by Jennifer Ann
When he rises from behind the desk, I fear he’s coming around to knock sense into me. But he reaches out for my hand, helping me to stand, and wraps me in his smoke-smelling embrace. “I love ya, kid. Always have, always will.”
I soften with the words, but remain lifeless in his arms. “I’ll have to think about it.”
In reality, that’s bullshit. If he’s truly accepting me now, I’d love to have his support until I decide what to do next, but I can’t stay here without getting too attached to Colt and then I’ll want to stay.
I still have to go.
I pull back. “I’m going down to San Diego for a few days. It’s been too long since I’ve been to the ocean.” Another bold-faced lie, but not something I’m about to disclose to Remmy. “Kandi got me a phone, so if you give me your number I’ll give you call once I know where I’m settled.”
“Already got your number.” A wide smile against his lips brings deep creases around his eyes and familiar flutter to my heart. “I’ll be in touch.”
“Okay,” I say with a nod. “Thanks, Remmy.”
“I’m sorry for actin’ the way I did. I hope you understand.”
With another small nod, I exit the office. Apologies aren’t exactly something I know how to deal with, just like all the other emotions this place and the people in it have dredged up.
Small pangs of my bladder remind me I didn’t use the bathroom at Colt’s, so I sneak down the hallway to find the women’s bathroom exactly where I remember it.
I don’t make it all the way inside the small room before a familiar, muffled voice barks from the back door, “—don’t give a shit! Things have changed now that my sister’s back and hanging around the MC!”
Axel. Talking about me.
This should be good.
I enter the bathroom, leaving the door open just enough so I can still hear, but won’t be caught eavesdropping.
“What the fuck does that change?” a feminine voice asks.
“If Remmy forgives her and takes her back in, she’ll be so far up his ass he’ll go back to thinking he shouldn’t trust me because I know she doesn’t and I know she won’t sit back quietly if she suspects something! This whole thing could come crumbling down and we’d all be royally fucked!”
“Then convince Remmy that he can’t take her back in!” the woman answers. “I don’t care, just make it happen! Make shit up if you have to! Find a better way to send her to prison this time!”
I cover my mouth before a startled cry escapes.
My own brother set me up and sent me to prison for three fucking years?
“Motherfucker!” I hiss under my breath. Every fiber of my being wants to race out there and pummel him for even thinking such a thought. I even open the door wider, ready to make good on the idea.
But I stop. What would that accomplish? And what ‘thing’ is he worried about falling apart?
If I go out on my own, it’d be easy for my brother and whoever else he’s with to set me up. I should know because I was on my own the first time it happened. Now more than ever I need the help of the club. But how do I know who to trust and how can I stay around Colt any longer without falling in love?
Oh my god, I’m thinking about fucking love. What in the hell has gotten into me?
As if just thinking about it summoned him into existence, a disheveled Colt appears from the direction opposite my brother, eyes lit with worry and hair wild around his face. “Harley!” He rushes to me, cupping my face in his hands. “Shit, darlin’, you scared me to death when I couldn’t find you anywhere in the apartment! What are you doin’ here so early and why’s your stuff outside on your bike?”
Staring into the beautiful eyes that have staked their claim on my heart, I realize this is the moment I have to make a decision. A decision that will affect the rest of my life and maybe his.
Part II
Pleasure & Pain
9
As Colt waits for me to tell him why I’m hiding out in the hallway of the club with my belongings sitting on my bike outside, paranoia sweeps through me. There’s shuffling of movement out the back door where my estranged brother and whomever he’s talking with were conspiring to ruin my life by sending me back to prison. They could walk in any minute and realize I’ve been eavesdropping.
With blood draining from my face, I loop my arm through Colt’s, and head into the other direction. “This place reeks like a damn distillery. I need some air.”
In the main area of the clubhouse filled with passed out members, a few stir to life, Ranger among them. I continue on to the door, still dragging Colt along. Once it’s clear Axel isn’t joining us any time soon, I drag in a shaky breath. Who knows what would’ve happened if my brother discovered I was spying on him?
