by Ravenna Tate
Her face blanched, and she put a hand to her mouth. “Then it’s my fault that Jennifer is dead.”
“What? No, it’s not. It’s her fault. Only a total moron would make secret deals behind the backs of rival Mob bosses. And she’s the one you heard on the phone, discussing the hit on you like it was nothing. You telling me you feel sorry for her?”
“I don’t know. This is … I’m very confused.”
Tannin pulled her close.
“Can Donny actually use this as leverage against Vito? Will Vito do what he wants because of this?”
“If Donny set Timmy up to take the fall, he’s holding that over Vito’s head. If Timmy rats out either of them, they both go down. The fact that Donny was able to pull this off sends a powerful message to Vito. This woman, who was under Vito’s protection as well as Donny’s, is dead anyway. And another man who was under Vito’s protection—Timmy Bowling—has already been set up to take the fall.”
“So Donny is letting Vito know that if he has the power and influence to do all this, Vito better not cross him, or he’ll wind up dead or framed for murder himself.”
“Yeah. Exactly. Something like that. And I’m also guessing Timmy won’t find he has any bargaining power to make deals, even if he’s stupid enough to try it.”
“Tannin, that would mean Donny has not only the FBI in his pocket, but the Department of Justice as well.”
“I don’t know about that, but I’m sure Donny has made it clear to Timmy and to Vito that if he goes down, Timmy’s family, and everyone in Vito’s organization, goes with him. You have no idea how much influence Donny Messina has. This is why we keep him on our side and cater so much to him.”
“Jesus. Timmy probably has two choices. Take the fall for Jennifer’s murder, or take his chances with Vito. Do you think Timmy knew that Jennifer was playing both sides?”
“I don’t know. You worked with them. What do you think?”
“I know those two were as thick as thieves. It wouldn’t surprise me if he did know and said nothing.”
“Which would explain why Donny has so much leverage over him. It’s jail or justice exacted by Vito for betraying him.”
“All this was going on under my nose, and I never knew it.”
Tannin hated having to leave her like this, but he had no choice.”
“I have to get back downstairs. But as soon as I hear—”
“Are you sure you have to go right away?”
She brushed her hand over his cock, stopping him mid-sentence. Even through his jeans, her touch slayed him. “Well, I…”
Tannin’s dick grew hard within seconds as she slid down to the floor and knelt in front of him. She unzipped his jeans and took out his cock, licking up and down the shaft slowly.
“Oh fuck.”
“That’s the general idea.” He grasped her hair as she took the whole fucking thing into her mouth and sucked hard. She alternated that with licking the tip, the entire length, and his balls, until Tannin was ready to die from need.
“Jesus Christ, Rai. Let me fucking come!” He tugged her hair harder and pulled her head as close to his body as possible while she moaned loudly. He fucked her mouth hard and rough, exploding into it with a loud cry.
“Oh my God…” He withdrew once he’d milked out every last drop. “Fuck. Where the hell did that come from?”
She grinned, wiping his cum off her chin. “Yummy. I don’t know. I had to have you. It was the only way to stop the horrible images racing inside my head. Are you complaining?”
“Fuck no. Get your jeans off. Now.”
Tannin opened the nightstand drawer and grabbed a condom, setting it aside while he pushed her down onto the bed and tore off her jeans and panties. He knelt on the floor and spread her legs, then licked and sucked her clit and labia, pushing three fingers into her soaking wet pussy.
“Should have saved the name ‘Creamy’ for you.”
She laughed, which aroused him further. As a strong orgasm tore through her, his cock grew rock hard again. No surprise there. This woman had the power to keep him hard all day and all night. Tannin hadn’t felt this virile since high school.
Once he was certain her climax was over, he stood, put on the condom, and lifted her hips, pushing her legs together. “You’re such a bad girl, and I fucking love it.” Tannin delivered ten hard blows to each ass cheek, holding onto her ankles as he did. Her loud cries and moans spurred him on. His dick was so fucking painful, he was ready to burst all over again.
