Fight (17 page)

25.

(Tripp)

What the fuck am I thinking?

The thought attacked me again and
again. Leaving Winter was wrong. Leaving the nothing I had was only going to cost
me my life. Plus, I fucking loved her. If she was going to end up dead or I was
going to end up dead, at least I had finally found a good cause for it to
happen. It wouldn
’
t just be
me sitting in the shit hole apartment of mine with the windows open, listening
to the waves crashing in the ocean.

More than anything else, Winter
required a sense of trust that I knew nothing about. I wasn't incapable of
trusting
…
I just never had
a reason to. Some people can read someone and their lies by their eyes. For me,
it was about the fists. If someone was willing to fight for the truth, then it
was worth the trust.

I touched my cheek.

She had landed a hell of a slap to
my face. There was a beautiful grit about her that drove me wild. She
’
d never leave my head, my heart,
my soul. Even if this thing came to a crashing end and I was back to fighting
for Aldo, she would have a place in my heart forever. She ruined any other
woman I
’
d fuck because they
’
d never be as good as her. Then
again, I had no desire for any other woman in the world but Winter. I wanted
her. All of her.

I cut the wheel and spun the car
around. The tires screamed in protest; maybe I was making the biggest mistake
of my life. I had never followed love before so I didn
’
t know the outcome.

When I got back to the house, I
parked the car a little bit away because something hit me. Not literally but
just a sense of something. It was like I knew Winter was in trouble.

I ran from the car to the front
door.

That
’
s
when I heard the voices.

“
Fucking
hit her!
”

I turned at the knob and it was
locked.

Locked.

I cut around to the side of the
house and looked in the window.

There was Winter, circling around
with some guy twice her size. Another guy leaned against the couch, smiling,
calling out orders.

The dining room table was flipped
over and moved.

I was about to punch the window
when Winter leapt forward. She threw a punch and hit the guy in the face. His
head bobbed, then he burst out laughing. Winter clutched her hand and slipped
back, wincing in pain.

“
My
turn!
”
the guy
yelled.

“
Come
on, Kyle. Make it fast, s
o we can get down to business with this little
slut.
”

I pushed at the glass. The window
was locked. If I jumped at it though, it would break. If I got a good enough
head start I could dive through the damn thing.

Or I could just go around to the
front door and knock. Work my way in. Shoot the door. Break it down. Something.

As I debated, I saw Winter
’
s eyes. Those stunning blue eyes
were filled with hurt and fear. I blamed myself. If I hadn't left, this wouldn
’
t be happening.

Winter took another swing and
missed. She stumbled forward and the guy stood there. I saw his hand moving
before Winter knew what was about to happen. With a solid backhand, he cracked
Winter
’
s jaw. She was off
her feet and I ran backwards. There was no other choice now.

I ran forward and jumped, tucking
my head, leading with my right shoulder. I hit the window and it exploded. I
sailed through the broken glass and landed down on the floor in a roll.

“
What
the fuck?
”
someone screamed.

I kicked up to my feet, already
assessing the room. Winter to my right, on the floor, holding her jaw, crying.
I wanted to console her, but I couldn
’
t
right now.

The guy who had hit her -
Kyle
- looked shocked. His eyes went from the window to me. He was the weaker of the
two. I dove at him, burying my same shoulder into his gut and drove him back
into the wall. We hit with a thud and I pushed off him. Three punches later, he
didn
’
t know what to do with
his hands.

“
Shoot
him!
”
he screamed.

Well, that gave that away
…

I grabbed Kyle and turned with him.

A second later, a gun went off. I
felt Kyle
’
s body jerk as he
took the bullet instead me. His mouth fell open, his eyes wide and already
going dead. I walked Kyle backwards and threw him to the right.

The other guy still had a gun
pointed, like he didn
’
t
give a fuck he just killed someone. I jumped at him and knocked the gun out of
his hand. He swung his foot up and kicked me in the stomach. As I started to
hunch over, I threw a right and got him in the face. He went over the couch. I
scrambled to catch my breath and went after him.

He was back up on his feet,
stepping back.

“
Who
the fuck are you?
”
I asked.

“
Fuck
off,
”
he growled.
“
You have no idea what you
’
re up against here. Stay the
fuck away from it all.
”

I moved fast and gave a one, two
right and left combo. I sent the guy back against the fridge. His nose squirted
blood. He started to inch down. I went at him and then felt something grab my
leg.

