“Half an hour ago, dad. And I had an emergency situation to take care of,” I told him and shifted in my seat. The emergency situation was that Tank had his finger in my pussy, and was ravaging my body. But they didn’t need to know that. I felt a thrill run down my spine when I lied to my parents.
“And then you turn up here in these old tattered clothes. Noelle, we have an image to maintain,” mom continued with her same complaint and clucked her tongue menacingly as she took a sip of her wine.
I hated that they still treated me like a child. Even though I was twenty-six, my parents thought of me as though I was sixteen. I was about to retort a smart come back, but I knew it would only make the situation worse. I stared at the menu instead, hiding my face behind it as I read through the list of main-courses and desserts that I knew off by heart now. I was still excited, still thrilled. The fact that my parents had no idea what I had been doing half an hour ago made it even more exciting.
“These aren’t old clothes mom, they are brand new jeans,” I said and bit down on my lip. An image of Tank’s chiseled abs had floated up in my head, and I pressed my thighs close together.
“Whatever they are, Noelle, they aren’t appropriate attire for tonight. We were hoping to introduce you to Damien tonight,” she said, and I looked up over the menu at my parents. They were exchanging looks while I stared at them confusedly.
“Damien? Who is that?” I asked.
“Damien Robinson, you know, Louise and Stuart Robinson’s youngest. You’ve met them before,” dad explained, and I tried to think. I knew the Robinsons…Stuart Robinson had visited my dad’s home office a couple of times, and I had been introduced to him then. But I knew nothing about his children, and I definitely didn’t know of Damien.
“Why were you thinking of introducing me to this guy?” I asked them, and I could already feel my heart beginning to sink.
Mom and dad exchanged smiling looks again before they settled their gazes on me.
“Because we think it’s time. You’re twenty-six now darling, and it’s time that we started thinking about settling you down with a good man, from a good family,” mom’s voice had changed. She wasn’t angry about my clothes as much anymore, and instead, was trying to clue me in on their big plan.
I gulped. We had never discussed my marriage before. Let alone an arranged one by my parents. I thought they were aware of how happy I was in my situation. I hadn’t thought about my relationship status, and I was satisfied with work. And I had definitely not considered that it would be my parents who would be selecting a husband for me. I was foolish. What else could I have expected from them? They had selected and planned everything else in my life already.
I hadn’t even replied to them yet before dad started talking again.
“Once you settle down, Noelle, you wouldn’t have to work in that hospital anymore. You’ve had your experience as a working woman, you’ve done your bit for society,” dad said, and I wanted to bang my fists on the table. I wasn’t working as a nurse out of charity, it was my passion, it was the career I had chosen for myself. Instead, they saw it as some game.
“And Damien is a perfect boy. He is handsome, runs his own hedge fund like his father, and their family is very well connected,” dad continued, and I cleared my throat to speak. I didn’t know what I was going to say, but I knew I had to put a stop to this conversation so that I could have a chance to think.
My mind had been so occupied with Tank, that all this talk about Damien Robinson had caught me off guard.
“You’ll be perfect for each other, darling. When you meet him, you’ll know,” mom cut me off, and I gulped down my words. That thrill and happiness I had felt before had now dissipated. How could I ever explain to my parents that I did not want to be the perfect daughter that they wanted me to be? I wanted to find love, but that is something that I wanted to do on my own terms, not my parents. All I could think about now was how no man had seemed more attractive to me as Tank had. How was I ever going to explain that to my parents? My parents who had plans of setting me up with a country club hedge fund guy.
“Don’t look so nervous, darling. We won’t introduce you two tonight, not when you’re in these clothes. We’ll fix an appropriate date, when you’re better prepared to meet him,” mom added and she turned to dad and smiled.
The waiter came to us for our orders, and father ordered for all of us like he usually did. I didn’t even care or think about what he had ordered, because all I could think about was how cruel the universe was being to me today.
It was almost like it gave me a taste of the thrilling life of adventure I could have had…with a man like Tank…if I was a different girl. But then it was quick to remind me that I could never have that life because I wasn’t that girl. I had an image to maintain, I had parents to please…and I had a destiny to fulfill that my family had laid out for me. As much as I hated following their rules, I honestly didn’t know any other way. I had tried to fight them on their plan in the past, and they always managed to find a way to suck me back into their grip. I hated the thought of them being disappointed in me, and I would find myself giving in to them yet again.
“Noelle?” dad’s voice cut through my thoughts sharply, and I jerked my face around to look at him. I still felt like I was in a daze like I had no idea where I was or what I was doing. I felt like I was floating.
When I had been staring at him blankly for a few moments, he repeated himself.
“Aren’t you going to eat?” he said, and I looked down and found that the waiter had already placed a bowl of warm mackerel salad in front of me. I hadn’t even noticed.
“Yes, of course, sorry I was thinking of something else,” I said with flushing apology as I tried to eat what had been served to me. My parents would never understand why all I could think about was Tank and how he was capable of making me feel.
7
Tank
When I woke up the next day, I found Gunner sitting on a chair beside my bed.
“Brother!” Gunner got up and came over to thump my shoulder as I sat up.
