by Shyla Colt
“That’s my girl.” He placed a kiss on her forehead, proud of the progress she’d made. She’s facing down her demons when are you going to face down yours? The thoughts veered to the unreturned voicemails on his phone. Later. He pushed the issue away and refocused his attention on the problem at hand.
“Where will we go?”
“Anywhere you want.”
Chapter Sixteen
I may have finally gone off the deep end. It was the only rational explanation for the excitement coursing through her veins as they chased the moon and ate up the asphalt. The wind tugged at her leather jacket and the end of the braid that dangled out her helmet. After a series of calls to the girls, her mother, who’d been furious, and her job— citing a family emergency that required her to travel immediately, she’d hopped onto the back of Shooter’s bike headed for destinations unknown. She’d never done anything so reckless before, but she trusted the man with her life. She caught site of a blue sign that read rest stop ahead in two miles and tapped his side. It was their signal that she needed to stop. He nodded his head to communicate he’d understood and floored it.
He pulled off the highway and into an empty spot in front of the small building. She preferred rest stops to gas stations after her last trip went so poorly. Plus their facilities were always clean. He climbed off the bike and offered his hand. She took it and stifled a groan as she climbed off. her body wasn’t used to the long rides.
“How you holding up, baby?”
“I’ll be good once I get feeling back in my legs and ass.”
He laughed. “I’m sorry. I never would’ve broken you in so roughly if I had a choice.”
“I know.”
“The good news is, we’re almost there.”
“Are you going to tell me where there is?”
He nodded his head. “Now that I know, yeah. We’re headed to a Bed and Breakfast I know. We’ll have to spend the first night in a hotel, but I’ll get us booked as soon as we wake.”
“A what?” She winkled her nose. Did I just hear him right?
He laughed. “Bed and breakfasts are off the beaten path, nicer than hotels, and relaxing.”
“How do you even know that?” she asked.
“I was civilized once, you know. My parents were really into them, so I’ve been to dozens. They liked antique and historical stuff.”
“You know what? Hold that thought. I’m going to use the facilities, and then I’ll come back and let you blow my mind some more.”
Chuckling, he walked beside her. Since the incident earlier, he literally rarely let her out of his sight. She didn’t mind. The shadows appeared darker now, and everyone was suspect. They parted ways when she reached the woman’s restroom, and he propped his body up against the wall. This is love. As much as they might fight, she never questioned the way he felt. There was no need when it showed in everything he did. Even if it was sometimes so old school, she had to suck her teeth and think about the words she wanted to speak to him. He had a very black and white view when it came to keeping her safe.
After relieving herself, she washed her hands and realized, this was the most Shooter had spoken about his family. Her insides warmed. He was opening up and sharing his past with her. They could’ve gone anywhere, yet he choose a place with meaning. Maybe something good would come from all this darkness and insanity. As terrifying as picking up and leaving had been. She felt free. No one knew them where they were going. He had his colors hidden away in his saddle bag, and only a hand full of people would know their location. It was a vacation they both needed. Shooter’s job for the club was stressful. He could be called away at a moment’s notice, and she could always tell when he waded deep into the darkness. There was a disconnection that showed in his dark brown eyes.
Her man was good at compartmentalizing, but eventually, everything bubbled up to the surface. She knew he wasn’t an angel. But she also knew the devil came in the guise of angels more times than not. What he did, he did for his family. She could respect that. It was more than others did. She scowled as she thought about her absent father and his sporadic visits, and his half-hearted attempts at reconciliation. She let the dark thoughts wash down the drain along with suds. She shook the excess water off her hands and placed them beneath the dryer, enjoying the warmth. The weather in Ohio was cooler, and they’d ridden so long parts of her were nearly numb.
She stepped outside and smiled at the intimidating picture he created in his dark jeans, leather jacket, steel toe boots and broad frame.
“You napping on the job?”
He snickered. “Just because my eyes are closed doesn’t mean I’m unaware. You ready?”
“Yes. How much longer do you think we have?” she asked rubbing her butt.
“About twenty minutes. I figure the Holiday Inn will do for now.”
“Sounds like heaven to me. All I need is a hot shower and bed.”
“That’s’ all?” He gripped her hips and pulled her into him, cupping her ass.
“I might be persuaded for more after my body is brought back to life.” He nipped at her neck, tickling her with the beginnings of stubble on his face.
“We need to take advantage of this. No phone calls to interrupt us or responsibilities to eat up all our time. I’m not happy about how we got granted this time, but I plan on enjoying every damn minute of it. ‘Cause who knows when we’ll get it again.”
“You going to be more specific about what it is you do?”
“Whatever needs to be done, babe. I feel like you picked up on that.”
“Bruised knuckles were a clue,” she said as she rested her head on his chest.
He ran his hand down her braid and tugged the end lightly. ‘You shock me, librarian.”
“Oh, why’s that, Biker?”
“Thought for sure you’d have run away screaming by now.”
She gave an exhausted laugh. “Have you seen the drama I brought into this relationship with me? No, once you look into the face of evil, your entire outlook on life changes.” She shivered as a chill went down her spine.
