BAD BOY ROMANCE: DIESEL: Contemporary Bad Boy Biker MC Romance (Box Set) (New Adult Sports Romance Short Stories Boxset)

by Parker, Kylee

  He opened the drapes and handed Niall the key. The room looked like an old fashioned sitting parlor. The couch was long and covered in a red velvet which matched the drapes and an arm chair with intricate carved wood along the back, arms, and legs. The carpet was plush and didn’t look worn at all, in fact it looked new, and was a pale dusty rose like the exterior. Niall was pleased to see a tiny kitchen with ice bucket, little sink, microwave, and mini fridge.

  “Have a nice stay.” The old man murmured, tried to wink, and then shuffled to the door.

  “This place is fantastic!” Sinclair beamed, coming out of the bedroom.

  Niall entered and looked at the elaborate bed with wispy netting crisscrossed over the top, connected by the four banisters. The colors matched what was in the sitting room.

  “Sit on this bed!”

  Niall sat down carefully beside her and immediately wanted to lay back. It was soft and inviting. Sinclair grinning at him made him want to pull her down with him. He stood quickly, and tripped, losing his balance.

  “Easy, Tiger!” Sinclair giggled.

  Niall grabbed her wrists and pulled her closer. “What did you say?”

  “Nothing…it’s just a saying.” Her green eyes were large and frightened.

  Niall let go of her and ran a hand through his hair.

  “Sorry. It’s just been a strange day. I’m tired.”

  Sinclair moved past him cautiously. “Lay down for a while. There’s only one bed, but you can use it. I can take the couch.”

  “It’s not very big…”

  Sinclair whirled on him. “So what are you saying? You don’t think my fat ass can fit on it?”

  Niall waved his hands in front of his chest. “No! I didn’t mean anything like that!”

  “Right.” Sinclair said and stormed from the room.

  Niall laid back on the bed, his head spinning. Just what in the hell was happening? He could feel the draw to this woman, and it was intensifying at a rate which could only mean one thing: she was destined to be his mate.

  Niall didn’t know how to feel about it. She was pretty, nice, seemed smart. Yet, he just didn’t know if he was ready for a mate. He knew there was no stopping it once it happened. If she didn’t feel it already, she too would soon. Just their proximity alone would spark something in her.

  Niall curled up on his side thinking she probably didn’t like him very much at the moment. It wasn’t his fault she was insecure.

  Sinclair felt stupid standing at the window crying. He hadn’t meant anything by the comment, and even if he had, what did she care?

  She turned with a sigh and looked at the table by the sofa. There was a phone and when she pulled the drawer open she found a telephone book.

  Sinclair sat on the sofa with the book on her lap. Why couldn’t she do a little investigation? She opened it to the white pages and went to the O’s. There were fifteen Overman’s listed. She had never met Joseph’s parents and had no idea what their first names were, or even if they were listed in the white pages, but it was worth a shot.

  Fifteen minutes later, Sinclair pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed loudly. There was only one left: Mr. and Mrs. Walter Overman.

  The phone rang eight times, and Sinclair was about to hang up, when a winded female voice came on the line.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi.” Sinclair said, her eyes bright and her back straight. “I’m looking for Joseph Overman.”

  There was a pause, and she could her the strike of a lighter, followed by a sharp inhalation of breath.

  “He’s not here right now.”

  Bingo. “Do you know when he’ll be back? It’s important that I reach him.”

  Another pause.

  “He didn’t say. He breezed in here last night after a two year silence.”

  “Did he say where he was going?”

  “And just who are you?”

  “Sinclair…his girlfriend.”

  The woman wheezed and laughed. “Girlfriend, huh? You better check with him on that, because he showed up here last night with some black girl.”

  “We’re…having problems.”

  She wheeze laughed again. “Well, if you’re tangled up with Joseph, you’re going to have problems sure enough!”

  “Right.” Sinclair bit her lip. “Mrs. Overman, could I come and speak with you?”

