Gambler

by KJ Dahlen

  He grabbed her by the throat and pulled her closer to him. His lips smothered hers and together they stumbled toward the bed. He ripped her shirt up over her head and tore her panties off.

  She stood naked before him tall and proud, well as tall as she could be at a little over five feet tall.

  His fingers fumbled with the button of his pants and he pushed the jeans down over his hips and legs. He laid her down on the bed and followed her.

  Paige opened her legs making room for him between her thighs.

  His hard hot cock nudged her wet slit but he didn’t push inside her, not yet. Instead, he dropped his head and began nibbling on her nipple. Her skin was pale and freckles lined her shoulders, he loved those damn adorable freckles...and he loved her breasts. They weren’t overly large nor too small either but instead they filled his big hands just right.

  Her nipples were dark brown and at the moment, they were hard and full of promise. His suckled them and caught her groan as he pleasured her. Then he grinned slightly as he bit down on the hard tiny buttons.

  Paige groaned louder and pressed his head into her chest. Gambler’s hand reached down and began to stroke her core. He met her wetness and slathered it on his fingers. Pressing one finger inside her, Paige groaned yet again. When he pressed two fingers deep inside her, she ached her back to allow him deeper penetration.

  She was so wet there was no resistance as he fingered her. He felt her body respond to his touch and when she shattered, he was there for her. He pushed his hard cock deep inside her and he could feel her tremors as her walls tightened around him. Riding out her first climax, he felt her body accept him as he rammed inside her deeper than he’d even been before. She was going to come again.

  Gambler lifted her legs and adjusted his angle and soon his cock was hitting her cervix. Paige cried out in her pleasure, then begged him for more.

  “Please I need you, harder, faster ...”

  Gambler ramped up his thrusts and grabbed her hips. Lifting her ass off the bed completely, he rammed his cock deep inside her and he felt her body tighten. She threw her head back and opened her mouth but no sound came out as she screamed silently in ultimate pleasure.

  He felt her body explode and he couldn’t help himself as he followed her over the edge. He filled her as he shouted out her name. Slumping over the top of her body, beads of sweat dripped from his brow. He watched as the drop of him mixed and mingled with her sweat.

  For a moment he could barely breathe, his heart was pounding so hard in his chest. His muscles were almost frozen and he really had to work to slid to her side. “Oh my god, I think you broke me...”

  Lifting her limp hand, he pressed it into his chest. “Can you feel my heart pound? It’s never done that before.”

  Paige laughed in a breathless way. She was too worn out to move herself. “You should feel mine.”

  “I don’t think I can move my hand at the moment.” He quipped back. Pulling her into his arms, he kissed her gently. “Rest sweetheart, tomorrow is another day.”

  The next morning came all too quickly as the sun peeked into their bedroom. Gambler groaned and snuggled into Paige’s warn naked body. His strength was back and so was his hunger. He would never get enough of her.

  He would have done something about his raging hunger but he made the mistake of looking at the alarm clock. It was already after seven and he knew everyone would be up and moving at any time.

  Paige snuggled in tightly to his side wrapping her arms around his waist. “Is it time to get up already?” she murmured with her eyes closed.

  “Yeah,” he grumbled. “As much as I would like to stay in this bed with you all day, I have to get up.”

  Paige rose up on her elbow and looked down at him. Without saying a word, she leaned over and kissed him good morning. She looked into his eyes and whispered, “You be careful out there today. I want you to come home to me and Dusty safe and sound.”

  Gambler shook his head. “I’m staying home today. We got too much to do here for me to be leaving you and my boy.”

  “Are you sure?” She questioned. “I don’t want you to think I’m being a baby about this.”

  “Honey, you aren’t being a baby, not about this. This guy almost beat you to death when you wouldn’t go out with him. He’s not sane and insane people tend to fuck up when they’re put to the test. He’s gonna make a mistake and that’s when we’ll take him down, we’re gonna take him down hard. He’s gonna wish he’d never been born by the time we’re done with him.”

  “I want to say don’t kill him but I can’t. I think killing him is the only way to make sure he doesn’t come back,” Paige whispered.

  Gambler smiled. “That’s your tender heart talking now, but you’re right, if we don’t put him down he’ll be back and he’ll always be a threat to you and Cricket. That is certainly not acceptable, not to me, and not to Raine.”

  Paige looked up at him. “Do you think Cricket will be ok? She didn’t seem so good last night. I can’t imagine what Deke said to her but whatever it was it crushed her.”

  “I imagine I’ll find out today. I know Raine was pissed off and it could mean trouble in the family.” He sat up and groaned as his muscles stretched. Walking over to his dresser, he grabbed clean clothes and got dressed.

  He heard a noise in the hall and smiled. “Sounds like Dusty’s awake.”

  Paige groaned as she pushed the covers off. Grabbing her clothes, she went into the bathroom.

  Ten minutes later, Paige arrived at the kitchen and saw Gambler had made coffee and set out cereal for his son. She ruffled Dusty’s hair and grabbed the coffee Gambler handed her.

  “Can I go over to Cricket’s house today?” Dusty asked. “She’s gonna need help with the babies.”

