Bayou Devils MC: The Complete Series

by A. M. Myers

  He nudges me with his nose.

  Woof!

  “Fine,” I growl, throwing the covers back and swinging my legs over the edge of the bed. I pry my eyes open as Jack sits in front of me and barks, his tail thumping against the floor as he wiggles with excitement and looks up at me expectantly. I sigh. “You’re far too happy for this early in the morning, pup.”

  Woof!

  “Yeah, yeah,” I mumble, wiping the sleep from my eyes. “I’m getting up.”

  I push off the bed and throw my hands up in a satisfying stretch before letting them fall to my sides with a sigh. Jack dances in front of me and when I motion toward the door, he runs out of the room and down the hallway to the kitchen. Shaking my head, I follow behind him. He’s waiting patiently in front of his bowl when I walk into the kitchen and I laugh as I open the pantry and grab a scoop full of food.

  “Here’s your breakfast, boy,” I tell him as I pour it into the bowl and he goes to town, chomping happily. After I drop the scoop back in the pantry, I turn on the coffee maker and get a pot brewing before I sink into a dining room chair with a yawn. Good Lord, I’m exhausted. As much as I needed a night out last night after the stress of this past week, I got in late and tossed and turned for hours before finally falling asleep. I’m halfway tempted to just drag myself back to my room and crawl into bed until, at least, noon.

  My phone buzzes on the table and I scoop it up.

  Dr. Hebert:

  Good morning!

  Please make sure you reset the alarm code after

  you check on the kittens today and text me with

  an update on how they are doing.

  Me:

  Of course!

  Have a good weekend.

  I read over his message again and nod before setting the phone down on the table. I might as well get my day started, I suppose. The coffee maker finishes brewing. I stand up and walk across the kitchen. Grabbing a mug from the hook on the wall, I stop in front of the pot and fill my cup before returning to my chair and sinking into it. I grip the cup in both hands and bring it close to my nose, the rich aroma of the coffee greeting me as I hum. My phone buzzes again and I sigh as I set the mug down on the table and grab it.

  Mason:

  Morning, beautiful.

  You have any plans tonight?

  Me:

  Depends on the offer.

  Why?

  Smirking, I set my phone back down on the table and grab my mug before bringing it to my lips and taking a sip. I first met Mason a little over eighteen months ago when he brought his dog, Sadie, into the clinic for a checkup with Dr. Hebert. He was charismatic, devastatingly charming, and the first man in a very long time to catch my attention but I was vehemently against getting into a relationship so when he asked me for my number, I declined. Not that it deterred him. Over the next eight months, he brought Sadie into the clinic once a week for everything from teeth cleaning to mysterious illnesses that Dr. Hebert could never diagnose. It didn’t take long for everyone to catch on and Dr. Hebert even started to joke that if I didn’t agree to a date soon, Mason was going to fund a beach house for him and his family.

  Eventually, Mason managed to wear me down and I agreed to one date. That one date turned into two and then three and four. For the first time in a long time, I could see a future for myself and I allowed myself to care for him. We’ve been seeing each other for close to a year now and I’m happier than I can remember being in a long time. What Mason and I have, it’s not the raw, passionate, chaotic love that I knew with Noah but I’ve learned over the past seven years that maybe that’s for the best. My relationship with Mason is older, more mature, and above all, stable. It’s something that can last through the years, something we can both survive in one piece and if I’ve learned anything from the fall-out from my relationship with Noah, it’s the importance of that. There’s a part of me that will always love Noah but that doesn’t mean we’re good for each other.

  I learned that the hard way.

  My phone buzzes and I shake my head to clear my mind as I set my mug down and scoop it up.

  Mason:

  I miss you already and

  I want to see you again.

  Me:

  I suppose I can squeeze you in. ;)

  I set the phone back on the table and lean back as I sip my coffee. There’s a couple steaks in the fridge and I just need to run to the store to grab a few things for a quiet night in and after going out last night, that sounds perfect. As I set the mug back down, I grab my phone and smile as I type out my reply.

