I sat in the passenger side of Joni’s car. Cheese drove and Acid sat in the back. When we arrived, the prospects opened the gate. I was glad to see that there was no party raging.
Cheese parked in the gravel lot. Before I could get a word out, Acid exited the car and sauntered toward the clubhouse. The stoic young biker made Colt seem downright chatty.
“Can I get you something to drink? Water? Bourbon?” Cheese asked as he locked Joni’s car and pocketed the keys in his cut.
“No, I’m okay,” I said quietly.
The lights were on and Boxer and Reap were sitting on the couches watching TV. When we came in, Boxer muted the television and they both stared at us.
“Where’s Acid?” I asked.
“Hit the sack,” Reap stated. “He’s got patrol in a few hours and needs to be alert.”
I nodded thoughtfully.
“You okay, darlin’?” Boxer asked. “We heard about what went down.”
“I’m okay. It was Joni that got hurt in the crossfire.” The mood in the room was somber, heavy with emotion. “It was the Iron Horsemen, wasn’t it?”
The three of them exchanged a look but none of them said anything. They clearly kept information on lockdown and I wasn’t happy about being in the dark.
This was Colt’s way of life, and I’d need to find a way to get used to it. From the moment I showed up on the Blue Angels’ doorstep, Colt hadn’t been entirely truthful.
“Fine. Don’t tell me,” I said suddenly exhausted. “I’m sorry, guys.”
“Sorry? Sorry for what?” Reap asked.
“Sorry for bringing you into all of this. If it weren’t for me—”
“Hey, none of that now,” Boxer interrupted. “The Iron Horsemen have been causing trouble for a long time. Now they’re fucking with you. They’ve crossed a line.”
Well, that confirmed it.
“Hey,” Reap said with a smile. “I almost forgot. Welcome to the family.”
“Oh, shit, yeah!” Boxer said, a huge grin across his face. “Though, I gotta say, babe, kinda wish you’d given me a chance.”
I chuckled. “Something tells me you aren’t quite ready to settle down.”
His hands went to his chest like I’d wounded him and then he flashed a devilish grin. “Too many great ladies, not enough time.”
Despite the gravity of the situation, I felt my heart lift. I didn’t know if Boxer was trying to cheer me up by being utterly ridiculous, but it was working.
“Should we drink some bourbon and toast Colt’s good fortune in locking my ass down?”
The guys roared with laughter. Boxer waved to the empty recliner, gesturing for me to take a seat while he and Reap grabbed the bottle of bourbon on the kitchen counter and four shot glasses.
Reap poured out the shots. “To Mia—the only one willing to put up with Colt’s grumpy ass.”
“Here, here,” Boxer shouted.
We threw back the liquor like champs. Reap served another round and we downed those too.
“Let’s cool it for a second,” Cheese said. “She can’t drink like we can drink.”
“Says who?” I demanded. “I used to be a bartender, you know. I can drink.”
“I’m sure,” Cheese said. “But we’re twice your size. I don’t think Prez will appreciate having to hold your hair back for you when he gets home. Especially not after the shit that just went down.”
“Hmm. You make a good point.” The two shots of bourbon were already doing the trick. A pleasant numbness was settling into my bones and somehow, my worries about the Iron Horsemen were melting away. That was the danger of booze. It lulled you into a false sense of security and in the morning you woke up hungover, miserable, and all your problems were still there.
“Am I allowed to ask? How you guys got into the Blue Angels?” I looked at Reap and Boxer who were lazing back against the couch.
“My old man and Colt’s old man were friends,” Reap said with a shrug.
“From Scotland?” I asked.
He raised his eyebrows in obvious surprise. “No. They met when Jimmy came to Waco. My dad loved old bikes. They met at a trade show. Charlie’s Motorcycle Repair? That belonged to my old man. Colt bought it when Pops retired.”
“Why didn’t you buy it?” I asked in surprise.
“Didn’t want the responsibility. Love the work, but also love not having to deal with all the shit that comes from owning the shop, you know?”
“Sure,” I said, my head reeling. Why didn’t Colt tell me he owned the garage?
Well, that’s what I got for jumping into a relationship with a man I hardly knew.
“And you, Boxer?”
