“That’s a bargain,” he says with a chuckle.
We get dressed up and pick up the handful of presents we have for our friends and family--which have become one and the same since I’ve moved to Pine Haven. This little community has done nothing but grow in the few months that I’ve been here, and considering how small and underserved it is, I’ve had no trouble finding work as a caretaker.
Of course, I barely need to. Big Daddy’s income and the collective the MC works with has me more than taken care of. There wasn’t even a period where they kept me at arm’s length. The second the smoke cleared and I asked Big Daddy what he thought about me moving to Pine Haven, the whole MC was ready to greet me with open arms.
The outside of the Heartbreaker MC is wrapped to a fire hazard level in multicolored lights that twinkle in the darkness as Big Daddy’s bike comes to a stop in the row of others that are lined up outside. There’s a small army of bikes around by now, and I swear it gets bigger every time I see it.
I slip my arm into Big Daddy’s as we trudge through the snowy dirt of the parking lot while I breathe in the crisp winter air and smell the aroma of food coming from the clubhouse. “Oh my god, tell me they’ve got the barbecue wings in for tonight,” I say as my stomach growls.
“Yes ma’am we do,” Big Daddy says with a downright ominous hunger. “And I take it that means we’re both about to make ‘em run out early.”
“That’s what I’m thinking, it’s the holidays,” I say with a smirk as we head inside.
Warmth and joy greets me the second we step in, and I beam around at the sights and sounds that all seem to glow just inside. The walls are all covered with different colors of lights, and on the far wall, Kate and Lauren have painstakingly arranged red lights against white that spell out the Heartbreaker name and emblem.
The tables are absolutely full of bikers and prospects, many of them in Santa hats (and a few ironic Satan horns, because Bones is an asshole), all of them in their kuttes. I’m proud to stand next to a turtlenecked Big Daddy as he dominates the room with his presence, and we make the rounds of greeting everyone. The numbers have swelled. A community elderly outreach program I’ve helped organize has really warmed the town up to the Heartbreakers, and we’re seeing more people come looking to become prospects than ever.
Kate is about to burst and due at any moment. We’ve been taking bets on whether her baby will have a holiday birthday or not. My bet is that it’ll be a New Year’s baby, but I have a feeling Kate thinks it’ll be sooner than that. Breaker hovers around her lovingly, and the rest of the club looks off to the two of them as they lead the way to starting families in the MC. The culture is starting to change, too. When I showed up, I was worried about this being a grungy frat house of dudes with too much testosterone and anger issues. To be fair, I did marry one of those, but mine turns his anger in the right direction.
This is more than that. It’s a community that works together--a family.
Bones and Lauren are helping out in the kitchen together, so I don’t see much of them for the evening, but I see the fruits of their labor coming out while Big Daddy takes on Ironside in darts as we start to pass around the bourbon egg nog. Cuts of turkey dark meat so flavorfully seasoned that I can barely believe it’s turkey seem to be the crowd favorite. I’ve got my eye on the chalkboard menu, and the sweet potato casserole is making my stomach growl.
The kitchen is still a new addition to the clubhouse, but it’s taken no time to get popular. These are still bikers, of course, which is probably why the next most popular menu items coming out of the kitchen are thick burgers stuffed with shredded barbecue pork as well as chicken and waffle platters that pair all too well with the drinks.
Everyone’s about to gain five pounds or so tonight, myself included. It’s going to be great.
Justine is passing around the egg nog, and I’ve just accepted a healthy glass of it when Lauren emerges from the kitchen, waving to everyone as Kate swoops by to give her a hug. “We miss you! Are you sure one of us can’t tag-team with you and give you a break? Skid could use some kitchen experience, and you need some bourbon in you.”
“Agreed,” Big Daddy and I say at the same time before I drain a huge gulp of mine, and the others laugh as Lauren blushes and holds up a hand.
“No nog for me, actually,” she says, laughing softly.
“You can take some back to the kitchen,” Justine says, smiling and swaying the egg nog temptingly. “I’ll pour you a Big Girl Glass.”
“Actually, I kind of slipped out because I have an announcement I thought it would be better to make before we start going ham on some good-ass food and drinks,” she says with a grin, and the others nearby turn to attention as Breaker comes to hug Kate and I raise my eyebrows.
Bones comes out of the kitchens too, looking proud, and my mouth falls open with a smile before she can even start talking.
“I’m two months pregnant,” Lauren says, looking up at Bones and beaming lovingly as the rest of us burst into applause, and I’m the first to swoop in and hug her tight after she breaks away from Bones before the rest of us start passing her around with adoration.
