She moaned when I kissed her the next morning, shifting lazily in the bed. I loved the way those cherry-chestnut locks falling off her head looked when they were flopping in my hand while I fucked her, but this was beautiful too.

I could've laid next to her all damned day if it wasn't for all the shit threatening to tarnish this piece of heaven I'd ripped from the sky. Just as well, because she'd need time to think long and hard about what I'd offered her last night.

It wasn't just the heat of the moment. I wanted her to be my old lady. Fuck, I wanted it since I decided I wanted my dick inside her, since I first washed her bleeding cuts and laid a kiss on those lips underneath the stars.

She'd think and get me an answer, yeah.

Obviously, 'no' wasn't a serious option. No wasn't in my fucking vocabulary when it came to this chick.

She was mine, dammit. Mine when she was curled up next to me, making me hard just having her skin on mine. Mine when she was going nuclear on my dick. Mine when she woke up later and felt the soreness I'd no doubt left in her pussy.

I wasn't sorry for that shit at all. Same way my heart swelled with pride when I looked at the bruises I'd left on her neck with my teeth. I wanted her to think about me every time she moved. It'd be the perfect reminder of everything we'd had tonight, everything I'd done for her, every way I'd ravaged her sweet body and left it to smolder.

Fuck, it was hard to leave. Did I already say that?

I slid my clothes on, unable to resist planting one more kiss on her forehead before I went. “Sleep tight, baby. I'll be back by evening.”

I left her some money on the way out with a little note attached to get the tire fixed on her car.

Soon, I was on my Harley, riding into the early morning sun. The shit I had in my bag felt like it was burning a fucking hole in the compartment behind me. I'd taken it off Big Dead Ed before I stripped his face and fingerprints with the acid.

Two patches soaked in somebody's blood. Both had the Spanish crap I couldn't pronounce at the bottom, right beneath the cartel's symbolic bird and cactus.

Yeah, the asshole was just as sloppy screwing over my club as he was getting drink and hobbling onto his bike. Killing one cartel boss was a fucking miracle, but three?

Nobody would call it anything other than pure bullshit. My bros wouldn't be happy to see it when I laid it out for 'em, but they'd swallow the sudden fondness they had for the Oregon fucks. And I'd be lying if I said part of me didn't enjoy imagining Asphalt and a couple other dudes eating their crow raw and rotten.

I stopped by a local joint for a breakfast sandwich and coffee. I'd need to keep my eyes pried open today after all the life she'd sucked outta me. And shit, I still wanted more. I'd let Christa's pussy put me right into my grave if I wasn't careful.

My phone rang while I was about to dig into my food. I saw Brass' number and cursed.

“Yeah? What's going on, bro?”

“You'd better get your ass over to the clubhouse this second. Shit's going down.” That was the VP talking, and not my friend.

“What the fuck? I'm on my way over right now.”

“Hurry the hell up. Get ready to talk to the Prez. I hope to fucking God you haven't done something as stupid as I think.”

“Yeah? What's that?” I growled, but the line was dead.

I wolfed down my food angrily, pissed that my one night of peace was already gone with the morning light. Everything about the Veep's tone said I was due for a beating, or maybe something worse.

God damn it. Good thing I'd fucked her at least five times last night. It might be a week or two before I'd be able to again, if my brothers were going to be massive dicks and start swinging before I could show them what I'd found.

There were a lot of bikes parked outside when I got through the gate. Too fucking many. None of them ours.

Shit. I shouldn't have assumed Ed was the only asshole from Klamath in our territory. They couldn't have known we'd take the bait with his bullshit about the cartel before he sprung his trap, so he'd brought his boys for backup.

I checked the holster holding my handgun before I went inside. Roman was waiting by the door like a bulldog. He took one severe look at me and stood, smashing his knuckles together.

“Calm the fuck down! I know you've all been waiting for me. Brass told me.”

“Prez is waiting for you in his office,” he said, barely giving me enough space to squeeze past him on my way down the hall.

There were several strangers wearing our patch over by the bar. Greasy looking, dead eyed bastards, the kind who were the norm in this club before our little revolution. They all looked at me like vultures waiting for a big meal.

Shit!

No fear. I walked into Blackjack's office and found the old man perched behind his desk. He kicked his leg underneath the table, pushing the chair out for me, and pointed. Soon as I tried to sit, he popped up, uppercutting me in the jaw so hard I swore I lost a fucking tooth.

“Motherfuck!” I growled, tasting copper in the blood. A quick check with my tongue told me everything was all there. Surprising. “Christ, Prez. I thought you'd at least try talking with your mouth first before you brought out your fists.”

He didn't say anything. I saw why a second later, when the door popped open, and Brass walked in. My bro looked at me like he'd caught me stealing his bike, a look of outrage and sadness.

“Cut the shit, son,” Blackjack growled. “We both know you killed the bastard. So do the boys from Klamath. They showed up here this morning, demanding to know why the fuck their VP didn't return last night. They would've put lead in a few people if I hadn't managed to talk their asses out of it, backed by Roman's fists.”

“Look, I fucked up on one thing, I'll admit that.” Shit, make that two. I'd forgotten my fucking bag in my bike while I was stewing, too pissed to remember the smoking gun I had outside.

“One thing?” Brass gave me an evil smile. “Brother, you're in the deepest shit anyone's been in since we took down Fang and his friends. If you killed a brother in this organization – an officer, no less – you know what happens next.”

We locked eyes. Yeah, I damned well did. The fucks in southern Oregon would be taking a vote soon once Blackjack told them what I'd done. They'd vote for my head on a platter, but not before they stripped my patch and everything remotely Grizzlies MC related on my skin. And if this charter didn't want an all-out blood war between brothers, Redding would vote to stand down and let them have their justice.

All kosher according to club charter. I was looking at a violent, bloody death.

“I'm only going to ask you once, Rabid. We know the truth, and this is just a fucking formality, but it needs to be done.” Blackjack took a breath and leaned forward. “Did you murder Big Ed last night?”

What the fuck was the point in hiding it? Truth or lie, I was dead as soon as I admitted it. And I was ready to face that, as long as I could get their assurance my girl would be safe.

“Answer him, asshole,” Brass growled, slamming a not-so-brotherly hand on my shoulder.

“I took him out with a stab to the throat,” I said, never breaking eye contact with my evil looking Prez. “It was at that shithole on the edge of town, the Pig's Tail or whatever the fuck it's called, where all the junkies and whores hang out. Caught up to him right before he was about to blow town. I found him drunk and tipsy inside the bar, got him to come out back, and we had words. Our talk ended with my blade in his fucking jugular, just like I planned the minute I got there.”

I stood, ripping Brass' hand off my shoulder. Spreading my hands on the Prez's desk, I stooped down to his level, glaring at him.

“Before you kill me, Prez, there's something you ought to know. Just two things.”

“Yeah? Spill it. Better do it fast.” The merciless expression on his face looked like it was about to set his long gray hair on fire.

“My girl's been in debt to the Klamath crew for a few years. Christa took a loan from their fucked up club running some kinda bar up there. They've been harassing her ever since, sending brothers down here to fuck with her whenever she's the least bit late. Yesterday, our buddy Ed slashed her tire and roughed her up. I wasn't gonna take that shit. I also knew he was lying through his fucking teeth when he dropped that cartel boss patch for Brass – and this time I got proof. You gotta let me show you before I get the blow to the face I probably deserve. I found two more bloody cartel patches stuffed in Ed's pocket before I dumped his body, just like the one he gave Brass. They're in my bike. Just say the word and walk me out, I'll let you see it with your own damned eyes.”

Blackjack snorted. Leaning back in his high leather chair, his hands twitched on the table. It was like watching a transistor waiting to blow. I braced for the impact, ready for both the Prez and the VP to go to work, breaking everything on my face to smithereens. And that was if the Prez didn't pull his gun and put me outta my misery with a clean shot before the Klamath boys did.

“I don't need to see shit, Rabid,” he finally said. “Everybody in this room's on the same page. I knew Rip and his Veep were blowing smoke up our asses the second Brass laid that fucking thing out on the table.”

Jaw, meet floor. After I finished picking my mouth up off the sticky ground, I swiveled, staring at Brass. He nodded.

“What the fuck? Then what the hell was the point of that bullshit brawl in church last time?”

“The point was to keep it on the down low before any dumb fuckers got impulsive, brother.” Brass stepped forward, giving me the evil eye. “You just made our job a helluva a lot harder. Honestly, if the jackass you killed wasn't fucking with Christa, I'd punch you right through the goddamned wall.”

