by Jodi Linton
He was the poster child.
Time to get the ball rolling on the investigation—the sexy woman in front of him would be nothing more than a short-term experience—since he still needed to figure what her angle was. He’d made up his mind that he’d feel up her hot body and get to her secrets at the same time. He’d get the answers needed to solve Wes’s murder. He’d be that bad guy again, then pack up the guilt with the rest of his motherfucking baggage and move on.
She looked at him, and the innocent expression lining her face caught him off guard. His cock surged at his zipper, demanding to be touched. Temporary. In a few weeks you’ll be moving on to another shitty case, another club, and another woman.
Shifting in his seat, Cade acknowledged her apology with a nod, although unknowingly she’d just made him even more uncomfortable. Now he wouldn’t be able to think of anything else but kissing her again. “How did someone like you not get tied down?” he asked, signaling their waitress.
His question seemed to throw her off guard, because she shifted uneasily in the chair. Instantly his vision blurred at the sight of her tank top tightening across her chest. It was as if her body was saying to him, “Caution, boy, sex goddess at twelve o’clock.” And holy hell, Cade couldn’t bring himself to look away. She twirled a lock of silky hair, the cool expression on her face trying so hard to mask a discomforting glow.
Easing forward, she rested both elbows on the table and practically bore a hole through his skull. “I enjoy being in control too much.” Her throat worked on a harsh swallow, and when she released a slight sigh, Cade felt a foreign longing to comfort the damn confusing woman sitting across from him. “Look at me. Do I seem like the type of chick a guy would want to come home to?”
She represented everything he shouldn’t want but needed. The hardened MC president withholding answers about his partner’s death, the sexy woman slipping beneath his skin and strangling all the goddamn common sense out of him—and a tortured soul he could see himself spending the rest of his life with.
Criminal. He blinked. Police investigation.
He swallowed the jagged pill of disgust compromising the cop within him. Inside he was hollering, You’re exactly what I would want to come home to, but he composed himself and arched an eyebrow, saying, “Darling, I have firsthand knowledge of your control issues. Trust me.” He rubbed his fingers together as he felt the urge to snag a smoke sneak up on him. “But, Connors, I don’t regret yesterday. Or that kiss we exchanged.” He reached across the table and touched her hand. “You and I aren’t that different, you know.”
She threw her head back on a laugh. “Have you been a bad, bad girl, too, Cade? Have you caused other people to hurt? Because I’ve caused my fair share of pain, and believe me when I say”—those blue eyes narrowed on him—“it can leave a nasty scar.”
Had Em just confessed? He looked at her, not wanting to accept that she might have actually played a part in Wes’s death.
“Instead of probing me about my love life, why not put all that pent-up energy toward something else?” She peered down at their locked hands, then pulled hers away and tucked it under the table. “Like maybe kicking such a nasty habit.”
Right on cue, the waitress approached their table and saved him from another arguable excuse he’d used time and time again. After putting in an order for two chopped beef sandwiches and two beers, they sat in awkward silence, checking each other out until their food and drinks arrived.
“Why did you show up at the garage the other day?” Em asked as she twisted the beer cap off. “There has to be more to your story than a bout of restlessness.”
“Like I told ya.” He laid on the charming smile. “I needed a job.”
She sipped on the beer, the tension between them growing tauter with each long pull. Licking her lips, she finally responded, “Liar.”
He threw up his hands in defense. “What can I say, I’m a broke-ass biker and need the money to pay my rent.” Scrubbing his jaw, he quirked a smile, expression lit with amusement. “Most of us aren’t as lucky to have an old man hand over his established chop shop and a motorcycle gang to help keep the place running.”
She lifted her chin, fire dancing behind her eyes. “The Dirty Sinners aren’t a gang, Cade. It’s a business, and those men are my employees. Like you.”
He’d been a cop a long time, dealt with all types of criminal cases, heard all kinds of lies, and seen lots of shit. So instinct alone told him something was off with her answer. The reports the Houston chief of police had shown him were littered in criminal activity. She had an angle, he just needed to push all sexual thoughts aside and figure out her game.
