Ryan only nodded. Weirdly, Brick giving her orders, being all alpha, was doing more for her than the smooth sexy badass she had encountered the night before. He had been as potent as the twelve-year-old scotch he had been drinking off her body. This Brick was just another layer, and it was a good one. She had to shake her head slightly to get a little clarity from the lust fog he was creating in her mind. She must be really fucking tired.
“You must ask for permission to go between the rooms.”
Yep, her nipples were totally beading up into tight little diamond-hard points, and it had absolutely nothing to do with her damp clothes or the chill in the room.
“You will be watched at all times.”
Holy, hell, her pussy actually clenched as though he was talking dirty to her when he was just giving her instructions. What the hell was wrong with her, and why in the world did it have to be this man?
“Every move you make will be monitored by a club member.”
Damn, she wanted this specific club officer to use his member on her in the worst way. This was out-of-control crazy. Ryan Lowe was not this person. She didn’t get turned on by a dude, one she maybe had a crush on years ago and had more than a few late-night fantasies about, but now it was completely different. She was completely different. She was the steady, always in control, logical computer geek, not this out-of-control crazy person Baden Wahl seemed to make her.
“Do I make myself clear?”
“Gotcha, and understood,” Ryan said, rolling her eyes to the ceiling, so she didn’t have to look at him or so he could see in her eyes what she’d been thinking. Then again, she also needed to gain his trust and prove herself. She was tired, feeling a little cranky, and really regretting doing all of this the way she had but also regretting they never got to finish. What a fucked-up situation. Maybe she should have tried calling Caine, Roo, or hell, even Brick, and pleaded her case. She realized a little too late, Brick must have thought she was being flippant.
“You better start taking this shit you stepped into seriously, Ryan,” Brick barked. “The way I see it, there are only two outcomes to this situation—you make it on Perez’s hit list, or you end up on the BRMC list—neither of them a good place to be.”
All the warm fuzzies went right out of her. He was threatening her, and it didn’t sit right. He might not like what she’d done or what she was going to do, but Ryan was well aware of the dangers she faced. None of them had the first clue what she was capable of or what she had already done. To her, this job would be a cakewalk. The only ramifications would be not finding her brother or finding him hurt and broken—not being on any damn list. She was careful. Hell, if the FBI, CIA, and DoD couldn’t figure out who she was or what she’d been up to, she wasn’t the least bit worried about Miguel Perez or the BRMC. That might be naïve, but she hadn’t been joking. She was damn good at this.
“No, you’re wrong. There are three,” Ryan said, getting a little irritated and wanting him to leave. “I will find and get all the information regarding my brother and what happened to him. I will also stay off both of those lists. There is nothing I can say that can erase the last few hours, but I’m not your enemy or an enemy of the Blacktop Renegades. I’ve made that clear. It’s your job to open up that thick head and accept it. I can’t do it for you. Even if my search turns up nothing on my brother, the BRMC still wins, so back off. Let me do what I came here to do, and either leave me alone or,”—Ryan dropped the towel, leaving her in just her cami and skirt, pushing one of the straps down—“let’s finish what we started.” The look of abject horror on his face was enough to make Ryan want to take her words back, but her actions also gave her what she wanted… or maybe not. He was already backing out the door.
“I’m never going to touch you again. That ship has sailed. Don’t even regret not remembering the ride,” Brick’s eyes wandered up and down her body, then he shook his head. “Don’t think it was worth the price of the ticket.”
Asshole, she knew she deserved some of this, but damn, that fucking hurt. Ryan didn’t do hurt well. Turning around, so her back was to him, she stripped slowly, waiting to hear the slam of the door. When it didn’t happen, she pushed further.
“No worries. I’ll give you a C-minus in the foreplay department, and that’s being generous, but when it came to the main event, you failed to deliver, so we’re in complete agreement about not taking that ride again. It wouldn’t be worth it.”
Ryan never heard him move, but he was on her in a second, his warm body pressed up against her back, arm around her just under her exposed breasts and hand gripping her side, pulling her back into his erection, his hot breath whispering across her ear.