I bared my teeth, the only instinct after a threat like that. But the rest of my brain, apart from the lizard section, realized he was right. Not that I was ready to admit I'd fucked up or apologize.

Shit, if only they'd told me, instead of this cloak and dagger shit! We wouldn't be cooped up here with some very angry assholes from Klamath outside this office right now.

“I ought to give them your ass anyway for this.” Blackjack's voice was stone cold. “But then I'd be no better than Fang. You're taxing this club right to hell, son. I'm not going to let you die, but the heap of shit reserved for you just landed on the whole club.”

“Why pull any punches if everybody knows where we stand?” I asked, guilt tugging at my heart. “Shit, when the rest of the charters find out Klamath tried to screw national, they'll stand down without threatening you, Prez.”

“No, they'll help us do the job when they find out the Klamath fucks have been working with the cartel,” Blackjack said.

Fuck, I almost had to hold my jaw to keep it from hitting the ground again. So, they were bigger bastards than even I'd thought. I balled fists, fully ready to march out and fight the assholes in the bar all alone if I had to. Exactly the kinda deadly hot head shit the two men in the room with me were trying to avoid.

“Christ.” I shook my head, all I could do to ignore the impulse. “How long's this been going on?”

“Nobody knows,” Brass said. “Might've started under Fang. Maybe they only went nuts in the last few weeks, purely because they don't approve of the new leadership. We wanted to get the jump on 'em. Now, thanks to you offing their VP, we never will.”

Shit. That cut deep. I was perfectly willing and ready to spill my own blood to keep Christa safe. But having any brothers stuffer for it was almost as bad as her taking the pain herself.

“Say the word,” I said. “I'll buy you guys time. Whatever it takes. I'll go with 'em right now if you think it'll help. That's what they're expecting. I can handle whatever the fuck they wanna deal out. They can't kill me 'til our charters both vote on it, and you deliver the results, Prez.”

“No.” Blackjack shook his head, his eyes wide and maybe slightly impressed. Guess he never expected me to offer up my own hide. “They'll know we're onto them whether they've got you or not. Rip and his crew are dumb, but the cartel sure as fuck isn't. The Mexicans will see us pulling reserves away from the fight when we go to confront the boys up north.”

“Then, what? We tell them to fuck off and expect they'll just walk outta here?”

“They damned well better,” Blackjack growled. “That's their only choice if they don't want half their crew winding up dead today. Roman's assured me all our brothers are quicker shots than they are. We'll kill them in this clubhouse if they try to start shit here.”

Damn. There was nothing worse than a club's HQ turning into a fucking war zone.

The three of us looked at each other, letting the realization set in that this was the only way out. I was ready. The ink all over my body burned like a shield. My blood seethed, taking the tattoos' heat, ready to give the ultimate sacrifice for this brotherhood, and for her too.

“I'm ready when you are, brothers.”

Blackjack stood up. Brass clapped me on the shoulder, this time giving me the brotherly grip I'd felt a hundred times before.

“I've always got your back, and you know it. Even when you're making shit ten times harder than it needs to be. You were there for me and Missy when things got bad. I'm doing the same for you and Christa.” He paused, heading toward the door with me while Blackjack got his bearings on his half-healed leg. “Oh, but you'd better hurry the fuck up and claim this girl if you really want her. If I find out she's just another fucking slut to you, I swear I'm gonna –“

He raised his fist, and I pushed it down hard. “Already working on it, bro. Settle your ass down.”

“All right,” Blackjack said, growling through the pain in his hip. “Let's go.”

Roman joined us as soon as we stepped out. So did several other guys who'd been lingering on the opposite side of the bar, Asphalt and several prospects, keeping watch on our shitty guests.

“You, Marrow.” Blackjack called the name of a skinny, dirty looking man with an eye patch when we were just a couple feet away. “Let's talk.”

The five Klamath boys walked up and took their places next to us. Goddamn, they were ugly. It shouldn't have been so easy to see who the evil fuckers were just looking at them, but it was.

“Well? Is this piece of shit coming with us, or what?” Marrow pointed at me, a killer glint in his eye.

“You guys can pack up your shit and leave Redding, that's what. I'll give you three minutes before we start shooting. Rabid's not going anywhere.” Blackjack would've stared them down just the same, even if he didn't have Roman's wall of muscle behind him. Tough motherfucker.

“You gotta be shitting me!” Marrow twisted his head and spat tobacco on the floor. “I'm gonna ask you again, brother, because I think you must've fucked up your head in there talking to him. Are you sure you wanna make this mistake? You know what it fucking means.”

“Yeah, I do. Soon as Rip hears, he'll hit every other Prez in the five state area and try to brand this mother charter a rogue group with a kill order. Go a-fucking-head. If you think I give a shit, you're wrong.”

Marrow's good eye twitched. Snarling, he reached right for me, tried to get his hand around my throat. I was faster. Started pounding my fists into his chest while his boys surrounded me, slamming punches into my spine. I hit the floor hard, and some asshole's boot was on my back.

The world exploded with men screaming, roaring, fighting. I rolled, getting the upper hand on one of the greasy motherfuckers. My fists wouldn't stop 'til his hot blood stained my knuckles, pounding his nasty little face over and over and over.

Then there was a bang like the end of the world. Everybody stopped moving.

“The next fucking shot's going right through the skulls of anybody wearing an Oregon patch!” Roman thundered, his magnum in hand. The hole he'd put through the ceiling was still smoking. “Pick your asses up and leave, or I'll carry you outside in fucking body bags.”

Brass and Asphalt helped me off the floor. The asshole I'd been pounding on scampered away like a wounded rat, covering his busted nose.

“Then go ahead and shoot me right through the fucking chest,” Marrow snarled, walking right up to our big man and standing like a peacock. “I'm not leaving unless that cocksucker Rabid's handcuffed and stuffed on the back of somebody's bike. Shoot me, big man. Shoot me! Rip'll find out one way or another, and then he won't even need that vote to bring every free man in the rest of the Grizzlies MC down on this fucked up charter! Now, you gonna pop that fucking thing in my ribs or what?”

For a second, I seriously thought Roman was gonna unload hellfire into his chest. But he raised his gun, and smashed it across the asshole's face instead. Several teeth exploded from his mouth and hit the floor, bouncing like popcorn kernels.

Marrow reached for the holster near his hip. Roman struck him again, bashing his wrist so hard I swore it snapped. The asshole howled, toppling backward as pain tore through him. His brothers caught him, helped him stand straight.

“Get the fuck out,” Blackjack growled. “Last warning before we take more than blood and teeth!”

One by one, we watched the fuckers slink away. I was sorely tempted to lunge and give them one more parting shot. But I'd lit enough shit on fire for one day, and now were in full damage control.

“Round up all the brothers,” the Prez said. “Have them ready for church by evening. I've got a lot of fucking calls to make to the other charters. Gotta dial before Rip does it first.”

* * *

Brass and I sat at the bar with several other guys, waiting for everybody else. We nursed our shots, careful not to get totally fucking plastered. Old Southpaw was at the end of the bar, staring into his beer and shaking his head every so often. The bitter look on his face said he was way too old for this shit.

Roman sipped a big bottle of mud he slipped his whiskey into, some kinda black stout with a kick. I swore it'd be easier to get a horse drunk than the dude next to me.

“You should've come to us sooner about the girl,” the giant growled, giving me the evil eye. “The Prez could've put her up in a safe place.”

Damned annoying. He'd been filled in on all the gritty details since the blowout this morning.

“Look, I know the line's thin between my shit and club biz. But if you think anybody here wouldn't protect his girl before bringing the whole club into it, then you must've downed more of that mud than I thought.”

Roman looked at his bottle and scowled, adding another shot of Jack to the mix. “The line's fucking non-existent, brother. You know it.”

Brass laughed. I turned, wondering if my next words would get a fist to the face. What was one more blow after the Klamath assholes peppered my back with bruises?

“Yeah? What about that you and that Sally chick?” I narrowed my eyes, sucking more napalm down my throat. “Is that something you're gonna keep to yourself, or will the club wind up finding out she's a cartel mule or some shit in a couple months?”

Roman's bottle hit the counter just short of fracturing. “She's no threat to the club, motherfucker. She's nothing to me. We're finished. Don't even say her fucking name.”

Bullshit. I almost fucking called him on it too. The fires roaring in his eyes didn't say anything close to finished. I knew that look too – I'd seen it staring back at me in the mirror a thousand times 'til I'd finally had a piece of Christa.