“The nurses told me that you’re healing well,” Gunner said, and I nodded my head.
“I think so. I don’t feel any pain, but that could be because of all the pills I’m popping,” I said, and Gunner smiled and nodded his head.
“And Glock told me the official story you guys told the authorities,” he continued and I grunted a response. He went back and sat down on the chair, and I watched as he ran a hand through his hair.
“Axel sends his regards and wishes he could come,” he told me, and I nodded. I didn’t expect Aecel to be here, because he was the president of our MC and having him out and about in a public place like this could be dangerous, especially now that they Dragon Knights were starting to fight back. There would have to be additional security around him.
“How are the others? Was anyone else injured?” I asked, and Gunner shook his head.
“Only you got shot. That’s another reason why I’m here. I need your side of the story for Church. Axel wants your full report,” Gunner said, and I clenched my jaws as I tried to think. Even though my memory of that night had returned, I couldn’t be sure of all the details.
“Has Sniper given his account?” I asked, and Gunner nodded.
“Yeah, but Axel wants your version as well,” he said, and I ran a hand through my hair. It was long, and I hadn’t tied it up now, so it fell on my shoulders.
“We heard a bullet fire in the dark, it missed us, and we walked towards it. Then, two guys, I guess that were Dragon Knights, started firing full throttle and Sniper and I tried to take cover behind the wooden crates,” I related, and Gunner was watching me with narrowed eyes.
“Is that when you got shot?” he asked and tipped his head in the direction of the wound in my stomach.
“I guess so. I didn’t feel it then. I didn’t feel it till you pointed it out to me,” I told him, and Gunner took in a deep breath.
“Y
ou started shooting from behind the wooden crates?” he asked, and I clenched my jaw. I knew what Gunner was getting at. I should have stayed behind cover, but instead, I was putting my life in danger by getting up and shooting.
“I had to do something. I couldn’t just cower behind a crate like a pussy,” I snapped, and Gunner stood up from his chair and walked over to me again.
“I know why you did it, brother. Maybe I would have done the same. Our first instinct is to shoot. I’m just trying to establish the facts for Axel and Church,” he told me, holding my glare and I grunted and dropped my head back on the pillow.
“There were definitely two of them, but there could have been more,” I said, and Gunner pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
“Those mother fuckers ambushed us. How did we miss it?” Gunner was mumbling under his breath, while I stared up at the ceiling. Gunner was right. We were caught completely off guard by them. I hated that we weren’t more prepared. Sniper and I should have been making rounds through the warehouse, rather than shooting the shit smoking cigarettes. I felt like I let the Bad Disciples down.
“We underestimated them. That’s what happened,” I said through gritted teeth and Gunner reached out and placed a hand on my shoulder.
“You’re right brother, we did underestimate them, and they got us for that,” he said, and when I looked at him, I could see that his gaze had dimmed. “You could have been killed,” he added, and I took in a deep breath.
“They’re not going to kill me this easily,” I said, and even though I wasn’t smiling, Gunner did. Then he nodded his head and took his hand away from my shoulder.
“Yeah. Those mother fuckers can try as much as they want. We’ll get them the next fucking time,” he said, the smile still lingered on his face, and a magical sparkle had entered his eyes. I smiled back at him. My thoughts shifted back to that night to see if there was something I missed. I felt my blood drain from my face when I remembered about the shipment from the Fallen Idols. The guys were unloading it, while Sniper and I were taking the heat from the Dragon Knights.
“Is the shipment secure?”
Gunner smiled brightly and nodded. “We had everything in crates and put away by the time the shootout happened. The police sirens must have scared them off, so they weren’t able to take anything. Axel had a team pick it up and move it to another location yesterday, so if the fuckers come back, they will find nothing but empty boxes.” I let out a slight sigh of relief. At least our shipment was safe.
“We need to retaliate. We need to get them first,” I said quickly, and Gunner was looking at me again.
“You mean we need to ambush them?” he asked, and I nodded, as I straightened myself on the bed.
“You need to speak to Axel, and you need to convince him that we need to retaliate, as quickly as possible,” I continued and Gunner was slowly nodding his head.
“Okay, yes, you’re right. We need to nip this in the bud,” he agreed.
“Just give me a few days. I’m going to be discharged from this place soon, and when I’m out, we need to plan something fast,” I said.
“Yeah, we can’t let the Dragon Knights think that they got away with this,” he growled under his breath, just as the door of my hospital room opened and Noelle stepped in.
Her eyes fell on Gunner and me immediately, and she looked startled for a moment.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had visitors,” she said, and Gunner turned to her. I could see him scanning her body, till his eyes fell on her name tag. A look of realization seemed to enter his eyes, and I had a feeling that Glock had told him about Noelle and the way I’d been staring at her.
“No worries nurse, come in come in,” Gunner was beaming at her now, as she nervously tucked some hair behind her ears.
I could feel my body physically reacting to her presence in the room, as she walked over and looked at my charts. Gunner and I were both staring at her.
“I’ve been asked to help you get up and walk and stretch your legs a little,” she looked up at me suddenly, her blue eyes were wide with embarrassment and a determination to do her job at the same time.
