Brenna

Gunn tried to play it off, but I felt the tension running through him. He exchanged grim looks with the rest of his men as he helped me off his bike outside the Wolf Den. Friday night, and they were closed for business. I couldn’t remember the last time that was true.

A woman stood, arms folded, at the back entrance to the bar. She was tall and beautiful with a fierce gaze and long, thick brown hair that hung to her waist. She looked like some kind of Amazon warrior queen.

“Brenna,” Gunn said. “This is Scarlett, she’s Sly’s ... she’s, uh ... she’s Sly’s.”

Scarlett gave him a wry smile and put a comforting hand on my shoulder. “Don’t mind Gunn’s lack of manners,” she said. “Let’s get you inside. Mo’s got a room all set up for you upstairs.”

“Mo?” I asked, looking back at Gunn. He shot me a wink and gestured for me to just follow Scarlett. I was dubious, but he wasn’t giving me much in the way of choices.

“Think of Mo as a sort of self-appointed Den mother to these dogs,” Scarlett said. “Only her bite’s a hell of a lot worse than her bark. Don’t worry though, I’ve got a feeling she’s going to love you.”

Gunn disappeared down a long hallway. I knew Sly kept an office off the main bar. I’d seen him come out of it that first night when Christine and I walked ourselves into trouble. Though the place was closed to the public, the bar itself was pretty crowded. It seemed like every probie and hangaround had been let in. I saw quite a few of the biker chicks who’d been here the other night too.

“Come on,” Scarlett said. “V.I.Ps go upstairs.” She had a big smirk on her face. She’d said it loud enough to draw the attention of a couple of girls at the bar. It earned her some scowls but like Gunn had said, Scarlett was Sly’s girlfriend. Those girls didn’t look friendly, but they seemed to understand Scarlett shouldn’t be messed with.

We went up a winding staircase with rich, pine walls. Scarlett led me to the second room on the left. I was shocked to find a full studio apartment inside of it with a kitchenette and private bathroom. The room was dark though, on an interior wall with no windows. That made no sense to me from the exterior architecture, unless the place had been constructed with a false wall. A shiver ran through me as I realized that’s exactly what it was. These rooms had been designed so no one could easily see into them from the street.

“You okay?” Scarlett asked. I set my purse on the bed in the center of the room. The place was clean with white eyelet sheets and matching cherry wood furniture. The bathroom door stood open and I could see clean towels and toiletries laid out.

I tried to find a smile for her but my head spun a little. So much had changed in the last thirty-six hours. I’d barely had a chance to stop and think.

“So ... you and Sly Cullinan?” I asked, trying to keep the focus off me.

I saw a hint of a blush come to Scarlett’s cheeks. “Something like that, yeah.” She held out her hand and wiggled her fingers. She had a rock on the fourth finger of her left hand that dazzled my eyes in the light.

“Wow,” I said, reaching for her hand. I hoped she didn’t think I was too familiar, but that hunk of diamond was something to behold.

“Took her long enough to say yes.” A deep, booming voice came from the hallway. Scarlett stepped aside and Sly himself walked in. I looked around him, but he’d come alone. A tiny flare of disappointment went through me. Lord, I thought. I’d already reached the point where just the chance of seeing Gunn made my heart flutter.

“Well, it took you long enough to ask me properly,” Scarlett said. She batted her eyes at Sly. He came into the room and slipped an arm around her, pulling her against him. Scarlett reached up and touched his cheek, their love for each other showing plainly in their eyes.

I held out my hand. “I’m Brenna,” I said. “I don’t know if you remember me.”

I’d only spoken to Sly Cullinan once before, at my brother’s funeral. He’d seemed larger than life then, like some character out of a movie. Handsome. Powerful. Rugged and tall. I knew Scotty had idolized him. It was always Sly this, Sly said that. It drove our father out of his mind.

Sly reached for me and gave me a solid handshake. “Sorry for all the fuss,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure Scarlett was taking care of you.”

Scarlett tried to land a playful swat on Sly’s ass. He neatly dodged it and snapped his teeth at her, just like a real wolf.

