Knox (An Out of the Cage Novel Book 3)

by Lane Hart

  “You’re a smart girl; I’m sure you’ve figured it out. What happens to fighters when they fall and don’t wake up? I can’t very well take them to the ER, can I?” Mario asks her, getting so close to a confession I can almost taste it.

  “Come on, Gabrielle,” I mutter to myself since she’s not wearing an earpiece.

  “So you…you killed him?” she asks, and I hear everyone on the line gasp before we collectively hold our breath waiting for his response…

  “No harm in telling you now, I guess, is there?” Mario starts. “I highly doubt you’ll leave the club alive tonight, so yes, when Robbie remained unconscious for more than an hour, I smothered him with a stack of towels myself because nobody else had the balls to do it. And then I had him thrown in the river.”

  “Holy shit, she did it! Go people, now!” I order since Mario not only confessed to killing Robbie but just threatened Gabrielle’s life. I jerk the van door open and pull my Ruger from my holster as I run at full speed toward the club’s back entrance that Gabrielle told us is the closest door to Mario’s office where they must be right now.

  I don’t hear anything else over the wire because the sound of my own rushing blood drowns it out as I meet up with the four undercovers in the parking lot and we pull a gun on the bouncer to force our way into the building. At the same exact time, I hear everyone else going in the front, including gunshots that make me wince, not just because I worry that one of our officers was hurt, but because Gabrielle’s time is running out as we race down the hallway, looking for Mario’s office.

  He’s so close I can hear him yelling, not just on the wire now.

  “Goddamn it!” the mobster shouts. “She’s wearing a fucking wire! Put a bullet in this cunt’s head before they–”

  Oh fuck! We’re out of time!

  I burst through the door with my gun aimed and the men behind me doing the same before I yell, “Mario Guerra you’re under arrest for the murder of Robert Kelly!”

  Thank God, he and his body guards freeze rather than try to fire at us. So, trusting my backup, I holster my gun and go around to wrench Mario’s hands behind his back, hating that the asshole is tainting my handcuffs that I prefer to only use on Knox.

  Not only am I relieved Gabrielle is unharmed, but it’s a heavy burden that finally slips off my shoulders after keeping up my part of the deal with Knox, that I would keep his friend safe.

  “Good job,” I tell Gabrielle as I suck in air and offer her a hand up from the desk she was sprawled over. “You’re pretty damn brave, Gabrielle. If we had been a second later…”

  “You weren’t,” she says confidently. And honestly, I can’t even allow myself to consider what could’ve happened if it had taken a second longer to run over here or get the guard to let us in…

  “When can I see him?” Gabrielle asks, and I know she’s asking about Cain.

  “I’ll set something up when we get back tonight,” I promise her, the least I can do after she risked her life for him and my investigation.

  “Thanks,” she replies.

  I didn’t tell her earlier because I didn’t want to get her hopes up in case this set up went to hell, but now I gladly inform Gabrielle, “The DA has agreed to drop the arson and manslaughter charges since he was an abused minor, but he’s gonna have to do some time for obstruction of justice and his involvement in a racketeering scheme.”

  “How much time?” she asks with her face pinched in concern.

  I tell her the results of my ongoing negotiations with the DA on Cain’s behalf until I got him the best deal he could hope for. “Since he’s a first offender and a confidential informant, I think that, if we can get his case in front of the right judge within the next few weeks, then he’ll get out for time served.”

  “Oh, thank God,” Gabrielle says on a heavy exhale, relieved to find out Cain’s fate like it was more terrifying than the danger she just faced.

  I know I shouldn’t have twisted Knox’s arm, getting him to convince Gabrielle to go along with this incredibly risky endeavor, but it paid off for Cain, and I kept my promise to him.

  Later tonight, I plan to reward him for trusting me. I’ll indulge myself with one final time with Knox before I end it for good.

