Reinventing Mel: A Hellion MC Novel

by J. A. Hornbuckle

  That was sweet. Her worrying about him getting his sister looked after just showed her goodness, that kernel of caring he'd felt from her at the first moment they'd met.

  "I don't think I'll have any trouble but I'll let you know if I do."

  "Okay. Saturday at six. My place." she recapped. Her voice dropped as she added, "I'm looking forward to it, Mel."

  Which cause his whole body to throb at both her words and her tone. "Me-me, too, Lulu. See you tomorrow?"

  "I'm counting on it," she said on what sounded like a sultry whisper.

  God, he was gonna come with one stroke which would happen just as soon as he disconnected and freed the snake in his pants.

  "Bye, Lulu."

  "See you, Mel."

  He was right. One stroke did it. But it was the second round, accompanied by vision of her mouth, chest and sash-shaying ass that lasted a helluva a lot longer and gave him the most relief.

  *.*.*.*.*

  I'd been in an uneasy sleep when Mel called having gone to bed early with a thought that unconscious was better than worrying and pacing. I hadn't figured on nightmares though and they chased me hard from almost the moment I closed my eyes.

  But the phone conversation with him, him, had calmed me down in one way and yet had wound me up in another, more wonderful, manner.

  His voice was heaven, a deep rumbley sound that caused pulses within certain, secret places.

  Places that craved touching.

  His touches.

  I actually ended up kissing my little piece of crap, do nothing, pay-as-you-go phone after we'd disconnected. Which I promptly decided wasn't weird in the least since I very much wanted, almost needed, to kiss him after being so scared about being found by my family. Well, by my family's retainer which was practically the same thing.

  And to thank Mel for unknowingly providing me with a sense of safety, of feeling cared about and even looked after if only a little and through a phone. After the way he'd handled the situation with the bikers at Boots, I got the impression that Mel was more than capable of protecting me from any and all threats, implied or otherwise.

  I sat up and turned on my bedside light, my eyes immediately going to the iPhone on my dressing table.

  Why did such a small rectangle have the ability to terrify me so?

  Determined to face my fear, I pushed back the covers and went to it. I knew Dad had kept the service on if I was able to see the missed calls and messages. And I also knew that my sister Shelly would be more than willing to give me the information on what had been going on since I left.

  As the two motherless girls of a busy business mogul, my sister and I had clung to each other growing up. And even as we'd become adults, developing different interests and circles of friends, we'd still stayed close. Close enough that when I'd come up with my plan to escape, she was the only one I'd told of my scheme and why. She'd tried to talk me out of it, had begged me to find another way after ragging my butt for confronting dad with what I knew.

  But I'd been determined. And up until Mr. Billings was spotted, I'd been happy with my decision to hide in Montana. Especially after meeting and getting to know Mel.

  I turned the phone on and sent Shell a text.

  Lulu: Sorry 2 b unavailable. Whats go'g on?

  SPalm: Dad shit fit. John meltdown. U ok?

  Lulu: V good. Happy. Y Bills here?

  SPalm: Found u thru phone GPS. U gotta ditch it sis. Outta state wd b best.

  I felt a sob come up the back of my throat. I knew even with the phone off and the battery dead the GPS system would've given away my whereabouts. But in my zeal to get away I must have forgotten that very important fact.

  Hoisted by my own petard, indeed.

  SPalm: U still there?

  Lulu: Yes. Thinkg. Can u buy cheap phone so I can call? So we can stay n touch?

  SPalm: Will do 2morrow. Where do I reach u?

  I thought fast. Shelly and I had had numerous occasions over the years to outsmart the various nannies and home staff that wanted little girls to be seen and not heard. Communicating in code was no stranger to the two of us and I took advantage of that shared history.

  Lulu: 3 texts 2morro. Diff times. Alpha based. Mid #s 1st. Area c 2nd.

  SPalm: Understood. U sure ur okay? Safe?

  Lulu: More than. 2morro. Luv u.

  SPalm: U 2.

  I had to get rid of the phone and had to do it out of state. But how? I didn't want to do it in any of the other ones around Montana. They were just entirely too close. And I knew that by getting rid of it now, instead of at the beginning when I darn-well should've done, it was kind of like closing the stable door after the horse had run off.

  But it might give me a break, making Billings think I'd moved on.

  'So why haven't you moved on?' I asked myself. Leaving Albuquerque had been easy, almost as easy as dropping the thin, brittle shell of being a wealthy socialite that was under her daddy's thumb. And Missoula had accepted me, the person I had determined to be. A girl that could color her hair pink and could dress in fifties-styled clothes. One that could date a hunky, gorgeous electrician's apprentice who kissed liked a demon yet kept me protected from thugs. And who worked for a biker-led construction company that valued her style and her sass.

  In my mind, those were more than enough reason to stay.

