Aching to Exhale (22 page)

"There's more, Prez." Duck stepped closer. "Tango's missing."

It took several minutes, or maybe longer to hear the whole story over Tango disappearing and leaving his motorcycle parked in the Roadside motel parking lot, Crystal wasn't sure after seeing a death threat on her.

Raul ushered her to his motorcycle and seated her on the back, kissing her hard and promising to keep her safe. Together, as a club, they rode back to town. Too shocked to cry, she tried to understand who would want her dead, besides her parents—but they'd already killed her according to the news. She'd never purposely hurt anyone.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Thirty-four male members, half of those with women and children, remained behind locked doors at the Lagsturns club. The rest of the members held fort at the Roadside, to head off trouble if it rolled into town. Raul leaned against the support post on the far side of the lobby at the club, near the pool table, gritting his teeth. An array of Chinese takeout containers littered the surface of the bar, left over from having dinner taken out from next door.

In the middle of the mix, Crystal pointedly ignored him. He pushed off the post, and stalked to the bar. Crystal turned around, hurrying to exit the room.

He stepped in her path and hooked her neck, drawing her closer. "You can't keep ignoring what we discussed. We're leaving in the morning."

"No. We're not." She lifted her chin.

On her heels, they were almost eye to eye. Without letting her go, he wrapped his other arm around her and cupped her ass, pulling her hard against the length of him. "We can talk here, or upstairs. Your choice."

"I'm not having sex with you," she said.

"Afraid I can make you change your mind?" Raul lifted his brows, taunting her.

She blinked, weakening. He could feel her body relax and softened. Then she stiffened. "It's a dumb ass idea to ride clear into Nevada, out in the open, with a death threat on my head. It's not you who they're after, but
me
. The last thing we need to do is go make a public spectacle of
me
, and drag you along on the crazy train. You might as well push
me
out the door right now, and let the Los Li gang shoot
me
in the back."

"Damn drama. You don't think I've planned this out? If Los Li is watching the club, which I'm sure they are, they'll believe we have you protected. They can't get in here. We'll sneak away, taking two riders with us. They won't know we're gone, until we have a good head start on them. In the meantime, the others will use their sources and find them. Once the news goes out that you're alive, they'll make their move. The rest of the Lagsturns will be right behind them. We'll end the threat. Finished." He raised his brows. "I won't let anything happen to you."

"Who's going to protect you? Once everything goes down, they'll all know." She clamped her mouth shut.

Raul knew what she was hinting at. He'd no longer be able to hide his connections. He might not be FBI now, but he still had the power to bring them in if it meant bringing down the Los Li and making the Mafia's stronghold even smaller in the U.S.

"I think it'll be okay. The Lagsturns know me. They'll have to accept me for my past. I've always put Lagsturns first. Always. That'll mean something," he said. "If not, I shed my cut and go outside. I don't think that'll happen. I can cover myself. We did alright against Garcia,
si
?"

"I guess…" She looked away and frowned. "You trust every single one of your men?"

He looked over the room. Layrd lifted his chin, showing him he had his back. Jolene and Duck watched him from the couch. The others would be on board, because he was the president. He turned back to Crystal. "With my life and yours."

She sighed and put her hands on his chest. "Fine, but this isn't how I wanted to make contact with my parents. I was thinking a little quiet announcement leaked to the press for the evening news. Not arriving into their town, guns out, bikers starting a war, quickly followed by who the hell knows how many people from Los Li tagging along with us and me saying, "Look at me, I'm not dead. Aren't you proud?"

He grinned. "You're hilarious,
mi vida
."

"A bundle of jokes. I want to go back to a normal life, not worried about if people know who I really am. I'm not out to destroy my parents career and disrupt their lives. They can go on doing what they want to do," she muttered, pushing him away. "I need to help clean up the mess in here and find space for the kids to sleep tonight. Go meet with the men."

He tagged her wrist, holding her from leaving. "I'm going to have to tell them who you really are…"

She closed her eyes, cussed under her breath, and looked at him. "Whatever. Just do it, and let's get this over with so I can put it behind me and get back to living my own life."