“Come on, let’s make that final twenty, so we can relax.”
“Aren’t you tired?” she asked, amused by his unending supply of energy.
“I’m used to all-nighters.” The devilish grin and wink told her there’d be no sleeping just yet. He spun them around and guided them back down the walkway to the lone bike waiting.
***
After a hot shower, she felt human again. Hotel soap had never felt or smelled so good. The citrus concoction hit the spot. Wrapped in a fluffy towel, she sprawled out on the bed behind her and watched Shooter as he stalked toward her with the promise of pleasure in his eyes.
“You remember what I said?”
“You said a lot,” she said playing coy.
“Let me remind you then.” He knelt on the bed and spread her legs wide. She let the towel fall away. He nibbled his way up her leg to her inner thigh and rubbed his stubble across the sensitive skin making her squirm.
“Did I jog your memory?”
“Almost.” Her breath shook. He ran his tongue in the crease between her hip and thigh. His hot breath made her pussy drip. His eyes burned into her own like a tiger’s eye held up to the sun. Her belly tightened, and her eyelids grew heavy.
He kissed her inner thigh and pulled back. “What about now?”
“I’m starting to recall something.” He bit her thigh playfully, and she laughed. “Oh, that’s right. I think you were saying something about keeping me up.” He moved up on the bed and pinned her thighs down with his large, calloused hands.
“No, I promised.” He ran his tongue up her cleft, and she jerked as sparks shot through her body. “Now that’s more like it.”
He descended, licking, sucking, and circling her into a frenzy. She buried her fingers in his hair,
whimpering as she rocked against his torturous tongue. He plunged deep, and she came off the bed, convulsing as she flexed her walls around him. She saw stars as she ground against his mouth, wringing every last bit of pleasure he had to offer as her orgasm continued. He slid two fingers deep before she could come down. Her body jerked as he pumped, and stoked the flames higher.
“Shooter, Oh , My, God.” She tried to close her thighs to increase the feelings.
“Nu uh. Not yet.” His voice was strained, and his eyes were dark with desire. He never looked as sexy as he did when he was between her thighs.
He angled his thrusts, and she tumbled over the edge. His hum of approval penetrated her haze of pleasure. He eased inside, and she wrapped her legs around his hips and clung to his muscular body. They found a rhythm as he drilled inside her. His tip tapped her cervix, and she moaned as the pleasurable pain set her body on fire. She dug her nails into his back, and he growled. He filled her to bursting, with more than his body. With light, love, and hope. He was her bright spot after a long, dark, tunnel. The bubble swelled inside her. Her body shook, and she let go, soaring high. He followed a few seconds later, spreading his warmth. Tears fell from her eyes as she clung to his strength. He pulled back and cupped her face.
“Did I hurt you?”
She shook her head. “No, it’s the exact opposite. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Good thing you don’t have to ever find out, ain’t it?” he asked. He placed a kiss on her forehead and rolled onto his back taking her with him. “I got you, baby. All that shit we left behind stays. You’re safe, and staying that way. You believe me?”
She nodded and buried her face in his neck, soaking up his body heat. Exhaustion set in and she let herself drift off , safe and secure in the arms of the man who loved her with an intensity she never believed possible.
Part of him held his breath as they made their way to the luxury Cherry Suite at Hideaway Country Inn. He’d booked them there for a week, and went out on a limb attempting romance. She needed to forget about all the bullshit Peter put her through. It’d take more than a change of scenery to do that. He planned on keeping her too busy to think about anything, but him. He was rusty when it came to wining and dining, but for her, he’d try. He unlocked the door and let her walk in first.
“Oh my God, This is amazing.”
He smiled as she spun in a circle.
“You like it?”
“Yes! I love all the wood paneling. I guess we know why it’s called the Cherry Suite.”
He chuckled. “Why don’t you go explore? I got the bags.” They’d made a detour at a local Walmart to grab enough things for dinner. She squealed as she ran inside.
Looks like I did something right. He dropped their saddle bag by the wall and locked the door.
“Did you do this?”
Her voice made him laugh.
“Maybe.”
He followed her voice to the bed where a heart made with rose petals covered the spread. Beside a four poster bed was an array of fruit dipped in chocolate on a tray, next to a green bottle in a bucket of ice. They didn’t do alcohol, so it was sparkling juice, but they could fix that with a trip to the store.
“You like it?”
“I love it.” She ran toward him, and he braced his feet as he lifted her up. She wrapped her arms around him. She cupped his face and pulled him to her, devouring his mouth. He moaned. He liked it when she got aggressive. They surfaced for air, and she bit his bottom lip and tugged. “I can’t believe you did all this for me.”
“Very little I wouldn’t do for you, Jul. You must know that by now.”
“I do,” she said quietly. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned back. “What are we doing now?”
“You want to have a ghost walk?”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah, they have a haunted building around here. I figure we can do the history tour by day and the ghost walk at night. You game?”
“Definitely. Do you like historical stuff?”
