Damaged and the Cobra (13 page)

Glancing down at my hands, I threw them both on the
driveway. As I watched them shatter, I was really saying goodbye to this part
of my life. Good riddance to all the bullshit, I was a new Lark now. From this
day on, I was the muse Aaron saw when he looked at me.

The moment I saw the red mark across Lark’s face, a
little part of my humanity died. While she entered the house and tried to
explain, I heard only part of her words. The ones about who hurt her and who
needed to bleed.

Rage like I’d never felt before surged through me
until I could barely breathe, let alone think. I needed to hit something. No,
someone. The urge to hunt down the fucker who hurt my woman was too intense to
deny. I hungered for revenge.

Until I stared into Lark’s terrified eyes and my
breath caught. She was in a panic. Balled up in front of me like a frightened
child, she waited for my rage to erupt. A part of me, deep under the rage,
realized she thought I was going to hit her.

Unable to speak calmly, I stormed from the room and
to my gym. The bag felt my vengeance in a way I couldn’t deliver on the fucker
who deserved it. I bashed my fists against the bag until I worked off the edge
of my anger. When I felt more in control, I returned to find Lark in the exact
spot I’d left her. She looked too afraid to move. She even flinched as I knelt
in front of her.

“It’s okay,” I soothed.

“I’m sorry.”

“You did nothing wrong.”

“Please, don’t go over there.”

“I won’t. Do you want to go sit on the porch?”

Shaking her head, Lark whimpered, “I want…”

When she didn’t answer, I caressed her cheek. “What
do you want, my muse?”

“I want you inside me,” she whispered, her arms
wrapped tightly around her body as if for protection. “I need you to be mine.”

“I am yours. I’ll always been yours.”

“You belong to your temper right now. It’s like
Raven was before she left me.”

“I’ll never leave,” I said, tugging her gently to
her feet. “Let’s get you cleaned up in the shower and I’ll show you how I’m
yours.”

Finally, a little smile emerged on her frightened
face. “I stood up to Larry. I even made him bleed.”

Smiling tightly, I knew I was grinding my teeth. I needed
to make the bastard bleed, but Lark wanted me to calm down. Even in the shower
with her pale skin soapy under my fingertips, I couldn’t stop grinding my damn
teeth. Almost as if I would explode in rage if I didn’t hold my jaws tight.

Lark was happy though. When I paused soaping her
and stared at where a nasty bruise was forming on her back, she wiggled her
butt at me and grinned. Sharing her smile, I tried to focus on her as she
leaned against me while I teased her nipples.

Despite her hunger, I could only think that if Lark
was Cooper’s girl then Larry would be dead. My friend wouldn’t stand down.
Nothing would keep him from killing the fucker like he killed the bastard who
hit Farah. Instead of protecting my woman, I was letting the bastard walk. Tomorrow,
Larry would be strutting around as if he hadn’t a care in the damn world. No
way was that happening, yet Lark wanted me to back off.

“Oh, Aaron,” Lark moaned as if an hour earlier she
wasn’t beaten by a man twice her size.

Turning to me, Lark stared into my eyes and I knew.
The wait was over and she needed me inside her. My little muse stepped on the
side of the tub, reached up to my shoulders, and lifted herself to meet my
hips.

“My pixy climbs like a monkey,” I teased as she
pressed down and I filled her.

“This is forever.”

For the first time since pounding the bag, I stopped
grinding my teeth. I’d get my revenge later. For now, there was only Lark under
the hot water.

“Fuck me harder,” she whispered, wrapped around me.
“I feel like you’re holding back.”

“I’m still pissed and I don’t want to take it out
on you.”

Lark pressed her forehead against mine and stared
into my eyes. “Never hold back. I’m tougher than I look and I want all of you.”

“You were scared earlier.”

“I’d never seen you like that,” she said, licking
my bottom lip as I moved slowly in and out of her. “I’ve seen you fuck before.
I’m not afraid.”

“Really?” I asked, lifting a brow.

“Bring it on, cobra,” she said, licking the head of
the tattoo. “Show me what you’ve got.”

