“You got it.” Blade rolled his shoulders. “We did overhear some talk that the clubhouse is apparently under heavier than normal guard. That they have a couple special care packages which require extra attention, and yes, that’s an exact quote. Could be anything, but it got me to thinking.”
“Oh hell. There was your first mistake, brother.”
Blade shot Kip the bird and kept on talking. “I made some additional inquiries and talked to a couple shop owners who were quite chatty. They were also super helpful and more than willing to do anything to get the Devils permanently removed from their county. One guy told me about the convoy that went through near dawn the morning after the dinner party. Said it was odd. They had a couple vans and all the bikes were up on a flatbed. He only saw them roll through because he’d had to go in early for a delivery that was a day late.
“Another business owner, a lovely lady who supplied us with pie, told me that she’d seen a couple of the Devil boys in the general store picking up a few things and overheard them talking about a mouthy old lady.”
“Did she happen to say anything else about their conversation?” Bones asked.
“When I asked, she said that she’d heard the one say he was stunned their prez was taking the old lady’s crap seemingly lying down. The other said that Gin, their prez, couldn’t do anything about it. That if he started anything, it would be all-out war.”
Viper looked at Bones and saw from his expression that the man was likely having the same thoughts as Viper. Information that could well point to the Devils holding their prez and his old lady. No hard evidence, though, and that was a fucking downer. “We need eyes on that clubhouse. Several sets to get a look inside, if possible, to determine one-hundred percent they are there and where they are being held. We can’t go in there blind, so someone damn well find the plans for that building.” They wouldn’t be going for diplomacy; they would be going in hard and with the intent to destroy those that helped their enemies.
“Agreed,” Bones said. He called for volunteers, and after discussing a few more details, Bones banged the gavel to end the meeting. When Viper would have stood to leave, Bones waved him back down into his chair. Willing to see what his brother wanted, he sat back and waited until the last man out pulled the door shut.
“How’s Krista handling this?”
“Better than I would have thought. She’s had a couple moments where everything’s caught up to her.” Viper had been there for both times, holding tight until she’d lifted her chin and forced herself to keep moving. She was strong and determined.
“Is Duke going to have to kick your ass around the block?”
Snorting, Viper cocked an eyebrow. “Maybe, maybe not. It’s not like I’m going to tell you one way or the other. I am a man of honor and don’t kiss and tell. If there was any kissing, and I’m not saying there was or wasn’t.”
“Good God, boy, you should’ve been a lawyer.” Bones shook his head while his laughter died off. “How much have you been telling her?”
“Everything. I haven’t kept a thing from her since that night. It’s her parents and she deserves to know where we stand on every single fucking thing. I can tell she’s getting nervous the more time that passes. Not that I fucking blame her. I don’t like leaving our family out there under unknown conditions.”
“I hear ya there. Hopefully we can get this resolved in the next day or two. Speaking of which, we need to send someone out on a shopping run. We’re starting to get low on the essentials around here. I was thinking Krista might like to be in charge on this go, which means you’ll be going along and you should take at least one other.”
It was a good idea. Krista was getting batty sitting around doing nothing. A grocery run wasn’t overly exciting but would get her away from the clubhouse for a spell. “I’ll take Stone with me and a prospect to haul bags.”
“Sounds good. Grab some more popcorn while you’re out. The old ladies want to do a movie night for the kids after dinner. Then they plan to let them sleep out on the floor down here, since Krista scrubbed it down to the supports.”
“Right.” He pushed to his feet and headed around the table to the door. “Sure it’s not for you instead?”
“Nope, all for the kids, and that’s the story I’m sticking with.”
“Keep telling yourself that, old man.” He slapped Bones on the shoulder.
Viper checked the kitchen for Krista. Only she wasn’t in there. He found out from Bones’s daughter that she’d gone upstairs. He thanked her and went off to find his woman. The thought of Krista as his woman crossed his mind quickly, naturally, and didn’t have him breaking out in hives.