Rolling her over, he told her to put her feet on the floor and bend her torso over the bed. Once she did, he shoved his cock into her pussy and pulled her arms over her head. He pinned them there as he slammed into her, deep and rough. “You like this?”
“Yes! Oh God! Yes!”
“Come again for me, Rai. I won’t stop fucking you this hard until you do.”
She cried out loudly as the contractions started again, and he hung as long as humanly possible. But soon his own groans joined hers as a powerful orgasm tore through him. When it was finally over, he withdrew, wincing at the soreness, but also loving it. He removed the condom and gently pulled her to a standing position so he could hold her in his arms.
“You are amazing,” he said.
“So are you.”
“I wish I didn’t have to get back downstairs.”
“You do, though.”
Tannin grunted.
“It’s all right. I understand. But … before you go, I have an answer for you.”
They stared into each other’s eyes as his heart pounded so fucking hard, he was sure he’d pass out. “Okay…”
“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, I want to be your old lady.”
For a second, he was certain he’d misunderstood. But the love shining from her beautiful dark eyes shot that theory to hell and back. Tannin kissed her, cupping her face and gazing into her eyes. “Well fuck. Now I really don’t want to go back downstairs.”
“You have to. It’s okay. I understand.”
“Soon, you’ll be down there with me every night.”
She nodded. “Yes. Soon. This is really almost over, isn’t it?”
“I believe so, yes.”
As Tannin forced his feet to move out into the hallway and down the stairs, he made a silent vow. When this was over, he was never leaving her alone up here again. Not for one second. Because he loved this woman. She was his old lady, and he’d never wanted anything as badly as he wanted Rai.
Chapter Twenty
This had easily been the longest week of Rai’s life. Or at least, the most jam-packed. It was still difficult to believe everything that had happened to her, and yet, how little information she had now compared to a week ago. It hadn’t been easy to sit back and do nothing, trusting in others to handle things. She didn’t do trust well, and she was used to taking care of things on her own.
How in the hell does a Mob boss set up a hit and frame someone else for it? She’d pictured men like Vito and Donny siting back in offices, like in some silly movie, giving orders and smoking cigars. That was obviously not true.
For all their catering to Donny, he was no saint, and they knew that. And, he must be very powerful if he could simply insist on sitting down to talk to another Mob boss like Vito. Who was the real powerhouse here?
And where did one draw the line? Was it a matter of degrees of illegal or unethical activity? Was it like a buffet, where you chose which ones to partake in, and which ones to leave alone? Was the entire business world corrupt, and she’d buried her head in the sand so far she’d never noticed?
More importantly, what would happen to her staff now? Her clients? Her company? She’d worked her ass off to have this, all for the sake of proving something to herself, and to two people who had turned their backs on personal and financial obligations. But what had she gained in doing so?
Rai rose from the bed and slowly paced the room. It reeked of sex. She’d grown used to the smell this week. She’d gr
own used to the purple bruises on her ass, and the slight discomfort every time she sat down.
Her pussy was sore, and she couldn’t stop thinking about Tannin’s dick, slamming into her. Each time she did, she was wet and ready all over again. He was like a drug. She had to have it now. No way could she imagine not having this gruff, sexy man in her life.
Agreeing to be his old lady felt so damn right! She wanted to share his life, and he wanted to share hers. Because although it wasn’t a traditional marriage proposal, it was their version of one. Holy fuck. Rai laughed and twirled in a circle as the full force of what had just happened hit her. She belonged to a biker dude. Her. Raiyana Maria Teresa Parente, biker chick!
And it was about fucking time she let go of the past she’d been hanging onto. Ronnie and Lori were long gone, and they weren’t coming back. Any revenge she might have exacted on them was now lost to her.
Fuck the past. Fuck Ronnie and fuck Lori. Jennifer Wise-Minnick was dead, and Timmy Bowling would end up in jail for the rest of his life, for a crime he didn’t commit. Everything had changed now. She had no choice but to wait this out and let the pieces fall into place, and then deal with the consequences. But she would no longer do it alone. She hadn’t been alone in this since day one.