Waking up today and washing my face, there was a different blaze in these eyes. I'd finally fucking had her, and now I wanted more. More everything. More of her hot little lips, more of those curves, more of her beautifully imperfect face tensing up and going rosy before she lost her mind on my cock.

Fuck. Just remembering last night got me hard as steel, and I had to look away from the bitter hulk next to me. Last thing I needed was my brain connecting arousal with our wall of an Enforcer or some shit. I'd never been into dick – not that there's anything wrong with that – but just thinking it meant I was gonna have to fuck my girl half a dozen times to bleach my brain.

“Rabid's right,” Brass said. “I know I've done my share of putting the club through the fucking wringer for my old lady and her little sis. Dammit, though, these complications are easily avoided if we can see 'em coming. If there's anything we need to know about the mystery chick, Roman, you'd better –“

“You saying I'm holding out on something, Veep?” Roman slid off the bench and stood, towering over us. Brass shook his head. “Cause if you are, you're full of shit. I'll tell you fucks one more time – Sally's nothing you need to worry about, and neither do I. She's history – over and done. You think I'll ever hold shit back from the club that's important, then you'd better find a new Sergeant-at-Arms. I don't play weasel. I aim direct.”

He got up and stomped away, shooting me one last dark look. Next to me, Brass shrugged.

“Guess we'll never get the real story outta him. I tried.”

I swung around and punched him in the arm. He hit me right back, and I laughed as the sting rolled up my shoulder.

“Leave the poor bastard alone. He's smarter than either of us – he knows there's easier ways to get pussy than pure hell.” I slammed another shot down my throat.

Brass raised his eyebrows. “Come the fuck on, brother. You're a sucker just like me. You've gotta know damned well there's a difference between easy pussy and pussy that belongs to a woman worth wearing your brand.”

“Yeah,” I said, trying not to give the boy too much credit. “I'm learning that the hard way. Good fucking thing it's been worth it.”

“And it only gets better when you make it official. Man the fuck up and go all in. If I hear the week's gone and that redhead's still not wearing your mark, I'm gonna laugh at your lazy ass.”

I pinched my jaw tight. Great, like I really needed another challenge on top of all this other shit.

On second thought, maybe it was exactly what I needed.

I told my baby I'd give her time to think about what I'd offered last night. But I was one impatient SOB.

Soon as I saw her, I'd follow up on the most important question of my life, right after I finished pumping my balls dry inside her velvet cunt. I'd never get sick of fucking her, and the only thing better would be taking her long and hard when I could actually call her my old lady in between thrusts.

* * *

Church was about what I expected. Blackjack spelled everything out, and more than a few brothers growled their discontent, pissed to realize there was more going on behind the scenes. They all understood the Prez's reasoning, even if they didn't like it.

We were staring down the barrel of a fucking shotgun.

The club was barely holding its line against the cartel with some help from our new friends in the Prairie Devils MC. Going to war with Rip's crew was a certainty, and it had the potential to fuck us over with their Mexican support, besides causing more discord in the national organization.

We were all tired and ready for drinks by the time it ended. The thirst for booze was just about the only thing that kept some guys from getting their fists bloody.

Suddenly, Blackjack jerked up from his chair and turned, ripping the huge Grizzlies MC banner off the wall.

Half the guys slouching in their chairs sat up. I blinked, watched the old Prez clamber onto the table, ignoring the hellfire in his bullet wound.

“You see these colors, brothers?” He pulled the flag open in his wide arms. “You'd fucking better. I want everybody in this room to peel their eyes open and take a good long look. This is what we're fighting for. I've served under this bear for thirty years. I was there when he was just a cub with half-inch fangs. I watched him grow into the big tough bastard we all know today. Like you, I helped tame him, get him back on track, when he started to go crazy. If anybody in this room thinks we've got a grizzly on our patch because we want to look like badasses, think the fuck again. The bear's the biggest and the baddest because he's free. King of the wilderness. Nobody fucks with a fifteen hundred pound giant with claws.

“He eats, sleeps, and fucks wherever and however he damned well pleases. Once upon a time, big grizzlies like this roamed California before they were hunted to extinction. Now, it's just us grizzlies on our bikes, keeping the dream alive. If any one of you is ready to give up and lay down because we've all been scorched, pick your ass up, and walk out the door right now. Roman will take your patch.

“This is our club. These are our colors. We live our lives like men, and we'll die like them too. You've got about forty eight hours to drink and fuck yourselves senseless before I decide how we're gonna hit the fucking traitors sitting over the border. Get your shit together, and never, ever forget what this patch means on your cuts. I want you to feel it when you're partying, loving, and even when you're drawing your last breath. This club's our home and this bear's our father. Make him proud.”

Brass held out a hand to the Prez, but he jumped down on his own, gracefully pinning the Grizzlies MC standard back in place. When the bear's face emerged on the field of black, my heart sputtered pure adrenaline.

The old man had accomplished his mission. He'd amped us up like a motherfucker.

Prez picked up the bear claw and slapped it down on the wood, adjourning the meeting. We all hugged him on the way out. Some guys had tears in their eyes.

Me, I was coming apart. I was ready to kill and die for these colors, the only thing in the world that brought comfort and sense to my life besides the chick I was about to make my old lady.

“I want you out of the clubhouse tonight, son,” Blackjack growled into my ear when it was my turn to embrace him.

“Huh?”

“Go home. Get a hot meal in you. Then spend the rest of the evening with the woman who's helped you get into so much trouble.”

I smiled. “Gotcha, Prez. Thanks for reminding us what really matters.”

“I didn't do shit,” he snapped. “You boys all know what's right and worthy in your hearts.”

Christ, his eyes were bright. Blackjack had been the Enforcer under Fang, and he'd always led us through the toughest shit since I'd patched in. He always got crazy and motivated during a fight, but I never saw him look like this, not even when we wrecked Fang and put him in the President's seat.

They say that patch on his chest does strange things to a man. I believed it as I walked away, turning away from joining my brothers at the bar. A few steps later, I was outside, heading for the garage.

A couple prospects came running up. Lean, muscular guys in their early twenties, Beam and Stryker.

“Your woman's here,” Stryker said.

“We fixed her car up good. Free of charge,” Beam chimed in. “I know she's not officially tied to the club yet, but I figured you'd want it that way.”

I gave them brotherly slaps on the shoulders and pushed through them. Shit, I was about to head right out to my girl. I never expected to find her here.

It felt like a million years since morning, when I'd left her sleeping like an angel. She was leaning on the junker she drove, shiny new rubber wrapped around the tire Big Ed fucked up as his last evil act in this world.

It took me a second to process what she was wearing. Fucking shit. Forget the rubber wrapped around the wheel. I wanted her wrapped around my cock right this second, the best way in the world to burn off all the crazy, righteous energy Blackjack's speech jolted into me. She didn't know showing up in that was testing me like a missile ready for launch.

Skinny, tight jeans pulled her nice, full ass up, ripe for attention. A low cut tank top held her girls, and fuck if I didn't want to bury my face right in them.

Christ, did she even have a bra on underneath?

Jealousy and want shot through me, both wrestling for the upper hand. Thinking about those pissant prospects getting such a sweet view of her goods pissed me right off, but I couldn't stay mad if she'd dressed like that for me.

“Baby,” I greeted her, pulling her mouth to mine before she could say another word. “You look so fucking hot.”

Dammit, her lips were good. Tasting her was like biting into fresh strawberries doused in creamy sex. No, I'd never put that sugary girly stuff in my mouth, but I wanted to lick and suck and bite these lips all fucking day. They could taste like bubblegum and cherries for all I knew.

She flattened her hands on my chest, trying to push me away, when the kiss got to be too much. I wasn't done by half. I rocked into her, flattening her against the hood, bending over and clenching her thighs while my tongue probed deeper, dancing hers silly.

This kiss wasn't just a how-do-you-do. I made damned well sure it got the message across, a little omen of all the ways I'd fuck her later.

Fuck, fuck. What was this girl doing to my taste buds? How was she zapping every nerve like lightning at once?

Didn't have a damned clue, but I knew how to stop her. I'd slam myself to the hilt and shake her 'til I couldn't anymore. But only after I'd held her down and lapped her sweet pussy. I'd lick and suck and finger-fuck what she had 'til I felt her squirt in my fucking mouth.

“Rabid!” She called my name when I finally took my lips off hers. “Jesus. A girl needs to breathe, you know.”