“You’re playing games you don’t even know how to play, little girl. You better watch it.”
Ryan pushed back, grinding her ass into him.
“Or what, Brick?”
His hands tightened on her ribs, his thumb caressing the bottom of her breast, those full luscious lips pressed against her neck, just under her ear. Someone cleared their throat.
“Fuck, man, you really don’t learn quick, do you? Just remember, when you’re crying in the corner because your dick fell off, you brought this shit on to yourself. Tiny warned all our asses off his sister, and here you are again, all up in her shit. That hillbilly voodoo is no joke.”
Ryan stiffened, hearing Junior’s voice. Brick had jumped away from her as if she had cooties. Once again, Ryan was pissed the hell off because… Damn it! She didn’t know. Grabbing the towel, she covered her boobs and turned around.
“It’s hoodoo, you ass!! And my brother didn’t practice it.” She didn’t even bother to look at Roo’s eye roll when she repeated herself, “He didn’t!”
Roo just shook his head at both her and Brick like a disapproving father.
“Whatever. Your stuff has been put in the room next door. Get some clothes on and get to work, instead of playing around with shit you shouldn’t.”
Ryan was pretty sure he was talking to her, but his eyes never left Brick, the warning clear as day. Fucking great.
Chapter Seven
Brick walked downstairs toward Ryan’s office. It had been a little over a week since she showed up at the clubhouse and basically took over. She ruled them and the place like she owned it but not in a bitchy, entitled way. All the guys loved her. She was funny, sweet, and smarter than hell. She handled him and the guys as though she’d always been there. Ribbing Roo, challenging Junior, and even purposely irritating Caine, just so the two of them could banter back and forth.
Most of all, he’d gotten to know her a little better. She was beyond good with computers. Just watching her do what she called her day job, creating video games, blew him away. Her fingers flew over the keyboard, inputting a bunch of stuff he didn’t even try to understand, then she would hit a button, and the game would show on the screen. It fascinated him. She fascinated him.
She upgraded their cybersecurity to pentagon levels and started hacking into local systems, including the sheriff’s office. With what she had set up, the BRMC would know if anything was happening in Hazard or if anyone was looking for them, giving them time to prepare. She developed a program that, if any other contracts involving the BRMC or any of the guys individually came up on the dark web, they would know immediately. It was all good… on the surface. Underneath, there was a current brewing between the two of them, ready to erupt or explode at any moment.
Ryan Lowe revved him up and pissed him off faster than any person ever had. Every damn time he turned around, she was flaunting her perfect curvy body, driving him crazy. The two of them kept their distance, but damn, the looks, body languages, and off-the-chart chemistry were enough to have him in a constant state of blue balls and was turning him into a fucking stalker. Hell, the woman was on his mind from the time he woke up until he went to bed, and somehow, she even managed to have a starring role in his fucking dreams.
As soon as he saw Roo standing next to Ryan’s office d
oor, Brick knew this confrontation was going to happen. He had hoped they could put it off for a while, but from the look on Roo’s face, that wasn’t happening. Instead of acknowledging the man, Brick opened the door and looked inside, finding the room empty, except for the wooden crates Ryan’s stuff came in. He would have to take care of those soon. The room wasn’t huge, to begin with, and he was pretty sure she would appreciate the extra space. He stepped back out.
“I could have told you she wasn’t in there.”
Brick shut the door, taking a couple of steps out, facing Roo, his feet shoulder-width apart and hands loose, in a fighter’s stance. He didn’t think this conversation would come to blows, but he was prepared for anything.
“Ryan isn’t meant for this life. Tiny didn’t want it for her, and neither do I.”
“I don’t think that’s your decision or Tiny’s, either. Ryan seems to make her own decisions just fine. Otherwise, she wouldn’t even be here.”
Roo took a step forward but stopped.
“Fucker, you know what I’m talking about. You fuck every piece of snatch that comes in this place. You aren’t looking for an ol’ lady, and you don’t want anyone warming your back on your bike. Watching the two of you together is like watching a train wreck about to happen. Leave her be.”
