Chapter Eleven
Ava
Ava looked up warily as Val entered. The other woman gave her a slight nod before turning to Jackson, who had come in after her. Jackson gave Ava a brief smile before he focused on his sister. The two of them eyed each other with enough tension to strangle a man. Ava tried to curl up as small as possible.
Eventually, Val spoke. “You look like shit, Jack. What have you been doing, sleeping in a gutter?”
Jackson scowled. “We’re not here to discuss that, Val. Typhoon’s coming, how do we stop him from giving Ava to the vamps?”
“Easy. You challenge him instead of backing down like a little shit and you take leadership of the Coalfell chapter back.”
Ava’s eyes widened and she couldn’t stop herself from gasping. Both of them looked at her, Val with annoyance and Jackson with a flinch. She pressed both of her hands to her mouth. Jackson had been replaced as Alpha of the Coalfell chapter? Why hadn’t he told her? Was that why he asked her if she’d have told them about their baby if he wasn’t part of the gang?
“Maybe I don’t want it back,” Jackson said, his voice low. “Maybe I have something more important to fight for.”
Val snorted once and turned to Ava. “You. Panther girl. Do you love him?”
“I—What?” Ava spluttered. “Why would you ask—”
“I’d say it was quite obvious. Do you love my brother?”
Ava tried not to look at Jackson. She really tried. But he drew her like a magnet, those hopeful eyes locking with hers. Her baby kicked inside of her and she pressed both hands to her stomach. It felt like the whole world hinged on her answer.
“…Yes,” she whispered. “I love you, Jackson. But I stand by what I said before, I can’t be a gangster’s side piece—”
“Side piece?” Val snorted, but she smiled. “Try being his mate, then. If you’re worried about the baby, don’t be. My three girls know nothing about the gang. They just think they have a cool momma who rides on motorcycles. Trust me, if your kid is anything like my big brother, they’ll find a way into the gang with or without an introduction.”
Ava fell silent, still looking into Jackson’s hopeful gaze. Eventually, she couldn’t look at him anymore and turned her face away. It was impossible… wasn’t it? There were just too many reasons why they couldn’t get together…
“Before my love life sidetracks things too much…” Jackson shook his head. His voice was low and raspy. He cleared his throat. “Val, I’ve called in backup.”
She tensed. “Backup?”
“Yeah.”
Val loomed closer. Though Jackson was taller and far more muscular, she was a pretty intimidating sight. Ava was glad that she didn’t have to be on the end of that look as she glared at her brother. Her fists clenched, metal studs standing from the knuckles of her black leather gloves.
Jackson’s voice was perfectly even as he spoke. “Cunningham is on the way here.”
Ava got to her feet, wondering if Val would strike out if she put herself between them. The baby kicked harder and she knew she couldn’t risk it. The fury on Val’s face was terrifying. If that was directed at her, Ava would have been running as fast as she could.
“The cop?” Val spat. “You’re bringing a cop into this? This is gang business and—"
“This is far beyond gang business. This is about me protecting Ava… our child…” Jackson glanced at her. “I can’t let anything happen to them. Even if it means bringing in the likes of Cunningham.”
“The traitor.”
“He’s a shifter, Val. And a powerful one. We need his help.”
“He’s a prick,” Val said, her face wrinkled up in disgust.
“Yeah, I know,” Jackson said. “But he’s what we’ve got.”
Val hummed for a moment before she spat on the floor. “Fine. Whatever. But he doesn’t change things. When Typhoon arrives, you fight him. You beat the fuck out of him, and you reclaim your position of alpha of the Coalfell chapter. And then we can deal with the vamps the way we see best. They’re not going to push the issue over one shifter. Typhoon just doesn’t want to concede territory.”
All this over her. Ava shuddered, even though she fought against it. She strode forward, pulling up her best bravado. “Then that fucker can go to hell!”
Her face flared bright red. Jackson laughed out loud, and even Val smirked. Ava glared at the both of them. “What? I swear when the situation calls for it. And as for the two of you, you better not use that language around this baby once it’s born!”
Jackson turned to her, a smile breaking across his face. “That means you’ll stay?”