  Paige smiled. “Maybe we should both go over and help with the babies. I’m sure she can use the help and that way, we can all stay together.”

  Dusty nodded. “That way I can protect both of you.” He turned to his dad. “Right dad? I can protect both Paige and Cricket right?”

  Gambler nodded. “That’s your job today boy, you protect the women.”

  Dusty nodded back. “I can do that.”

  Gambler nodded once. “Good, we’re counting on you.”

  Dusty gave him a thumb’s up and finished his cereal. Carrying his bowl over to the sink he looked at Paige and asked, “Are you ready to go?”

  Paige grinned and nodded. “Yup.”

  “Then let’s go, we got people to see and things to do.”

  Paige just about chocked on her coffee. She turned her head to Gambler and fought to keep a burst of laughter in.

  Gambler said that every morning on his way to work. He flushed a bit then smirked and gave her a kiss goodbye. “I’ll come over later on to check on you guys. I want to talk to Deke this morning.”

  Paige took Dusty’s hand and together, they walked out the door.

  Gambler watched them go and reached for his phone. Placing a call to Raina he found out that he too, was staying close to home today. They made plans to meet at the clubhouse so they could both talk to Deke.

  When they got there Hound, Black Jack and Judge were already there. Deke, Bones and Mountain were hunched over the table with Zipper and he was doing god knows what with his computer.

  When Raine and Gambler joined the rest of their family he asked what was going on.

  Black Jack glanced over at his two sons and said, “We’re running this son of a bitch down. Cricket told Raine last night that there was more to Sinner than we knew about. Cordy used to tell her stories about what they did when they were together.”

  Gambler narrowed his eyes and glared at his dad. “And what did you find out?”

  “Very little yet but we only got started.” Black Jack nodded.

  Gambler glanced over at Deke. “What are they doing?”

  “The same thing but it doesn’t look like they’re doing much better than we are.”

  Gambler thought
about something for a moment then walked over to Deke. When he got the other man’s attention he asked, “How much are you able to find out?”

  Deke ran his fingers through his hair. “Not enough. Not nearly enough.”

  “We’re running out of time here.” Gambler growled.

  “I know.” Deke seethed. “Don’t you think I know that?” He kicked the garbage can half way across the room startling everyone there. “I even called Guenther back and asked his about Sinner’s skills. He was an enforcer for the MC. He was trained in hand to hand. He could use a knife, a gun and a cross bow.”

  “A cross bow?” Gambler frowned.

  “Yeah, a fucking cross bow. He was a sharp shooter with a bow and arrow.” Deke growled. “Gunter told me he never fucking missed his mark and he ended up an enforcer because of his killing skills. He told me they used his particular skills when they wanted a silent kill.”

  “Shit, that means he doesn’t even have to be close to take out the women or my son.” Gambler closed his hands to fists.

  Deke snapped his head around to glare at him. “I know that. We need to find him first. Find him and take him out.” Then Deke looked harder at Gambler. “Why would he be interested in Dusty? He’s got nothing to do with either of the women.”

  “If he’s been watching the compound for days, then he knows Dusty is very important to both women. He doesn’t seem the type of guy not to use that to his own advantage,” Gambler informed him.

  “Fucking hell.” Deke swore.

  “You need to get more protection on Raine’s house.” Bones told his son. “Those women need protection and fast.”

  “We may have to move them closer to the clubhouse. Right now, they’re too far away from the rest of us with little to no protection,” Deke agreed.

  “We can move them over here today if that’s what you want,” Gambler told them.

  “That would be for the best.” Deke nodded. “Then I want teams searching the woods for any sign of this mother fucker. I’m going to ask Amos to organize his men to search out the city and get a tracker on this bastard.” He nodded at his dad. “We need to get ready for what could be a war.”

  “A war we may not win,” Gambler said the words out loud.

  “A war we have to win,” Bones assured him. “We ain’t running from this little bastard and we ain’t giving up on our family. We’re gonna find this little fucker and take his ass out.”

  Deke looked over at Gambler. “Get your family over here and under our protection.”

  Gambler nodded then turned to join his brothers and dad. He looked over at Raine. “Deke wants the families here at the clubhouse for protection. Your house is too far away and this guy is an ace with across bow and hand to hand.”

  “Oh fuck, Cricket isn’t going to like that,” Raine complained as he stared at Deke.

  “At least, she’ll be alive to complain about it,” Gambler told his brother.

  Chapter Ten

  Cricket’s mood was a little better this morning but not a whole lot. She could almost feel the tension in the air grow thicker as the sun rose in the eastern sky. She woke up around four and rather than disturb Raine, she went down the hall to the nursery to check on her sweet babies. They were all asleep and looked well cared for as each wore a contented smile. Kissing them all she went back to her bedroom and sat by the window watching the early morning sun chase the night shadows away.

  She had quietly watched the sunrise for a while now. Before Raine had built them a house, she used to stand at the window of their room at the clubhouse every morning like clockwork to see the last few minutes of night change over to day.

  She had told him then that the few moments between night and day was a reminder that the shadows hadn’t taken her and for the most part that had been the truth, just not the whole truth.