  Me:

  I’m thinking you, me, candles, and a quiet

  dinner at my place. You in?

  Mason:

  Baby girl, when it comes to you,

  I’m always in.

  My smile is wide as I set the phone down again and grab the mug. The large bouquet of flowers on the table catches my attention and I reach out to touch one of the petals. Despite all my objections, Mason still brings me flowers at least once a month and he never fails to show me how important I am to him. It’s one of the things that made him win me over. He always strives to make me feel like the only girl in his world and I love it.

  Sighing, I finish my coffee before standing up and carrying the mug over to the sink. As I flip the water on, I glance up and gasp before biting out a curse. There, at the end of my driveway, in a truck I recognize all too well, is Noah LeBlanc. Our eyes meet, almost like he can see me through the darkened glass even though I know he can’t, and I set the cup down before gripping the edge of the sink.

  Damn him!

  I spin around and lean back against the sink, going over the best way to handle this situation. When I sent him away the other day, I knew he wouldn’t stay gone but I didn’t think he’d be back so damn soon and him being here causes me all kinds of problems. God, who the hell does he think he is showing up here after all these years like we’re just going to pick up where we left off? We haven’t seen one another for seven damn years. We’re nothing anymore and we never will be again. He needs to get the hell out of my life and stay gone this time.

  Pushing off the sink, I shove my feet into my boots and march over to the back door before kicking it open. As I round the front of the house, Noah opens the door to the truck and steps out before closing it behind him. He smirks as he leans back against the truck and crosses his arms over his chest, his gaze falling down my legs. I glance down, realizing that I’m still in a tiny pair of shorts and a tank top but I can’t stop now.

  “Looking damn good, Kady, baby. Better than I imagined.”

  I hold my hand up to silence him as I stop in front of him. “Save it. What the hell are you doing here?”

  “You didn’t really think I’d just give up, did you?”

  “Give up what, Noah?” I ask with a sigh, crossing my arms across my chest to fight off the early morning chill. He scowls, studying me.

  “You. I’m here for you.”

  I bark out a laugh, backing away from him. “You wasted a trip then.”

  “Hey, don’t walk away from me. You and I need to talk.”

  “How many times do I have to tell you there is nothing to talk about?” I snap, narrowing my eyes into a glare. Determination hardens his features and I take a step back as he pushes off the truck.

  Goddamn it.

  “You and I,” he growls, motioning between the two of us, “have seven years of shit to talk about - starting with why the hell you dropped off the face of the earth.”

  I force out another laugh. “I didn’t drop off the face of the earth and I’ve already told you everything there is to know.”

  “Bullshit. You’re lying to me and the fact that you thought I was going to buy your story is rather insulting, to be honest.” He takes a step toward me. “I know you, Kady.” Another step closer. “I know the way you think.” One more step. “I know your tell when you lie.” He closes the distance between us and my entire body springs to life. “I know how
pure and loyal your heart is and the way it pounds in your chest every time we’re around each other.” He leans in, his lips hovering above mine and for the life of me, I can’t pull myself away. “And with all I know, I’m willing to bet everything I own that if I touched you right now, you’d have to break out that pink vibrator I got you as soon as I drive away.”

  “You’re a pig,” I spit and he grins, leaning even closer.

  “But I’m not wrong, am I?”

  My heart thunders in my chest and my skin prickles as I search his gaze, unwilling to be the first one to back down but fighting a losing battle every second this goes on. Damn him for being so right. I hate that even after all these years, he can still get to me like this, that he can still make me melt with just the sound of his voice. And God, having him this close, all I want to do is feel him wrap his arms around me despite all the trouble it would bring to this new life I’ve built. I can still remember what it felt like when he pressed his lips to mine, or how much I used to love when he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me close.

