Brick: Blacktop Renegades (BRMC Book 2)

by Chelsea Handcock

  “Oh God, please,” Ryan begged, “I’m so close.” Brick moved back, kissing her inner thigh gently, moving her legs down off his shoulders as he stood, and kissed her softly.

  “Not yet,” he whispered against her lips.

  Cool air brushed across her heated skin, pebbling it from the loss of his heat, but the view of Brick removing his clothes heated her back up to volcanic levels. The man’s body was a work of art, from his sculpted muscles to the tattoos decorating his skin. She could look at him every day for the rest of her life, and he would still take her breath away each and every time. She gasped when he picked her up and carried her over to the tub. Stepping inside, immersing them in the hot soapy water. She tried to turn, so she could take him inside of her, but he wouldn’t allow it. Holding her still, he tortured and taunted her further, washing every inch of her body. After he was done washing her hair, Brick kissed her shoulder.

  “You scared me, Ryan. The thought of losing you because of who I am, what I am…”

  Ryan didn’t let him stop her this time. Turning her body around, so she was straddling his thighs, and her pussy rested against his dick.

  “I’m right here, Baden, safe in your arms, right where I want to be. Nothing that happened is on you, do you understand me?” Ryan kissed him, hugging him tightly. She knew what this was and accepted what was looming over them both, but she wanted this moment with him. Pulling back, she cupped his cheek. “No regrets, no looking forward or back, just you and me, right now, together in this moment. Nothing else matters.”

  “Make love to me, Baden.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Brick couldn’t do it, couldn’t do what she asked. He wasn’t that much of a cold-hearted bastard. Being with Ryan, holding her, and seeing the way she looked at him, everything he thought before, standing outside the rubble of the clubhouse, flew out the window. But he could do something for her, for both of them. Picking her up from the water, he quickly dried them off, then carried her into the bedroom and laid her down on the bed. Fuck, this woman took his breath away. Being with her would be no hardship. Hell, his dick had been on board with the idea since the very first night, but with what he needed to do, it wouldn’t be right. She had said no regrets, but Brick already had a ton of them weighing heavily on his heart and mind.

  Crawling up her body, he didn’t give her a second to think about anything else. He could see her heart beating beneath her amazing breasts, and the temptation was too much to resist, lashing his tongue across the diamond-hard peak of her nipple before sucking it deep. Her hands went to his head, pulling him closer, but Brick needed to be in control. Gathering her wrists with one hand, he lifted them above her head. His other hand moved down to the drenched folds of her pussy, and he slid two fingers inside of her, reveling in the sound of his name falling from her lips as she adjusted to his invasion.

  “Come for me, baby,” Brick whispered right before he bit down on her nipple. Feeling her pussy tighten around his fingers, he twisted his hand and curved his fingers up slightly, concentrating all his efforts on her g-spot. Ryan dissolved like liquid pleasure all around him.

  “Baden,” she moaned, fighting against the hold he had on her hands. He couldn’t let her touch him right now, or all his good intentions would fly right out the window.

  “Come for me, Ryan!” Her hips rose rapidly, meeting the pump of his fingers until she came apart in his arms, soaking his fingers with her release.

  Brick watched as her eyes fluttered a couple times before closing completely. Her breathing calmed, and a tiny snore sounded in the quiet of the room. Brick couldn’t help the small smile of satisfaction that crossed his face, even as the devastation of what he was about to do threatened to knock him on his ass. Pushing it back, he went into the bathroom, quickly wetting a washcloth with warm water. Going back to Ryan, he methodically cleaned the light sheen of sweat that coated her body. When he was done, Brick covered her, then looked back at her one last time before he walked out of the room.

  The guys were in the kitchen, cups of coffee instead of their usual beers sitting in front of them. Every one of them looked as tired and worn out as Brick felt. Caine looked up first.

  “Is she okay?”

