Hope (23 page)

“Did Shelley send you?” he asked.

Don got out of the jeep and stood in front of him. Damon saw
Don’s gaze drift over all of them.

“She reminded me why I was the leader of this area. I’ve
spent too long hiding in the club. While I’ve been cooped up in that office
trying to figure out a way to help us all, the world has been crumbling around
me.”

Damon waited for him to continue.

“I don’t know if I can help when Grimes gets here. I’ll do
my best to help, but I know Grimes. He won’t talk.”

Damon pulled Penny away from the men. They walked out toward
the open field.

“I never expected him to come,” she said.

“I’ve come to learn to always expect the unexpected from
Don.” He smiled in relief.

“You didn’t think he was going to come,” she said,
chuckling.

“I never said that.”

“I saw it, Damon. You can’t hide anything from me anymore.
I’m going to be your woman.” Penny wrapped her arms around his neck.

“What do you mean going to be? You’re my woman now, Penny.”
He pressed his lips against hers, running his tongue along her lips.

She sighed and melted against him. “How do you do that?” she
asked.

“Do what?”

“Make me forget myself?”

“I’m damn good at what I do.”

****

Later that night Penny waited in their room while Damon
finished talking with Don. She stared at the front lawn. There were at least
fifty tents and several fires lighting up the front. She’d been amazed when
she’d seen Don in the jeep. He’d surprised her in a good way.

She folded her arms over her chest staring down at the lawn
with new hope. Whatever happened with Grimes they stood a chance of coming out
of it alive.

The sound of the door opening distracted her. Damon walked
inside. He looked tired and dirty. “I’m going to take a quick wash,” he said.

Nodding her head, she went back to looking out of the
window.

The chill of the night made her shiver. She wrapped her arms
around herself refusing to look away. So many men were waiting for what was to
come. They had no idea when Grimes was coming.

Damon circled her waist with his arms and pulled her against
him.

“You’re thinking a little too much,” he said, kissing her
temple.

“I’m just wondering about what’s going to happen. I’ve never
seen so many men waiting for something before. I’ve no idea what to expect.”
She covered his arms with her hands.

“Grimes may not turn up. This could all be for nothing.”

“You don’t sound convinced.”

“I’m not, Penny. I’d rather be prepared for the worst than
unprepared for a slaughter.” Damon rested his chin on her head.

She found the movement oddly comforting. His size and muscle
made her feel safe.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked.

“I’m worried about tomorrow.”
 
Damon didn’t say anything to her. She tensed
under his arms. “You’re not going to try to reassure me?”

“That would be stupid of me, Penny. I’ve no idea what’s to
come. If I told you everything was going to be okay and it wasn’t, I’d hate
myself.”

She turned in his arms pressing her body against his.

“I know. I wish I knew what the future would bring.”

He leaned down and kissed her. She accepted his kiss feeling
her heart flutter inside her chest.

Closing her eyes, she smiled at the feeling.

“What are you thinking now?” he asked, chuckling.

“I’m not thinking. I’m feeling. Your lips give me pleasure.”
She gasped as his fingers grazed her nipple.

“My lips are not the only things that give you pleasure.”

She shook her head. “They’re pretty good though,” she said,
laughing.

“You’re a little minx.”

He picked her up and moved toward the bed. He dropped her at
the edge tearing off his shirt.

Penny chuckled at his impatience. She tugged the towel
covering his cock away. Gripping his shaft in her fist she pumped the length
twice before looking at him.

He cupped her cheek stalling her movements. “I want you to
promise me something,” he said.

“Anything.”

“When Grimes shows up and it goes bad and we start fighting,
I want you to promise me you’ll run like hell. No matter what you see or hear,
you’ll get the fuck out of the fighting and to safety.”

Penny let his shaft go. She shook her head. “You can’t ask
that of me.”

“I’m telling you, Penny. I need you to do that for me. I
need you to promise me that you’ll get out and away from it.”

“No. I can’t promise.”

She stood up and shook her head in denial. The tears filled
her eyes, and the tightness in her throat startled her.

Damon caught her face and forced her to look at him. She
closed her eyes trying to pull out of his hold. In that moment she hated him more
than anything else.

“Listen to me, Penny,” he said. “They’ll show no mercy to
us. I can’t fight knowing you’ll be hurt. Please, do this for me.”

“What you’re asking is unfair. How can I run away when I know
you’ll be there fighting or even worse, dead? No, Damon, what you ask is too
much.”

The tears spilled down her cheeks threatening to drown her
in anguish. She’d only just found love, and he was asking her to run away like
a coward. The first time she’d run was out of necessity. She couldn’t run away
knowing she’d be leaving the man she loved behind. What he asked of her was
impossible and unfair.

His arms went around her holding her to him. The warmth he
offered gave her little comfort. She knew what he wanted from her, and it hurt
her.

“You could be pregnant, Penny,” he said after a few moments
passed.

“What?” she asked, staring up at
Damon.
He wiped the tears from her eyes. The pain inside her heart refused to go away.

“I’ve made love to you and come inside you. My seed is in
you, Penny. You could be pregnant. My child may be growing inside you right
now.”

She shook her head. “What are you saying?”

“If you can’t do it for me then do it for my unborn child.”

“That’s low,” she said. Penny pressed a hand to her stomach.

