Chapter Five

Cherie

I was so exhausted I could barely keep my eyes open on the short drive home after two ten hour shifts. There were two more hours left on my shift, but thanks to a new nurse looking to make a good impression, I was able to leave early. I didn’t have the heart to tell her I was the wrong person to impress since my time in town and at the hospital was limited. I don’t even know how I made it home in one piece. Friday and Saturday were the worst days to work the ER, and my shifts had spanned both days, giving me a front-row seat to the worst parts of humanity.

My shifts had it all—gunshot wounds, rape kits, auto accidents and knife wounds, beatings, overdoses and more than a dozen college kids had come in with alcohol poisoning. I normally loved the ER, but the past two days made me hopeful to find a job in the mental health field. It had taken so much energy out of me that I didn’t even notice the motorcycle parked beside me until I nearly knocked it over. Dammit. I spent too much time over the past few days trying not to think about the man who belonged on that bike, and now he was here. Somewhere. “I’m not in the mood tonight, Roddick.” I brushed past him on the porch, not even lifting my head in his direction.

“Good, because I didn’t come here for that.” He stood and took the keys from my hand, shoving the right one into the lock and pushing the door open. “Go on,” he urged, giving me a light shove into the house.

I didn’t argue because I was too tired, and he’d get bored when he realized I wasn’t playing his game tonight. Without a word or a backward look, I went to my bedroom to take off my clothes and headed straight for a long hot shower to wash eighteen hours of ER from my body. It felt good to be clean, free of other people’s blood, spit, and vomit. I slid a thin pink t-shirt over my head. It barely covered my ass, but this was my house, and I planned to crash after a glass of water and a banana to stop the growling in my stomach. “You’re still here.”

“I am. Have a seat,” he instructed and slid a plate stacked with a roast beef sandwich and balsamic vinegar chips in front of me.

“Thank you.” And just like that my heart began to soften toward him because big, strong Roddick had made me a sandwich. With my own food. I must be crazy. But it felt good to have someone taking care of me like this.

“Beer or water?”

“Water, please.” I could definitely use a beer, but I’d pass out after two sips. I took the tall glass filled with ice and chugged it in a most unladylike fashion, and instead of mocking me he took the glass and refilled it, sitting across from me and slowly drinking one of the pale ales. “Thanks for this, Roddick, but I can take care of myself.”

“I know you can, but you seem exhausted and I’m here. You’re welcome.” He flashed a grin, but it faded as his expression turned serious. “I owe you a huge fucking apology, Cherie.”

I shook my head, begging the tears stinging my eyes to go the hell away. “No. Not now, Rod. I just…can’t.”

“You can’t listen?”

I shook my head, eyes closed as I used the last of my energy to finish eating. “No. Listening will require thinking, and I’m done. I’m at capacity, Roddick, what the hell?” He scooped me out of the chair and stalked back down the hall, setting me on the bed gently like I was some precious cargo instead of the girl he’d hit it and quit it with.

“Fine. We’ll talk in the morning.” I’d already turned away from him and curled up under the comforter when I felt the bed dip and a hot chest sear my back.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m sleeping. Don’t worry, I kept my boxers on so you don’t get tempted to take advantage of me in the night.”

I let out a groan when he pulled me in tight. “If I wanted to get rid of you, that’s exactly what I should do.”

He said nothing for a long time, and I thought maybe he would get up and leave. Instead, he kissed my neck, forcing me to use all my willpower not to respond to his lips on my skin. “If you want to talk about it now, we can.”

“Nope, I’m sleeping until I run out of sleep, so keep your hands to yourself.”

“I don’t need my hands to make you come, Cherie.”

I shivered because, damn him, he was totally fucking right. “Well then, keep your tongue and your cock to yourself,” I told him just as he pressed his erection against my ass. “Sleep, Rod.”

“Halfway there, babe.”

I rolled my eyes, but with how tired I was and the heat emanating from his body—okay, and how good it felt to be in his arms—I fell asleep quickly.

I woke up later, annoyed that I hadn’t remembered to pull down the blackout shades, a golden hue of light peeking through the window. And then I felt the furnace at my back and soft lips making my skin shiver, my nipples pebbled with desire. I wanted to lie there for a moment and relish the feel of his lips on my flesh, but I couldn’t. I had to move before he pulled me back under his spell, and it would be even harder to leave. But when I tried to get up, he only held me tighter.

“Good morning, Cherie.” He turned my face to him and brushed his lips against mine. “Ready to talk?”

“Nope.”

“Good, that means you’re ready to listen.” He dropped another sweet kiss on my mouth, and I struggled not to whimper when he pulled back. “Cherie, I’m so damn sorry. I shouldn’t have left like I did, but if I’m being honest, I freaked the fuck out. You’re not just some girl. You’re my friend’s sister, my friend, and a woman I want more than I should.”

“Yeah, well, you have a funny way of showing it.” I refused to let my heart believe his words because his actions said differently.

“I took your fucking virginity, Cherie. Sweetheart, that means something.”

