid of you?”
“Because everyone is. Because nobody will look me in the eye. Because people cross the street instead of passing me. Old ladies leave the grocery store when I walk in. All because of the club.”
“Well I suppose you do have a reputation. That must be difficult for you.”
“That's just it. It is. It fucking sucks and it bothers me so much. I'm polite, I'm kind. Sure, I'm the president of the club, but that's just business. Everyone thinks I'm going to kill them or beat them up or steal their money.”
I just listened. I didn't know what to say. Why was he unloading all of this on me? I had just met him, but he had taken me on a sunset ride and kissed me under the stars as if we were old lovers, and now he was telling me his deepest feelings? Some danger he was! My views on this man were changing quickly.
“And all the guys in the club. They're so superficial. All they care about is getting drunk and getting laid. They aren't my friends. Sure, they look up to me, but I can't really talk to any of them. I'm supposed to be their rock, the stable one that they all come to with their problems. But they wouldn't have any idea what to do if I told them about anything that was bothering me,” he continued.
“That does sound lonely.”
“Yeah,” he sighed, then stood up abruptly, dropping my hand. “I'm sorry,
Krys. It's getting late, we should be getting back. I shouldn't have gotten all serious like that.” He pulled me up, his handsome face just inches from mine. “Actually, I shouldn't have stopped kissing you.” He pulled me in and began kissing me again, his mouth sweetly searching mine, his hot tongue exploring my mouth deeply.
I moaned against him, his soft kisses deliciously warming up my entire body. I wanted this man naked, I wanted to strip that leather off him and feel his muscles sliding under my hands. But I had to remind myself to go slow. Shaking off the feelings as best I could, I tried desperately to remind myself that the reason I was supposed to go slow was because I was here to do a job, not to slowly find my way into his bed.
“Let's get going, it's getting late.” He finally pulled away from me, placing one last kiss on my forehead as he led me back to our bikes. “Be careful driving, okay?”
“Safety first!” I said smiling at him before I put my helmet on.
By the time we returned to my apartment, I had made a decision. I couldn't draw this out any longer, I
couldn't let myself fall for this guy, and if the fastest way to the end of this assignment led me into bed with him, then I would do it. Tommy didn't need to know exactly how I obtained any information I might uncover, just the information itself. So, if I just happened to find it while I was naked, who cared?
I felt bad for Crow. I really hoped I didn't uncover anything illegal. The only thing I wanted to uncover was whatever was under his clothes. I was sure I wouldn't be disappointed.
“Do you want to come in for another beer?” I asked, standing outside of my apartment door.
“I have some club business I have to attend to tonight. I need to get going. But, there's a party at the clubhouse tomorrow night, and I would love for you to come. What do you think?”
“What kind of party?”
“One of our guys is getting married. We're having a party after the ceremony tomorrow evening. Stop by around 7?”
“Sure, why not?” I asked.
“Why not?” He smiled that perfect smile once more before he kissed me again. I was practically swooning by the time he pulled away.
“Thank you for tonight, Krys. You're not a bad rider....for a girl.” He said, his eyes gleaming mischievously. I punched him in the arm lightly and turned to open my front door.
“You haven't seen anything yet!” I replied, winking at him before I closed the door, his criminally handsome face disappearing from my view.
CHAPTER FIVE
When Crow invited me to a 'little party' at the clubhouse, he misspoke. Hundreds of jovial drunk people spilled out of the clubhouse parking lot, along with the loud, blaring music of a live band set up in the corner. The bride and groom were the drunkest of all. I watched them from afar as I arrived, quickly realizing that the six pack of beer in my hand was woefully unnecessary as I spotted a line of kegs against the wall of the clubhouse, quickly being consumed.
Crow wasn't anywhere in sight, so I wandered around, taking in everything I could. My plan was to get a good look around at the clubhouse and listen to every conversation I could eavesdrop on, so that I would hopefully have something more substantial to report to Tommy tomorrow. As of now, all I could tell him was that Crow smelled like mint and soap and had the softest lips I had ever kissed.
I tried to fade into the background a little, but it was proving to be impossible. This was obviously a tightly knit community and everyone seemed to know everyone. Except me. The men and the women both were eying me with curiosity, and I knew it wouldn't be long before someone asked me exactly what I was doing there.
But then I saw him. Crow was standing across the lot from me, surrounded by three guys, two of whom were the two from the cafe yesterday. Deep in conversation, they listened intently as Crow spoke to them, his forehead wrinkled in anger, his blue eyes flashing. Pockets and Rat Boy nodded in agreement with whatever Crow was saying, and the other man stood motionless, his arms crossed over his thick barrel chest, a huge unruly gray beard covering his face and hiding his features completely.
This was Mr. C aka Mr. Candy. I knew all about him. He had been the VP before Pockets, but had resigned two years ago. Still a member of the club, he was known to spend his days smoking and passing out lots of pot aka 'candy' and sitting in the shade. He was at least 55, and the MC life had been hard on him. He was worn, tired and dusty, and he put the dirty in the Dirty Crow MC's.