  “Honey, I don’t know why you need to do that, but sure…I guess it will be alright.”

  Sinclair wrote down directions after telling her what hotel she was in.

  “Mrs. Overman, please…if you see him, don’t tell him I called or that I’m coming.”

  “Oh, I won’t! It’s high time my grandson get his just desserts!”

  Grandson? Sinclair put the receiver back on the cradle and thought about what she would say if Joseph did happen to be there. None of the words that came to mind should be spoken in front of someone’s grandmother.

  The day was winding to a close, and Sinclair was beat, but they needed to move on this while the woman was at home.

  Sinclair entered the bedroom and looked down at Niall’s curled up frame. He was such a handsome man, but at times a very hard one. She wondered what it would feel like to run her hands through his short black hair. Would it be course, soft, or that perfect somewhere in between? She reached an unsteady hand forward, praying he wouldn’t wake up, and gently ran her fingers through his hair.

  Niall’s eyes flew open and he was up and straddling Sinclair’s where he had tossed her with lightning speed onto the bed. He raised a hand, claw like, as if to swipe it across her face.

  Sinclair let out a scream and covered her head.

  Niall’s fierce expression faded as he realized who she was and what he had done. He pulled her arms off of her head, hating the tears which leaked from the corners of her eyes.

  “You startled me.” He whispered.

  Sinclair, wide eyed, couldn’t find the words she wanted. The only ones that came out made no sense, but what she was seeing made no sense.

  “Your eyes…they’re changing.”

  “What?”

  “They were amber for a second.”

  Niall thought quickly. “Trick of the light.”

  Sinclair wanted to argue the point, but was suddenly very aware that he was still straddled on top of her. He had planted a hand on either side of her shoulders, and was staring down at her with intensity. He didn’t look angry. He didn’t look happy. He looked hungry.

  “You’re so beautiful, Sinclair, but you don’t see it.”

  “I am when I’m made up.” She replied weakly. She could no longer concentrate on anything but the shape of his lips.

  “You don’t need that stuff.” He replied, his head moving lower towards hers.

  Sinclair didn’t have a response. All she cared about was his lips, and the way the heat coming off his body was making her head reel.

  Niall kissed her hard, forcing her lips apart. She tasted like mints, the cinnamon kind, and he couldn’t taste enough. He moved his head, his lips still on hers and shifted his weight so one knee could push her legs open. He wanted to feel their bodies entwined, he wanted to see how the fit would feel. He thrust against her and smiled into her mouth at how perfect it truly was.

  Sinclair wanted this strange man like she had never wanted another before, but red flags and dinging alarms were going off in her head.

  I barely know him! This is no time for lusty encounters!

  Sinclair raised up on her elbows, a low tortured sound coming from her chest as he ground his hips against her again, his hands grabbing at her hair, and his growing erection trying to push past the zipper of his jeans. She pushed against his chest, and turned her head to the side.

  “Niall!” She breathed. “Niall…wait.”

  He leaned back and looked at her with concern. “Did I hurt you?”

  “No…no…that’s not it.” She slid upward on the bed, and he reached for her. “What are we doing, Niall?”

/>   Niall sat back and rested his hands on his thighs. “I don’t know…I’m sorry.”

  It was Sinclair’s turn to grab for him. “Don’t be sorry! I just don’t want to do one night stands.”

  Niall considered this with a nod. “I don’t either.”

  “You don’t?”

  He turned and sat with his back to her, his shaking hands clasped between his knees.

  “No, I don’t. I don’t believe in it.”

  Sinclair touched her lips. She wanted him back on top of her. The situation had taken a further turn into the strange, but she liked this part. Yet…

  “We should just take it slow. We have a hard thing to do here.”

  “Yeah.”

  “I found Joseph’s Grandmother.”

  Niall turned and looked at her. “How?”

  She smiled and shrugged. “I called every Overman in the book.”

  Niall returned her smile. This one was a keeper.