“I’m fond of it. Growing up, my parents were always hauling us off to one learning thing after another. We had these weekend road trips. Ohio borders so many other states, it was nothing to drive six hours after school on a Friday. Spend the day, and leave on a Sunday afternoon. Some of my favorite memories are during those trips.”
“Wait. We?”
“Yeah, I have an older brother named, Joel. We’re not close,” he said hoping she wouldn’t pry.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“I’m used to it now, water under the bridge. You want to pop the bottle and eat? Then we’ll get ready to go to the hotel?”
She nodded her head, and he released her.
It’d been a long time since he thought about his parents and his childhood. This woman had a way of making him damn near chatty.
“What’s the name of the place we’re going to?”
“The Bissman Building.”
“Oooh.”
He shook his head. He liked her silly like this. She’d been under an insane amount of stress during their time together. She threw her body onto the bed and rolled in the petals. He smiled down on her and moved to sink to the edge of the bed. He grabbed a strawberry and traced her lips.
“Open up for me.”
She took a bite, and her eyes darkened.
“Careful or we won’t make it to the building.”
She smirked, and he finished the rest of the berry. The sweetness danced along his tastebuds, but it was the rush from her happiness that made him smile. He’ d forgotten what it felt like to be connected to a woman. Her joy was his, and when he needed a safe, soft place to come home to, she had yet to let him down. This life was cruel and chaotic. She was a breath of fresh air and a sense of normalcy and calm. He reached down and grabbed her hand. Life before her had been good. He had his brothers, his duty to his Prez, and the club. Since she came, he knew a fullness, and sense of happiness he thought he’d lost for good. He’d never say it to his brothers, for fear of sounding too soft, but he knew he needed to keep this woman in his life forever. She would help him from going Darksiders.
The shit they did and saw eventually stained a soul. The line between honorable and outlaw could blur if you weren’t cautious. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her left hand imagining his ring there. They continued to finish the food in a peaceful silence he found soothing. The beauty to my beast. He had a lot of blood on his hands, but she was pure and good. He’d do his damnedest to ensure she never had any on hers because whatever problems arose, he’d solve. It was what he was good at it.
Chapter Seventeen
“You ruined me— now I’m going to return the favor!” The ghostly pale man moved toward her, wrapping his arms around her neck.
“No!”
The icy hands squeezed harder. Breath left her lungs. He lifted her above his head, and she kicked.
I can’t die like this, no! Bringing her hands up, she dug her fingernails into his flesh. The skin gave way, peeling back to show bone. His grip held. Unconsciousness came, blacking her vision.
Gasping for air, she startled awake in her bed. Her chest heaved as she sucked down oxygen. She placed a hand on her neck and sat up, looking around. Thank God Shooter was on an errand tonight. She didn’t want him to know how deeply Peter’s intrusion had affected her. Even from behind bars he haunted her. She thought once they came back from the road, things would get back to normal. She couldn’t have been more wrong. Tension clung to the air like spandex to the body. She was waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Running a hand across her sweat-dotted brow, she deemed rest impossible. Even now, with him in jail, that bastard refused to let go of his grip on her. Sometimes she swore she saw him out of the corner of her eye. She knew enough to realize it all boiled down to guilt.
<
br /> His jail sentence felt like her fault, irrational or not. She hadn’t had to testify, thank God, but it didn’t seem to matter, the guilt ate at her. Managing a meager three or four hours a night wasn’t getting it. She’d dropped weight, and Shooter had begun to study her a little too close. She needed to get help.
Leaving the bed, she shuffled to the kitchen and retrieved her kettle from the cabinet, filling it with water. It was time to call Doctor Alexander. As the light crested the horizon and turned the world peachy orange, she sat on her back patio counting down the time until she could call a friend. Time to call in the big guns.
Shooter rocked, but this she needed to do alone.
Since things had happened, she’d retreated into her shell again. Letting Shooter in had become harder as their roles shifted and each tried to settle in after the explosion. She wasn’t the only one experiencing bad dreams.
The beep of the alarm signaled Shooter’s return. Rocking back and forth in her favorite wicker chair, she cupped the warm mug between her hands. He’d want to know why she was awake. The time for lies to end had come. A few moments later the sliding patio door opened and Shooter peered in.
“Hey, baby, what are you doing up?” His brow furrowed. “Everything okay?”
“Bad dreams,” she whispered.
“There have been a lot of them lately.”
Glancing over the rim of her glass, she took a leap. “I could say the same.”
“I’m dealing with it,” he said gruffly.
The defensive tone hit her like a slap to the face. Emotions fled from his face, and he looked away. She sighed as her guts tangled. After everything, the aftermath might be the end of them. She’d never asked what Mayhem had done to deal with the issues Peter brought their way, but clearly, it was taking its toll on Shooter.
“Are you afraid of me now? Is that why you’re pulling away?” He gripped the doorframe.
“No.” Panic flooded her. The mug clinked on the tabletop. Rushing to him, she placed her hands on his chest. “Is that what you thought?”
