Kelsey’s reaction to her coming down here was bad enough. She’d been awkward and he would bet her cheeks had been flooded with color even though he couldn’t make it out in the darkness of the cellar. She deserved better than him treating her like that and he needed to stop handling her like a sweetbutt.
Running a hand over the back of his neck, he adjusted his cock before heading up the stairs, pausing near the top to be sure they’d left the kitchen before he entered it, using the side door to head out into the bar to watch her. Sitting down at a table a few feet from the counter, his eyes on her as she served drinks to three women, he signaled for the waitress.
“What’ll it be?” the woman asked.
“Whiskey neat,” he grunted, not even looking at her, his eyes on Kelsey as she moved down the bar to a man who’d raised his hand. He watched her lean forward and smile sweetly and that was all it took to have him gritting his teeth while trying not to get up and rip the man’s head off.
“Damn, if looks could kill.” Hawk chuckled sitting down across from him.
Burner glanced at him briefly before turning back to watch Kelsey laugh at something the man had said, his fist clenching on his knee. That son of a bitch better stop flirting with her or he was going to be eating his teeth.
“You going to kill someone or are you just practicing your glare?” Hawk asked.
“What do you care? Besides aren’t you supposed to be at the Blue Bird serving someone drinks or something?” Burner asked, not taking his eye off of Kelsey as she handed the man his drink.
“I do get time off, you know,” Hawk told him, his slight laugh annoying Burner because he wasn’t in the mood to deal with the other man’s humor.
“Yep, but why are you annoying me is what I want to know,” Burner grunted, finally looking at him.
“Shit man, you’d think since I picked you up when you needed it the other morning you’d at least be nice to me,” Hawk muttered, taking the beer from the waitress when she came back and handed it to him. She set Burner’s whiskey down in front of him as well before turning to leave after Hawk tossed some credits on her tray.
“Why?” Burner asked, taking a sip of his drink.
“Cause you owe me? I don’t know, asshole, but it would be nice.” Hawk lifted his beer, taking a swig before nodding to the man at the bar Burner had been glaring at when he’d sat down. “What did that dude do to you anyway?” Hawk asked, watching the man before he sat forward, a frown on his face. “Or is he involved with the drugging?”
“Nope, I just don’t like the way he was looking at the girls,” Burner growled, not wanting to say Kelsey even though that was who that fucker shouldn’t be looking at.
“Huh, well he could be involved. We still haven’t gotten any leads on that person and we had another one drugged this week only at Spangles this time. I don’t get how they managed it there because Animal has that place locked down. Ever since Sammy had that issue with a man who took her home from there he’s been a freak about security. Not that it would have prevented what happened to her but he wanted to be sure nothing like that happened inside the club.” He frowned before he turned to watch the man at the bar.
Burner was watching Kelsey as she laughed at something Hanna had said and shot a bit of beer at her from the tap, making a smile curl the corners of his lips as he watched her jerk away when Hanna tried to put an ice-cube down her shirt.
“Earth to Burner,” Hawk muttered, trying to get his attention. Burner turned to look at him.
“What?” he snapped, glancing at him briefly.
“Damn, you’re not very good company tonight, are you?” Hawk grunted. Downing the last of his beer, he smacked the empty bottle on the table. “Fine, I’ll see you later and you really should at least try to act like you’re not pussy-whipped.”
Burner wanted to knock the bastard on his ass for that comment but Hawk was already weaving away in the crowd by the time he’d pulled his eyes off Kelsey, who was again flirting with the man at the end of the bar. Shaking it off, he drank his whiskey, still observing her while seething with anger over her blatantly flirting with another man.
Chapter Fifteen
Kelsey felt a shiver roll down her spine when Burner followed her into the back room a half hour after she had dragged her sister upstairs. She didn’t know what was going on inside his head but she could almost feel the anger pouring off him. She’d felt it in the bar and she didn’t know what the hell he had to be mad about. If anyone had a right to be mad it was her because what had happened a little while ago made her feel cheap.
