There’s not a damn thing I can say right now that could change anything. She seems to feel the same way when she snuggles tighter against me, seeking the comfort that we both need at this moment. I never knew I could have these strong feelings slicing through my heart. It hurts for what she went through and yet it beats more fiercely because of the fact that she’s mine to show her all the good things life has to offer from now on.
I tighten my arms. “Your world will become a little less fucked up, sweetness…because you’ve got me standing right the fuck beside you every step of the way, killing everyone who fucking dares to hurt you in any way.”
Her head pulls back. “That sounds like it just got a little more fucked up, and yet it sounds more perfect than it could ever be.” A smile hits her face that could light up the whole damn room.
“Fuck, yeah,” I growl before I kiss her gently, giving her a hint of how I intend to cherish her.
CHAPTER EIGHT
***Anouk***
“Are you sure about this?” I ask and watch how Ronin pulls on the couch.
He glances back at me with a fierce look on his face. Yeah, I clearly shouldn’t have asked that question. He’s about to leave for a meeting with his guys and wants me to get some sleep. He insists on making a bed from the couch, although I’ve told him that I could just lay down on the couch.
“I bought the damn thing so when needed it could be transformed into one hell of a huge bed. But I never used it, so I don’t know how the fuck to do this. I remember it was just a twist of a hand, a button, or a handle, fuck. I threw out the damn instructions, okay?” A frustrated sigh rips from his throat before he kicks the couch.
“So you never sleep on a bed?” I question.
He turns to face me and gives a rough shake with his head. “This is my room where I never bring anyone and mostly just crash, watch TV, and fall asleep in any pose I’m in.”
I must have a look on my face that resembles my thoughts, because that’s just…
“Hard to believe? Nah, sweetness. When you’re the Prez of an MC, there isn’t much alone time, lots of shit to deal with. And if you’re wondering about fucking a chick on a bed, we have special rooms for that. Because none of us wants to have a woman in our private room where we need our own space. Don’t want that shit tainted with anything.” He gives me a wink before he plants a quick kiss on my lips.
“But you brought me to your room,” I wonder out loud.
Ronin gives a firm nod. “That’s right. I knew you were mine, even before you flashed me that fine cunt in an offer to tempt me.”
“What?” I gasp. “I flashed you?” I asked mortified and wonder when the hell that could have happened.
“Sure did. But don’t worry, sweetness…you can flash me any time you want,” he tells me with laughter in his voice before it turns fierce. “But never when others are fucking looking, because that tight cunt is mine.”
“Christ,” I mutter. “No worries there, I’m not flashing anyone ever again. Dammit, the one time I flash someone and I have no recollection whatsoever.”
Ronin’s laughter booms through the room. I’m annoyed and yet somehow I’m not because he’s totally sweet in his weird possessive way. I shove him aside and slide my hand in between the couch…looking for some kind of…ah, there it is.
“I knew that was there all along,” Ronin mutters.
Yeah, right. I might not say that out loud, but I’m wearing a look that speaks volumes before he snatches the couch’s remote from my hand. Within seconds there’s movement and the couch turns into a large bed. Ronin walks away and returns with a bedspread in his hands.
“Go on, get some shuteye while I handle some things. It might take a while before I’m back. First, me and my brothers will talk things through, but then we’ll be going out on a hunt. I ain’t waiting for that fucker, or any of his other goons, to show up on my doorstep. He’s going down right the fuck now. So you go on and get some sleep, while I handle this shit, okay?” He’s about to leave when I grab his forearm.
“Be careful. Lars Vorth is a drug lord. At least that’s what they called him…my stepbrother, stepfather, and my mother had a huge debt with this guy. They let it build up…Lars gave them one final chance to make it up to him sell a stash of coke to bring in the money. But the three of them snorted some of it themselves, as usual, so they were short on the money that had to be delivered again. That’s when they came up with trading me to Lars. Except…I dunno…I think my mom couldn’t do it in the end and grabbed the last bit of cash they made and gave it to me, so I could leave and make something of my life.” I shake my head. “If I would have known all the things I know now. If I knew where the money came from…how could I have been so stupid?” I sigh before I give him a stern look. “Just be careful, okay?”
