Athena's Raid: Book Two Perdition MC (7 page)

Torture, because travel stressed out Cruncher and made him gassy. Which was the most god awful thing he’d ever smelled, and he’d smelled some shit. Bad shit. Toxic shit. But Cruncher took it to a whole new level of disgusting. He wondered if the smell would ever leave the Jeep. If it didn’t, he was going to buy her a new one.

They pulled into town and he rolled up to the house that with his brother’s help, was his on a month to month basis until he decided where he wanted to live. He hurried around to get the door for her, loving how she took his hand with a smile and eagerly stepped down beside him. “This is your home?” He looked at it with her, the small one story farmhouse. He liked it, liked the tin roof and the wrap around porch, the rustic look of it and the nice big fenced in yard for Cruncher to play in. “For now, Top set it up for me until I decide where I want to put down roots. Come on out, gasbag.” Cruncher shot out as soon as the door was open, and first thing he did was sniff the grass for the perfect place to take the massive dump he’d apparently been holding onto for three days. “Jesus Christ, never seen a dog take a shit that big. No wonder we were dyin from his fumes.” Athena curled her lip up, but once Cruncher had relieved himself, he went and tore around the yard with gleeful abandon.

He made sure the gate was closed before he took Athena inside and looked around the open living space, the comfortable leather couches, the big kitchen, a bigger bathroom and the massive, single, bedroom. He almost did a fist pump of victory, knowing he was going to thank Top profusely when he saw him next, because he’d given Athena no option but to sleep with him. “This is really nice,” She said, touching things here and there with a little smile twisting her lips. “Remember, how I told you that one day I hoped to god I could make you understand just how much that letter you wrote, meant to me?”

She looked up from the picture she’d lifted from a table top, her expression curious and open, her smile softening as she set the frame down. “I remember.” He swallowed thickly and nodded, “Good. I need to go out for a little while, get some stuff of mine out of storage. Dress warm, and dress to ride. The boys are throwing me welcome home hog roast, Cruncher’s welcome too.”

“Cruncher won’t fit on your bike, and he’s too young to take off into the night with a strange man on a motorcycle. I can’t trust his judgment.”

He’d laughed so hard tears had gathered at the corner of his eyes, and he’d promised he’d get Cruncher a responsible ride. Kissed her until she’d had trouble standing again, and jogged down the stairs to the small garage. She’d watched him throw up the door and the grin that split his lips was breathtakingly handsome while he ran his hands over the manly two wheeled machine inside. She watched him reacquaint with it like it was a long lost friend, and then kick a leg over the seat like he hadn’t been paralyzed a few months ago. If she hadn’t seen the scars on his back from the explosion, and the long straight one up his spine from the surgery, how he moved now, she never would have believed someone as strong and vital as him had been bound to a wheelchair. And watching him ride away with a roar of his pipes, she couldn’t help but feel thankful to whatever powers that be, that he’d come out the other side through that surgery.

It was weird to be alone for the few hours he was gone. She hadn’t been alone since he’d shown up at her shop four days ago, and it was almost uncomfortable. Traveling and sleeping beside him had felt natural, and usually a thrasher, she hadn’t tossed or turned once with his heavy arm curled around her. God, that had been amazing. So amazing. And their trip here? She gave a little moan and banged her head on the fridge, her body still pulsing from the feel of his kisses. He’d been a perfect gentleman except for those kisses, and she was such a slut for being disappointed by that fact. An even bigger slut, because the roar of pipes, motorcycle pipes, pulling up in the driveway made her vagina pulse and clench hungrily. Her heart pounded in time with the pounding steps of his feet up the porch, her entire body shuddering with desire when he yelled from the front door, “Babe! You ready?”

God yes. She was so, so ready.

Some kid in a pick up came by to pick up Cruncher. He spilled out of the truck with a puppy like exuberance to greet her dog with a high pitched, squealed, “What up, dog?” And proceeded to flop down on the lawn and let Cruncher attempt to lick his face off. It was too adorable for words. “Jesus,” Raid muttered, shaking his head like he was embarrassed by the kid’s display of love for animals, which just made her like him immediately, seeing as how he’d greeted her dog before her. “Ruckus, for fucks sake, it says
Prospect
, on your cut. Not
Pussy
.”

