The Biker's Gift (Royal Bastards MC)

by Landis, Nikki

  I didn’t disagree. “What do you want me to do?”

  Grim’s shrewd gaze landed on my own. “Do you really think Sasha is holding back?”

  “Yes, she has to know more than she’s saying. Tricia and Sasha work together. There’s no way she never met Acid and his club. Not with the way shit went down six months ago. Even if Sasha didn’t know Acid, we know Trish did.”

  The reminder didn’t make my prez happy.

  “Fine.” Grim’s eyes gleamed with a feral glow. I knew that look, and it meant trouble. “Then we take her on the Devil’s Ride.”

  “When?” I asked, my body buzzing with sudden anticipation. That would certainly change things. Sasha was about to find out exactly how the Royal Bastards Tonopah, Nevada Chapter earned their name.

  “Tonight.”

  Chapter 8 – Sasha

  “Follow me.”

  I shuffled along behind Bodie out into the hall as he moved with all the stealth and grace of a deadly predator. His swagger was distracting as I yawned and blinked the sleep from my eyes. Immediately, I felt guilty since I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the way his ass was perfectly molded in his jeans. I had slept about eight hours and eaten before he returned, insisting there was something I needed to see. To be honest, I was more than a little wary.

  Our last conversation ended without resolution and I was convinced that he was pissed about something, but I couldn’t figure out what was bothering him. “Where are we going?”

  He didn’t answer.

  “I suppose you’re not going to say why you left me alone in your room all day.” He snorted but there was so other reply. “I was bored. You know,” I taunted, “you have a stash of interesting magazines stashed in your dresser.” He narrowed his eyes as I shrugged. “Don’t worry. I didn’t check to see if the pages were sticky.” Shuddering, I didn’t hesitate to meet his direct gaze when he suddenly stopped, glaring down with that icy blue gaze. “Funny, I didn’t have you pegged for the adolescent nudes but hey, maybe you enjoy it together with porn.”

  A low growl vibrated in his chest.

  “I bagged up your trash. There was at least a half dozen used condoms and it was stinky.” I didn’t elaborate on the fact that one of his MC brothers – Patriot – came into the room and apologized for leaving his shit as he emptied the trash. Apparently, Bodie hadn’t been there or used the room in months. Only Patriot and Lucky had a spare key besides Grim. I would have been disgusted by what I found but since I knew none of those things belonged to Bodie, I had to give him shit about it. The man was grumpier than Scrooge and it was nearly Christmas.

  “I don’t read magazines,” he finally spit out between clenched teeth.

  Biting my lip to keep from laughing, I blinked up at him innocently. “I never said anything about reading them.”

  “Fucking hell,” he cursed, spinning on his heel as he stomped toward the back entrance of the Crossroads where we had entered last night.

  Since I knew the way, I took my time, pausing to wink at Patriot on the way out. He ticked his head in my direction, chuckling as he realized what I had done. Bodie poked his head through the door and caught our exchange, snarling at Patriot before he grabbed my hand and practically dragged me toward his bike.

  “Enough games, Sasha Pratt.”

  Lifting my chin, I ignored him as he carefully placed his helmet over my head and straddled the bike, revving the throttle a little before I climbed on behind him. It was several minutes before I realized that we weren’t alone. Every single member of the Royal Bastards must have been in attendance. Dozens of motorcycles rumbled next to ours before we began to leave the lot. The wind wasn’t quite as bitter and shockingly cold tonight, but the lack of precipitation helped.

  Unable to resist, I wrapped my arms around Bodie’s waist a little tighter, leaning my head against his back as I snuggled up to his warmth. The man seemed to radiate heat most of the time. I couldn’t resist the smile that crossed my face when I thought of his reaction minutes ago. It was priceless. Served him right for ignoring me all day.

  The ride lasted longer than I would have thought. We didn’t stay on the highway long, venturing into the desert as the bikes formed long rows of iron beasts galloping among the cactus, tumbleweeds, and nocturnal creatures. The moon was high overhead and dazzled the eye with its slightly amber color thrown in with the sparkling white of the stars. I sighed happily, temporarily forgetting my own problems as they scattered among the forgotten and sparse clouds.