“Are you worried about me, sweetheart?” Shit. That look on his face, it’s as if I just gave him something that no one has ever given him.
I swallow before I croak. “Just hurry back. Because you mentioned something about a bucket list and I might have to add a few things of my own on there, so you better not die on me too.”
His chuckle warms my heart. Ronin pulls me against him as he kneads my ass. His hard length is pressing in-between us. He takes my mouth in a rough kiss where he pushes his tongue inside, dominating, showing me just how hungry he is. For me. The way his other hand strokes my back and slides up to my breasts, he consumes me with everything he does, making me feel alive, adored, and so much more I can’t wait to explore further.
“Gotta go,” he groans. “I need to leave now because I want to fuck you properly and I can’t right now. Because once I start, knowing how good you are, I might need a few days to take you in every hole and cover every inch of your skin with my cum.”
“Wow,” I breathe. Just the mere thought has my whole body tinkling with anticipation.
“Yeah.” He nips my bottom lip. “First thing I’ll do when I get back is hold these damn fine tits of yours and slide my cock in-between them. Can’t wait to watch your face when you see me fuck them before I fist my cock and cum all over them. Might even aim for those strawberry lips of yours so you get a taste for when my cock hits the back of your throat.”
Oh, shit. I rub my legs together. “Promises, promises,” I mutter.
His eyes were heated before, but now they are flaming. He grabs my jaw in a tight lock. “No fucking promises, that’s a vow, sweetness.”
His words hold so much strength that my whole body swoons for this man. Ronin kisses me hard before he leaves the room, leaving me achy and longing for him to return to me. Reluctantly, I grab the remote and flip through some channels. For the first time in years, I feel safe and treasured. It doesn’t take long before I fall asleep.
CHAPTER NINE
***Ronin***
“Fucking hell, she’d better be worth it and pull through when she’s tested, Prez. This was a close call, dammit.” My VP throws out his words for the very reason he’s called Bark. Always barking out his damn words.
I shove Lars Vorth off me. Bark isn’t joking about the close call. I push myself to my feet and check out the left side of my body, just below my ribs. Yeah, the fucker grazed me with a bullet. I twisted just in time so it didn’t end up in my gut. The two bullets I fired at him ended up in his heart.
“What would you have done differently, Bark?” I ask and tuck away my gun. We’re the only two standing in Lars’ office.
When we were in church we discussed attack plans. Something we always do; talk through each suggestion and sharpen every angle until we have one solid plan. Except this time we didn’t have one, we had two. And not so much a backup plan either. We basically went with my brothers going for the house and the guards, while Bark and I went for the drug lord himself. Bark had sent out two of our guys earlier to scout out that fucker’s place so we knew what we’d be getting ourselves into. That, and the details of a rough count of bodies the fucker had walking around.
&nb
sp; “Nothing,” Bark tells me. “Absolutely nothing, shit went smooth. But I fucking hate it when I get blood all over my necklace.”
See? What did I tell ya? All bark when there’s nothing to yap about.
“Pussy.” I snort. “But yeah, my Old Lady is more than fucking worth it. She doesn’t judge or back down for anything, she’s right there with me every step of the fucking way. You know she never so much as mentioned my damn scars? Or looked at me differently because of it? Every bitch I’ve met has a mixture of disgust and fear when they look at me, but her? Not one fucking time. So believe me when I say you’d want one of those for yourself.”
He gives me a glare while he rubs his necklace. It was a below the belt remark, because I know he longs for an Old Lady. The necklace he’s fussing about? It’s a wedding ring he keeps safely hidden underneath his clothes. It belonged to his grandmother, special meanings and all. His shirt is soaked in blood so is his chest underneath, and the ring, everything is painted red. Bark likes his knives and up close fighting. So that’s his own damn fault if he’s covered in that shit.
