A few minutes later Elsie handed him the keys to the truck that she’d led him to, telling him with a bashful grin that she was too shaky to drive. Oddly enough, he too found himself fighting a grin again. It was ridiculous, really. He’d just been imprisoned, and the president of his own crew was trying to kill him. But, damn, did she make him want to smile.
Hatchet had the keys in the ignition, a second away from starting the truck and driving the hell away from the police station, when he sat back with a sigh.
Elsie gave him a curious look and he ran his finger through his hair, trying to make sense of his muddled thoughts. He still couldn’t believe that she had waltzed her way in there and gotten him out. It was so incredible. She was so incredible. But in the back of his mind he couldn’t shake the threat of Mad Dog and how much danger he knew they were still in.
Finally, after a long moment, he turned towards Elsie, the keys still unturned in the ignition.
“Elsie, did you talk to Jackrabbit?” His voice was still gruff with gratitude and her eyes seemed to be drinking him in as she nodded slightly.
“I called him, like you asked. He helped me get out… Well, anyways, he helped me get here so I could get you free.”
Hatchet leaned forward, kissing her quick and hard again, just because he had to.
“For which I can never thank you enough,” he whispered against her cheek before pulling back enough that he could meet her gaze. “Did he say anything about Mad Dog?”
Elsie bit her lip, looking away for the first time.
The move had a sinking feeling forming in his gut. Slowly, she nodded again. “He said that Mad Dog is on the war path. Jackrabbit said that he’s totally lost it. He’s been ranting about getting rid of you, and… and me.”
“Hey,” Hatchet reached over, cupping her cheek gently with his hand and turning her face towards his. “I’m not going to let that happen, alright? You already did the impossible and got me out of there. I won’t let Mad Dog hurt you, I promise.”
Elsie placed her hand over his, just holding him there, and Hatchet had to clear his throat of the sudden emotion. He’d never felt this protective of anyone, not even the men he’d served with in Afghanistan, and they were the closest thing he’d had to a family before the Roadburners.
“Where is he going to go next?” Elsie asked softly, and her question drew him back to the problem at hand. He let out a huff, knowing he had to tell her the truth, but it was damned hard.
“Mad Dog knows where the ranch is, Elsie. He knows that’s more than likely where you’ll be. He’ll probably hit there first.”
“The ranch? My dad!” Elsie turned to him, her blue eyes wide and swimming with fear. “Hatchet, we have to do something.”
Hatchet could feel his jaw clench just at the thought of doing anything for Mark fucking McLaurel. But with Elsie looking at him like that, he had no choice.
“Do you still have my cell phone?” Hatchet asked roughly.
She nodded quickly, digging through her pocket until she pulled it out and handed it over. For a brief second, he marveled at all the little twists and turns that had led him to this point. He was about to call and threaten the president of his crew on behalf of a McLaurel. Not just one, but two!
If he wasn’t so scared for Elsie, he would have laughed at the irony of it, but he didn’t even feel a spark of humor as he turned on the phone and hit the speed dial button before he could let himself think too closely about what he was doing.
The other line rang once before Mad Dog’s familiar slimy voice reached him.
“Hatchet,” the other man sneered, “I’m surprised to hear from you. Surprised is an understatement to be honest. Aren’t you supposed to be rotting in a little fucking cell in that rinky dink police station?”
“Yeah… funny thing, I’m out now,” Hatchet said, voice harsh and sharp. At hearing Mad Dog’s voice, a wall of rage had crashed through him and he did his best to keep it under a tight rein. But he knew that, if he wasn’t careful, his grip could slip at any moment and escalate a situation that was already on the razor’s edge.
“Well, isn’t that some fucking good news for you…”
“I didn’t call to chit chat, Mad Dog,” Hatchet interrupted, his jaws clenched so tight it was almost hard to speak at all. “I called to warn you.”
“Did you, now? Well, I’m just honored.”
“Stay the fuck away from Elsie, and the McLaurels altogether,” Hatchet ground out and had to bite back his words as Mad Dog’s laughter reached him.
