Addicted (Outlaws Book 2) (4 page)

Jamie joined them, carting her duffel bag in one hand. “Where are we sleeping?” she asked Lennox. “The usual place?”

He nodded in response. Whenever they came to Foxworth, the two of them usually crashed in adjoining rooms that had once made up the office and waiting area of a law firm.

“I’ll drop our bags off.” He relieved her of the duffel, cursing when he felt its heft. “What the hell did you pack in here, love? Bricks?”

“We’re here for a month,” she said defensively. “I brought a little bit of everything.”

Lennox smothered a sigh. Traveling with Jamie could be a pain in the ass sometimes.

She glanced at Rylan. “You guys aren’t starting the training stuff tonight, are you?”

“Hell no. We can start tomorrow.” Rylan’s blue eyes danced impishly. “Tonight we party.”

“You asked him to come, sweetheart.” Sloan voiced the gruff words after Reese had directed yet another dark glare in Rylan’s direction.

She gritted her teeth at the unwelcome reminder. Yes, she’d requested Rylan’s presence. Yes, she’d all but threatened to cut off Connor’s balls if he didn’t send Rylan and Pike her way. But that didn’t mean she had to
like
it.

“Because I need him,” she muttered in response. “He and Pike understand combat – they’ll be able to teach our people everything they need to know.”

“Your people,” Sloan corrected.

She smiled wryly. “I might give the orders, but they all know I don’t make a single decision without your input.”

They reached the front stoop of the two-story building Reese called home. Sloan stopped by the rail and fixed those serious hazel eyes on her.

His steady gaze unnerved her, as it always did when she found herself the focus of it. Only two people had the ability to read her, to dive into her mind and know exactly what she was thinking. One of them was dead. The other was very much alive, and far too willing to use that skill to his advantage.

“Remind me again why we don’t like him,” he said.

The mocking note in his tone grated on her nerves. “Because he’s a wild card. And we don’t like wild cards.”

Sloan nodded.

She knew what he really wanted to say. That Rylan’s total recklessness and unpredictable nature reminded her too much of Jake. Which was the truth – the similarities between the two men were damn near eerie. They even shared a physical resemblance with their fair hair and blue eyes. Jake had been smaller, though, only a few inches taller than Reese, and lanky in contrast to Rylan’s broad, muscular frame.

If she was basing her opinion on looks alone, she would’ve fucked Rylan’s brains out a year ago. Didn’t matter that he reminded her of her dead lover, because her dead lover had been one of the sexiest, most magnetic men she’d ever met. Jake might have turned into a tyrant by the time he died, but her attraction to him had remained stronger than ever despite that.

No, it was Rylan’s complete lack of self-preservation that concerned her. His inability to walk the path of least resistance. The way he dove headfirst into danger without a single thought to his own well-being or that of others. She suspected he fed off the thrill, the adrenaline high, and maybe that worked well for him, but it wasn’t the way Reese operated.

“We need to be smart about how we handle this,” she told Sloan. “Keep an eye on him while he’s here.”

“You think Connor was suspicious?”

“I know Connor was suspicious.” She cursed under her breath. Connor was a major thorn in her side sometimes. The man was too perceptive for his own good, not to mention a ruthless motherfucker. If he caught so much as a whiff that she might be placing his men in danger, he wouldn’t hesitate to slit her throat.

Her gaze drifted toward the small building that housed the recreation center. Rylan and Pike were already headed in that direction. From the carefree spring to Rylan’s long stride, she knew exactly what he’d be doing when he got there. Dropping his pants and sticking his dick in the first available pussy.

And that was just fine by Reese. Let him screw to his heart’s content. Rylan’s sex drive bordered on addiction, and she was happy to provide him with all the sexual distractions at her disposal. Her girls enjoyed his company. They’d keep him busy enough that he wouldn’t think too hard about everything else going on around him.

“What do you need me to do?” Sloan said in a low voice.

The question didn’t surprise her. She and Sloan had been through hell and back together – the man did whatever she asked. There was no line he wouldn’t cross for her.

“Do what you do best,” she answered, arching a playful eyebrow. “Pay attention and keep your mouth shut.”

He flashed a rare grin. “Just the way I like it.”

The rec hall was bustling with activity when Lennox arrived after stashing his and Jamie’s bags. A few dozen people filled up the space, holding various containers of alcohol and in various states of undress. Pulsing bass music blasted through the room. It shook the walls and the linoleum floor beneath Lennox’s heavy boots as he made his way through the crowd.