No, I didn't. I was ready to move in for another kiss when she slid out underneath me, sneaky and fast like a cat.

“What's wrong, babe? Don't tell me you didn't just enjoy that as much as I did.”

Okay, maybe it was hard for me to believe anyone else could feel the shit I had screaming in my veins. I wanted to tear her tank top off right here and fuck her on top of the car, anything to satisfy the bloodhound howling in my pants.

She blushed. Those little marks on her face were almost invisible when she went all cherry. And I knew she could turn about three times brighter when she came on my dick.

“I figured this was the safest place to get the car fixed. I'm still trying to get over yesterday. Do your guys know what happened?” she asked, giving me a serious look.

“They know enough. The rest is all club business you don't need to worry about. You're safe. Nobody's gonna fuck with you again.” I reached for her, trying to get a hand around her waist.

Fuck if she didn't squirm away again. Damn it, one more time and I was gonna lunge, throw her to the ground, and have my way. Didn't give a shit if every other brother inside saw it. Wouldn't be the first time other guys watched me fuck. Plenty of brothers watched me when I left my door open, giving it to whores in the past.

Guess they wanted to learn a few new moves from a boss.

But shit, something about Christa turned me crazy fucking jealous. Maybe I wouldn't be able to fuck her at the clubhouse after all, not when I had the urge to beat any eyeballs out of their sockets for undressing her.

“Seriously? The other guys in Klamath won't come looking for their dead man? I met their President, Rip, more times than I ever wanted to. He's not the type to let go of a grudge.”

Shit. Using the old club business schtick wasn't gonna work on this spitfire. It was easy to forget she'd been deep in this world for some time, 'til she opened her mouth.

“Christa, baby, the main fuck that matters is in his grave. We both know that. You watched me put him there. He can't come back.”

“But the others...”

“Fuck 'em. They'll be dealt with. Me and my bros are part of the mother charter. That makes us the biggest dicks around. We'll wreck anyone and anything who tries to fuck with us, even if they're supposed to be our brothers. You understand that? I'd kill that fucker, Ed, in broad daylight a hundred times over if it'd make you feel better. You've got nothing to worry about. Read my fucking lips –

nothing.”

“I hope you're right.” She swallowed, surrendering to my grasp.

“I always am. I promised you Ed would die. Now, refresh my memory, what the hell happened?” She turned away, unused to having the truth thrown at her like this. Too bad. “Come on, baby girl. Lay it on me. What happened after I said the fucker was done?”

“You killed him,” she whispered.

“Damned straight. I'm gonna say it here and now, even though it's getting deep into club biz – soon, you won't have to worry about any of those fuckers above the Norcal border. Give it a week. Just trust me.”

“You've earned a little trust, I guess.” She winked. “Can't totally let my guard down. I've got to be careful with a man like you.”

“Yeah? Why the fuck's that?”

“Because if I open up and give you a little trust, you might take everything else.”

Fucking funny. I laughed. “Babe, I'm already rocking your whole damned world, and I'm about to do it some more tonight. Whatever you give me, I'm gonna keep it safe, and send it back to you as pure gold.”

She moved in for a kiss. About damned time. I pursed my lips, tongue hungry as hell. For some reason, she stopped less than an inch away, looking over my shoulder.

“Rabid? Who's that?”

I turned and my heart dove like a flying ace. There was Red beaming the evil eye, standing against the wall with a cig in her mouth, puffing on her own green jealousy. Fuck.

“Hold up. I'll be right back.”

Christa tried to grab for me. I shot her a warning look and she dropped back, giving me the space to drive this little bitch away. I was in no mood for her shit.

“What're you doing here? You know I don't appreciate eavesdropping. I thought I drilled where we stand into your fucking skull the last time we –“

“Rabid, stop!” she snapped. “I'm sorry. I just wanted to see who exactly it is you're so much happier with than me. I had to see her.”

“Happier?” I nearly shook my head right off. “Red, your first mistake's comparing yourself to the woman I'm about to claim as my old lady. Your second fuck up's thinking I was gushing love instead of lust every time we fucked.”

Shit. I thought I could make it short, sweet, and get away without the waterworks. But they were lining her eyes. Tears trickled, smearing mascara down her face. If this crap kept up, she'd never get off me and move onto other things. No brother wanted to fuck a weepy whore.

“Drag your ass inside and have a drink. You've been around long enough to know when the brothers need a little privacy with each other or their women. You can take your smoke breaks somewhere else.”

She leaned forward, her little hands balled into fists. “I didn't see your name on this wall. Guess it doesn't have enough ugly pits and lines in it for your liking. You only like that beat up little slut because she doesn't have a backbone. She can't protect herself and sort out her own problems. What is it with you men? You throw away the beautiful things you take for granted every time some ugly hag looks at you with puppy eyes!”

Oh, fuck. She didn't really say that, and right in my girl's earshot too!?

I lunged, ready to grab the bitch by the hair and slam her against the wall. I'd drum her right outta the fucking club here and now, make her know with absolute certainty that she wasn't welcome here anymore with a poison tongue like that.

“Shit!” I swore. I barely caught the lacy red collar thing she wore around her neck and it tore off in my hand.

Red didn't stop. She went running back inside. My boots pounded pavement, and I was halfway up the steps, ready to break down the door, when I turned back and saw Christa looking at the ground.

What the fuck was I doing? Wasting precious time I could be spending with her, chasing this cheap hole I'd never stick my dick in again?

Not fucking worth it, I thought. Fuck her. She'll fuck up soon enough and some other brother will be the one to toss her out on her defiant little ass. Everything I've gotta worry about's standing right over there.

“Baby, I'm sorry as hell you had to hear that.”

Christa turned away from me. I put my hand on her shoulder, ready to spin her around. Fuck, she was tense.

“I heard what she said, Rabid. Old flame. I get it.” The electric edge in her voice said she didn't. “Is it true?”

She spun around, shooting me a fiery glare. Red was so fucking wrong about this woman being a pushover, and that's why my cock turned to steel. I liked a fight, long as my dick went where it belonged in the end.

“Do you really just want me because you've got some kinda Messiah complex? You want to save me? Is that it?”

Jesus Christ! Where the fuck was this brimstone coming from?

“No, baby! That bitch is whacked outta her gourd. If we didn't have better shit to do tonight, I'd march right in there and throw her over the gate. She's done with me and done with this club. You're the only one I'm ever gonna want. I told you – I want you to be my old lady. I'd never offer that to any chick who put a second thought in my skull!”

She blinked, her face hot and red, overwhelmed. I grabbed her, pinned her to my chest, stroking her soft hair. There was another big difference.

Red's hair was always fake, shaggy, smelled like it was soaked in perfume. Never cared while I was drunk and needed to get my dick wet. But Christa's was all natural, sweet and soft, with just a hint of some honey and her own intoxicating smell.

“Did you think about what I told you last night?” I growled it. Now, I was the bastard on edge, and about to go over it if she got scared.

“Yeah.”

“Well?” I cocked my head, tightening my hold. Fuck, she looked beautiful with the setting sun catching her hair, turning it ruby. “Are you gonna give me a yes?”

Please fucking give it up, babe, I thought. I'm gonna go rocketing right into the sun if you keep me waiting another second.

She smiled, forming little dimples I wanted to lick on my way to biting her bottom lip. “Being an old lady sounds kinda nice. If you're sure you'll never get tired of kissing this messed up face, I'm willing to give it a shot.”

Blood shot through my heart like a grenade going off.

I picked her up, lifted her right off the goddamned ground. She started screaming, laughing, pounding playfully on my back. Fuck the car. We could pick that up later.

“Rabid! Put me down!”

“Not 'til you cut that shit out and give me a kiss. I'm gonna get my brand on you real soon,” I said, carrying her over to my bike and putting her down the backseat. “But not 'til I've fucked all that horseshit uncertainty outta your bones. How much more do I need to kiss and lick and fuck for you to realize I want this? I want you so bad it's hard to breathe, like I'm fucking drowning. You're gonna give it a shot, yeah, but you don't need to worry about shit. You already hit the only bullzeye that matters, and I'm gonna make you see it.”

I reached for her face, cupped her chin, and turned her toward me. I shoved my lips on hers and gave her a kiss so rough I made her squirm. Lightening up when she kissed back, our lips moved like dancers, high on love and anticipation.

I tore myself away after a minute. Had to, or else we'd never get outta this place. It was hell resisting the urge to take those lips again.

Soon. Real fucking soon.

There was just one more part I needed to taste to make her see.