I was watching Crow so intently that I didn't notice that someone had walked up beside me. His voice startled me.
“Do I know you?”
I jumped, and turned to look right into my worst nightmare. My past.
“No, I don't think so.” I said quickly, walking away from him toward the kegs. My body was shaking and I needed some space to collect myself. Pete Miller aka The Stallion aka Stud. Also known in my head as the asshole son of one of my father's associates from The Blackhearts. He had named himself when he was an egotistical kid, and it stuck. Pete was just a little older than me and was a complete bastard before my parents died, and proved to be an ever bigger one afterward. I was 12 years old, and he was hitting on me not two weeks after my parent's funeral. He was relentless, and if it wasn't for a swift kick to his groin behind the clubhouse, he would have succeeded. I hated him.
And here he was looking at me once again like a piece of meat. He followed me, his eyes squinting as he stared at me rudely.
“No, really. I swear I know you from somewhere, I just can't place it.”
“I don't think so,” I replied. “I just moved here. I've never seen you before in my life.”
“Hmm,” his stupid head tilted in confusion. “Okay, if you say so. You just remind me of someone I used to know, I guess.”
Great. Just what I needed. Pete Miller could ruin me in a second if he figured out who I was. My disguise was good, but was it good enough to fool some jerk who had been practically obsessed with me for years?
I walked away from him after getting a beer from the keg that I had no intention of drinking, and sighed in relief as Crow spotted me. His face lit up and all traces of his previous anger disappeared. My breath caught in my throat as I was once again taken by his sheer beauty. Where were the scars? The greasy, stringy hair? The awful breath and missing teeth? He looked like a male model for a leather company, not a scary derelict.
As he strolled over to me, I marveled at his easy stride. Whatever he had been discussing with the other guys was forgotten as he walked straight over to me and kissed me full on the lips. I felt a hundred pairs of eyes on us, but I kissed him back without hesitation. It was impossible not to respond and I tried desperately to ignore the wetness seeping into my panties as his hand snaked around to the small of my back, pressing my body into his as he kissed me.
“Thank you for coming, Krys,” he said, pulling away and smiling down at me.
“My pleasure,” I replied. “What a party! I didn't realize there would be so many people here.”
“We have a big family.”
“I can see that.”
“C'mon. Let me introduce you to everyone.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me around the entire property, stopping to introduce me to way too many people for me to ever remember. I did my best to memorize all the names for later, but I knew it was no use.
When we reached Pete, I tried to act naturally.
“Stud, this is my new friend, Krys. You be nice to her, or I'll have to kick your ass. You hear me?” Crow was smiling, and while his words were sarcastic, they were laced with an underlying seriousness. Pete's reputation had obviously come along with him.
“Krys. So that's your name, huh? Nice to meet you, Krys.” He looked at me for a moment, then turned to Crow. “She reminds me of someone I used to know. But I promise to be nice, Pres.”
I took this moment to get a good look at Pete, and noticed he was wearing a jacket, but there weren't any patches on it. So that's why he was here. He was a prospect. Just great.
We moved on
quickly, and by the time Crow had introduced me to everyone, I was exhausted and overwhelmed. Although he was introducing me as his 'new friend', he was acting like I was his new girlfriend. His smile and easiness was infectious, and I couldn't help but get caught up in the mood of the party. The bride and groom and everyone he introduced me to welcomed me warmly. If it wasn't for all the leather, and the motorcycles parked everywhere, it would have felt like any normal party at any normal family that just happened to like leather and loud rumbling methods of transportation.
The warmth of Crow's palm on the small of my back was surprisingly intimate and arousing, and he kept it there throughout each introduction, making it very hard for me to concentrate on my job. I did my best to ask subtle questions of everyone, trying to learn any tidbit of information I could report back to Tommy, but I was coming up completely empty. If this MC was doing anything illegal, it was completely out of sight. I was finding it increasingly enticing to just forget about my job, and enjoy the evening.
When Crow offered to give me a tour of the inside of the clubhouse, I perked up. Maybe now I would learn something useful.
“I'd love that, thank you.” I smiled at him, genuinely happy to be spending time with him. He was so polite and easygoing. In addition to the fact that I couldn't stop staring at his dark beauty, I was enthralled with the subtle way he commanded respect and loyalty. The crowds parted when he walked through, and other MC members nodded to him as he passed. He was definitely the king of his kingdom here.
The clubhouse was part motorcycle repair shop and part lounge. We walked in through the front door and my eyes adjusted to the dim lighting. A full bar lined one wall and two pool tables filled the empty space. Couches and easy chairs scattered throughout created a cozy, homey ambiance. The lights were dimmed and dozens of people were sitting at the bar and relaxing on the couches and chairs. Many people were coupled up and I noticed a few of them making out in the corners, a pale breast flashing here and there. It reminded me of any bar I might walk into in the city on a busy Saturday night, minus the bare breasts.
SAVING REBEL: Renegade Rebels Motorcycle Club Page 15