Ruckus
, bounced up off the ground and whomped on Cruncher, getting his total adoration with that one good whomp. “Sorry, bro. Love dogs. I’ll take care of him, promise. Ginger Scouts honor,” He told her, tugging on his own red orange hair and bounced off with Cruncher bouncing right beside him and right up into the truck without even bothering to tell her goodbye. Ruckus rolled the window halfway down, and she guffawed to see the pair of freaking doggles on Cruncher’s face. Ruckus, had bought accessories for her dog, without ever having met him. Love. “He is adorable.” Raid just grunted at her in response, his lips twisting with a jealous little sneer before he got a handle on it and threw a leg over his bike. He held his hand out to her and she gnawed on her lip a little nervously. “You’re about to pop my cherry, here. Promise it’ll be good?” She ventured, and his eyebrows slowly slid up into his hair, “You’ve never been on a bike before?”

“The kind with pedals.”

“Shit. Seriously?”

“Yeah?”

He nodded, his throat working audibly with some kind of emotion flashing across his eyes. He wiggled his fingers at her to get her to come closer, squeezing her hand when she took his and brought it to his mouth for a kiss. “That peg right there is for your foot, one on the other side. Just swing on and put your arms around me. Try to lean the way I lean, to relax, and don’t let go.” He curled her hand up on his shoulder to help her balance, and she tried to gracefully swing her leg up like he had, but had to add a little hop to get all the way over, and sucked in a gasp when he pulled her arms around his waist, turning his head a little to look at her. “Ready?” She was excited, no doubt about that, but she still flinched when he turned the engine over and reved it. Letting her feel the powerful vibrations between her legs, the shift in his muscles when he rocked the bike forward with his hips to get it off the kickstand, and away they went.

It was amazing, the wind cold and sharp as it whipped around them, the thrill of gravity reaching for them as he’d turn right or left making adrenaline surge through her veins. She got it now, what he meant by feeling free air around him. The smell of it, mixed with the smell of him where she tucked her face into his throat, free air, sharp and clean, the scent of his soap, the leather of his cut, and that musk that was all man. She couldn’t imagine knowing what this felt like, the wind and the roar of the engine, the freedom it brought, and then having it taken away. Being bound to a wheelchair and told that you would never feel this way again.  The wind tore her tears away, and by the time they reached their destination, she had it under control.

He pulled into a parking lot beside a long metal structure, with a beautiful green lawn, on three sides, a line of gleaming Harley’s and trucks set back from the road by a good half mile and surrounded with an eight foot high stone and black wrought iron fence. She got why they called it a compound, because it certainly looked like one. He pulled up and parked in a waiting space, helping her off and checking to make sure her shaking legs would support her before he shut his bike off and peeled his sunglasses off his face. “Okay?” He asked, and she nodded, smiling wide enough that it hurt her face, which made him smile back. “Was it good for you?” She laughed and let him tug her up under his side when he got up, “The best I ever had.” He sucked in a soft, smug hiss of air and dropped a kiss on her hair. “That’s how I roll, babe. Come meet my brothers.”

He led her inside to a massive open room that had cow hides on the floor, big round tables, a pool table parked in a corner under the requisite green lamps, a huge cedar wood bar along one wall with a sink and fridge and food prep area, the bar currently covered in food for the party. There were photos all over the walls in big glass frames, leather vests with names on them in shadow boxes, and sections of old motorcycles hung on the wall up the length of the big wrought iron staircase that led up to a second level. She saw a lot of doors. Offices maybe?

It was empty for how many trucks and bikes were outside, but Raid tagged her hand with a grin and tilted his head to a back door. “Be prepared, they’re probably all out back waiting to shout at us.” He gave her hand a squeeze then pulled her out a big back door, into a massive gathering of hot guys in leather jackets, standing around an even more massive fire pit where a whole pig was being roasted on a spit, those men all raised their beers into the air and bellowed, “
BROTHER
!” Loud enough to blow her hair back. She saw Raid duck his head before looking up to grin at the assembled masses, and it might have been her imagination, but it looked like he might have had tears in his eyes.

