by Jessie Cooke
He didn’t know if she was getting into the “sir” thing or if she was still being sarcastic and the truth was, he didn’t care...it was fucking hot. “Damned straight it’s an order.” She turned toward the bathroom and he slapped her on the bare cheek of her ass that was left exposed by the tiny panties she was wearing. She gasped, and Ryder said, “Hurry.” He watched her shake that sexy ass until he couldn’t see it any longer and then he finished undressing. He could hear the shower running and as soon as he was naked, he followed her into the bathroom. Those tiny panties were on the floor and Storm, beautifully naked, was standing in the shower already, letting the water flow down over her head. Ryder climbed in with her, spun her to face him, and then pushed her into the wall behind them while he kissed her again. This time he kissed her so hard and deep that she was panting and gasping for air when he finally let her take a breath.
He broke the kiss, but he didn’t relax his body’s hold on her. He kept using his body weight to hold her against the wall and then he used his hands to explore her body. He let his hands run down her sides again, this time gliding against the water beaded there. Then dragging his nails gently against her skin, he let them slide up. He ran them across her collarbones and her shoulders, and then higher, pausing to cup her throat. Storm sighed and rubbed her hips into his...against his hard cock. Her eyes were closed, and he wondered if she was thinking about how good it was going to feel when he was inside of her. Or maybe she was fantasizing about what she might do to him. He let his hands run down her back and when he got to her ass, he cupped the cheeks and squeezed...hard.
Storm moaned and made soft little mewling noises as he massaged her smooth skin. He used his long reach to slide his fingers underneath her and between her legs, searching for all that slick wetness. He found her clit and she arched into him as he rubbed it. He got her worked up before pushing her back into the wall again and using his right hand to hold her by the throat. He didn’t squeeze hard, just enough to hold her there while his other hand slipped down and once again found her clit. He stared down into her eyes while he began to roll it in circles. He watched the pleasure flicker across her features and as he rubbed harder and faster, he watched it change to desperation. She was panting and moaning, choking slightly on the hold he had on her throat. Ryder’s cock was throbbing and aching to be inside of her, but he made himself wait. He slid two fingers up into her and began to finger her, hard and fast. She was gasping, and her hands went up to grip the arm that was holding her. He felt her nails dig into his flesh and that only turned him on more and made him finger-fuck her harder. Her body began to tense and shake, and she gasped out his name just as he felt the rush of her orgasm wash over his fingers.
He wasn’t finished with her yet, though. When she stopped shaking and could stand on her own, he bent down and took one of her breasts into his mouth. He sucked and nibbled at it, not being gentle, but not hard enough to cause her any real pain. He could tell that the more he used his teeth, the more excited she got. She tried to reach down and grab his cock, but he pressed it into her leg so that she couldn’t reach it. He was so excited that he knew he had to calm himself down, or he’d come all over her hand.
When he raised his head again, he planted a soft kiss on her full lips, licking and sucking on them before finally backing his weight off her so that she could move. As soon as she could, she slid down so that her butt sat against the edge of the tub and her lips were in line with his cock. She licked the head of it and he felt electricity course through him, heating his blood even more. He reached up and adjusted the shower head so that the cold water ran down over his back, and she opened her lips and sucked his cock into her mouth. Ryder groaned as she sucked him in slowly, inch by inch, until he was all the way into the back of her throat.
She used her tongue to slide up and down underneath the sensitive shaft and circle around the head as she sucked him in and out. He reached down and moved her hair so that he could watch her, and she looked up into his eyes. Her wet hair looked dark, slicked back from her face, and her cheeks and lips were flushed. She looked so sexy on her knees, sucking his cock and making him feel things he couldn’t describe if his life depended on it. She was so fucking sexy. Ryder let her pleasure him until he felt like he couldn’t take it for another second. He used her hair to pull her up and met her mouth with his once she was on her feet. He kissed her hard and then let one of his hands slap against that beautiful, wet ass. Storm moaned, and that sound nearly pushed him over the edge.
Gripping her waist, he spun her so that she was facing the wall and she lifted up on her toes again so that he could enter her from behind. He felt her muscles contract around him and he flexed his hips until he was buried deep inside of her. He stood there for a few seconds with his eyes closed...savoring it...and then he started moving in and out of her. Storm moved her hips, thrusting them forward and back until they found a rhythm. Ryder covered her breasts with his hands and rolled her nipples in hard circles while he fucked her. The water was turning cold now but neither of them noticed. What was happening between them was so hot that Ryder was surprised the room wasn’t filled with steam just because of that. He began to move faster and with each thrust he hit deeper. The water made the slap of his skin against hers louder, and her moans and whimpers competed with that sound as groans of his own welled up in his chest.
He gasped out her name and clutched her breasts harder when he felt his orgasm building from his toes. Storm put her hands up against the tile wall and her fingers curved and tried to clutch at it, and he knew from the sounds she was making and the way her pussy was gripping him that she was coming again. He made himself hold back until she was finished and then holding up her shaking, quivering body he pounded into her several more times before he exploded.
