by Lane Hart
“But she doesn’t have to earn any money!” I throw my hands up in the air and yell.
“Because you said so, it must be true?” War questions. “That doesn’t really fly with chicks. You should be glad that she’s not a gold-digger who wants to leech off of you.”
“I’d rather her be a gold-digger than dance half-naked for my brothers and tourists!”
“Well, you need to find a better way to convince her to try her hand at another career,” he says.
“How do I do that?” I ask.
“If you’re jealous, then maybe you need to find a way to make her jealous so that she can see your side of things.”
“Make her jealous?” I repeat as I think that over.
“Yeah. If she cares about you too, then it’ll work both ways.”
“I’m not sure how much she ‘cares’ for me after I dragged her out of the club and then threw her down and fucked her on the beach last night.”
When I finally look at War to gauge his reaction, his eyes are wide in shock. “You’ve lost your damn mind,” he says. “And I don’t mean that as a criticism.”
“You’re right. I have lost my mind,” I admit as I drag my fingers through my hair. “She just makes me so…fucking angry…and then I do shit without thinking. Why the hell is that? Because we have a kid together?”
“No,” War replies. “Like I said, I wouldn’t give two shits if Marcie fucked every one of my brothers as long as my kid wasn’t there. And she probably did. She was a club slut. We share a son; but other than that, I don’t have any feelings left over for her just because she pushed him out of her cunt.”
“Not even when he was first born?” I ask.
“No. I only married her and put up with her when she was pregnant to make sure she didn’t get drunk or high while carrying him. It was a relief once he was here and I no longer had to worry about her hurting him. Well, other than the breastfeeding incident…”
“Lexi’s a good mother,” I tell him. “I mean, she’s like the best. Maybe that’s why I want to watch out for her, you know? So that Liam doesn’t lose his mother…”
“Like you lost Kennedy and the kid?” War asks. “Admit it. You care about her, hell, maybe even love her, and you’re scared of losing her. But if you start suffocating her, telling her what she can or can’t do, she’s not gonna stick around, man. You need to lighten the fuck up.”
“I worry about her and just want to keep her safe,” I explain.
“Keeping her safe and keeping her locked in a tower like your prisoner are two different things,” he points out. “Give her a little breathing room. Stop acting like she’s the only woman in the world, and things will all work themselves out if you two are meant to be more than just parents together.”
“If you say so,” I mutter.
“I do,” he replies with a grin.
“One last favor,” I say.
“Anything,” he tells me, deadly serious.
“Do you have any condoms on you?” I ask him with a grin.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Lexi
Torin doesn’t blink an eye that night when I tell him I’m leaving for work.
“Do you need a ride?” he asks.
“Um, no. I called for an Uber,” I respond.
“Okay,” he says. His jaw clenches tight like he doesn’t approve, but still he doesn’t comment any further, and his eyes don’t leave Liam, who is happily bouncing in his arms. If there’s anything sexier than a man in leather holding a baby, I don’t know what it is.
“Bye, baby boy,” I say to my son and place a kiss on his fuzzy head before I start toward the door.
On the way out, I’m surprised to see Sasha and a beautiful red-headed woman coming up the steps.
“Hey!” I say in greeting.
“Hey,” Sasha mutters with a frown, the normally cheerful demeanor gone from the woman.
“Everything okay?” I ask, looking between the two women who are sharing the same expression.
“It’s a boys’ night out. Woohoo,” Sasha deadpans. “So, Mercy and I are here to cuddle and smell Liam to try and keep our baby fever to a mild simmer.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Lexi,” I say to the redhead, who shakes my hand.
“You’re the stripper, right?” she asks, eyes brightening.
“Ah, yes,” I answer.
“Great! Then can you keep an eye on my man tonight? He’ll be the tallest King with black hair and beard.”
“He’s coming to Avalon?” I ask.