The sun has already risen outside, casting a warm glow over us as we stand in the parking lot. It does little to calm my nerves.
“I came to make peace with Remmy before I blow outta town for a few days,” I finally answer Colt.
His eyebrows lower. “Blow outta town? Where you goin’?”
“Figured I’d ride down to San Diego.” I shrug, trying to make light of it. “I have to clear my head before I can face my brother again.”
A small burst of anger lights his gaze. “You were plannin’ to leave without tellin’ me?”
“Why? You think you own me now just because we fucked? What do you want from me? It’s like not I’m your old lady.”
“Un-fuckin’-believable!” he snaps, pulling away. “You’re back to pretendin’ you don’t feel somethin’ between us? What was last night all about?”
And there it is, the confirmation I’ve been waiting for. The sex we had on the beach was intimate, and filled with his promises to take care of me. Colt and I are both well aware of this magnetic pull towards one another, and I have no idea what to do with it. Do I end it? Can I? All the more reason to get the hell out of town before this ‘thing’ between us takes on a life of its own and can’t be stopped.
Rolling my eyes like what he’s suggesting is ridiculous, I look away past the clubhouse into the barren hills in the distance. “Look. I’m not in the mood to fight. I just need a few days to myself.”
“Where ya plannin’ to stay?”
“None of your fuckin’ business,” I snap like a bitch, turning towards my bike.
Warm fingers wrap around my arm. “Doesn’t have to be like this, darlin’. Thought I made myself clear. I’m in this for the long haul.”
I melt a little with the memory of his continued declarations as I fell asleep in his burly arms. But Remmy’s threats to run me out if I stay too long remind me why I have to let Colt go. Building a relationship with him is not an option, nor is it advisable when my brother is up to something destructive. I have bigger things to worry about. Bigger than this hot biker who is becoming a pro at melting both my heart and underwear.
Barking with a cold laugh, I pry his fingers off my arm. “That was a completely one-sided decision. You can’t really expect me to commit myself to someone just days after I was released from prison. I’m not that kind of girl.”
“Not askin’ for a commitment,” he growls. “Least not yet. Just askin’ for you to let me help. Thought sleepin’ in my bed last night was your way of acceptin’.” He steps in closer, his beautiful eyes overflowing with warmth. “Do whatever you have to do, just don’t shut me out. Don’t push me away like this.”
Our intense stare-down is interrupted by Ranger stumbling from the clubhouse, strands of hair poking every which way from his bun, eyes squinting against the bright sun. “Thought you two went home last night.”
“Harley came to see Remmy,” Colt answers.
As a slow grin spreads across Ranger’s beautiful lips, I’m reminded with a shiver how amazing they felt against my mouth and skin. “Remmy’s talkin’ to you now?”
“Kinda,” I answer with a dismissive shrug. “Said he’d at least help me back on my feet.”
“Glad to
hear it.” Ranger rubs at his swollen eyes. “I’m headin’ home for the weekend. Need to nurse this fuckin’ hangover.”
“Harley here was tellin’ me she’s headin’ south for a few days,” Colt tells him, crossing his arms over his broad chest with a grin that stretches from ear to ear. “I was thinkin’ I could use a little sunshine myself, make sure she’s properly spoiled and given plenty of company. What about you? Up for a little surf and sand?”
My face burns hot with irritation. What part of “time by myself” does he not understand, and who said he could invite Ranger? Then again, the words “properly spoiled and given plenty of attention” could have serious benefits.
Eyebrows quirked, Ranger nods. “If I can get rid of this headache I wouldn’t mind catchin’ a few waves. Haven’t done much since my days in the Corps.”
Suddenly I’m unable to breathe. Just the thought of these two gorgeous men on surfboards makes me uncomfortably wet and eager. My mind wanders until I’m picturing them both naked, smelling like suntan lotion as they take turns kissing me with the salty taste of the ocean on their lips.