Brick knew that in some respects, Roo was right, but it rubbed him the wrong way just the same. He moved close, so the two of them were chest to chest.
“I’m only going to warn you once to stay the hell out of it. You had your chance to play big brother, and from the sounds of it, you blew it. What happens between Ryan and me is our business, no one else’s.” Roo stepped away from him, and the look on his face proved he had gone too far with the ‘brother’ comment. Backtracking a little, Brick said, “I’m not out to hurt her. I don’t have the fucking first clue what’s going to happen between us or if anything will, but that’s not any of your business, either.”
Brick walked away, thinking to go out for a ride, but what he was doing was looking for Ryan. It didn’t take him long. All he had to do was follow his nose and listen for the clanging pots and barked orders coming from the kitchen. Junior was standing off to the side of the opening, looking in.
When he got close enough and looked into the kitchen, he almost groaned when that sweet ass pointed his way to take something else out of the oven, giving him all kinds of ideas about what he would like to do to her. It took him a couple of seconds to get his mind out of the gutter and see what was really going on. Adjusting his dick, he stepped back, just out of sight.
Both he and Junior stood outside of the kitchen door, watching as she moved around, stirring pots, taking pans out of the oven, and wrapping up others to be put away. There were enough baked goods and dinner to feed an army platoon, and it didn’t look like she was going to stop anytime soon.
“What’s going on?”
“She’s cooking,” Junior said, ever the giver.
“No shit, asshole. What’s really going on?”
Junior leaned back, out of the doorway, and Brick followed suit.
“Leave her be, man. She has chicken and dumplings on the stove and lasagna in the oven. I want them, so don’t fuck it up.”
“Don’t be an ass.” Brick pointed to the kitchen. “That is not normal.”
Junior shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t care, man. Mental breakdown or practicing for some cooking show, as long as I get the homemade baked goods and food, I say just let her work her shit out the way she needs to.”
“Asshole, quit thinking with your stomach and use your damn brain. No one cooks like that, even prepping for a week. Did you see how tired she looks, or how about the fact she just baked twelve dozen cookies, four cakes, six loaves of bread, plus the meals, and hasn’t even tasted any of them? It’s as if she’s… fuck if I know,” Brick said, throwing up his hands. “Something else is going on in there, and I think you should do something about it.”
“Not me, brother.” Junior stepped back again, holding up his own hands, horrified. “You want to interfere and risk pissing her off, go for it, but I, for one, am not a stupid man. The kitchen is one of the most dangerous places in a house. Add in a frustrated, pissed-off female, and it’s a disaster waiting to happen.”
Watching Junior walk away, Brick spotted Axel standing down the hall, shaking his head as if he was saying, ‘Don’t do it,’ but damn it, someone had to. Bracing himself, he nutted up and walked into the kitchen, making a bunch of noise, even stomping his booted feet on the floor a little harder than usual, but Ryan didn’t turn, even when he was a couple steps behind her.
“Babe, what’s going on?” He was thankful for the distance when she whirled around, the wooden spoon in her hand, splattering something from the momentum. Her eyes squinted, giving him the evil eye.
“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m cooking, or is that another rule you didn’t tell me about, and I’m not allowed?”
As far as Brick and his stomach were concerned, she could cook as much as she wanted, but as he had said to Junior, this was beyond just cooking.
“Babe.”
“Don’t you babe me.” Ryan brandished that wooden spoon like a sword, emphasizing her words. “Do you know what I’ve had to eat since I’ve been here, Brick?” Brick didn’t know, but he was sure she was going to tell him, and he wasn’t wrong. “Hot dogs… twice! Pizza three times, and so many sandwiches, I don’t want to see another piece of lunch meat ever again,” Ryan yelled and turned back to the stove.
Brick knew she wasn’t done, so he just waited for her to turn around again, this time stomping toward the cupboard, opening the door, and slamming it shut.
“I’ve even eaten stale pop tarts and cereal I’m pretty sure expired in 1969. It was hard as a rock, even after soaking in milk for an hour. I want FOOD, Brick, and not something that came from the microwave or from a drive-thru!”
