“What about the couple? Are they still alive?”
Vinny had hoped he would not answer it. There was no such thing as witnesses in the motorcycle club world. 1%ers never got caught for a reason. There was never anyone left to talk. “Naw, naw, they’re still there. But we scared the shit out of them. They’re not going to talk, not if they know what is good for them.”
“What the fuck, guys? You two are my most experienced men. Now, you’re tellin’ me that not only did you fail to get any information, but you let the couple live to rat us out?” Benni was completely beside himself. When he gave out the assignment, he figured that Vinny’s will to live would bypass any trepidation he may have regarding the beat down. However, the Vinny standing in front of him was a new man, someone who could not be trusted to let his emotions get in the way of doing an honest job.
“Benni,” Vinny said defensively, “Chill. We did get somethin’.”
“What do you mean ‘somethin’?” Benni stared at him, unsure of if he was worth trusting anymore. Everything he had said had just meant more and more lies and failure.
“Calvin Senior kept saying something about ‘land.’ Over and over again.”
“He was sayin’ ‘Devils land,’ man. It don’t mean nothin’. He was trying to say that Junior’s with the Devils.” Quimby, too, was growing impatient with Vinny. He just wanted to get his punishment for not completing a job out of the way. He was not one to try to weasel out of a situation like Vinny.
“Shut the fuck up, Quimby. You weren’t even in the room. You were too busy doing who knows what to Calvin’s wife.” Vinny turned his attention back to Benni. “He did not say those two words together. It wasn’t ‘Devils land.” It was ‘Devils’ and ‘land.’ Two separate things.”
“And what the fuck does that mean? The Devils don’t own any land outside the headquarters. Their territory stretches from the Quarry to Wildwood Farm.”
A light bulb went on. “That’s it. I know where he is.” Vinny’s mind raced as he tried to think of the possibilities. His voice sped up as he explained, “He’s at Landcaster, Landcaster Quarry. He was a drug runner and that was their pick up spot. It makes sense he’s there in a safe house or campsite or something. It’s a big space in an unwatched area. They know no one is stupid enough to ride down there.”
Benni peered at him with his beady, strained eyes. “You sure, man? You’re certain that this isn’t some trap or set up by the Devils to get us to cross lines to their high ground?”
“I dunno, boss. But, I mean, Calvin ain’t the type to get roped into somethin’ like this. We had to beat him senseless to just get that much out of him. Seems to me like he was telling the truth to save his life.”
Benni looked over his shoulder to where Quimby sat. He was leaned back in a leather chair with his feet resting on one of the meeting room’s card tables. Picking his teeth and checking his phone, he barely registered when Benni asked him, “What do you think? You think Junior’s at the quarry? Can Calvin be trusted?”
“Calvin’s a pussy. He don’t know shit about what’s goin’ on with his bitch of a son. I still think he was bullshittin’ to get us to stop.”
“Yeah, but you fuckin’ stopped him from clearin’ up what he meant. Great job on that one, dumbfuck.” Vinny could not hide the disdain and sarcasm in his voice. He could not care if he showed his discontent over his partner situation to his leader.
“Fine. So I’m making the call, then.” Benni paused a long while as he looked about the empty room until he came to his conclusion. “We’re riding to the quarry tomorrow night.”
“Why not tonight? Aren’t we givin’ them enough time to warn Junior about us comin’ for him?” Quimby was itching to get back out there with the open road before him and a knife gripped firmly in his hand. This was the stuff, the thrill he lived for.
“We don’t have the manpower tonight. Plus, we’ll put the day watch on the Smith family temporarily. They so much as pick up the phone or attempt to contact the police or the Devils, we’ll know about it.”
“Wait—” Vinny didn’t understand all that he had just said. “Are you taking the watch off of Gloria or you calling in reinforcements?”
“Taking it off of your woman for a night. Boys called in and said she hadn’t left the house once or moved from her bedroom. I told them to take the rest of the night off.” Benni had no idea how much of a lie that was. Gloria was the entire reason why the plan had not gone as smoothly as they had hoped. If he had any inkling that she managed to escape, Vinny would not be hearing the next instructions. “She ain’t goin’ anywhere anytime soon it looks, but I want you to stay there while the boys stake out the Smith’s place. You got it?”
“Yeah. I got it. I’ll go tonight, then. You can give the boys off a night—rest them up for tomorrow.” Vinny said it as nonchalantly as possibly as he picked up his gear from the table and turned his back on the two men and headed toward the exit.
“You’re takin’ Quimby again. Wherever you go, he’s goin’.” Benni was not about to let Vinny get away so quickly. He didn’t trust, or like, Quimby, but he knew he was the only other man in the club besides himself that could keep Vinny in line. Or, at least he knew how to go the distance to keep him straight.
“Fuck that, Benni! That son of a bitch don’t know nothin’ about being an enforcer.” Vinny was back to raging. Benni’s mistrust was understood, but he was not about to let Quimby in on their relationship.
“What, you afraid I’m gonna get in the way of you bangin’ her?” Quimby laughed heartily at his own joke.