  Some things were so beautiful they erased the ugliness of the world for a few heartbeats of stolen serenity.

  Memories of my childhood surfaced and the image of my sister, content and at peace, filled my thoughts. Gazing up at that perfect ebony sky, I made a promise to myself that I would always seize the moment. I would never live with regrets. Suraya had said so often, but I didn’t listen. Not until she was gone and could no longer remind me.

  There was nothing I took for granted now. Only one purpose was left. I had to make sure her murderer suffered and until I found a way, my time in Nevada was unfinished. Closing my eyes, I made a wish on a falling star as it streaked across the crisp desert sky. When I opened them, I found Bodie watching me with a curious and unexpected tenderness. I hadn’t realized that we’d stopped.

  “There’s something I want to show you,” he whispered, taking my hand as he pulled me up from the bike. “Here, take my leather. I won’t need it right now.” He slid the jacket around my shoulders as I wrapped it around my body tighter, inhaling the scent that was a mixture of aftershave, motor oil, and his unique manly smell.

  At first, I couldn’t tell what the bikers were doing. Zipping around on their motorcycles, nothing made sense in the darkness until something beeped inside Bodie’s jacket and I pulled out a watch. When I checked the face, the time was exactly midnight. I replaced it, watching with interest but having no idea what to expect. Whooping and hollering filled the air as the men on the bikes began to rev their engines and spin around faster, their headlights the only illumination besides the shy and distant moon.

  One minute, the figures of the men and bikes were completely normal and the next . . .

  The tires of the bikes caught fire, exploding in crimson and tangerine flames that licked up the sides of the motorcycles and lapped at the legs of the riders. Mouth gaping open, I gasped at the sight. Laughter filled the air with a maniacal undercurrent as the faces of the men began to change and transform into something sinister. One moment I was looking at a bunch of normal bikers. Only a heartbeat later, I was astonished to find the faces of demonic monsters astride their steel beasts. Skulls with little flesh stared back, eyes blazing with a feral need that I couldn’t identify.

  Backing up several paces, I swallowed hard and tried to slow the frantic breaths releasing from my chest. What the hell was this!? Did my sister know? Is this why she died? Were the secrets she learned too much for her to keep?

  Panicked, I stumbled and fell backward, landing on my ass hard as Bodie rode up beside me, concern etched into that bony visage. “You alright?” He reached outward and I hesitated, unsure if I trusted the hand that was attached to such a horrific nightmare. “Sasha? It’s still me.”

  Bodie’s deep voice sent a rush of soothing calm through my scattered thoughts. I hesitantly placed my hand in his, brought up to my feet with little effort at all. Dropping his hand, I was slightly afraid but also a little thrilled.

  “You’re so . . . different.”

  He laughed; the sound undeniably macabre but also alarmingly sexy. “Yes. That’s one way to put it.” Tilting his head to the side, he seemed to be contemplating something. “Are you afraid?”

  Wanting to be brave, I shook my head but still managed a squeaky, “yes.”

  I would never have thought that a skeleton could smirk but Bodie managed it. His high cheek bones were the perfect backdrop for those startling icy blue eyes that were forever burned into my mind, permanently etched into my brain
as if I could ever forget the way they both caressed and owned me with a single look.

  Bodie Whitman was dangerous and it wasn’t only the fact that he once belonged to my sister or that he was much more than a simple man. The confident and sexy biker was a threat to my broken and helpless heart. He reached a part of me that I thought was lost forever. Biting my lower lip, I turned away from his searching gaze and watched the other bikers, fascinated by the fire that spun over their wheels and flickered in the ebony night. Snowflakes began to fall and sizzled as they hit the motorcycles, steam rising up from the riders and their machines.

  The contrast was beautiful.

  “It’s the Devil’s Ride.”

  Bodie was standing next to me, his intense gaze focused on my face, reading every expression with a thoroughness that I didn’t expect. He was no longer the intimidating monster I’d seen moments ago.

