by Nicole James
His mouth settled over hers, his tongue delving inside as his strokes began to build.
“Harder,” she begged.
“Not gonna do you hard, babe. Not tonight.”
He kept moving in long gentle pumping thrusts as his hand moved between them caressing, stroking. Intent on building her to another orgasm.
His mouth at her ear, he whispered words of love.
This wasn’t heated, rough, passionate sex. This was an excruciatingly tender expression of how he felt about her, how they felt about each other. This wasn’t sex, this was making love.
“What are we doing, Wolf?”
“I’m showing you how I feel about you, Crystal.”
With that, her head went back, and she crashed over the edge into all-consuming bliss. And a moment later, his body went rock solid above her as he followed her over.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Wolf’s eyes came slowly open. Light poured in the floor to ceiling windows of the luxury hotel suite. The front range of the mountains visible in the distance. He took in a deep relaxing breath, feeling totally sated from last night’s bout of endless sex. He turned his head on the pillow, expecting to find Crystal, her dark hair splayed across the bright white of the pillowcase, his arm already moving across the sheets toward her. All he encountered was cool emptiness. His head lifted, his eyes moving around the room. He turned toward the bathroom door.
“Crystal?”
It was open, the light off. He twisted, reaching for his cell phone on the nightstand and checking the time.
He threw the covers back, swung his legs over the bed, and pulled his jeans on. Then he moved through the hotel suite. She was gone. Along with every trace of her, her purse, her bag, her makeup in the bathroom, all gone. No note. He checked his cell. No text or missed call.
Son-of-a-bitch.
She’d run out on him again. The little minx.
And after everything they’d done last night. He thought he’d made it clear with every touch, with every whispered endearment, with every expression of love just how much he felt for her, how much he cared about her, how much he goddamn loved her. Did it mean nothing to her? Or was she just running scared again?
His eyes fell on the satin belt from her robe where it pooled on the floor still, exactly where he’d let it fall last night. It teased him, laying there like Cinderella’s forgotten glass slipper, reminding him of all he’d had last night. He bent to pick it up, his thumb rubbing over the satin fabric. Goddamn it. When he caught up with her, he was going to tie her to the bed with this belt. He shoved it in his hip pocket, a tight grimace forming on his face.
Crystal wanted to play this game, then he was all too willing to take up the gauntlet. After all, no one loved the chase more than he did. And this was one chase he was going to love, especially when he finally caught up with her.
Payback is gonna be a bitch, sweetheart.
****
Wolf found the rest of the group downstairs in the hotel restaurant having breakfast. Well, all except for the newlyweds. They probably wouldn’t emerge for hours.
He stood at their table.
Angel was grinning down at her cell phone. “This shot is getting blown up, poster size.” She turned to Cole. “I think you should put it up in the clubhouse. Maybe have it framed.”
“Let me see.” Shannon leaned over to look at the picture, a picture Wolf could see clearly from his position standing above her. It was the shot Angel had snapped of Mack down on his knee outside the wedding chapel.
Angel turned the phone towards her. “Isn’t it great?”
Shannon frowned, confused. “Wait? That really happened?”
“A little fuzzy, are we?” Crash asked her with a laugh.
She turned to him. “I don’t even remember coming back to the hotel last night.”
Dog chuckled. “Ah, memory loss, the free prize at the bottom of every vodka bottle.”
The waitress returned with a carafe of coffee and began filling mugs.
Crash looked over at Shannon and winked. “Coffee. My other favorite morning thing.”
Shannon got a big grin and turned red, muttering softly, “Crash.”
Cole looked up at where Wolf stood. “You gonna join us, Brother?”
He shook his head.
“Where’s Crystal?”
“Gone.”
“Gone? What do you mean, gone?”
“I mean she’s gone. Her. All her stuff. Woke up and the room was empty.”
“What?” Angel asked, stunned.
Wolf’s eyes met hers. “She say anything? Tell you she was leaving?”
“No, Wolf. I swear.”
His gaze swung to Shannon. “You?”
“No, not a word. She seemed so happy last night. I thought everything was fine, and I know she doesn’t have to be back at work until tomorrow.” Shannon was already moving to dig her phone out of her bag to call her.
“Don’t bother,” Wolf told her.
“Why not?” she replied softly, pausing.
“I’m going after her. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t give her a heads up on that.”
“Okay.”
“Did you two have a fight?” Angel asked.
He shook his head.
Cole raised his mugs to his lips, pausing to ask, “You want to talk about it?”
“No.”
“Good,” he muttered, and took a sip of coffee.
Dog bit out a laugh at Cole’s response, then leaned back in his chair and glanced up at Wolf. “How much of a head start she got on you?”
“No clue.”
“She fly in or drive?” Dog asked, swinging his gaze to Mary.
Shannon answered for her. “She drove.”
“What’s she in?” Wolf asked.
“I know,” Angel cut in, then added with a cocky smile, “but if you want me to tell you, it’s gonna cost you.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Wolf caught up with Crystal eighty-three miles outside of Las Vegas, just this side of the Arizona state-line.