  “For now,” was all Brick could say before getting down to business. “What do we know?”

  For the next several hours, they all went over everything, how every security measure they put in place failed, to the people they lost, and the aftermath that was yet to hit.

  “I think it’s time we stop waiting for shit to happen and actually take the fucker on. This pussyfooting around shit has to end. Too many people are getting hurt or caught up in the crossfire. It has got to stop.” Axel voiced what they were all feeling.

  For years, they knew the threat of Perez was at their backs. Brick knew the basics. Caine, Tuck, and Cin had done something years ago to piss the big man off, but they had also tied his hands somehow. Brick didn’t think anyone except the four of them knew the whole story. The truth of the matter was, he never asked, willing to have Caine’s back in anything—until now, until Ryan. Brick looked down into his coffee cup, looking for answers he knew he was never going to find.

  “I agree. I’m done playing games. It’s time we took action instead of just sitting back with our thumbs up our asses, waiting for Perez to make his next move. The information Ryan pulled is enough to make Perez start running for a while if given to the right people. It would also give us enough time to plan and finally take the fucker to ground, where he belongs.”

  “Regardless of who we have to take down with him,” Junior added, looking at Caine. They all knew the man had been trying to protect Cin like he always had, but things had gone too far now. Sacrifices sucked, but sometimes, they needed to be made.

  Caine nodded. “Agreed. But right now, we need to figure out what happened to Roo. I will not leave another man behind. We need to regroup, get stronger, and play our cards right if we’re going to go to war.”

  Fuck, hearing the word war only cemented what he needed to do. Ryan needed to be as far away from them as possible. Going up against a cartel, like Perez headed, was a death sentence for all of them, but they could try to mitigate the damage, keeping as many innocents as safe as possible. Brick rubbed his chest, the pain already starting.

  Getting up from the table, Brick dumped his coffee down the drain. He needed to check on Ryan.

  “I know where he was supposed to set up. I’ll head out after I talk to Ryan and backtrack him if I have to and bring his ass home.” Looking at Caine, he said, “But I need you to do something for me.”

  Caine looked at him, eyes narrowed. “What?”

  “Send Ryan home. Get her out of here and this mess, and make sure she understands there’s no coming back.”

  “Fuck, man, you’re not asking for much. That girl is stubborn and loyal as all hell,” Junior piped in. “Not to mention fucking good at what she does. This is the wrong time to cut resources, and she’s a big fucking one. She saved our asses.”

  “Yeah, and that’s exactly why she needs to leave. We knew going into this what to expect, but she didn’t have the first clue. I won’t put her at risk again.”

  “Good luck,” Junior laughed. “No way in hell is she just going to leave now that the shit has hit the fan. You are underestimating that girl.”

  Brick heard him but didn’t respond, his focus still on Caine. “Get the information you want from her and send her on her way, or I’m out.”

  Axel stood up so fast his chair flew out behind him.

  “What?! Motherfucker, I get wanting to protect your woman at all costs, but that shit is over the line. The club comes first. We stand together.”

  Again, Brick’s focus didn’t change. He knew Caine would get it. He knew his President would understand what he was trying to do here. Caine stood, putting his hand on Axel’s chest, holding him back.

  “Consider it done. Do what you have to do, Brick, but you better fucking realiz
e what you’re giving up because I don’t think there will be a second chance where you’re concerned with Ryan. She might be loyal but remember that stubborn streak well because, brother, that woman is going to make you pay.”

  Brick walked out of the kitchen, thinking, no shit. He already was paying, but sometimes, a man had to make the hard choices for the people they loved, and yeah, it might be fucked up, but he loved Ryan. Almost losing her was like almost losing a part of himself.