Wrapping her tighter in my arms, I thrust hard into
Lark and she moaned like I’d never satisfied her before that moment.
Hell,
my muse really wanted to play.

Yet, after a few more hard thrusts, I stopped and
frowned at her.

“Did you break it?” she said, laughing. “I could
lick it better if that would help?”

Smiling, I turned off the water. “I need you
somewhere safe so when I fuck you hard, you won’t fly out of the shower.”

“Big talk, she murmured as I carried her to the
bedroom and rested on her back. “I like it hard. I like you hard too. If I keep
saying hard, will you help me come?”

I gave her a gentle kiss. “Tell me you love me.”

“I love you forever, Aaron. You’re mine.”

“Tell me you don’t think I’m a bitch to let some
fucker hurt you.”

“The only thing making me think you’re a bitch is
how you’re teasing me with your cock like that. I want you.”

One hard thrust and Lark gasped. Eyes wide, she
grinned and squirmed under me.

“Let go,” she murmured. “Don’t hold anything back.
Not with me. Not ever.”

Giving Lark what she wanted, I propped myself over
her and all of my anger and frustration broke free in our lovemaking. At first,
I think she was intimidated by the ferocity of my thrusts. Like our first night
when she didn’t know what to do with her hands, she seemed awkwardly for a
minute or two.

Suddenly, her face lit up and she held onto my
forearms and soaked in every thrust as our bodies became one. When she was
close, one of her hands went between her legs and I nearly lost it watching her
stroke her clit.

Lark cried out my name as if startled by the
pleasure. Seeing such beauty in her expression, I leaned down to kiss her. Her
arms wrapped around me while her hips shoved up, wanting more. Bearing down
into her, I felt my relief edging closer and closer. Harder and faster, we
moved then she came a second time and I released everything I had inside her.
All of the need and uncertainty from the last week. Lark was mine and fuck
anyone who tried to take her away.

“Mine,” she whimpered as I relaxed inside her and
we caught our breath.

“Always.”

Realizing I was pressing down on her back, I awoke
from the heat of the moment. Sliding out of her, I admired the sight of her
satisfied pussy glistening for me.

“It misses you already,” Lark teased, rolling over
and wiggling her ass at me. “Do you miss it?”

Hell yeah, I missed it. In fact, I missed it again
and again until we were exhausted. Sitting against the headboard, I held Lark while
she traced my cobra tattoo. She was relaxed in a wonderful way. Smiling easily,
she wanted to play one more time before we finally slept. More than anything, I
suspected she needed to be close after the earlier attack.
An attack that
would go unpunished.

“I feel like a coward who can’t protect my woman,”
I admitted. “I know what Cooper would do in this situation and I’m not doing
it. I hate thinking he does better for Farah than I do for you.”

Lark rested her head on my chest and curled up on
the bed. Her eyes were tired as she studied me. I ran my fingers along her
freckles and sighed at how she said nothing. Finally, she took my hand and
rested it against her cheek.

“Destroy his car. That’ll be your revenge.”

“His car?” I asked, thoroughly unimpressed with
this option. A guy could buy a new car. I wanted to take something Larry
couldn’t live without.
Like his balls.

“It’s one of those old collectable cars and he’s
spent over a hundred grand fixing it up over the years. It’s his favorite thing
in the world. He loves that stupid car.”

When I said nothing, Lark continued, “In his will,
he’s not leaving the car to Dylan or my mom. He’s leaving it to some friend who
has a bunch of those old cars. Larry doesn’t think anyone else is good enough
for the fucking car.”

Lark kissed the palm of my hand then rested on her
tit. “You shouldn’t feel less than Cooper. Or that you’re not a man capable of
protecting me. I know you want to use your fists to destroy Larry, but he’s an
old man. If you really want to hurt him, you take that car. It’ll break his
cold heart.”

Searching her face, I realized the car was
something not only Larry loved, but Lark hated.

“He once said if it was between saving me, Raven,
and Mom or saving his car, it wasn’t even a difficult choice,” she muttered
then added, “I hate that fucking car.”

