by April Lust
“I suppose suggesting you let me take the bus wouldn’t work.” She gave me a flirtatious smile.
“No,” was all I said, and started walking. I didn’t check to see if she was behind me; I didn’t need to; I could feel her. “Remember how to hold on?” I asked her when we reached my bike.
“Yeah. I think I can manage.” She reached for her bag from me, but I held it out to her so she could slip her arms through the straps. Once it was on, I grabbed the extra helmet from my side bag and placed it on her head, tucking her hair back and securing the strap under her chin. She gave me a disgruntled look, but didn’t get in my way.
I had a lot of questions for her, but she needed to get to work, and I needed to calm down before I asked them. If she started lying again, I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t strip her out of those khakis she wore and bend her over my bike for a spanking right there in the parking lot.
I’d get my head on straight. Head over the Fallen’s shop, see what I could find, then I’d pick her up from the shelter. She wasn’t cleaning offices that night, so we could have a nice long conversation about my first expectation.
Chapter Fifteen
Lauren
The afternoon could have gone better. I had hoped to get down the hall and to the lobby before Michael saw me, but, of course, I should have known better. I couldn’t let that detective friend of his talk with Tanner, everything would have fallen apart, and I worked too hard to keep it all together. I just needed to have a quick word with him before Michael came flying down the stairs.
I doubted I had a single word out before he and that detective found me. At least they stayed away. At first when I had gotten the call from the guy pretending to be a cop, I thought it was legit, but when Michael told me about Bixby being the guy on the case, I knew what it was. Tanner heard about the accident and was just trying to get me alone.
Thing about Tanner was he could have just called me himself and said he wanted to talk. I had nothing to hide from him or reason to be frightened. I would have met him. In public, of course. I wasn’t a complete idiot. And not as naïve as Michael still believed me to be.
I hadn’t expected him to show up looking like some character out of The Matrix, but with Tanner you never really knew what form he would be taking. The man changed personas with the wind. One week he was punk rock, the next a tough biker guy. I’d had to break it to him, he’d gotten the biker look all wrong, but he didn’t take my advice.
After Michael went away to juvie and dropped me from his life, I had kept searching. I didn’t care where I went so long as there was a possibility to find Michael. That was how I found Tanner. He had some dangerous contacts, guys who would make my skin crawl when I saw them, but each one of them held their own function in Tanner’s world.
He’d heard about my accident; concerned one of his business associates was gunning for me, he’d reached out. I tried convincing him that wasn’t the case, that it had something to do with my damn internship, but he thought it as stupid as I did. He tried to convince me to let him talk to the cops, to see what info they had so he could do his own digging. I tried to assure him I had it handled, but, just like Michael, he didn’t think I could do it. I reminded him of all the years I worked with him, not once did he have to come to my rescue. That reminder only irritated him more. Tanner never liked to be proven wrong.
It surprised me that Michael didn’t demand answers after his detective friend left us. He knew every word out of my mouth had been a lie, and having just turned my ass raw the night before with the very vocal lecture about honesty and other expectations, I half expected him to haul me over his bike to deliver another spanking. He didn’t. He barely talked to me on the way to the shelter, not that a conversation was easy to keep up with over the rumbling of his motorcycle. When he dropped me off, he didn’t even get off his bike. He just pulled his sunglasses down to the tip of his nose and told me to wait on the steps after my shift. If he weren’t there when I was done, I was to stay on the steps or go back inside.
Glad to not have to fight with him about the meeting with the detective, I agreed easily. I watched him ride away before I went inside, with something feeling off. Maybe guilt over not being totally honest with him? Hiding something from him?
My shift at the shelter flew by. It usually did when I worked with the kids group for the afternoon. A few of the moms told me again I should be getting my degree in education, not architecture. By the time it was time to go home, I was beat. Playing with kids took up a lot of energy, and keeping my patience going when teaching them to read took up the rest.
Walking out onto the steps and seeing Michael sitting on his bike staring at me, put me on edge. He wasn’t smiling. The sun had already dipped behind the buildings, casting a dark shadow over him and his bike.
Taking a deep breath, I walked over to him. “Think you can take me home tonight?” I asked when he scooted up on the bike to give me room, but didn’t say anything. Maybe he was finally done with me. He’d had his fun, but now that he saw I wasn’t the easy going, naïve little girl he knew from the past, he decided to move on. That was fine with me, or so I told myself. I wasn’t going to be anyone’s fuck toy. No matter how good it felt, I was worth a hell of a lot more than that.
“No.” He handed me my helmet without looking at me.
“I want to go home, Michael.” I swung my leg over the bike and settled in behind him. All I wanted to do was take a bath and sleep until morning. I didn’t have more energy to fight with him.
