Chapter Nineteen
Diesel
“Tank, this better be fucking good. It’s after midnight,” Diesel grumbled.
“Well, that depends,” Tank chuckled.
“On?” Diesel prompted.
“On whether or not you’ve realized that you’re missing your house guest.”
“What?” Diesel asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
“You know, the hot chic that has been staying at your house? Medium height and curvy, with an ass like an apple,” Tank described.
“Ass like an apple?” Diesel said, shaking his head. He really needed to wake up. He knew Tank called for a reason, but his brain didn’t want to process anything he was saying.
“Yeah, so round and firm that you just want to take a bite out of it,” Tank replied.
“Okay. Dude, what did you call me for?” Diesel yawned.
“Fucker! Rachel is no longer at your house,” Tank sighed in frustration. “Jeez, how much clearer do I need to say it?”
“What?” Diesel sat up in the bed. That finally cleared the cobwebs out. Quickly he made his way out of his room and down the hall.
Rachel’s bedroom door was standing open and a sinking feeling filled Diesel’s gut. Turing on the light, he looked around the room and noticed none of Rachel’s stuff. No clothes neatly laid over the chair. No hair brush on the dresser. The only sign that she had ever been there was her smell and a few items still hanging in the closet.
“When did she leave? And why?” Diesel asked.
“She got here about an hour ago. And apparently, she left because you were a fucking dickwad over her being a virgin. Really, dude? You freaked out over getting some virgin pussy?”
“Is that what she said?” Diesel asked, surprised.
“Nah, I’m just making that shit up to add to this stimulating conversation,” Tank answered, sarcastically.
“Fuck!” Diesel shouted. “I didn’t freak out. Not really.”
“Not really?” Tank asked. “What does not really mean?
“I mean,” Diesel reached up and flipped his hair out of his face. “I may have at first, but not because of the virginity thing.”
“Then what freaked you out? Man, you aren’t making any sense.”
“I didn’t want her first time to be on a boat.”
“I may have already mentioned that to her.”
“Shit! Tank, I really like her. If I am going to take her virginity, I wanted it to mean something to her. I wanted it to be special. Damn, I sound like...”
“... like a pussy?” Tank finished.
“Yeah,” Diesel sighed. “That woman has turned me into a fucking pussy.”
“Every good woman has that effect on a man,” Tank said.
“It’s a little scary,” Diesel admitted.
“If a woman doesn’t scare you at least a little bit, then she isn’t the one,” Tank advised.
“How would you know that?” Diesel asked.
“Been there, done that. Fucked it up enough that not only did I lose the t-shirt, but I lost the house, too.”
“Seriously? I didn’t know that there was ever a woman in your life, let alone that you were once married.” How had Diesel missed that?
“It was a long time ago, kid,” Tank offered. “Now, get your ass over here and come get your woman out of my apartment. Right now, she is standing naked in my shower covered in bubbles.” Diesel was about to respond when Tank ended the call.
Quickly, Diesel rushed to his room and changed clothes. Jogging downstairs, he grabbed his bike key off of the hook as he made his way out the door. He should probably take his truck and leave her bike at the bar so she couldn’t pull this shit again, but Diesel knew that wasn’t a battle he wanted to have with Rachel.
“One war at a time,” he told himself as he crossed the yard and mounted his own bike.
The bar was just closing up for the night when Diesel arrived. Walking through the front door, he spotted Tank behind the bar, drying glasses. The man earned his nickname and it fit him well. Tank was a huge mother fucker. Just as Diesel approached the bar, Tank turned in his direction.
“She’s upstairs,” he said. “If you go into my office, there’s a private entry.”
“Thanks, man,” Diesel said, making his way down the back hallway.
He had no idea what he was going to say to Rachel. He wanted to just throw her over his shoulder and carry her out of there; spank her ass and tell her to never pull a stunt like that again. But Diesel knew that wouldn’t work. Rachel might be submissive, but she still had a fire in her soul. It was one of the many things he loved about her.
Love, he wondered, standing frozen outside the entry door to Tank’s apartment. Where the hell had that come from?
Silently, Diesel opened the door and made his way into the apartment. He didn’t see Rachel in the living room, but he could hear her muffled voice coming from down the hall. As he got closer to her, he could tell she was on the phone.
“Yeah, mom. I know this already.”
“I know. It was a stupid move.”
“No.”
“I know he is.”
The conversation continued as he stood outside the door. He wanted to give her privacy, but at the same time, he wanted, no needed to see that she was okay. Slowly pushing the door open, Diesel found Rachel sitting on the bed with her back to him. Leaning against the door jam, he waited.