“Standing up for the McLaurels now, are you? Fucking pussy!” Mad Dog spit out the words like venom. “And don’t you worry about your sweet little Elsie. Why would I hurt her? I’ve already got plenty of bidders lined up who are just dying to meet her, if you know what I mean.”
“Don’t you even fucking come near her, you bastard! Leave her alone or I swear to god I’ll tear you apart myself!” Hatchet paused to draw in a deep, much needed calming breath and he realized then that Mad Dog had already hung up.
Hatchet hung up with a string of muttered curses before letting the phone fall into his lap. He closed his eyes.
“I take it that didn’t exactly go as well as you had hoped it would?” Elsie asked softly, reaching over to take one of his hands in her own.
He looked over at her, wondering how in the hell he was going to keep her safe. He’d heard the undertone in Mad Dog’s voice. The man was barely holding on to his sanity. There was no telling what he would do.
“Listen, I need to take you away. Take you somewhere safe. A motel or something…”
“No!” Elsie cut in sharply, before moderating her tone a little as she continued. “No, I’m not going to run away, Hatchet. I’m going to stay with you. And I’m going to do everything I can to protect my daddy.” She looked at him then, eyes wide with fright, “He doesn’t even know, Hatchet! We have to go. I have to tell him.”
“Elsie, I can’t let you go to the ranch,” Hatchet started, but then stopped abruptly at the furious look she shot him.
“Hatchet, you don’t decide what I can or cannot do,” she said fiercely. “I am going back to the ranch. I am going to protect my father. You can do whatever you want, but that’s what I’m going to do.”
“Okay, okay.” Hatchet threw his hands up in a gesture of apology, but he couldn’t keep the slight grin off his face. Who knew the sweet little blonde had a spitfire hiding inside her? His grin slowly faded as he remembered Mad Dog’s warning. They needed to get moving. The man wouldn’t wait long, he knew that.
Hatchet finally leaned forward, started the truck, and pulled out of the police station parking lot. His mind tumbled with thoughts as he tried to figure out what, exactly, he was going to do one they got to the ranch. He sure as hell was not looking forward to facing Mark McLaurel, let along protecting him from Mad Dog. But one glance over at Elsie’s determined face and he knew he couldn’t do anything else. He would go to the moon and back if she asked him to. Damn it. He really was in deep with her. And he didn’t want it any other way.
The drive to the ranch was completely silent, both of them lost in their own thoughts as the endless Texas landscape flew past on either side. But one thing that never changed was Elsie’s grip on his hand. Not once did she let him go, squeezing tight the whole ride, as if by that touch alone she’d never lose him again. It had warmth spreading through him. And it was damned distracting, but – fuck! – did it feel good, just sitting there, facing a problem, not alone like he always had, but with another person by his side.
Together.
He’d almost started to let himself believe that everything would be just fine. But as he pulled the truck into the driveway that led up to the farm house that sat in the center of the ranch, that little bubble of hope that had begun to form popped. He could tell right away that things were not going to go smoothly. Mostly because of the two squad cars already parked in front of the house.
“Son of a bitch!” Hatchet cursed vehemently and then again for good measure. “God damn it.”
Elsie’s hand, still holding on to his, squeezed tightly, trying to reassure him, but he could tell by the worried look on her face that she was just as hopeful as he was. That was to say, basically, not at all.
He could already picture them cuffing him, shoving him in the back of one of those cop cars, and putting him back in that too small cell. Suddenly, it was hard to breathe, and he had to focus just on the air moving in and out of his lungs before he was able to open his mouth to speak.
As the truck rolled to a stop all eyes turned towards him. Both he and Elsie froze under those harsh gazes. There were two officers standing in front of their squad cars, and next to them was none other than Mark fucking McLaurel himself.
Hatchet sat there for a long moment, Elsie’s small hand tucked into his. He fantasized for a second about just turning around and driving away. Just keep going until there were so many miles between him and all this shit that it would never touch him. He glanced over at Elsie, saw the concern in her eyes as she looked at her father, and knew he would never be able to do that. Because of her. She made him want to be better, to be a better man, an honest man.
