Page 13 of Covert (Ruthless Love #2)

Chapter ten

Maddox

W e pull into the parking lot of the abandoned warehouse. It seems the party started without us. We park far enough away from the actual action that our bikes won't get knocked over if a fight breaks out, but close enough that we can make a getaway if the police show up.

Sexy, sleek cars and pickup trucks form a circle of headlights a few hundred yards away, where a bare-knuckle boxing fight is happening in the center. Loud music blasts from a speaker somewhere, and nearly a hundred people mill around, drinking and smoking.

Axel takes off his helmet and runs his hand through his short hair. Maybe I should cut mine. It's too high maintenance.

"Hey man, I need to talk to you about something before we start," he says, his typical playfulness nowhere to be seen tonight.

"What's up?" I ask, genuinely concerned. Beckett rests his helmet on his bike bars before joining us.

"So, I looked up Nikki last night," he starts. She's been working for us for about a month, and much to my dismay, is thriving in the role.

She's even better than Leana with scheduling and ordering. She's reworked the schedule so that Beckett doesn't have a client around the hours we have women in, so he can stay in the back and away from them.

It's irritating. And thoughtful. And I feel like an ass for not making the changes earlier. Axel and I are aware of Beckett's issues. We just thought he was dealing with it .

"And?"

He does the hand-through-his-hair thing again, and now I'm worried.

"I can't find anything on her. Not a birth certificate, not a high school diploma, nothing. No social media, no bank account, no online record of her at all. She's a fucking ghost."

I nod, mentally processing what that could mean. "What are you thinking?"

"I don't know, man. But I don't like it." The first three weeks she was with us, Axel had flirted harmlessly with her, and she'd averted all of his attacks with grace. This past week, however, she has started flirting back. Harmless stuff, but it raises my hackles.

I nod, and like a bad fucking dream, I look up and see her.

There, two hundred yards in front of us, stands Nikki, her back is to me, but I know those skirts and thighs and hair anywhere. And that fucker Diesel, with his arm hanging over her shoulders, tucking her against his side.

My vision goes red. I told that fucker not to touch her. To leave her the fuck alone. What the fuck is he doing, hanging onto her like a boyfriend, bringing her to illegal pink slip races and bare-knuckle boxing matches?

A bright blue Miata and a lowered black mustang rev as they amble up to the starting line, but my vision has narrowed to the spot where Diesel's fucking hand is resting on her shoulder.

Without thinking, I march over to them and shove him hard in the back. He was loose and relaxed, and he stumbles forward hard, unfortunately dragging Nikki with him. She was off balance, and his arm around her shoulder unfortunately dragged her with him. She falls to her knees with a yelp.

I get one punch on Diesel, now dropped to one knee, before my rage is replaced with fear and guilt. Fuck! Is she hurt? I reach for her, now able to see her face pinched in pain.

"Ni..." I barely get out before the clicking of half a dozen gun hammers sends ice through my veins.

Of course, he'd be out with his brothers. And of course, they'd be loaded. I pinch my eyes shut, ready for the inevitable.

But before anything goes off, a body slams into me and I can feel Nikki's arms wrap around my neck and feel her breasts against my chest.

"No!" she shouts, burying her face in my neck. In horror, I wrap my arm around her, pick her up, and spin her, giving my back to the motorcycle gang.

"What the fuck!" I scold her, but when I open my eyes, she's looking at Diesel, pleadingly.

"He's dumb, not a threat. Please," there are actually tears in her eyes as she pleads for my life. What the fuck have I gotten us into? Everything happened so fast, and of course, I acted before thinking.

Diesel nods at his friends, who uncock their weapons and go back to watching us wearily. One gives Diesel an unopened beer can to lay against his rapidly swelling cheek.

She sighs in relief and wraps her hand around mine, tugging me away from the gang.

I change directions and lead her back to our bikes for some privacy. I lift her by the waist and set her on my bike sideways so I can look at her knees. I kneel, gently removing some small gravel from open wounds with my thumb.

Guilt sits like a rock in my stomach as I brace for whatever hell she's going to put me through. I deserve every minute of it, but when she's silent for longer than I expect, I finally look her in the eyes.

"Care to explain what that was about?" she asks, her tone flat and cold.

I sigh, the feeling of shame and regret is familiar. I could lie to her. Tell her he owed me money. Or had something to do with my sister. But it's about time I own up to my own bullshit. I'm sick of even myself.

"I saw him touching you, after I told him not to, and was angry that he gets to touch you and I don't." My eyes fall back to her knees, but my thumb is doing nothing but caressing her soft, warm skin.

I'm fully aware I'm luxuriating in the one thing I thought I couldn't have, and maybe never will after my outburst tonight. But instead of justified outrage, instead of putting me in my place, her voice drips with sympathy.

"You don't get to touch me because you haven't asked."

I look up at her, with her beautiful almond-shaped eyes and dark lashes, and I feel something that feels sickeningly like hope.

But she's not smiling. "Diesel gets to touch me because he wasn't afraid to go after what he wanted."

I wince, her arrow hitting me exactly where she intended it.

I don't get to touch her because I haven't asked, because I can't get out of my own way enough to go after what I want.

Because I want her. Because I don't feel like I deserve her.

Because I'm still angry at myself and the world for what happened to my sister .

I nod, dejected.

