by Crimson Syn
She giggled once again and swatted his arm. She fucking swatted his arm! Like a fucking schoolgirl! I didn’t know what to do. I just stared at them as they disappeared down the stairs. I didn’t know whether I should punch a wall, wait up for her, or just damn well follow them. Instead I grabbed my jacket and headed out. The wind had picked up and a cool breeze ran through the streets.
My bike was parked out back, and although I was supposed to report my whereabouts to Cain, I didn’t feel like it. I wanted to go for a ride and clear my head. Seeing Ciara with Diesel had put me in a foul mood. Who the fuck did she think she was, flaunting herself around like that. Especially with Diesel! Mother fucker had another thing coming.
I climbed on my bike and revved it up. Just as I was pulling away, Cain appeared. “Where are you going?”
“Away.”
“You’re supposed to report yourself.”
“Fuck, bro. Just let me go.”
Cain shook his head. “Tell me where you’re going and I’ll let you go?”
I pulled my helmet off and stared at him. “We’re not kids, I don’t have to tell you everything I do.”
Cain frowned at me. “I don’t give a shit how old you are, you’re still my kid brother, so where are you going??”
I sighed. “I’m going for a ride. Just a short one, I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Where’s Ciara?”
“Out with Diesel,” I snarled.
“Really? Didn’t expect he’d take her out.” Cain raised an eyebrow and chuckled knowingly. “I swear, if Mom could see her boys now.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Cain shrugged. “I mean, I can honestly tell you I’m in love, but you...shit, bro. I thought it would never happen.”
“I’m not in love!” I gritted my teeth.
Cain smirked. “Yeah, okay. Keep telling yourself that, just make sure you’re back in an hour, after you’re done crying over what you’re not man enough to get.”
Not man enough. Who the fuck does he think he is. If I wanted her, I’d have her begging for my cock in no time.
Angrily, I pulled my helmet back on and revved my bike- the roar of the engine bringing with it a sense of peace. As I pulled out of Ravenous and headed towards the highway I focused on the road and the open air. Cain’s comment had pissed me off.
Me. In love. Hah!
I didn’t fall in love. I didn’t believe in it. Nothing in my life had ever pointed to love being nothing other than heartache. When I was five, my mother got up and left us. Didn’t say goodbye, didn’t leave a note. We never did find her, even though our Dad had everyone, even the Church looking for her. I saw how it affected him, how it destroyed him. He spent his last few years drinking himself to death. After that, I watched Cain’s marriage dissolve, and was a witness to my own brother’s disastrous downfall.
Being surrounded by all this desperation, I knew I didn’t want any part of it. Instead I focused on getting my degree and joining the Army. Last year I had finally completed my tenure and returned to help Cain get his life back together and set up his tattoo parlor. At one point, he mentioned to Wolf that I was good with numbers and Wolf immediately welcomed me into the Hell’s Lovers. I loved my life. I got good money running the Hell’s Lovers treasury, I even continued to use my Military training by being Cain’s backup every now and then. Everyone knew me, and everyone knew if you didn’t pay up you answered to me. Being feared was a good reputation to have and I liked it that way.
Except, now there was Ciara Morton. She was the only one who has ever been able to fuck with my head. The men in my family fell hard for their women, and I refused to be one of them. I hated feeling weak, and she was definitely a weakness. I just needed to stay far away from her pretty eyes and hypnotic curves and I’d be perfectly fine. Back to normal in no time.
I let the night air calm me down. I hadn’t noticed anyone following me, and the roads were actually really dark and oddly empty for nine o’clock. Everything seemed fine until I turned at the light. Out of nowhere, a pair of high beams blurred my vision, and the next thing I knew, I was flying off my bike and skidding down the street. I felt the impact before I even registered what was happening.
I heard the screech of tires and then a lot of yelling. I heard somebody say I was dead, and another voice asked them to make sure. I felt a pair of hands on me as they lifted me and carried me somewhere. I heard someone say that maybe they should put me out of my misery and get it over with. My brain yelled out danger and I was struggling to come to, but darkness quickly overtook me.
