“Have you lost your fucking mind?” I bellow at Dixon, one of our newest prospects. The asshole hasn’t listened to a word I’ve said in the past two hours, more interested in playing with his own dick than focusing on the task at hand.
“Sorry, what?” He stutters, only infuriating me further.
Grabbing him by the front of his shirt, I let off a round from my 50 caliber Desert Eagle inches away from his feet.
“Do you know what a weapon like this will do to your head?” I snarl, shaking him to get my point across “It’ll explode it like a fucking watermelon under a sledgehammer.”
“I-I know,” he stammers, and I’m pretty sure he’s mere seconds away from pissing himself.
Good. I don’t have to fuck around with guys who aren’t here to learn. Aislinn being absent from the clubhouse is fucking with me. I can’t seem to get thoughts of her in danger, needing me and I’m not there out of my head. The threat is neutralized – Nancy and Nicholas both now occupying pieces of the Colorado landscape ten feet under – but a niggling feeling Aislinn isn’t out of the woods yet has been plaguing me ever since.
I spoke to Cash about it last night, and his response was to tell me to enjoy being with her and fuck everything else. Sound advice coming from a man whose had less emotional connections to women than I have, but in mine and Aislinn’s case, useful as tits on a bull.
Starring the terrified prospect down, I snap,
“You want to play, then go find the kids and build sandcastles in the sandbox with them. You want to learn, you put the phone away, take your hand off your dick, and fucking pay attention. The difference between life and death for one of your brothers hangs in the balance if you hesitate for even a second in the heat of the moment. Your gun misfires, jamming issues, sights are off, any number of things can and will go wrong. I’ve seen men die because they don’t have the first fucking clue how or what to do, and you’re next if you lose focus here.”
Stumbling back when I let go of his shirt, Dixon lowers his head submissively, offering me an apology I know is sincere yet counts for nothing.
“I’ll do better, practice more. I promise, Gage. I’m really sorry, it’s just that my mom’s sick and my sister doesn’t know what to do.”
I’m not an entirely heartless bastard, I can see he’s worried, but my fear for Aislinn overrides my compassion and has turned me into an unapproachable asshole.
“Family issues have no place here. You’re either all in, or you’re out; there’s no in between. Now, make your choice because I’ve got better things to be doing than standing around having heart to hearts.”
Dixon shoves his cell in his pocket, straightening his spine and facing me head on. That’s what I wanted to see, some fucking backbone. Maybe he will make it through his two years prospecting after all.
*****
The rest of that days’ training was a bust. My head wasn’t in it, and the prospects were jonesing to get as far away from me as possible. I let them off the hook just over an hour later with the promise – or threat depending on how they looked at it – that we’d be revisiting this lesson soon.
I didn’t waste time jumping on my bike and riding the fifteen or so miles to Chasers. In my desperation to see Aislinn and reassure myself she was okay, I almost took out a guardrail, two pedestrians, a stop sign, and rear-ended a pickup truck. Not my finest moment, explaining to the pissed off owner of a brand new Ford F250 why he now had tire tracks on his fender.
I watched through the bay doors as Aislinn directed some guy I didn’t know to adjust the lighting and backdrop behind a sweet 1964 Harley Pan-head Boss had just finished restoring. The electric blue paintwork is pristine. Re-chromed pipes, engine block, mirrors, and foot pedals gleam brightly under the artificial lights.
This bike isn’t dissimilar to my own, the only difference being the color. Where it’s blue, mine is the perfect shade of green. I didn’t realize it when I custom ordered the paint, but it’s the exact color of Aislinn’s eyes – something that when I told her, earned me the best blowjob I’ve ever had. My woman is generous like that.
If I thought Aislinn would be happy to see me, I was dead fucking wrong. She stomped over to me, planting her fist on her curvy hips – hips I’d do just about anything to get my hands on right now as I plow into her from behind – and glared at me.
“Um, I seemed to have missed the memo, but shouldn’t you be out playing Rambo with kindergarteners?”
Fuck I love her sassy mouth, I muse, dragging her the foot separating us until she pressed hard against my chest.
“Finished early,” I state bluntly, taking the opportunity to run my tongue along the length of her neck.
Aislinn shoved at my chest, curling her fingertips into the muscles there, and bit out,
“What you really mean to say is, you scared the crap out of them with your unique talent for terrifying innocent children, and sent them running for their mom’s, didn’t you?”
“Maybe,” I mutter, ignoring her rant and continuing to kiss a path from her ear to the promised land of her chest.
“Stop that,” she snapped, shoving me again. “You’re going to be a good boy and sit over there,” Aislinn orders, gesturing to the stool at the far side of the room. “And if you can manage to control your baser urges until lunchtime, you might be lucky enough for me to let you buy me a sandwich after I graciously allow you to go down on me.”
Laughing at her, not because I find her amusing, but because she’s probably dead fucking accurate with her description of how our lunch together will go, I goad,
“And what do I get out of this arrangement?”
“The pleasure of my company, of course. I mean, what else do you need?” My very tempting, vixen pouts.