It was Kyle, slowly dying, trying
to make a last stand. I turned and stomped my foot on his jaw, feeling it crush
like a soda can. All I could see was him hurting Winter.

I lifted my foot again.

“
Tripp!
”
Winter
’
s voice screamed.

I turned just in time to see the
other guy slashing a piece of the broken window at me. I turned, offering my
shoulder rather than my damn throat. The glass cut me, but I managed to swing
my left hand at him, hitting him in the mouth. The glass was stuck in my
shoulder, the pain white hot. I fell forward and put my right hand to the
fridge.

The guy jumped at the broken window
and was gone. I watched him crawl, climb to his feet, and run.

There was no use chasing him.

I turned and saw Kyle on the floor,
dead. I looked at Winter. She slowly rose to her feet. She was shaking, in
shock.

“
Stay
there,
”
I said.

I grabbed the piece of glass and
pulled. It hurt worse coming out than it did going into my shoulder. I screamed
and then threw it to the floor. I ran to Winter and scooped her up. She buried
her face in my shoulder - my non wounded shoulder - and she cried.

I turned so her back faced the
carnage in her house.

It was worse than anything I could
have ever imagined.

The guy on the floor had his hand
stretched out. Palm up. On his forearm was a tattoo. A pretty damn obvious tattoo.
A skull. Under that? X.

Skull X.

That
’
s
who had come here to attack Winter.

That meant one thing.

It was time to go after them.

It was time to find all the truth
and give Aldo what he wanted.

Because all I wanted was Winter.
Once and for all.

“
We
’
re out of here, darling,
”
I whispered.

Fuck, I really loved her.

~ ~ ~

I opened the door to the hotel room
and went in first. I checked the room and it was all clear. I had a bag of
clothes and Winter had a bag of clothes. That was it. We were two people on the
run, but at least we were together.

I shut the door and locked it.

Then I went after Winter. I grabbed
her by the shoulders and pulled her close. I kissed her forehead, her nose,
then her lips. My hand gently rubbed against her jaw. She winced and gasped. I
kissed her harder, wishing I could steal her pain. It was my fault her jaw hurt
because I had left her to be attacked by those two goons.

I kissed down her neck and caught
myself burying my face into her neck. I could smell her sweet skin. One hand
touched her face, the other hand at her back, holding her tight to me. A wave
of emotion ran rampant and I thought I was going to cry.

Winter groaned and dug her hands
into my hair. We were in silence because that
’
s
all we had for each other. Years of bullshit brought us together, but at the
same time, all those years left scars that wanted to tear us apart.

I slowly kissed back up her neck to
her mouth. We kissed deep, fast, pulling away, staring at each other, going at
it again. We kissed like that, over and over, for a while. Like one of us
wanted to make a move but just couldn
’
t.
Like we were afraid of each other. Our hearts raced, destruction all around us.
We both felt the desperate need to be together.

Finally, Winter started to take my
shirt off. Her bare hands ran up my bare body. I lifted my arms and saw the
flicker of a smile as she took my shirt off. I let it fall to the floor and
then she let out a gasp.

“
You
’
re cut,
”
she whispered.
“
That
looks nasty.
”

I looked to my left and there was a
decent sized gash. Maybe it could have used a stitch or two, but I wasn
’
t going anywhere near a hospital
right now. There was enough of my blood in Winter
’
s
house to implicate me, plus whatever the hell Stoney, the Red Aces, and Aldo
had going on behind the scenes.

“
I
’
ll be fine,
”
I whispered.
“
Just a cut. I
’
ll go wash it out in the shower.
”

Winter slipped her hands to my
chest. She stared at me. She was still hurt. I slowly put my hands to hers and
squeezed.

“
It
’
s
…”

“
No,
not right now. You just have to trust me, Tripp. Just not right now.
”

“
Okay,
”
I said.
“
I
’
m
going to grab a shower. Then we can talk.
”

Winter nodded.

I leaned forward and pressed my
lips to hers again. On the tip of my tongue was
I love you
,
but I
wouldn
’
t let it slide.

I
’
d
hurt her enough already for one night.

26.

(Winter)

I love you, Tripp.