All he’d had to do was follow the map on his cell phone that showed the tracking app he’d installed on her phone. It showed her moving northeast out of Las Vegas on Interstate 15. He’d gunned his bike, weaving in and out of traffic until he caught up with the little red Honda that Angel had told him she was driving these days since selling her classic corvette.
That bit of information had cost him.
She’d made him confess his feelings. Standing right there at that table, she’d made him say the words. And he had, he’d told them all that he loved Crystal. Had always loved her. And always would love her.
Surprisingly, not a single one of his brothers had cracked a joke.
Now he pulled alongside her, motioning her to the side of the road. Dismounting, he approached her car as her driver’s window powered down.
“What the hell are you doing?” she snapped.
Like she had any right to be the one pissed off here. He braced his palms on the frame and leaned in. “Going somewhere, sweetheart?”
At that, she aimed her designer sunglasses toward the windshield, huffing, “I have to get back.”
“Bullshit. You’re runnin’ again.”
“Wolf, I have a job to get back to.”
“Don’t lie to me, Crystal. Don’t you dare sit there and lie to me. Shannon told me you don’t have to be back until tomorrow.”
She stayed stubbornly silent when he called her bluff.
Wolf took in their surroundings as a big tractor-trailer barreled past, the blast of wind rocking her vehicle. There wasn’t much around except for endless desert scrubland. But a sign indicated there was an exit coming up, and a billboard in the distance advertised the Desert Palms Motel.
Bingo.
“You’re going to follow me to this exit.” He lifted his chin to the green highway sign proclaiming the exit number approaching. “We’re gonna have this shit out once and for all.”
“
I’m not going anywhere with you, Wolf.”
He leaned down in her face and they locked shades. “We’re getting a room and working through this shit, or would you rather do it right here on the side of the fucking road, Crystal?”
She huffed out a breath. “Fine.”
“Do not make me chase you down this road again, babe.”
“Okay, Wolf, I said fine, didn’t I?”
She put her car in gear as he headed back to his bike. He followed behind her, making sure she took the exit, before he gunned the throttle, zoomed around her and took the lead. Turning off the ramp, he led her to the motel.
It was a small place, maybe a dozen units in a horseshoe shaped layout surrounding a blacktop parking lot with a tiny pool off to one side, surrounded by chain-link fencing. A sloped roof overhung the concrete walkway that ran past each unit’s door and curtained window.
Parking his bike in front of one of the nearest units, Wolf yanked off his helmet as Crystal pulled into the parking space next to him. He walked back to the tiny office set just off the street, and a few minutes later, he returned with a key.
Walking back toward where Crystal sat in her car with her door open against the heat, he slid the key into the lock of unit number one, conveniently right in front of where her car and his bike sat. He pushed the door open and glanced in at the double bed. The air conditioning unit rattled in a poor attempt to cool the place. The room was a far cry from the luxury suite they’d shared in Vegas last night, but it was going to have to do. He walked back to her car, yanked open the back door as she got out, and then he grabbed up her overnight bag.
“What are you doing?” she asked with a frown.
“Carrying your bag.”
“I agreed to talk to you, nothing more.”
He continued on past her. “Well, it’s gonna be a long talk, sweetheart.”
“Wolf!” She followed him inside as he tossed her bag on the bed. She glared at him as he walked back past her to slam the door shut. She swiveled to look at him, her hands landing on her hips. “What is your problem?”
He advanced on her then, until she felt the need to take a step back. “My problem? My problem is I woke up alone in an empty hotel suite. My problem is you have a habit of forgetting to say goodbye. My problem is I’ve got a woman who seems to think any of that is gonna fly with me.”
“I’m not your woman, Wolf.”
“Keep tellin’ yourself that, babe.”
She ignored that and moved on. “You’re pissed about me leaving? Really, Wolf? But it’s okay for me to wake up alone every time you sneak out the door?”
He frowned. “What?”
“You do that to me all the time, Wolf!”
“Babe, you know how the MC is. I get called out, I have to leave. You know that, Crystal.”
“God, you’re so infuriating.”
He shook his head. Christ, she’d talk him in circles if he let her. But there was one question, by God, she’d answer. “Why’d you run, Crystal?”
“We had a night together. Why are you trying to make it into something it wasn’t?”
At that, his chin came back. “Something it wasn’t? Just what the fuck are you tellin’ me?”
“Wolf, nothing’s changed.”
“Crystal, everything’s changed. I thought I proved that to you last night.”
“We had sex. That proves nothing.”
“That wasn’t just sex, Crystal, and you know it. You fucking know it.”
She turned away from him then, apparently not able to meet his eyes. And he knew why, too. It was because she knew every word he said was true. At least she gave him that much. He watched her eyes move around the room, taking it in. He could almost hear what she was thinking.
“It’s not much, but we’re the only guests, so no one will hear us.”
At that, she turned back to him, her eyes big. “Hear us what?”
“Hear us yelling. Or maybe you screaming when I turn you over my knee and spank your ass, woman.”
“Right.” She rolled her eyes, and he felt his temper flare.