He rubbed a thumb across his chin and looked abashed.
“Tell her,” Reap said, his grin wide with amusement.
“Joni. We were in the same class in high school. I was a little shit back then.”
“Now you’re just a big shit,” Cheese voiced.
“Damn right,” Boxer agreed. “Anyway. She was a major bookworm. Quiet. I liked to tease her. Not like harassment or anything. One day, we were in the hallway and I was ragging on her. She dropped her books and then took me down. I was flat on my back and this girl was on top of me, whispering in my ear that her brother could do more damage.
“After we both got out of detention,” he smiled, “I walked out of school with her. Colt was waiting with his bike, looking like a bad ass. I asked to become a prospect. He said no. I bugged the ever-loving shit out of him for a year. The day we graduated high school, Colt finally said if I was still interested to come to the clubhouse.”
“And you never left.” I laughed.
“Never left,” he agreed with a nod.
I loved hearing their stories, learning their history, but the conversation turned decisively to me after that. Even though I’d spent time with them at the clubhouse party the other night, this was different. This felt like we were all getting to know each other, and not as brother versus a brother’s woman, but as real people. There was no divide between us now. They saw me as family, which I greatly appreciated, but I also wanted them to like me.
Cheese decided to hit the sack and said a quick goodnight before escaping to his clubhouse room. I reached into my back pocket for my phone. I lit up the screen. No word from Colt. I wondered how long it took to talk to the sheriff.
“You guys have been really wonderful to me,” I said quietly. “I just want you to know that even though I didn’t grow up in this world and I don’t always understand the way things are handled, I respect Colt. I respect all that he’s done to earn your loyalty and I just—I don’t want you to think I’m going to piss all over it or lead him around by the balls. Not that I think I even could.”
“You’re not like I thought you’d be,” Reap said.
“No? How’d you think I’d be?” I asked, setting my phone aside.
“You’re one of the guys,” Reap said with a wry grin. “I thought, maybe, you needed to be taken care of, you know? Since that’s how he rolls. Takes care of shit. Takes care of people.”
“Prez has always been methodical,” Boxer said, looking into my eyes. “He never does anything without thinking through every scenario.”
“Are you saying he did that with me? Went off the rails and did something completely out of character?”
Reap shook his head. “You know what he did the night he met you?”
I shook my head.
“We had church.”
“Church? What’s church?” I asked.
“It’s when all the brothers meet to discuss club business,” Boxer explained.
“I was club business?”
Reap grinned. “Yeah, babe. He wanted to bring you into the fold. Wanted to let us know that’s how it was gonna be.”
“Wait a second. Are you saying if a brother wants to make a woman his Old Lady, he has to run it by the club?”
“Yeah, that’s what we’re saying,” Boxer said, “But not because he needs approval or anything. It’s a courtesy. Just letting us know he’s ready to make that step.”
My eyes widened. “Seriously?”
“Yup,” Boxer said. “When Colt said you didn’t call the cops after seeing him beat the shit out of that rapist, he knew for sure what you were made of. We were shocked as hell.”
“But Zip totally vouched for it. Now look, we’re trying to be gentlemen here, so we’re not gonna repeat some of what was said.” Reap’s brown eyes seemed to twinkle with devilish enjoyment. “But some of your assets might’ve been mentioned.”
Boxer made an obvious show of checking out my body.
“Up here, dude,” I growled, causing him to laugh.
“Colt is the best judge of character I’ve ever seen,” Reap went on. “He’s got an instinct about people, you know? He just knew you were the one for him. Never seen him like this around another broad, either.”
His words made my heart expand. “Never?”
He shook his head. “Never. And point blank, I didn’t think he’d meet a chick who’d put up with his moody ass.”
“Moody?” Boxer shook his head and looked at me. “Not lately.”
“Well, a steady supply of pussy will do that,” Reap pointed out.
“Yeah, as much fun as this is,” I said, my tone snarky, causing them to grin, “I think it’s time I said goodnight.”
“Goodnight, darlin’,” Boxer said.
I got up and he pulled me in a side hug very much like a big brother.
“He needed you and I’m glad he saw that. We’re keepin’ ya, babe.”