The hope in his eyes made her melt. Her body burned for his, and she couldn’t stop herself from flinging herself into his arms. Vampires, gangs, whatever else. There was nothing powerful enough to make her walk away again. Her eyes burned with determination as she nodded. Whatever happened, she would deal with it.
Jackson seized her around the waist. He spun her around, laughing, before he set her down again. His eyes glowed as his hands gently stroked her face. Then, moving slowly, he pressed a kiss to her mouth. She moaned and flung her arms around his neck.
“Yuck.” Val’s footsteps retreated.
The two ignored her, too focused on one another. Jackson suckled on her lower lip. Ava responded to him eagerly, molding her body to his as she had desperately wanted to for the past few months. All the lies she had told herself right after she left—that she could never be in a relationship with someone she was so up and down with, that it would only drive her crazy, that he was a criminal even if he was a hero, a dark man with a dark sense of himself—all fell away. She was his, fully and completely.
Her panther yowled in agreement and she could hear the distant echo of a howling wolf. They broke apart, smiling at one another. Jackson combed his fingers through her hair, so soft and gentle. When he lowered his hand again, it brushed against hers, and she found herself linking their fingers together. The skin contact was electric, something Ava felt throughout her entire body.
“We’re going to do this,” he promised her. “And those corpses will never, ever get their hands on you again. I promise.”
“I know,” she whispered.
And she fell into him again. His hands were all over her, hers all over him, ripping at their clothing. Soon every stitch was pooled on the floor, bodies naked and pressing together. Her swollen breasts, heavy and aching, needing to be touched, squished against his chest. Their mouths sought each other out, hungry. Ava panted and moaned as he laid her on the couch.
Gentle hands caressed her belly.
“We’re going to have to do this another way, aren’t we?” he asked. “Turn onto your side.”
Ava obeyed without a word. Jackson kissed her shoulder, his hands still caressing her body. She ached so badly for him that she almost lost her breath. It had been too long since she had had him near her like this.
He nuzzled into her thigh as he lifted her leg up to prop it on the edge of the couch. “You’re so beautiful. So perfect.”
“Jackson—"
Ava was cut off when he started his work. She tried to keep her legs still, to keep her body from shaking and squeezing him. Ava’s breath was lost as she gasped and squirmed against his face, trying to spread her legs, to buck away from the intense pleasure. He wouldn’t let her, but continued to send pleasure bursting through her body. She felt like she was on fire, her fingers digging into his hair.
“Jackson,” she panted when he pulled his face away, mouth wet, eyes hungry as he pulled her up to kiss her stomach.
He sat on his heels, licking his lips. Ava got the chance to look at his perfect body once again. He was so chiseled, his body strong and powerful, the lines of his chest and his arms thick and sturdy. She stared at him with her eyes half-lidded, feeling like she had never wanted anything more than she wanted him.
“Now…” Jackson sat on the couch and pulled her into his lap.
“No,” she said, kneeling. “No, I’m pregnant, I’m too—”
“Say you’re too heavy and I’ll spank you.”
The image sent pleasant chills through her, and Ava was almost tempted to say it again just to get the promised spanking. She braced herself on the couch and shook her head.
Jackson’s gaze softened. “I’m a big boy, Ava. And this will be more comfortable for you.”
She gazed into his eyes and nodded. She lowered herself down slowly, taking him deep, holding her breath as she sank down on top of him. He was so thick and long, so perfect inside of her. She moved experimentally, rocking her hips back and forth.
“Come on, kitten,” he purred. “Make yourself feel good.”
He didn’t have to ask Ava twice. She moved on top of him in a feverish rhythm, losing every bit of self-consciousness she’d had the moment she looked into his eyes and saw nothing but adoration and lust as he looked up at her naked body, occasionally taking one of her nipples between his lips, sucking on it while they moved together.
Eventually, the trembling and heat twisting inside of her was too much to bear and she had to stop. Jackson pulled her into his arms, kissed her deeply, and then moved them both so she was laying back on the couch, her ass half-off while he braced himself against her hip. He moved in and out slowly, shallowly, while he kissed her neck.
