by Dace Everan
Keena shook her head. “No, seriously, she’s just down the street a block,” she murmured, slipping his coat off. “Thank you for your help and being so kind,” she rambled, walking away from him.
“Whoa, sugar. I am not letting you wander the streets all alone,” he drawled, draping his coat over her. “Tell me where to.” He glanced at his watch. “Your place. You’re not waking your friends at this time of night.”
Keena furrowed her brows. It couldn’t be that late. She glanced at the digital clock on her cell. 4:00 a.m. Her eyes rounded. She had taken that long to calm down! “Oh, God, I am so sorry.” She gasped, hand covering her heaving breast.
George chuckled. “Don’t worry, sugar. Hop in,” he ordered, the little car beeping to life as he unlocked the doors with the remote in his hand. He held hers open, waiting for her to get in. He could see the uncertainty, see her chest rise as she inhaled a calming breath. Good girl.
Keena seated herself and reached for the seat belt, and frowned. What the heck? She turned around, searching. He had no seatbelts! That wasn’t even legal.
George watched her with interest as she looked for her seatbelt. He waited as she wriggled around, skirt hiking, offering him a healthy view of her lean thighs. He turned up the heat and turned down his tunes.
Keena squealed at the blast of heat that struck her ass. She turned big, innocent eyes on him. He raised one of those pointy brows at her and she froze. Oh, God, he must think she was crazy, crawling around in his car like some mad woman. Her eyes locked with his, and all of a sudden, lust poured through her. Was she gonna catch a break at all tonight? How horrible would it be to just move forward and press her lips to his? She guessed he’d taste of pure sin and sweetness.
George waited to see what she would do. If that wasn’t hunger in her eyes, he was a blind man. Her pink tongue darted out and wet her lips. His cock twitched to life at her glistening lips. He’d bet a thousand dollars her pussy glistened that exact same color.
Keena inhaled a sharp breath. “You don’t have a seat belt,” she whispered, voice shaky.
George’s cock deflated and he held the devastating groan in. “Sit,” he ordered.
Keena turned herself around and did what he said. He angled himself so he was nearly facing her. He reached around her gently, placing her arm through a harness. “Five-point harness,” he drawled as he buckled her in.
Keena watched as he clipped her in, her nipples pebbling and straining against the scratchy fabric of her corset when his knuckles brushed against them. She swallowed the lump in her throat. Heat throbbed through her straight to her pussy.
He smiled. “All safe,” he assured, taking his seat and buckling himself in. He peeked at her before he shifted into gear. She had that scared, deer-in-the-headlights look in her eyes. He touched the buckle between her breasts. “Just unbuckle that and you’re out,” he informed her.
Keena looked at the buckle. Just one buckle and she was free. She gave a nod. His finger hooked under her chin and made her look at him.
“I’m not going to hurt you, Keena.”
She needed to hear that. She gave a curt nod.
He studied her for a moment. A man had hurt this woman. He released her and shifted into gear. If he had anything to do about it, he would damn well try to help her heal from her hurts.
Keena steadied her breathing. He wasn’t going to hurt her, and she believed him.
Chapter Four
Keena closed her door, bolted the five locks, and slumped against it. It was all over. She was safe. No one would get her here. She hugged the coat around herself, eyes widening. Shoot! She still had his coat. She went to unlock the many locks, stopping on the third as she heard his car rip out of the parking lot outside. She slumped, looking at the heavy black leather.
She clenched her eyes closed. She would have to go back to that place and return it. She shuddered. She didn’t want to go back there! Wait, it was open during the day. The one side was an eatery. She would take it in there and hope someone would return it to him. Her tension eased and she felt better already. There was no way in hell she would ever step foot in that place ever again, not after dark, when she knew exactly what went on in that place.
* * * *
George ripped through the sleeping city, tunes blaring as he headed out to his and Rick’s place. Poor little Keena. That was no way to be introduced into the lifestyle.