Deciding to give her some of her own brand of torture, I smirk,
“I wouldn’t say no to you riding my cock until you come so that I can pull out and jerk off all over your beautiful tits.”
“You suck,” Aislinn groans, rolling her eyes. “This only works if you keep your dirty thoughts to yourself. How the hell am I supposed to work now that I have to go and find a Victoria’s Secret stat to take care of my wet panty issue?”
I slam my mouth down over hers, silencing her instantly. I’m not disappointed when she returns my kiss, weaving her arms around my neck, and plunging her fingers into my hair.
Whispering against her soft, pouty lips, I say,
“Behave, or I’ll have you naked and bent over that workbench, fucking your delectable little pussy in no time, and I won’t give the first fuck about who’s watching.”
*****
That was the first of many days’ that ended up going much the same way. If it weren’t for the fact I’m still fulfilling my obligations to the club, Boss probably would have put a stop to me coming into Chasers at all. And for the most part, I can’t blame him. Finding Aislinn and me in his office with her spread out across it, paperclips clamping her nipples – I had to get creative there – knees bent and spread wide while she took my cock in her ass, and my fingers delving into her wet pussy could have been what pushed him over the edge. But who’d know?
“Are you going to move, or am I going to do all the work here?” My feisty, highly frustrated woman whimpers.
Taking control of her hips, I thrust into her with hard, punishing strokes. It’s only a matter of seconds before she’s shuddering around me, head thrown back, pupils dilated, screaming out her orgasm, and I’m not far behind her.
“We have to talk about it, Dex,” Aislinn mumbles after I rolled us over and hooked one of her thighs over my hip. “You can’t keep using sex to try and distract me.”
Damn, I wish I could, though.
“What do you want me to say? I told you how I feel about you leaving it doesn’t get clearer than that.”
“Heads up, big guy,” she snaps, pushing herself off me to sit instead. “Saying and I quote; not happening, you’re staying, isn’t telling me how you feel, it’s telli
ng me what to do, and we both know how well that will work out for you. So, how about we try this again. Dex, my job is done. I submitted the last of the photos last night, that means it’s time for me to go home. Now, you tell me how that makes you feel.”
Expressing my emotions isn’t easy for me, but I know she needs this so I tamp down the irritation and through gritted teeth say,
“I don’t like you calling L.A. home. You belong here with me, not a thousand miles away where I can’t protect you.”
Apparently, I’ve said the wrong thing because Aislinn is off the bed and pulling her clothes on before I get the last syllable out. I reach for her, but the little vixen is fast when she’s pissed off, shuffling away from me while still dragging on her jeans.
“Where the fuck are you going? You said you wanted to talk about this, Aislinn, so talk. Tell me what’s going on in your head.”
She picks up her shoes, and walks to the door but I note doesn’t open it, which means there’s still a chance I can talk her around. Until there isn’t.
“I’m not just some obligation, Dex. I don’t want you to ask me to stay because of an outdated sense of duty you have.”
“I didn’t say that baby, not even close. All I meant,”
“No,” she cuts me off. “I heard you loud and clear, and although you might not want to admit it, you do feel that way. Maybe it’s only a small part of you, but the fact you do at all only proves that some time apart will be good for us. It will give you time to think about where you want this relationship to go, and the reasons why.”
Hell fucking no it won’t, and if she thinks I’m letting her go anywhere, she’s got another thing coming.
“Don’t even think about walking out that door, Aislinn,” I warn. “Wanting to protect you isn’t a bad thing, and it’s not something I can turn off. Even if I met you now, I’d feel the same way, baby. It’s ingrained in me; it’s who I am.”
“And I understand and accept that, Dex. I really do. But what I can’t get my head around is how this is going to work long term,” she admits on a harsh exhale. “I travel for work, and I work a lot. My home base in L.A. is more of a vacation spot than a real home because I’m never there since most of my time is spent living out of suitcases and hotels. The way you act when I have to drive fifteen miles to Chasers is bad enough, but what happens when I have to drive to Denver and get on a plane to parts unknown? What then, Dex? You have a life, friends, a job, responsibilities here, you can’t just up and leave at a moments’ notice.”
“No, you’re right, I can’t, but you can. What, is this payback for me leaving you years ago, you’re giving me a taste of my own medicine?” I snarl, not once thinking about the impact my words will have.
Tears spring to her eyes, but she wipes them away before the first one can fall.
“Is that what you really think, that I’m leaving to settle an old score? Because if it is, you don’t know me half as well as you think you do.”
Stalking toward her, not caring I’m still naked, I grab her arm and yank her flush against me.
“No, that was a fucked up thing to say, and I’m sorry.” My apology goes over like a lead balloon as Aislinn struggles to push me away. “Stop, baby. Just hear me out. Let me try and explain, and if you still want to leave afterward, then I’ll let you go. Not for good, just until we can work this shit out.”
“Fine,” she huffs. “You’ve got two minutes, buster. Make them count.”
