25

STEEL

Thank fuck the ride was over.

For the past four hours, Callie had pressed herself close behind me, and her hands had travelled from my pecs to close to my groin so many times that I had to pull over and ask her to stop the game she was playing. I was not interested.

When she called and asked for a ride back to town so she could finish up some last-minute paperwork for the sale of hers and Mia’s place, I said yes. The second she got on the back of my bike, I regretted it. It felt wrong. The body was wrong, and the smell was wrong. It felt like I was cheating on Mia. I didn’t want Callie on the back with me, but Deck flat out refused to have anyone except Teach and Shiloh on his bike. And Darth took his old-school chopper that didn’t have a pillion seat, so I got stuck with my ex hook-up, which happened to be my possibly pregnant girlfriend’s sister.

Fuck, I needed a drink.

First, though, I needed my woman. For the next three days, there would be no interruptions and no clothes, just my beauty and me.

“Oh, come on, Steel. You can’t say that didn’t bring back great memories—you and me on the road, sharing body heat. Come on, you know you miss me,” Callie whined.

I jumped off the bike so fast that I came close to dropping it because I forgot to put down the kickstand. If it hadn’t been for Darth being close by, that would have happened. Getting Callie away from me was my only objective. She was pissing me off. What the fuck did I see in this woman?

“Nope, no memories, Callie. Just four hours I wanna forget as soon as possible,” I said back to her, not even bothering to look at her. What I once saw as beautiful I now saw as annoying and ugly. Not on the outside, although she couldn’t hold a candle to Mia in the beauty department. No, her ugliness was on the inside, too, rotten and spoiled. She somehow blinded me to this, but Mia’s love and pure goodness opened my eyes. For the first time in years, I saw what was right in front of me, and what was waiting for me.

“Jesus, Steel. Is her pussy that golden? Or do you just have a fucked-up sister fetish?”

I wanted to strangle her, and a low growl from beside me told me Darth heard what Callie said about Mia, too. Judging by the nasty look he was sending her, he was sick of Callie’s bullshit, too.

Are you fucking kidding me? Who the fuck does this chick think she is? My first instinct would be to hit someone who said any kind of that shit about my woman. However, that was not an option, so I decided to go with scaring her instead.

“Callie, I swear to fuck, if you ever speak about Mia—”

The sound of laughter came from the front entrance to the club building, and I turned my head and saw Charlotte, Vegas, and Mia coming out. The look on my woman’s face when she saw me, lit up my heart and hardened my cock, but the smile fell from her face when she saw who was standing behind me. Well, she had been standing behind me, but Callie moved up beside me when she noticed it was Mia coming out.

I was not sure how it happened—I really wouldn’t be able to swear to the events in a courtroom—but Callie’s mouth landed on mine, her hands fisting in my cut and pulling me close. It took no more than a few seconds to put my brain back into first gear and rip my mouth from her. Wiping my mouth on the back of my hand, I spat on the ground, right at Callie’s feet.

“Well, I was expecting a kiss from my boyfriend, not him kissing my sister.”

Whipping my head around, I saw Mia standing there with her flock behind her, and all of them glared daggers at me.

Hang the fuck on! I didn’t do anything. Callie fucking grabbed me and kissed me before I knew what was going on.

“Beauty, I didn’t—” I started to explain, but Mia was breathing fire, judging from the look on her face, her lips thinned, and her chocolate eyes blazed. Holding her hand up to me, she stopped me from saying anything.

“Fifteen days, Cooper Steel. That’s how long it’s been since I have kissed you, shared your bed with you, or had sex with you. You haven’t heard my heartbeat for fifteen days, but this slut puts her lips on you? Now you’re going to have to disinfect,” Mia said.

Did she just growl at me? It took everything I had not to smile or laugh at her. She was on fire and adorably pissed off. I wanted to do nothing more than kiss that fire out of her until she was a puddle of sexual desire underneath me.

“Yeah, brother. I will just leave this to you.” Darth grunted as he took off for the compound. Fucking coward. The least he could have done was take Callie with him. If Booth got one look at her, he might shoot her. Hopefully.

“Beauty, just give me a sec—”

“Who the fuck do you think you are calling me a slut?” Callie screamed at her sister from beside me, her perfectly manicured claws suddenly grabbing onto my bicep.

“You could never keep a man like Steel. He needs hot, wild sex, up against walls, on his Harley, or my personal favourite, on the pool table in the main room while people watch us.” Callie purred. Some of what Callie said hit Mia right where it was expected to hit her.