“It was so stupid. I overreacted, I guess.”
“Yeah, I do. A lot, I think.”
Only hearing one side of the conversation was annoying for Diesel. He knew it had something to do with what happened between them, but he wished he could hear what Ginx was saying. After another ten minutes, Diesel gave up waiting and tapped his knuckles against the door.
“Jeez!” Rachel jumped. “You scared me.”
“Sorry,” Diesel smiled.
“Mom, I have to go,” Rachel said into the phone, staring directly into Diesel’s eyes.
“No. Everything is fine. Marcus is here. Yeah. Okay.” She quickly said good bye and ended the call.
“How long have you been there?” Rachel asked after she set the phone down on the nightstand.
“About twenty minutes,” Diesel replied.
“Why didn’t you knock sooner?”
“You were talking to your mother,” Diesel said. “I didn’t want to interrupt.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah.”
They both stared at each other, neither saying a word. Diesel would have let it continue but honestly, he really wanted to touch her. To pull her to his chest and make her promise to never leave him again.
“Listen,” Diesel said, clearing his throat. “About what happened...”
“It’s okay. Don’t worry about it.” Rachel said quickly.
“No. Just listen,” Diesel requested. “I need you to understand this. I didn’t freak out because you’re a virgin. I freaked out because... Well...”
This was a lot harder than Diesel thought it would be. The entire ride over, he thought about what he would say. But standing here in front of her, nothing seemed to convey his words the way they should.
“I was upset because I let things go too far. You deserve to have a first time that is memorable. Not just a quick fuck on a boat before Viper shows up.”
“I get it,” Rachel smiled. “I really do.”
Diesel watched as Rachel stood from the bed and walked over to him. He was momentarily surprised when she continued to get closer and then wrapped her arms around his neck. The moment her body pressed against his, Diesel sighed. This is where Rachel Moore should always be. Right here, in his arms.
“You know, I want to be angry because you left. Because you put yourself in danger. Because you never gave me the option to explain. But right now, I am just glad you’re okay. If anything had happened to you...” he trailed off, hugging her tighter.
“I’m sorry,” Rachel offered. “I should have let you talk and I definitely should have never left.”
Diesel buried his face into the crook of Rachel’s neck. Her scent enveloping him, he felt his worry slowly recede.
“Can we go home?” Rachel asked.
“It’s kind of late,” Diesel replied. “It would be best to spend the night here and head home in the morning.”
“Okay.” Rachel stepped away from him and began to shimmy out of her shorts.
“What are you doing?” Diesel asked.
“Getting ready for bed. I can’t sleep in all these clothes.”
Oh. Well I’ll head out to the living room,” Diesel said quickly.
“Why?” Rachel asked. “The bed is plenty big enough for us both.”
Fuck! How was he supposed to sleep next to her when she’s nearly naked, he thought?
“Seriously, Marcus. We can share the bed.” Rachel said as she pulled her shirt off over her head.
“Okay.” If this was the game Rachel wanted to play, then Diesel would play.
Pulling his own shirt off, he laid it on top of the dresser. Seconds later, he unsnapped the button of his jeans and slid the zipper down. Bending down, he unlaced his boots and kicked them off, one by one. Standing to his full height, his mouth almost hit the floor when he saw Rachel standing on the other side of the bed - completely naked. In one smooth motion, Diesel dropped his jeans and boxers to the floor and stepped out of them.
At the sound of his wallet’s chain hitting the floor, Rachel’s eyes landed on him. Diesel felt a moment of satisfaction when her eyes grew as round as silver dollars. He almost laughed out loud as he watched her quickly pull the cover and sheet back and climb into bed. He could tell she was trying to act as normal as possible, but she was failing miserably.
“Are you sure it’s okay for both of us to sleep in here together?” He asked.
“Yes!” Rachel said quickly. Clearing her throat, she said more calmly, “Yes. We’ll be fine.”
Diesel pulled the sheet back to climb into the bed; the first thing to come into his view was Rachel’s bare ass.
He groaned out loud.
“What’s wrong?” Rachel asked.
“Think I’ll sleep on the couch,” Diesel replied, reaching for his pants.
He couldn’t do this. He thought he could play her game, but honestly - he couldn’t. Seeing Rachel, knowing she was inches away from him - naked, Diesel knew it was game over - She won.
“Oh, stop it! Just get in the bed.” Rachel answered. “We are two grown adults. If we don’t want anything to happen, then it won’t.”