Wait, what the hell was he thinking? She didn’t want to be there. She had been there for her friend. He grunted, shifting gears in the car and jerking as it sped up. Some friend. He swore if he ever saw that woman, he would return the fucking favor and scare the shit out of her!
He shifted faster as he hit the outskirts of the city, his little car ripping down the highway, the darkness shadowing around him. When he approached the dirt road to his and Rick’s place, he slowed down. He really needed to talk to the county and get this road paved.
Rick was sitting on the porch when he drove up, coffee cup in hand. George eyed him suspiciously. The only reason his little bro would be up this early, or late, was for a talk.
“That took some time,” Rick greeted.
George grunted. “She passed out. I fell asleep. I thought it better she rest.”
Rick nodded, holding up his coffee. “Fresh pot on,” he offered.
George sighed and glanced at the eastern sky. He supposed he should have a cup, take a shower, and head back in for his day job. Shit. He would have to take a cat nap this afternoon in the shop. He fixed his coffee and joined his brother on the porch. Both reclined back, bare feet resting on stools, waiting for the new day to start. “Had yourself some fun with the blonde?” he asked.
Rick snorted. “Faker.” He had seen so much potential in that one. She looked and seemed to know what it was all about. He slumped. “I think I’m getting tired of it all,” he shared with a huff of annoyance. He was tired of meeting these potential partners and then finding out that they were in no way a match to his own lifestyle choice, that they were just curious and looking for excitement.
He should have scared the little brat, but had been the proper Sir and told her the dangers of messing around in the lifestyle, that there were masters out there that would have taken her teasing and showed her the rougher part of the lifestyle, up front, without any remorse. Shit, she could have gone home with a psycho that scared even him. These women…putting themselves out in the line of danger like that.
George considered the youngest of the family, his baby brother, Rick, the man who thought he was secretly yearning for little Kyla for the past few years, unbeknownst to anyone else.
“Maybe it’s not for you?” he offered. Reassurance of one’s decision was always good. Besides, he couldn’t just blurt out that his baby brother was in love with Kyla. That would just piss Rick off.
Rick shrugged. Kyla was for him. He grumbled to himself.
“You have any idea who that girl, Keena, is?” George asked.
Rick shrugged. “We looked over her papers, her consent forms.” He shrugged his shoulders. They didn’t find anything on her. She was clean. “Shit, she didn’t belong there at all.” Even he could see that!
George nodded. “Yeah, Jazz said she was there with the friend.”
Rick nodded. “Yeah, there’s a piece. Bitch freaked, kicked and screamed her whole way out.” He grunted before taking a swallow of his coffee. He would have bruises on his thighs and shins later in the day if they hadn’t already started to set in. Damn, that woman kicked hard. He was sure when he had set her on her feet outside the club that she would have just walked away. Nope, she swung and then kicked. Just missed his family jewels by inches.
George chuckled, glad he hadn’t had to deal with her. His heart cinched at the thought of the little woman he had held in his arms, though. The way her body shivered as she calmed. The shudders as her mind drifted off to whatever hell she had been in. His jaw tensed. Keena should not have had to experience that in the club. Not
this club.
“We sent her information to the surrounding clubs. She will have to go to the bigger cities for what she wants,” Rick offered.
George nodded. Good, they didn’t need her kind here.
Rick glanced at his brother. They were close, almost as close as Sam and Jared, and those two shared the womb. Would George understand his need to get away?
George rested his head back and closed his eyes. “Spit it out, Rick,” he ordered. He knew his little brother had something on his mind.
Rick shrugged. “Think I’m gonna hit the road again,” he murmured.
George grunted. “Scared of Jared and Lila?” he dared. Now was the time to point out to baby brother about his deep-seeded love for Kyla. Someone had to let him know everyone was aware, and no one cared. Well, he didn’t, not in the judgemental way. Fuck, deep down he cheered for Rick and Kyla to get together.
Rick shot him a quick look. “No.”
