Steele: Into Your Heart (Carolina Bad Boys #3 (33 page)

“Yes.” Her fingertips trailed up and down my stomach.

“So all I have to do to get what I want is fuck you?” I brought her wandering palm to my lips. I let a grin slip out.

“You knew that from the beginning.” She sat up and straddled my lap. With her hands on my face, she locked gazes with me. “And take care of me. Love me. ”

“Nothin’ I wanna do more.”

****

When Cara got home from school, Ashe and I were in the kitchen, all cleaned up and as wholesome as
The Brady Bunch
.

Right.

Cara immediately noticed the change. Ashe was relaxed. Hell, she had to be. I’d fucked it out of her. And I was all loose-boned, literally.

“Thank
Gawd
.” Swinging her backpack over shoulder, Cara made her way into the living room.

We followed her as she crashed onto the couch.

“Ahem?” Ashe asked.

“What? You’re worse than the fake crushes at school. I mean seriously. You love each other.
Soooo
much drama. Freal.”

“Should we ground her?” Ashe looked at me.

Like I had a clue. “Nah. But if she was my probie, she’d go on toilet-cleaning duty pronto.”

“
Ewww
. I take it back, okay?” Cara unpacked her book bag. “I’m just happy you’re happy.”

We were. Dinner was less tense. We were on the mend.
Freal.

At bedtime, I listened to Ashe saying goodnight to Cara in her bedroom.

“Mommy?” Cara’s voice was little for a change. “I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

“I’m sorry I worried you, honey.”

“That’s what kids are for.”

“Good Lord. When are you going to act eight instead of twenty-eight?”

In the hall, I smothered a laugh.

“When Brodie
stops
acting eight instead of twenty-eight.”

“Heard that. And I’m twenty-nine.” I made sure my voice carried.

“I KNO-ow,” Cara singsonged back. “But I love you, so that’s like my Get Out Of Jail Free card, right?”

Damn that girl. No way I couldn’t love her.

That was the first time since the assault Ashe didn’t get up in the middle of the night to cry in private. She didn’t wake up early or toss and turn. She didn’t have any nightmares.

She woke me in the morning as she used to, with her head under the covers and her warm lips wrapped around me.

I groaned, my head knocking back. “You don’t have to do that.”

She lifted up, licking the crown of my cock. “I want to. I missed it.”

Far be it for me to put up a fight. One money shot later and another hot load on the way, I pulled back from licking her clit and tongue-fucking her slit. I reached for a condom, but Ashe grabbed my wrist.

“You keep using condoms and I won’t get pregnant.”

“Come again?”

“I may not have known I was pregnant, but I want what could’ve been.” She looked up at me with clear gray eyes.

“It’s too soon. You’re barely on your feet.” My cock pulsed even harder, the thought of fucking her bare almost enough to get me off then and there.

“
Mmm
.” She bit her bottom lip and drew a slim finger up her wet, glistening pussy. “Mostly because you like to carry me around all the time.”

“Busted,” I agreed, my voice throbbing like my dick.

“So help me get back on my feet, then waddle on them.”

“We can talk about it later,” I growled and finished covering myself with the rubber before the temptation became too great to handle. “Right now I need inside of you.”

****

By mid-November, Ashe completed her first full week back on the job as detective. She’d seen her counselor on the dot without fail. She’d undergone psych evals to ensure she was ready to return to work. She’d completed OT and gone to the OB/Gyn with me right beside her. According to her doc, there’d been no permanent damage to her uterus, and we decided it was the right time to start trying.

She’d been through the wringer, not just that eighteen-hour period in Dirk’s sick, twisted possession but during two months of recovery. Now it was Friday night and time to celebrate.

When we stepped into Retribution it was to claps and whistles and cheers. Stomping feet and loud shouts. It was to the sight of every single member and their women: the First Ladies of Redemption and their menfolk, plus Boomer, Cat, Tuck, Nick, and Probi
e—
who’d strung twinkling Christmas lights even before Thanksgiving and blown balloons in every color of the rainbow from a helium tank he’d rented.

I gave him props for his unusual party planning, but really I just thought he liked sucking back on the nozzle of the tank so he could do the high-pitched Beevis laugh.

Ashe’s cheeks tinged pink, and her laughter echoed with the chants of her name. The guys thrust drinks at us. They slapped my back and hugged Ashe.

I didn’t want her to get overwhelmed so I played it off as I took her hand and set my lips against her ear, “Don’t get a big head. They’re not really all here for you.”

“You’re the only one with a big head.” Ashe slanted a lusty grin at me before skimming her fingers over my crotch. Her slight touch was enough to start me boning and set me on edge for the remainder of the night.

“You are wicked.” I hooked an arm around her neck, pulling her against me.

“Maybe you’ll find out just how wicked I can be later.” She swiveled her hips, swish-swaying away from me. She blew me a kiss over her bare shoulder.

I tilted my head to better watch her jaw-dropping retreat. The perfect ass, the biker babe shirt falling off her shoulder, the jeans faded and tight enough to be illegal.

“I see Kingston’s doing better.” Hunter leaned an elbow on the bar beside me.

She was. We were. We’d made it through something terrible and come out stronger. Not that we had any choice in the matter. I was stubborn. Ashe was pigheaded. Cara was the perfect chatterbox nuisance to make us wake up and smell the reality of it all.

“Chief’s happy with her progress.” Hunter swung his gaze to me while I kept my sights on Ashe—hip cocked, blonde hair shaken back, laughing at something Handsome said.

“Yeah. Sipowicz and I are like this.” I twisted two fingers together. “You still on MPPD’s payroll?”