  “Why are you lying, Kady?” he whispers, searching my gaze with desperation in his green eyes and my chest aches before I can shut it down. My eyes burn with tears but I blink them back.

  “I’m not.”

  He reaches up and skates the back of his fingers down my cheek and goose bumps race across my flesh. “Yes, you are and you’re not getting rid of me this easily.”

  Before I can say anything else or object again, he backs away from me and climbs back in his truck. The engine fires to life and he meets my gaze, holding it for a second before he pulls away from the curb and leaves a cloud of dirt behind him.

  Shit.

  He may have left for now but he’ll be back.

  That, I know for sure.

  Chapter Six

  Noah

  Son.

  Of.

  A.

  Bitch.

  Gritting my teeth, I stare up at the cabin as rage races through my veins. It’s quite the cozy little scene up there with the candles lining the deck and my girl sitting in some other dude’s lap. The threat of going back to prison is the only thing keeping me in this truck right now and even that is fleeting. Kady presses a kiss to his cheek and stands up before disappearing into the house. Turning away from the cabin, I blow out a breath and run my hand through my hair. In the past few days, I’ve got over a hundred scenarios that would explain why my girl disappeared seven years ago and why she’s been fighting me so damn hard since I got back but never in my wildest dreams, did I imagine this. The thought that maybe she just found someone new never even once crossed my mind and if I wasn’t seeing it with my own two eyes, I don’t know that I’d believe it. How? How could she do this to me? To us?

  Her new prick of a boyfriend leans back in his chair and takes a sip of wine as Kady walks out of the house, carrying two plates full of food. He says something that makes her laugh and I have to clench my fists and my jaw to keep from screaming or flying out of this truck and killing him. That’s my girl and it’s my job to make her laugh and smile like that - not his. I swear to God, if he puts his hands on her, I don’t know if I’ll be able to just watch anymore. Fuck, she looks good, too - better than I ever imagined when I pictured her over the past seven years. She’s always been beautiful but now… there aren’t even words to describe it. And that fire of hers that I love so damn much, she works so hard to hide it, but it still shines through whenever she challenges me. She’s everything I’ve been dreaming of every day of my sentence and so much more but she isn’t mine anymore and it fucking kills me.

  No, wait…

  Fuck that.

  She is mine and she always will be even if she’s wasting her time with that asshole for the time being.

  An image of the two of them in bed together springs into my mind and I can’t stop myself from imagining the sounds she used to make for me as he does the things to her that I used to do. It invokes a violent reaction in me, fury tearing me up inside like someone dosed me in gasoline and lit a match. Kady is my one and only. I’ve never been with another girl, never even thought about it, and picturing her with someone else is torture. In fact, everything about this situation is a new level of hell. Thinking back to a week ago, I was so stupid to believe that I’d just find her and things would go back to the way they were. It’s the one thing I wanted but I’m realizing that I don’t know Kady at all anymore. The woman in front of me is not the one I left behind seven years ago.

  Or maybe she is.

  Hell, I don’t know anything anymore. If Kady is still the same person I’ve always known, then none of her behavior since I got out makes any sense. Why did she disappear? And what happened to her in the time I’ve been gone to make her so damn wary of me?

  Turning away from them as they start eating, I pull my phone out of my pocket and dial Streak’s number.

  “Streak’s stalking hotline. How can I help you today?”

  I bite back a laugh as I shake my head. “Did you find anything about a boyfriend for Kady?”

  “Uh… No?”

  “Is that a question or a statement?”

  He sighs. “Look, dude, you know everything I know. I’m not keeping anything from you so no, I didn’t find out anything about a boyfriend, which makes sense considering I couldn’t even find her.”

  “Yeah, you’re right.” I glance back up at the house and the new yellow Camaro in the driveway catches my attention. “Hold on, run this plate for me,” I say before rattling off the plate number. Typing greets me and a moment later, he hums.