Says the virgin, Diesel thought to himself. Okay, you can do this. It’s just sleep.
Taking a deep breath, Diesel pulled the sheet back again and climbed into bed, fixing it around his waist. For a long while, he only stared at the ceiling, but just as his body finally started to relax, he felt a shift in the bed. Rachel turned over to face his direction, the soft sound of her sleep reaching his ears. Diesel smiled at the innocence that took over Rachel in her sleep. However, that same smile vanished when she continued to move, seeking out his heat. As Rachel’s body made contact with his, Diesel knew he was in trouble.
Rachel shifted again, her breasts rested against his side and her hand landed on Diesel’s lower abdomen, causing him to tense. Absently, Rachel’s fingers rubbed over the thin happy trail, each stroke making Diesel’s heart skip a beat. Each stroke got closer to his cock.
“Rachel,” Diesel whispered into the darkness. She needed to wake up.
The soft touch of her hand against the sensitive head of Diesel’s dick caused the air to rush from his lungs. Instantly, he was tenting the sheet.
“Fuck!” he said out loud.
“Rachel!” He needed her to wake up. Now. “Rachel, wake up!”
“Hmmm,” Rachel mumbled, still asleep.
“Rachel,” Diesel repeated. “Wake up.”
“What?” Her voice sounded less full of sleep.
“Get your hand off of my dick, please.”
“Why?” She laughed, removing her hand.
The moment she removed it, Diesel climbed out of the bed. Grabbing his clothes, he quickly pulled on his jeans and tossed his shirt over his shoulder.
“What are you doing?” Rachel asked, confusion evident in the sound of her voice.
“I’m going to sleep on the couch,” Diesel replied, opening the bedroom door.
“Freaking out again?” Rachel taunted, stopping Diesel in his tracks.
In a second, he was on her side of the bed, leaning over her. He knew anger and lust were both flashing in his eyes.
“This is not freaking out,” he replied.
“It looks like freaking out to me.”
“You’re wrong.”
“Then what is it?”
“This is me saving you from embarrassment.”
“How would us having sex embarrass me?”
“Because trust me, baby. When we have sex, you’re going to be screaming my name before it’s all over. And I don’t think you want the neighborhood to know all the nasty things I’ll do to you.”
With that, Diesel placed a kiss on Rachel’s forehead and walked out of the room.
Flopping on the couch, he released a long, heavy sigh. That was too close. If they would have been at home, Diesel knew he’d have had his face buried between her legs right now, her moans and screams filling his bedroom. But as it was, he couldn’t, not here.
The sound of the entry door opening caused Diesel to stand, ready for whatever came through. At the sight of Tank, Diesel relaxed and laid back down in his previous position.
“Why are you on my couch?” Tank answered.
“Too much temptation in that room,” Diesel answered.
“I understand that, brother,” Tank replied, handing Diesel a beer and taking a seat across from him in a chair.
“She drives me completely fucking insane sometimes,” Diesel chuckled, taking a long pull from the bottle.
“But is she worth it?” Tank asked. “If she is, then enjoy it. Take the craziness and go with it. If she isn’t, walk away now before attachments are made.”
“Speaking from experience?” Diesel asked.
For a long time, Tank never answered. Diesel wondered what had happened to the man before the Devil’s Henchmen. What made him so understanding in the area of women?
“Twelve years ago, I was married to Trisha. The woman was my world. One day, we a had huge fight, over something so stupid,” Tank explained, deep in thought. “She got on her bike and left. It was raining outside, but she was a pro rider. Literally. Some asshole was driving too fast. Ran a red light. Trisha never saw it coming. She was killed at the scene. She was five months pregnant with my daughter and we never even knew it.”
“Fuck, man!’ Diesel replied, scrubbing a hand down his face. He had no idea what to say to that bomb.
“Take my advice, Diesel - Love and love hard.” Tank drained half the bottle in a single swallow. “If Rachel is the girl for you, hold her tight. Love her hard. Let go of the petty shit and show her every day that she is your number one.”
“Thanks, man,” Diesel nodded.
“Yeah.” Tank stood, grabbing the remaining case of beer and headed down the hallway to his bedroom.
Diesel lay awake thinking over what Tank had said. Thinking about the heartache and hurt he still heard in his friend’s voice. Was Diesel ready for that? What would he do if he lost Rachel? In the short time they had been living under the same roof, Diesel had already grown attached to her. The thought of losing her made his stomach want to revolt.