I woke up a while later, my whole body was screaming in pain. But pain was good, it meant I was alive. I managed to pull off my helmet and let my eyes adjust to the streetlight. I forced myself to sit up. My head was pounding and my legs and lower back were killing me. I was dragged and left on the side of road, my bike still lay in the middle of the street. I looked around, but I was completely alone. I got up slowly, grateful that I was able to move, stretched my back out and picked up my helmet. I was feeling slightly dizzy from the impact and I held on the light post to stead myself. I dragged myself to my bike and using the last bit of energy I had, I propped it up and started rolling it down the street. About a quarter of a mile up, I paused knowing I wouldn’t be able to make it. I parked it on the side of the road and pulled out my phone. I dialed out to Knox who answered on the second ring.
“I hope you’re calling me to finally tell me you’re getting some pussy, man? At least tell me you got some extra on the side reserved for me.”
“Knox I need a lift, brother.”
“What’s up?”
“Had an accident. I’m near the boathouse by the pier. Think you could pick me up?”
“What the fuck are you doing out there by yourself? Aren’t you supposed to be guarding the babysitter?”
I grimaced. “Dude, just come pick me up.”
“Too bad you weren’t getting some pussy. You wouldn’t be in this mess if you were.”
“It’s because of pussy that I’m in this mess. The wrong kind, ya know?”
Knox chuckled. “Be there in fifteen.”
Fifteen minutes later, Knox appeared with his truck. We were both staring down at my Harley. The custom chrome muffler was scratched up, the gas tank was busted and the metal plates were ruined.
“Fuck man, what happened?”
“Car hit me.”
“What?”
“Where the fuck is the car?”
I grimaced as pain shot down my back. “Hit and run.”
Knox stared at me. “Did you get the license plate?”
I shook my head. “I was out cold. When I came to, the car was gone and I was thrown on the side of the road.”
Knox shook his head. “What the fuck? Are you alright?”
“I’m as good as can be. No broken bones.”
“Fuck man, if you would’ve told me I would’ve told Cain and D.”
“They don’t need to know, man. It was stupid.”
“Yeah well, I’m still letting Cain know. That shit doesn’t go with me. Whoever did this left you for dead, man.”
I shrugged, but I knew he was right. The car had his bright lights on and although my memory was hazy, I did remember that he was heading right for me. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he was even aiming at me.
“I’m calling D.”
“No! Don’t man, it’s alright.”
“Brother, I need someone to take a look at what happened here. I’m calling this in.”
Half an hour later, Diesel pulled up with Cain. They both listened as Knox explained what had happened and then they turned to me.
“Didn’t I tell you not to go out by yourself?” Cain shook his head.
“Hit and run my ass. That shit doesn’t go with me.” Diesel walked down the street assessing each corner.
“Which way did they come from?”
“They were heading up the street and I was turning rig
ht.”
“So you mean to tell me they had to cross the road to hit you?”
I stared at Diesel and then at Cain. “When you put it that way...”
“That sounds like they were making you a mark,” he scowled. “Did they say anything?”
I closed my eyes, trying to remember what had happened, but it was all a blurred mess. “They were arguing. One of them asked if I was dead. Then I felt them carry me, after that I can’t remember shit.”
Cain looked at the road and then at Diesel. “Get Wolf and Gray down here to look at this.”
“Come on man. I just want to go home.” I sighed, my body was aching and I just wanted a hot shower and a warm bed.
I watched as Diesel walked down the street, assessing the lights and cameras on every store or street corner. I knew he was going to send the info to Riggs so he could start hacking away at the video feed. I knew they were thinking this was a direct attack on one of the Hell’s Lovers members and I hated that I had been the dumbass to let my guard down.
By the time Wolf arrived I was already well on my way to exhaustion.
“Take him home, Knox. Make sure he gets there safely.” Wolf helped me up and patted my back. “If this was done on purpose, I swear I’m not going to leave it alone until I bring every one of those bastards down.”
Wolf didn’t threaten lightly. “No worries, brother.”