"With me?" He kissed her.

She bit his lip. "Yeah, with you."

"We'll get married afterward and save us a trip," he said.

She slapped his chest. "Don't push me."

He strolled away from her laughing. She could argue all she wanted about not making their relationship permanent, but before the month was over, he planned to make her officially his wife. She denied needing that comfort, but he'd seen how she'd acted when tried to convince him he needed to go back to his non-existent wife.

To her, marriage was sacred. She was willing to give him up, because she believed no one should ever break up a legal union. He wanted to show her he believed the same thing, and once they were married, nothing could force them apart.

###

In the kitchen, Crystal plopped down in a vacant chair and crossed her arms, laying her head on the table. She wanted to pitch a hissy fit. Her body vibrated with the need to throw something big across the room or better yet, cuss Raul out for trying to control her life. But, she'd made a promise the night Raul was shot and the days of creating drama to get her way were over.

Jolene sat down beside her and rubbed her back. "Hey honey, are you okay?"

She closed her eyes a moment and enjoyed the comfort from her friend. Then she sat straight up, conflicted over what to do. Once the men found out her story, they'd tell their women. The girls would hate her for keeping a secret. She was already on tender ground after coming back. They needed stability as much as she did. "I have to tell you something."

"Okay," Jolene dropped her hand and leaned back in her chair. "Hit me."

Crystal sagged. "I'm not sure where to start."

"Usually spitting it out is a good beginning." Jolene grinned. "I'm a big girl, I can take it. If it has to do with Duck, I've probably heard it before."

"It's not your man." She inhaled, and blurted out the truth before she chickened out. "My name isn't really Crystal Rose. It's Chrissy Donaldson."

Jolene gazed at her without saying a word. Crystal held up her hands, palms up. "Well? Say something."

"Duck tells everyone his real name is Buck, but it's really Harold." Jolene leaned forward. "He demands I call him by his real name when we're having sex. It took me three weeks before I could make him come without laughing. I mean really, what mother would call her son Harold?"

Crystal stared in amused horror and finally shook her head to erase the mental picture. "You really don't know who I am?"

Jolene shook her head. "Why? Are you wanted?"

"No." Crystal laughed and quickly sobered. "My dad's Pastor Donaldson, the evangelical preacher who can be seen on most public television networks on Sundays."

"Huh." Jolene shrugged. "Never heard of him. We don't have television at home, and the only time I'm on my knees is when I'm in front of Duck."

Unable to believe she'd worried all this time, and the first person she tells had no idea who her father was, Crystal laughed until tears came to her eyes. She wiped her face and tried to catch her breath. How typical.

Everyone in the Lagsturns MC came here because it was the one place to find acceptance and bond with others, ignoring their pasts. The citizens on the outside ran by different laws and social acceptances, so far removed from the biker lifestyle. She'd worried herself for nothing.

"Am I supposed to call you Chrissy now?" Jolene asked.

Crystal gave one final sweep to her cheek and shook her head. "Crystal is fine. It's grown on me."

The rest of her story she'd keep to herself. Worlds apart, the Lagsturns would ignore her confession and go on treating her the same way they always did. If you protected the club, looked out for the members, and swore solidarity, it really didn't matter what kind of baggage you carried.

In her opinion, that's how everyone should lead her or his life.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

4a.m., Sunday morning.

Raul drove over the state line into Nevada. He checked his mirror. Two lone headlights behind him lit the early morning hours. They hadn't passed a car in the last half hour, yet he was anything but relaxed.

Skipping town late last night on foot for a mile before Big Joe and Duck picked him and Crystal up, transporting them to the laundromat where Juanita had stored his motorcycle for him went almost too easy. He knew Garcia's men would be on a look out for him if he rode away from the club, but he expected at least one confrontation before leaving town. He only hoped Juanita held up to her end of the agreement of putting a bug in the Mafia's ear that they were in Nevada, and the message was delivered to Los Li. He had a lot riding on finishing the business with Los Li and making Crystal safe.