George laughed. “You’ve been watching her like a hawk for two years now, Rick. Don’t think none of us noticed.” George smiled. “’Kay, maybe Lila’s blind as hell, but Jared knows. Sam knows because Paula tells him everything, and Paula and Kyla are glued to the hip lately.”
Rick snorted. He never thought this little obsession with spitfire Kyla would last this long. Dammit, she was only eighteen. He shouldn’t even be looking at the girl. Shit, she called them uncles, thanks to Jared.
George gulped back a healthy mouthful of coffee. “You ever notice how she doesn’t call you uncle? She is so skittish around you. It’s kinda cute,” he offered, a touch of teasing in his voice.
Rick furrowed his brows.
George looked at his brother. “You’re telling me those two weeks on the road for your little welding trip, nothing happened?”
Rick narrowed his eyes, insulted. “Dude, that’s just not cool!” he uttered, insulted that George would even think he would touch Kyla.
George laughed. “Seriously, nothing?” He just couldn’t believe that.
Rick glared at his brother. “Jared and Lila trusted me to keep an eye on her. She trusted me to keep an eye on her. No, nothing happened!” If his brother kept this up, he was going to end up with a shiner.
George sat up and considered his little brother. “You really do like her,” he uttered after a few minutes. Not just liked her in the, I wanna screw her sense, but had actual true, deep feelings for her.
Rick looked away. He didn’t just like her, he was obsessed with her! When her little purse spilled open at the shop that day, and those condoms spilled out, it put her in a whole other category, one of availability. Spunky little thing, he not once thought of her age… Okay, that was a lie. He thought about it every day and cursed it. If he went anywhere near her, he would be considered some sick pervert.
George relaxed, watching the sun’s rays kiss the land in front of them, outlining it in its golden sheath. Shit, he loved it out here. “You know she’s hot for you,” he offered, insides flipping at the remembrance of Keena’s words. He made her hot. Damn, if that didn’t warm his insides.
“Talked to one of my old employers. Should be headed out at the end of the month.”
George nodded. It was how they worked. If either one of them had plans to be gone, they gave the other at least two weeks’ notice. He inhaled a slow breath. He would drop it for now, maybe talk to Sam. He could put a thought into that little redheaded bird of his, and she could easily pass the word along to the skittish one.
“Need to shower. Thanks for the jo,” he called, padding bare foot along the wooden floors. His little brother needed time to contemplate his life, and both of them knew sunrises helped them with that.
* * * *
Keena groaned as the bright sun blazed against her skin and woke her from the erotic fantasy of George. She moved to the end of her bed, eyes closed, attempting to get away from the heat of the sun. Why the hell had she put the bed here? Oh, yeah, to feel the sun’s warm rays kiss her good morning.
She slumped against the cold of the bed that hadn’t been touched by the sun. She hugged the blankets between her legs tighter, urging her subconscious to return to him. Oh, what had he been doing? Oh, yeah, the good part, lips all over her, hands gently holding her as he…
Her phone rang and she growled in frustration. “Oh, for crying out loud!”
She crawled across the bed. “Hello!” she snapped. Silence greeted her. “For crying out loud!” she wailed. Never had she wanted to cry over a dream more than at that moment.
“Hello?” replied a male voice.
Keena froze, heart flipping. Shoot, it was him! “Ah, sorry, hello?” she stammered, calming her voice down.
George smiled. That was the voice he was looking for. “Your roommate’s a harpy. You should get her to stop answering the phone,” he advised in a teasing tone.
Keena slumped. Oh, God, he thought she was a harpy. Great, he would never want to see her again. Wait, what was she thinking? Why the hell would he want to see her? And, damn it, she shouldn’t even be thinking about wanting to see him, because deep down, she knew that was what that thought was all about.
“Hello? Are you still there, Keena?”
“Yeah, sorry, I was dreaming—sleeping.” She closed her eyes and fell to the bed. Could she be any lamer? His laughter on the other end made her tummy flip-flop.
“Well, sugar, it’s near four in the afternoon. I was thinking me and you grab some food, and you return my coat?”