Benni rubbed his forehead in frustration. “You’ll both watch outside tomorrow ‘til I send reinforcements in the afternoon. No one goes inside. She tries to flee or communicate with anyone, Quimby has my direct order to kill her. You got that?” He pointed at Vinny as Vinny swallowed hard and nodded his head in acknowledgment. “I expect to see both of you here tomorrow night when I call. We’ll talk about the Gloria situation after Junior’s taken care of.”
Benni turned away, heading back into his office leaving the two men alone in the room together. They could hear him shut the door and type away on his laptop, the keys clicking wildly.
Quimby snickered wildly to himself before turning back towards Vinny, “I guess I’ll be seein’ you again, Romeo. We should probably meet her tomorrow. I mean, you know where she lives—and sleeps—don’t you?” He winked at him as they both rose to their feet and headed out to the Horsemen parking lot.
Vinny parted one way while Quimby turned the next. Vinny had headed in the direction of his apartment, but his neglected bed was the last thing on his mind. All he wanted was to see her, to know she was safe. He pulled into an open gas station and dialed her phone number. On the second ring, she answered quietly. It was four in the morning; no doubt he had woken her up.
Her voice was groggy and slow. “V-vinny? That you? Where are you?”
“I know what you did, Gloria.” It was the only thing he could think to say to her. Knowing she was safe was one thing, but he needed her to understand what danger her calling the police on him and Quimby had done. He wanted to make her see that she was playing with fire.
There was a long pause before she tried to speak, “What’re you talkin’ about, Vinny?”
“Gloria. Come on. The address you gave me was fake. You called the cops. Don’t try to bullshit me. My night has been long enough.”
There was a muffled noise, the sound of a stifled sigh. “I did it to save you.”
“I don’t fucking need saving, Gloria—and I certainly don’t need it from you again. All your saving does is just get me deeper and deeper into trouble.”
“Do you think I like this, Vinny? There are ten guys sittin’ outside my apartment, drunk, and watchin’ my every move like hawks. Do you think I don’t know what kind of danger I am in because of you?”
Something about what she had said caught his attention, “Who is outside watching you? Describe them to me.�
��
Another pause, this one more drawn out than the first, “There’s some guys in a leather jacket. Dark hair, tall. Like you. There’s another fairer skin guy. He’s young, maybe…I don’t know, Vinny. It’s hard to see what they look like in the dark. I think they’re the same guys from before.”
“How’d you get back in the apartment after you went to Calvin’s house?” Vinny wasn’t about to let her go this easily.
“I, uh, did the same thing I did to get out. I waited until they were distracted and I snuck out. My neighbor, Monica, is pretty attractive. They couldn’t stop staring when she walked by with her laundry. Listen, can I go back to bed now? I am exhausted.”
“I’m comin’ over.”
“What? No. You don’t have to. I’m fine. The guys aren’t going to do a thing to me.”
Vinny wouldn’t let her finish as she shot one last line before hanging up, “I’ll be there in two minutes.”
He was already on her bike as she protested into the speaker of her phone. In reality, he was only a few blocks down from her apartment, not far enough time to give her warning. As Gloria’s apartment came into view, Vinny spotted the last remaining watchman packing up his gear. Vinny greeted the young man as he dressed for his ride back to headquarters with his helmet in hand and the silver flask stuffed back in his jean pocket.
“She do anything, Adam?” Vinny slapped the young man on the back as he asked for her status update.
“Nah. She’s been in there all night. Doesn’t look like she left the bedroom except for when you came by. Must be having a fun night without you. I can see that girl being into herself, if you know what I mean…”
Vinny laughed merrily at the man’s joke as he watched him get on the crotch rocket style bike and drive off without any second look at Vinny. When the coast was clear, he sprinted the short length of the parking lot to her door. She was already there before he could scream her name or create another commotion like earlier that night.
Opening it a crack, Vinny looked inside as far as he could see. Her clothes were tossed in a pile on the couch and photos were pulled from their original place on the wall. In her hand was a black backpack made for hiking. Its metal frame caught his eye first, but she didn’t pay him any mind.
“Move, Vinny!” She attempted to push past him and back outside.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going? What is that backpack for?”
“It’s my stuff.” Gloria’s voice was desperate. “I gotta get out of here before the boys come back for their next shift.”
“What do you mean? Where are you goin’?” Vinny reached out and grabbed the bag from her hand. She pulled back but his forced practically ripped it out from under her.
“Away, Vinny. Far, far away.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
He took her arm, his grip digging into the pearl color skin leaving red, swelling marks behind. “Like hell you are!” He shouted at her as he pulled her close to his face. Her hair swayed as his breath grazed her body.
“Do you think I want to go? Do you think this is easy for me? I have to go, Vinny. I have to get the fuck out of this town before we both wind up dead. I may have Carl’s blood on my hands, but I’m not letting you go because of it either.” She was fighting back, squirming under him, twisting away. It was useless. She was at least half his size and not nearly as strong or forceful. There was no way he was letting her go.