Fuck, this was getting out of control. Shaking Callie’s hand from my arm, I ignored her and spoke to Mia.

“Mia, you know this is all shit. She kissed me, not the other way around. What you saw was just me in shock for a brief second or two. I never expected her to do that, and as for that other shit she said, I never had sex in front of people, not once. You know why I had sex up against walls and on my bike. Beauty, with you, I am naked, in our bed—not mine, ours,” I said desperately. There was no way I was going to lose Mia over this fake bitch. No fucking way.

“Cooper, this was not how today was supposed to go,” Mia whispered, completely ignoring the huffing from Callie. “I got a call today from the clinic. I’m pregnant, Cooper. We are going to have a baby,” she added softly.

I felt my heart thump loudly in my chest.

Fucking, yes. We did it. Not only was I going to be a father but this also meant I got to keep Mia for the rest of my life. It meant she was forever mine. Reaching out, I tried to grab her hand, but she pulled it away as she took a step back away from me. What shocked me more were the fat tears pooling in her eyes.

“Mia, Beauty, please, don’t be like this. We should be happy right now. Beauty, we are going to have a baby. Please, baby, come with me to our room, and we can talk. But Mia, don’t pull away from me. Let me touch you. I love you so much, Mia. This is the first time I have said that face to face. I wanted a more romantic setting—me deep inside you with your warm, sated body pressed as close to mine as we can get.” My words were having an impact. I could see the thump of her heartbeat beneath her tight tee, which said, ‘Hump Wednesday? Pfft… I Would Rather Hump You.’ Fuck, I loved this woman.

“Why was she on your bike, Steel? How can we have a relationship when you keep riding to her rescue?” she cried as tears fell down her cheeks, each one breaking my heart.

“Most people don’t do that kind of thing with their exes. She hates me, Steel, hates me. You have been sexually involved with her for years, but now we are together, and I am pregnant, but she is still around. How would you feel if you saw me on the back of Creed’s bike? Or if Wes came back and started asking me to help him all the time? I’ve kissed Wes before, Steel. Would you like to see me kiss him?” Mia asked as she stood there with her hands on her sexy hips.

I fucking growled at that thought. Her mentioning Creed and Wes made my blood boil. No, I didn’t want to see any of that. Fucking never.

I didn’t know why I agreed to bring Callie back with me. She rang and asked, and even though she didn’t interest me anymore and I was deeply in love with Mia, I still made the stupid decision to let Callie talk me into it. I had to start thinking about this from Mia’s point of view. Seeing Callie with me, on my bike and holding onto my arm, fuck, kissing me must have been hard for Mia to see. Just the thought of her being touched by another guy or his lips on hers, lips that belonged to me, I would want to fuck that prick up, but it would be worse if it were Creed or Wes.

I finally understood her reaction, and now I just had to get her to let me touch her and explain, then apologise.

“First, no one gets to kiss you, and Creed will never have you on the back of his bike. I get what you are saying, and I understand it, I do, but please, don’t say those things to me again. The images running around in my brain have me wanting to hunt down that Wes prick and cut his heart out.” Fuck, I needed to go work out, pump some weights or punch the fuck out of someone in the ring, preferably Creed.

Mia’s eyes widened in shock and then narrowed in anger. “Are you fucking kidding me? I have kissed one guy before you, one, Steel. Creed is a good friend, and he cares about me,” she shouted in my face. Her tiny frame was dwarfed by mine, but she still went toe to toe with me. Fuck, I loved her.

“Yeah, a friend that wants to fuck you,” I shouted. The instant the words left my mouth, I regretted them. Fucking fuck, I could screw up without even trying. This was a hole I didn’t know how I was going to get out of.

“You did fuck Callie. Go to hell, VP,” she yelled as she stormed past me, heading away from the car park to her car, I presumed.

Fuck, I hated it when she called me VP. It felt so wrong. Turning, I watched her walk at a fast clip away from me. She couldn’t leave, not on her own. I needed to go after her and fix this whole misunderstanding, but first, I had to fix something else. Turning around, I faced Callie. Goddamn, she really was a horrible person. Her outside pretty was replaced by her inside ugly.

“Well, this is entertaining. Perfect little Mia is knocked up by my ex and not married, mind you. Whatever will happen next?” Callie sneered, and the evil smile on her face pissed me off more than anything else that had happened in the last five minutes.

