She tried to lift her hand to cover the other tit, but he was fast. His hand shot up and grabbed her wrist. He threw it down next to her head as he came up to meet her head. Their eyes met, their noses touched, their breath touched and danced on one another’s faces.
Vinny used his cup hand to tilt her head up as he whispered into her ear, “Don’t move.” He scooted his entire body up to her waiting mouth. With one leg draped over the side of the couch and the other anchored to the ground, he handled his shaft with the palm of his hand. She watched as it grew in length. She knew what was going to happen next, but she didn’t dare to move out of the position he put her in.
Vinny lowered his cock towards her mouth as he docked between her lips and over her tongue. She could feel him still expanding as her soaking, lapping mouth overtook each and every bit of him. He slowly pumped in and out of her, rocking back and forth. He watched in awe as she closed her eyes in pleasure and allowed him access to her mouth. Even more so, she enjoyed it. She let out soft moans as he could see her hands tracing her own body as she gently toyed at her own nipples and pussy.
He allowed himself to go to the edge. Every bit of the mouth exploration just pushed him closer to ecstasy and her nearer to her own peak. But he wouldn’t just let it end there. He wanted more. He forced himself to pull back and out, to let her lay there, watching him. She wanted whatever was coming next, whatever he wanted to do to her.
Vinny crawled down the curves of her body as he held on to her closely for support. Searching in the dark, his cock found his mate. Her soft, short legs were already spread to welcome him in. She placed them over the top of the couch and the other next to his on the floor.
Just as he did with her mouth, he started slow. He was not one to fuck someone in missionary. It was too safe, too near to him. He had always taken his girls from behind or in a position in which their face would not be staring him down. But he wanted nothing more than to look at her as he eased in and out of her folds. He needed to see her face as she experienced him and his length throbbing inside as it moved the inches and centimeters of her body. He had to have her, all of her, every part of her.
Vinny could see the woman transform from human to beast. She grew wild as he sped up. Her hands thrashed up against her head and face as they again moved up and down near her breasts and then grew bold enough to aid him in pleasuring her own clit. She slapped her skin and licked the inside of her hand to add moisture. Her back, once again, formed an arch and a bridge connecting herself to him. She sat up, not only bringing her face against his, but his cock configured in her so it only drove him deeper and farther in.
Gloria grasped on to his shoulders. He could feel the tips of her long red fingernails dig into his dirty and dark skin and, as she pulled tighter on him for support, the hurt rib burned. He should have stopped. He should have pulled out and let her go. But he knew this moment was fleeting and that everything would change when he finished. He wanted the sensation of her withering under him to never, ever stop.
The heat between them built with each new thrust. She spun her hips in circles. He drove her down like a drill. They rode together until the very end when Gloria felt him burst inside her. She used her hands to fall back some on the couch. Her hips continued to move methodically and rhythmically as he slowed his pace. Vinny broke into pieces as he fell back on top of her, forcing her to once again fall on the well-worn leather couch.
He couldn’t say a word. He wouldn’t know what to say if he were able. Instead, he breathed in and out, in and out. He commanded himself to rest his heart and to take in this one piece of time. It was going to be his last, at least with Gloria. She could feel that, too.
Both rested in a strange mourning as they thought on their future. Gloria’s backpack was just laying on the floor in view for both of them to study. The door to the apartment was not fully shut as Vinny had thought and light streamed in the small crack.
Gloria looked up at him and said the words he knew were coming, “Vinny, I’ve gotta get going. It’s morning. They’ll be back.”
“I know.” He pushed off and out of her, suddenly re-realizing the situation at hand.
“What are you gonna do?” Gloria had found herself actually caring about if Vinny was going to be able to handle her leaving and if he knew how to get himself out of trouble.
He didn’t bother answering her. Instead, Vinny sat at the edge as he grabbed his jeans and sorted through the pockets until he found his cellphone. Dialing quickly, he pressed the earpiece to his receiver and spoke, “Benni—it’s Vinny. I came over early to watch Gloria, but she was gone. Her door was busted in, broken and a window was shattered. Some of her stuff was missing and her furniture was broken.” He paused as Benni responded loudly and incoherently for Gloria to make out. “Yeah, I don’t know. Looks like it may be Devils’ work. She knew about Junior. Maybe they’re putting the blame on Junior’s parents on her. Maybe it’s Junior himself. But her phone is off and there’s blood on the wall.”
Gloria swallowed as Vinny continued to describe a gruesome scene he had created for her. She ran upstairs and began going through her drawers. She tossed her clothing on the floor and used all of her strength to push over her wooden dresser into the bed. She sent hangers flying throughout the bedroom and hit the pillows hard enough against her walls that the stuffing came out.
Downstairs, she could hear Vinny starting. He was off the phone and now working on breaking that window. She ran to him when she heard the crash. His hand was cut open and red trickled down the side. “Touch it.” He commanded.