“It means I woke up alone after experiencing some really intense emotions.” I shook off the tears that threatened. “I appreciate your apology, Roddick, I really do. But it doesn’t change anything between us.”

He turned me on my back and fit his body between my legs, making me both happy and devastated that I didn’t have underwear on. “That’s where you’re wrong. It changes everything.”

“Because you say so?”

He shook his head and pressed a kiss across my collarbone. “Hell no. Because it is so.” His mouth connected with mine, but it wasn’t the fierce crash I’d been expecting. Instead, it was a slow and sensual coming together, a simmering heat that began at the spot where our lips met and spread as our tongues and hands explored.

His kiss made me desperate for more of him, made me cling to his big shoulders as his lips kissed up and down my body, making me tremble. A distant voice told me to stop this nonsense, to push him away, and kick him out. But a closer voice, the hussy inside of me, silenced that voice and told me to take what I wanted from this man. To enjoy every swipe of his tongue across my pussy, every squeeze of his hands on my breasts. “Rod!”

He groaned when I tugged on his hair, the sound vibrating my clit and pushing me closer to the edge. I felt entirely too much, and Roddick took advantage, broad shoulders pushing me wide open and fucking me with his tongue while his fingers squeezed my nipples. It should hurt, but it felt so good I crawled up the bed. “Oh no you don’t, Cherie. Stay right here.” He pulled me back and palmed my open thighs, flattening his tongue so I couldn’t look away as he tasted me, licked me. “Tell me how much you like this, Cherie.”

“I love it.” His tongue swirled around my clit, a delicious tornado of sensations that made me wetter.

“More,” he growled, stabbing my opening with his tongue.

“Roddick, I love when you lick my pussy. Seeing my juices on your face makes me horny.” I felt a blush stain my body at the naughty words I’d never used. “Oh, shit!” He wrapped his lips around my clit and sucked until fireworks went off behind my eyes, and my body convulsed violently.

“Absolutely beautiful,” he growled.

“Now it’s my turn.” I smiled. “I’ve been thinking about sucking your cock since I knew it was something men and women did.”

He groaned and fell back on the bed beside me, but I quickly popped up, suddenly energized at the thought of making him moan and scream my name. “I don’t think I’ll last long with your sweet lips wrapped around my cock.”

“That’s okay. I won’t judge.” Suddenly I felt confident as I shimmied down his body, pulling down his boxers and holding the hard length in my hand. “You like a soft touch,” I asked with a gentle stroke, “or a harder one?” I squeezed harder and gave a rough tug.

“Fuck yes, Cherie.”

I smiled and leaned in, swiping my tongue across the drop of pre-come shining from the head of his cock. “Mmm, kind of salty and earthy.” He groaned again, hips moving as I slowly took him all the way down my throat. Testing the feel of him in my mouth was a strange sensation, the skin was silky smooth but his cock was rock hard. When I did something he liked, his cock pulsed on my tongue, and I felt my pussy gush with more slick.

“Yeah, Cherie, just like that.” One hand went to my head, but he didn’t push me down; instead, he helped me maintain the right pace. Grunting and moaning his satisfaction, his hips bucked when he touched the back of my throat. “Fuck, Cherie.”

I was intoxicated, drunk on the taste of him, and I couldn’t stop. His sounds boosted my confidence and my arousal, and I experimented, pumping his cock with my hand while I explored his sack with my tongue.

“Cherie, no more!” He pulled me up by the arms, running my drenched pussy back and forth across his cock.

“Oh!”

“Sit on my cock. Ride me, Cherie.”

I shivered at his words. How did he make it sound so dirty, and why did it turn me on so much? I didn’t know, but I knelt over him and gripped him in my hand, slowly sinking down on his impressive length until I was so full I clenched around him. Another orgasm was imminent. “Oh God!”

“Fuck, that feels so good. Your cunt is so tight.”

In a slow and probably clumsy up and down motion, I felt my way around this, feeling so full I almost couldn’t stand it. Almost, but it felt too good to stop. Faster and faster I bounced, impaling myself with every move as my orgasm pushed to the surface. “Fuck me, Roddick. I feel so full,” I panted and he gripped my hips, pounding up into me. The only sounds were the smacking of skin and our erotic grunts that only turned me on more, and soon my orgasm crashed through me like a million gallons of ocean water.

“Oh yeah,” he growled and swore at the way my pussy squeezed around his cock. His hips moved at a speed I was sure wasn’t possible for a normal man, but he thrust up into me hard and deep, sending another wave of pleasure through me. “Fuck! Cherie, yes!”

I opened my eyes because I needed to see this moment. His face twisted into a pained expression for a brief moment then it softened and pure bliss washed over him, making him look more beautiful than I had ever seen. “You look gorgeous when you come.”

He flashed a smile that made my heart flutter. “Thank you, babe, but I’m pretty sure you’re the one with the beautiful ‘O’ face.”

I laughed and collapsed on top of him, kissing his chest and licking his nipples, enjoying the way he shivered. “You taste good.”