He turned and walked to the
bathroom. His back rippled were mountains of muscle. My fingertips had played
on those ripples when he loved my body. Now I watched him walk away.

The door shut.

I reached down for his t-shirt. I
balled it up and smelled it.

Tripp.

Sweaty and sexy man.

I looked at the cut at the
shoulder, the blood on the shirt. Dana had come so close to slashing Tripp
’
s throat. And Kyle was on the
floor. Dead.

I dropped the shirt.

One second it seemed like the
pieces of the puzzle made sense. Then the next second they didn
’
t. But one thing was for sure.
Those guys were from Skull X. And they knew about Autumn, and Andrea. That
meant
…

If they had Autumn and Andrea, why?
What did that do for anyone?

My head started to spin.

Then I looked at the bathroom door.

There was one thing that could make
me feel better.

Tripp.

I stepped to the bathroom door and
it was unlocked. Slowly, I opened it and stepped inside. The shower ran, the hot
water already producing a comforting steam. I shut the door as quietly as I
could behind me. I saw Tripp standing in the shower, facing the water, head
down. His hands against the wall. The water beat his head and neck, dropping
down. His body cut with impossible muscles, the lines along the sides of his
stomach splicing straight down between his legs. His cock dangled there, still
thick and beautiful.

I walked to the sink and turned. I
wiped the mirror and caught Tripp looking at me. Our eyes met in the reflection
and I shook my head.

No talking about anything.
Please.

I knew what I wanted, what I
needed.

I started to strip.

Nothing seductive and sexy. Just me
standing with my back to the shower, taking off all my clothes. I took my bra
off, leaving my panties for last. I then slowly bent forward, my hands at my
hips, gently pushing my panties down.

I stepped out of them and turned
around.

Tripp had the shower door open
already, waiting for me.

I walked to the shower and Tripp
wasted no time in grabbing my hips and pulling me right into the water. When
the water hit me, I jumped. But it quickly became soothing, just like Tripp
’
s touch.

His hands ran up my body, cupping
my breasts. I put my head back into the water, letting it soak my hair, my
face. I then felt Tripp kiss just above my breasts. Kiss after kiss, teasing
his way down to my nipple. I was so sensitive, my chest gently thrusting,
wanting him to taste me. His tongue cut over my nipple and then back up. His
lips touched, mouth sucked, then he moved to my other nipple. After repeating
the same motion, Tripp kissed up my chest, my neck, his hands going around my
body, pulling me tight to his.

I felt the swell of his cock
pressing between our bodies. I rocked my hips left to right, feeling his thickness
rubbing against my belly. My hands moved up his arms, tracing the lines of his
biceps, up to his shoulders. I put my right foot up on the ledge of the tub,
opening my legs for him.

I was so ready. So desperate.

Tripp
’
s
right hand cupped around to my ass, keeping me close. His other hand played
with my leg, climbing around to my inner thigh. His fingers inched up until he
touched me. His strong fingers pressed against my pussy, gently moving. There
was nothing gentle about what was happening inside my body though. I throbbed
with a wild need, my wetness and heat demanding more of Tripp.

He thrust with his fingers, opening
me. I sighed and jumped, loving the feeling. His fingers turned and pulled out.
He then put a little distance between us, looking down at my body. Our eyes met
for a moment and then Tripp went on the attack.

His mouth grazed mine and then
inched down. His lips and tongue kissed between my breasts and right down to my
stomach. I shuddered and cried out when his tongue flickered at my belly
button. I reached up and grabbed the top of the shower door, my other hand at
his hair.

I felt his tongue moving down
beyond my lower stomach. The tip of his tongue sliced between my legs, curling,
tasting me. He came up, found my clit with ease and then pulled away. Tripp
looked up at me. Even though he was on his knees before me, he controlled
everything. He was my protector in more than one way.

His mouth connected with my sex
again, suckling my folds, his tongue making circles, gently penetrating me,
then curling up to my clit again. He stayed there this time, his lips holding
tight, pulling, making me cry out and thrust harder at him. His hands kneaded
into my ass, fingertips pulling at my cheeks.

As his tongue continued to explore,
I put my head back. I kept my eyes open, losing myself in the sexy moment. The
water beat on my chest, on my nipples, and it actually felt really good. With
Tripp between my legs and the water hitting my chest, it started to make me
feel way too good. My legs started to pump as I felt an orgasm already
building.