  Brick took his time going up to the bedroom, stopping off in another room to shower and change clothes. All their shit had been blown to hell, but they all kept a room at Caine’s house, just in case. At first, he’d thought it was stupid. Nomads for so many years, they had made do with what they could keep in their saddlebags, but now he was grateful for the forethought. He needed to be ready to leave when he said what he had to say. He couldn’t take the chance of Ryan changing his mind. This was too important—she was too damn important. Back in the room where Ryan was still sleeping, he watched her for a while, the pain in his chest growing. She looked so peaceful and perfect. This shit was going to hurt him for a long time to come, but it was the right thing to do.

  Going over to the window, he looked out just as the first rays of sunshine started to spark in the sky. He felt it when she woke up and heard her when she sat up on the bed, not saying a word. Maybe she knew it, too. Unable to turn around and look at her, he stared out at the sky.

  “You need to leave. Caine is pulling the plug on this. Too much is a stake.”

  “Why?”

  Brick turned around, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “You almost died yesterday, Ryan, chasing a fucking ghost. I think that’s answer enough why you need to leave, but if you need more, I’ll give it to you. You think you know what kind of man I am, but you don’t have the first clue. Every time I look at you, I can see all those hopes and dreams in your eyes. You were so easy to play and manipulate. You would do anything I wanted just to keep it going. What you didn’t understand was I never wanted the same shit you did. That’s why I couldn’t tell you what you wanted to hear or put a label on it. From the start, you meant one thing to me—just a quick fuck.” The words he was spewing burned like bile coming out of his mouth, but he kept it up. Junior was right, Ryan was loyal and stubborn as all hell, and if he didn’t hit her hard, she would stay, and he couldn’t have that. He needed her to be safe and away from his world, even if it was the last thing he actually wanted. Driving the nail in a little deeper, he added, “My world isn’t meant for you. You’re too soft, too easy, and not worth the effort anymore.”

  “Wow! Nice.” Ryan started laughing. Getting up, she wrapped the blanket around her body, first going to a closet and ripping some clothes down before dropping the blanket, giving Brick a glimpse of everything he was giving up. When he saw the bruises on her neck, he knew he had to keep this up. After she was dressed, Ryan looked at him, mirroring his stance.

  “You’re an ass, but you’re right. I’m done here. As soft as I am, I could still forgive you for those words because of what happened, and I know you’re running on pure instinct right now. That makes me a person I don’t want to be.” Ryan walked over to the door and opened it, looking back at him. The light in her eyes was gone as she looked at him as if he was nothing.

  “You are a coward, Baden. I would have given you everything. You say I’m too soft for your world, but the way I look at it, you’re the one who is too fucking weak. I would have fought for you with my last breath, did fight for you with my last breath, and yet you can just so easily throw it all away because of your own fears. I deserve better than that, so you’re right. We’re done, but let me clue you in on a little secret. That ghost I was chasing is very much alive, which means you’re about to leave another person behind. I wonder if you’ll ever look back and regret it as much as you are about to.” Ryan slammed the door when she walked out, and all Brick could do was stand there, her words slamming into him.

  Tiny was alive.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Caine was waiting for her when she came down the stairs. It would have been surprising if he hadn’t been there. This was Brick’s final play. If Roo had been here, he would be the one waiting for her, but Caine must have drawn the short straw.

  “Where’s Roo? Did he make it out?” Caine shook his head in the negative, confirming her suspicions.

  “He’s in the wind. We’re waiting to hear from him, but it could take some time.”

  “I need a laptop and a secure wifi connection. Can you make that happen?”

  “I figured that. Follow me.”

  Ryan looked around, and besides the bedroom she slept in, her first impression was dead on. This place was a dump and huge.

  “You know you should be ashamed of yourself for letting a place like this crumble around your feet.”

  “Honey, if that’s the only thing I have to be ashamed of, I’ll take it, but the truth is I bought it for my sister. Never expected to be staying here.”

  “Then, you should really be ashamed of yourself.”

  Caine smiled at her. “You’re probably right.” They had just made it to the den when Ryan heard the front door slam and pipes rev up.