Tannin had been there. Chloe had been there. Meghan had been there. Even Gorgon and Vassago had been there. These people had taken her in, sheltered her, fed her, and let her in turn help them run this household. And along the way, she’d fallen in love.
So had Tannin. He’d said so. He had said the words. “I love you, Rai.” That wasn’t a dream. And then he’d asked her to share his life. These weren’t the kind of men who went casually into a relationship of that magnitude.
From what Meghan had told her, the Brothers in the MC were between the ages of thirty-five and forty-five, and only four of them had old ladies. Well … five of them now. They didn’t do lifetime commitment on a casual whim. Only two of the officers had old ladies.
She had nothing to fear from Tannin. He’d never do to her what Ronnie had done. Tannin was miles above Ronnie in every way possible. She had trusted Tannin with her darkest secrets. He had called to her like a siren song from the second she’d looked into his ice blue eyes. That only happens once in a person’s life. He was the man she was meant to be with.
****
Saturday would have been interminable if Rai hadn’t been in the kitchen all day, helping Connie and a sweetbutt named Janel made cuccidati. Janel was known as Red, and it was easy to see why. She had the most brilliant copper hair Rai had ever seen.
Making the fig cookies wasn’t a complicated process, but it was a time-consuming one. Rai had imagined it would also be a pain in the ass having to take the time to show others how to do each step, but she’d been wrong. The two women kept her laughing and smiling all day with their stories, and both proved themselves to be competent bakers.
Since Donny was coming the next day with some of his men, Rai had asked Tannin early that morning, after the club had closed and he’d come upstairs, if he thought it would be a nice gesture to offer the man a treat from his ancestors’ country. Tannin had thought it was a perfect idea. Rai was grateful for something to keep her mind off how Donny’s negotiations with Vito might or might not be going today.
She also couldn’t help feeling a tiny bit sorry for Timmy Bowling. If he truly was being framed, he would pay the ultimate price for making lousy choices under the guise of a religious leader and advisor.
As they filled tray after tray with the finished cookies, it became more of a challenge to keep the Brothers from sampling them than keeping dire images of the talks out of her mind. By the time the club was ready to open, they had ten dozen cookies. Rai was covered in flour, and the kitchen smelled like heaven.
Connie and Janel asked two of the prospects to guard the cookies. Both men were among the younger ones in the group, and just as muscled and tattooed as any of the Brothers. They had been hanging around the kitchen most of the day, teasing Connie and Janel, who hadn’t minded one bit. But now, they asked what the two would give them in exchange for guarding the precious cookies until Donny arrived the next day.
“And what about this one?” asked Todd, giving Rai a lecherous grin. Todd knew by now that Tannin had claimed her. They all did.
“She’s Tannin’s old lady,” said Connie.
“Yeah, but he won’t mind if she does us a favor. I’d hate to see all those cookies gone before Donny gets to taste them.”
Janel sidled up to Todd and ran her hand down the front of his jeans. “You two can have me and Connie in exchange for guarding them.”
In this MC, the sweetbutts were allowed to service the prospects, but there were still rules the men had to follow. No one was allowed to bother any woman a Brother had claimed, and they certainly weren’t permitted to suggest to someone’s old lady what these two had just asked for. The officers and patched members took those rules very seriously.
Todd shook off Janel’s hand as he advanced toward Rai. Mike, sensing a hunt the way an animal in the wild might do, followed his lead. Rai didn’t back up. One scream from her and these men would be out of this building tonight, forever. Surely they knew that as much as she did.
“Favors cost around here, Rai.” Todd stopped inches from her. “Get on your knees and open your mouth.”
“Todd, did you hear me?” asked Connie. “She is one of the officers’ old ladies. Are you fucking crazy?”
He glanced over his shoulder toward Connie and Janel. “I don’t give a fuck. Get over here. Both of you. We’re going to take turns fucking all three of you. That’s our price for guarding the cookies.”