“Come on. I have better stuff to do than stand around here. Let’s light this place up and head on back,” I tell Bark and walk out.
We all watch the large mansion that belonged to Lars Vorth being eaten by flames as we walk the half mile to where we stashed our bikes. It takes about two hours to drive back to the clubhouse. We’ve been gone for most of the night, and I’m not sure if my Old Lady will be awake or still sleeping. Depending if she’s a morning person or not.
It’s almost seven a.m. when I step foot inside the clubhouse. In the back, I spot my woman sitting at the bar with three whores surrounding her. A prospect is behind the bar, his eyes wide. What the hell are they discussing?
I’ve left Romeo behind. He was told to keep an eye on her when she got up, or if she needed anything. He’s standing close and I can see his hands are fisting at his sides. I take long strides and feel Bark right behind me.
“Oh, bitch, please. Say it again and put some more venom in there to strike your mark more thoroughly, will you? Or bite your fucking lip, because your aim is off. I don’t care if you’re a whore. I don’t judge or badmouth anyone for who, or what they are, or how the hell they look. But you? You’re a snake to badmouth the President’s Old Lady in her own clubhouse, that right there can only lead to self-destruction.” Anouk leans forward, into the whore’s face. “With these two standing there, ears all flapping…what exactly do you think is going to happen? Me running away crying because you think my ass is too big? Or you landing on that nasty ass of yours when you’re being thrown out? Or he might just kill you, whatever.”
The whore, Kat, gasps. “They would never.”
“Yes, they would,” the other whore, Lola, cuts Kat off in a sing-song voice.
Kat turns to face Lola. “Shut it. You were rambling about it too, sayin’ how we either need to ditch the pig, or become one ourselves. Because that’s clearly what’s needed for other parts of these hot bikers’ bodies, besides their dicks, to stand to attention.”
I’ve heard e-fucking-nough and I’m ready to snap a few heads when I hear Bark’s voice. “Romeo, grab the whores and throw them out on their ass. I want them gone, off the damn premises right the fuck now, or I will skin them alive and nail them to the wall for every other bitch to see what we do to people who threaten woman we respect around here.”
Pride hits my chest. That’s my VP, handling shit the way I like. Anouk turns at the hard sound of Bark’s voice and jumps up and heads straight for me. She presses herself flush against my body as I hiss through my teeth. She pulls back and sees my shirt and gasps at the blood she didn’t notice before she launched herself at me.
I drag her back against my body. “Not all mine, sweetness. Most of it is the dead guy’s who will never bother you again. The fucker did graze my left side though, just a little flesh wound, that’s all.”
I feel her damn nipples saluting me through our fabrics. She’s still wearing my shirt and although I love to see her in it, we need to head out and do some serious shopping. First though, I need to handle other stuff before we can get to that.
“I’m going to go shower, clean up that wound, have some coffee, and then we’ll head out to get you some new clothes and shit, yeah?”
She mumbles her agreement to my chest, but doesn’t let go.
“Come on, sweetness.” I reluctantly pull her away. “Make me a cup of coffee, and I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
She presses her lips to mine. “Okay, I’ll be right here.”
“Damn right you’ll be.” I smack her ass and stalk to my room, a feeling of righteousness in my gut, knowing the future looks brighter than it ever has with her right there with me.
CHAPTER TEN
Three months later
***Anouk***
“Remind me again why I’m wearing this?” I sigh and look at Romeo, who’s standing close to the door, ready to make a run for it.
Who can blame him? Not that I’ve been nice to him, I’ve been biting his head off all morning.