But as fast as that started, Tripp
stopped. He pulled away and stood back up, his hands still at my ass,
positioning me so he could enter me.

But I didn
’
t get my turn.

I put my hands to his hard chest
and pushed him away.

“
What
the hell?
”
he growled.

I grinned and came forward, kissing
his chest. My right hand reached down and found his cock with ease. My fingers
slipped around the hard, wet skin, and I jerked at him. I kept kissing down his
body, dropping to my knees before him. My hand stroked his cock, up and back.
The water hit the back of my head and my back.

Tripp
’
s
fingers ran through my wet hair.

“
Oh,
fuck, darling,
”
he
whispered.
“
You have no
idea
…”

I gripped the root of his cock as
hard as I could, allowing my mouth to slide over the tip of his cock. My mouth
opened as wide as it could, sliding down on him. My lips moved over the soft
ridge of his tip right to his steel hard shaft. My hand gently pumped as I
sucked him, pulling back slowly, moving down slowly. Back and forth, tasting
his beautiful cock, feeling his fingers digging into the top of my head.

Tripp then started to gently
thrust, groaning each time my lips pulled back over the tip of his cock. I came
forward again, wanting to see how far I could take him in. But as I tried,
Tripp pulled away from me. He stepped back, forcing my mouth away from him.

I looked up and saw him gritting
his teeth. He took his hands away from my hair. His right hand stroked my
cheek. Bending forward a little, his left hand grabbed for my elbow and he
helped me up. Before I could take a breath or say a word, Tripp came at me. His
lips crashed to mine, our mouths opening. He turned me and pinned me against
the shower wall. The tile was cold and I wanted to scream but I couldn
’
t. Tripp
’
s kisses took my breath, my words,
my heart
.

His right hand moved down the side
of my body to my leg. Reaching down and around he pulled at me, opening my leg,
letting me wrap it around him. I then felt his cock touch me. Right against my
center, pressing, the pressure already enough to make me moan.

Tripp grunted as he thrust forward,
opening me. He welcomed himself deep inside my body. I grabbed at the backs of
his shoulders, kissing his neck, losing myself again.

He pulled back and thrust forward
again, even harder. My ass crashed against the tile over and over, taking him
in. Feeling him so deep. Feeling one orgasm after another cresting, crashing,
building up again.

There was a small gap between us,
just enough for me to get my hand on his body, feeling his stomach muscles
flexing, working so hard at fucking me. I moved to my tip toes on my left foot
and then made a daring move. I jumped up a little and hurried to wrap my left
leg around him too. Tripp
’
s
hands were there to catch me, holding my ass again. I was now all his.

He put his forehead to mine, our
noses touching and flirting. But our eyes were locked tight. The connection was
undeniable. This was far beyond the circumstances that brought us together.

“
Fuck,
Tripp,
”
I groaned.

“
I
know, darling, I know.
”

He sped up even more. The shower
water hit our bodies. The steam blanketed the bathroom. The sound of the
rushing water was gentle, the opposite of the collision course Tripp and I had
been on together.

“
Fuck,
”
I cried out.

I was coming again. I had no idea
how my body was able to do it so many times like it was. The pleasure and
pressure just kept crashing together, making it impossible not to keep letting
go.

As I squeezed at Tripp, I felt him
thickening. His body was getting ready to come, too. I kissed him, my lips
grazing his. I kissed him harder, my tongue licking his lips. There was nothing
hotter than a sloppy kiss with Tripp.

Tripp kissed me back and thrust
deep, holding there.

I felt the explosion of his orgasm,
his cock pulsing deep inside me, spilling everywhere. He kept fucking me,
staying deep, throbbing with each thrust. He stayed like that until he was
done. Then he pulled back slowly and eased forward again. Going super slow, in
and out of me, leaving my entire body tingling.

Tripp then put me on my feet, hands
touching my ass.

“
I
…
I love you, darling,
”
Tripp whispered.

“
I
love you too, Tripp.
”

His forehead touched mine again.
“
I
’
m
not going to let anything ever happen to you again. I swear on my life.
”

“
I
believe you,
”
I said. I
reached up and touched his face.
“
I
swear, I believe you.
”

“
Good.
Now what?
”

I said the first thing that came to
mind.

“
Wash
me, Tripp.
”