“You know you can’t touch her,” said Connie, giving the men a lust-filled smile as she dropped to her knees. “Come on over here. I’ll give you both what you want.”
“Then she has to watch,” said Mike, smirking at Rai. “That’s not against the rules, is it?”
His mocking tone made Rai sick to her stomach. None of the others had treated her this way all week. Was that because Tannin had always been around? Was this how things really were here, and she was finally getting a taste of reality inside the MC, old lady or not?
“It’s not against the rules, but you still have no right to ask her to do it.”
They whirled around at the dark tone in Tannin’s voice. Rai moved away from Mike and Todd, stepping close to Tannin, who was flanked by Phenex and Vassago. “I didn’t know what to do,” she whispered.
“You did nothing wrong.” He didn’t look at her, but it was impossible to miss his anger. A muscle in his jaw twitched, and his eyes were cold and hard.
“Creamy, get off your knees and find two prospects to help Mike and Todd pack their shit. Phenex, find Gorgon and let him know his Sergeant-At-Arms has officially released Mike Wellington and Todd Grainger, effective immediately.”
“With pleasure,” said Phenex, turning to leave the room. Connie had already run from the room.
“You can’t do that,” said Mike. “You—”
Rai gasped as Tannin shoved Mike against the nearest wall. He had a chokehold on his trachea within a second. No sound came from Mike. His eyes were huge and filled with terror. “I can do it, and I just did.”
Todd lunged for her, and Rai yelled, trying to step out of the way but not quite making it before Todd grabbed her around the torso, pinning her arms at her sides. Before she had a chance to react, his grip was torn from her and Vassago had the man face-down on the floor. Vassago’s boot pressed into the back of Todd’s neck.
“You son-of-a-bitch!”
Vassago pressed harder, and Todd let out a strangled cry. “One twist of my foot and I break your neck,” said Vassago. “So go on, asshole. Give me a reason to do it.”
Gorgon and Phenex came into the room, along with Connie and two prospects whose names escaped Rai at the moment. Gorgon took in the scene with a sweep of his gaze, turning his attention toward Connie and Janel. “Get the
other officers.” Then he nodded toward the other men. “You two, take Mike up to his room and don’t leave until he packs up his stuff.”
“Not sure we can trust him.” said Tannin, giving Mike a horrible grin. Rai shivered as she realized the power this man had. “Can we trust you, Mike?”
Mike nodded as much as he could, considering Tannin still had his hand wrapped around Mike’s trachea. Tannin released him, and Mike slid to the ground, coughing. “He’ll need a minute,” said Tannin, his voice filled with sick humor.
Tannin turned and walked over to Rai, pulling her into his arms. “It’s all right.”
“Are they all like that?” she whispered.
“No.”
“These two should have been gone a while ago,” said Gorgon. “This is my fault. I didn’t listen to Tannin when he told me they were bad news. This won’t happen again, Rai. You have my word on it.”
Rai didn’t completely understand the look that passed between Tannin and Gorgon. It was as if the two had been feuding about something for a long time, and this incident finally gave them both resolution. All was now right between them.
Once the men were gone, Tannin made sure someone would be around to guard the cookies. Rai went up to her room to wait for Tannin, and to wait for news about Donny’s meeting with Vito.
Chapter Twenty-One
“What was that look that passed between you and Gorgon last night?”
Tannin sipped his coffee. “What look?”
“When he apologized for not listening to you about Mike and Todd.”
To try to explain the complicated history between him and Gorgon was about as easy to explain as the mystery of life. “We have our differences in how the club should be run, and one of those includes giving prospects time to find their way around here.”
“And you tend to make up your mind about someone faster than Gorgon does?”
“Yes.” It had looked like more to Rai, but she didn’t pry. It wasn’t important.
“What would have happened if they’d tried to force me to give them blowjobs, along with Connie and Janel? Would I have been in a shitload of trouble if I’d punched them?”