  “That car belongs to one Mason Jonathon Barrow.”

  I grit my teeth.

  Sounds like a tool.

  “What can you tell me about him?”

  “Well, he’s thirty years old. His parents live across the river in Port Allen and he has a sister that lives three blocks from him in the city. Looks like he is a fairly successful real estate agent and he seems like an all around good guy.”

  “Don’t fucking tell me that. He’s got my girl.”

  “Jesus Christ, dude. He doesn’t have your girl. She’s not a damn hostage.”

  I glance up at the cabin. “How the hell do you know?”

  “Well, since you’re sitting outside the cabin right now, does she look like a hostage?”

  “How the fuck do you know where I am?” I snap and he laughs.

  “I tracked your phone. What the hell do you think I do all day?”

  I turn away from the cabin and sigh. “Don’t track my phone, asshole. And no, she doesn’t look like a hostage but none of this makes any damn sense.”

  “Has she told you anything about the time you were away?”

  “No,” I growl, turning back to the house just as Mason reaches across the table and brushes his fingers over her hand. I bite the inside of my cheek so hard I taste blood. “All she said is that she was done with me when I got locked up.”

  “Shit, that’s rough. I’m sorry.”

  I shake my head. “It’s not true!”

  “Why would she lie?”

  “That’s the million dollar question, isn’t it?” I ask, shaking my head. “Listen, I gotta go. Thanks for all your help.”

  I hang up before he can say anything else and toss the phone across the seat before turning back to the cabin. Watching the two of them together is agony. With each beat of my heart, pain radiates through my body but I won’t give in. She can lie all she wants but I’m not deterred. Kady Sinclair has been my whole world since the moment we met sixteen years ago and I won’t stop until she remembers that, too.

  * * * *

  This is a terrible fucking idea.

  Deep down, I know that but that doesn’t mean that I’m willing to drive away from the fancy restaurant I watched Kady and Mason disappear into fifteen minutes ago. At least not anymore. When I first started following them from the cabin, I wondered what the hell I was doing and by the time we got here, I was ready to say “fuck
it” and head back to the clubhouse. But when I watched her step out of his car in a short black dress that was so tight I was picturing her naked, on top of me, and Mason wrapped his arm around her waist, I knew I wasn’t going anywhere.

  After I left the cabin last night, I went back to the clubhouse and forced Streak to dig into Mason Barrow’s life for hours and by all accounts, he’s a fucking Boy Scout. As much as I wanted to find some dirt on him and some proof that he was all wrong for Kady, I couldn’t. I hate to admit it but he’s a decent guy and as far as I can tell, he adores my girl which is exactly my problem. She is my girl. Always has been and always will be. Mason Barrow could be the second coming of Jesus Christ himself but his biggest flaw is that he’s not me. I still have no idea what happened to make Kady disappear all those years ago and I don’t know anything about her life during the seven years we spent apart but I am sure of one thing, Kady and I are meant to be. Which means I’m not going to stop until she’s back where she belongs - in my arms.

  Shaking off the last of my nerves, I climb out of the truck and cross the street to the restaurant, ready to take on the whole damn world. As soon as I walk into the waiting area, the woman standing behind the maitre d’ stand arches a brow and watches me approach her with a wary gaze.

  “Can I help you, sir?”

  I flash her a smile. “Yes, I’m meeting some friends here for dinner.”

  Her mouth drops open as her gaze falls to my arms, where all my tattoos are on display and I scan the restaurant for my target. When I finally spot Kady in the back corner, I point in her direction.

  “Never mind. I found them.”

  Without waiting for a response, I walk around the stand and weave through the other diners, ignoring the stares and whispers. My gaze is focused on my girl. She spots me when I’m about ten feet from her table and her words trail off as her mouth drops open and panic fills her eyes. Her gaze flicks to Mason before coming back to me as I grab a chair from the table next to them and position it next to her.