  He and I live on two sides of a heavily drawn line. One I shouldn’t have crossed despite the fact that I wanted him like I’ve never wanted any other man in my entire life. I’m certain Knox won’t be leaving his bad boy lifestyle behind him anytime soon, so it’s crazy for me to let this affair go on any longer. I can’t and won’t risk my career trying to protect him when he inevitably fucks up and gets into trouble with the law. And that’s something I can see myself doing for him if I get any closer. He already has that effect on me. I need what only he can give me so badly that I forget myself and everything I’ve worked so hard for. I will not end up like my mother, stuck in an unhealthy relationship with someone completely wrong for me. It’s a miracle we survived my father before he lost his life, so there’s no way I can be with someone who breaks all the rules simply because he doesn’t think they apply to him, no matter how good he makes me feel.

  Strangely enough, though, I can already tell even at this moment that I’m gonna miss the fighter that I only just started to get to know.

  Chapter Eight

  Knox

  I’m hanging out in the living room, relaxing on the sofa with Ivan, watching UFC fights on television Saturday night when a phone suddenly starts ringing from back in one of our bedrooms.

  Since only a handful of people know the numbers for our rarely used burner phones, it must be important, either Gabby calling from Maylin’s or Cain calling from jail.

  “Is it yours or mine?” I ask Ivan as we both jump to our feet to go find out.

  “Sounds like it’s coming from your room,” he replies as we get to the back. And he’s right — it’s definitely my phone.

  Picking up the device from the dresser, I see the name of the woman I recently added to my contacts after our mind-blowing rendezvous.

  “Hey,” I say when I quickly answer before she hangs up.

  “Knox? Hey, it’s Jade,” she says, her voice sounding tired.

  “What’s up?” I ask. What I want to say is how did you get this number since it’s blocked and I never gave it to you, but I can’t because Ivan could overhear from the hallway.

  “Do you think you could…um…can you come over?” she asks.

  I start to say hell fucking yes when I look up and see Ivan standing in my doorway.

  “Ah, sure,” I answer calmly, even though inside I’m bouncing up and down like a kid on a pogo stick. Am I surprised she’s calling? God yes. Am I shocked as fuck that she’s inviting me, a man she thinks of as only a criminal, to her place? Damn straight. Guess she wants more of what I gave her the other day, so much so that she’s trusting me to know where she lives. And it probably makes me sound like a chick, but I haven’t stopped thinking about Jade since we were together. So many times, I nearly called her, but I was still living on the high of our night together and didn’t want to take the chance of having her rejection burst my happy little bubble.

  “I’ll text you the address,” Jade says. “See you soon.”

  “Okay, I’m on the way,” I reply before hanging up.

  “Who was that?” Ivan instantly asks.

  “Ah, Mrs. Engle. She’s got a, ah, lightbulb that’s out in the hallway, so I told her I would come change it now,” I lie off the top of my head.

  “Oh,” he says. “Need me to come with you?”

  “Nah, I think I can handle it. It’ll be good to visit with her for a while too, watch some gameshows or whatever with her to keep her company since the girls keep to themselves,” I further the lie.

  “Have fun,” Ivan says before he turns and leaves my bedroom.

  Glad that I’m freshly showered after hitting the gym earlier this afternoon, I grab my coat, wallet and phone, then head out the door, hating having to lie to my best fr
iend yet again. It sucks to keep secrets from him, but I know he wouldn’t approve of me seeing Jade. And I can’t possibly resist her. Now that I know what I’ve been missing by refusing sex, I need more, and not just from anyone. I want to be inside Jade again, touch her in every way that makes her let out those sexy gasps and moans, and I want to smell her mouthwatering coconut scent as she ties me up, talks dirty, or does any fucking thing else she wants to do to me. Now that I know how good it feels to be with her, I worry that I’ll be too rough, unable to hold myself back from turning into the beast that just takes what he wants when he wants it. Not that Jade seemed to mind when I was pounding her into the floor…

  A text comes through on my phone providing me with her address on the far side of town, in one of the much nicer neighborhoods than the house I grew up in.