“Because you loooove him,” he tells me in a very feminine singing tone before it turns into the rough rumble of his own. “and you wanted to please him so you’re wearing a pristine white, all lace sleeves, open back, layered ball gown. Might I add you are torturing him right back? Demanding that penguin suit? Thank fuck you guys didn’t force us to wear suits, confetti spray the damn clubhouse with flowers, or anything because…”
I know I asked for his opinion, but he doesn’t need to be a whiny ass about it. “Oh, shut up. I already told him last night that I wanted him to lose the jacket and just put his cut over the white dress shirt. I even demanded he left some buttons open at the top.”
Now Romeo’s rolling his eyes. “Sure, get him to give you the perfect eye candy vision so you can drool in front of a pastor, nice thinking.”
I rub my fingers against my temples. “I really hope you get an Old Lady one day that will torment you every second of your freaking life. One who loves fluffy dogs and paints your house purple and wraps your dick in a pink bow and sprinkles you with glitter or something.”
“Everything sounds pretty normal for a chick to want, except for the glitter shit. That’s just not right.” Romeo shivers. “I hate fucking glitter, sticks to everything. My cock will be wearing shiny sparkles for decades.”
“That’s it, I need to get out of here,” I snap. I can’t take it anymore.
Romeo chuckles. “Getting cold feet?”
“Cold feet? Suck it, weird one! Or I’ll find a can of glitter and spray you from top to bottom. I need to get married, as in right now.” Just as I’m about to swing the door open, there’s a knock.
Bark is startled when I pull it open, his hand still in the process of knocking. “Uhmmm, you’re up, sunshine. Time to march down the aisle, or so to speak.”
“Thank fuck,” I growl and practically run down the hall.
Bark chuckles. “That big of a rush to get it over with, huh?”
I spin around and poke him in the chest. “Yes, you can say I’m in a rush, mostly to get away from the weirdo over there.” I point a finger over Bark’s shoulder at Romeo. “But mostly because I want my man. When you’ve had a twisted background it’s hard to lay your faith in the hands of others. Yet everything Ronin has done, said, and shown me, from the very first day we met up until right this very second? I am so freaking honored to become his wife in the eyes of the law, even if it’s just some vows and a signature on a piece of paper. The title of his Old Lady holds more meaning, but somehow this is a finishing touch.”
“Yeah, can you stop talking and start walking? That’s too emotional for me.” Bark reaches for his necklace and shakes his head. “Go on, sunshine, your Old Man is just as impatiently waiting for you.”
When I round the corner, I see Ronin standing there, surrounded by every biker of Lost Valkyries MC. I know there’s supposed to be all flowers, music, a
nd slow steps…a father guiding his daughter toward the altar stuff. But like how everything in life is, you give it a personal touch, shit that means something to you and make it count. For me what counts is the man who’s standing there, wanting to marry me. Me. And even demanded I had a white gown with lace and diamond earrings and a freaking pearl necklace.
I throw my flowers over my shoulder, hearing Romeo curse behind me, so I can lift the front of my dress with two hands and run to Ronin. He takes me into his arms and pulls me close.
“No, no, no. Don’t kiss yet,” the pastor tells us, making everyone laugh.
We turn and face the pastor who nods toward Ronin. “Ronin, you mentioned you wanted to say a few words first.”
He nods and turns to me. “Unspoken, unknown, unbelievable, and unique. From the moment we met, the ride has been one I’ve been waiting for my whole life. I never knew this could happen. Something I thought wasn’t in the cards for me, especially with the background I have. There’s one thing you never mentioned, never asked. So I decided to bring it up myself to let you know the history behind the outer visual along with it.”
I reach up, a lump in my throat and a lone tear sliding down my cheek because I know what he’s talking about. It never mattered to me, so why ask? My fingertips trail a path from his eyebrow to his chin on the left side of his face. Three scars. The skin shows it’s been healed for years and years. But something like that, in plain sight, on his face? That’s something that runs deep and is very personal. I, for one, know deep down not to judge on outer appearances alone.
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