“Then I get to keep you too, right?” I asked with a wide smile.
“That’s usually the way it works, yeah,” Reap said.
I waved and headed off to Colt’s room, my heart full and light despite the horror of the evening. Either I was becoming desensitized really quickly to this way of life, or I’d been right for it all along.
I washed the makeup off my face in Colt’s clubhouse bathroom and then went to his dresser to find a shirt to sleep in. It was only when I slid beneath the clean sheets that smelled faintly of Colt that I realized I no longer cared what people might think about the choice I had made.
A biker babe.
That’s what I’d become.
The Blue Angels had taken me in, no questions asked. My fight had become their fight. If that was the way they treated family, then I could’ve done a lot worse. I’d just have to find a way to explain to Shelly that this was truly what I wanted. To be with Colt. To have his protection. To learn how to weather the storm with another person by my side. Someone strong and loyal, someone who didn’t shy away from the grit and loss of life.
Colt may have been a rugged, tatted, biker, but his heart beat in synchronicity with mine. He understood me in a way no one else ever had. He understood the losses I’d endured, having faced similar losses himself. He knew what it meant to make a family with people that were good and true, and damn what they looked like on the outside.
I fell asleep with a smile on my face, warm and happy.
A low curse woke me up.
“Colt?”
“Sorry, babe, did I wake you?”
“It’s okay. What time is it?” I asked through a yawn.
“Late. Or early, depending on who you ask. I’m gonna flip on a lamp. I just busted my knee on the bed.”
I slowly opened my eyes. “Okay.”
A low glow washed over the room.
“How’d your talk with the sheriff go?”
“Valenti isn’t gonna be a concern.” Colt reached into his pockets and took out his cell phone and keys.
And then he reached under his T-shirt and pulled out a pistol.
He kept his eyes on me when he did it. “Does this bother you?”
“It’s a little late if it does, don’t you think?” I asked, smiling into the pillow.
“Guess it doesn’t bother you, then.”
“If you’d had your boy sweep my glove box, you’d have found out I carry too.”
“Do you now?” His smile was slow. “Well, well, Ms. O’Banion. Aren’t you full of surprises.”
He removed his cut and laid it gently across the back of the chair in the corner and then removed his shirt.
“I’ve yet to see this tattoo of yours,” I said, finally sitting up.
“Go for it.” Colt came over and took a seat on the bed next to me. I could smell the faint traces of sweat on his skin, mingling with his own unique scent. Something that made me want to trace his body with my tongue. Instead, I locked down my hormones and gently touched the edge of the bandage.
My name was written in a curly script on the right side of his chest.
Tears pricked my eyes. “It’s beautiful.”
His hands came up to caress my cheeks. “Yeah.”
“Why did you get it on the right side? Your heart is on the left.”
“The left side is for those I’ve lost. The right is for the living.”
Colt pressed his lips to mine. He tasted like whiskey and smelled like perfume. I wrenched my mouth from his.
He frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“You smell like perfume.”
His brow unwrinkled and he smiled slightly. “It belongs to my sister. I went to see her after talking to the sheriff. Which is why I just got home now.”
“Oh.”
His humor fled and his mouth softened. “I’m a man of my word, Mia. I promised you fidelity and I meant it.”
I drove my fingers through his coffee-colored hair. “But it was so fast. Us. Our…togetherness.”
“I wasn’t a saint before you.”
I arched an eyebrow in silent admonishment, causing him to chuckle.
“What about you?”
“What about me?” I demanded.
“Were you a saint before me?”
“Of course not.”
“I’ve got thirteen years on you. I’ve had more time to sow my oats. I don’t regret my past, but I don’t miss that shit anymore either.”
“You’re not saying that just to get brownie points, are you?”
He let out a laugh. “You’re in my bed and my name is on you. I don’t need brownie points.” His hands tightened on my hips. “I don’t have any regrets about us. Do you?”
“It’s too soon to tell,” I said with a grin, letting him know I was teasing.
“Kiss me, babe.”
I leaned down and conquered his lips. I needed him. Needed to feel him, to treasure him and let him know that I was all in; through the good and bad, through whatever life was going to throw at us.