  Great, that means I’ll have to wait for the bus. What a pain in the ass. If I thought I could jog faster I would, but it’s at least a thirty-minute run, and then I would be all sweaty and gross when I get there.

  Guess my ass will be waiting on the bus bench.

  While I wait impatiently with my knee bouncing, I pull out my wallet to make sure I’ve got enough cash to get home by a cab or Uber and that the three hopeful condoms I put in here after the other day are still there. They are, not that I think that’s the only reason Jade’s calling me over, but a man can dream, right? What else would she want from me in her house this time of night?

  Sixteen minutes later and I’m sitting on the disgusting bus that pulls up to her neighborhood. Happy to finally get the hell off, I walk until I find the right house number. Eighty-two-fourteen is a brick, one-story sprawling ranch with a perfectly manicured yard filled with bushes and flowers, even a lighted sidewalk up to the porch where the light has been left on for me.

  My heart begins to thump clear out of my chest, cartoon style, as I jog up the steps and ring the doorbell.

  It feels like hours before the door opens, even though it’s only seconds, and then Jade is standing on the other side, her hair falling over the collar of a long, blue, satin robe. Before I can even get excited thinking about whether or not she’s naked underneath, I look up and see her face. She’s still just as beautiful as the last time I saw her, but the expression matches the sound of her voice on the phone, exhausted and…apologetic.

  “You okay?” I ask in concern as I slip inside the foyer.

  “I am now,” she answers as she faces me, closing the door with her back resting against it.

  “Rough day at the office?” I ask to try and get more information out of her.

  “You could say that,” she replies. “We arrested Mario.”

  “Holy fuck!” I exclaim. “That’s great, right? So is my boy getting out? How did you pull it off if you didn’t use Gabby?”

  As soon as Jade lowers her eyes, I realize what a complete fucking moron I’ve been.

  “No fucking way!” I shout as I grab a handful of my hair and yank on it in frustration. “Tonight? You did it tonight and neither of you told me! Gabby was with you, not her friend, Maylin, wasn’t she? Oh, my fucking God! That’s how you got my phone number! How could I be so stupid?”

  “We both thought it would be best if you didn’t know so that you wouldn’t try and intervene,” Jade says calmly.

  “I can’t fucking believe you!” I yell as I advance on her. Jade holds her ground and doesn’t shirk away from me even though I have her cornered, back pressed into the door.

  Reaching for my shoulders, Jade says, “Gabby’s fine, just like I promised. And Mario confessed on the wire, so we’re gonna nail his ass to the wall, which means Cain only has to do a little time for the obstruction and racketeering since his arson charges were dropped. See, this all worked out perfectly, Knox!”

  “Perfectly?” I repeat. “Gabby could’ve died, and it would’ve been my fault! I should’ve been there to protect her for Cain!”

  “We had it under control. She did great.”

  “Where is she?” I ask.

  “At the jail. I pulled some strings and got them a few hours together before they move Cain to county.”

  “Fuck! I just…I don’t even know what the hell to say,” I mutter as I spin away from the woman who fucked me and then proceeded to fuck me over.

  “Knox, I wanted you to come over so that I could apologize. For everything,” Jade says from behind me. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but it was for your own safety.”

  That makes me scoff and feel like an even bigger fool. Why did I think for even a second that a sexy, successful woman like Jade would actually want me, a man who gets his dick sucked by strippers because he’s too scared to knock a woman up? So far, she’s done nothing but manipulate me for her own selfish agenda. And Gabby, I can’t believe she would intentionally leave me out of the loop without Jade planting that idea in her head.

  “You’re angry,” Jade guesses, the understatement of the century.

  “Of course, I’m angry!” I exclaim as I turn back around to glare at her.

  “I expected as much, and you have every right to be,” she declares as she grabs the sash on her robe and unties it. “That’s why I was prepared to try and make it up to you…”

  If she says anything else after you, I miss it because Jade opens her robe and lets it fall to the floor, revealing every single inch of her smooth, naked skin, except for what’s hidden underneath her long, waist-length auburn hair.