“We’re going to have a pack of kids following the bikes around by the end of next year at this rate,” Ironside says with a laugh, and Justine blushes as she hugs Lauren.
“Can’t think of a better way to start off a Christmas feast,” Breaker says, smiling around at the Heartbreakers as we stand together in a room full of loving faces--a family that’s only going to grow larger. “And I can’t think of a better family to spend it with. Merry Christmas, you crusty fucks!”
There’s a roar of approval from the club that I join in on, already feeling the buzz of the bourbon in me as Big Daddy hugs me tight, proud of me as I am to be at his side.
Warmer than ever--for the rest of our lives.
Next from Alexis Abbott
Description
To be free, she must first be his slave.
I know he's trouble. The way he made me scream his name over and over again told me as much.
But he's still a monster. A criminal, and something so much worse.
So why can't I stop the tingling in my body every time I think of how he touched me?
My father made a deal with the mafia, and now I have to pay the price.
My only chance for survival is Ivan, the dangerous man I can't get out of my head since our blisteringly hot one-night stand.
The cost? My servitude, for one year.
What other choice do I have?
For the next year, I'm the property of Ivan Dragomirov, Hitman for the Russian Mafia.
Read Owned by the Hitman Today!
Teaser:
It's been so long since I've let myself just have fun. In the back of my mind, I remember one more time that I'm barely scraping by, Dad's old debts are due soon, not to mention the protection money, and this place can't exactly watch itself.
Then I tell that part of my mind to take a night off.
Soon I'm grinding into the guy, the freeing atmosphere of the night urging me to enjoy this stranger's body, and as my wide eyes meet his, I realize he's been daring me into this from the moment he walked in.
It's in his moves as well as his gaze. He's always stepping to the side, a hand teasing at mine to follow, not just pulling me around but hinting for me to let him take the lead. With every moment that passes in the deafening music, I realize I want that more than anything else right now.
His eyes keep flitting to the exit with a meaningful look. I know exactly what he's hinting at, but my playful smile keeps him from thinking I'll go so easily.
By the time the song comes to a close, my backside is pressing into his front, and I feel powerful arms wrapping around me, those luscious lips whispering into my ear now that I can hear him speak.
"For someone so tense, you're in tune with your body. That's a rare pairing."
"I was about to say the same," I answer, exposing my neck to him and let
ting his cheek brush against it.
"So," he adds, hands moving down my sides to rest on my hips, and I can feel the desire in them. "The question is: are you willing to listen to what your body wants?"
I turn my head just enough for my gaze to catch his, and I bite my lip, a sparkle of my own in my eyes as I let the question linger in the air between us for a moment longer.
Read Owned by the Hitman Today!
Also by Alexis Abbott
Romantic Suspense:
Hitmen Series:
Owned by the Hitman
Sold to the Hitman
Saved by the Hitman
Captive of the Hitman
Stolen from the Hitman
Hostage of the Hitman
Taken by the Hitman
The Hitman’s Masquerade (Short Story)
Heartbreakeres MC (Coming 2019)
Breaker
Bones
Ironside
Big Daddy
The Killer Trilogy:
Book 1: Killer for Hire
Book 2: Killer Desire
Book 3: Killer on Fire
Hostages:
Trafficked
Stealing Her
The Assassin’s Heart
Killing For Her
Abducted
Killers:
Hunter’s Baby
I Hired A Hitman
Stepbrothers:
Ruthless
Criminal
Glitz & Grit:
Betting on Love
Vegas Boss
Rock Hard Bodyguard
Innocence For Sale: Jane
Redeeming Viktor
Sexy SEALs
Sweetheart for the SEAL
Sights on the SEAL
Romance:
Falling for her Boss (Novella)
Most Wanted: Lilly (Novella)
Bound as the World Burns (SFF)
Erotic Thriller:
The Dangerous Men Series:
The Narrow Path
Strayed from the Path
Path to Ruin
About the Author
Alexis Abbott is a Wall Street Journal & USA Today bestselling author who writes about bad boys protecting their girls! Pick up her books today if you can’t resist a bad boy who is a good man, and find yourself transported with super steamy sex, gritty suspense, and lots of romance.
She lives in beautiful St. John's, NL, Canada with her amazing husband.
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Acknowledgments
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If you’d like to join them — and get my ebooks or paperbacks — you can find me here on Patreon.
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Big Daddy Page 18