  “I can’t imagine Joseph growing up out here in Bayou country.” Sinclair said as they pulled into the gravel driveway of a modular home. A hound bayed them a welcome song.

  Niall scanned the house for movement and focused on the silhouette that appeared in the doorway. Only one light was burning in the house.

  “Let’s go.”

  They got out of the car and were startled by a woman yelling for “Oscar” to “come here” and “stop that fussing”. Sinclair recognized the voice, and wasn’t surprised to see the cigarette hanging from the woman’s lips. She had on a house dress and slippers with multi colored socks. Her short gray hair was in need of a curling.

  “Well, you must be Sinclair.”

  “Yes, Mam.”

  “And who’s this?” The old woman asked, eying Niall warily.

  “This is Niall. He’s a friend helping me find Joseph.

  She nodded once, and held the screen door open for them. “Well, come inside.”

  The little house was packed with various knick knacks and mismatched furniture, but Sinclair could smell the distinctive lingering odor of bleach, and knew that the woman kept the house clean.

  “Ya’ll want some coffee or something?”

  “No thank you.” Niall and Sinclair said in unison.

  “Sit down.” She motioned to the kitchen table.

  Sinclair smiled lightly at the penguin salt and pepper shakers.

  “So, you’re looking for Joseph.” She said flatly, and crushed her cigarette out in an ashtray.

  “Yes.” Sinclair licked her lips. “The truth is, I was his girlfriend, but it’s a little more complicated than that.”

  She nodded, her pale blue eyes knowing. “Yeah, I thought as much. Are you pregnant then?”

  Sinclair’s mouth flew open. “What?”

  “There’s no shame in it, honey, I mean he already has a son he never sees.”

  “He…what?”

  “Yeah…little boy nearly five years old.”

  Niall glanced at Sinclair. Her face had turned a scarlet red.

  “And where is he?”

  The woman jerked her thumb towards the hallway. “In his room playing.”

  “You’re raising him?” Sinclair couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Joseph was more of a dead beat than she had previously thought.

  “I am. It’s hard, with my age and all, but at least his mother sends money to help out. Joseph…well I already told you I hadn’t heard a word for two years.”

  Sinclair placed her palms flat on the table and took a deep breath. “Mrs. Overman…”

  “Carla. You can call me Carla.”

  “Carla, Joseph is in some trouble back in Florida.”

  The woman barked a laugh and lit another cigarette. “I bet he his!”

  “The problem is, he has gotten me tangled up in it too. He stole something from a very dangerous man.”

  The woman took a drag of her cigarette and nodded. “Would that something be in a velvet bag?”

  Niall and Sinclair looked at each other quickly.

  “Yes, Mam, it is, but we aren’t sure what he has exactly.”

  “It’s a pendant of sorts.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure. It’s old. He showed it to me, and that black girl he was with…” She shook her head. “Well, her eyes lit up like the fourth of July when he pulled it out of the bag. Must not have been but so good though, because she started mumbling in Creole and crossed herself. I didn’t like the thing, but it was pretty. It had some kind of black fancy trim, but the stone…well, it just didn’t look right.”

  “What do you mean?” Niall asked.

  “It didn’t have a distinct color. One way it looked blood red, another it looked black, yet another turn of the wrist and it was a deep dark green.” She narrowed one eye and pointed at them with her half smoked cigarette. “The thing that got me was how it made me feel.”

  “How did it make you feel?” Sinclair whispered, remembering the words of the man on the floor in Joseph’s apartment.

  “Like the damn thing was watching me!”

  They sat in silence for several seconds. Niall had a prickling at the base of his skull, and wiped his hand back there to try and make it stop.

  “Did he say what he planned on doing with it? Is he going to sell it?”

  “Said he already tried, but the woman…Angela I think he said…she wouldn’t touch it. Told him if he ever set foot in her place again she would put a curse on him.” Carla cackled. “A curse!”

