Clutched (Wild Riders) (20 page)

I watched curiously as she made her way toward the bar. The waitress was taking her sweet ass time with my credit card and receipt, which was forcing me to stay put. Chayse sashayed over to an empty bar stool and sat down. I waited for her to order herself a drink, but she didn't. Instead, she gave a flirty smile to the one person in that place that definitely didn't deserve it. Beau Gregurich.

Come the fuck on.

I had to keep my ass firmly planted in that booth to stop myself from stomping over there and telling him to back the fuck off, because that would have been super counterproductive to the plan. I had to get over her. I had to watch her with other guys and be okay with it. Even if the guy she was currently batting her lashes at was a complete dickwad.

“Here you go, sugar,” the waitress said, handing me my card and a receipt to sign. I took the pen from her other hand. I wrote in a big tip and signed my name. I scrawled my cell number across the top of the receipt and handed it back to her.

“Text me if she leaves with Gregurich,” I told her. I didn't need to point him out. Everyone in Halstead knew who Beau was. “Immediately.” The nod she gave me as she tucked the receipt into her front pocket said she knew exactly who he was.

I pulled my bottle up to my lips and took the final drink of my beer. As I walked through the bar and out the front door, I never even looked over at her. There was no point. She was free to flirt with whoever she wanted. Even if I hated the guy receiving her attention. As long as she was sitting there in a room full of people she could do whatever she wanted. I wasn't going to stick around for the little show she was putting on though. Maybe if I left she'd give up on trying to make me jealous and go back to her hotel. She'd be on a flight back to Texas tomorrow and by the time I returned from my trip, I'd have everything sorted out in my head.

What I could not handle was her leaving that very public place with him. As soon as I was out the door, I made sure my cell phone was on and turned up. Just in case I received a very dreaded text message.

* * *

U
nknown: They left about twenty minutes ago. Sorry I didn't notice sooner! Crazy night.

The message came through loud and clear. She'd been alone with him for almost half an hour. That was way too much time. Images of him putting his hands on her, or worse, teased my imagination. I told my brother and friends that I was calling it a night the second I read it.

“I'm going to go pack,” I told Reid. “Make sure I've got everything ready for tomorrow.” I knew that if I told my brother where Chayse was he'd fly off the handle. He and Brett would be out the door and looking for the two of them. Chayse was their teammate and they already treated her like their little sister. The last thing Throttled Energy needed was a scandal involving three of their riders. I had to handle this by myself. Not that throwing a punch or two was out of the question.

“Such a party pooper,” Nora said. “We don't leave until three.”

“Yeah, dude,” Brett chimed in. “Don’t deny you've had everything packed since this morning. Probably color coordinated.” He laughed.

I painted on a smile and pretended to enjoy the hard time they were giving me about being a perfectionist as I walked out, but as soon as I was behind the wheel of my truck, the rage I'd been trying to dial back since my new waitress friend texted me was in full force. I drove through the streets of Halstead like a complete lunatic—blowing stop signs and ignoring speed limits like it was my job. Thank goodness the two police officers that patrolled the town were MIA.

The first place I drove by was Beau's house. There were no signs of them. I circled back around town and went by his shop. I knew he liked to pretend like he was a big deal, so showing the pro-shop he ran to Chayse would have been a logical stop. Nothing. My patience was starting to wear thin, as my grip on the wheel tightened. The heat rose from my chest up to my face the longer I searched for them. She didn't belong to him, but then again, she didn't belong to me either. I'd made that perfectly clear when I'd told her I was over her.

None of that stopped the complete insanity I felt the moment I pulled into the parking lot of the Halstead Inn and saw his truck sitting in the parking space in front of her door.

Motherfucker.

Just as I was set to throw it in park, jump out and kick the door to her room down, I noticed the silhouettes through the back window of his truck. They were still inside. I squinted trying to make out exactly what was happening in that vehicle. They appeared to both be sitting in the front seat. Their heads were a safe distance from one another. I let out the breath I'd been holding for the last few seconds and tried to settle down. As I waited for something to happen, I thought about exactly what I was going to say to her when she finally got out of the truck. Jealousy was coursing through my veins in time with the bass of the song that was playing through my speakers. I turned it down the second I saw the passenger door open. I cracked the window and tried to hear what she was saying as she climbed out.