With a sigh, he shored up his resolve as much as he could and turned to her with a forced smile.
“Well, shall we?” He drew Elsie’s attention as her worried gaze swept over him. She was concerned for him too, and it felt good. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had worried about him.
“This isn’t going to be fun, is it?” Elsie’s softly spoken question reached him, and he snorted out a surprised laugh.
“Fuck no, it’s not. But we have to do it anyways.” Hatchet sighed then, remembering the reason they were back there in the first place. “Mad Dog could be here at any time, Elsie. They need to know.”
“Right.” She nodded her head sharply and, with one last deep breath, opened the door and climbed out.
Hatchet felt a sharp pang of loss as her hand let go of his, but then a moment later he was following her lead, stepping out of the truck and into Mark McLaurel’s furious gaze.
“Elsie, what the hell is this criminal doing here?!” Mark roared, taking several steps towards Hatchet. But then Elsie was there, standing in front of him, barring her father’s path as she planted her hands on her hips. If his whole life hadn’t depended on this moment, Hatchet would have been tickled at the image in front of him. One little slip of a woman standing up for him against three big men, two of them cops.
“Daddy, you don’t understand. You have to listen to me…” Elsie started, but her father interrupted her.
“I don’t have to listen to a damned thing, girl. You scared me half to death when I couldn’t find you, and now I discover that you’d snuck off to… to him? To this bastard? No, Elsie, I’ve had enough of this. You’ll go inside right now and let us deal with this.”
“NO!” Elsie roared.
The sharp, loud noise startled everybody for a moment, even Hatchet, until he mentally rooted for her. He had a feeling she didn’t stand up to her daddy often, if at all.
“No, Daddy, you will listen to me, and you’ll listen good!” She had her hands on her hips once more and, for a moment, she was truly Mark McLaurel’s daughter, stubborn and unyielding. Her face was stern as she stared him down, not giving her father a chance to get a word in, before she continued. “First of all, this man is innocent and you’re just blind as a bat if you can’t see that. He’s done nothing wrong; in fact, he put himself at risk to save my life. So, enough is enough! Stop being so stubborn and see what’s right in front of your face. I love him, Daddy, and I’m not going to let you have him arrested again. He didn’t do a damn thing to deserve it.”
Mark McLaurel opened his mouth on a sputter, but Elsie went on right over him, ignoring his shock, and Hatchet had to admit that her words had hit him just as hard. Those three little words repeated over and over in his head. I love him. I love him. I love him. He wondered for a moment if she was even aware that she had said them. But before he could ask she was speaking again.
“Now, he’s a good man and, if you arrest him, you’ll have to arrest me too. Got it? Now that we’ve got that cleared up, I can tell you what we really came here to say! You all need to get out of he…”
“What the hell is going on here?” a new voice said from behind them and they all jumped, spinning around to see whom that voice belonged to. Hatchet nearly groaned as he saw none other than Sheriff Donohue stomp up the drive behind him. He’d been so enthralled by Elsie’s magnificent performance that he hadn’t even heard the Sheriff’s car pull into the driveway.
The sheriff looked around the small scene, taking in everything at a glance, before turning to Mark.
“McLaurel, I’ll ask one more time. What the hell is going on here? I was notified that two of my deputies had been called out to your ranch and hadn’t been back since. Now, will someone please explain?” The sheriff looked at them all expectantly and Elsie, her daddy, and the two deputies all started speaking at once in a confusion of sound that Hatchet couldn’t make heads or tails of. Thankfully, Sheriff Donohue raised his hands after a moment, stalling everyone and then pointed a sharp finger at Elsie.
“You, I thought your daddy had dropped the charges.”
Elsie opened her mouth to speak but Mark McLaurel got their first.
“The hell I did!” he said, practically vibrating with anger now. He turned to Elsie then. “Girl, you better explain to me what’s going on. This man should still be in a jail cell! He’s a god damned menace!”