An hour later I was back at Ravenous in one of the velvet rooms. At least I wasn’t sleeping on the couch tonight. God, how I missed the boathouse. My Dad left it to us when he passed away, but Cain had left it to me when he married his first wife. He’d been living at Grayson’s with Sophia, so the boathouse remained mine. It was a small home, just two bedrooms, a few miles up from the central pier, and I desperately wanted to head back. Unfortunately, I was stuck here indefinitely.
I took a quick shower letting the hot water run down my sore muscles. Hopping up on the bed, I went straight to looking at the cameras in Wolf’s apartment. All was quiet and I didn’t see any movement which meant everyone was asleep. I had called Riggs and made sure he’d guard Ryder and Ciara until Wolf got home, but unlike me, Riggs had Luna to head home to.
I was about to shut the computer down when I noticed movement in the kitchen. I held still as I tried to make out the form, but then the refrigerator door opened and I gawked at the camera. Ciara was standing facing the fridge, wearing a tank top and the sexiest pair of boy shorts I’d ever seen. Her plump ass was pointed towards the camera, and as my eyes remained trained on the screen, she bent over and my cock went into overdrive. She stood up slowly, almost like she knew I was watching her. When she turned I swore my cock was going to explode. Her luscious curves were silhouetted by the light of the refrigerator, even the tight little pebbles on her chest were outlined against the light. As I was taking in her body, she shut the fridge door and the light suddenly went out. I stared at the dark screen for a second, and then blinked. I grabbed the screen and growled. I wanted more. I wanted her to show me everything. Angrily, I slammed the laptop shut. Damn woman had me on a serious edge and I was going to fucking lose it. Sighing, I laid back on the bed. I closed my eyes, and as exhaustion took me over, my last thought was of her pretty green eyes looking up at me.
Chapter Two
CIARA
I had to admit that going out with Diesel last night was nice, but it had been a little awkward. He’d been a complete gentleman, but he had kept quiet most of the night. I could tell his mind was somewhere else and he had looked almost uncomfortable around me. Gratefully, the evening was cut short by an emergency phone call from Knox. According to Diesel’s vague explanation, Seth had gotten hit by a car. I felt like the air was literally sucked out of me from the news, and as soon as he hung up, he brought me back to Ravenous with the promise of ending our date properly another time. But, as much as I enjoyed my time with Diesel, my mind was on Seth. Concern had swept through me all evening, and I couldn’t sleep wondering if he was alright.
As the hours ticked by I realized Seth wasn’t going to show up and that I was stuck with Riggs all day sitting on the couch and watching Netflix. I hadn’t even heard from Seth, and I wasn’t comfortable enough with Riggs to ask about him. I figured I’d just have to wait to find out.
As I put Ryder down to sleep, I figured I’d make something to eat. I heard noises in the hallway and sure enough, I walked in on Scarlett and Wolf in the kitchen. Well, more like Wolf on Scarlett, but that was nothing new. Scarlett pushed away from her husband giving him an I told you so glare, before turning back to me.
“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to...”
“It’s alright hun, what’s up?”
“I was wondering if I could go downstairs for a while? Ryder’s down for the night and you’re both here, so...”
Scarlet smiled. “Are you sure you want to go downstairs?”
I shrugged. “I’m gonna be honest here. I think I need to go downstairs.”
Wolf tried to hide a chuckle and Scarlett blushed. She closed her eyes and sighed. “Fine, just make sure Seth is with you.”
“Seth is back?”
“Oh yeah, we gave him the day off but he’s down there somewhere. Don’t be shocked if you see him with a girl on his lap. He’s quite popular with the ladies.”
I could feel myself blush and a twinge of jealousy suddenly reared its ugly head. “Good to know,” I murmured.
I jetted out of the apartment, leaving Wolf to take care of his wife. One more bout of hearing Scarlett screaming his name was literally going to drive me crazy. I was glad that Rahyne and Grayson lived a few streets over. I didn’t think I could handle all the sex every night. Slowly, I made my way down into Ravenous. I could hear the music pumping in the stairwell. The club was right at its peak hour, members were laughing, drinking and of course, enjoying Jade and Lucy who were giving them one hell of a show. I looked down at my watch and realized it was only half past ten. I had never actually been in Ravenous. Mostly because it was raunchy as hell, but also because I had honestly never had the urge to stop into the club before, at least not one quite like Ravenous.