“Thanks again for the ride,” she told him. “See ya around.”

Like hell she would
.

She gave him a friendly wave and shut the truck door. He waited for her to unlock and enter her room before he pulled way. His chivalry surprised me. Probably because he thought he was laying groundwork to get into her pants. Which was never going to happen. Ever.

As soon as his taillights were out of sight, I jumped out of my truck. Each step I took toward the door was as purposeful as the knocks I firmly planted on the door to room number seven.

The second she pulled open the door, I pushed in and the words started flying off my lips.

“What the fuck, Chayse?” I started. “Please tell me that you didn't actually do something with him?” I yelled. “He's a piece of—”

“It's none of your business,” she said calmly as she shut to door and latched it.

“It is my business when you’re leaving bars with him,” I said. “You know what he did to Brett. You know that everyone hates him. Was trying to make me jealous really that important to you?”

“Are you?” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. The way she was standing there all arrogant, like she'd gotten under my skin, was infuriating. My heart was about to beat out of my chest and I couldn’t decide if I was madder at her or Gregurich. “Jealous?”

“Of course I'm fucking jealous.” I walked over and placed my hands on her shoulders. “I'm insane with jealousy. You shouldn't be riding around with guys like him. You shouldn't riding around with other guys period.”

“I don't think so,” she snapped, shrugging out of my hold. “You don't get to come in here and tell me what to do. We’re not on the track, Hoyt.” She shoved me. “Not to mention, an hour ago you were telling me that you were over this. That I was out of your system. That things had to go back to normal. Remember?”

Of course I remembered. It was all lies. Every fucking word of it.

“Just because we can't be together doesn't mean that I'm going to be okay with you gallivanting around with jerks like Beau,” I countered.

“That's exactly what it means,” she spat back. “I can do whatever I want with whomever I choose.”

“You're being ridiculous.”

“I learned from the best,” she snapped. I tugged at my hair with both hands as I gritted my teeth. She was smarter than this. “Why are you acting like what happened last night didn't mean anything?”

“I'm not!”

“Okay, Hoyt,” she said as she shook her head.

“You're making this even harder than it has to be.”

“I am?” An angry laugh expelled with her breath. “You know what? I'm done,” she said. I felt like the walls were closing in on me as she stood there glaring at me. “I'm done with you thinking you get to call all the shots,” she moved toward me. “I'm done with you trying to control everything.  Deciding that one time could be enough for us? That once was all it was going to take? It wasn't fair to either of us.”

“You agreed,” I interjected. I knew it wasn't fair, but it was the situation we'd found ourselves in.

“No I didn't. You said it,” she reminded. “I tried,” she paused and sniffled softly. I could see her eyes were filling with tears. “I tried to be okay with it. I tried to see your reasoning, but it was all bullshit. I can't just have one time with you,” she confessed. “I want more. I want you.”

“But—”

“I don't care,” she said. “I'll find another sponsor.”

“Chayse...”

“Shut up,” she said, crushing her mouth to mine. As I said her name, I was all ready to remind her of all the reasons that she couldn't quit, but the moment she put her lips on mine I couldn't think of a single one. Her tongue swept into my mouth as I pulled her onto the bed with me. I sat down and she straddled my lap, directing my face toward her as I held onto her. The clarity in my head as I felt her body against mine was a welcomed relief. The strength with which she was kissing me was unbridled and uncomplicated. Her words and actions were searing, in the best possible way. She wanted me and was willing to give up everything to prove it.

If she was, then I was too. Being with her was too damn good to keep denying.

I
let my lips take out my frustration on his. I kissed him and tugged his hair in an angry attempt to remind him just how good we were together. We were fire and ice, pleasure and pain, chaos and control. The parts of ourselves that didn't seem compatible fed off of each other, and the result was mind blowing perfection.