“This, baby.” I planted my lips on the jagged scar going up her temple. “This is what I want. Every beautiful inch of you.”

Something about feeling her skin on mine turned me into a total madman. Once I started, I couldn't fucking stop. Not 'til her head was tipped back and I was moving down her face, making a direct line for her mouth, plunging my desperate lips into hers one more time to finish.

“This, this, this.” I growled through the kiss, loud as I could before tying my tongue up in hers made words impossible.

One hand went to her thigh while I brushed her sweet little lips with my tongue. Couldn't resist the urge to head for the center, where her skinny jeans hid her pussy. Fucking couldn't.

My fingers cupped her there and squeezed. She moaned, flooding my hand with heat.

Fuck, fuck, fuck...

It was like a tiny hot spring in her pants. I started to lose my mind, one rough pull away from unbuttoning her and taking that pussy with my tongue on this bike.

Too bad what I said earlier stood, with the same mad energy I'd felt when Blackjack renewed our oaths to the club. No other brother was gonna see her bare curves and pink perfection but me.

Nobody!

I squeezed her harder, finding her clit through all the denim and fabric. She gurgled into my lips, and I smiled through the kiss, knowing I'd found the right spot.

No, fuck no. This was all mine. Nobody else's.

Mine. I wanted to brand it on her ass and scratch it into her bones. I wanted to tattoo the fucking word on her naked skin with my teeth, right above where her cleavage started and sucked me into heaven. Fuck, I wanted to walk her around town with a leash around her neck and one hand on her ass, ready to kick the shit outta anybody who even looked at her with a little drool on his lips.

I was fucked, destined to be a maniac 'til I fucked her so many times my brain was as numb as my dick, all I could do to shut the voice up in my head screaming that fatal fucking M-word, and two more just as dangerous.

Mine. Soon. Forever.

I just had to be patient for once in my life. If I could wait a little longer without going ape, it'd be all official with my ink on her skin and a jacket on her shoulders. PROPERTY OF RABID sounded pretty damned good right about now, a perfect way to wrap this up. But hell, make that unwrapped, because having her naked underneath me twenty-four-seven sounded even better.

“Let's go.” I ripped myself away, all I could do to break the insane addiction to her flesh. I reached behind her and pushed the spare helmet into her hands.

“Where are we going?”

“Somewhere we can unwind for the night. Not your apartment. It was good for a first time, yeah, but I can think of far better places to fuck your brains out besides an old bed and paper thin walls. Hold on tight, baby. Might as well get your fingers used to running over my body now because they're gonna be holding onto me all night.”

The engine roared to life. Helmets on, I tore outta the garage and headed for the gate, waiting five agonizing seconds for the thing to open. My dick was ready to jump ahead of us and go flying down the street.

It would've been perfect if I hadn't looked behind me. I caught a flash of Red in my mirror, standing there by the door. The little slut must've snuck and poked her head out the second she heard my motorcycle growling.

Well, fuck her anyway. She'd be gone soon enough, and I'd never have to worry about her jealous shit ever upsetting my girl again.

Nothing was gonna come between my old lady and me, especially not something as stupid as that.

For the first time, I could see my future laid out in front of me, something I'd never seen before in almost three decades of passing through life. No, scratch that. My future was behind me with its pretty little hands hugging my abs, and I promised right then I'd never let it slip outta my sight again.

* * *

“Jesus. Are you sure you can afford this place?” I laughed when I saw her mouth hanging open.

It was the best resort Redding had to offer, and from now on, my old lady was getting nothing but the very best. I shook my head, packed up our helmets, and headed inside. She seriously had no idea how I was gonna turn her life on its head.

The smart dressed shit at the counter turned his head, trying to hide the derision and fear in his face at the big biker asshole coming toward him. When I was right in front of him, he couldn't ignore me anymore.

“Yes? Can I help you?”

“Need a room for tonight. Cash.” I reached into my wallet, pulled out three one hundreds, and slammed them on the table. “Will this get us something with a jacuzzi, or am I gonna need to pay more for that?”

The idiot looked like his eyes were gonna pop outta his head. “No, sir. That'll do just fine.”

I thumped my fingers on the counter while he typed our shit in. Turning around, I caught a glimpse of Christa ogling the huge chandelier hanging over the leather seats in the lobby. A man in a tux was playing a piano in the corner – classical shit. I didn't know fuck about Beethoven, but I knew what made my woman smile, and seeing her happy put a grin on my face.

“Here you are, sir. Valet service is available around the clock, breakfast at five thirty, and twenty-four hour room service with a complete drink menu at this number.” He stabbed a chubby finger into the piece of paper. “If you need our wifi password, you'll find it –“

“Fuck, just give me the damned keycards.” I ripped the leathery folder outta his hands and walked towards Christa.

She didn't see me coming when I came up behind her and wrapped a possessive arm around her waist, giving her a hard tug toward me. She squealed. Just the kinda sound that made my cock beat like a jackhammer in my jeans. It was far too similar to the way she'd be yowling when I pounded her into the fancy ass bed soon.

“Come on, babe. Room's all ready. Let's go.”

The place was nothing short of classy. I'd considered splurging and taking a few sluts here in the past, but none of them were worth it. They were quick, trashy fucks meant for rutting out the tension pooling in my balls. The redheaded beauty at my side was the first woman worth a damned thing, the first one worth fucking surrounded by ritz and glamor.

Shit, what was I thinking? She'd be worth my dick any place. Something about the classy stuff put my cock on edge, though. Right now, it was raging to do all the things to her that'd defile this rich, cultured shit. Yeah, I was a twisted barbarian at heart, but my dirty impulses obviously pleased her too.

We rode an elevator up to our suite on the twelfth floor. Soft jazz played inside, and the stars were starting to come out through the glass. Christa shook her head every time she looked at me.

“I can't believe you did this. Nobody's ever treated me to anything this wonderful. Ugh, just wish I'd had some notice. I feel totally underdressed.” She looked at what she was wearing and snorted.

Underdressed? Was she fucking serious? There'd be plenty of time to freshen up later. Maybe after I locked her in our room and fucked her 'til it didn't matter. And last I checked, there was no dress code for sliding my dick into her pussy except buck naked.

Naked. Fuck.

My fist popped out and slammed the elevator to stop. We halted near the seventh floor. She looked at me, eyes wide with surprise.

“I need a taste, baby. Right now while we're here in mid-air. I'm not gonna make it to our room if I don't feel your lips on mine right fucking now.”

She slid right into my arms and I tugged her pretty red hair in my fist. My mouth crashed against hers, raging like a motherfucker, rabid as my name. My free hand reached around, hugging one hip. I squeezed her ass so hard she moaned into my mouth.

For a second, I thought I'd pass the fuck out with all the blood surging into my dick. Those sweet pink nipples of hers were plush against my chest, begging to be sucked and bitten.

Christ.

I took my hand off her ass and brought it around, slamming her gently against the glass while I shoved my fingers down her jeans and panties. Sopping fucking wet. Just what I thought.

“Rabid, this is –“

Crazy, she was about to say. I choked her off by pressing my thumb to her swollen clit and circling it like the doorbell to nirvana. Crazy? Sure, but it wasn't like I knew how to do any of this sane. Hell, I could barely control myself for five goddamned seconds when she wanted me.

The urge to throw her down and fuck her right on the elevator floor was overwhelming me. Two stiff fingers plunged inside her, feeling that wet, warm, quivering velvet I'd have around my dick soon. These soft walls were gonna shake tonight, quake and burn with every inch of her.

My dick never felt like this in my entire fucking life. It was like I'd downed a handful of the blue shit, and the bastard in my pants was so strong he'd beaten my brain into a coma, taking full control of everything. Bad analogy, though, because I knew I'd need my pulse checked if it ever took a fucking pill to get hard for this woman.

“Fuck, baby. You wanna get fucked right here, don't you? No bullshitting, girl.” I scraped my stubble across her neck and sucked the spot beneath her ear.

If the noises she made were supposed to make me stop, they didn't do shit. A second later, I had her wrapped up in my hands, one hand down her pants, pulling her tank top down with my teeth to get my mouth on those tits.

All of a sudden the elevator jerked. I swore, spinning around just in time to see the door pop open. A well dressed old couple stared at us like we were Martians.

Christa froze, completely mortified. Still had two fingers deep in her pussy, and the lunatic bulge in my pants would've been noticeable to anybody who wasn't blind.

Shit. Fuck. I made my decision in about two seconds.