I made my way across the tables, avoiding men’s leering glances. I brushed my hand down my short black skirt and headed straight towards the bar. I looked around making sure to avoid Seth, if he was even around. But deep down, as much as I didn’t want to admit it and as much as he drove me crazy, I was worried about him. The man was seriously aggravating. He was hot one moment and then cold the next, I never knew what to make of him. From the moment I first met him, I knew he’d be trouble. He’d been an incessant pain in my ass ever since. Always wanting to know where I was or who I was with. He was worse than my two older brothers. Not even my grandfather was that controlling.
Thinking of my grandfather pulled at my heartstrings. I missed him terribly and I worried about him constantly. When I agreed to come to L.A. I knew that I’d be leaving him alone up in that mountain. I promised him I’d visit, but it’s been a month and with everything going on with the Hell’s Lovers, I just wasn’t able to leave. The Colombian Cartel still hadn’t shown up, but their threat was ominous. I had heard that Juan de la Cruz was biding his time, asking around to see what type of connections the Hell’s Lovers had. There had already been several members who had given Wolf solid information that they were being “looked into.” When he gave us the speech about staying inside and not leaving without protection I simply ignored him, since I wasn’t family. But when he put Seth on my watch I couldn’t believe it. I fought him tooth and nail, not caring that he was my boss or the leader of the Hell’s Lovers. I was not going to have Seth watching my every move. But he had insisted and warned me that if I didn’t follow the rules set forth by the MC, then I was heading back to my grandfather.
I couldn’t go back, though. It had taken me this long to leave the small town we lived in. I had to at least try to make it on my own, before my brothers got wind that I was gone and came back for me. Yes, I was living in a
ten by ten spare room, under Wolf and Scarlett’s roof. And yes, I wasn’t completely carrying out what I had set to do here, but at least I was on my own. I had already applied to online courses in the nearby university, and my dream of becoming a teacher was well on its way. If I could just keep my focus on the future and not on Seth Scardino, I’d be just fine.
I took a seat at the bar and one of the newer prospects, I think his name was Rex, smiled at me. “You drinking today, beautiful?”
I shrugged. “Maybe.”
“What are you having?”
“You got wine?”
He raised his hands up, gesturing at the club. “Come on?” he stated sarcastically.
I laughed. “Okay, give me a shot of tequila!” I shouted over the music.
“Really?”
I nodded.
He shook his head. “Okay. If you say so!”
He poured me the drink and I eyed it for a second, before taking a sip. I coughed, as it slowly burned down my throat.
Rex laughed and shook his head. “Take it easy with that,” he gestured at my barely touched glass.
I narrowed my eyes on him and took the shot, grimacing as it burned a path down to my stomach.
He laughed and served me another one. “That’s a girl!” A few bikers came up to the bar and Rex winked at me. I’ll be right back!”
I watched him leave and then swiveled around in my chair taking in the scene. I could feel the heat rush up my cheeks as I actually got to see Ravenous in full action. There were women lying on couches, being satisfied by men, and I mean full on having sex. The girls up on the stage were being touched, groped and hooted at while dollar bills fluttered around them. Jade was smiling down at a man who was trying to touch her, when suddenly she placed a heel on his chest and sent him flying back. I laughed as Knox looked up at her and she shrugged. No touching Jade, that was a rule. The men just needed to learn. Some of the girls were leading men into the back rooms.
As I took it all in, I shivered. Partially from excitement and partially from a weird sense of arousal that started to tickle my body. I took another sip of the tequila and my eyes became transfixed on a half-naked woman who was kneeling before a man in one of the private lounge areas against the back. The curtain was fully opened and I got a clear view of her head as it bobbed up and down on his lap. His hand was guiding her as she seemed to enjoy what she was doing. His head had been thrown back, but as he raised it, a familiar set of green eyes met mine.