“I'm sorry,” he said, pulling his lips from mine. “I'm sorry.” I sat back on his lap and looked into his eyes. If he was going to end things between us before they even got off the ground I was going to slap him. “I want to be with you,” he started. I held my breath and waited for him to start telling me every reason we couldn't. “More than I want anything else. Jobs, money, security. I don't care about any of it as long as you promise to kiss me like this every day.” The slow smile that crept across his lips and the way his arms wrapped around me were exactly how I'd hoped this night would end. Especially after the night I'd had.

“I'll do a whole lot more than kiss you,” I promised. He raised his hand up and wiped the tears that had fallen down my cheek.

“I'll hold you to it,” he said.

“I know.” I leaned in and kissed him again. My hands found the edge of his shirt and pulled it over his head. He did the same with mine, revealing the strapless black bra I was wearing under my sweater. His eyes drank me in as he trailed his fingertips over the edge of my bra. “Not yet,” I told him. I was just as anxious as he was, but tonight was different than the last time.

This time we could take our time. There was no rush of being caught. No someone might walk in. No hurry up. Tonight there was just us in my motel room and nothing but time. As I ran my hands down the smooth plane of his chest, I let my fingertips trace through every ridge—down the center of his pecks, across the ripples on his stomach, up and down his ribcage. He was perfect—an exquisite combination of lean and strong. Exactly what I wanted to put my hands on every night.

As I slid down his body, letting my knees fall to the floor between his legs, I trailed my lips and tongue down his skin. A growl rumbled from the back of his throat.

Placing his hands on the bed behind him, he leaned back and watched as I worked the button of his pants free. He reached for me as I slid his zipper down. “Come here,” he said, trying to get me to move back up to him.

“It's my night to call the shots,” I told him with a wicked grin as I reached into his pants and wrapped my fingers around him. The warmth of his hard cock in my hand fueled my advances. “Lie back,” I told him with a wicked grin as I freed him from his jeans.

I knew he was biting back his urge to be in control. His teeth tugged at his bottom lip as I teased his tip with my tongue. I cinched my hand around the bottom of his cock and took him into my mouth. He lowered himself onto his elbows, his eyes never leaving mine as I looked up him. The heat coming off of his stare was just as hot as the heat coming off of his body. I let my eyes fall shut as I continued.

Working him in and out, I felt him pulse under my tongue. He laced his fingers through my hair as I flickered my tongue against him and sucked him deep. He muffled a moan when his tip hit the back of my throat.

“Fuck, that feels good,” he said as I rocked back, slowly letting him pull from my mouth before swallowing him back. “Too good,” he added, tugging my hair to slow my pace. I was insatiable with him in mouth. I didn't want to stop until I had every last inch of him inside of me. “Slow down, baby,” he said in warning. “I'm not ready for this to be over yet.”

I looked up at him. As much as I wanted to send him over the edge with my mouth, I heeded to his plea. I pulled back to capture the first drop of his climax. The salty taste of him on my tongue as he looked down at me with hooded eyes had my sex throbbing. I wanted more. I wanted to suck him in and take every drop he had to offer.

His hands moved to my waist and this time I let him pull me up to my feet. Standing between his legs, his gaze moved from my lips as I swiped my finger across my lip down to my breasts. He dropped his mouth to my skin. Slowly, he drew out kisses on the flesh that was peeking out from my bra. He reached around and unfastened it, letting it fall to the floor. He drew one of my nipples into his mouth and slipped his tongue around the tight, sensitive peak. My head fell back as he lavished the other with the same attention.

I held onto his shoulders as he unfastened my jeans and pushed them down my body with my panties. My pulse was racing as I stepped out of them. I stood there completely exposed to him for the first time and felt exhilarated. I'd never wanted to give myself to anyone the way I wanted to give myself to Hoyt. His brown eyes were nearly black as his eyes focused in on me. He sat there almost stoic as he looked me over.

“Everything you'd hoped for?” I asked, letting a little ounce of insecurity creep in. This was the first time we'd seen each other naked. What if he wasn't as pleased as I was about him? I knew that I was in great shape, partially thanks to him and his workouts, but I still wondered for a fleeting second if he liked my body. I tried to swallow back the doubt and the second he smiled, I knew the answer.