  “Brick is going to look for Roo.”

  “Well, if he would have waited, I could tell him exactly where Roo is.”

  “And how are you going to do that?”

  “I low-jacked your asses the first day I got to the club. How else?”

  Caine shook his head but was smiling, even though he was trying to hide it. It was a good moment, but she had to ruin it.

  “I need you to look at something, Ryan.”

  “Okay?”

  “The people who stormed the clubhouse were comparing every woman to a picture on their phones. Before the place blew all to hell, I took one. Do you know this woman?” Caine handed her the phone with the picture, and Ryan almost laughed,

  “Dirty Matilda.”

  “What?”

  “When I was a kid, there was this girl a couple years older than me in her late teens a couple counties over. The mean kids used to call her Dirty Matilda. She was from the mountains like me, her family was poor, and her parents weren’t the best. Anyway, one day, she came up missing, and there were tons of rumors going around—she ran away, her parents killed her, kidnapping, all kinds of stuff. The local sheriff was a dipshit and only cared about the people who could keep him in office, if you know what I mean, so he dropped the ball. There wasn’t any press or a paper trail, so when I decided to do this, I needed to make a solid identity.”

  “So, you borrowed hers?”

  “Yep, and before you give me any shit about identity theft, Matilda passed away seven years ago in a cancer unit, under the name Mary Thomas, the new identity I gave her, so she could escape her parents and the abuse she had suffered for most of her life. She was a friend no one knew about, even my brother.” Ryan cleared her throat of the lump that had formed there.

  “Speaking of my brother, he isn’t dead, and I think he set the bomb at the clubhouse.”

  “I figured as much.” Caine sat down in a chair. “Just like hackers have a signature, so do demolition guys. Your brother was one of the best, apparently, still is. He controlled the blast. It could have been much worse.”

  Damn, if that was controlling the blast, she would have hated to see the full impact of the sucker. She could still feel the heat on her back as she jumped into that hopper at the last second. The noise the bomb had made was deafening, and everything had shaken like an earthquake. She never wanted to live through anything like that again.

  “If it makes you feel any better, I think he’s suffering from some type of amnesia or something. He didn’t know who I was, but he’s in there somewhere, Caine, and if any of you think I’m going to give up on him, you don’t know me at all.”

  “Ryan, the man I knew, considered a brother, would have never put his hands on a woman like he did you. Those bruises
around your neck didn’t come from a bomb. We both know it, and I think you need to consider that even though you found him, he might not be the same person you remember. Shit changes people, and if Perez has had his hooks in Tiny for almost ten years, he isn’t the man either of us knew before. So, yeah, I don’t think there’s anything about this situation that’s going to make me feel better. It’s fucked up.”

  Ryan had been thinking the same thing, but a part of her just couldn’t give up on Tiny. If the situation was reversed, she knew without a doubt, he wouldn’t give up on her so easily, but she didn’t say any of that. There wasn’t any point.

  “You can say that again. I’ve planned this for five years, did everything I could to make sure no one got hurt in the process, including myself, and the only thing we can say about finding out my brother is alive is it’s fucked up. What kind of people does that make us?”

  “Me?” Caine questioned, shrugging his shoulders. “I don’t need to figure out what kind of person I am. I already know. You, on the other hand, are just starting to figure yourself out. Brick isn’t wrong, you know. You need to get clear of this, protect yourself and your mom. Tiny would have already come back to the two of you if he could. That’s telling in itself.”

  Ryan let a small, sad smile form across her lips but continued to work on the computer in front of her. This was all so surreal. Ryan wrote down the address she was looking at and handed it to Caine.

  “If he still has his phone, he’s on the move, and from the looks of it, he’s making his way here.”

  Caine walked over to the wall, taking down a picture, an old-fashioned safe with a combination lock hidden behind it. Turning the dial, he opened it and took out her purse. He held it out to her with a thick envelope and a set of keys.