Brick walked up to her, took her spoon weapon out of her hand, and placed it on the counter, then gathering her up in his arms, he hugged her, the only thing he knew to do.
“What’s going on, Ryan? You have enough food here to feed the entire homeless population in Kentucky, and you haven’t taken a single bite. This isn’t about being hungry.”
“I just… I can’t… what if…”
“Babe, you’re tired, frustrated, and pissed off, and as much as I would love you shaking in my arms, this isn’t the situation I had in mind.” He expected her to yell at him or taunt him, but she slumped in his arms, proving he didn’t know anything about women, except how to get them out of their panties. Maybe Roo was right. He didn’t have any business with Ryan, but instead of walking away and letting her figure this out on her own, Brick took a few steps back, planted his ass on the chair with her in his lap, and let her cry it out until she fell asleep in his arms. He took her up to his bedroom, laying her on his bed. Looking at her lying there, her hair feathered out on his pillow, he had another thought. Maybe Ryan Lowe was the one woman he couldn’t just walk away from. Shit!
Chapter Eight
Ryan woke up, and even before she opened her eyes, she knew she was in Brick’s room. She could smell his cologne, soap, or whatever it was, the spicy scent that was all Baden Wahl. Shit! Mortification kicked in as she remembered her frenzied cooking spree, yelling at the prospects and Brick, and the meltdown in his arms. Then she remembered why she was there. Barely opening her eyes, she bolted out of bed, almost knocking over an almost naked Brick. She was dumbstruck, just taking him in—wet from the shower, a towel wrapped precariously low on his waist, all that muscled, tatted skin on display. Ryan even tracked his happy trail with her eyes until the obvious bulge tented under the towel. She was starting to resent the bulky fabric and the dick that seemed to grab all her focus, figuratively and literally.
Hell, waking up disoriented and coming face to face with all that was Brick was too much for a mere mortal like her. Shaking her head slightly, she whimpered. She had to stop looking at al
l his manly glory. Ryan patted her pockets frantically, remembering exactly what she needed right now, already berating herself for being so stupid. Brick held out her phone to her, and Ryan didn’t ask. Quickly putting in her code and pressing her thumb to the reader, she waited for the screen to power up, her heart in her stomach. If she missed the alert, all this shit was for nothing. The first time Perez opened the link was the most crucial. She had designed it so only a person who knew exactly what they were looking for would find it embedded. Basically, she needed to power it up and give it instructions that first time, or it would just float around in that monster’s system, doing nothing.
“It never went off. I would have woken you up if it had.”
Ryan turned just in time to see Brick’s perfect ass as he dropped the towel before pulling on a pair of jeans. Shit, she was in trouble here. This man was a distraction she didn’t need. She might want to jump in and test the waters, test out all those teenage fantasies, but even this little incident proved that was a bad, bad idea.
Ryan took Brick at his word but still checked her phone to give her time to figure out what she needed to do next. She also wanted to give him time to put on a t-shirt and cover that magnificent chest, pretty sure if she had to look at him, even half-naked, she would throw herself at his feet and beg him to fuck her. That was not her style—would never be her style. Then again, looking at Brick from the corner of her eye, maybe it should be… or could be.
Fuck, this man was so damn confusing. He started out hot and heavy when he didn’t know who the hell she was, his primary and only goal getting into her pants, then he totally cold-shouldered her. She deserved that for not being on the up and up, but then he started showing up everywhere she was in the clubhouse, driving her nuts. When Caine looked through her stuff, she had never been so thankful he hadn’t confiscated or made mention of her B.O.B. because that sucker had been getting a workout. It looked like if she stuck to her current plan, it would have to stay her nightly companion for a while. Clicking on a shopping app, she ordered a case of double-A batteries, then walked toward the door without saying a word. Rude, yes. Necessary, hell, yes. Ryan was running from temptation as fast as she could. She sensed him before he took her arm in his hand and spun her around—sans shirt, damn it!
Brick: Blacktop Renegades (BRMC Book 2) Page 5