By the time he reached his room, the idea had settled in comfortably and he knew he’d need to do something with it. Krista Richmond was his woman. And he was damn well going to make sure she knew it.
Chapter Eleven
In the bathroom, Krista heard the outer door open, close, and then the lock being turned. Peeking through the small opening she’d left with the bathroom door, she spotted Viper shrugging out of his cut. “I’ll be out in a minute,” she called. Quickly, she faced the sink again to finish cleaning her face. After patting her face dry, she turned the light off and went to join him.
He was tugging off his boots and socks, his shirt already MIA. The sight gave Krista pause. There wasn’t a woman on the planet who wouldn’t stop to appreciate a fine male specimen if he were before them. Broad shoulders, thick chest, and tattoos all down his arms, over his shoulders to his pecs, and then down his back. She knew he had a couple on his upper left thigh, but none on his right yet. His back piece was intricate and her favorite. The scene depicted a graveyard, a lone figure with a bouquet of dark-red roses dripping blood to the earth where the blood became a river. All that surrounded the Scoundrels logo with the skeleton in his old-fashioned lacy shirt, suit jacket, and derby hat at a jaunty angle, offering up his middle finger while holding a glinting blade in his other hand.
When he stood to work on his belt, Krista found herself focusing on the crocuses on his left pectoral. Three crocuses from dark purple to the palest violet she’d ever seen denoting the family he’d lost years before. While the MC was now his family¸ the tattoo was a symbol to remind him about those taken too soon from the world.
Clad only in his boxers—odd she hadn’t realized he owned underwear—he moved toward her. Something deep inside clenched and began to quiver. His movements were purposeful, determined, and reminded her of a wolf stalking its prey. Krista had a feeling she was the prey and took a step back. Too late.
A muscled arm wrapped around her waist and yanked her up against his body. Instinctively, she slapped her hands to his chest to brace herself. She couldn’t help but stroke her thumb over the flowers marking his chest. Krista couldn’t help much when she had her hands on Viper. Add bare skin to the mix and she was a goner.
When Viper stayed quiet, she lifted her chin enough to see his face through her lashes. “What’s wrong?” There had to be something wrong for him to be acting like this. While it was the beginning of every fantasy she’d had since she’d been a teenager, she knew Viper didn’t feel the same way. Or he hadn’t. Now she wasn’t sure what had brought about this change.
His head lowered until she could feel his heated breath on her cheek. “Nothing’s wrong, Krista.”
O-kay, then. “Then you’d better explain, because I’m beyond confused.”
Viper moved his hand, causing the shirt she was wearing—another one from his closet—to lift up higher on her thighs. Krista hadn’t pulled on the shorts she normally wore to bed yet. She only wore a tiny pair of panties underneath—not much to hold back her body’s instant reaction to him. She swallowed hard and tipped her chin up further, and then shivered when the scruff on his jaw scraped her cheek. “Viper?”
His hand moved again and then he fisted her shirt. Her next shiver was from the air in the room brushing against the wet crotch of her panties. Krista shifted her
hands to his shoulders and held on tight. She didn’t know what was going on, but if he was messing with her, she’d gut him.
“I’ve fought myself too long. I thought I could stand by my promise to Duke, but I can’t. I don’t want to, not any longer.”
Maybe she was grasping at straws, but that damn well sounded promising. “Viper, talk to me. Tell me what you mean. Be precise with your words, please.”
His jaw scraped slowly against her skin before she felt his lips press lightly against her shoulder. “You are mine, always were, and now I’m going to have you. No more resisting, no more pretending otherwise. I’m not strong enough to keep up the fight.”
Her mind couldn’t seem to grasp what he was telling her. Using her hold on his shoulders to shove her upper body away from his, Krista met his gaze. “Are you saying that you want to … you know?”
