Chapter 31
Ashley
“I love you, Ashley Force,” Nolan’s deep voice rumbles in my ear.
Our bodies are still connected, slick with sweat when he picks his head up from next to my ear and looks me in the eyes. The wind picks up a little and the chilly air creates a shiver to wrack through my body. I rest my right hand on the side of his face and peer into his brown eyes. This memory I’ll keep with me forever.
“I love you always, Nolan Ryan,” I answer.
He kisses me again, this time it’s slow and gentle. Before we get carried away, Nolan breaks the kiss and disentangles himself from me. I immediately miss his warmth invading my body and let out a little whimper. Nolan raises an eyebrow at me and throws me a smirk, standing above me in all his naked hotness.
“I know you want this again,” he says pointing to his half hard cock. “But he needs a break. We have to get out of here, then you can take advantage of him all you want.” The smartass tone in his voice makes me laugh.
“You’re so full of yourself,” I grin back.
“No, actually you’re full of me,” Nolan says, giving me a wink.
“You’re such a pig.” I laugh.
“Yeah, but you love me, and you know it,” he counters.
I stand up quickly. Nolan’s taller than me so I have to look up to see his handsome face. Our naked bodies are flush against each other. I wrap my arms around his neck.
“Yes, I do,” I respond.
Nolan’s lips crash down on mine, hard and fast. There’s no space between our bodies as his fingers dig into my ass, pulling me closer to him. His now hard cock is pressed against my stomach, my pussy is wet again. He picks me up and I wrap my legs around his waist. He enters me in one hard thrust, dragging a harsh breath from my lips.
“I thought you said he needed a break?” my voice is husky as he drives in and out.
“He did, but he changed his mind,” Nolan pants into my mouth.
He tightens his grip on my ass and drives me up and down onto his cock, hard and fast. Tingles start again, this time in my back working their way to my clit. It blows my mind how quickly he can bring me to orgasm.
“Fuck, the things you do to me. Fuck me hard, Ashley.” Nolan groans. His dirty mouth is a huge turn on.
Kissing is impossible right now, so I bite down on his shoulder and my hands grab his hair, roughly. I move up and down on him rapidly. In this position, we’re at each other’s mercy. I lick the spot on his shoulder I bit, soothing the sting.
“Fuck, you feel good,” Nolan growls. His mouth is on my breast as I hang on for dear life.
“I’m coming.” I groan out.
Nolan picks up the pace and slams me back down onto him, I can feel it in the bottom of my stomach. He does this over and over until I explode around him, panting and moaning. I can’t catch my breath as he drives one last time into me and he finds his own release. He carefully pulls out and sets me on my feet. My legs are shaky and he's holding me until I can stand on my own.
Once I find my balance, Nolan reaches down and hands me my bra, panties and tank top. I hand him his boxers and we both get dressed. I’m fully clothed, but Nolan still doesn’t have a shirt. Once we get out of here, I will have to get him one. I don’t want others to see this glorious body but me.
The night air has become cooler and I wrap my arms around myself trying to keep warm. I have no sense of direction and no track of time as we walk through the woods. I have no idea how long we’ve been walking or if we’re even close to civilization. I duck under a low hanging branch and hold it for Nolan, so he doesn’t get slapped with it. His chest has scratches on it from some branches when he was leading the way, so I took over.
Panic is starting to build in my chest, the more we walk. What if we’re walking around in circles? What is Shaun has picked up our trail, and he’s lurking, waiting for the right time to strike? What if we’re really lost and never found? What if we die out here from hunger and thirst?
“Ash, stop it. We will find our way out.” Nolan demands. I turn to him, my eyes are wide with surprise.
“How did you know what I was thinking? Are you psychic now?” I ask.
“No, but I can read your body. I know you more than you think I do” he answers.
I continue to walk when something catches my attention. I walk past another low hanging branch and a familiar noise invade my ears. I neglect to hold the branch for Nolan and it whacks him in the face.
“Ouch. What the fuck?” Nolan asks, rubbing his cheek where the branch struck him.
“Oh shit. I’m sorry. Listen.” I reply.
We stop walking for a moment until Nolan hears what I heard. The sound of traffic is up ahead of us and excitement builds in my system. I start walking faster towards the noise when Nolan steps in front of me, halting my progress.
“What the fuck, Nolan? We’re so close.” I say, letting out an irritated huff.
“Ash, slow down. We need to assess the area before we go running into it blind. Trust me. I’ve had years of practice. Stay behind me and follow my lead.” Nolan answers. His voice takes on a demanding state.
The smartass Nolan is left behind, and he’s turned into serious Nolan. There are so many layers to this man, I just want to peel them back and love all of him.
“Fine. Lead the way.” I tell him, gesturing with my hands towards the traffic ahead of us.