“But Daddy, I already told you. He’s innocent. He didn’t do anything wrong. And…”
“And you love him. Yeah, I heard that part already,” McLaurel said with a snide look in Hatchet’s direction before turning back towards the sheriff. “Donohue, what are you waiting for, cuff him already!”
“Well, as to that, I can’t really arrest anyone just for being a menace, not unless a crime really has been committed, and as far as I can tell there hasn’t.” The sheriff paused, looking at Mark from under his wide brimmed hat. “I also can’t arrest anyone just because your daughter is in love with him. Believe me, if I could do that I’d have arrested all of my daughter’s boyfriends.”
“That’s… that’s not what… that has nothing to do with this!” McLaurel spluttered, his face turning red at Sheriff Donohue’s words.
Suddenly, Elsie was striding forward again, standing between Hatchet and her father and the sheriff, protecting him.
“Hatchet isn’t going anywhere; do you hear me?” she said fiercely, growling the words, and tenderness swept through him as she defended him.
How could he not love this woman? The way she stood up for him, it was like nothing he’d ever experienced in his life and he swore to himself that he would do everything that he could to deserve it.
But, at the moment, there was something even more important, and that was keeping the woman he loved safe. Hatchet took a deep breath before stepping up until he was facing the other man, standing side by side with Elsie, before he started to speak.
“Please, you need to listen to what we’re saying…”
“Well, of course you would say you’re innocent!” Mark McLaurel spit out, glaring furiously at him. Hatchet just shook his head.
“No, that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the real reason we came straight here. The reason Elsie came and got me out of prison. Because it’s not safe! We’re not safe! You’re not safe!”
“What are you talking about, son?” Sheriff Donohue said, and Hatchet had to grit his teeth at the sheriff’s patronizing tone. But he shrugged it off. It didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was keeping Elsie safe.
“Just fucking listen to me, all of you!” Hatchet finally said, raising his voice, trying to make them understand. “Mad Dog is coming after us. He’s coming after Elsie! He’s going to try and hurt her.” He paused, remembering the unstable man’s words. “Or worse.”
“What do you mean someone’s going to try and hurt Elsie? Who is this Mad Dog guy? One of your biker friends.”
“No, not a friend. He’s… he is the president of the Roadburners. Certified psychopath. And he’s on his way here. You have to believe me. You have to leave. Get out of here and take Elsie. Keep her safe.”
“No, I’m not leaving you!” Elsie said, but her father spoke up at the same time.
“You’re lying. This is a lie. It’s just a ploy to keep me from having you arrested again. Well, I’ll tell you one thing, you bastard. I’m not going to fall for it!”
“Daddy, it’s the truth! I know! I saw Mad Dog. He… Well, he will definitely stop at nothing to try and get to us.”
“But why?” Sheriff Donohue cut in, “Why would he want to hurt you two?”
“Let’s just say that we got in his way,” Hatchet started slowly, unsure how to explain. He figured he probably shouldn’t mention the part about how he’d kidnapped Elsie in the first place and how it was only after finding out what Mad Dog’s sick plan was that he’d rescued her. Even still, guilt ate at him about it. All he said was, “We got in the way of him making money and he can’t stand for that.”
Mark McLaurel opened his mouth again, probably to tell him that he was just telling lies again, when the crackling sound of a two-way radio broke into the momentary silence, stopping them both from speaking.
Sheriff Donohue grabbed at the receiver that was affixed to the collar of his uniform and held it to his mouth.
“Donohue. Go ahead,” he said gruffly, giving them all a stern look.
“Uh, Chief, I just got a call in,” a woman’s voice said, crackling over the radio. “I’m getting reports of a small group of heavily armed bikers. They were spotted riding south on the 137.”
“Shit!” the Sheriff cursed under his breath. “Thanks, Donna. Keep me posted if there are any more sightings.”
“Will do, Sheriff. Over.”
Sheriff Donohue glanced over at Elsie’s father and then the deputies. “Seems like your daughter’s boyfriend was telling the truth after all.” He nodded towards the other officers, drawing them close before finally noticing that Elsie and Hatchet where still standing there in the same place.