I nodded at the old man and his wife, drew my hand outta her pants, and picked her up. Christa flushed beet red and hugged my neck numbly as I passed between the old folks. I charged down the hall like a bull, not stopping for anything.

It wasn't like I had a choice. Another minute or two, and my dick was gonna go off like a stick of dynamite, blow this whole place to kingdom come if I didn't have her naked and wriggling underneath me.

I kicked open the door to the stairs. “Hold on tight,” I growled, making sure she did before I started up the stairs.

We took the last few floors quickly. I must've set a record for climbing five or six flights of stairs, and the burn in my legs still didn't come close to matching the fire in my balls. What did it matter? A little workout would give us hurricane force sex instead of just stormy loving.

I never fucked harder than right after I was running for my life or spilling some fucker's blood. Preferably both. But these shitty stairs would do, anything to get my blood thudding harder. Adrenaline bored into my brain, channeling my killer instincts into pure primal need.

“Rabid, Jesus Christ! I cannot believe what you did back there.” She shook her head, ashamed and infuriated when we finally reached the door to our room.

“It worked, didn't it?” I grinned, slamming the keycard into its slot and pushing it open. She didn't follow, just stood outside with her arms crossed.

“Come the fuck on. That old boy in the hall looked like he'd been around the block a time or two. It's nothing he hasn't seen before in his wilder days. Trust me.”

“They were old enough to be my grandparents!” She sighed, giving her head another shake. If only she knew how it made her tits bounce. “I'm starting to wonder what I've gotten myself into...”

Oh, no. Fuck no. I wasn't about to listen to any second thoughts.

I stepped out into the hall, grabbed her again, and shoved her against the opposite wall. “Baby, give me a chance, and I'll show you how deep this heart goes. I'm not asking. I'm saying you're gonna do it, and you're gonna love it, even when I make an ass outta myself.”

I leaned my lips in close, just enough to tease, and sensed the heat on her skin. She wasn't fooling anybody with that feisty shit. My cock jerked on instinct when I saw the lights in her eyes.

“It's your choice how we fuck, but I'm having you in the next five minutes. Now, you can follow me inside and take my dick in a nice warm bed with some privacy, or I'll throw you down here and we'll fuck in the middle of this hall. Don't think I won't do it. You saw what happened in the elevator.”

She squirmed, amused fury flashing in her eyes. The girl's face said her front lobes didn't know what she wanted, but the heat in her skin told another story. I laughed, grasping her wrists and pinning them to the wall.

I rubbed close, making sure she felt my stubble and the molten bulge about to blaze right through my pants. Fuck, I swore I could practically feel her wet pussy begging for me between two layers of denim.

“You're a pig!” she spat, trying to stay angry, doing her damnedest not to laugh. “Just tell me, is there any part of being an old lady that still lets me be a lady?”

I shrugged. “We're about to wine and dine and bathe in fancy salts when my dick's not inside you. That's gotta count for something, right?”

She snorted. “You're arrogant. You're so sure a fancy dinner and a nice room makes up for embarrassing me. How do you know I won't just slap you across the face and walk out of here right this instant?”

“Your nipples are still like bullets for one thing,” I growled, bowing my chest out, feeling those little pinpricks on my torso. “And I'm willing to bet your pussy's still melting all over itself for my dick. How the fuck you gonna get home in one piece dripping cream all over the place? You'll slip and break your neck.”

She smiled. “Oh, so you're protecting me again?”

I didn't answer. I just nipped at her neck, gliding my tongue along her pale skin. Fucking shit, she was hot. I tasted lava lust rolling in her veins with every lick, every inch of my skin pressed to hers.

Once my hands started, they couldn't fucking stop. They were total puppets for my dick, and he was working overtime to make sure he got inside her before blowing up like a fucking kid on prom night.

“You know damned well what I'm doing,” I snarled, trying to make out the words like a human being instead of a demon. “Are you gonna melt like a good girl and open those hot legs up for me, or am I gonna have to hammer 'em apart?”

I rocked against her, pressing my hard cock to her pussy. I'd rub holes in our jeans right here and make us both come in our fucking pants if she didn't give it up soon.

Yeah, I really was that maniacal. This girl blurred the ying and yang and a thousand other things I couldn't describe in my screwed up system. She turned me to lightning the same way a rod draws current. I had to strike her deep, strike her hard, strike her 'til I blended right into her.

Her breath hitched. I was still dry humping her when I covered her mouth, one second ahead of the mushy scream pouring out her throat.

“Gahd! Rahbit! Fuckh!”

I grinned, sucking her right nip through her shirt. The nice girl drowned in the dirty little succubus lusting after what I had grinding on her clit, surrendering a little more each time I humped her. My thrusts were coming harder, faster, meaner.

Something about knowing anybody could walk right in on us made it all the more electrifying. Her legs started to tremble around mine. Perfect signal to go full throttle.

I thrust against her so hard her little ass bounced back over and over, dangerously close to putting a hole through the wall. Snarling, I reached down, popped her shirt and bra, and stuffed that bud I'd been teasing in my mouth.

Christa instantly tensed up, scrunched her face, and exploded. Her hips did all the work this time. She wrapped her legs around me, panting and grinding like a madwoman, bucking me so hard I really thought I'd lose it in my pants.

Fuck, fuck. I rubbed back so hard it hurt – and the pain did me a favor, prevented me from losing my load. The hand clamped over her lips was like covering a furnace vent. She poured pure smoke into my palm, gurgling her pleasure, biting into my finger when her orgasm peaked.

She came hard. Pride roared in my heart, knowing it was just a warm up for everything else I had planned tonight.

I helped steady her when she came down from her high. Her legs were shaky and her throat must've been dry as fuck. She licked her lips and looked at me, green eyes blazing, cheeks a whole new shade of red I'd never seen in my life.

“Hurry up and catch your breath, baby girl. You know it's time.”

She didn't even think about fighting me anymore as I took her by the hand and led her inside our room. I gave her a minute to admire the awesome view. The place overlooked the entire city, opening up on the mountains in the distance.

I smiled. Maybe we hadn't missed much having that elevator fuck interrupted after all.

“Clothes off. Or you want me to do that for you too?” I grabbed her by the shoulder, pulled her to my mouth again.

Heaven. Hellfire. Fucking mercy.

Her tongue plunged eagerly into my mouth. Didn't have a single complaint about it, but I wasn't the kind to let a woman lead either. I cupped my arm around her waist and threw her on the bed, covering her with my body, fucking her lips with my tongue.

“I'm not a helpless kitten,” she purred, dodging my next kiss. “I have claws. If you want to play rough, Rabid, I can give it right back to you.”

“I'd like to feel that shit, babe. Better show me soon.” I wouldn't stop rocking my hips into hers for anything, addicted to that hot wet heat where her legs met. “Come on, before I make you come in your pants again.”

She shook her head furiously, trying to protest through her moans. Then she managed to get her hands between us. One brushed the granite in my pants on their way to her belt, working it off like mad.

I gave her some space and stared, feeling my eyes start to melt as she tore her jeans down. I brushed them away with one fist, dipping into her panties, plunging my fingers deep. High time we picked up where we'd left off in the elevator.

She squirmed into my hand. I found her clit and pinched it, alternating my strokes. Her jeans were around her ankles, and after a minute I decided all this shit had to come off.

“Lift that ass,” I growled, helping her with a push.

Her panties were like a wet rag. I tore them off and hurled them across the room. Didn't have a fucking clue where they landed. Not like it mattered – she wouldn't be needing them again for hours.

I worked my fingers good and deep on her bare cunt, feeling that wetness, imagining how hot and slick she'd be on my cock soon.

“Rabid...oh! Oh! There.”

There. I memorized the place that made her jump and flush with pure pleasure. I did it with all the girls I'd ever fucked more than once, but I took extra care with her. In a few more months, I'd know exactly how to make my old lady come within seconds.

Fuck, my old lady. Mine.

My dick thumped like I'd grown a second heart below the belt at the thought. I worked my fingers faster, measuring every moan, every gasp, every ripple flowing through her curves. My free hand worked at her bra, tearing it off and sending it to join her long lost panties.

Her thighs collapsed on my hand. The scars lining her face disappeared in steaming red. I smiled, realizing it was an easy way to start the countdown before she came.

One. Two.

Three, four, five.

I pulled my hand away. Two more seconds and she would've blown. She looked at me like I'd just robbed her blind. Guess I had making her wait like this.

“What the fuck?”