“It’s fine,” I said. “But I mean ... it isn’t necessary. I appreciate this but …”

Raised voices reached us from downstairs. A look passed between Sly and Scarlett. He stepped away from her and turned his attention back to me. “I just wanted to make sure I had a chance to say hello,” he said. “It’s been a long time, Brenna. It’s good to see you. Gunn says you’re doing well. I’m glad. Your brother ... Scotty was a good kid. I know I said this to your family a long time ago, but now that you’re older ... it matters to me that you know how sorry I am about what happened.”

My throat got tight. I swallowed hard, pushing back fresh tears that sprang out of nowhere. I hadn’t expected him to say that. I hadn’t expected it to hurt to hear it. But this was the Wolf Den. The M.C.’s clubhouse. If things had turned out how he planned, this would have become my brother’s home.

“Thank you,” I said. “It means a lot to me. You meant a lot to him.”

“Sly!” A shout came from downstairs. Scarlett put a hand on Sly’s shoulder.

“You better deal with your pack, alpha wolf,” she said. “I’ll make sure Brenna’s comfy. You just do you, babe.”

He pulled her into a quick kiss, shot me a wink, then disappeared back down the hall. She watched him go, her eyes sparkling just like the diamond on her finger.

“Congratulations,” I said. “You seem so happy.”

Sighing, Scarlett turned back to me. “What can I say, the cocky bastard finally wore me down.” She flipped her hair behind her shoulder and flopped down on the end of the bed. She patted the space beside her and I took it.

“Sorry about all of this,” she said. “I know it’s a lot to take in all at once. I mean ... you’re just kind of getting thrown into the deep end here. I know what that’s like.”

“I don’t ... I mean …”

Scarlett cocked her head. “Gunn, I mean. Er ... what’s he told you?”

“About what? He said there was some club business he had to take care of and he thought I was better off staying here. Things are complicated with my father right now. I know he’s worried about him making trouble for me. It’s not exactly unprecedented.”

Scarlett set her jaw to the side as she considered my words. There was something more on her mind, for sure, but I could see her working out whether to tell me.

“Scarlett!” A booming, feminine voice with a thick Irish brogue called up from the stairs. “I’m gonna need ya, darlin’. Yer man’s got the whole crew and every goddamn shirttail relation and hangaround down here.”

“Let me guess.” I laughed. “That’s Mo?”

“Good guess.” Scarlett slapped her thigh. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll cover for you tonight. Let you ease into things around here. Mo is ... well ... she’s great. But she can be a lot to take all at once. You just get settled. If you need anything, come on downstairs.”

Before I could thank her or even ask her anything else, Scarlett was up and moving. She yelled down to the mysterious Mo and shut the door behind her, leaving me alone to the relative quiet of my room.

My room. That didn’t sound right. This was a crash pad, for sure. My curiosity got the better of me. With nothing left to do, I started exploring the confines of the four walls. I went to the tall dresser against the wall. Inside were neatly folded jeans, t-shirts, and boxer shorts. I pulled out one of the t-shirts and pressed it to my cheek. These were Gunn’s things. Even through the sweet soap and scent of bleach, it smelled like him.

A wave of jealousy went through me. This was Gunn’s crash pad. It didn’t take a genius to figure out why he’d need it. How many of those biker chicks downstairs had seen the inside of this room with him over the years?

I pushed the boxer shorts aside. I found an open bar of soap. Pine scented. Maybe Mo had put this here to keep his clothes smelling that much cleaner. But beside that, tucked in the corner of the drawer, I found a pack of condoms. Hot anger flared through me. This was none of my business. I was trespassing, invading his privacy. I had no claim on Gunn, did I?

I slammed the dresser door shut and went back to the bed. He had a single nightstand next to it. There was just an old clock radio on top of it with blinking red lights. Someone had perhaps just plugged it back in. I knew I should have just left well enough alone, but once I started, I didn’t seem able to stop. I pulled open the bedside table drawer. There were condoms in there too plus a pair of shiny handcuffs. I slammed the drawer shut so hard I nearly overbalanced the table.

“Looking for something particular?” Gunn’s voice hit me like lightning. I let out a little shriek of surprise and vaulted off the bed. Too late though. He’d seen what I was up to.

“Hey,” I said, tucking a hair behind my ear. I tried to sound casual. He stood with his arms crossed, leaning against the doorframe. He wasn’t buying my innocent act for a second.