“Kelsey, I will only tell you this once. Stop flirting with other men.” Burner was glaring at her, his eyes narrowed on her.
“What are you talking about, Burner?” she asked looking at him wearily. She’d only been flirting a little with Cody and this was an overreaction on his part. After all, not even forty minutes ago he’d been telling her that what they were doing was simply sex and now he wanted to say she couldn’t flirt with other men?
Nope, not happening.
“You heard me.”
“I am sure I heard you wrong,” Kelsey shot back, her brows raised.
“You didn’t. No flirting with other men. In fact, no going near other men period,” Burner growled, his fists tightly clenched and his eyes narrowed to slits of blue fire.
Shock poured through her as she watched him standing a few feet from her with his eyes glued to hers. What made him think he could decide that she wasn’t allowed to have another man near her?
“You don’t get to decide that, Burner. We’re not in a relationship, remember?” Kelsey managed to get out past her numb lips.
He strode to her, his eyes dark and narrowed to slits as he came towards her. His nostrils flared and his body tensed as he neared her. One arm went around her waist jerking her towards him while his other hand buried in her hair cupping the back of her head as he jerked her head back roughly so her eyes were forced to meet his.
“Don’t push me on this, Kelsey. I warned you to run and I told you that you didn’t want to keep taunting me, but you didn’t listen. I’ve been telling you that I’m not a good man anymore and I will take what I want and damn the consequence. And now that I’ve touched you there is no going back. Every inch of you is mine and if I find another man anywhere near you I will rip him apart with my bare hands.”
Her breath caught and she couldn’t seem to look away from the dark pools of desire that glared down at her. Her heart drummed in her ears and her fingers trembled where they gripped his shoulders. She felt vulnerable pressed into him, still remembering how he’d taken her so roughly against this very counter not even an hour ago. He was commanding her to not allow another man near her and he wasn’t kidding. She could tell from the darkness that burned in his eyes that Burner was deadly serious. Kelsey knew she should protest or at the very least ask him if he was going to be screwing around on her but she was trembling inside and her frozen lips couldn’t form the words.
“That’s cr–razy,” Kelsey finally managed to get out.
“No, it’s a fact. You should have run when you had the chance, babe,” Burner grunted before his lips were on hers and his tongue was thrusting inside her mouth as he pressed her back into the wall. Kelsey moaned, her body recognizing his, and melted against him. Her brain tried to tell the hussy it should object but it wasn’t paying attention as she was lifted off her feet. Her legs were pulled around his waist and she was set on the counter again, her breaths coming in little pants as she desperately tried to find the strength to push him away.
She needed to put her foot down because he wasn’t going to tell her one minute that they were nothing more than bed buddies and the next that she wasn’t allowed to flirt with other men. It didn’t work that way. Either they were exclusive or they were just having random sex and he needed to decide which one he wanted.
Thankfully that problem was solved for her because Hanna chose that moment to come into the back room a
nd Burner jerked away from her to stand a few feet away. She stared at him, her breathing heavy in her chest, and she decided that if she wasn’t allowed to flirt with men then he wasn’t allowed to flirt with other women. She would be informing him of that fact as soon as they were alone again. She wouldn’t allow him to make rules he didn’t have to follow.
“What are you two up to back here?” Hanna asked, her look suspicious as she glanced back and forth between them. Burner was casually leaning on the sink and shrugged.
“Talking,” he grunted.
“Uh-huh, talking,” Hanna said, her expression clearly disbelieving.
Kelsey knew her face was red from the heat she could feel in her cheeks. Sliding off the counter, she grabbed the vodka she’d come back here to get for the bar and headed towards the door without looking at Burner. She almost made it when she heard his hard voice call after her.
“Remember what I said, Kelsey.”