“Smartass. I’m serious. One time I did what you want to do and ended up back in the lion’s den. I’m not taking that chance with you.” Nolan says pulling a leaf out of my hair. “Stay behind me and stay low. Everyone is our enemy until they prove otherwise.”
“Ok.” That’s all I get from his past? Now I’m curious about what happened, but Nolan doesn’t say another word.
He gives me a soft kiss and turns around. We quietly walk through the last of the trees and the dim lights of a small town come into view. I can see a freeway off in the distance. Headlights and taillights flooding it.
“That’s the four oh one,” I whisper to Nolan, pointing in the direction of the freeway.
He nods his head and raises a finger to his lips, telling me to be quiet. I want to stick my tongue out at him, but refrain. We stay in the shadows of the small town as we make our way closer to a gas station. The lights are blinding, and it takes my eyes a minute to adjust. We stand against the side of the building, watching and waiting. When it appears no one is around, Nolan leads me to the back side of the building. He quickly stops before we round the corner and forces me back against the concrete frame. He places his palm over my mouth, knowing I’m going to give him a piece of my mind when I hear a voice float to us in the calm night. I can’t see who it is or how many are there.
“Rush, what the actual fuck happened?” I hear a familiar male voice ask.
I can’t listen to Rush’s response because a loud vehicle pulls up, drowning out his words. A van door slides open and shut, heavy footsteps approach them.
“Where the fuck is she?” It’s Shaun’s voice, dripping with hate.
My body stiffens, and Nolan holds me up, pressing his warmth into me. How could Rush do this to me? How could he betray me like this? How could he side with Shaun after everything that asshole did to me? I push Nolan off me, ready to kick the shit out of Rush and Shaun when he yanks me back.
“C’mon let’s get out of here,” Nolan whispers.
I bow my head in defeat, tears are stinging my eyes. I can’t think about Rush’s betrayal right now. We make our way back to the front of the store and I find a black Ford Mustang idling in a parking spot. It’s a newer model with matching black rims. I point to the car and Nolan nods his head. We quickly and quietly make our move to the waiting car. I search around and open the driver’s side door before Nolan stops me.
“Your shoulder. You can’t shift and hold onto the steering wheel with one hand,” he states.
Fuck, he’s right. I haven’t noticed the throbbing in my shoulder until he said something. I was too excited to get out of the woods. I nod my head and slip into the passenger seat. The smell of leather invades my nose and I draw a deep breath, savoring the scent. Nolan quickly climbs into the driver’s seat.
I’ve done this before several times and the thrill of getting caught makes my adrenaline flow every time. Nolan shifts the car into reverse and backs out of the parking spot. The owner of the car must be an idiot for leaving his car unlocked and running. If it was locked, I’d still be able to pick and hot-wire it, but this way is a lot easier. We didn’t have to worry about the alarm or time it takes.
“Do you know how to drive this beast?” I ask, cocking an eyebrow in Nolan's direction. He reverses out of the parking spot and puts it in drive, the car growling under his command.
“No, I don’t think I can, I only race cars in my spare time,” he responds sarcastically.
“It’s different being on pavement than on dirt,” I counter, rolling my eyes at his sarcastic tone.
“Well, we’re about to discover how different,” Nolan says seriously. His eyes cut to the back of the gas station as we drive by. Shaun is standing there, next to the van, watching us. Hatred and rage are in his eyes when they collide with mine.
“Oh fuck. Go. Go. Go." I scream.
My eyes don't leave Shaun's hate-filled ones as he roars at someone and jumps into a grey Chevy Camaro. The guy standing next to it tries to block him, but Shaun’s too quick. I recognize the other guy. It’s Ian Dual, the leader of the 38th Street Gang. Shaun slams the door to the car and fires up the engine. He peels out of the parking lot, heading right towards us.
“Nolan, you better drive this fucker like your ass is on fire,” I advise.
“Don’t worry, I got this.” he replies, shifting gears with confidence.
We pass four sets of headlights approaching us from the opposite side of the road and my heart is in my throat when two the cars come into view.
“Fuck, that’s Rush and Redlines’ cars. I thought Rush was back there with Shaun and Ian.” I say aloud.
“No, and it looks like Ashton and the rest of my team are following them,” Nolan responds.
“What the actual fuck is going on?” I ask.
“I don’t know but hang on the best you can,” Nolan says as he throttles the gas a little more.
Bright lights appear in the back window, blinding the rearview mirror and I shift in my seat, trying to figure out how close Shaun is. I can’t see anything behind us. Nolan drops the clutch and shifts into fourth gear. He’s got to pick up speed faster than this if he wants to shake Shaun.
“Nolan, not to tell you how to drive, but you need to move faster if you don’t want Shaun to catch us.” A panic edge is in my voice.
“Patience," he replies calmly.
He keeps looking into his side mirrors, hardly moving fifty miles per hour. I stare at him like he’s crazy when a smirk appears on his lips.
“Bingo, mother fucker,” Nolan says with a grin.