Relaxing his shoulders, he settled in his seat, trying to come across less confrontational. It was time to get to the heart of some information. “Why did you not mention the boyfriend before sticking your tongue down my throat?”
“Boyfriend? You have some damn nerve questioning me.” She narrowed her gaze on him and leaned forward, lining up for a kill shot. “But that brings my next question to the table… Why the hell do you think I have an old man?”
He shrugged. “This morning, inside the garage, Logan made it a point to tell me you’re off-limits. I think he’s sort of sweet on you, Em.”
Something odd flashed across her face. Something he couldn’t quite pinpoint.
“Oh, Logan just doesn’t want to see me get fucked over.” She picked at the napkin next to her plate. “He knows you’re just a guy buying time until hitting the road in search of a new club to call home for a few weeks.”
In that moment, Cade concluded it’d been reckless not to bring along a pack of cigarettes. He balled his fist under the table and hardened his mouth. “Why should I even bother to be nice, since it seems you already have me pegged as some dick just looking for a place to lie low before scrumming off to the next club?”
She peered up, face an expressionless black hole, and he immediately regretted the harshness of his reply. “I think I might need another beer.”
He could get on board with another beer, because watching the disappointment take hold of the strong woman before him only caused his overprotective, I-will-beat-the-fucker-up-who-made-the-pretty-girl-cry side rear its ugly head. The problem was he’d been said fucker.
“Two more beers coming right up.”
Em studied Cade across the table. His jaw was clenched, and his shoulders were stiff. When he brought up her having a boyfriend it was as if he’d pulled a gun and pressed it firmly into her forehead. Only a few more weeks and the drop between her club and the Vipers would be made. Then she’d be able to put her past behind her and finally feel justice had been served.
“I’m sorry about accusing you of calling me a dick.” He took a drink, resting the beer bottle against his lips. “I shouldn’t have taken offense because what you said is true. I’m a wanderer; I know that. Lately, though, I’ve been thinking about taking up a more permanent residence.”
“You don’t say.” She ignored his apology, concentrating on unwrapping her sandwich and picking off the pickles. Em despised pickles, and Wes had always made sure to request no pickles on her burgers since he couldn’t stand them as well. Something small he’d done that in return made her fall even harder for the hard-ass cop. Yes, she was stupid enough to fall for a cop. Stupid enough to give her heart to the man sent in to bring down her father’s prized club. Now here she was plotting to kill a rival club president who, she knew in her heart, had placed the hit on Wes. Axle would be overjoyed.
“I had a friend once who couldn’t even be in the same car with a pickle.”
Her heart swelled in her chest. He was trying to lighten the mood. They may have gotten off to a rocky start, but Em really did enjoy his company. And that was going to be a problem.
She looked up, the amused grin on his rugged face confusing her conflicted emotions even more. He reached past the saltshaker and stole a pickle off her plate. “But, babe, I’m more adventurous,” he said, tos
sing the pickle in his mouth.
“Are you trying to win me over with your enthusiasm for pickles?”
“No.” His voice dropped to a low whisper. “I’m trying to rid you of that frown.”
“Better get used to sitting for a while.”
He plopped another pickle in his mouth and winked. “If you’re the main attraction, then I can wait all day.”
Before she could utter up a response, the restaurant door chimed and in stepped three men in suits. Em clued in immediately on what type of suits these men were. They were suits sporting badges. Something about the way Cade had tensed reminded her of Wes, but she couldn’t be sure. Or maybe the hot biker who bought her lunch froze because of his long rap sheet. Either way, she had no desire to stick around and watch the events unfold. She pushed back in her chair and stood. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to make a run to the ladies’ room.”
He simply nodded and kept his back to the new lunch guests.