  “Now that you’ve seen us, we can never let you leave.”

  Eyes wide, I started to protest. “What? You can’t –”

  “I’m kidding,” he laughed. “Even if you tried to tell the whole world what we are, no one would believe you. We can control who sees our true nature. It’s a bit of a handy trick.”

  “Uh, nice?”

  “You’re not gonna ask anything? Not curious?”

  I gulped loudly. “Not right now.”

  He seemed surprised. “Come on. We’re gonna ride back.”

  I shrugged off his leather and handed it back before he slipped it on and zipped it up. Approaching the bike, I was shocked to find no evidence of the flames that had covered the lower half of the bike. No smoke. No melted rubber. No hint that it had happened at all.

  Maybe I was hallucinating the entire night.

  “It was real,” he uttered softly, leaning down close. “Don’t doubt it for a minute.”

  The ride back was quiet as I remained lost in my thoughts, the night’s revelations, and the secrets that still lingered between me and Bodie. Did I have the courage to tell him everything he should know? Was I strong enough to share my dark past? Bodie had revealed his biggest secret to me which was a bit of a surprise. Why bother? We’d only just met. Did the Royal Bastards MC have some kind of agenda?

  The smell of cigarettes and weed greeted us as we entered the Crossroads. Music pulsed through my chest as more bikers filled the room. The others were returning as we made our way across the bar and entered the same hall as before. I tried to ignore the women grinding up against the club members, many of them with little to no clothing to cover their bodies.

  Bodie muttered under his breath and led me to his room, pausing briefly to unlock the door before he spun, his regard so intense I knew I’d never escape whatever he planned.

  Strangely enough, my stomach fluttered with excitement as I noticed the tick in his jaw.

  He shut the door with a loud click, determination creasing his forehead.

  I could no longer hide the truth.

  Chapter 9 – Bodie

  The door slammed shut behind us as I paced with agitation.

  “What’s the matter, Bodie?”

  Hearing my name pass through those sweet, plump lips did not help my suddenly foul mood.

  “Enough lies and half-truths, Sasha. I need to know everything. Now.”

  She squared her shoulders back with my curt tone which did nothing but put her luscious tits on full display, drawing my eye to the sweet crevice in between and I couldn’t stop myself from visualizing my dick sliding between their perky pillow-soft peaks. Briefly, I wondered what she’d look like with a pearl necklace shining around that pretty, delicate throat.

  Fuck.

  My head was not in the right place right now.

  Sasha glared up at me, her confusion obvious. Damn, she was fuckin’ beautiful. Flushed cheeks and parted lips revealed her perfect little teeth. Her dark, thick hair was in a wild disarray from the ride back to the Crossroads and my fingers twitched with the urge to lose my hands in the heavy locks. I turned away quickly before I did something stupid like crush her obstinate little mouth with my own.

  I needed to keep my distance from this woman. She was nothing but trouble.

  “I’m losing patience, Sasha.”

  I kept saying her name on purpose to remind myself this wasn’t a woman I knew or cared about. I didn’t have a past with her. I hadn’t fucked her. I didn’t love her. Hell, I knew nothing about this feisty little vixen except that she was fuckin’ hot and stubborn, a combination that liked to make my dick twitch in my pants so often I was gonna have road rash later from the rough material of my jeans.

  Suppressing a groan, I ignored the way her eyes followed my movements, tracking me with both suspicion and concern. “You don’t want to piss me off.”

  “You mean more than you already are now?” Her lips curled up a little as if the whole situation was amusing which didn’t make sense considering she just saw how our entire club could transform into deadly monsters. Oddly enough, my Reaper enjoyed her reaction. Sasha was fearless.

  It was a fuckin’ aphrodisiac.

  “You crazy?” I was beginning to wonder if she was.

  “Why? Because I didn’t freak out about what you are?” She shrugged. “I’ve seen plenty of monsters in my life, Bodie. They don’t need to change appearance to be what they are.”

  Fuck. I didn’t want to think about someone bothering or upsetting Sasha. She didn’t say the words, but young girls didn’t call other men monsters unless they’d been badly hurt.