“You leave, and I am as good as dead. They’ll think you’ve run right into the Devils. They’ll track you down, trace you to wherever you go just like they’re doing to Junior. You think they won’t send Quimby to do what he did in that basement? It’ll be you and me in those chairs, and there won’t be anyone there to call the cops or send out a warning signal.”
Gloria knew he was right. She was risking his life as much as she was saving hers. But old habits died hard and thinking about someone other than herself wasn’t something she knew how to do. She never figured out how to self-sacrifice or to put another first. This was her life. This was her breath to save. And, in her own way, she thought saving herself was her way of caring for him. She trusted that he would figure out how to survive without her. Gloria knew he was resourceful enough to make it through.
She stopped fighting. Whatever he wanted to do to her was not going to compare to her walking out the door. She relented, relaxing in his grasp and letting her body fall into him. “I’m sorry, Vinny. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t you tell me you’re sorry. I don’t need excuses. I need you to fucking get back in your house and listen to me.” Vinny continued to yell, forcing her to hear him.
“I’m sorry.” She whispered into his chest. “I’m so sorry.”
“Stop it! Stop it!” He was shaking her now. He looked down to watch her bob helpless in his arms. He slowed as she silently let him continue. His breathing, too, slowed down as he realized she would not just stay put because he told her to. “I’m not letting you go, Gloria. We’ve been through too much for me to just let you walk out of this door for good.”
“You have to. I need to get—” Her voice halted as she looked up into his eyes. They were wide open, terrified. She searched them for the meaning, but all she could see was her reflection in the pools of brown and black.
“Just don’t speak right now,” he said softly as he placed his hand to head and brushed away the hair covering her face and neck.
“Vinny, I—”
He kissed her—hard. His lips pressed into hers with such urgency they couldn’t help but open up to him. She could taste him, the salty sweetness that lined the inside of his lips. Her own tongue traced his as they wrestled back and forth in his mouth.
Their mouths still connected, he lifted the rest of her body up with just one of his large arms in one commanding motion. He carried her back to the bedroom as he kicked her backpack out of his way and the front door closed behind him. He dropped her on to her couch as his body tumbled down with her and on top of her.
She took a breath, pulling away for the first time to take another look at him. His eyes were burning embers in the darkness of her living room. His lips were the red flames. And as he traced them up against her neck, her jaw, her, ear, her breastbone, she called out to him. “Take me.”
He didn’t need the invitation. He was already ripping away at her jacket, pulling and yanking until the large black buttons relented and one fell to the ground from the force. He slipped his hand under her shirt as they journeyed their way up her soft, warm skin to her bra. Vinny grabbed at the silk and lace material and ripped it from the seams.
She let out a short yelp as the snaps dug at her skin and the wire of her bra released her breasts. Her shirt came next. Another pull, a tug, and a yank until the strands of the tank top gave way to Vinny’s desires.
Gloria was exposed, laid out for him to see. He propped himself up against the side of the couch to view her from above. Her skin was lovely, untouched and fair. Her yellow-and-silver hair was a mess of tangles, but the way it gently touched her shoulders reminded him of a princess from a storybook fantasy. She didn’t cover herself, nor did she try to hide her body. She simply looked up at him, letting him take her in to remember this one beautiful, horrible moment.
An urge grew in him, taking over him. He needed her as much as she did. And when she whispered up to him, “Please,” nothing on the Earth could hold him back. He unbuckled his belt and lowered his pants to the ground with his boxers coming second. Before she could sit up to join him, Vinny had his hands around her waist, clawing at her jeans, pushing them down without even unbuckling him. The fabric scraped against her legs and knees and his dull nails dug visible stinging imprints in her skin.
She screamed out as he noticed his trail. He moved to her feet and moved upwards as he licked at her wounds slowly. Her ankles, her calves, her knees, her thighs. It was an apology. It was passion. And Gloria couldn’t take much more. Her hands found his head and guided them to her pussy. Her underwear had bee
n forced off with her jeans.
There was no barrier, no way for him to say no or resist. She was insatiable. Gloria wanted some, any, part of Vinny inside of her. He offered his long, tan finger first. It traced her folds and the soft, downy hair concealing the present inside. She was wet and soft, and smelled like heaven. He placed the finger quickly inside of her as she released a long, drawn out shocked cry.
His lips followed next as he lightly sucked and blew around where his finger twisted and played. He wanted to be closer to her as his tongue came last. It flicked lightly, teasingly at the mounds and then dove in next to the finger. His other hand pushed down at Gloria’s hips, keeping her still as she tried to wiggle and move with his own motion. He wanted her is his own time, in his own way.
With a deep breath, he came up for air, looking at her from her waist. Her back was arched upwards as her head dug into the couch cushion. Her legs were spread open for him. He pushed himself north towards her breast while his hands remained in place. The mountains of her breasts were too luscious for him to ignore much longer as he nibbled on the round, large pink nipples.
Don’t You Dare: A Bad Boy MMA Fighter Romance Page 37