Hurriedly, but not trying to bring attention to herself, Em weaved through the tables, making a beeline toward the bathrooms. The door clicked shut and air rushed like a wildfire in and out of her lungs. Palms covered in sweat, she tried to steady her breathing. She braced herself on the bathroom counter and peered back at the soulless reflection of a woman cracking a menacing smile. She’d changed. Sadly, if Wes had crossed paths with this newer version of Em Connors, he would have been disappointed. A tear slid down her flushed cheek.
She gripped the counter’s edge and gritted through clenched teeth. “This is all for you, damn it.” Another teardrop rolled and fell into the sink. “You should’ve let them kill me. I wasn’t worth saving.”
“I think you’re worth a damn lot,” a male voice thundered, and goose bumps rose on her flesh in response to the tender remark.
He must’ve slipped in quietly, because Em hadn’t heard the door open and close again. And wasn’t it pure perfection he witnessed her mental breakdown.
Swiping her eyes clean, she whirled around and lifted her chin. “And I think you took a minor detour because the men’s room is next door.”
He moved forward, getting up in her personal space like she was prey. “Why are you crying?” He brought his hand to her cheek and gently stroked away a tear. The caring move set her back a notch. “Please tell me my lousy pickle joke didn’t set you off.”
Misjudging men seemed to be Em’s Achilles’ heel. When they’d first met, she’d considered Cade an enemy. Still, it didn’t matter because inside a dingy women’s restroom, she found herself comforted by the guy. And she badly wanted him to wrap his strong arms around her waist and claim her mouth again. Just for one blissful moment, she ached to escape. Let him take care of the pain. This was wrong on many levels. She used to be so smart when scoping out a man’s ulterior motive. Growing up as the daughter of the most ruthless MC president around had given her thick skin and even keener instincts…until it came to Wes. He slipped past her. When it came to Cade Jackson, he made her look crazy. He seemed as messed up as she was, and such knowledge did things to her resolve. Made her want to confide, spilling all the dark secrets she carried around. Almost.
She turned a cheek in an attempt to keep him from seeing into the depths of her broken soul. “Give me a minute.” She swallowed, harshly. “God, Cade, just leave.”
But he didn’t. He closed in, his nostrils flaring as his unsteady breath rushed past his lips. Heat pooled between her thighs, and a small part of her wanted to protest, regain control of the situation. Tell him no one put her in a corner. Although another more desperate part of her begged to let go, to give him full rein. Hungry eyes met hers dead-on. And then hot, sexy lips grazed underneath her jaw, igniting a fever through her entire body.
“Cade.” She gasped.
His mouth descended on hers, roughly, in a long, seductive caress as he sucked on her bottom lip. She welcomed the intrusion, swallowing his groan on a kiss. In many ways he was her perfect match. Her heart rate sped up, and her knees gave way. Their mouths broke apart.
“You are so goddamn beautiful.” He speared a hand through her hair and pulled, her neck stretched long and taut, begging for attention. “I shouldn’t want this. I shouldn’t want you.” He nipped at her ear. “Tell me to stop.”
She flashed him a smile. Something that looked a lot like desire flared beneath the golden irises of his hungry brown eyes. So much agony, so much lust, and so much pain pulled between them. And Em wanted every damn ounce of it.
She trailed a finger down the side of his cheek. The roughness of his five o’clock shadow felt amazing under her skin as she caught his face up in a hand. “I don’t beg.” She tugged at his bottom lip and pressed a soft kiss into the corner of his mouth, loving the tortured groan spilling from his lips. “I don’t let go of control, Cade…but I’m not going to tell you no.”
He hissed out a painful sigh. “Goddamn it, Em.” His hands were on her waist, her legs tangled in his, and she barely had time to catch a breath before her back slammed into the bathroom mirror. “I won’t fuck you.” Hips raced in a seductive grind. “Although the idea of having you naked beneath me and screaming my name occupied my dreams last night,” he said, his deep voice sounding raw. “You deserve better than to be fucked inside a bathroom stall.”
No, she deserved a far worse fate. One full of loneliness and heartbreak after all she’d destroyed.