I guess it wouldn’t hurt to have someone along when Axel’s out to get me, and having Ranger along would help to relieve the weirdness between me and Colt.
“What do you say?” Colt asks, a knowing smirk on his lips. “Up for some company, darlin’?”
Beneath their twin blazing stares, I’m hardly able to contain myself, and suddenly I’m swimming in my own pool of desire. Holy. Shit. A trip away with these two hotties could easily be the death of me. “So long as you don’t mind buying me a bikini and a pair of flip flops, I guess it’d be okay.”
“You, in a bikini?” Ranger asks, his voice a higher octave. He tips his head back, chuckling. “I’m suddenly feelin’ a whole helluva lot better.”
“Me too,” Colt says, still staring at me with that maddening smirk.
Heart stuttering, something unfamiliar clicks into place deep down inside of me. Ranger, the club, the parking lot, they all disappear until it’s only me and the beautiful man with wavy brown hair and beautiful blue eyes standing two feet away, offering to take care of me.
Agreeing to this weekend is going to be akin to playing with a raging fire, and I don’t have the slightest idea how to put it out.
Three hours later, after we’ve done the necessary shopping and I’ve alerted my PO of the plans to be elsewhere within the state, the three of us park our bikes in front of a modest hotel on the beach in the heart of San Diego. When Colt asks the woman behind the front desk for two connecting rooms, my clit spasms delightfully.
God knows what he has planned for later that would require adjoining rooms.
The guys leave me alone to change in one of the rooms. As I join them on the beach in front of the hotel awhile later, it pays off that I purposely didn’t show them my purchases at the store. Each of their jaws drop when I appear in the tiny dark pieces of fabric that barely contain my nipples and show off every curve of my ass. Their shocked yet sexy looks are fucking priceless.
Fortunately I was born with my father’s olive skin tone, and always have a healthy glow despite not having properly laid out in the sun in years. I silently thank Kandi once again for taking me to get my toes and nails done, because I feel crazy feminine in this moment. Damn does it ever feel good.
Both men are swoon-worthy themselves as they lay on twin loungers a few feet apart beneath the cabana, toned legs stretched out in front of them. They’re collectively buff, tan, and tatt’d up, wearing long swim trunks with subtle designs. If their hair wasn’t beyond military length, they’d pass for a couple of local soldiers rather than a couple of retired MC members. I spend a drawn-out minute appreciating their beauty, trying desperately to swallow.
Finally I move forward to slip between them, perching on the cushion at Ranger’s side. The wind catches my dark hair, blowing the recent ombre of blonde tips over my face. Warm fingers move them away, and I’m met with dazzling blue eyes that look ready to ravage me right here in the open.
Oh boy. As a warm rush strikes between my legs, I’m unable to breathe.
Colt doesn’t remove his hand from my face when his eyes drag precariously across my body. “It seems you forgot to put somethin’ on. You need us to take you back inside, darlin’?”
The veiled offer surprises me considering the last time the three of us were together, Colt told me he wanted to make me ‘his.’ But maybe I was reading too much into it. Maybe I’m reading too much into all of his offers. After all, the president of the MC did order him to keep an eye on me. This is probably nothing more than a booty call to him.
“Better put some lotion on that body,” Ranger offers from my side, swiping the bottle off the table between the loungers. “I call her backside.”
I laugh, though it comes out as a strangled noise when I remember him calling the bottom as the three of us were about to get it on. Colt, still sitting beside me with his hand on my face, bends into me for a soft, slow kiss that sends shivers down to my toes. I can’t resist wrapping my fingers in his lush brown locks, or humming inside his mouth. The heavenly smells and tastes of the man combine to make the most inviting kind of drug.
Oh, the things his talented tongue and lovely lips can do to me.
My core is raked with spasms when it occurs to me that I could have more of the hottest sex of my life if I give in to these two irresistible men who are like man candy that I want to devour.