“My perfect girl,” he moaned. “Are you mine now, Ava? All mine?”
“Yes,” she breathed, tangling her fingers in his hair once more. “Are you mine?”
“Forever.”
He kissed the back of her neck, sinking his teeth into it slightly as he moved faster. Ava moaned loudly, eager to take him, and ended up finishing just moments before he did. Ava felt like she was glowing as he slowed down, pulling out, holding her body back against his chest.
“Thank you for coming back,” Jackson said in a soft voice. “Thank you for being mine.”
She pressed herself against him, sweat on her brow, a smile on her face. “I love you, Jackson.”
He kissed her tenderly. “I love you, too. So much.”
***
It was sometime later that the sheriff came to the safe house. Jackson greeted him with relief, even if he was a bit stiff. Ava had seen him in the coffee shop from time to time but never would have thought that Cunningham would have been connected to the Savage Brotherhood. Now he had a handgun strapped to his thigh and carried a shotgun over his shoulder.
Val glared at Cunningham, who glared right back at her.
“Val,” he said stiffly.
“Cunningham. How good to see you,” Val said sarcastically. “It was nice of you to show up.”
“I wouldn’t have had to show up if your brother could handle his business.”
Val snarled at him, moving forward. Jackson stepped between them and shot his sister a look that had her moving back. Her hands clenched and Ava couldn’t help but wonder if all of this was a good idea. The tension was just getting thicker… as she sat on the couch, she wondered why she hadn’t just told Jackson they needed to get on a plane and go to Costa Rica. Avoid all this.
“Thank you for coming, Gabriel,” Jackson said.
“I didn’t come for you. I came because you said there was a civilian in danger.” Cunningham’s eyes lit on her. “You her?”
Ava held out her hand. “I’m—”
“Ava, I know. I go to the coffee shop you work at regularly. So how did you get mixed up with this?”
“Astrophel decided he wanted to kill me.”
Cunningham gave her a critical look. She knew, somehow, that he’d already worked out that she was pregnant with Jackson’s child. She met his gaze and it softened a little as he nodded.
“I hope you understand what you’re getting into,” he told her. “Cause this isn’t a life that stops at the doorway. You stay with this ugly mug,” he jabbed his thumb at Jackson, “and you’re in it for life. You’ll always be fighting vampires, the law, and the gang itself from time to time. Every time you say goodbye could be your last time to see him.”
Val snorted. “Tell us how you really feel.”
“You know it’s true.”
Ava gazed steadily at the sheriff. “I love him. Love is enough.”
Cunningham considered her for a moment, then nodded. He turned back to Jackson. “So, what are we facing? Typhoon alone or is he bringing vampires with him?”
“I arranged a meeting,” Val snapped. “To discuss the situation. But we’re not gonna get anywhere by talking. Jackson will—”
A booming voice spoke from behind him. “No talking? Then why am I here?”
Ava shivered at the voice. She turned to see a gigantic man standing in the doorway. He was flanked by two others who narrowed their eyes at the group. The doors behind them burst in and one of the guards Val brought with her rushed in.
“Boss, I—”
Val held up a hand. The man paled as he saw the people already in the room. She snarled at him, and he backed up a step.
The big man, Typhoon, took a step toward Ava. His gaze fell on her stomach and he let out a soft curse. “Pregnant. Tornado, you are one stupid—”
“I’m not going to let you take her.” Jackson stepped in front of her. Breaking free of that gaze, she felt like she could breathe again. Her fingers pressed into Jackson’s back. She could feel him trembling. “I may have backed down when you removed me as Alpha of the Coalfell Chapter, but this ends here. I’m not letting you take her.”
Typhoon glanced at him, then Val, Cunningham and finally at Ava. “I can delay them long enough for her to have the kid.”
“You will cede territory in exchange for her life.” Jackson stood straighter. “Or I challenge you as the Alpha.”
Typhoon stared at him for a long moment before he laughed. “This is a turn… I accept your challenge, Masters. Now… you have five minutes to say your goodbyes and then I’m going to kill you.”