“I’m a man who does what he has to. I love you, and if my
baby keeps you out of the way then that’s what I’m going to do.”

“I can’t believe you’d be so cold.”

The tears fell thick and fast. Damon sat her on the edge of
the bed. His arms surrounded her even as she wanted him to get away from her.

“Why are you so upset?” he asked.

She turned to him and glared. “I say I love you, and you’re
trying to get rid of me.”

He caught her chin in his hand. “I’m trying to protect you
the only way I know how. You’ll do this for me, Penny.”

“Why?”

“To prove your love for me.”

She gasped. All the fight left her at his words.

“You’re not a fighter, Penny. If you don’t run you’ll get me
killed. I need to know in here,” he pointed at his head and then his heart,
“that you’re safe. I know that, and I’ve got a better chance at winning.”

Chapter
Twenty-Two

Damon kept his gaze along the fields where Pearce said
they’d come from. Edward told them from which direction they’d most likely
come. He and the rest of Don’s men got to work in the fields. The women stayed
indoors, and fortunately Penny hadn’t held his words against him. She’d agreed
to run away if they started fighting. Last night while she’d been sleeping he’d
packed her case for her with enough supplies to get her through. He hated the
thought of her leaving him, but it was the right thing to do.

If she was pregnant with his child, he wanted the best for
both of them.

“How are you doing?” Pearce asked.

“I’m getting there. I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be
today,” Damon said. His body tensed waiting for Grimes to show his face.

His friend agreed. “I can’t believe it has all come down to
this.”

“I’ll never understand what went wrong,” Damon said, looking
around him. “At least I got Penny.”

“I heard you’re going to take over the old farmer’s place.”

“Yes. Penny and I are going to make it work.”

“I never thought you’d leave the city,” Pearce said.

“Neither did I. Times are changing, Pearce. I’ve got plans
that are no longer about number one.” He glanced toward the house wondering
where she was. She’d served breakfast and given his shoulder a squeeze to let
him know they were good. After he’d forced her to agree to leave he’d spent the
remainder of the night watching her. He was tired and wished the crap with
Grimes was over.

“Maybe there’s hope for me yet. If you’ve found happiness
there has got to be something for me.”

Damon thumped the guy in the shoulder chuckling.

Pearce froze as he looked in the direction of the trees.
“Shit, there’s movement,” he said.

Damon turned to see. Yep, he saw the movement of the bushes
that was caused by something more than the wind. Other men noticed it, too.
They all started moving in the direction of the house as one. He felt united
with the men in his area. All of them were willing to fight for their area and
what they believed in.

“I can’t believe Grimes is stupid enough to try this. I
actually gave him better balls in my mind,” Pearce said.

“There’s your first mistake.”

“What?”

“Thinking about another man’s balls.
Surely
you’ve got better things to think about,” Damon said.

“Don’t start with me, Mad Dog. I could always talk about
your woman’s tits.”

He growled at the other man in warning. No one thought about
his woman’s body but him.

They all stopped as Don raised his hand in the air. Damon took
the time to glance in the direction of the house. He saw Penny in the upstairs
bedroom. Her gaze was fixed firmly on him. Damon gave a nod of his head and
then looked ahead of him. Grimes’s men came out from behind the trees. There
were only a few trees here and there. The trees were surrounded by plenty of
bushes and shrubs. There was no one to take care of the plant life, and it had
started to over-grow. George would have been too preoccupied with the farm to
worry about the trees and bushes at the far back of the house.

 
Thirty men stopped
the moment they saw them. They looked behind them, and Damon knew there were
probably double the men waiting for them.

“Grimes, show
yourself
, and stop
being a coward,” Don shouted.

Damon and Pearce moved to his side offering their
support.
 
He wanted to stare up at the
house and see what Penny was doing.

Stop worrying
about her. Think about surviving the next few moments. If Grimes is determined
to end this, you’re going to have to fight.

The pep talk he gave himself did no good. He felt worse
rather than better from his words.

He watched the rest of the men move forward as the next wave
came through. There had to be at least a hundred men. The numbers sounded pathetic
even in his mind. They were still outnumbered. Grimes had been busy creating an
army.

Then he saw the man responsible. Grimes
was
over six feet tall. He was the tallest of all the men there and perhaps the
cruellest.

“You dare call me a coward?” His voice rose over the noise
of the wind. Damon felt the men behind him tense up ready to fight. He
tightened his hands into fists, ready for whatever was thrown at him.

Don took a step forward, and so did his men. Grimes did the
same until there were only a few feet left between them.

“You’re a coward, Grimes. You picked off farmers because you
know they had no training. We had an agreement that has been part of our areas
for years. You, me, Jordan, and Tristan were part of this agreement,” Don said.

The anger inside his boss’s voice was hard to ignore. Damon glanced
at his boss and saw the hatred on his face. Don clearly despised Grimes.

“My people are starving. You always got the best men and the
best area. I’m tired of waiting for what is rightfully mine,” Grimes said.

“So you intend to pick it off one by one?”

“This city will not function without a proper leader,” said
Grimes.

“And you’re the man to lead us?” A man came out from behind
the house. He was a large man with long hair. Damon recognised him immediately.
The man walking towards Grimes was Tristan Kendrick, the leader who was
supposed to be insane and the one whose land had been taken.
“A
man who kills innocent men, women, and children for fun?
The same man
who murdered my family.”