“Well, you two are who he’s after, right? Let’s not give him what he wants. I want to keep this peaceful. Go on inside and stay there, got it?”
Elsie opened her mouth to protest, but Hatchet grabbed her hand, already leading her towards the front door.
“Got it, Sheriff. No problems. I’ll take her inside.” Hatchet had to tug Elsie along to get her moving and she kept looking back like she wanted to argue. But finally she had no choice but to follow him inside.
***
Adrenaline and fear and love all crashed through Elsie in an uncontrollable torrent that left her shaking as Hatchet dragged her inside. Her daddy opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but the Sheriff was taking over, talking about setting up a perimeter, where everyone should be positioned, and not giving him the chance to speak.
“Where should we wait?” Hatchet asked, casting a nervous look at all the open windows on the first floor.
“Come on,” Elsie told him, taking the lead, “Follow me. We can go upstairs.”
She didn’t even realize until she started walking that she was leading him to her bedroom, but as soon as they got inside the adrenaline rushing like a drug inside her. Elsie knew exactly what she needed. Him.
Before the thought had even fully registered she was plastered against him, her lips hard and urgent on his.
“Elsie, I…” Hatchet started with a surprised gasp.
“Hush,” Elsie quieted him with a quick whisper and then stole the rest of what he was going to say with her mouth, swallowing his words as she pushed her tongue into his mouth.
Without waiting for anything else, she took off her shirt and shorts, letting them pool on the floor, before giving Hatchet a shove hard enough to send him toppling back onto her bed.
He looked up at her wide eyes. She could see the same fire burning there, consuming her alive. “Are you sure this is the… uh… right time for this, Elsie?” he whispered roughly. She nodded her head, stripping him as fiercely and quickly as she had lost her own clothes.
Finally, when they were nearly skin to skin, with only her lace panties in the way between them, she took a deep breath and met his gaze with her.
“I need you, Hatchet. Please. I need you right now,” Elsie breathed against his cheek. She could feel the shiver her words sent through his body, and her own body responded in kind with moisture pooling low and hot between her thighs.
“God, yes. I need you too, Els.” Hatchet’s whisper was just as rough, just as urgent and full of desire. And then his hands were everywhere, running over her skin, trying to touch every square inch that he could reach, and driving her insane.
She kissed him, hard and fast, taking everything she could and then giving it back. The adrenaline and desire mixed in her veins in a potent cocktail that left her panting and out of control. Elsie hadn’t been lying. She needed him. Now.
There was a brief moment, while Hatchet fumbled with his own pants, and then they were both naked. Elsie straddled him, her thighs draped over his hips as she slid her wetness again his already thick erection until they were both writhing at the teasing motion.
“Elsie. Oh God!”
She didn’t need any more encouragement and, a second later, she was hitching her hips, groaning out loud at the feel of him, hard and hot and naked—exactly what she needed—sliding deep, deep inside her.
Elsie took control, setting a demanding pace as she wrenched every ounce of pleasure that she could for both of them. She rode him hard, every thrust bringing him just a bit deeper inside her.
Hatchet’s dark eyes were locked on hers and she saw in their depths the same emotions swirling that rose up inside her, wrapping around her, and carrying her that much higher as ecstasy shook her.
Her orgasm hit her hard and unexpectedly. Her whole body tensed as she exploded, not even aware that she was calling out his name over and over again in the endless waves of pleasure. She gasped as her own lust overwhelmed her, more than anything she’d ever felt before, and she knew it was all because of him, all because of Hatchet.
With a cry he joined her, grabbing her hips in a bruising grip as he tensed beneath her. She felt his scorching seed filling her slick walls, his hard cock twitching as he gasped with every spurt, his hand fisting her hair as he pulled her closer to him. They stayed like that, locked tight together, until it was impossible for her to tell where she ended and where he began. Then, they both finally collapsed, their breaths heaving in and out in the otherwise quiet room.
Hatchet let out a soft laugh. “Damn, I guess I should get arrested more often.”
She gave him a light slap on the chest, too tired to do anything else, but there was a sweet smile curling up the corners of her mouth.