Kissing her forehead, I breathe,
“Thank you, baby.” I move us to the chair in the corner and sit her on my lap all the while trying to order my thoughts.
This has to work because I can’t lose her. Not for good. Not for a few months. Not even for a week. Aislinn has quickly wrapped herself around my heart, making herself as vital to me as breathing is.
“I’ve always taken care of you, baby, just not for the reasons you think. Even when you were an adorable, sassy two-year-old demanding I push you on the swings, I wasn’t protecting you because I saw you as weak,” I confess.
Aislinn, like everyone else, has her hang-ups, and being viewed as weak and helpless is the biggest one. Telling her she’s strong, that her determination and independent streak is a turn on will only go so far. I have to convince her that she doesn’t have to change to have a relationship with me, just embrace the fact that there will be times I’ll want to carry her burdens for her; share the load so to speak.
“One of the first things I noticed was how brave you were. Being out in that rundown playground on your own, no one watching over you, with no fear, you were the strongest kid I’d ever met. All it took was you opening your mouth and bossing me around to make me realize you’d be someone special in my life. I was four, Aislinn. Four. And I knew then just like I know now, that you’re a game-changer for me. My need to protect you and keep you safe isn’t because you can’t do it yourself, it’s because I can’t lose you. If anything happened to you, I wouldn’t survive, baby. I watched as my brothers pieced their women back together, and it wasn’t pretty. I want to avoid that shit altogether. I don’t want to see you hurt because your pain is mine. It would literally fucking kill me to watch you suffer like they did. All I want is to keep you and make you happy.”
I know I’m getting somewhere when the tension causing her every muscle to string tight starts to wane, and she begins to lean in closer.
“Your work’s important, baby, and I’d never ask you to give that up for me. I’m so fucking proud of you for chasing your dream and making it big doing it. I mean, Time and National Geographic, Aislinn. That’s fucking amazing.”
“What do we do then, Dex?” She whispers sadly. “I don’t want this to end; you and me. I only just found you again, we haven’t had enough time yet.”
“How much time can you take off?” I question.
The cute crease between her eyebrows deepens as she looks at me confused.
“I’m my own boss, honey. I’ve got a personal assistant back in L.A. who sorts through the offers that come in. Ella forwards me the ones she knows I’ll be interested in, and consults my schedule to make sure there won’t be any conflicts, and then I pick which jobs I take. I’m not out of the country that often, and when I am, I’m only gone for a week, two tops. Usually, I take Meg with me as my bag carrying bitch since she works so much overtime and can afford to take vacations, but occasionally I go alone.”
“Yeah, baby, but what I mean is, when is your next job? How much time have you got between finishing this one and starting the next?”
Blushing and chewing on her lower lip signals that Aislinn is nervous, which makes a grin break out across my face. It’s not that I find her discomfort funny, just adorable that’s all.
“Two months,” she mumbles almost incoherently.
Ah, so she’s not nervous, she’s embarrassed. Not that she has anything to be embarrassed about, which is what I tell her.
“While I like that shade of red on you, I’d prefer if it was there because I’d put it there.” Aislinn catches my drift and slaps my forearm, muttering something about cocky bastards, but I ignore her and go on to ask, “Did you cancel jobs for me, baby?”
Her answer is a nod, to which I say,
“Then give me two months. Stay here with me and do this full-time. I’ll find us a place to live, you can pick whatever girly shit women seem to fill houses with, and we’ll both make it a home. Neither of us has had one of them, Aislinn. You yourself said that your place in L.A. is just a crash pad, so let me give you a home, and I’ll let you return the favor.”
“So you want to temporarily trial living and being in a relationship together?”
“Fuck no,” I bark harsher than I should, making her jump. “Do not question what’s going on between us, Aislinn. We’re together, forever and always. If you need a label, call me your old man or boyfriend. Fuck, call me your husband and you’ll make me the happiest man on the planet. I won’t force you to stay, but even if you chose to leave,
nothing changes. You’ll still be mine, and I’ll be yours.”
Softening more, Aislinn lays her head on my chest and starts absently tracing the tattoos on my upper arm. She didn’t see it the first night we were together – it was dark, and we were too rushed – but the morning after, Aislinn made the discovery that I’d had her name tattooed across my lower stomach. If I’m totally honest, it’s actually directly above my cock, so across my groin would be a more accurate location, but whatever.
It was a spur of the moment thing, but something I’ve never regretted doing. I’ll admit, having another woman’s name starring your current piece of ass in the face caused more than a few problems, and the hook ups I took home often asked too many questions for my liking, but not even then did I regret it.
Jade green, block lettering three-inches high stretch the distance between the inside of my hip bones, or Magic V as Aislinn calls it. It hurt like a motherfucker having it done, and Jonas laughed his ass off the entire time he was inking me. But like the consummate professional he is, Jonas didn’t ask who the woman who would be forever etched into my skin is, sensing I wasn’t willing to talk about her.
Vengeance MC Box Set - Volume 2: Gage ~ Cash ~ Knight (Vengeance MC series Book 8) Page 19