Keena gasped. Oh crap, she was supposed to have returned that already. “Um, yeah, sorry. I meant to take that in.”
“No worries, sugar, I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
Keena looked at the clock. It was going on four, four in the fricken’ afternoon. How had she slept the whole day away? “Okay…”
“Need your apartment number, Keena,” he murmured.
“Thirteen,” she blurted before she could even think to say she would meet him out front. She groaned, cutting it off quickly.
George ignored the groaning he’d distinctly heard. “Twenty minutes in the lucky number thirteen. All right, I’ll see you then, Keena,” he murmured. He hung up before she had a chance to go back on the agreement of food with him. He could hear the doubt in her voice, and there was no way he was giving up on any chance of seeing her. His coat was the only excuse he had to get to her home. To get to see her again. Of course, he could have called her all he wanted after retrieving her number off one of the sheets she had filled out last night at the club, or just driven there and knocked on every apartment door until he found her. Either way, he needed to see her again. Keena moaned a yes, and he heard the phone click.
Oh, God, he was going to think she was crazy! Oh, wait, she was crazy.
Chapter Five
George glanced around the sparsely furnished apartment. He raised an inquiring eyebrow. Did she actually live here or was this some joke? There was one couch, a small TV on a crappy old stand that looked ready to splinter in half under the weight of the TV. There were no table or chairs in the kitchen. Counters were clean with not one electronic gadget on them. Shit, not even a coffee pot.
Keena caught him taking in her place. She blushed. “I just moved here…” She furrowed her brow. Okay, that was lame. Shame filled her at the sparse amount of things that she owned.
George nodded. “Yeah, I see that,” he murmured.
She handed him his coat, grabbed her purse, and waited for him to turn to leave.
George glanced at her, at her arms, covered in a long-sleeved T-shirt. Her attire was not what he expected, tight blue jeans, suede boots, and a black, long-sleeved T-shirt. Her beautiful blonde curls hung around her face. A beautiful, all-natural face. He could see that she only wore mascara and a little eye shadow. He assumed she had on a lip gloss that made her pretty pink lips shimmer.
He reached out and plucked up a curly strand, ignoring her flinch. Yup, someone had hurt her. “Looks good down.”
She offered
a smile, holding her clutch close.
George watched as she buckled herself in. The smile she had on her face made him beam with pride. She was like a newborn discovering something for the first time, and doing it all on her own. “Ready?” he asked. She smiled, nodding. “Tell me, what does Miss Keena like to eat?” he asked as he pulled out into traffic.
Keena furrowed her brows. She hadn’t expected him to ask that. She assumed he would just take her some place, feed her. What the hell was she doing? She shouldn’t even be here with him! Anxiety reared through her and she clutched her purse closer. She could feel her palms start to sweat.
George narrowed his eyes as her breathing accelerated. “I could use steak. Please don’t tell me you’re a vegetarian?” He moaned the last part, hoping it would ease the fear she seemed to be experiencing.
Keena shook her head. “No, I love steak,” she filled in, clutching her purse closer. Nervousness hit her and she inhaled a steadying breath. Was this a date? Oh, goodness.
George chewed his lower lip. “I know a great place just down the street,” he offered. Maybe she would feel safer if she was close to home.
Keena glanced at him. How could she be attracted to him? He looked so mean. She looked out the window. She was attracted to him, because he looked nothing like David. This man beside her was all man, tall, buff, and like a caveman, but so far, one of the gentlest. She’d say charming, but she knew what charming could get you. Subconsciously, she could feel her arms flame in pain. Yeah, charming got you hurt, and bad. This man was gentle.
George placed his hand on the small of her back as they walked up the sidewalk to the restaurant. She looked skittish, ready to flee at any moment. He leaned close to her ear. “People are going to think I’m kidnapping you and forcing you to eat if you keep making that face,” he teased.
Keena looked at him, her cheeks heating. He had to be kidding. She was being as calm as possible.