She thought he’d let go of her to accept the hugs and handshakes from the twenty odd men, but he didn’t, not once. Not even when he hugged another ginger haired, very pregnant woman (who looked familiar) and congratulated her on adopting the biggest man-child in the history of man children. Said man-child punched Raid in the shoulder, and said man-child was another gorgeous, panty melting guy of epic proportions. Only blonde, and frankly looked like Thor and Eric Northman had had a baby, and this was their ungodly hot offspring. “Hi, I’m Ever.” The woman introduced herself, and she smiled back and took her hand, “Athena, you look really familiar.” Ever laughed and pressed her hands together and did a little Namaste bow. “The ginger in me recognizes the ginger in you.” She was laughing too and bowed back, which made the men roll their eyes heavenward. “I came into your shop a few months back when Raid asked us to check up on you.”

“Now I remember. Lemongrass and arnica body butter.”

“It was the shit. I’m out.”

“I’ll make you more.”

She heard a familiar bark and she braced when Cruncher suddenly came flying at her, thrilled to be there and showed his appreciation by jumping like a little grasshopper. “Cruncher! No! Sit down, you’re embarrassing me.” He immediately plonked his butt and let his huge tongue loll out, still vibrating with energy when he sat up on his haunches and put his front paws together. “Excuse my dog, he thinks he’s cute.” Ever, under Roar’s skeptical eye, crouched down and loved on Cruncher until he was tits up in ecstasy. “He’s adorable!”

Her man picked her back up when she shoved a hand at him, seemingly down with the drill due to having a pregnant wife. “I have to tell you, I’m kind of thrilled not to be the only ginger around here with tits. Please tell me, you’re not a pussy.” She liked Ever immediately, “Define, pussy.” Raid snorted his beer and coughed around a laugh when he quit talking to his buddy, whose name was
Roar
. How sexy was that? “Well, you make girly lotions and potions and shit, that are amazing. And bath bombs that rocked my socks off. So on a scale of ballerina pink to Harley leather, how girly are you?”

“I prefer Army green, personally, but leather is-“

“You made Ever’s Lemongrass Body Butter?”

TWELVE

She turned to face the sound of her name, and goggled to see a stunning brunette in a pretty pink wiggle dress, looking totally out of place and yet perfectly comfortable, bouncing on icepick thin heels with excitement, and she looked over her shoulder to see a smoking hot, hothotHOT, curly haired six and a half foot tall man smiling in amusement at her. “Yeah, that’s me.”

“I’m Ripley. I rent space at a temple to feminism in town, I want your number to buy some stuff from you for the shop.”

“Absolutely,”

“It would be really awesome, mostly for selfish reasons, if you joined the crew and never left, you here with someone?”

She rolled her lips under when Raid growled, jerking her back to his side possessively. Ripley’s man leaned down and whispered something in her ear, making her giggle and blush a little. “Um, right, anyway, Athena, this is Saint,” He gave her one of those manly chin jerks, so hot. She glanced up at Raid and saw him smiling with a smug, satisfied light to his expression. “So? What was Ever’s question?” Ripley asked, changing the subject with ease, “Where I was at on the pussy scale. I do girly shit, but prefer Army green over pink, any day.” She told Ever matter of factly, and the resigned expression on Ever’s face cleared, “You like plants, obvi. What about guns?”

“Very pro.”

“What’s your favorite?”

She shivered at how Raid slid his hand into her back pocket and kept her close, he and his brothers smiling at her in amusement, “My uncle got me a new hand gun every year for my birthday, my favorite one being a Firestar M43, but my all time fav was the Tactical SVR rifle I got on my twenty first.” It made her giggle to remember the look of disgust he’d had on his face when she’d asked him if he couldn’t find a pink one, “He got me up at like, the crack ass of dawn, which was terrible, and after presenting me with the rifle, he shoved me up on the roof where he’d made this little sniper nest. He was kind of a kook, like a Doomsday Prepper, kind of kook, but he loved sniping deer from the roof of his house.”