  “What will he do with it then?” Niall asked.

  “I don’t know, but he better get rid of it.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  The woman stood and took a glass from the cabinet. She filled it with tap water and drank like her life depended on it. Movement caught Sinclair’s eye and she saw the little boy of Joseph’s standing in the hallway. He had curly brown hair and deep set dark eyes. His sin had the dusky hue of one who’s mixed with other races. In a word, the child was beautiful. He chewed on the tip of his finger and Sinclair was horrified to see that he had made himself bleed.

  “He’s bleeding!” She exclaimed and pushed back from the table.

  Carla hurried to the boy and pulled him towards the sink, speaking softly to him. She rinsed his hand and wrapped a paper towel around it.

  “What happened to his neck?” Niall asked.

  Carla turned the boy around and stared at the spot on his neck. It was oddly shaped, similar to a hexagon, but warped, and not quite right. Carla backed away and pursed her lips.

  “It’s the stone.”

  “What?” Niall asked, feeling the air leave his lungs.

  “They must have marked him with it!”

  “I don’t understand.” Sinclair said, her eyes darting from the boy to his great grandmother’s ashen face.

  “It’s the same shape as the stone…and look…” She turned the boy towards the light, gently moving him back and forth by the shoulders. The mark on the back of his neck changed. It looked like a bruise of black and purple, then it became a bruise of dark green and deep red. She stared at them, her old eyes frightened and confused. “It’s the colors of the stone.”

  Sinclair wanted to roll the window down of their rented Mustang and howl at the moon. A madness was creeping into her mind using tendrils of horror to poke and probe. She twisted in the seat and glared at Niall’s slight hunch over the steering wheel. He was no longer laid back and casual in his gestures; he was driving from Carlas house like the devil himself chased them.

  “That child…”

  The skin around his eyes tightened. “I doubt that child was right before.”

  “Before?”

  He shot her a hard look. “Before they…did…whatever to him!” Niall swallowed and gripped the steering wheel tighter. Just two bounties left, one for the paranormal and one for the humans. Just two and he was done; off to retire from the craziness of this life. Crazy just had just gone to a whole new level and he didn’t see an end
to it in sight. No, it was just beginning.

  “Gabriel.”

  “What?”

  “The child’s name…Gabriel. It seems an odd name considering.”

  Niall let air out of his lungs and growled. “Considering what? Considering that your boyfriend is messed up in the voodoo and his baby’s momma most likely was too?”

  “Carla didn’t know that for sure.” Sinclair chose to ignore Niall’s use of the word ‘boyfriend’ in the present tense.

  Niall jerked one hand off of the steering wheel and shot it upwards. “She doesn’t know anything for sure!” He tilted his head to the side. “What old woman just takes her great grandchild to raise, with no questions asked?”

  “The same old woman who raised her grandson before.”

  “And that’s another thing. Does this family just pop out babies and leave them for the elderly to raise?”

  Sinclair shrugged helplessly. She knew it was a growing problem in the United States, especially among the impoverished, but she couldn’t answer his question. She didn’t know the dynamics of this particular family. Joseph had hidden, or outright lied, about every aspect of his life.

  “I need to call Enrique.”

  “Why?”

  “I need to know if Joseph wanted a different job before he was hired as a grounds keeper. I need to know the circumstance of their initial arrangement.”

  “What difference would that make?”

  “A lot.” Niall glanced at her again feeling a moment of pity for her pale face. The glow of the dash gave her an almost sickly look. For all he knew she may very well have been feeling sick. “Joseph may have known about the stone before Enrique hired him.”

  “Motive.”

  “Exactly.”

  Their hotel suite was a welcome sight, and Sinclair pulled the drapes tightly shut, cutting on every light. The stairwell and hallway had been lit with soft pinkish lights, and she supposed it was meant to be soothing or even sexy, but all it had done was add to her anxiety and made her feel like they were being followed. She blamed it on too many cheesy horror movies.