  I moved to the closet and shifted the shoeboxes out of the corner. Prying one of the boards up, I reached in until my hand hit the cloth of a large makeup bag. The last time I'd counted, I still had $36,500 in my get-away fund. Comprised of cash advances on the credit cards Daddy had given me. When I'd pulled out the money, I'd been disappointed that Sak's, Neiman's and Nordies didn't allow you to get cash against your available credit line. Because with as much as I'd spent there, I couldn't understand the problem.

  Now though I was a strictly cash girl and with my paycheck from HC which more than covered my living expenses, I didn't think I'd need to touch my little nest egg.

  My mind went back to the problem of my phone as I put the bag back and replaced the board. Settling again underneath the covers, I turned out the light hoping I'd get some kind of answer in my sleep.

  Chapter Eight

  "That's it," Dare yelled over the deep growl of the engine. "Now give it a little gas. Feel the fuckin' power between your legs?"

  "Dude! My sister!" Both men's eyes went to the bright-haired Julie who was singing and dancing with her shadow in the empty lane at a large storage facility just south of town.

  "Nah, she can't hear us. Now let out the clutch real slow and give it a bit more gas," Dare encouraged. "Good. Now just point and shoot!"

  It hadn't taken Mel long to find the perfect ride in the vast selection the large rolling overhead door had revealed. The sweet Harley Sportster 1200 XL in black had called to him out of all the other bikes and he'd wasted no time in stepping to the large machine.

  "Great choice, junior," Dare had said when he followed him in. "Not too pricey, easy to upgrade and repair. You've got a good eye for bikes."

  And after a couple of circuits up and down the different lanes in the storage complex, Mel couldn't disagree. He'd thought learning to ride a machine like a Harley was going to be complicated but after shifting through a couple of the gears, he knew he'd have it all down quickly. It was simply a case of learning to use his hands more than his feet to keep control.

  "Feelin' good?" The big biker asked when Mel reluctantly pulled to a stop back at where he'd started.

  "God, yeah," Mel breathed, running a hand over the gauges before swinging a leg off. "Sweet. So damn sweet."

  "I know, right?" Dare seemed to share in Mel's euphoria at getting and riding his first motorcycle. "Okay, you and Julie take the car and I'll follow you back to your place."

  Feeling the sharp pang of possessive jealousy, Mel eyed the bike again before going to grab Julie. The sooner he was home the faster he could make his new ride his. Although he was sure his eyes spent more time on the
rearview mirror than they did on the windshield as he drove the Cutlass home.

  He watched Dare pull up in the driveway of the house but continued on until the bike was a few yards in back of the house. After letting Julie in, Mel went back to join his sponsor who was in a crouch studying the motor.

  "Okay, we got one last order of business before I hit it," the big man said and went to his own bike that was parked on the grass in the backyard. "By the way, your new ride is fuckin' distinctive due to its age and that so much of it is stock. Be sure to fuckin' park it out of sight from the damn street."

  Mel saw the other man go to one of the storage compartments that bracketed the other man's ride, reach inside and pull out two vests. One was denim and the other leather, both emblazoned on the back with a wicked skull surrounded by flames that was bracketed by 'Hellion MC' on the top and 'Missoula' on the bottom.

  "This one is for everyday and this is for fuckin' fancy doings, yeah?" Dare shoved each one in Mel's hands even though he handled the cuts reverently. "Unless otherwise goddamn specified, you're to wear this fuckin' every day and especially when on Hellion property. You get me?"

  Mel nodded, checking the tags and seeing the size was perfect.

  "Now we're gonna also have to come up with a biker name for you. That 'No Way' shit you were known by before ain't gonna fuckin' fly with the brothers. What the fuck was that about anyway?"

  "Deschames men wanted me to have a different handle so people couldn't identify me when we were doing his dirty work. They pressed, I declined. They yelled and I finally shouted, 'No way' to decline again. They must've misunderstood because they decided that's what my name should be," Mel explained with a shrug.

  He remembered Dare's reaction to his pseudonym when they'd first met. When Mel had been one of the four men Deschames had sent from Texas to kill Brand and bring Reese back into the fold. Dare had asked him if that's what the girls said to him when he'd try to get in their pants which had embarrassed the shit out of Mel at the time.

  By the end of younger man's speech, Dare was almost bent double he was laughing so hard. "Oh, shit, man. That's fuckin' classic!" The big biker wiped his eyes as his chuckles wound down. "Seriously, though. We gotta come up with somethin' that fits you and is fuckin' easy to remember even though you'll be called 'meat' or 'shit whore' or worse until your goddamn recruit days are over. So think on it."

  "How'd you get yours?" Mel was starting to feel comfortable enough with his sponsor that he felt he could ask.

  "Back when I was known as Josh, I was usually the shortest and the scrawniest at whatever home I was in at the time. But had a helluva fuckin' mouth on me. Got me in more trouble because to prove what a big fuckin' man I was, I'd dare the other kids in order to show 'em. Fucked myself up with those fuckin' challenges too. So when it came time for me to be known by something else, Dare just seemed to fit," the large biker explained with his own shrug as he straddled his ride. "Just as a reminder, make damn sure you get to the compound early for fuckin' Church tomorrow. Sometimes parking's a bitch."