He fell back against the bed with me on top of him. Colt lifted the shirt off me, mindful of my tender skin and the new ink I sported.
His hands and mouth were everywhere, trailing up and down my body, playing with my sensitive nipples, stroking the heat between us into an out-of-control inferno.
I wiggled out of my underwear and gave him time to remove his. Then I was back on top of him, feeling the heat of him at the juncture of my thighs.
“Hold on, babe,” he whispered, his hand seeking the nightstand drawer. He grabbed a wrapper and tore it with his teeth. Colt slid on the condom and then his hands grasped my hips.
Aching and wet, I was more than ready for him. I desired to be filled, and slid down his body.
“Look at me,” he stated. Our gazes locked and it felt like something had clicked into place, something I’d been waiting my entire life to feel.
Overwhelmed, I dipped my head forward, letting my hair fall over my eyes. I pressed my hands to Colt’s chest, mindful of his new tattoo, and began to move.
“That’s it, darlin’.” His voice was raspy and thick and it only inflamed my desire.
I gave him all my worry and concern, branding him with my body the way he’d branded me.
It was hard, slick and fast, but it wasn’t enough.
“More,” I commanded. “I need more.”
He gave it to me as he bucked beneath me. And then his hand snaked between our bodies where we were joined and teased me until I came.
I dug my nails into his shoulders as I shuddered around him. He thrust up into me, grabbing my hips and slamming me down. A few deep strokes later and he shouted, “Fuck!”
He fell back against the pillows, breathing hard. The lamplight highlighted his skin, making it seem gilded in gold. I leaned over and dotted his chest with kisses.
I slid off of him and my feet hit the floor. I went into the bathroom to clean up, and when I was in the middle of washing my hands, Colt knocked on the door and then came in.
He removed the condom and dropped it in the trashcan. My eyes gazed downward, admiring that he was still engorged. My gaze traveled back up to his chest where there were half-moon red gouges on his skin.
“Did I do that?” I rushed forward and touched his chest. “Jesus, I’m sorry. Do they hurt?”
His mouth turned up at the corners. “I’ll be okay, darlin’. It was worth the pain.” Colt’s hand reached out to touch my cheek. “Let’s get back in bed. I’m fucking wiped.”
I nodded and went back into his room. I looked around for his discarded T-shirt and threw it on before climbing into bed and settling on my belly. Sleeping on my back would only irritate my new tattoo.
“What happened with the sheriff?” I asked.
Colt got in next to me and then turned off the lamp. “I paid him off. Told him this was club shit he didn’t want to get involved in.”
We breathed in the darkness for a few moments before I said, “Your sister was injured tonight because of me. The Iron Horsemen came to the bar and shot out the windows because of me. Someone could have died.”
“How do you know it was the Iron Horsemen?” he asked, voice carefully blank.
“Who the hell else would it be? Why else would I be staying at the clubhouse instead of your house if it wasn’t the Iron Horsemen? I’ve noticed there’s a little bit more protection here.”
“Our house.”
“What?”
“My house is your house, babe.”
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“Joni really is fine. Flesh wound. I wanted to bring her here to look after her, but Zip said it was no trouble to stay with her for tonight.”
I wisely bit my tongue. That was a hornet’s nest I was not going to stir.
“She could’ve been really hurt, Colt.”
“But she wasn’t.”
“This time.”
He fell silent for a moment and then he said, “It’s the life. No getting around it.”
I woke up when a streak of sunlight peered through the blinds. I looked at the clock—it was late morning and Colt was still asleep. I watched him for a moment and then got up to brush my teeth and wash my face. When I stared in the mirror I saw tired, red-rimmed eyes. The scratch on my cheek was nearly gone, but I had stubble burn on my jawline and neck. My lips felt raw, the kind of raw that came from hours of kissing.
My brain was tired and hadn’t had a chance to process the events of the previous night. Sheriff Valenti could’ve been a problem, but the protection of Colt’s name and wallet had taken care of it. Too bad it hadn’t taken care of the Iron Horsemen issue. If anything, it seemed only to add a match to gasoline.
I came back into the bedroom just as Colt was stirring. His sleepy eyes opened and he turned his head, his gaze finding me watching him. He smiled.
“Mornin’.”