“Thought you'd say that. I'm not the only fucker here with a dirty mouth.” I yanked her to the edge of the bed, sliding to my knees. “You're gonna come on my filthy lips, baby, one lick for every nasty thing that comes streaming outta your mouth. Start talking.”

Her eyebrows went up. I didn't give her a second longer to adjust before I buried my face between her thighs. Licked my way up both her inner thighs, dangerously close to the hot wet center. Stopped just short of hitting the target 'til I heard her speak.

“Bastard!” Her fists hit the bed. “Asshole. Fuck me, Rabid. Please.”

Sugar and spice. Everything fucking nice was there, everything I liked to hear while she convulsed on my tongue. Lucky for her, I always kept my word, and it was time to reward her.

Her legs hooked around my shoulders and started trying to close right away. Growling, I held her open, sliding my tongue up her cunt. Licking, sucking, fucking her with every lap, I held her down 'til she came undone.

“Oh, oh, fuck. Fuck. Fuck!”

She was singing my favorite word like a mantra. I flipped my face up just in time to smother her clit, circling it like a madman as she blew on my face. Sweet cream gushed into my mouth, urging me on, feeding my hunger.

I fucking buried her, smothered myself between her thighs. I licked her so hard and fast and relentlessly she couldn't even breathe.

Only her pussy got relief. Her thighs pinched tight around my head like a vice. Her senseless jabber was like a siren blasting in my ears, and that was the muffled version. It must've been like a jet screaming through the room with my ears uncovered.

Instinct took over. She rocked her hips against my face, strong and full, hips I'd use one day to make our kids.

Holy fucking shit. Just thinking about knocking her up caused my dick to drool napalm in my pants. It was too soon for that, but it wasn't as far off as I thought.

I buried my face in her decadent cunt and went wild, licking 'til her throat seized up and she couldn't even scream, just gasp and pant and grind on my face.

Breathless was a big bullshit understatement by the time I finished.

I lay there and turned my back to undress while she was catching up on oxygen. When I dropped my pants, my dick sprang out, so hard it hurt. I gave it a quick pump with one hand to make sure it hadn't gone numb from the blue balls I'd been suffering.

Imagine my surprise when I felt her little hand reach around my thigh, right on top of mine. I spun around. The mischievous smile on her face said she had more energy than I'd given her credit for.

“Baby, don't you need a breather?”

Shut up, man. Why the fuck did I want her to hold off on my cock a second longer? Maybe because I was afraid I'd self-combust and blow the windows out of the room when I started filling her holes.

“Not while you're standing there naked,” she said, replacing my grip on my dick with her own. “An old lady needs to learn how to give good head, right? You tell me if I'm on my way to doing it right. I want you in my mouth, Rabid.”

Fuck! No man with a pulse would say no to that. I turned, maybe a little too eagerly, giving my swollen cock completely over to her fist. Tried to brace myself for her mouth and fucking failed.

Nothing – and I mean nothing – could've prepared me for those soft pink lips drawing down my length.

Motherfucking mercy. I needed it in spades.

I couldn't tell if she knew how to suck good or if I was just so damned turned on because it was her. The first thought got my jealousy going. If she sucked a mean dick, it meant she'd learned it from somebody else.

I laced my fingers with her hair and jerked her head forward, making her take it harder, thrusting back and forth into her little mouth.

Whatever, maybe she'd had a few dicks before, but I was damned well going to be the last. These lips, these tits, this pussy...every beautiful inch of her belonged to me now. And I was crazy fucking determined to ravage every inch of her so hard it'd wipe away every last trace of any stupid bastard who'd come before me. I'd teach her a thousand times more than any little pissant who snuck into that pussy before I claimed it for the rest of eternity.

“Shit!” I jerked when her tongue hit the ridge underneath my cock, rolling up toward the small slit in the middle. “How'd you get to be so fucking good?”

She rolled her shoulders and sped up her licks, giving me a little shrug. Smart girl. This was no time for talking, and any answer she gave me was gonna take away from the total perfection gliding toward my balls.

Christa sucked me so good and deep I thought she'd choke. I tried to throttle back to avoid gagging her a couple times, but fuck if she didn't push her head deeper anyway, anything to swallow every inch and then some.

She got little more than halfway down my dick before it was too much. Impressive. Most chicks balked at less than that, including the whores I'd had before.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Her tongue swept deeper, seemingly everywhere at once like a goddamned ninja. My balls tightened up, burning, begging for release. I thought about letting loose right down her throat.

But every time I caught those tits bobbing and that pussy underneath, I knew I needed something more. There'd be plenty of time later for popping off in her mouth after she was overflowing with my come.

“Stop, baby.” I fisted her dark red locks and pulled her head away. “That was fucking amazing. But your mouth can't come on my dick the way your pussy can. Spread your legs. We both know where I belong right now.”

Smiling, she flopped back on the bed, opening wide for me. Pink, wet, and perfect. Wasting one more second would've been a travesty.

I fell onto my arms and mounted her, sinking deep, relishing her heat. I told myself I wouldn't unload 'til she came on my cock a time or two, but it wasn't gonna be easy. Her velvet clung tight, clenched around me like a second mouth, only warmer and wetter.

Shit! This was the kinda pussy that could make a man's brains come out his ears.

I fucked it anyway. Oh, Christ, how I fucked it.

Her tits flopped wild when my thrusts picked up. I couldn't decide whether to keep my hands on them or grab her ass, pull her deeper onto my cock. I wanted to grab everything on this woman at once, loving the way she rippled and groaned every time I dug in to the hilt.

Couldn't stop the growls rumbling through my throat neither. She activated something primal, that crazy killer instinct to love her as much as I wanted to keep her safe. I couldn't figure out what she'd done to me.

I'd kill for her in a heartbeat, but I also wanted to fuck her so hard she ripped apart. I wanted to screw her so hard it hurt and leave marks all over her, but I'd fucking mutilate anyone who truly tried to put another scratch on her holy skin. The big fancy bed held up well under my assault, creaking and throttling her hips back to mine each time I pounded down.

Her pussy drove me absolutely loco each time I plunged deeper. A couple minutes in, she started tensing up, thrashing her head from side to side. Sweet, sexy satisfaction hissed in my veins. I knew she was on the verge and trying to fight it.

Too bad. I wasn't letting up one second. I was gonna push her into free fall.

“Hook your legs around me, baby.” I slowed, grabbing her by the ankles, bending them up 'til her feet rested snug on my shoulders. “I'm gonna tap you deeper than ever. You feel it coming on, just let it go. I want you to squirt all over my dick.”

“Oh, God!” The dirty talk caused her pussy to clench tighter around me. “Make me, make me.”

Request granted.

I went full throttle, unable to hold back, slamming her pussy so hard the whole bed rippled. How could this girl be so responsive?

She gasped and blossomed fire red right before her orgasm took hold. I started chugging my hips like a fucking train when she flexed her toes around my neck and screamed. She was a sight to behold laid out underneath my thrusts, hands over her head, tits flopping, screaming and clenching at the mess of pillows and bunched up sheets above for leverage.

Oh, fuck. So much for holding back.

Her pussy was jerking my dick off like two soft, endless hands gliding over it when the lava in my nuts erupted. I howled, thrust so deep I rubbed my dick against the entrance to her womb, growling all the way.

“Fuck, baby, I'm coming! Drain me good.”

She went from red to purple. Her screams became totally breathless. I joined her a second later, paralyzed as all my muscles tensed and lightning shot through my cock. Seed pumped out in hot jets, a primal geyser dead set on hurling deep inside her.

A surge of pure pleasure like nothing I'd felt in my life slapped my skull. I rocked into her hips, still trying to fuck her as my cock was in full meltdown. Her pussy sucked me off so hard I had to flatten my hands on the bed to keep from collapsing right on her, overwhelmed by the fire spitting outta my balls.

We came together, snarling and breathless like two mating beasts. You better believe I pumped every damned drop of come I could squeeze outta my balls into her. And I still wanted to flood her with more, make her drip my stuff for days.

Christ, she fucking drained me. I could feel our cream spilling out around where I was fused to her, leaving a big wet stain on the bed. Cool air brushed my back from the vents, beckoning me back to life, cooling the red hot engine of my body with my own sweat.

“Fuck, girl. You're gonna kill me before I get my brand on you, aren't you?”

She'd gone from red to purple at some point while orgasm wracked her body. For a second, I thought I'd have to do CPR just to make sure she was breathing. But then she opened those emerald green eyes and looked at me.

“No, no. You're going to do me in first.” Her hips rocked, keeping my dick lodged in her.