“Boys’ night out,” Sasha repeats through clenched teeth. “The whole MC is going. Mandatory tits and ass assignment.”
“Chase is going too?” I ask in surprise, since I didn’t take the love-struck man for one to frequent strip clubs.
“Yes, and I would appreciate photos and a full report tomorrow. Or tonight. Tonight would be great, so that I can decide whether or not he’ll be sleeping on the couch,” she says.
“Amen, sister,” Mercy mutters before the two high five each other.
“I’m sure you two don’t have anything to worry about,” I tell them. “They would have to be crazy…”
“Or drunken fools,” Sasha adds.
“Tell me the truth,” Mercy says. “Is there really a no touching rule?”
“Ah, you know what, there’s my ride!” I exclaim as I ease past them on the steps to avoid answering that question. The truth is the Savage Kings have their own private room where anything goes.
“Yes or no, Lexi?” Sasha calls out.
“Have a good night,” I tell them when I go to open the passenger door of the van. But then I remember why they’re here. “You two are babysitting for Torin?” I yell out.
“Well, yeah,” Sasha answers with a smile.
Which means that Torin is coming to the strip club. Is he planning a repeat of last night?
…
Three hours later when I’m on stage for the second time, I answer my own question when I see Summer saddling up to the group of bikers sitting front and center of the stage. She heads right for Torin, who is so busy taking in every inch of her skin that he doesn’t even notice me on stage.
A few of the other guys in the group watch me for a split second before they abruptly look away, a few even get up and go to the john. What the hell?
By the time I make it through my song and get off stage, Torin is no longer in the main room.
“Where is he?” I ask Chase when he returns from the bar with a beer in his hand.
“No clue,” he answers while keeping his gaze over my head. “Think I’m gonna head out. Abe?” he asks before the two men hightail it out the exit.
“He’s getting a private dance,” War yells to me over the music from a few tables down. I go over to him since I must have misheard.
“What was that?” I ask when I get closer.
“Torin’s getting a private dance in the Kings' room,” he says simply while watching whoever is on stage behind me.
“With who? Summer?” I gasp in disbelief as I turn in a circle to look around the room for the slut.
“Guess that was her name,” War replies before he gets to his feet. “Who needs another round?” he asks.
Most of the men shout in response.
“There are waitresses that will get your drinks,” I remind him.
“Yeah, but it gives me a reason to stop talking to you when you’re wearing a see-through nightie,” he tells me before he walks away, leaving me standing there with my heart pounding in my chest as I consider all the possible things Torin is doing with Summer right now.
What the hell is he thinking? Last night he was fucking me, and now…now he’s in a room getting a private lap dance or a blowjob or, god forbid, fucking some random slut?
…
Torin
“Tell me what you need from me tonight, daddy,” the blonde stripper coos at me when I let her lead me by the hand down the hall to the Kings' room. It’s amazing how much h
as changed in my life since the last time I was in here.
As soon as she shuts the door, she reaches for the front of my pants.
I grab both of her hands in one of mine and push her away.
“I need you to go sit down, be quiet and not touch me again,” I tell her. She blinks up at me in confusion, so I say, “Don’t make me repeat myself.”
“Yes, sir,” she replies swiftly before she finally struts over to the sofa, removing articles of clothing as she goes. Fine, whatever. Her big breasts are fake, unlike Lexi’s, and her skin is several shades paler. Don’t even get me started on how little junk she has in the trunk compared to Lexi’s apple bottom that feels superb when it’s slapping rapidly against my stomach.
Damn, my dick is hard just thinking about how good last night was. Tonight, I’m taking War’s advice and trying a different approach than the caveman routine, and I’m curious to see how it will end. Either Lexi will come find me, or I’ll go home and beat off with memories of her instead.
My phone buzzes in my front cut pocket, so I pull it out and see a message from War.
Your girl is looking for you and she’s not happy.
“Good,” I say aloud with a grin.