She glanced back at him, her insides jumping because she knew he was likely to make a scene in front of Hanna if she told him there were conditions to her agreement to that bold decree. Knowing that she couldn’t say anything in front of Hanna, she just nodded. She would make damned sure they talked about this before they had sex again. Her thoughts now chaotic, she escaped the room with a little sigh of relief.
Burner watched Kelsey exit the back room after throwing him a little nod that he would bet was only because she didn’t want him to make a scene in front of her sister. He wanted to go after her and grab her and make her agree. He didn’t like the idea of her flirting but that was nothing compared to the absolute fury that broke free inside him at the thought of another man touching her and that scared the shit out of him. It meant that he wasn’t sticking to his own rule about this just being sex. What the hell was he doing, his brain demanded of his cock, but it wasn’t forthcoming with any answers.
All he could think about was throwing her over his shoulder and taking her back to her place so he could have his fill of her. If the visceral need for her that shook him to his core was any indication, it wouldn’t be anytime soon that he allowed her to be free of him. Burner was a little frightened by the depth of his cravings for her sweetness.
He glanced over at Hanna. She was staring at him and he wondered what she was looking at him so hard for. His skin began to itch like it did when he was caught in the crosshairs of a gun and he eyed her warily.
“What?” he asked.
“You hurt my little sister and there will be hell to pay. People think that it’s Greta they have to worry about when it comes to her but believe me, it’s not. Greta takes things head on. Me, on the other hand, I like to get even and you don’t want me to feel that’s necessary,” Hanna finally said, her eyes cold and narrowed. She had a look on her face that worried him because it was almost malicious. Burner was a little freaked out because she was kind of scary with that evil gleam in her eyes.
“She’s a big girl and can make her own choices.” Burner managed to sound firm and he didn’t step back when she moved forward despite the chill that slid down his spine. He really needed to get a grip because he was a biker, not a damned coward. Hell, he’d spent a year with hardened criminals that had frightened him less than that nasty look did. Burner stood a little straighter trying not to flinch because he had a feeling she would pounce on it like a predator sensing weakness if he did.
“Oh, she is but the warning still applies.” Hanna wickedly laughed when she was only a few feet from him, her smile evil and cold, and he cringed a little. “Remember that because I don’t make idle threats,” she threw at him before she turned on her heel and followed her sister out.
Burner leaned back into the counter running a hand over his head, wondering what the hell he was doing. He really should just walk away but he couldn’t seem to find the strength because he wanted her too damned much and it was all going to end in disaster.
Burner crouched beside Pansy, his gun trained on the man he was supposed to be taking out when they got the signal from Reaper. After weeks of searching, Burner had finally found the Headhunters’ president and Reaper wanted to be sure this time that they got him. In the past he’d always managed to slip away somehow and Reaper wasn’t taking any chances that it would happen again. Hacker was the brains behind most of the kidnappings and it stood to reason that if they took him out, it would be a huge blow to the whole operation and they may be able to finally get out ahead of it.
The whole club was ready for this shit to get wrapped up and Burner was no different. Hell, he was likely the one who wanted it the most. Taking out the Headhunters had become his mission. Of course, that was pre-Kelsey because since he’d met her, his only mission seemed to be watching her ass to keep her out of trouble. And by trouble he meant another man’s bed, which was truly why he stuck to her so tightly.
After that night at the bar, she told him that she agreed to his terms as long as he agreed to not flirt or sleep with other women. He’d tried to tell her that he would do whatever the hell he’d wanted and it had backfired big time. Kelsey had shrugged and said okay. He had thought that was the end of it until the next night when she had shown him the error of his ways.
Shifting in the bushes, he leaned forward a little, his eye still trained on his target but his mind a million miles away. Kelsey was seriously fucking with his head. She began flirting with other men with a vengeance that night. She’d stopped four days later when he finally told her he wouldn’t flirt or sleep with another woman after fucking her senseless against her apartment door. Kelsey had smiled sweetly and said she would do the same, like she hadn’t just forced his hand, the damned little witch.