I couldn't even go soft. I was hard and numb, loving just being in her warmth, deep in the pool of sex we'd created.

“Bullshit. You respond to me like heaven because you know you're mine.” I leaned down, hovering just a couple inches above those addicting lips. “I treat everything I own well. You know that?”

Her legs slid over my shoulders, gliding down my back, and stopped just above my ass. She pinched them together and jerked me forward, deeper into her, teasing me to fuck her again.

Careful, babe, I thought. You might just get what you want.

“Yeah,” she cooed. “I'm starting to figure that out. When do I get one of those cool leather jackets with your patch, anyway?”

I grinned. “Soon as we're done giving this bed the best fucking workout it's ever gonna have.”

She smiled, fresh mischief overtaking the exhaustion in her eyes. “Guess we'd better get to work, then. I have a feeling a place like this sees some kinky, rich creeps sometimes.”

Oh, that pissed me right off. A challenge, huh? My dick rose to the task, hardening back to steel and regaining its sensitivity.

“Babe, if you think I can't fuck you harder and sicker than every other wrinkly asshole who's ever been in this place with an escort, then you'd better get used to carrying a pillow with you tomorrow.” She quirked an eyebrow as my hips began to rock. “You'll need it just to sit down after all the fucking we're doing tonight. Screw the restaurant. We'll order in and I'll feed you bites of lobster while you're riding my dick.”

She laughed. I was only half-joking. Shit, I was gonna take her in every position, every corner of this room before the night was over, including the jacuzzi.

I drove deep and hard, watching while pleasure sealed her eyes shut. Soon, the laughter was gone. The entire room lit up with her moans and the steady thump of the bed as I fucked myself stupid.

* * *

So began the best two days of my life. I fucked that girl seventeen ways from Sunday. Yeah, I said seventeen, because just seven didn't begin to describe the carnal rodeo going on in that room.

We finally left the resort for a bite in town the second night. Christa had finally taken the stick outta her ass and she was alive like I'd never seen her, putting me to shame with the way she downed beer and whiskey. She glugged hers straight while I tried to keep up, mixing my shit with ginger ale like I usually did.

Course, I would've beaten her in a heartbeat if I didn't have to drive. But fuck, this girl could drink like an old lady, and that made me grin like a fool.

“Careful, babe. You're gonna fall off my cock later tonight if you keep it up,” I said at the bar, watching her knock down another shot.

“Again, Rabid? You weren't kidding about being sore.” She smiled, shaking her head. Her small hand landed on my thigh and then reached over when nobody was looking, giving my cock a quick squeeze.

“You're lucky I like it as much as you do.”

“Like it?” I took a long pull from my beer. “Baby girl, I need it like oxygen when it's you and me. Don't think I'll ever go more than a day without tangling that hair in my fist and getting between your legs. 'Til we got together, I never thought I'd find anything that could match riding with the wind in my face and the road growling beneath me. Getting in bed with you proved me wrong.”

I reached over, swept her hair aside, and tasted her lips. This kiss was sweeter and headier than any buzz this fucking watering hole could offer, even if it was a fancier hole than I was used to.

Whatever. Anything for her. She was getting nothing but the best from now on, everything she deserved for choosing me and accepting all the insane shit that came with this patch and the brand going on her skin real soon.

I brushed the red tipped claw patch on the front of my cut. I thought about the club, furrowing my brow at all the crap we still had to do to make sure those assholes in southern Oregon never bothered us again. There'd be a battle this week or next for sure.

Blackjack wasn't a patient man, and neither was Brass. They'd want to hit the fuckers hard, stomp the rotten apples like Rip, and maybe keep a few good guys to help form a new charter tightly under our control up there. Maybe, assuming they weren't all evil assholes, and that was a real possibility from everything I'd seen.

I didn't trust a single one of the shits who'd paid us a visit at the clubhouse, demanding my head. If this was a biker bar, I would've been looking over my shoulder, anything to make sure some sneaky bastard wasn't prowling around, about to get the jump on me.

“What's that one mean, anyway?” Christa tapped the claw patch I'd just brushed. “Guess I'd better start learning this stuff if I'm becoming a club woman.”

Yeah, the girl was right about that. “You really wanna know?”

I set my beer down and leaned close, making sure none of the civvies could hear.

“This one's called first blood. It's the first patch I got after earning my bottom rocker. The club was already starting to have trouble with the Mexicans creeping north. I went down to LA with some guys, Blackjack leading us. They had an old warehouse holding all the shit they brought up from Mexico. Blackjack and me planted the bomb that started the place on fire. Burned up all their drugs for cash and turned a few of the fuckers locked inside into crispy critters. That was the first time I killed for the club, and the red claw marks the occasion.”

Her eyes were huge. She blinked, smoothing her face. “Jesus.”

“Yeah.” I sipped my beer. “Don't tell me that shit scares you?”

“No,” she said after a pause. “I know what this life is all about. My dad was no stranger to doing whatever needed to be done to protect his club.”

“Anything else you wanna know?” I looked at her. Now was a better time than any to lay my cards out, as long as she didn't want me to spill shit that was for the club's eyes and ears only.

“Are you ever going to tell me your real name?” She flashed a wicked smile. “I'm perfectly happy calling you Rabid forever, buuut...”

“It's Charlie. Charlie Tellard.” Fuck, giving up that secret was tough. “My ma wanted to go with something classic. All her choice. The deadbeat asshole who walked out on her while she was pregnant didn't have much say in the matter. This name's all on her.”

She cocked her head. “I like it, Charlie. Tells me there's a man with a good heart underneath the badass.”

Her fingers rolled up my cut and grabbed the collar of my shirt. Maybe giving her my real name wasn't so bad after all if it got her wet. I smashed my lips on hers.

Yeah, no way was I ever getting sick of kissing this. My dick started throbbing in my jeans again, hotter than ever with some booze in my system. No matter how many times we kissed and fucked, I was ready for more. This girl taught me the meaning of insatiable.

“Why Rabid?” she asked, pulling away. “There's got to be a story behind that.”

“Blackjack came up with that one. We were at a big rally in Spokane, lots of other clubs representing, one-percenters and casual riders alike. This club from New England cut us off at the bar, trying to wave their dicks in our territory, thinking we were some little pussy group from the west coast. Blackjack tried to hold us back, keep shit calm. Their Prez was being a fucking ass. Words were said and I was ready to fight. When the fucker pushed me, it was the last straw.”

She shook her head, knowing what was coming.

“I went nuclear. I broke the asshole's nose while all his guys were beating on me. I was new to my patch and very motivated. I couldn't even feel them while I was wailing on that fucker. Blackjack and the crew had to break through the circle just to pull me out and break it up before I killed him. Said I was like a rabid dog or something. The name stuck.”

“You like tough odds. I can respect that.” She smiled.

“Just respect it? Baby, you'd better love it. I had a couple broken ribs when that fight was over and it didn't faze me one bit. I've been this way all my life and I'm not stopping now. I'm a reasonable man. I always do right by my brothers and my woman, and I'll give anybody a couple chances before I let my fists do the talking. But when it's time for that, you'd better watch the fuck out. I will break anybody who deserves it, even if they're busting me piece by piece. That includes anybody who disrespects you. You're mine now. Nobody gives you shit except me.”

“Yeah? You going to give me something tonight?” She batted her eyes.

Tease. Good thing I loved every morsel she stirred up in me.

I reached for her thigh, growling with satisfaction when I felt how warm she was beneath her jeans. Her tongue darted over her bottom lip, obviously turned on and a little drunk. Fucking perfect by my standards.

My girl knew the answer. Some crotchety old tourist watched us from the corner. I kissed her deep, filling her mouth with everything I was gonna do to her, more than words could ever say.

“Come on. Let's get the fuck outta here. I'd rather have you than waste more time on another beer and have to wait.”

We paid our tab and she followed me out to my bike. It was a quick drive back, just as the stars were coming out. Nice reminder of how she'd been resistant as fuck the first time we rode under a sky like this. Now, she was all mine, and I was only beginning to mark her.

I'd turned her around, brought her into my arms and into my bed. Hell yes. She was mine, dammit, I was never letting go. Not for fucking anything.

Somebody would have to reach down from the sky and take me away from her before I quit. And that wasn't gonna happen, not with my heart beating strong, sending blood and lightning through my veins. Tonight, it beat like a war drum, strong and tingly in a way that almost freaked me out.

This love shit was kinda scary. Luckily, I was ready, and I knew I'd be ready for anything by the time I laid her down with my brand tattooed on her skin.