“Fine.” He revved his engine, and before I could think to question how easily he gave in, he tore out of the lot and headed to my building.
I should have known better than to think I’d gotten my way. Asya is home.” I pointed to the light in my apartment. “I’ll be good from here.”
“Yeah. Right.” He huffed and got off the bike. I let him follow up the steps to the front door and tried again to let him off the hook. “My place, my bed, remember?” He pointed to the door. “If you want to stay here, fine, we’ll stay here.”
“Asya is here, you can’t do anything…you know…like last night,” I warned him, and he laughed.
“Worried about a spanking for all that bullshit you spewed earlier? That’s good.” He took the key from my hand when I still hadn’t opened the door. “There are plenty of other ways to punish you that don’t require my belt. Much quieter ways.”
“I wasn’t spewing bullshit.” Even I didn’t think I sounded convincing, but lying to Michael was new for me. Hell, lying to anyone was pretty much out of my box of comfortable things to do.
“Let’s get upstairs.” He looked up and down my block while he held open the door for me.
I wanted to tell him there wasn’t anyone watching me, that I was safe, but it would have fallen on deaf ears.
Asya greeted us with a smile as she walked around the apartment, getting ready for her late shift at the bar. “I’m closing, so won’t be back ’til sunup.” She threw a wink at me while Michael had gone to the washroom. “How’s it going with him?” She tossed her lipstick into her bag.
“There’s no him. He’s just being an overprotective ass.” I dropped my backpack onto the couch and began digging out my notes.
“Hey, Asya.” Michael came out into the living room. “You might want to spend a few nights at your boyfriend’s place. I don’t like the idea of the two of you staying here right now, not until we figure out this car accident stuff.”
“Is Lauren staying here with you?” she asked with a grin.
“I’d rather she come back to my place, but she’s being bit stubborn.”
“She is right here.” I waved a hand in the air.
“Sorry.” Asya laughed. “Okay, I’ll stay over there. Maybe the four of us could grab dinner tomorrow night? It’s my night off.”
“I have to work.” I cut in before Michael had to come up with an excuse to ditch the double date.
“Of course. You’re always working. When’s that
internship starting?”
“Not ’til the fall.” I settled on the couch, pulling my feet under me and opening my book. She finished grabbing her stuff and waved her goodbyes.
“See? See how she agreed so nicely to stay somewhere safe?” Michael leaned against the arm of the loveseat.
“Asya loves sleeping over there. If she didn’t feel so guilty about leaving me without a roommate, she would have moved in with him a long time ago.” I kept my eyes on my book. “I have to finish this paper for tomorrow, so why don’t you busy yourself somewhere else.”
“Your attitude is a bit thick tonight, don’t you think?”
“Michael, I’m tired. I have to finish this, and I don’t have the energy to argue with you.”
“Just tell me one thing and I’ll leave you to your homework.”
“What?” I looked up at him.
“Why didn’t you tell me you dated the VP of Chicago’s Fallen?”
Chapter Sixteen
Michael
Several hours earlier
Of all the things I expected to find out when I walked up to the Chicago’s Fallen clubhouse, it was not a picture of my Lauren hanging on the arm of their VP, Colton. Walking into their house held enough danger, considering they still believed me one of the top runners for the Predators, but once they found out the VP’s ex was under my protection things got a little more serious.
“Lauren’s with you now?” Colton’s eyes had narrowed when I started asking him questions about her.
“She’s an old friend. I’m just trying to figure out why the fuck someone tried to kill her.” I swept my gaze around the bar area, at the handful of members nursing a beer, pretending not to listen to our conversation.
“Right.” He rolled his eyes and took a pull on his beer. “Lauren never mentioned having you for a friend, and I knew all of her friends.”
“I’m sure you did.” Colton had a reputation for being a little micromanaging when it came to his women. Jealous as hell, too. “We were friends in high school. I hadn’t seen her in seven years when she walked into my garage last week for a fix on her car.”
“She went to your garage? Why the fuck didn’t she come here?” He slammed his beer back on the bar.
“It was a tow. Her car wouldn’t start; guess you didn’t take too good of care of that piece of shit she drives.”
“That fucking Honda? I told her to get rid of it a thousand times, even threatened to drive it into the river, but she’s got a thick head.”
I laughed. “Yeah. I’ve noticed.”
“If you’re just fixing up her car, what the fuck you doing here?”
“Like I said, someone drove into her, plowed right into the passenger’s side of her car. If the idiot had been coming from the other direction, she probably would have found herself dead. As it was, the idiot was just that, an idiot.”
“What’s that got to do with us?” He turned, squaring off with me.