Though he never was sure how much Juanita worked both sides, he wasn't ashamed to admit the unknown scared him. If it were only his life that was threatened, he'd meet the enemy head on and not run. Crystal's case meant creating more attention to surround her with witnesses to keep her safe. It was imperative that she reunite with her parents, and let the media protect her while he contacted the FBI, along with the Lagsturns, to bring down the threat.

She had no idea he was going to force her to go back to her family to keep her safe while he worked. Hell, he wasn't even a part of the select government force anymore, but this was too huge to ignore. He'd deal with the consequences of calling in backup later.

Crystal patted his stomach and pointed over to the side of the road. He gazed at a giant billboard, lit up with an older man's picture. He swept over the advertisement written across the top. I AM YOUR SALVATION. TUNE IN SUNDAY 10:00 a.m., CHANNEL 4.

Jesus H. Christ.
He shook his head and gunned the throttle. Eight hours. That's all the time he'd allow Crystal to put up with her family. After that, he'd take her wherever she wanted to go and never force her in the position of facing her father's con artist crap again.

The houses grew closer together and traffic showed up. He brought his speed down and signaled for Duck and Big Joe to slip back. They wanted to arrive in town without all the fanfare of riding together. Any time they wore their cuts, the police zeroed in on them immediately and he wanted them to watch, not stop them.

Crystal directed him on which way to turn as Las Vegas spread out in front of him. He rode down the strip to twinkling lights, action, and a mob of people out cruising the street even though it was early in the morning. He downshifted to third, waiting for her next direction when it never came. At the edge of the business district, he pulled into a parking lot and cut the engine.

Duck and Big Joe followed him and parked a few spaces away, staying on their bikes. Raul half turned and swept his gaze over Crystal. Her eyes were dry, wide, haunted. Her mouth stoic, she lifted her chin, prepared to defend herself for some reason. He wasn't going to push her. They'd make contact on her time, when she could handle the confrontation with her parents.

He waved Big Joe over and waited until he hauled his beefy body off his bike and strolled closer. "Get us something to eat and some coffee. We're taking a break."

"Sure, Prez." Big Joe lumbered over to his motorcycle, spoke with Duck who remained sitting, and then walked down the block.

Raul kept his eye on Crystal. He wished they were somewhere else and he could work at opening her up and finding out what she was thinking. He laid his hand on her leg and caressed her thigh to relax her. She flinched, and her muscles remained tighter than a spring. He feared she'd snap if she didn't share what was going on in her head.

"Hey," he whispered. "I'm right here. Nothing is going to happen to you."

She nodded jerkily. "I know."

"Good." He exhaled. We've got you covered.

"I know," she repeated. "Everything will be fine. I'm going to trust you, and control myself. It's just another day in my life, except I'm sacrificing everything I've done for myself. My parents will ignore
me
, make up a lie to cover their lie about
me
being dead, people will die trying to protect
me
from Los Li, and afterward I'm expected to shrug off the destruction and go on with my life…with you…if you survive."

"Crystal," he murmured.

She held up her hand, stopping him from denying that scenario would happen. "Oh, I know exactly how everything will work out, and I'm sorry but I promised myself not to cause you trouble again—since you're alive today—but just so you know, right now, I'd like to smack some sense into your messed up plan, then put you on a plane for BFE and keep you beside me for the rest of our rotten lives, so neither one of us dies. Instead, I'm sitting on the back of a Harley Davidson, thinking now would be a good time to march over to that corner over there, whip off my shirt, flag down everyone who stops to gawk, and beg them to get me the hell out of Dodge."

"BFE?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Butt Fuck Egypt."

He looked away to keep from laughing. Where did she come up with this stuff? He wanted to take her off the bike, show her how wrong she was, and convince her he was keeping her safe, and they'd both get out of this alive. Yet, she wouldn't listen.

She might've promised herself she'd go along with his plan, but her stubbornness wouldn't sit back and let her go meekly. He'd handled her before or thought he had when she got her head twisted around an idea, but once she was in one of her mood, it was best to step back and give her space.