Viper’s lips twitched and one corner lifted. “I’m saying that I plan to take you. Today, tomorrow, and every day to come in every way I can think up. I intend to keep you in my bed for hours each day, only letting you out when it becomes necessary for food or bathroom breaks. I want you for my old lady, Krista. This isn’t a passing fling for me. It’s been brewing for years, and now I am fucking going to do something about it.”
“Oh,” she said. That was more than she’d expected. A lot more. She’d figured he’d want sex. The thing that had been growing between them had hit a high note during the lockdown, but this was a level she’d never seen coming. Viper had made it clear years ago he’d never settle down. That he viewed it like a life-long prison term. The fact he was asking her, especially given what she knew her father had made the club members swear in regards to her, was huge. Epic, really.
His expression darkened when she remained quiet. “That’s all you have to say?”
Petting his arm, she blew out a breath. “Processing, here. Give me a minute.”
“Krista.”
She pressed her fingers to his lips. “Shush, thinking.”
There was a lot to think about. Biggest on her list was her father’s reaction. He was not going to be happy. Her mom would be thrilled; she’d always liked Viper even when he was being mouthy right back at her, returning sarcasm with sarcasm. Her mom said it was a good sign that, while he had respect for her, he didn’t fear her. Too many in the club feared Nadine. Not that Krista blamed them. She even had days she wouldn’t cross the woman for anything. Nadine’s mercurial moods were legendary around Crystal Creek, but she also had the softest heart. She gave to charities, volunteered at practically every fundraiser ever, and had created a toy drive to help the kids living in tight times during the Christmas season.
But this wasn’t only about her parents, or Krista, or Viper. It would affect the club too. It might well screw things up, including how the other members viewed Viper. Anything that messed with his position of authority in the ranks wasn’t to be taken lightly.
Finally, she moved her hand back to his shoulder and focused on him again. “You know Daddy’s going to flip out, and have you considered the club? How this will affect the balance and your position within it?”
He shifted his weight, and the next thing she knew she was in his arms. Reacting quickly, Krista wrapped her legs around his waist and shifted an arm to hold onto his shoulders. When he stopped moving, she was straddling his lap as he sat on the bed’s corner.
“I will deal with your father when that comes up. The club has known this day was coming. They saw what even I didn’t, and your father has too, though I doubt he’ll admit to it. You’ve seen the members downstairs, Krista. Seen how they are when you’re close, in my arms or on my lap. They accepted it the moment I made my claim on you.”
“You’ve claimed me, huh? I don’t feel very claimed.” She was playing with fire now. Knowing where they stood with one another was all that mattered. His assertion about claiming her had her little-seen temper pushing up to the surface. This was the first she was hearing about his feelings in regards to her, so she was a little off balance. While she was thrilled to finally have him opening up, it still irritated her that he was doing it in such a guy way. “If you wouldn’t mind clarifying the exact moment this happened, I’d be appreciative. Was it when you were getting busy with Joanne under her husband’s nose? No, I know, it had to be while you were fucking the sweetbutts in the storeroom every chance you got. No, wait, I have it now. The night you made sure I’d see you getting sucked off by that bitch Adrianna behind the coffee shop during her break.”
Okay, she sounded jealous, bitter, and angry, but fuck him. The asshole had made it abundantly clear he didn’t consider her anything more than an annoyance for years. Her body wanted him, and when she dug deep, she had to admit her heart did too, but that didn’t fucking mean he was getting off easy. Viper would need to prove he wanted her and only her. She would not be a convenient fuck whenever he was in the mood and then be tossed aside when he was looking for something else. While the last few days had gone a long way to making the past few years of frustration fade, she needed more from him. She had to know, once and for all, where he saw this going, and he’d better damn well say something permanent or there would be hell to pay.
Tilting her chin up, she stared at him dead on. “I’m waiting. Do feel free to enlighten me any time here, Viper. Or should I continue with my thoughts on the matter?” Maybe she had gotten more backbone than she’d thought from her mother. It was definitely the right time for it to show up. This well could be the most important and pivotal moment in her life. No way was she going in blind.