Neither of them could breathe or speak for what seemed like several minutes. Storm stood with her head pressed into the tile and Ryder stood behind her, with his weight pressed into her body. He’d often wondered if he’d ever be able to commit to one woman. He wondered if he could be satisfied with the same pussy night after night. But at that moment there was no guessing. He knew for sure that he had found the woman that could satiate any hunger he ever had, and he intended to keep her.
31
Storm woke up with a start and realized Ryder was no longer lying next to her. She sat straight up, panic filling her chest, and then she looked at the clock. It was four-thirty a.m., and that meant Dax was here, or should be soon.
After making love in the shower, they had finally cleaned up and then stayed with the family in Hunter’s room while he did the same. Hunter took the youngest one with him when he went to pick up food, and Storm and Chase had played a game of cards. Jack was the only one that still seemed subdued, but that was understandable. He had to be worried about what Dax might do about his part in the robbery.
Tyler and Carolyn were quiet for the most part. Every so often Carolyn would begin to softly cry again and whisper that she was sorry. Storm’s heart broke for her and she kept telling her it would be okay. She hoped that she wasn’t making empty promises, but for the time being it had been all she could do. It was after midnight by the time she and Ryder had gone to bed. It felt so good to be in his arms, and she was so tired, that she had fallen asleep right away. She hadn’t heard him get up and leave, but her body had woken up still aching for his touch.
She pulled the covers back and got out of bed. After pulling on a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt, she called her aunt in Boston. There was a three-hour time difference and her aunt was generally an early riser, so she wasn’t worried about waking her up. “Hey, Aunt Celia, how is Mom?”
“She’s doing great, Stormy, they said they’d be discharging her home today.”
“Oh, good! Do you have everything you need for her?”
“I think so. They delivered everything you ordered to my place. I was thinking, Storm...I have so much more room than you, maybe she should just stay with me, even when you get back.”
“I’m sure. Besides, you have to work, and you need time for a social life. I’m old and retired. I have nothing but time.”
Storm smiled. “Thank you. I will be there to help you every day when I get back, I promise.”
“Nah, I don’t want to see you every day. Maybe two, three times a week. How are things in Nevada?”
“Um...good, I think.”
“Your mom told me you have a new man. I can’t begin to tell you how happy I was that you didn’t go back to that loser Denny when he got out of jail.”
“Yeah, me too,” she said. “But Mom remembered Ryder, huh? That must mean she’s doing a lot better.”
“Yeah, she is. She’s talking a lot about paying him back. What’s that about?”
Storm hadn’t taken the time to tell her aunt everything, but she figured if she was going to take her mother home and take care of her, she had a right to know. She started at the beginning and ended with the doctor telling her that the tumor could have been causing the lack of impulse control and the changes in her mother’s personality.
“So, this new man of yours paid a loan shark almost a hundred grand...for your mother?”
“Yeah, he did.”
“Where did he get this money? Is he rich?”
“No, Aunt Celia. But he was in the army and never married or had kids. He saves all his money.” That’s what Storm told herself anyway; the truth was she had no idea how he got his hands on that kind of money. Celia spent a few more minutes raving about how wonderful that was and telling Storm to hang onto him, that he was a keeper, before they ended the call. It was almost five a.m. by then and Storm slid on her slippers and opened the motel door. The first thing she saw was Dax Marshall, standing with Hunter in the parking lot. They were talking in hushed tones and Storm didn’t want them to think she was eavesdropping, so she moved toward the door of Hunter’s room.
“Storm.” Dax’s voice stopped her in her tracks and with a tickle in her belly, she turned around to face him. He was already approaching her, coming close enough to make her feel like she couldn’t breathe. Dax Marshall was gorgeous, but that wasn’t what it was about him that made her feel like it was hard to catch her breath. It was the way he carried himself, or a presence that he had about him. It was like he didn’t even have to say a word, and everyone knew he was in charge. “How’s your mother?” His question surprised her, and it took her a few seconds to reply.
“She’s doing much better. I just talked to my aunt and she said they’re sending Mom home today. Thank you for asking.”
“Sure. I’m sorry that she’s sick, but glad that she’s getting better,” he said.
“Thank you.”
“Storm, I want to offer you an apology. I am truly sorry that I accused you and your mother of being involved in the robbery.”
“Thank you, Dax. It was understandable, considering all the evidence.”
Dax smiled and said, “I would love to make excuses for myself, but in this case, I was just really pissed off and I needed someone to blame. I should have trusted Ryder’s instincts more, and I’ll take this and learn from it.”
Storm was impressed with how he had handled that. He could have easily written it off to “evidence.” But instead of making excuses, he was just owning up to being wrong. She could easily see why everyone seemed to have so much respect for him. She hoped his graciousness carried over to the family who were probably waiting for him as they spoke. “I’m glad you finally have some answers,” she said. “And Dax, if I might ask just one favor?” She had thought about asking him to go easy on Carolyn, Tyler, and the boys and she was almost certain that’s what Dax expected...but that would be much too presumptuous of her.
“Of course.”
“Please don’t be angry with Ryder because I’m here. He said no; I just don’t listen very well.”