Several women wandered over to greet him, and he smacked kisses on their cheeks before continuing toward a group of familiar faces.

Beckett broke out in a wide grin at the sight of him. “Len! My man! You made it.” The tattooed mechanic slapped Lennox’s arm in greeting before yanking him in for a hug.

Lennox grinned at his old friend. “You know I don’t pass up any opportunity to come here. Hey, Trav.”

Travis stepped forward to bump his fist against Lennox’s. “Good to see you, man.”

He shook hands with a few of the other guys, who he was friendly with but not close to – Nash, Davis, and Rick.

“Heard your place got ambushed by Enforcers,” Nash said sympathetically. “Fuckin’ blows, man.”

“Yeah, wasn’t too happy about that,” he admitted.

“So you and your girls are living with Connor now?” Davis looked intrigued.

Lennox nodded, accepting the whiskey bottle Beckett passed his way. He took a deep swig and welcomed the burn that hit his stomach. Reese had the best booze, high-grade stuff she smuggled in from the city. It was potent shit.

“How’s that working out for you?” Davis pressed when he didn’t elaborate. “Connor’s woman there too?”

“Where else would she be?”

“Hot as hell, that one,” Rick drawled. “Con wouldn’t let anyone touch her when she was here.”

Lennox thought about Hudson’s tight body and flowing golden hair, and could understand exactly why Connor would want to lock that shit up. “Do you blame him?” His attention was diverted when loud laughter echoed from the vicinity of the pool table. “Well, fuck me. When did you get the table refelted?”

Last time he’d visited, the green felt was in tatters after decades of use. Sinking a ball in any of the pockets had been like navigating a damn minefield.

“Last week,” Beckett revealed. “Sloan and Trav were out on a supply run and came across an abandoned pub about a hundred miles south.”

Travis rolled his dark eyes. “Sloan wouldn’t leave until we’d stripped every billiards table in the place. You should’ve seen how carefully he was slicing off the felt. Like he’d rather cut off his own finger than bring Reese an inferior product.”

Lennox had to laugh. It was no secret that Sloan would walk through fire for Reese, but the man’s unwavering loyalty was intense sometimes.

“Beck!”

The men turned as Jamie flew up to the group. Blue eyes shining happily, she threw her arms around Beckett, who lifted her off her feet and hugged her tight.

Seeing Jamie look so happy flooded Lennox’s chest with warmth. Maybe it was a good thing he’d allowed her to come along. They’d been through too much shit lately – losing their home, losing their close friend Nell… Fuck, now his chest was aching, because he was suddenly hit with the memory of Jamie sitting on the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks as she held Nell’s lifeless body in her arms.

The ambush on their house had been an unwelcome reminder of how fleeting life in the free land could be. People died. They always fucking died. But even knowing that, Lennox felt wrecked every time he was forced to grieve for someone he’d cared about.

Tonight wasn’t about grieving, though. It was about seeing old friends and having fun. Enjoying a rare respite from the bullshit beyond Foxworth’s gates.

“I missed you,” Jamie told Beckett before planting her lips square on his mouth.

Beckett slipped her some tongue, then lowered her down and slung an arm around her shoulder. “Missed you too, babe.” His hand nonchalantly eased lower to cup her left breast over her tight black tank.

In retaliation, she reached out and squeezed one of Beckett’s sculpted pecs, hard enough to make him wince.

“No fair,” the dark-haired man griped. “My tits aren’t as big as yours. It hurts when you do that.”

“Oh, you poor man. We should find out if there’re still doctors around who perform boob jobs. Did you know people actually used to do that? I think they were called plastic surgeons or something.”

Lennox watched the exchange with amusement. He and Jamie had known Beckett for years, long before the man had settled down in Foxworth. He’d been a nomad when they first met, fixing up old cars he found on the road, roaming the colony alone, and interspersing the months of solitude with visits to Lennox’s for some booze and female companionship.

Beck and Jamie had fooled around more times than Lennox could count, but it had never bothered him. Maybe it was because he knew she didn’t have feelings for Beck. Or any of the other men she’d been with, for that matter. They were just a lay to her, a good time.

Her infatuation with Rylan was another story. Jamie looked at him the way she’d looked at all her boyfriends growing up: as if they’d hung the goddamn moon.

Lennox didn’t like that. He knew Jamie better than she knew herself. She loved to be in love, but more than that, she
wanted
to be in love. She wanted the same thing her parents had – a partnership, someone to build a life with.