“The owner of the car had dropped it off at your shop for repairs that morning,” I pointed out, and took a slow sip of my beer.
“That Charger? Some cop came by already asking questions. That car was ripped out of the lot before we got to work on it.”
“Uh-huh. That’s what I heard, but you see, Colton, how does a fucking car get stolen out of your lot? That shit doesn’t just happen, you know.” I leaned back in the chair. “Look, I don’t even give a shit how that happens on your watch. What I give a shit about is who’s gunning for Lauren, and why.”
“You see a picture of Lauren and me and figure I’m out gunning for an ex?” He grinned, showing me his teeth. The image of my Lauren kissing this guy popped into my head, and I had to fight the urge to throw my fist into his mouth to knock out a few of those teeth. “Well, let me soothe your worrisome little mind, Mike. Lauren didn’t break my fucking heart when she left. Hell, I opened the door and walked her to her car. Too good for me, that one. All heart, no balls.” He couldn’t be more wrong, but I wasn’t going to correct him.
“No hard feelings she walked out on you?”
“You think she’s the first old lady to walk out of here?”
“She was your old lady?” His face softened at the hard tone in my voice, but I couldn’t hide what that statement did to me. My blood boiled.
“Nah, calm down. That’s when she high tailed it. I didn’t bring her around the club that much. She was always working or studying, but when I did, I could tell she was uncomfortable. The other girls didn’t take to her all that well, which didn’t bother me none, but when I started talking about being an old lady, she jumped ship.”
“How long ago was all of this?”
“I don’t know, a few years ago. So you see, why the fuck would I go after her now? Besides, see that hot chick over there, bending over to pick up that towel? That’s my old lady. Fuck, her ass is so sweet I told her not to bend over like that out here where the guys can see it.”
I followed his gaze and saw exactly what he meant. Her shorts rode up so high, her ass was falling out as she bent over. Creamy white globes that would make almost any man reach out to take a feel were exposed to the club.
I finished my beer while he jumped off his stool and marched over to her. He yanked her up by her arm and pointed a finger in her face while lecturing her. She didn’t look contrite in the least. In fact, she licked her lips as he continued to go one about her shorts. I almost expected him to bend her over his knee and give her a slap to that perfect round ass; instead he gave her a shove and an order to go put on something that covered her entire ass.
I would have chuckled, except as I watched him with her I pictured Lauren. What the fuck was she doing with a guy like him?
He might not be the angle that solved the riddle of Lauren’s accident, but there was something in that club that did. No way that car got stolen on their watch. Something there had to have been tied to that asshole at school. The internship was the prize, and none of these fuckers would give a rat’s ass about some college grad’s architecture internship unless they were given a reason to, a really good fucking reason.
***
When I picked up Lauren from work and she didn’t want to go back to my place, I wasn’t in the mood to argue. Getting riled up with her wouldn’t get us anywhere, and I needed answers.
If only she were as cooperative as her roommate, things probably would get dealt with a lot faster.
“So? Why didn’t you tell me the VP was your ex?” I asked again when she continued to give me a blank stare. My question must have caught her off guard, she didn’t have a quick lie for a response.
She closed her book and slid it onto the coffee table. “I didn’t think it had anything to do with anything. It was years ago and lasted all of six weeks.”
“He said you were going to be his old lady?” I crossed my arms over my chest, mostly to keep my hands off her.
“You went to talk to him?” Her eyes widened. “No. I wasn’t going to be his old lady. Even that term irritates me. I met him at a bar one night and we started seeing each other. He was jealous of anyone I talked to, and it was getting annoying. Accused me of sleeping with every guy I met. He thought making me his old lady would somehow make me feel more attached to him or something. I thought making me his anything would make me end up like my mom.”
“Did he touch you?” I should have beaten his ass to the ground when I had him right in front of me.
“No. Not like how you mean. He never did more than raise his voice, but it was too close to my mom’s history. He’d question me if I didn’t get home when I thought I would, if I had to work an extra shift he’d show up to be sure I was there. It was too much.”
No wonder she got all pissy when I pushed her to let me take her to work and back. She was used to her complete freedom. She watched her mom struggle with the overbearing jealous assholes in her life and she wasn’t going to repeat that life. Just another reason why she and I weren’t going to work. Jealousy wasn’t my thing, but
protecting her was, and she’d feel just as suffocated by that as she had with Colton’s behavior.
“When Bixby mentioned his club this afternoon, you had no reaction. You didn’t put those pieces together?”
“Why would Colton or anyone else from that club want me dead, or even hurt? None of those people really had anything to do with me. I was barely at the clubhouse, and when I broke it off with Colton he couldn’t have cared less. He just shrugged and offered to walk me to my car.”