“What? I’m not going to—”
“Take the blood and make a handprint and some fingerprints on the wall and carpet.” Gloria looked crestfallen at him. He was doing so much. “DO IT, GLORIA!”
She walked up to him and held his hand near her. She gently turned his hand over and kissed the smooth inside of his palms and encircled her hand around his. As she looked up to him towering over her, she softly said, “Thank you, Vinny.” She smeared his blood everywhere from the stairs to the door. It was breadcrumbs of an intrusion that did not exist except in their collective minds.
“Come on, we have to go.” Vinny was solemn and resolved as he wrapped his damaged hand in his t-shirt and picked up her backpack from the floor. He walked out the door first and made a quick look at the parking lot where Gloria’s car and his bike still remained. There was no one in sight in the soft purple light of the rising sun. “It’s clear,” he called back at her. “But be quick. They’re on their way, I’m sure.”
Gloria made a move to grab the backpack from his hand and run, but he caught her one last time. Without a struggle, she relented as she fell straight to his arms and took in the sweetness of their last kiss. She pulled away as her mind searched for the perfect last words. But she came up blank. There was no word that could take this pain she was feeling away. There was nothing she could do to make this right or to fix their wrong turns.
Instead, she ran to her car not allowing herself to look back at where Vinny stood. He watched helplessly as her beater pulled out of the parking lot and headed out on to the empty roads. She had managed to flee. Now it was his turn to fight.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Hot, burning tears streamed down Gloria’s face. She had managed to run so many times in her life, but this time, she was actually leaving behind something of value. Vinny had managed to change her entire life in the few short weeks she had known him. And before she got a chance to explore it, before she got a chance to work it out, she was forced to run. And while she always was prepared with a plan, this time, she was lost and drowning without a net in sight.
Her car took her down all of the familiar streets of her small town. She passed the mini-mart where she did her grocery shopping, the boutique that supplied her with her beauty essentials, the house of her bandmate Jerry, and through the town’s main street where many of her past blackmail clients lived and worked. And, of course, she couldn’t say good
bye to this life without paying one last visit to the place she called home.
She knew better than to park in the lot visible to the street. It was early, but Vinny had called in the troops. And they were either out hunting for her or heading after the Devils. And both gangs frequented Jackman’s too frequently for it to be place of refuge for her. Still, she wanted to sit in her car and take a second to let the memories wash over her.
It was hard not to be nostalgic. This was the place she sang her heart out each and every week on the dusty, creaky wooden stage. It was where she learned how to deal out business transactions and force men and women to do her bidding by acquiring information. She knew how to be confident and brave because of Jackman’s and she had gotten her first taste of power and control just by working there.
Gloria got out of her car and took in the air. The weather had changed dramatically, making it much warmer than before. The heat helped the smell of the old wood and hard liquor waft in her direction. She took a deep breath in and spun around to see the full bar in view. From the corner of her eye, a red van caught her eye.
Jordan’s van was still in the parking lot. The last time she had seen him, he was laying out his plan to move back home with his uncle. He was begging her to come with, to start over in a safe space with him. She had been there for him when he was desperate, now he was offering her a life raft, but she couldn’t take it.
The thought of him coming back to their shared apartment dawned on him. She couldn’t bear to let him think she was taken, or worse, by the broken doors, shattered window, and blood stains. Gloria had to warn him, so she took out her notebook and wrote down a quick explanation. She then headed back to where the van was parked and opened the door with the spare key she kept for safekeeping for him. She set the key and the paper on the driver’s seat. But before she could shut the door and turn around, the sound of a little squeal and the sight of four bare feet startled her.
“Jordan?” Gloria called out.
“Gloria?” Jordan was floored at the sight of his roommate, bandmate, and manager. He had just finished making love to Casey and was soundly napping away when Casey let out an embarrassed warning shout. The couple covered themselves with their discarded clothes and the few blankets Jordan used to conceal his band equipment.
“I’m sorry, kid. I didn’t, uh, know. I just wanted to leave you a note about the place in case you went back.” Gloria wasn’t sure how much to tell him in this sensitive time. She was embarrassed enough at finding Casey and Jordan in that state as it was. It wasn’t exactly time to tell him that she had trashed their old place and was now on the run from the motorcycle clubs.
Jordan opened the door to the back seat and ran to the front driver’s side of the van as he tossed on a pair of boxers and a t-shirt. “What’s going on? What is happening?” Jordan could see the look of fear on Gloria’s face and the way she had stammered back. Something was very off about her.
“The house…we had to trash it a bit. You shouldn’t go back unless you have to. The Horsemen are there now—or at least, they will be. And they’ll be looking for me. Whatever they ask you or say, you haven’t seen me. Got it?”
“Yeah, of course. I’m out of town in a day or so anyways. I got my uncle to change my bus ticket…and get another one for Casey in exchange for her babysitting the kids for a couple of days to pay her way.” Jordan was smiling from ear to ear. Gloria had long watched Jordan fall in lust and love with the Tavern’s young bartender. She had her choice of any man, but Jordan had clearly won out.