“Callie, I want you out of here now. No more visits, and no more free rides. If you use your friendship with Tori as a way to get in here again, I will have Tori banned, too. Then I will fire her from the strip club and the Bar and Grill. Now get the fuck out.”

Not waiting around to engage in any more talk with her, I passed by one of the prospects.

“Tell Booth she is out for good. I want her escorted off the property, and I want Tori gone, too, fuck it. I am sick of her smartarse mouth, too. Get that done right now. I have to go get my woman and fix this shit.”

“You have to kiss her cute butt and beg for forgiveness, VP. That’s what you have to do.” Seb laughed at me. Jesus, we needed to start bashing these prospects every time they look at our women.

“Just make sure she is gone by the time I get back, and if you mention Mia’s cute arse again, I will hurt you.” Taking off at a jog, I headed in the direction Mia had gone. She had already made her way off the property and crossed the road. Fuck.

“Mia, will you just stop,” I yelled from my side of the road. She couldn’t be out there like that. Rogue was out there somewhere waiting for the girls to be vulnerable and alone.

“No, Steel. Stay where you are,” she demanded, holding up her hands to stop me. The tears streaming down her face and the devastation in her eyes halted my steps.

“Fuck, Beauty, nothing was going on. I promise you, it was just a ride. Deck wouldn’t take her, Darth couldn’t, and I made a stupid decision. It felt so wrong the second she got on the bike, and it made my skin crawl. The smells were all wrong and the arms around me were all wrong because it wasn’t you, Beauty.” I could see the second my words started working as the tension in her shoulders relaxed slightly. A small smile lifted the corner of her lips. But I still had some more kissing of her cute butt to do before she let me over the other side of the road with her.

“Mia, I’m sorry, but you gotta believe that I love you. I have never been in love with anyone before you. Only the club and you know about the shit that happened to me in the military. I never told your sister. Since we have been an ‘us,’ I haven’t had the need to get up in the middle of the night to go workout until my body gives out. I love you, Mia Stone, so fucking much.” I felt wetness gather in my eyes, and I didn’t give a fuck. Mia and my baby were my whole world, and I wouldn’t give them up over a stupid lapse in judgement. Wasn’t happening.

I stood still as my heart pounded and sweat built up on my forehead. Please, baby, please, I prayed.

“I can’t deal with her, Cooper. I really can’t. I’m sorry if that sounds silly and high school, but she has touched you, and she knows you. She has shared an intimate relationship with you. Can you live without Callie around? Because that is what I want. If you can’t, then I can go—”

Striding across the road, I reached Mia and pulled her into my arms, then cut off whatever she was going to say next with my mouth. The impact of our lips touching for the first time in fifteen days caused an explosion of feelings and emotions I had been craving since I left. As her arms wrapped around my waist, and she hugged me tighter against her, my whole body relaxed with the gesture. Thank fucking God.

I reluctantly pulled back but left my lips to hover a breath over hers.

“She never knew me, Beauty, not like you do. There was never an intimate relationship, just sex. Sex with no emotion, no promise, no future. And there ain’t no way you are going anywhere else other than our bed where I will show you slowly and surely that I can most definitely live without that cow in my life. Then, wherever you go, I go. It’s you I can’t live without, and I won’t.” I growled against her lips as just the thought of her leaving made me feral. Her answering smile calmed the turmoil within.

“What about a baby? Can you live with that?” she whispered. She took one of my hands from her waist and placed it on her flat belly, then I rested her hand on top of mine.

I looked down at our hands and sucked in a breath. I wish I had a camera right now. This moment, this memory, needed to be captured so when shit went down in the future, and she was mad at me for some dumb shit I did, I could bring the photo out and remind her this was what we were all about.

Nodding my head, I gave her a chaste kiss. “I can definitely live with that, Beauty, as long as you are right beside me, beneath me, on top of me.”

She laughed and swiftly kissed me back. “Yeah, I get it, Stud. Let’s go get some sexy time in. You have a lot of making up to do,” she said as she smacked me on my butt.

“Yo, VP, we’ve got a problem,” I heard yelled from the entrance of the compound’s car park.

“Hmm, for fuck’s sake.” I sighed but didn’t move from my spot. Holding Mia was my happy place, and I wasn’t ready to leave it to go deal with another problem.

“Go on, babe. I’m fine. My meltdown is over, and my love for you has been fully restored and is back to worship status,” she sassed, bringing a smirk to my lips.

I took her by the hand and started heading back to the other side of the road when I felt Mia’s hand tug mine before she let go. I turned my head to see what was going on and saw one of her flip-flops had come off.