  “You fight dirty,” I tell her when I’m able to close my gaping mouth and make my tongue move to speak again.

  “Did it work?” she asks softly, hesitantly as if there was ever a doubt that I would want her. I do. My cock popped up like a jack in a box at just the sight of her, but right now I can barely look at her face because I’m so fucking angry.

  “Turn around,” I order.

  Jade blinks at me in confusion a second before she does as she’s told, bracing both of her palms on the door.

  Walking up to her, I jerk on a handful of her hair not the least bit gently to wrench it to the side so that I can press my lips to her bare shoulder and taste her. Coconuts and pineapples hit my tongue, making it water for more.

  While I’m pissed the fuck off at this woman, I still plan on fucking her, hard and rough to take out my anger on her. That means I need to make sure she’s good and ready to take my punishing cock.

  Dropping to my knees, I cup each of her ass cheeks in my palms and give them a squeeze, doing what I’ve been fantasizing about since the other day. I lean forward and spread her open with my tongue down her bare center to get my fill of her flavor. Just like with sex, I’m completely out of my element here, but when the tip of my tongue gets to the top of her pussy, Jade’s body shivers under my hands as she moans, so I figure I must be doing something right.

  “God, that’s good,” she says from above me. “No one’s…no one’s ever…”

  “No one’s ever tongue fucked you?” I ask in surprise, giving her another long lick.

  “I don’t…date much,” she answers between gasps.

  Wow, that’s just sad. But it also makes me feel a little better about my inexperience as I delve my tongue back into her slit and try a few different things to see what gets the best reaction from her.

  When Jade starts trying to climb the door, I grab the outsides of her thighs, shove them apart and pull them back to give my mouth a better angle to suck on her clit. That does the trick.

  “Oh my God, Knox! That feels…so damn good!” she encourages me while swiveling her hips before her words are replaced with these sexy “Uh! Uh! Uh!” grunts. Her thighs tense underneath my hands and then she screams, “Oh God!” as she comes. My hands hold her bucking hips in place as my tongue keeps working at the same spot to draw out her orgasm for as long as possible.

  When Jade’s body goes limp against the door, I swipe my hand over my mouth to dry it, then get to my feet. My hands are shaking with need as I grab a condom from my wallet then quickly undo my pants, sho
ving my jeans and boxer briefs down so I can get my cock out. After I’m covered, I line up my hard length with Jade’s wet entrance and slam all the way inside with one thrust.

  Fuck, this right here must be heaven because I can’t imagine anything better. My fingers dig into her hips so hard they’re probably leaving bruises as I hold her still and fuck her into the wall as deep as I can go.

  Hearing her cry out as I drive her up onto her toes with my pounding only urges me on.

  When she looks over her shoulder and tells me, “Yes! Fuck me harder, Knox!” I know I’m not being too rough, so I pick up the pace and slam inside of her over and over again as hard and deep as possible, working out my anger at her for lying to me and endangering my friend. My only regret is the latex barrier between us, remembering how wet she was riding me bare the other night. Still, I can’t really complain with her pussy squeezing around my cock in the most perfect way.

  “Uhhh! I forgot…I forgot how big you are. Don’t stop! Need to feel…every inch,” Jade says, which goes a helluva long ways toward making me forgive her.

  “After I’m done with you tonight, you won’t forget how big I am for at least a week,” I promise her.

  …

  Jade

  Why did it take me twenty-eight years to have this kind of sex? It’s probably a good thing I didn’t know it existed, because otherwise, I don’t think I would’ve spent the last few years alone, focusing on my career, and before that, getting my criminal justice degree rather than dating.

  Sex with Knox in the warehouse the other day was phenomenal. I loved being in control and calling the shots, but this, getting fucked on the floor and now against my front door by a strong, angry man is on a whole other level. And the things he did with his tongue between my legs completely blew my mind. I’ve never had a serious relationship, so I haven’t ever felt comfortable with a man doing something so intimate to me with his mouth. Knox didn’t ask, he just did it, and wow! I may never recover from the aftershocks.