“Then, we take his fucking car.”

Lark smiled and crawled up to straddle me. She
caressed my cheeks then kissed each one.

“I don’t think Cooper is a better man. He’s rich,
but he can’t create like you do. When I see you drawing or even doodling
something on a napkin, it amazes me. How you can make something beautiful out
of nothing. It’s like what you did with me. Like I was just going through life
feeling like nothing and now I feel beautiful. You made that happen. I don’t
wish you were anyone else.”

Gently flicking her little nipples with my thumbs,
I watched her expression shift. All of her emotions were open to me. The love,
desire, acceptance, and hope I saw on her face were for me. Everything she was
now rested in my hands.

The next few days were busy, yet exciting. Moving
into Aaron’s house was an easy step. I just called Mom and told her we were
coming by for my stuff. If Larry was there, Aaron would pound in his face, so
the fucker should be gone. My mother said okay and hung up. Larry wasn’t around
when we picked up my clothes and few belongings.

Aaron’s house wasn’t big, but I didn’t need a lot
of space. He gave me the second closet in his room and dumped his extra stuff
in the spare bedroom. The whole moving adventure took two hours.

Dylan came by to check on me and say he had found
an apartment. Aaron glared at Dylan even after thanking him for helping me.
Dylan glared back even after saying he was happy I found someone with a nice
front yard. It was friendly, yet tense. Through it all, Deputy Dickhead Darling
watched us from his porch down the street.

Living with Aaron was amazing. I didn’t have to worry
about doing something wrong and getting yelled at by the jerk paying the bills.
I didn’t have to deal with awkward chitchat with my mother. No more avoiding
Dylan’s broody staring either.

Instead, I woke up with the man I loved and fell asleep
relaxed next to him. On the mornings I didn’t work, I sat in his makeshift gym
while he worked out. As Aaron pumped weights, I struggled to keep my hands to
myself. It wasn’t easy with him sweaty and those muscles flexing. I stared like
an animal in heat until he finished then I’d help him wash off in the shower.
Aaron really loved those mornings.

Since he only used his Honda for shopping and
errands where a trunk was necessary, Aaron didn’t really need the car. He gave
it to me and I finally had a way to get around town. When I warned him that I
was a lead foot, he just laughed and pointed at all the speeding tickets on the
kitchen counter.

The first week together was perfection, but I knew
Aaron needed his revenge on Larry. Vaughn was planning to help him steal the
car. When Aaron muttered during dinner at Cooper’s that he didn’t need help,
Outlaw pointed out how the artsy fartsy country club boy hadn’t stolen a car
before. Aaron flipped him off, but agreed. I didn’t plan to come along, but I
looked forward to the pictures.

Every day after school, I joined Aaron at the sub
shop where we ate sandwiches and talked about our day. Back in the business, he
finished up a little paperwork before we hurried home. I loved racing him back
to the house, even though I never won.

Returning to the tattoo shop on a Friday afternoon,
I noticed Jade’s boyfriend’s car parked out front. Another car was next to it.
Neither Aaron nor Jade had a client that evening. Before I could ask, I noticed
Aaron’s expression change.

“I love you,” he said “I never loved her. I swear.”

Aaron hurried inside and I frowned at his need to
see Kristen. Soon, I realized he was more worried about Jade seeing Kristen.

“Bitch, we’re not doing your fucking tat,” Jade
sneered.

Kristen was pretty. Not beautiful, but she had a
nice round face and long red hair. She was above average in the looks
department even while giving Jade her duckface.
Bailey’s was better.

“Melissa said you guys would do it.”

Jade glared at the receptionist who shrugged.
“She’s going to pay, so what’s the big deal.”

Kristen ignored the women and smiled at Aaron.
“You’ll do it, won’t you? I want my tat to be from the best.”

Aaron sighed. “No, I won’t.”

“Why?” Kristen asked, losing her smile. “Is it because
of your bitch employee or because of the bitch you’re fucking?”