Breaking the kiss, Colt draws his lips over to my ear and whispers, “Hope you’re ready for round two, darlin’. We have somethin’ special in store.”
Lord help me. I just grew a ginormous lady boner thinking of all the possibilities of what they have up their sleeves… or rather their shorts.
I’m biting down to stifle a startled squawk when Ranger’s lotion-covered hands begin to rub the cool cream against my lower back. As they travel around to my stomach and his soft hair drapes across my bare skin, I have to grab onto Colt’s brawny arms to keep from falling off the chair.
Though it seems Ranger’s trying to control himself without touching anything that will make all of us lose our shit in public, his hands still feel sensual and bring back all the blinding sensations I felt with both sets of their hands pleasuring me in Colt’s bedroom.
“Better help get every inch of this beautiful skin, hoss,” Ranger tells Colt from behind me. “Poor girl probably hasn’t used lotion in a long time, and it seems to me this is gonna be a hot afternoon.”
I want to yell at him to stop with the tacky innuendos and make them take me back inside, but my throat is locked up and my lungs burn for release as I hold my breath. Colt’s chuckling quietly as he reaches for the bottle of lotion and slathers a healthy squirt in the palm of his hand.
Then his beautiful eyes are on me as he hesitates, as if waiting for my permission. “Probably best if you don’t move, darlin’. Would hate to get any in places where it might burn.”
An inferno ignites in my gut as his gentle hands begin to work on my tattooed arm. His intense eyes only leave me long enough to study the whimsical skull design as he covers it with lotion. “Great work. I know a killer artist if you’re lookin’ to get it finished.”
Still unable to speak, I only stare back at him. His hands move in slow, gentle strokes, but he may as well be holding a five foot torch to my skin the way the two men’s hands have started my entire body on fire. Once my arm is covered, he moves over to the other one. Ranger’s calloused hands finish covering my stomach before moving my hair over my shoulder, sending a thousand tingling shivers rippling down my spine.
As Ranger’s thumbs begin to press against my shoulders with a deep massage, I whimper and close my eyes, dropping my head. No one has touched me that way since college, and it feels so divine that I swear I won’t have the strength to walk ever again. Warm hands lift one of my feet into Colt’s lap before he goes to work on my calf muscle, kneading the flesh like it’s a ball of dough.
&
nbsp; Paralyzed by the wonderful caress of Ranger’s fingers working at my neck and shoulder muscles, I don’t have it in me to move my leg from Colt’s lap when he reaches the part of my knee that’s ticklish. I moan instead, extending my leg until it comes into contact with Colt’s very large, very strained hard-on.
Hot damn, I’m going to come undone right here on this beach.
Eyes flipping open, I tilt my chin up to meet Colt’s smoldering gaze. As his hands trail up to the inside of my thighs, he breaks out in a dimple-inducing grin. I don’t think either of them has lotion on their hands anymore, and I don’t give a shit. I’m already two seconds from wetting myself before Colt’s fingertips reach inside my bikini bottom the same moment Ranger’s fingers slide through the sides of my top.
The dual assault on my clit and peaked tits rips a deep gasp from my lungs. They each caress me in slow, deliberate strokes until I’m writhing against them and muttering both their names.
A tidal wave of desire sucks me under when Colt’s fingers sink into my wet flesh. The fact that we’re semi-exposed to onlookers, as the canopy only hides so much, doesn’t phase me when I lean back to shudder against Ranger’s hard chest, and release a long, guttural moan.
“Better move this inside, hoss,” Ranger says in a breathy voice, brushing his soft lips across my neck. “The ocean can wait.”
Colt grunts in agreement.
Strong arms flip me around and haul me into the air, setting me over Ranger’s thick shoulder. I squeal when he slaps my ass, but my heart stalls when I catch sight of Colt’s unrelenting stare.
God help me. Whatever they have planned for round two is going to rock my world.