“What?” blondie asks from where she’s stretched out on the sofa like she’s posing for a magazine cover.
“Nothing,” I say before I reach over and push the button to lock the door. Then we wait.
It doesn’t take long before the handle starts to jiggle like someone is trying to come inside.
“Torin!” Lexi’s voice yells from the other side before her tiny fist bangs on it. “Torin Edward Fury,” she says, her voice cracking when she adds my middle name that she heard my father use on me weeks ago. “Open this door right now, or I’ll…I’ll…remove your balls while you sleep!”
I expected her to threaten to take my kid and leave or some shit, but she didn’t go there, thank god.
Putting her out of her misery, since she sounds like she’s on the verge of tears, I unlock the door and pull it open.
Lexi’s dark eyes are watering when they meet mine, and then they look around me at the naked stripper on the sofa.
Expecting her next move, I catch her wrist in the air before her palm can make contact with my face. If the two of us were alone, I would’ve let it land, but having a witness see her strike a King would cause Lexi all sorts of problems. It’s not something the club tolerates or can let slide.
“You…you asshole!” Lexi yells at me while I grab her other arm before it can strike me.
I maneuver her small body to the wall where I pin her arms above her head.
“Get out!” I order the stripper without looking at her. It takes her several long moments to gather her skimpy clothes and leave. I stretch my leg over to slam the door closed with my boot.
“I didn’t touch her, and she didn’t touch me,” I tell Lexi. “And if you agree not to work here anymore, I won’t ask for another private dance ever again.”
Lexi’s jaw drops open in understanding before she asks, “You wanted to make me jealous?”
“Yes,” I answer as I take a step closer until my body is flattening hers to the wall. “Now you know how I feel when all those fuckers are looking at you.”
Some of the fight drains from her when she melts a little more into the wall. “What else am I supposed to do? I don’t even have a high school diploma.”
Rather than remind her that she doesn’t need a job, I tell her, “We’ll figure it out.”
“As soon as I save enough money, I’m moving out,” she informs me with her chin raised stubbornly.
“No,” I tell her.
When she parts her lips and sucks in a breath to protest, I lower my head to slant my mouth over hers and kiss her. It’s soft at first, because I know I have to convince Lexi to give in and kiss me back rather than argue with me right this second. And when she does, it hits me that this is our first kiss. Or maybe it’s the first kiss that I remember. I’ll have to ask her later. Right now, she tastes too good for me to stop; and then, when our tongues meet, every thought in my head disappears except for wanting more.
Both of us moan, and then I finally let her wrists go so that I can reach down and grab two handfuls of her ass to pull her lower body up and closer to mine. I growl into her mouth when my palms squeeze her bare flesh, remembering she’s only wearing a skimpy negligee and a thong. Lexi wraps her legs around my waist at the same time her arms go around my neck. Then her fingers are tugging on the back of my hair, keeping my mouth on hers as if I ever planned to stop kissing her. And I don’t stop, not even when she unzips my pants and fists my cock or when her tight, wet pussy sinks down on it. Why haven’t I ever kissed this woman before? Being inside of her while we make out against the wall is the best sex I’ve ever had…
I jerk away to look down, watching as my dick hammers in and out of Lexi and it hits me that I’ve only known her for a few weeks and yet how I feel about her is more intense, more consuming than what I had with Kennedy. And, fuck, does that make even more guilt pile up on my shoulders.
“What’s wrong?” Lexi asks when I stop moving. She grasps my face between her soft hands to raise my gaze to hers. “Torin?”
“I never fucked her like this, and she died because of me,” I admit. “I shouldn’t…we shouldn’t…”
“Shouldn’t what?” Lexi asks. “Keep living?”
“Yes!” I say when I lower her feet back to the ground and my cock slips free from her. “I don’t deserve to keep living or to keep fucking.”
