Page 15

I’m not sure how much time goes by, and I don’t care.
Neither of us speaks. I’m afraid if I do—the spell will be broken, and he’ll realize his touch has changed from comforting to caressing. My legs shift. I pull back searching his face as my hands cup his cheeks and softly strokes his beard. His erection boldly nudges me, and I move to straddle him, letting it press against my core. His eyes briefly close feeling the contact. I bring my face down to his and stop, hovering above his lips.
My eyes beg his for this kiss.
“Devon girl…,” he groans pulling back. He lifts my hand off his cheek and places a rough kiss in my palm, “we can’t sugar.”
He lifts me off his lap and takes out his phone. “Smith? That bastard was at Dev’s. He showed up threatening her. Yeah, she’s okay, but I want a guard on her 24/7. He got away, had his ride stashed in the woods on the old logging road… yeah, that’s what I was thinkin’ too sounds good brotha.”
He hangs up, pacing and takes a deep breath. Hands on his hips, he stops and stares at me for what seems like minutes. His gaze is burning hot, cheeks taunt and jaw ticks as he breathes hard.
“What?”
“Dammit, girl. Either way, you ain’t gonna walk for days.”
“Excuse me?” I squeak.
“I can’t decide if I’m gonna spank ya’ or bend you over that couch till you scream for me to stop, just because you want me to keep going.”
His words make me wet in an instant. My nipples tighten, begging for his mouth on them as he lowers his gaze.
“But I ain’t gonna do any of it,” he mutters slamming his fist into the drywall. I gasp as pieces crumble to the floor. “I told ya’ to stay put. You put yourself at risk going out there—with a goddamn shovel, no less.”
“I-I needed to help you.”
“It’s my job to handle the bad guys, not you. Christ, he could’ve taken a shot at you from his position in the tree line.”
The door slams in his wake, rattling so hard the pictures on my wall shake.
“Hot damn,” I breathe, “he does want me.”
My heart leaps in my chest, and I have this sudden urge to come clean and tell him everything.
After a few minutes, I pull myself out of my stupor and run after him. My hair flies all around me, as I reach the landing. I stop short seeing Smith and Toad standing right next to him. Three sets of heads swivel in my direction, each looking at me like I’m something to be protected. But Roger looks at me with eyes full of scorn. He shakes his head, climbs into his truck and slams the door. “Make sure she doesn’t get into any trouble.”
Confused, I stare at the dust his tires kick up, as he pulls out onto the road. His eyes don’t check the rearview. Not even once. But I know what I felt. We have a connection… it was in the way he touched me, the way he spoke my name in my ear as his hands stroked my back.
I’m under his skin. A man like Roger doesn’t get easily affected. If he doesn’t hate me for that, he will soon when he finds out whose daughter I am.
Damn the man. He’s just not under my skin; he’s snaking along inching his way closer to the center of my heart.
My hands grip the wheel. If I let go, I’ll turn this truck around and race back there, haul her in my arms and take her straight to my bed. I’d lay her down gently but make love to her hard. I’d pin her hands above her head, and my lips would burn a trail of fire across her skin.
I shake my head, foot slamming on the brakes at the stop sign.
She’s too young for me and too good for a quick fuck. Which means it’s never gonna happen. I need to get these dirty thoughts out of my head right motherfucking now.
My eyes glance to the broken pieces of the mug I found in the grass. I traced her steps, seeing the scene play out in my head as that pencil-dick terrorized her. The rage I felt still sings in my blood. I need to hit something; fuckin’ punch something until my knuckles break open and bleed. But it’s too early. The gym doesn’t open till noon. I’ll go home and chop wood. There are at least three logs that need to be corded for winter. I’ll swing my ax down pretending it’s that fucker’s face.
My hands clench the wheel, and I shut my eyes for a few seconds. I know these roads so well; I could drive them half blind and half in the bag. The oversized tires on my Dodge RAM easily churn through the mud as I turn right onto a dirt road barely visible from view.
Overgrown pine trees hug the curb, their long flowing branches hanging low. A mile and a half of bumps, rocks, and potholes would deter anyone from driving down here. It’s black as shit at night. I never put up any lights, not even solar ones. I value my privacy and never have people over. Hell, it was always safer this way when I was the MC’s enforcer. They can’t kill ya’ if they can’t get to ya’.
My small log cabin by the pond comes into view. I turn the truck around and back it into the converted horse barn made into a triple wide garage. Climbing out of my truck, I inhale deeply letting my lil’ slice of paradise, calm me down. My cabin sits in the middle of a small clearing, the porch wrapping around to face a small pond I fill with trout. Tucked away within seventy acres of buffer; there’s nothing out here but me and the wild.
My boots trudge up the steps and I unlock the door. The inside of my home is simple, rustic, earthy… just like me. No woman’s ever been inside, except Shanna, the girl I helped raise. I had the kitchen and bathrooms renovated a few years back after she joked I was livin’ like a grandma. I told her, grandmas don’t have balls of steel and a back full of ink. She shook her head and bought me a few design magazines.
Opening the fridge, I get my kale and greens out and place them on the counter next to my juicer. I hate this shit but damn if I don’t feel better after sucking it all down.