  The whole truth was much darker than that. When she was just a little girl, she had a nightmare one night. Her dream had been so real she was never able to forget it. In her dreams, she had been standing in a field of wheat and everything around her was still. Not a breeze blew, no sound broke the silence, not even a bird could be heard.

  Then the shadows began to move, quietly and threatening. They edged toward where Cricket was standing. Fear grew inside the little girl as the shadows got bigger and seemed to move in mass to overtake her. She watched as the sun peeked up over the horizon but the shadows didn’t disappear, instead they surrounded her, choking out the light of day that was spreading everywhere but near her.

  She could feel the shadows pressing down on her and each moment that passed seemed to make the shadows heavier until she could hardly breathe. Her lungs fought to take in and expel the much needed oxygen she needed to breathe but it was a battle she felt she was losing.

  Then something warm touched her and slowly the shadows began to wane. A single shaft of light broke through the darkness that was smothering her soul. The shadows began to disappear and she turned her eyes to the brightening light growing around her.

  When she turned to see what had broken into her nightmare she found the shining light surrounding her mother’s face. Searching her mother’s eyes, she saw an understanding deep within them. Then her mother leaned over her and whispered something in her ear.

  But for the life of her, Cricket could never remember what her mother told her. Her mother had saved her from the night terrors but the little girl could never remember what her mother’s last words to her were.

  She watched as her mother got weaker and weaker and finally her mother moved no more. Cordy and cancer had taken her mother into a dark place where no one could follow.

  But this morning as she watched the dawn chase away the shadows of the night she remembered that dream and as the last shadow blended away she heard her mother’s whisper again, but this time she actually heard the words her mother had whispered so many years ago.

  As clear as day, she heard her mother’s voice inside her head as she spoke, “Don’t let the shadows take you, you are stronger than they are. Do not show them your fear but instead fight for the light. Fight for the light. Love is the light that beats back the darkness. Fight for love every time. That is what will save your soul. Fight for love.”

  Cricket gasped as she heard the echo of her mom’s voice in her head. Closing her eyes, she leaned her forehead against the glass of the window between her and the evaporating shadows. As a child, she didn’t know what her mother’s words meant but now as an adult and a mother, she remembered the words. Remembered and understood their meaning.

  She glanced over at the bed where Raine was still sleeping. As her eyes saw him lying there, her heart filled with the love she had for him. He was only part of the light her mother had been talking about that day. Love would stand between her and the shadows of her fear. The other bigger part of her love was for the three babies resting down the hall.

  Her saving grace had been the love she felt for Dusty long before he was even born she had loved him. That love was what saved her from giving into the darkness surrounding Cordy. The love she had for Cordy’s child had given her enough hope to beat back the shadows that threatened her world.

  Dusty may have saved her then but now Raine and her own babies had filled in the missing pieces of her soul. Cricket smiled, as she finally understood her mother’s message. Love had saved her from the darkness and love would save her again.

  She knew at that moment that love was her saving grace and with her faith that Raine would always stand beside her. He was her rock, her foundation to build on. She glanced out the window and saw the yard was filled with sunlight. The shadows were gone now and would always be gone.

  Looking toward the sky, she saw one star still twinkling in the lightening sky. Cricket smiled and whispered, “Thanks Mom. You came through for me again. I love you.”

  Now in the full light of day as she stood at the window and looked outside, she could feel unseen eyes staring back through the lingering shadows of the woods. She kne
w Sinner was out there somewhere waiting to bring back the shadows of fear.

  Paige came up behind her and looked out the window as well. “Do you really think he’s out there watching us?”

  Cricket nodded. “Can’t you feel him? He’s the evil hiding in the shadows.”

  Paige shivered. “Yeah, I can feel him.” Moving closer to the window she added, “As much as I want to deny it I can’t. I’ve felt this way for over a week now and Gambler told me that’s about as long as they’ve been having trouble at the worksites. He’s been here for over a week.”

  They both watched as Max ran around the backyard. Cricket had let him out a little earlier to do his thing. Just as she turned to leave, she heard an odd sound. She turned back to see an arrow pierce Max’s side. Max yelped and his body flew five feet through the air. Coming to rest, he slammed up against the back steps.

  Cricket screamed, “Max!” She tried to run to the backdoor to check on his when Paige stopped her.

  Paige wrapped her arms around Cricket’s waist and held on. “You can’t go out there! He’s waiting for you to come to Max. He’ll kill you, don’t you understand that?”

  Molly had come running when Cricket screamed. Slowly, she came toward the window and glanced outside. She saw Max’s body, and could hear the dog whimpering. Tears rolled down her face.

  Cricket pushed Paige away and went back to the window to look out at Max. “Maxie, I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

  She was staring out the window when she heard the odd sound again. Raising her eyes, she saw another arrow coming toward her house. Only this time the arrow was on fire. “Oh, god no...” she whispered and backed up a step or two.

  They all heard the thud as the arrow pierced the roof. Then they heard another thud and another, three in all. After the first thud, there had been an odd whooshing sound.

  “What the hell was that?” Paige cried out.

  “He shot flaming arrows at the roof!” Cricket screamed as she turned to the stairway. “My babies are upstairs.”