“That’s just the survivor’s guilt talking,” she says, grabbing either side of my cut when I start to pull away. “You can’t keep punishing yourself because of what happened. You deserve to keep living and to be happy and to…keep fucking me for chrissakes!”
“I don’t deserve anything but pain and suffering for the rest of my life!” I reply.
“That’s bullshit,” Lexi exclaims. “You want more, and you deserve more. Don’t you think Liam deserves to have you as a father even though he wasn’t your first son?”
“Yes, but…” I start, but she rolls right over me.
“Would you want him to go through his entire life feeling guilty because he survived and his half-brother didn’t?”
“No, of course not,” I scoff. “It wasn’t his fault…”
“And it wasn’t yours either!”
“Yes, it was! Hector may have had someone pull the trigger, but their deaths are on me. I’m responsible for dragging them into this life. Everything they suffered is on me!”
“I could leave you. I could take Liam from you right now if I wanted to,” she says, causing my chest to tighten at the thought. “Kennedy could’ve left you too. But she didn’t, did she? Stop trying to take responsibility for her decisions when you have your own to make, starting with what happened between us last night and what was happening five minutes ago before you got lost in your head and ruined it.”
Glancing down at my semi-hard cock that’s still jutting out of my jeans, I shove it back inside and zip up before I try to answer her. “I-I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?” Lexi repeats.
“No.”
Apparently, she doesn’t like that response, because she crosses her arms over her chest before she asks, “Are you just horny and I’m convenient?”
“If I was just horny and wanted convenient pussy, there are plenty of options here and at the clubhouse,” I point out.
“Yeah, I noticed,” Lexi mutters. “So then what is it? You’re just jealous because I came to work here?”
“I wanted to fuck you before you decided to show everyone your ass and tits,” I admit.
“Because I’m Liam’s mother and you think you have to be with me for him to have a happy little family?” she asks.
“I thought about being with you before I found out you had my kid,” I tell her honestly. “I longed for you when all you were to me was the daughter of my enemy. I shou
ldn’t have ever wanted to even lay a finger on you but for some reason I couldn’t help myself!”
“Why me and not one of the other girls?” she asks curiously with her brow furrowed.
“I wish I knew,” I say. “Then maybe I would stop hating myself for coming to watch you dance topless all those months ago when I was about to marry the woman I loved.”
Clearing her throat and tossing her hair over her shoulder, Lexi says, “So it’s nothing but a physical attraction.”
“Maybe so,” I admit. “I don’t know anything about you other than you’re beautiful and you’re a good mother who makes terrible career decisions. But I can’t stop thinking about you or worrying about you when you’re not around. It’s stupid but I love talking to you every day even though I never know what to say when I’m with you. It’s like I have this unhealthy obsession with you, and somehow I lucked up and we get to share a son. Now I can use that as an excuse to spend time with you both.”
“Oh,” she mutters, and I don’t know if that’s a good ‘oh’ or a bad one in response to my explanation. Not until Lexi comes up to me and pops the button on my jeans and then unzips them. “I’m gonna get on my knees now and let you decide if you want to finish in my mouth or finish what we started, okay?”
“So we’re done talking?” I ask when she kneels down in front of me and wraps her hand around my cock.
“For now,” she replies before her lips seal around the head of my shaft and suck.
“That…works for me,” I grit out as her head starts to bob, taking more of me into her wet mouth.
I let her keep that up until it’s nearly impossible to haul her off the floor and pin her back against the wall to pick up where we left off.
While I wish Lexi would’ve told me how she feels about me and what she wants, the sex is just as good as before, maybe better. We find our rhythm and our mouths connect in a hot and dirty kiss. The way she moves is fucking amazing. I try to bury myself as deep as possible, wanting to possess every inch of this woman.
When she screams my name while her pussy milks my cock for all it’s worth, I become certain that this is heaven on earth. Then, just before I set her feet back down on the ground, Lexi breathlessly whispers, “I love Liam…but you’re my favorite person in the world right now.”