“That’s great. But be safe. Watch out for her, and make sure she understands the plan.”
Jordan interrupted her as he offered, “You can still come with, Gloria. Take that money in your envelopes and just start a new life with us. We can still watch out for each other.”
“That’s sweet kid, but I’m trouble. It follows me and I can’t stay away either. I can’t put that on you or Casey. You guys get out of this town and go off and make tons of babies. That’s all I ask of you.” She was sincere: if anyone deserved to escape off into the sunset, it was Jordan and Casey.
Jordan looked at her. This wasn’t Gloria. She was not one to give in. “What is going on, Gloria? What is happening?”
“You know I can’t tell you. If you knew, you’d be part of this.” She shook her head, trying to brush him off.
“Does it have to do with the Smith’s family getting broken into last night and Junior hiding out at Cattleman’s Ranch with the owner?”
What he said struck her. She, of course, knew about the Smith family. With the bar being full of locals and bikers, she was not surprised that the news had gotten around fast in the circles. But Junior being found alive and well was something totally new. She had not heard and she doubted Vinny had known either. It was not something he would keep from her.
She tried to hold back her pressing questions, “What happened to Junior? Why is he hiding out?”
“No one knows. Casey says the Devils are keeping him in a safe house for now. He knows something about who murdered one of their people and it’s one of the Horsemen. By the sounds of it, it was the same Horsemen who tried to take down Junior’s family. And the Horsemen are talking like they are gearing up for a war at Landcaster’s Quarry.” His voice trailed off as he thought to himself.
“What do you mean? Why would you think that?” Gloria knew Jordan had developed listening and eavesdropping skills in the time he worked with her. Combined with his girlfriend’s knowledge, the two had more intel on the town than just about anyone else outside of her.
“Before Casey closed up, she started hearing word that the Horsemen were going the opposite direction of where the Devils were hiding Junior and were starting to stake out Landcaster’s Quarry. But the odd part is that no one mentioned guarding Junior. Both clubs are just headin’ out to the Quarry, itchin’ for a fight…”
“I’d suspect we’re both gettin’ outta here at the right time, then. Ain’t worth the danger anymore.” Gloria couldn’t help but feel her heart beat fast as she took in everything Jordan told her about the two clubs, Junior’s location, and the impending battle that was about to go down. The taste of new information was always fresh and juicy.
Jordan looked his old boss up and down. He knew her and how she couldn’t resist a secret or two. And now that she was hanging with the Horsemen and playing around with their ranks, she was even more at risk of going too far. He warned her, “Gloria, if you’re about to do somethin’ stupid—don’t. It’s not worth it. You’re just gonna wind up dead like that Devils guy who got himself involved.”
“I’m okay. I’ll be all right. I always land on my feet. Now, I’ve got to get going, and so do you. Get you and Casey out of here and keep away from the apartment, you hear?” She watched as Jordan nodded and then headed back to her car.
The sun was now shining down upon her and everything was so much clearer. She had the perfect light to open her notebook once more and take notes on what Jordan had just told her. She added a row to her list with the name of “Smith, Junior” in the name column. While her time as a blackmailer may be over, she was still in the habit of collecting secrets. After all, she never knew if it would come in handy in the future.
With one last look at the Tavern she loved and the boy she cared for like a brother, she, once again, drove off into the unknown. This time, there wasn’t anything to look back at. She only had her dangerless future and the open road in front of her.
CHAPTER TWENTY
“What are we waitin’ for, boss?” Terry was growing antsy. He had been at the post for almost four hours now and there had not been one sign of their mark or his accompanies. It was just a rundown shack that the workers used as their meeting space before heading out to the dig site of the day.
“We don’t wanna go in too hot too fast,” Benni said softly. “Either that little bitch is comin’ out, or we’re goin’ in—but either way, we gotta do this right.” He understood Terry’s point—
there wasn’t anything visible standing between them and busting down Junior’s hideout. But the Devils knew they were after Junior; they would almost certainly be waiting, wanting more blood.
All of Benni’s hopes were in his crew: twenty-five of them in all, armed with bats, knives, and axes. They certainly weren’t well trained; they were just strongmen with the grit and mindset to kill a man. Most had proven their worth by taking a man or two down already in the name of the Horsemen. Some were bodyguards; others were just the men Benni trusted to stand with him in a showdown like this...all except Vinny. Benni watched from the back of the flatbed truck where four of them laid flat under a tarp. Vinny rested his head at the opposite side with a look of complete of disinterest. His mind was clearly somewhere else -- something that was never good when you needed to be fired up and ready.
For a guy whose woman had just been taken out by a rival gang member, he also seemed quite dispassionate. Benni knew that if anyone touched his old lady or even just one of his side girls, he’d be the first one with a bat and a knife. But Vinny just lounged back against the red painted door waiting for instructions like a child would wait to begin a test.
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