“Sorry,” I said, sighing. “I am. I was just …”

He came to me. God, he was so tall. He filled the room as he gently caressed my upper arms.

“Yes,” he said. “That’s my shit. And no, I don’t care if you look. I don’t have anything to hide from you, Brenna.”

I quite literally gulped. “Gunn ... you have a set of handcuffs in that drawer. What are they … I mean … do you ... er ...”

His lips curled into a wicked smirk that sent fire through my veins. Oh God. The way he looked at me. The way his touch quickened my desire. I had no right to judge him for how he lived his life. He’d never pretended to be anything he wasn’t. And yet, the mere thought of Gunn using those things for what I thought he did gave me an odd mix of deep jealousy and burning curiosity.

“You wanna keep looking? See what else you find?”

A switch flipped inside of me. I couldn’t stop it. I hated the things that came out of my mouth next but it was as if I had no power to hold them back. “It’s your business,” I said. “I don’t have any claim on you. I’m in the wrong for even snooping. I suppose I got what I deserved.”

He was still smirking at me. Damn him. “No claim on me?” he said. “Well, I’ve got one on you, baby.”

I jerked away from him. “Which one of those girls downstairs is into that sort of thing?” Oh God. What was I doing? What was I saying?

But Gunn never missed a beat. When he slid his hands around my waist, I tried to pull away. He didn’t let go. The smirk left his face, replaced with smoldering fire.

“They’re not here now, are they? You are. I meant what I said, Brenna. I damn well have a claim on you.”

He was bold, strong, swift. He took my breath away as he lifted me off my feet. It was all so fast. So hot. My quick spark of jealousy burned out. In its place, lust scorched a path through my heart and settled between my legs.

I wanted him. I said I had no claim on him but it was a damn lie. He knew it. He felt it. And he meant to make me act on it.

Just like before, Gunn turned me into a wild thing. He stretched me out, clasping my wrists above my head. God help me, I wanted him to use those damn cuffs on me. The thought of it made my sex throb with need.

But Gunn had other ideas. His own need burst through him. I felt him swell against my leg. Before I knew what I was doing, I fumbled for his fly. He let out a wicked laugh that churned my insides.

Oh God. This. Now!

We were quick. Gunn couldn’t stay. He hadn’t had a chance to tell me that, but I knew he’d only come up here to make sure I was settled. Soon, Sly or one of the others would call him back down.

Gunn pulled my jeans down past my knees. I so desperately wanted to spread my legs wide, but couldn’t. But he got me wide enough. He was so fast. So skillful. One quick tear of plastic between his teeth and he guided himself inside me.

“Say it,” he said, whispering in my ear.

“What?”

“Say it. You know what, Brenna. Say it. Believe it.”

“I’m ... oh Gunn!” I wanted to scream. Pressure built inside me. I don’t know how he did it, but Gunn knew how to position himself so he rubbed against my sex in just the right way. I was coming already. He’d opened the floodgates in me last night. Now I craved him like some sort of drug. I knew in my heart if I wasn’t careful, he’d make me addicted to him. God help me, I wanted to be.

“Say it,” he said, more forceful this time. “I want to hear it!”

“Oh. Oh!” I bit my bottom lip to keep from screaming out my pleasure. I knew these walls were far too thin.

He stopped and froze inside me. No! I had almost reached my apex. This was torture and he damn well knew it.

“Say it, Brenna.”

“Yes!” I cried out. “Fuck. Yes. I’m yours, Gunn. I’m yours!”

“That’s right,” he snarled, then went back to his delicious, thrusting rhythm. “You’re mine, baby.”

I was. Holy God. I was!

My whole body went rigid as my orgasm poured through me. Gunn was right behind me. He kept my arms pinned above my head as he grunted through his pleasure. When he crested down, he feathered my neck and forehead with soft kisses.

It was then the rest of the world flooded back in. I heard Sly calling Gunn’s name from down the stairs. He slid out of me and helped me to my feet. He had just enough time to adjust himself in the bathroom before one of the probies started banging on the door.

“I’ll be back,” Gunn said, pulling me to him once more. Then he was gone, leaving me breathless and wrecked in his wake.