“Don’t tempt me, Crystal. I’m not in the best of moods right now.”
“I would have thought after last night that you’d wake up in a great mood this morning.” She gave him an arch look.
“Yeah, babe. I did wake up in a really, really great mood. It lasted all of about two seconds until I rolled over to reach for you and you weren’t there!”
“Wolf.”
“So let me hear your explanation.”
“My explanation for what?”
“I gotta spell it out? Why’d you run out on me this morning?”
“Oh, honestly, Wolf. You’re acting like I deserted you. It’s not a big deal. I just needed to get back.”
“In case you hadn’t noticed, I just chased you down an interstate halfway across Nevada, so clue in—it’s a big deal to me.”
“Apparently.”
“You want to cut the smartass mouth?”
“What do you want from me, Wolf?” She rounded on him. “We’ve been apart all this time. We run into each other in Vegas and, yeah, we had a night for old time’s sake. It’s over. Let it go.”
“Old time’s sake? Is that all it was to you? Are you really standing here tellin’ me this shit?”
“Wolf.” She ran a frustrated hand through her hair.
“You’re scared. That’s what this is about. You’re scared I’m gonna jerk you around again. That’s what this is about, isn’t it? Isn’t it?”
“No, Wolf. I’m not scared.”
“The hell you’re not.”
“What’s it gonna take with you? You want another go at it?” she asked sarcastically, her hand flung out indicating the bed. “Fine. Let’s go. Let’s get to it. Then will you let me leave?”
“Babe, seriously?”
“Seriously.” Her brows rose in a challenging attitude that only confused him more and was beginning to piss him off.
“Can’t we have a damn conversation?”
“Is that gonna move this along?” she asked flippantly.
That did it. Something inside him snapped. He’d be damned if he’d stand here and have her taunt him like this. This was all bullshit. And if he had to prove that to her, he would.
“Fine.” He started unbuttoning the flannel shirt he wore under his cut. Then he yanked it and his cut off, dropping them to the floor. Next he tugged the tee shirt he had on underneath over his head.
He watched as she stood mutely—for once—and stared as he continued stripping. Next came his boots. When his hands went to his belt buckle, he lifted his chin at her.
“Take off your clothes. You wanted to get to it, let’s get to it,” he threw her words back at her.
She stared at him.
“But don’t expect sweet from me right now, Crystal. That’s not what you’re gonna get. That’s not the way I want it right now.” He watched as her eyes fell to where his hands were working his belt buckle. Then she was moving toward him. Then she surprised him again by dropping to her knees. She brushed his hands aside and looked up at him.
“I know what you really want, Wolf.”
He could only stare down at her, stunned as she undid his pants and pulled his dick out. All conscious thoughts scattered as she offered herself up for his pleasure. And suddenly all he could think about was her pretty fuckable mouth, and how badly he wanted it wrapped around his dick, how badly he wanted to sink into it. If that was what she wanted, he wasn’t about to stop her. He wasn’t that big a fool. Instead, he slid one hand to the back of her head, pulling her closer, guiding her mouth to take him.
If she hadn’t driven him to the breaking point, this could have gone differently. He would have taken more care. But now, all gentleness had been stamped out by her taunting comments that he knew had been designed to drive him to the edge. In its place was a demanding unleashed anger and desire to lash out and be cruel. To show her who was boss.
She
’d asked for it. He only hoped she was prepared to pay the price.
“Well, baby, let’s put that smart mouth of yours to a much better use, then, shall we?”
His hands tangled in her hair, and he drove his cock into her waiting mouth. He used that grip to control her, control the pace as he pumped into her. He lost whatever shred of control he’d had as he fucked her mouth.
She didn’t resist, didn’t try to pull away or stop him. Quite the contrary. The look in her eyes as she looked up at him, encourage him, practically begged him to claim more. Her soft moans encouraged him to take whatever he wanted, however he wanted.
It made him question who really had the control here. But hell, fighting it was a lost cause. He was a goner. She did that to him. She always did that to him. She always found a way.
His fists tightened in her hair as he jerked her hard to him and his cock exploded, his release shooting down her throat. She took it all, swallowing every drop, and then continued to hold him in her mouth even after his hands gentled in her hair, releasing her.
Wolf locked his legs, fighting the overpowering aftermath that threatened to send him to his knees. She’d sucked him dry. Holy hell.
Releasing him, she looked up, their eyes locking. Then he was reaching down, grabbing her forearms and jerking her to her feet. They glared at each other.
“You get what you wanted?” he asked.
She had the gall to smile, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. “Yup. How about you? Are you satisfied? Can I go now?”
“Satisfied?” He shook his head. “Not by a long shot, darlin’. And no, you can’t go.”
“Why not?” He watched the cocky smile fade from her face.
“We’re not finished yet.” With a wicked smile, he shoved her toward the bed. “In fact, we’re just getting started.”
He reached for his belt, and pulled it free, doubling it in his palm.
Her eyes dropped to it, and then she was darting toward the door. He caught her up easily enough, one strong forearm locking around her waist as he hauled her back, pinning her tight with her back against his chest.