He gripped her hip bones, digging in just enough to let her know who was in charge before yanking her forward and fusing their bodies together. Dragging his teeth along the underside of her jaw, he pressed his mouth against her in hard, punishing kisses. She leaned in, desperate to hold onto him tighter. Fierce, hot lust exploded. In that moment, Em wanted—no, needed—Cade to own her body. She wiggled against him, craving more friction. He grabbed her waist and pushed her back, his heated gaze roaming up and down her body. All the air in her lungs stilled when he focused on her face and one corner of his mouth crooked up into a grin.
“I knew you were stunning.” He moved them back a step and braced her against the wall by pinning her in place with the weight of his chest. His teeth scraped along her shoulder, making her shudder. “I just didn’t know how sweet you’d be,” he said roughly, then wrapped a hand around both her wrists and jerked them above her head. “When I take you, it won’t be in some bathroom.” He dropped a hand to the button on her leather pants and unsnapped it, then slid her zipper lower, easing her pants open until he gave his hand enough room. “There’ll be no regret when I am seated deep inside you, owning every single inch of your amazing body. You’ll beg me to fuck you over and over again.” He thrust his hips at hers, and the pressure of his hard erection shook her to the core. “Are you tight and wet for me? Because I plan on sliding my fingers in and out of you until you scream to be given a release.”
She bit down on her lower lip and went slack in his firm hold. “Talk is cheap, Cade. So get inside me already.”
His hand pushed her pants down, revealing her black lace panties. He sucked in air on a growl and rocked forward, rubbing a hard, thick cock into the small scrap of silk fabric keeping her concealed from his touch.
She’d seen it then. Crazy, passionate, sexual lust. Desperation clawed up her throat.
She pressed forward into his hand. “T-this…feels so damn wrong. So goddamn bad,” she said breathlessly on a hip roll.
“But being bad can be the best kind of good.” He dropped his eyes to her heaving chest. “You love the feel of my body against you. My dirty mouth pressed on yours and all the filthy words that fall from my lips. Even the very idea of an us,” he said, trailing two fingers down the middle of her stomach. “Am I getting hotter?”
Em wet her lips and gestured at his denim-covered cock. “Tell me a few naughty tales to help convince me, Cade.”
A wicked smile curled his lips. “I want to consume you. Fill you. Mark that sweet ass of yours with the palm of my hand until every Sinner understands you’ve been claimed.” Roug
h fingertips traced the outline of her panty line, teasing the elastic band on a pull. He nibbled on her bottom lip and whispered, “But that’s just crazy, right? Me? A simple mechanic occupying the sexy MC president’s time…her body?”
“Damn crazy.” She panted against his lips. “Me? The MC president allowing some mechanic to manhandle her?”
Working his fingers beneath the seam of her panties, Cade’s thumb slid across her clitoris, and she bucked her hips in response. “Shit, you’re wet.” He applied more pressure to the tender nub, making her buzz with anticipation. Desire. “Fuck, Em,” he rasped beside her ear. “Are you trying to kill me? Because I know you can feel exactly what you do to me.”
She could and loved every freaking inch of it. He nudged her belly, the length of his arousal firmly seated between her thighs. As he slipped a finger up inside her and moved his mouth down the side of her neck in a slow, seductive dance, she rested her head against the bathroom mirror and peered down on him through hooded eyes, taking in the lustful, glazed expression transforming the hard, chiseled lines of his handsome face. He was freaking gorgeous.
Another finger circled inside, and he hungrily swallowed her moan, slanting his mouth over hers in a bruising kiss. She rocked into his hand, indulging in every sensation of his touch. He pumped in and out, the palm of his hand cupping her sex, and her thighs clamped together at the first rush of heat tingling a path up her legs. On a moan, the back of her head slid against the mirror, and his finger thrusts quickened.
“Jesus, Cade.” She pinched her eyes closed, basking in the pleasurable experience. He let go of her wrists and wrapped an arm around her waist, crushing her to his chest as his fingers continued to strum back and forth.
“Oh my God, yes.”
His big, strong hand cupped her ass, hitching her leg up around his waist. “Next time you are going to come on my tongue.”