“Oh, no, she didn’t just call me a bitch,” Jade
said, moving towards Kristen.

“It’s okay, Jade. We’re not taking the job and
Kristen is leaving,” Aaron muttered, as Tony kept his girlfriend from reaching
Kristen.

Jade rolled her eyes. “You let the whore get away
with too much shit.”

“He doesn’t let me do anything,” Kristen announced,
giving her best pissed off head roll. “He never did. I’m my own woman.”

Smirking at Tony, Jade said, “From what I heard,
she was everyone’s woman.”

“Fuck you,” Kristen hissed, flipping off Jade.

The tattoo artist struggled against Tony’s big
frame. “Let me hit her, Aaron. I’ll make her shut the fuck up and the world
will sigh with relief.”

When Aaron shook his head and put a stop to the impending
violence, Kristen grinned brightly. Jade glared hard, yet obeyed Aaron’s
request. I didn’t though.

The sound of my hand slapping Kristen’s face was
like a gunshot. The whole place seemed to shake from the sound. No one reacted.
Even Kristen looked unsure at what happened then she screamed “cunt” and swung
at me.

“Please,” I said, ducking easily. “I’ve seen small
children with better aim.”

Jade hooted while Aaron considered interfering
until Tony patted his shoulder.

“Let these women handle their business. Don’t be a
chauvinistic pig and tell them what to do.”

A disappointed Kristen realized she wasn’t getting
any help. Yet, she was probably five six while I was an inch over five in my
tennis shoes. She still figured she’d win easy. She figured wrong.

Using moves I learned to block opponents in roller
derby, I nailed Kristen on the jaw and she fell backwards. Flopping on her
butt, she looked up at me and burst into tears. Her sobs sent Jade into
hysterics while I just frowned.

“Bitch sure can’t take a hit,” Jade said, high fiving
me then leaning down to gloat over a crying Kristen. “You fucked with the wrong
man. If I see you again, I’ll pound you. No one messes with Aaron Fucking
Barnes.”

“Great, I’m Bailey now,” Aaron murmured to me and I
laughed. “Are you okay?”

“She didn’t even touch me. Hell yeah, I’m okay.”

“My little fighting muse.”

“Tell you what,” Jade announced. “We’ll drag the
crybaby outside and shove her stupid ass in that shitty car. That way, you two
can fuck in the shop without anyone interrupted.”

“Gross,” Melissa said. “I’m leaving.”

“No one cares,” Jade said, yanking Kristen up and
pushing her out the door.

Tony watched them go then grinned at Aaron. “My
woman is so hot when she gets crazy. You ain’t the only one getting honey
tonight.”

The men high fived while Melissa hurried out with
that bitchy look plastered on her face.

Aaron watched them disappear then looked at me.
“I’m firing Melissa. Would you happen to want to work here?”

“What about Denny’s?”

“Babe, give your two week notice and come hang out
with me.”

“What if we get sick of seeing each other?” I asked
as he leaned down and nibbled at my collar bone. “Never mind. That feels good.”

“I know they left us alone, but I don’t want to do
it here. Can you imagine what my customers would think?”

“Not sanitary. Let’s race home,” I said, going for
the door as he grabbed his keys to lock up.

Aaron took my hand and stopped me. “I’m sorry that
shit with Kristen happened.”

“I was bound to meet her eventually and she was
bound to act like a bitch then end up on her ass. We just got it over with
sooner rather than later.”

“You are so hot when you turn roller derby on
people,” he said and I wondered if we were leaving. “A tiny badass.”

Staring into his blue eyes, I smiled. “I want you
and I don’t want to wait long. Are you giving it to me here or at home? I need
to reassure my pussy the wait won’t be long.”

Aaron’s expression flattened out and I was pretty
sure all of the blood left his brain. A minute later, he blinked and took an
unsteady breath.

“We’re leaving.”

“I accept the position as your receptionist,” I
said, hugging him against me as we walked out. “I’ll get to see you work and
enjoy your happy customers.”

Aaron nodded slightly, but he was mostly focused on
getting home without crashing so we could celebrate naked.