Burner could barely think straight lately. Between the screams that were only silent when he was inside her and the need to touch her, he was silently going insane. He’d taken her more than a dozen times over the past few weeks and it wasn’t enough. He still burned for her sweetness, needing it like a drug.
“Burner, you’re thinking so hard even I’m getting a headache. Chill,” Pansy suddenly said from beside him, carving a small stick of wood while they waited. Burner turned to look at him seeing the frown on his brow.
“I’m not thinking hard,” he grumbled, his hand tightening on the gun he held as his eyes went back to the man he was supposed to be watching.
“Yeah, you are. What’s got you so twisted?” Pansy asked and Burner shrugged.
He wasn’t about to explain that he was trying to figure out what the hell he was doing with Kelsey. Having her every chance he got over the past weeks wasn’t even taking the edge off the need he seemed to harbor for her. And he sure as shit wasn’t going to tell Pansy that he didn’t deserve to put his hands on her at all with the shit he’d done. Man, this doomed relationship was too fucked up and he needed to end it. Only he couldn’t even manage to stay away from her for more than a single day. Shit, he was losing it.
“It’s the girl then, huh,” Pansy snorted, making Burner glance at him.
“No,” Burner snapped, shifting again and trying not to think about Kelsey so Pansy would shut up about it.
“That’s a yes. You’ve been with her a lot. You thinking of patchin’ her?” he asked and Burner felt a burn of anger in the pit of his stomach.
“Hell no,” he grunted, knowing that would only end in tragedy.
“Why not?” Pansy asked, the look on his face curious and he’d stopped carving the wood he’d been whittling.
“Because I’m not. What the fuck is this, twenty questions?” Burner demanded.
“Nope, just idle conversation since we have another thirty or so before this shit goes down,” Pansy grunted as he began to carve again.
“I’m not really in the mood for idle conversation.”
“That was pretty obvious,” Pansy replied, making him feel like an asshole, but he didn’t start the conversation again and the two of them sat in silence for about ten minutes before Pansy spoke again.
“You know that you don�
��t have any claim on her unless you patch her, right?” Pansy asked and Burner felt like molten lava was poured through his veins at the suggestion he had no claim on Kelsey. His hand shook on the high-powered rifle he was currently holding and his trigger finger itched. Burner turned looking at Pansy. His jaw tightened and he glared at him.
“This is not a topic I want to discuss. You should be aware that my claim is on her and if you’re thinking of trying anything you’ll be eating my bullet. Patch or no patch.” Burner held the other man’s eyes for a long moment, his own darkened with the fires of hell because if anyone tried to get between him and what he wanted, they would regret it.
“Wasn’t meaning me, boy. I don’t do nice girls but I know there are some who will and you know as well as I do that unless you’ve got her patched, going after anyone for trying to get in her pants is going to cause issues,” Pansy barked.
Burner knew that the other man was right but it didn’t mean he wouldn’t go after someone if they tried it. His head was too fucked up with the desire for her for club rules to matter. He was no longer bound by the rules the way he had once been because once you toss them to the wind, picking them up again became impossible. Someone touched Kelsey and he wouldn’t care about anything even if it lost him the only family he’d ever known. Shaking these heavy thoughts from his mind, he focused on Pansy and the task at hand again.
“Look, it’s none of your business. I’ll deal with my woman my own way and you can keep your help to yourself.” Burner turned back to the Headhunters president, lining up his shot again.
“Sure thing. Just thought I’d remind you of the rules.” Pansy didn’t speak again and the silence ate at Burner because he had too much time to think about what the man had just said. Fifteen minutes later when they got the signal from Reaper, Burner took the shot placing it right between Hacker’s eyes, taking out the man they’d been hunting for months in less than ten seconds, making it easy for the club to take out the panicked men below.
Burning Desires (Blue Bandits MC Book 4) Page 14