But she reaches down and covers her hand with my own. "If you want to touch me, I want to explore it with you. But you can't pull this shit anymore. I'm not going to waste what little time I have left with someone emotionally stunted who can't communicate what he wants."

She squeezes my hand reassuringly. She's chastising me while also encouraging me. I nod again, unable to meet her eyes.

"But I also have rules. Whatever this is, it can only last six months. I'm gone in six months, and I don't want there to be an expectation of more."

"Why six months?"

She chews the inside of her cheek, and now won't meet my eye. "It's just something I do." She gives me a lame excuse. It reminds me of what Axel had said.

"Axel said he tried to do a background check on you but couldn't find anything."

Her eyes widen in fear, and dart behind me to Axel, who's walking up to us now, Beckett in tow. She stands and rushes to him, hands fisting his shirt.

"You can't look me up. Please. Please stop. I'll leave if you keep looking." Her eyes dart around the party, wide with fear, a deep, paralyzing fear. "I'll leave tonight," she whispers, almost to herself, her mind already planning an escape

He holds her hands in his, rubbing his thumb across her knuckles. His normally playful expression is gone, and he looks down on her with concern in his eyes. "I'll stop," he promises quickly, and her eyes snap back to his.

"Promise? "

He nods. "Are you in like witness protection or something?"

She hesitates before nodding. "Something like that.

People are...looking for me. Bad people.

" Her eyes find mine again. "I move every few years so they don't find me.

I don't have social media or a bank account, so they can't track my movements.

" Her eyes dart between the three of us, nervously.

She wants to say more, but bites her lower lip instead.

I nod. I don't care what she did or who is looking for her, but I don't want her to leave, not after we've had this brief moment of understanding. We're attracted to each other, the guys are, too. But that's as far as we've gotten.

I want to touch her, hold her, kiss her, fuck her. Be better for her. Maybe there's something here, maybe not, but if she leaves, or these people find her, it doesn't matter.

"What can we do?" Beckett asks.

She shakes her head. "Nothing I'm not already doing, but if you go poking around, you'll bring them right to me."

Axel holds up his hands. "I'll stop. No more."

She nods, and her shoulders relax.

"That was a really stupid move, even for you, Mads," Axel says, turning to me.

I nod. "I know."

"Care to explain what that was all about? What's worth almost getting killed over?"

"Speaking of, what the fuck were you thinking, Nik?" I glare at her and point a finger at her chest. "Don't you ever step in front of a bullet for me again," I growl. She simply smiles in return.

"Don't hit my MC boyfriend again, and I won't have to. "

Beckett winces at the term boyfriend, and she notices.

"Look, I think we've all been dancing around things for too long." She wipes her hands on her dress while Axel kneels to inspect her knees.

"I'm attracted to all three of you, and Diesel, but I don't date. I move every few years, so all I can ever do is friends with benefits, and don't usually do that anymore." Axel's grin is salacious. She smacks him on his shoulder, but can't help but return his smile.

"Diesel knows the score and has accepted my terms."

I tilt my head back to the crowd. "Your boy toy doesn't mind you propositioning us?"

"It's called why choose, and it's one of my favorite tropes," she says back with a sass in her tone. Her sass is trying to cover her nerves, but I can see the way she's twisting her fingers together.

"Why choose?"

"Yeah, like why choose one dick when you can have three?" Her glare dares us to argue with her. She crosses her arms in front of her and looks each one of us over.

Beckett's cheeks heat, and he looks away. Axel looks like he wants to devour her then and there. I'm sure I look more confused than anything.

Is she really greenlighting sleeping with all of us?

Beckett wouldn't be able to, even if he wanted to, but there's clearly a chemistry between the two of them since she made accommodations for him.

They look at each other with barely concealed longing.

I had wondered what it meant before, but now I get it.

I wonder if she isn't the girl who could help him get over his fear.

I nod, ready to unpack all of this later and get back to the party .

She stands and pushes Axel's shoulder, sending him on his ass. He lies in the gravel laughing. She goes to step over him, but he grabs her ankle briefly, causing her to stumble.

"Ass," she mumbles through a smile as she collects herself.

I'm not ready to end this conversation yet, so I grab her by her wrist.

"I'm sorry you got hurt," I say, my voice deep, low, and full of regret.

She swallows and looks up at me before nodding. "I'll survive."

I release her wrist and follow her back over to Diesel, who's been watching the entire exchange, ignoring the people around him.

"Nice right hook," he says as a greeting. It's a tough-guy olive branch. I owe him one back. I likely embarrassed him in front of his friends

I throw my hands wide in offering. "Go ahead," I say, closing my eyes and waiting for the hit.

I hear a scuffle and open my eyes again to see Nikki standing in front of me again. "You are not going to hit him," she glares at Diesel. He smiles down at her like she hung the moon.

He folds his arms across his chest, too, mimicking her stance.

"He owes me one, baby girl. It's against man code to punch someone who isn't looking."

"I swear to God, Diesel..." she growls. I place my hands gently on her hips and guide her to the side and slightly behind me.

Diesel throws me a right hook that pulls the air from my lungs. Blinding pain slices through my cheek. As I catch my breath and let the sharp sting settle into a strong ache, I look up and we turn, watching a fuming Nikki stomp over to another group where Leana's chatting with a few other MC guys .

Shoulder to shoulder, we watch her.

"How long do you think she'll be mad at us?"

"Not mad at me. Mad at you," I retort, but standing next to him, we settle into a strange sort of companionship.