“Hmmm.”
“Is that anyway to greet your man?”
I pushed away from the doorway and sauntered over to him. When I got to his side of the bed, I leaned down, intending to brush my lips across his, but he clearly had other ideas. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me toward him.
“How’s your shoulder?” he asked, nuzzling my neck.
“It’s okay. How’s your chest?”
“From the tattoo, or from the claws of a foxy vixen I was in bed with last night?”
I laughed, feeling warm and secure. “Either. Both.”
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
My fingers traced the swirls of artwork along his upper arm and bicep. “None of this seems real.” I rested my head against his chest, his light hair tickling my ear.
His hands skimmed underneath my shirt to rest against the small of my back as he listened to me talk.
“Three weeks ago, I was a bartender. I was getting harassed by my newly engaged best friend about my lack of living life to its fullest and I’d never even thought once about motorcycle clubs.”
I closed my eyes, enjoying the sound of his heartbeat in my ear, the steady rhythm of it solid and sure.
“Never know what life is gonna throw at you, ya know?” he said.
“That’s the truth. Sometimes I feel like…”
When I didn’t go on, Colt gently prodded me to continue.
“I feel like I react to life. Like, things happen to me and I’m just along for the ride.”
“You do remember that you walked up to a stranger in a bar and asked him to pretend to be your boyfriend, don’t you? If you ask me, that sounds like someone who takes control. That sounds like someone who doesn’t let life come at them.”
“I only did that out of a reaction,” I explained.
“Want to know what I think?” he asked quietly.
I nodded.
“I think you changed your entire life that night at Dive Bar when you walked up to me. I think even if you hadn’t gotten wrapped up in this Richie shit, you’d still be here with me, right now.”
“Do you really believe that?” I smiled and lifted my head to look at him
“Yeah, I do.” His dark eyes softened. “You’d be here in my bed.” He brushed the hair away from my cheek. “You’re still worried about what people think, aren’t you?”
“I guess I am, yeah.” I bit my lip. “I feel like—never mind.”
“Nah, you can’t do that. You gotta say it now.”
“I feel like people will think I’m trading sex for protection.”
“People? Or your best friend? Or you?”
He didn’t sound angry; I’d expected him to sound angry.
“You think I’d brand just any girl?” he continued.
I glared at him. “Maybe you shouldn’t call it branding…”
Colt laughed. “You know what I mean. You might love me, and I believe you do, but it’s like you don’t trust your gut. But in life, you have to trust your gut. We’re in this together now, yeah?”
“Yeah.
“You got inked for me,” he said with an arrogant smirk. “That’s no small thing.”
“Yeah, I suffered through pain for you.” I teased, finally moving away from him, ready to get up to face the day.
“I’ll never let you live to regret it,” he said, his tone suddenly sober.
My hand reached out to stroke his stubbly cheek. “I know.”
After Colt brushed his teeth, he threw on a pair of jeans and a clean T-shirt from his dresser drawer. I had nothing to wear except the clothes from last night, and I wasn’t in the mood to slither into skinny jeans.
“Wear a pair of my boxers,” he said. “And your T-shirt from last night. We should bring a bag with some shit for you here. Didn’t really think about it, though.”
“Well, it’s not like you knew I’d be staying here last night.”
He went over to his dresser and pulled out a pair of his boxer shorts and tossed them in my direction. “Got some other stuff for you though in my nightstand drawer.”
I opened the drawer and pulled out a few envelopes addressed to me. “My bank cards! Yes!” I danced around in my underwear as Colt looked on with amusement.
I placed the new bankcards in my wallet. Joni had generously bought our drinks the night before. Colt hadn’t said anything about money; and I’d never been out of his sight long enough to require money of my own. Though, come to think of it, he’d never made me feel weird about it. I’d only felt trapped those first few days, but then my fears and worries had melted away when I realized Colt really had wanted to protect and take care of me. Nothing more. With Colt there was no power play to keep me tied to him. No control over me because he didn’t care about control in that way.
He just wanted me.
“Oh,” I said softly, meeting his eyes.
He was smiling at me, leaning against the door. He knew what I’d just put together.
“Thank you, Colt.”
“You’re welcome, Mia.”