  “Some monsters don’t wear masks.”

  I had her now, even if I didn’t like what she was admitting. Sasha had to be talking about the Scorpions. There wasn’t any doubt in my mind that she had some kind of interaction with them. Maybe that was why she stuck around and worked at the Blacktop. It made sense. So did the fact that Suraya once worked at that damn bar with Trish. Hell, that was how Grim and I met them both last year.

  “Tell me about these monsters,” I urged. “Because we both know the Scorpions are the only real threat to you right now.”

  She flinched, her body language a confirmation as she pursed her lips. “How do I know that I can trust you? My sister died and you were supposed to protect her,” she accused. “I can’t take the chance that I’ll be next.”

  It was a legit question even if I hated it.

  “Suraya’s death wasn’t my fault. I wasn’t there because I was out on a run. She left this club to meet up with a friend. I had no control over the events that took place that day.” Swallowing the lump in my throat, I stopped pacing and faced Sasha. “You can blame me all you want but the truth is that Acid and the Scorpions are responsible for what happened to your sister. I was lucky enough to show up and find her dead body on the ground at Acid’s feet.” My anger rose with the memory and I stood a foot away from her, looking down with a rage and pain that I could barely control. My Reaper was agitated. I had to fight to keep myself under control. “I had to see the woman I loved lying on the ground in a pool of her own blood.”

  Tears filled Sasha’s eyes and slipped down her cheeks, but I was too far gone to censor my words.

  “I’ve sworn vengeance since that moment, and I will find Acid. I’ll torture and torment him until his very last breath and then I’ll steal his soul, so it’s forever lost. He’ll never have peace. Not one fuckin’ second once I can exact justice. Acid will pay,” I promised with a snarl, shocked when Sasha bolted forward and threw her arms around my waist.

  “Bodie,” she hiccupped, “I didn’t know. I swear, I didn’t know.”

  My arms slid around her briefly, but I didn’t allow the contact to continue for long. “It doesn’t matter.” My voice was bitter, and I couldn’t hide the fact that my need for revenge had been rekindled even stronger than before. “All that matters now is that I find Acid and finish what he started.”

  Sasha sighed; her breath unsteady. “It’s not only Acid. Dawg and Zook are also a problem.”

  Her acknowledgement ma
de me frown. “Spill it.”

  “I think they killed my sister because they thought she was me.” Her voice was so low that I almost missed her words.

  “Why would they think you’re Suraya?”

  “None of the Scorpions ever saw my sister and I together. She didn’t come to the Blacktop often once I got hired on and I didn’t know until much later that she knew Trish as well as she did.”

  “That’s not an answer.”

  “Look, I dated Zook briefly. I’m not proud of that fact but I didn’t know who the Scorpions were at first. I just thought he was some hot biker guy. Trish didn’t warn me until it was too late.”

  Resisting the urge to growl at the revelation, I rolled my shoulders back. “What the fuck does that mean?”

  “Acid and Dawg were waiting for Zook when we arrived at their clubhouse one night. It was the first time Zook brought me. I didn’t know it, but I was being set up. Zook planned to share me with Acid and Dawg. They were,” she gulped, her cheeks flushing, “looking for . . .”

  “Fresh pussy,” I finished, my hands closing into fists at my sides. It wasn’t hard to figure out what she meant. “They tried to rape you.”

  She nodded, brushing her palms across her jeans. “I thought they were going to kill me.”

  “Did they touch you?” The words were forced from between my lips, hardly more than a growl. There was no excuse for treating a woman like that. Sure, I fucked without feelings or attachment in the past, but it was mutual. I would never force a woman. It was disgusting.

  Another reason to hate that piece of shit and his club.

  “Almost. I was shoved into a room with a locked door and a bed. The three of them cornered me. I can’t explain where the strength came from to fight back. Maybe,” she faltered, “maybe I knew I was going to die. I don’t know.” Trembling fingers rose to push a loose tendril of hair behind her ear. “Trish had given me a small pocketknife. Zook never thought to search me or he would have found it.”