“Shoot, hang on, babe.” While she rushed back to get it, I moved slowly, waiting for her to catch up.

I was too busy thinking about what problem had come up that I hadn’t noticed the sound of a Harley coming down the road, which wasn’t a new sound because Harleys went in and out of the compound all day long. So when I looked up and saw the rider was on the wrong side of the road, my senses heightened. I turned my head back and saw Mia wipe gravel and dirt from the bottom of her foot, hopping on one foot to keep her balance in check. The bike throttled at full speed and barrelled down the wrong side of the road. Straight for Mia, who had no idea she was in danger.

Rogue.

“Mia, move,” I roared. I spun on my good leg and lunged for her just as the rider motored up to her, kicked out his leg, and made contact with Mia in the chest.

Mia cried out from the pain and shock, her eyes wide with fear. The impact of the kick propelled her into me, pushing us both to the ground. I cradled Mia against my front, taking the brunt of the fall for both of us, but somehow, during the takedown, my prosthesis was dislodged, and a sickening pain radiated through me.

“Fuuuuccckkk.” The pain was bad, but I didn’t let go of Mia. With her head buried against my chest, I held her to me with one arm while I covered her head with my other. I could hear a commotion coming from the compound as my brothers arrived.

“Steel, VP,” was yelled in unison. Heavy booted footsteps made their way to us.

“Jesus, Mia, are you okay?” I asked as I gently rolled her to her side so I could see what injuries she might have. When I saw the fear on her face, I wanted to get up, hunt that biker down, and then rip his head off.

“Steel, the baby,” she whispered frantically.

Fuck! He kicked her in the chest. Fear rippled through me. No way were we going to lose our child. No fucking way.

“Darth, get over here quick. Mia is hurt,” I shouted loudly.

“Babe, are you hurt? You cried out in pain when we fell. Did I fall on top of you too hard? Did I hurt your leg?” Mia asked frantically, trying to get out of my embrace to check me over. But the effort had her hissing in pain. Even in pain, her concern for me was on her mind. Always thinking of me and caring for me.

God, I loved her and needed her to exist.

“Don’t move, Beauty. Please, stay still. Wait until Darth gets here to check you out. I love you, Mia, so much.” I peppered her face with kisses, which was meant to calm her, but it was more for me after seeing that bike gunning straight for her with the intention of hurting her or worse. Yeah, images those would not be going away anytime soon.

“Steel, our baby—”

I stopped her with a quick kiss on her lips. “She is going to be fine. Nothing is taking our girl from us, Beauty. Nothing,” I said through clenched teeth. There was no other outcome. I refused to accept anything else.

Mia let out a small weird-sounding laugh—something between a giggle and a sob. “You think it’s a girl?”

Smiling, I stroked her silky hair. “I don’t think, I know. We are going to have a beautiful girl with blonde hair like her daddy and warm chocolate eyes like her mummy. And she is going to be loved and a club princess for everyone to love and protect,” I told her, soothing her with my words and soft voice.

“Huh! She is going to be spoilt, that’s what. Shiloh will be an angel compared to your daughter,” Mia sassed back at me. There was my beauty.

I let out a relieved laugh just as Darth came sliding to a stop beside us.

“Not sure what is funny about this, brother, but maybe you can let your woman go so I can take a look, yeah?”

Reluctantly, I untangled Mia from me so Darth could do his medic thing.

“Darth, he hurt his leg as we went down,” Mia informed him, ignoring my glare. Instead, she poked her pink tongue out at me. Was it wrong I just got hard from that cheeky tongue poke?

“Don’t worry, sexy eyes. Let me see to you, then I will take a look at your stud,” Darth said soothingly as he quickly glanced at me then down to my leg.

I followed his gaze and saw that my prosthesis had come loose from the strapping. I went to fix it, but Darth stopped me.

“Leave it, brother. Let me see if there is any damage before you put it back on,” he said quietly. Darth and my other patch brothers, my commando teammates, knew how I felt about my injury and my need for privacy. They knew what I went through when I lost it, and after. They had never made fun or joked inappropriately about my amputation, especially Darth. He was there right after it happened, and not only did he help with stopping the blood loss, but he also prevented me from losing my shit.

Giving him a chin lift, I stayed on the ground, not holding Mia anymore but still staying close to her. If anything was wrong with her or my child, there wasn’t a thing I wouldn’t do to take that fucker down. Not a fucking thing.