“So do you, Cherie.” He squeezed my ass and slipped deeper inside me. “And you’re mine.”

I tried not to let my hope soar too much at his words, but for the rest of the day, that word resonated in my head.

Mine.

***

Roddick

“What? No fucking way! You Feds need to have your head examined.” I stood and paced inside Brockton’s office. These people were fucking doing my head in.

“I think you’ve forgotten who’s in charge here,” Agent Johnson bit out smugly.

“And I think you’ve forgotten that I’m not afraid of you, little girl.” I turned to Brockton. “Let’s just use some common fucking sense here. CAOS has just gotten into the drug game what, a month ago? And now we’re quadrupling our orders while no one else is decreasing theirs? If you’re Lazarus, what the fuck do you think is happening?”

“It doesn’t matter what he thinks,” Johnson added, punctuating her words by smacking her hand on the desk.

I ignored her. “Well?”

Brockton stared at me long and hard, his face fixed in resignation. “That you’re working with the cops.”

“Exactly, which puts your whole operation, not to mention my life, in jeopardy.”

He nodded. “I know, Roddick, but we really need to track one, maybe two more locations to see if we can draw out the person really in charge. But we can’t fucking work with the Federales because they’re so goddamn corrupt we don’t know who to trust.”

“Lazarus is paranoid and suspicious of everyone. Even me. Don’t fuck this up when you’re so close,” I told him but cut my eyes at the redheaded pain in my ass.

“I’ll be in touch,” he finally said, and I left, putting in a call to Mick on my way out.

“Meet me at the lookout spot,” I told him before hopping on my bike and letting the warm southern California sun heat my skin. I should have used the drive back to Brently to think about Lazarus and how the hell I would help the Feds land him, but all I could think about was a curvy little blonde with a smart mouth and the sexiest most erotic cries I’d ever heard. Cherie was a revelation to me. She didn’t have to work at getting my attention, she just had it. And the feel of those plump lips wrapped around my cock, watching her learn her power as a woman. Fuck. It was a heady mixture of sexy and sweet, and dammit I wanted more of it. More of her.

I meant it when I told her she was mine. I just wished things weren’t so fucked up right now so we’d have time to explore it. So that I had time to talk to Baz. I wished—hell I hoped—more than anything that she wasn’t serious about leaving Brently.

By the time I pulled up to the lookout spot Mick was already there, a joint perched between his lips as he leaned back on his bike. “You look like shit, man.”

I grinned. “Yeah thanks, brother. I know. These fucking Feds are driving me crazy.” I told him all about their ridiculous plan. “How they ever arrest anyone is a goddamn mystery to me.” He passed me the joint, and I took two long pulls. “How’s Talon and the baby?”

His serious expression softened and he smiled bigger than I’d ever seen, except for his wedding day. “Great. Every day I can’t believe that tiny little creature is my little girl. Megan is everything.”

I didn’t know how to respond to that kind of emotion, so I just nodded. “Glad to hear it. They aren’t the only reason I need you to stay safe Mick, got it?”

His gaze was serious again and I knew he wasn’t a fan of my plan, but he was my brother in arms, my friend, so he would do what I asked.

“I’ve been thinking about what Brockton said about Lazarus not being the top of the pyramid, and I think they’re right, but something is missing. At that last meeting, he was acting strange. More subdued, less flamboyant and flirtatious.” Not that I had a problem with that, but when a man changes his demeanor there’s usually a good reason. “He’s on some shit, but I can’t tell if it’s just him or if there’s a boss he reports to. Hell, maybe the task force has it all fucked up.”

Mick nodded and stomped out the last of the joint into the soft dirt. “We need to figure this shit out before you end up dead. I’ll have the guys talk to some people to see if anyone knows anything. Quietly.”

We stood up there looking out over the town we had, more or less, owned and protected for decades. I would do every damn thing in my power to do keep this one of those perfect small towns that people thought of when they thought of America. Mick’s voice interrupted my thoughts.

“Do you have any guesses about his boss, if there is a boss?”

I nodded because I’d thought of nothing else since Brockton approached me. “It has to be someone with some serious juice. Who else would a guy like Lazarus fear or be willing to answer to?”

“Like a businessman?”

“Maybe, but I’m thinking someone in government with the power to make or change laws, direct law enforcement. That kind of shit.”

Mick whistled. “Shit, so we might be up against the Mexican government?”

“Aren’t we anyway? They’re so fucking complicit in all this as it is.”

“Yeah, man, but this is different. Is it worth it?”

“That’s the million dollar fucking question, isn’t it?” I told him, glancing at my phone and swearing when it buzzed. “Lazarus wants me to meet up with him Sunday morning. Alone.”

“Fuck that shit, Rod. I’m coming with you, and I’m bringing Torch and Cash. We got your back.”

I nodded and hopped on my bike. The men of CAOS were my brothers, my family, and I knew they’d have my back. No matter what. “Then I guess we better go talk strategy.”