  "Will do. Thanks," Mel said hoping he was showing enough appreciation for all Dare had done and was doing.

  He got a finger flick in reply as the other man fired up his machine and walked his bike down to the street. There was another wide grin that was shot his way before the powerful motorcycle took off.

  Mel went back into the house to hang up his new threads, running his hand over the stitching and staring at the 'recruit' patch on the left hand front panel. It was a big step, he knew. A decision that had the possibility to follow him, for good or for bad, the rest of his life.

  "Mel? When are we going for my shoes?" he heard Julie call from her room, the sounds of yet another girl singer in the background singing something about Romeo and Juliet. He was counting it as a good thing that his kid sister hadn't yet caught on to boy bands.

  "Ready when you are," he said and went to Der's bedroom door which was, as usual, closed. His brother hadn't wanted to go with them to get Mel's new bike and had let him know with a 'stuff it, dickhead!' called through the door.

  He'd asked for and received Trey's approval to see how the weekend went with Der before making a decision on whether to get him into the program at the compound. But Mel got the impression that Trey wasn't fooled and recognized the delay for what it was.

  Mel turned the knob and was surprised to find it open. Peeking in, he was shocked at the mess that met his eyes. His normally fastidious and persnickety brother had changed his ways and not for the better. There were piles of clothes, stacks of dishes and various cans scattered in and about the room. The bed was unmade and even had a wet towel in the middle of it. Mel eyed the dust that coated each surface and wondered how the previously allergy-sufferer was able to sleep without sneezing and coughing himself to hell and beyond.

  De-evolving.

  That was the word both Trey and Dare had used for his brother's increasingly bad behavior. What Rinse had described he'd gone through in his fifteenth year. Mel hadn't wanted to believe it but there was no denying that the brother who inhabited the room wasn't the same one he'd travelled all the way from Texas with.

  "Phew! This stinks!" Julie pressed against Mel's side in the doorway and held her nose.

  "Yeah, it does," Mel murmured and moved both of them back so he could close the door. "So, Der won't be coming with us. You gonna be okay with just you and me today?"

  "Can we stop for ice cream?"

  "Anything you want, pretty girl," he said forcing his face to smile as he caught at her nose.

  "Yay!" his pretty sister yelled, throwing her hands up over her head.

  Wish that it would only take the thought of new kicks and a scoop of a frozen treat to make Der happy again, Mel thought as he locked the house up and guided his sister to the Cutlass.

  *.*.*.*.*

  He'd kept his thoughts about Lulu and their dinner date from his mind until Miss Dee came by early to pickup Jules.

  His sister was going with the older Honey to the president's house where they were going to be helping to make stuff for the club breakfast the next morning. She was going to stay overnight with Miss Dee at her trailer and he was to pick her up tomorrow after the HMC meeting that was held every Sunday and was also known as 'church'.

  Dee had pressed the overnight stay on him saying that he needed to, "have some fun of your own for once. Who knows how your evening with our Lucille will go?". Which had left him a little shaken because he hadn't made mention of where he was going and who he had planned on seeing. It looked like that he'd have no personal life at all now that he was a part of the Hellions, a fact that he hadn't considered but that had him worried. And he wasn't sure he'd ever get used to the gossip that ran as fast as wildfire within the ranks of the club. A man needed a little privacy but Mel didn't seem to have any and it more than bothered him.

  With Julie gone, Mel took his time getting ready spending a ridiculous amount of time in the shower getting rid of every last hair on his body. It was something he'd started in high school when he'd been on the swim team and had kept up finding that he liked both the look and the clean feeling having no hair entailed.

  He wondered what Lulu would think of it, though.

  That was, if he'd get the chance for her to see it. He didn't want to assume too much but it was hard not to think in terms of naked activities if they were going to be alone.

  At her place.

  With a bed within just a few steps of wherever they'd be in her apartment.

  He was again careful about his clothes but wanted to try for something more casual. He pulled out a pair of jeans that tended to sit low on his hips and a t-shirt that was tight but not too tight and yet short enough to ride up when he lifted his arms. He'd caught her eyes drifting to his arms, chest and abs whenever she'd talked to him and from the admiring gleam her eyes had taken on, he knew she liked what she'd seen.

  He adjusted himself in his jeans and considered doing a selfie just to keep a h
old on to his arousal. A guy fisting one out prior wasn't any different than a girl who ate before a dinner date in his mind. And it wouldn't do for him to lose it too quick if he and Lulu actually made it to that point.

  God, he hoped they did.

  She'd been his first official one-on-one date, his first real tongue-in-mouth kiss and thought there was a certain symmetry in having her as his first sex partner, too. Mel wasn't sure if she'd let him do all the stuff he wanted to do, all the things he'd learned from the constant stream of porn on the TV in the guard's lounge at the Deschames mansion. Films that had been so freaking exciting and yet instructional. Some of it he'd discounted as downright crude or so beyond belief as to be laughable. But it had given him a better idea of what to do and how to give a woman her pleasure.