“I’ll leave you two alone. This is my cue. Take care of yourself, brother,” Gunner was quick to move, and I didn’t even bother looking at or responding to him. I had eyes for only one thing in the room, and we were finally alone again.
Noelle placed a hand on my arm, as I swung my legs off the bed and stood up. Even though I had stood up to go to the bathroom since I got shot, it was still a struggle each time.
“Don’t be alarmed if you’re a little unsteady on your feet at first,” she said to me. Noelle had refused to meet my eyes yet, but that didn’t mean that I could stop staring at her. She was in her scrubs again, and her hair was tied up in a bun today. I knew what her pussy felt like, how tight she was, how naive she was too. Everything about her made me want to explode into pieces.
I stood up, and I could feel a sudden numbness in my ankles for the first few moments, but that quickly went away. Noelle didn’t let go of my arm as I straightened up and took my first step.
“That’s good, that’s very good,” she said, and I took a second step. I wasn’t in pain, it was just a sudden tiredness that had taken over my body.
“The more you exercise those muscles, the better you’ll feel,” she said and looked up at me. Our eyes finally met. Hers were dark blue and stormy, and I clenched my jaw to drive away the desire to pick her up and take her on my hospital bed. She had no idea how desperate I was for her. She thought she had taken advantage of me in some way.
Just as I was about to say something, she looked away from me. With one hand still on my arm, she used her other to open the door.
“Let's go for a walk down the corridor?” she asked, throwing me a forced nervous smile. I grunted and walked out of the room slowly. She was right, the strength in my legs was returning quickly. Even though I could feel a numbness and a tugging sensation in my stomach, my legs had started to work just fine.
With Noelle right beside me, I took slow steps into the corridor. I knew I should have been focusing more on the walking aspect of this exercise, but with Noelle there right beside me, it is hard to concentrate on anything other than her.
I could smell her, she touched my arm from time to time, I noticed the way her scrubs stretched over those enormous breasts that I hadn’t seen yet. She was driving me crazy.
We had walked a few feet down the corridor, which was relatively empty. With each step, my body started to feel like itself again. A few nurses had walked past us, all of whom had smiled at Noelle when they crossed her.
I stopped abruptly in my tracks, and Noelle turned to me with concern in her eyes.
“What’s wrong? Are you in pain?” she asked, and I stared at her. She was searching my eyes for an answer, and I was trying to think of what to say.
“I can’t do this,” I grunted, and she placed her hand on my arm again.
“Okay, you don’t need to push yourself. You’re getting much stronger, Tank, you don’t have to lose heart,” she said, in a soft, kindly voice but I clenched my jaw.
“I’m not talking about this walking thing. This is stupid. I can jog down the corridor now if I want to. I’m talking about you and me. I can’t pretend like nothing happened,” I said through gritted teeth, and Noelle drew away from me. Her eyes darted around her, and I knew she was checking that no one overheard our conversation.
“What happened was a mistake, and I apologized to you for it,” she said. I leaned towards her, bringing my mouth close to her ears.
“I don’t want an apology. I want more,” I said in a low gruff voice, and I could sense Noelle’s muscles stiffening in response. When I drew away from her and looked into her eyes, she looked like she wanted me just as badly, but something was stopping her. I watched as she licked her lips, then looked about us, to check who was watching.
I couldn’t control myself any longer. This was ridiculo
us. We were both obviously attracted to one another. Why couldn’t I just have Noelle if I wanted her?
I grabbed her wrist and pushed a door open behind us and pulled her in. It seemed to be a supply closet. Small and dark and filled with cardboard boxes and shelves.
“What are you doing? Tank!” she hissed as I shut the door behind her. She had pinned herself to the door, and I lunged at her, cornering her in front of me with my arms on her sides. She seemed to push her body back into the door as she stared back at me. I brought my face close to her, my cock throbbing angrily in my pants. My breath fell on her face, shaking her loose strands of dark brown hair.
“I’ll let you go right now if you don’t want this,” I said in a low voice. Noelle was looking into my eyes, while I stared hungrily at her lips, then at the way her breasts were heaving up and down.
She brought her face up to me, latching her lips on to mine and cutting off my breathing. I hadn’t expected her to do it and when she did, I thrust my tongue deep into her mouth, and she gasped.
My hands slipped under her scrubs and the t-shirt she was wearing underneath, and I pinched her waist, her soft buttery pale skin as I kissed her. Her bun came undone, and her hair fell around her shoulders as I pressed my body into her, pushing her hard into the door.
Our lips smacked when I pulled my mouth away from her and stared into her eyes. She stared back, her breathing harsh and her body quivering.
“And don’t you ever fucking apologize to me again,” I growled, and a soft smile tugged the corners of her mouth.
“I want to make you feel good,” she said, still panting and I stepped away from her. Those were the sweetest words she had said, and my cock responded happily.
I tugged down my cotton track pants, and they fell to my ankles and Noelle seemed to gasp when she looked at my cock for the first time.
Tank (The Bad Disciples MC Book 3) Page 4