It was more than evident to Lennox that Rylan wasn’t interested in finding a woman to settle down with. He just wanted to fuck around, but Jamie was oblivious of that harsh truth. Sooner or later she’d try pushing Rylan into something serious, and the man would bail and leave her with a broken heart. Lennox could see that disaster coming from miles away, but he’d yet to find a way to broach the subject without pissing Jamie off.

“Come dance with me,” she urged Beckett.

He waggled his eyebrows. “Only if it’s naked dancing.”

She offered a compromise. “How about we start with the dancing and work our way up to the naked part?”

“Deal.” Beckett lifted her into his arms and carted her toward the center of the room while Jamie laughed in delight and locked her hands around his neck.

Lennox watched as the other man set Jamie on her feet and shoved one hard thigh between her legs. A second later, they were tangled up together, bodies moving seductively to the music.

He shifted his gaze in time to see Reese arrive. Sloan was at her heels, but remained standing near the door as Reese settled on an empty couch in the far corner of the room. She cocked her head at Lennox, who quickly excused himself and wandered over to join her.

The moment he was beside her, Reese curled her legs under her and rested her head on his shoulder. “So, how is it living under Connor’s thumb?” she asked dryly.

“Pretty good, actually. They have a solid setup, fully stocked for winter. It’s a good place to regroup while we decide whether we’re taking off on our own again.”

She peered up with a frown. “Don’t do that. Seriously, Len. Stay there, or come live here with us. It’s not safe anywhere else.”

“It never was.”

Her tone was grim. “It’s even worse now.”

Lennox searched her face. “Enforcers giving you trouble?”

Reese hesitated, as if she didn’t know how much to share. Then she nodded. “Yeah, a bit. Sloan nearly killed the last rep who came by.”

“Shit. That’s no good.” He knew Reese had a shit ton of alliances in place with certain higher-ranked Enforcers. Lennox was privy to way more information than he’d told Connor, but he planned on filling his new leader in eventually.

The Enforcers used Foxworth as a campsite of sorts during their colony sweeps. It wasn’t an arrangement Lennox or any of the others were comfortable with, but it was the price to pay for the Enforcers’ silence. Reese gave the assholes beds, booze, and broads, and in return, Foxworth was immune. The outlaws living there weren’t rounded up or reported to the council, and Foxworth was allowed to continue to thrive.

“What’d the bastard do to piss off Sloan?” Lennox asked curiously.

“He tried changing the terms of our deal.” Her jaw was tighter than he’d ever seen it. “The piece of shit wanted to ‘borrow’ one of my girls so they’d have a fuck toy during their colony sweep.”

Lennox frowned. “You’re kidding me.”

“No joke. I told him there was no way in hell he was taking anyone out of Foxworth. He got pissy, aggressive. Started throwing his weight around, but Sloan shut it down.”

“How?”

She snorted. “Knocked the bastard out cold. It was a total shit storm when he came to. He wanted to execute Sloan on the spot, but I threatened to go to his commander and tell Ferris all about our little deal.”

Which would be like signing his death warrant. Commander Ferris strictly forbade any contact between his soldiers and the outlaws. Lennox had never met the man, but he’d heard Ferris was ruthless as hell and known to execute his own men if they disobeyed orders.

“The asshole and his troop took off, but I didn’t like the way we left things,” Reese admitted. “Another rep came by a few weeks later, apologized for his man and said the deal stands, but there was tension there. I didn’t like that either.”

He didn’t blame her. Antagonizing the Enforcers would only lead to a war. Reese had a good thing going with them right now, so it was best if she found a way to preserve the alliance.

“Anyway, enough business,” she said flippantly. Her hand found its way into his lap at the same time she pressed her lips to the side of his throat. “I have a surprise for you.”

“Oh, really?”

She nibbled on his neck, and a hot shiver of anticipation raced up his spine. It’d been far too long since he slept with a woman as passionate as Reese.

“Surprise,” a throaty voice said.

Fuck. Make that
two
passionate women.

Lennox twisted his head as a stunning brunette with catlike eyes approached the couch. Decked out in a black corset and a teeny scrap of fabric that constituted a skirt, the woman lowered herself onto Lennox’s lap and brushed a seductive kiss on his lips.

“Tam,” he groaned into her mouth. “Didn’t know you were here.”

“Well, now you do.” Dark eyes gleamed impishly at him. “I’m heading out tomorrow morning, but you know I can’t leave the colony without seeing my favorite badass.”