“Now, now. I wouldn’t be undercover if I told you, would I?”

“Whatever. I’ll get it out of Probie later.”

He chuckled. “His name’s Cole. You know it. I know it. He’s a good one to have on the lookout. Might try to recruit him.”

“As long as you give him enough time to swab the decks around here.”

Another stream of women from Redemption strutted inside, swelling the room to capacity with boobs, blown-out hair, and tight black lace shirts.

They’d suffered their own loss with Leta’s death, but they were a strong bunch of badass babes. They didn’t just look out for number one. They watched each other’s backs, too.

“Who’s that?” Hunter peered at a sweet young thing with soft brown curls, freckles on her nose, and butterfly tats ranging from small to large down the center of her spine visible through the slashed gaps in the back of her shirt.

“Oh, her? She’s with the First Ladies. She’s pretty new.”

“Fuck that. She’s pretty. Straight up.”

I turned to stare at the man. Granted, I didn’t know him all that well, but I’d never seen him show one ounce of interest in any of the women. He’d always stayed under the radar, maintaining the cool and quiet.

Examining Hunter as he scratched the black stubble on his jaw, I wondered if we’d entered a whole new era of entertainment. I was so going to enjoy this.

“New cherry, fresh off the tree.” I fought to keep a straight face. “We call her JB.”

“JB?”

“Jail Bait, dude.”

Hunter spun around and thunked his head on the bar with a groan.

“Fitting. Don’t you think?
Detective
Sexton—if that’s even your real last name?”

He flipped me the bird. “It’s Lieutenant Sexton, asswipe.”

I ambled away, beer in hand. Exchanging a few words here and there, I tried to get closer to Ashe. Every time I made headway, she slipped off. Probably did it on purpose. Her low laugh filtered to me throughout the night, her voice alone enough to undo me.

At one point, I captured her around the waist, pinning her to my side. She was breathless and happy, maybe a little bit tipsy. Slipping my mouth fully over hers, I dipped my tongue inside. She held onto me, grinded against me, and stripped all thoughts other than getting her naked from my head.

When Ashe leaned back, I followed. I nipped her shoulder with my teeth.

“
Uh uh
. You still have something to do, handsome.”

“I know. I need to do you.” I attached my lips to her neck, but she pushed me away.

“You promised.”

“Fine.” I smirked.

With her beside me, I made my way to Cole the Probie. The dudes circled around us, all wearing their leather Retribution vests with the scales of justice and skull and crossbones.

I whistled loudly and the music cut off.

Cole stopped wiping the bar, laying his knuckles on top of it. “What now?”

“Step out from behind the bar.”

He moved to stand in front of me. My face stern, I stared him down. He didn’t look away or flinch or piss his pants. In fact, Cole had grown into his own. He wore the usual thick silver chains tight around his neck and wrists, and his strong build rivaled mine. I’d just never noticed it before.

I gripped his shoulder.

“I don’t really wanna die tonight, Brodie.”

“Good. Because I don’t plan on killing you.” Glancing aside, I said to Tuck, “Give me the cut.”

The new leather creased in my hand, its smell intoxicating. I shook out the vest and held it up for Probie and the others to see. His name was stitched on the badge.

“All in favor?” I asked.

The whistles and shouts and the thud of fists pounding on the tables deafened me.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

Cole stood shell-shocked in front of me.

“Coletrane Sawyer, consider yourself the newest member of the Presidents of Retribution MC.”

“Holy shit,” he said, a grin growing on his lips.

“So you want this or not?” I held up the vest.

“Hell yeah.”

After another round of shouts from his new brothers, he stood up taller. He straightened and turned around to face them.

When I placed the vest on his shoulders, I said, “Don’t fuck it up.”

“I won’t, Brodie.”

He spun around and I gave him a brief hug, slapping him on the back.

“Why now?” he asked.

“What you did for Ashe. For putting me in touch with Hunter. I figured out how you knew. ’Cause you’re always here, watching out for us, noticing everything. You got the club’s best interests at heart. I appreciate that.”

“So no more toilet duty?”

“I wouldn’t say that. Not until you find a grunt replacement.” I gave a hearty laugh, slapping him on the back one more time before ambling away.

An hour later Ashe and I were on our way out when I saw Boomer from the corner of my eye. He looked massive, looming over Rayce, that new mechanic from Stone’s. The woman he kept claiming he wasn’t interested in. If their past interaction was anything to go by, she was about to give him an earful.

“Let’s stick around for a few minutes. I wanna enjoy the show.”

Ashe glanced at Boomer and Rayce. “You really are evil.”

Drifting close enough to hear their convo, I rubbed my hands together. “Yeah.”

Rayce smiled at Boomer, drawing her hands up his chest. “So tell me, old man. Is the business called Chrome because you’ll be losing your hair soon?”

I chuckled. My brother had thick, black, close-cropped hair. He was in no danger of going bald.

“Princess. You don’t need to worry about my age. I’m old enough to handle you, and young enough to make good on my promise.” Boomer moved just one step closer to her, his body grazing hers.

“And what promise would that be?”

Leaning down, he whispered something in her ear, and Rayce’s eyes fluttered closed. She arched into him, her fingers closing on the material of his shirt.

“Damn,” I muttered. “Looks like Boom got game.”

“
Sshh
,” Ashe said. “I’m trying to listen.”

Boomer’s voice came out a low rumble as he continued. “But I usually save that for more experienced women.” He smirked and pushed away from her. “See ya around, racy Rayce.”

“Oh my God!” Ashe slapped a hand over her mouth.

I watched my brother stroll away. “I’ll second that. ’Bout damn time he had a harridan of his own to contend with.”