Dax laughed and said, “Well, until you meet my old lady you’ll never know how well I understand that. Ryder and I are fine. I am a little worried about you and your mother, though. Would you like me to speak to Santos for you on her behalf? I doubt that I can talk him into expunging the debt…I’m unfortunately not one of his favorite people...but maybe we can make more doable arrangements for you...”
“Ryder didn’t tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
“He paid it off, completely.”
Dax cocked an eyebrow, and that simple look made Storm worry more about that damned money than she had all along. She’d been trying hard to believe him when he said he’d “saved up,” but she knew in her gut that was wishful thinking. What had he done to come up with that money?
“Well...okay,” Dax said. “I guess I should get in there and talk to Carolyn and Tyler. Ryder and Hunter said y’all would take the two young ones over to the diner for breakfast.”
“Absolutely. Thank you again, Dax.”
He nodded at her and walked away. Storm let out a breath and her thoughts went back to Ryder and the money. She wouldn’t ask him about it in front of Hunter or any of the rest of them, but they needed to have that conversation, and soon.
“Is Jack going to have to go to prison?” Ricky had been pondering that question all morning, Storm thought. He’d ordered waffles and sausage but had barely touched any of it and while Ryder, Hunter, and Chase talked motorcycles, Ricky seemed to be in his own little world. Storm didn’t know how to answer that question. Dax didn’t seem like the kind of guy that would call the cops and turn the kid over even if he did want him punished for the robbery. She looked at Ryder, who stopped talking about his motorcycle and shifted his attention to the little boy.
“We’re not sure how Dax is going to choose to handle this,” Ryder said, gently. “But I’ve known Dax a while and I’ll tell you a secret.”
“What?”
“He didn’t seem all that mad this morning. I mean, I’m sure he’s not happy about what they did; even your dad and Jack know they did wrong. But why they did it says a lot about who they are and I believe that Dax will take that into consideration.”
“He wouldn’t send them to prison anyway,” Chase said, echoing Storm’s thoughts.
“Why not?” Ricky asked.
“He’s a biker, a president—that’s not how they do things. You’ve watched Sons of Anarchy.”
Hunter smiled and took a sip of his coffee. He looked at Ryder for several long seconds and then said, “Oh, you want me to take this one?”
“Will you?” Ryder asked him, sarcastically.
“I watch that show too...it’s good, I like it. But it’s a television show, it’s not real. We don’t go around shooting and killing people just because they make us mad. We’re a pretty civilized bunch. We even have friends that are cops.”
“You pay them off,” Chase said. Storm wasn’t sure if it was a statement or a question, but Hunter took it as the latter and said:
“No, more dramatic license taken on television. We don’t have that kind of money. Our club is even a little different than the others out there in that we own a ranch and a lot of people live and work there.”
“Do you have horses and cows?” Ricky asked.
“Nah, just iron horses,” Ryder told him with a wink. “We grow stuff, like farmers. We also have a teen center where kids that don’t have parents come to live and we own businesses in town where a lot of the members of our club work. We’re pretty much just normal people that like to ride motorcycles and wear a lot of leather.” Storm was listening to Ryder and Hunter trying to convince the kids they were just “regular” people. Ricky looked fascinated, Chase looked like he wasn’t buying it, and Storm wondered which side of that fence she was on. She’d been out to the ranch once. That shop where she’d gone to see Ryder was incredible. It was huge and packed full of motorcycles, cars, and parts and equipme
nt of all shapes and sizes. She’d seen the teen center from a distance. It was huge as well. She’d seen the armed guard at the gates. She was pretty sure there wasn’t too much about them that was “ordinary.” Sons of Anarchy they might not be, but there were too many people in Boston that shook in their boots when the Skulls were in town to deny that their way of life might not always be “ordinary.”
The five of them finished their breakfast and walked back over to the motel. Dax, Tyler, and Jack were standing out front, talking. As soon as Ricky saw them he ran over and hugged his big brother around the waist. Looking up at Dax with his innocent blue eyes he said:
“Are you going to make my brother go to prison?”
Dax smiled at the kid and said, “Nobody’s going to prison. Your dad is a good guy and so is your brother. Good people make bad decisions sometimes, Ricky, remember that when you grow up, okay? In the meantime, your dad and your brother are going to work hard and pay me back for what we’re calling a ‘loan,’ and if anyone ever asks you about this, that’s all you need to tell them, okay?”
Ricky smiled up at Dax and Storm could see the relief in his big eyes as he said, “For sure. Thank you.” Dax reached down and ruffled his hair, then he turned to Hunter, Ryder, and Storm and said:
“Our plane leaves in about two hours, we should get going.” And just like that, it was over. Storm thought that she just might be as impressed as little Ricky.
32
“You know I hate to question you, boss...” Hunter was looking at the board at the airport and down at the ticket Dax had just printed off the kiosk and handed to him. Storm and Ryder looked down at theirs too and Ryder saw why Hunter was confused.
“This says McCarren.” McCarren was the airport in Las Vegas. Ryder looked at the ticket underneath and it said, McCarren to Boston. That flight left four hours after the one that arrived in Vegas. “Why are we stopping in Vegas?”