Chapter Twelve
Viper didn’t blame her for her accusations and questions. No one to blame but himself, he knew. He’d done it all to keep her at arm’s length at first and now it was back to bite him firmly in the ass. Adjusting his hold on Krista, he drew her stiff body in closer to him and rested his forehead against hers. He would have to fight for her and to prove his intentions. He’d have to bare everything to her if he ever hoped to have a shot at a future he hadn’t seen possible—until she’d come into his life.
“You were sixteen when I realized the fondness I had for you was more than a passing fancy. I knew it was going to be a problem given your father’s feelings about you hooking up with an MC member. He doesn’t want this life for you, wants you to have better, and I agree with him. You should have better, more, something solid, but I can’t and won’t let you go. I did fight the feelings I had. It was easy when you were still underage, but the moment you were legally an adult it was blood and guts all-out war inside me each time you came around. I figured that if I could make you hate me that the feelings would die, but you never really seemed to hate me enough.”
Rubbing his nose to hers, he breathed in the scent that was all Krista mixed with his shampoo and soap. The fact his scent was on her did things inside him that he couldn’t put words to. “So I did anything I thought might work to get my mind off you. And yeah¸ I fucked around, a lot, more to try to break the hold you had on me and didn’t even know about. Useless, all of it. The last two years I’ve had no interest in sex with anyone but you. I knew then that I’d fought a losing battle the whole time, which pissed me the fuck off. I know your father will try to put his foot down and say he won’t allow it, but I don’t care anymore. If he runs me out of the club, so be it. All I need, all I want, is you. I can’t change the past, Krista, but I can promise you a future. Don’t know what it will entail or where it will be, but I swear on the MC that I will always be faithful to you and you alone.”
Normally a man of few words, Viper felt like he’d run a marathon. Krista remained quiet, which worried him. The wetness against his nose had him wrenching back to look at her. Her cheeks were damp with tears. “Krista?” He cupped her face and wiped at the damp with his thumbs—a losing battle, since more fell. “Shit, don’t cry. I didn’t mean to make you cry.” Fucking hell, he couldn’t seem to do anything right with her.
She stunned him by throwing her arms around his neck
and hauling in him tight. Wrapping his own arms around her, he gently stroked her hair. “Tell me what’s wrong, Krista.”
Her hold loosened a little and he felt her lips against his jaw. One kiss was quickly followed by another. Then there was a third to his cheek and a fourth to the corner of his mouth. “Kiss me,” she demanded.
Viper couldn’t resist her. He took her mouth in a kiss that was anything but gentle. He was too hungry for her. Her taste only sent his need higher and made his cock twitch against her thigh. She pressed in closer to him, the heat from her pussy making him growl deep in his throat. Dropping a hand to her ass, he cupped a cheek and pulled her in against his aching dick. Then she began to rock her hips.
Tearing his mouth from hers, he found forming thought a challenge. “Fucking hell, woman, what you do to me. But I won’t take you until you talk to me.”
She pouted at him but settled down on his thighs again. “I should hate you.”
“Yeah, you should.” His hope was that she didn’t.
“I should also throw you out of the room and demand you leave me alone. But I can’t. I don’t think I could ever truly hate you, Viper. I’m still upset with you and I might be for a while yet, but I also want you something fierce. I have for years. Yes, Daddy’s going to be upset, and we’ll deal with that together. Mom will help there. She’s rather fond of you, after all. And I’m definitely worried about the fallout this could have on you with the club. Not enough to let you go, though, for the record.”
He could deal with all that. In fact, the coiled tension in his chest loosened up a lot from her words, letting him breathe easier. “I will do anything you need me to do to help you get over your upset with me. Tell me what you need and I’ll do it, no questions asked.”
“Right now, all I need is for you to follow through. I need you, Viper. Inside me and making me forget everything for a time. Then I need you to hold me tight and never let go.”
Viper (Scoundrels MC #1) Page 6
