His Young Queen: (Steel Jackals MC #1) (12 page)

“Congratulations. Tell Meredith I’m really happy for you guys and I’ll call her soon, okay? If I don’t, I’ll probably see her on Nina’s birthday. Goodnight.”

“Are you sure you’re gonna be okay?” he asked as she began walking again.

“Absolutely.” She waved back at him, and by the time she came to a stop five feet away from Josh, her knees were weak and she had a nervous tremble in her belly that was spreading out to her extremities. The first thing she noticed was he had a black eye and a bruise on the side of his jaw that she could see through his goatee. She immediately wanted to kill someone. She also wanted to smother him with what-happeneds and oh-my-God-are-you-okays. She didn’t. She didn’t even take the hand he still had extended.

He sighed and dropped it to his side. “Don’t touch the kid again.”

That low rumble brushed over her skin and caused a wave of warmth to roll through her that was a combination of hurt, annoyance, lust, and a crippling love she found difficult to keep contained. “Excuse me?”

“You threw yourself into that hug. I don’t care if he just won the Powerball; you don’t do that again.”

What a bully. “For your information, Mr. Hot and Cold, he was telling me he got engaged to one of my good friends. I was congratulating him.”

“Then shake his fuckin’ hand next time and be done with it. No need to give him a hard-on he’ll never have the chance to use on you.”

She gave an unladylike snort and hiked her purse higher onto her shoulder. “Don’t be silly, Josh,” she said mockingly. “That talent of mine is reserved especially for you. That must be why you’re here. You in need of a refill? I can make sure you’re extra stiff this time so you can take it elsewhere and let some other tramp benefit from it.”

A dash of humor crossed his expression, then regret, but it was respect that triumphed in the end. “You just implied you’re a tramp, honey.”

She gnashed her teeth together, because she had, and remained silent.

“That where you think I’ve been? Fuckin’ some other pussy? Did you not hear anything I said to you the other night?”

She’d heard what he’d said, but she was terrified to believe in it.

She looked at him now, her chin wobbling, and Tish knew right then that if he admitted he’d been with someone else, she would never be able to forgive him. That was one of the things she’d suffered through over the past couple of days, worrying she’d accept him even after he screwed another woman despite knowing Tish was in love with him. The very idea had been abhorrent to her, but she’d feared she’d let what would be blatant and undeniable cheating slide because he was Josh. Now she knew that wasn’t the case. If he’d had sex with someone else, this would end here and they would be nothing but friends.

She didn’t want to ask, would rather have stuck her head in the sand and hid from the possible pain awaiting her. But that would be immature, not to mention disrespectful to the woman she felt she was. So, bracing herself for the worst, she posed the dreaded question.

“Were you?”

That gold star bore into hers, open and honest. “No, baby,” he said tenderly. “Yours is the only pussy I’ll be going anywhere near from here on out.”

Her breath caught, and her heart skipped a couple of beats before falling into a dangerous rhythm. She so badly wanted to believe that, but how could she? To believe would mean he wanted her for keeps. A dream come true. Tish’s dreams never came true.

He’s home two years earlier than he was supposed to be
, a little voice in the back of her head reminded her.

Okay. There was that.

And he’s here with you right now
, the voice added.

She frowned. Two dreams. Realized.

She looked at him standing before her, allowing her all the time she needed to wade through this. And hope was born. But even that she was afraid to trust.

He pushed off the truck. She took a step back, knowing she’d weaken if he touched her, but he kept advancing.

“I would have come to you sooner, but we just got back into town.”

She put her hand up to hold him off as she tried to absorb what was happening. “What? You went out of town?”

He came right up against her, trapping her hand between them. He blatantly cupped her ass, and at the same time, tunneled his long fingers into her hair to hold her steady. “Nick thought it would be entertaining to string me along for a couple of miserable days. We got back an hour ago from a big meet in Tucson. Before he crashed, the asshole gave me the green light. And look at me,” he murmured, looking at her mouth. “Running to my old lady like a typical pussy whipped motherfucker.” His head came down, and it was a few seconds before she was able to respond to the softness of his lips coaxing hers into a kiss not nearly as zealous as the one they’d shared on Friday. This one was sweet and tender. Meaningful.

She pulled back and looked at his shiner as her head spun with questions. She ran her palm over the bruise on his jaw and felt a bump. “Who did this to you?”

He grinned. “When I told Nick I’d claimed you, he misunderstood and thought I meant I
‘claimed you’
without first clearing my intent with him. He jumped the gun on the beat down. But he’s okay now.”

Yeah. That sounded like something her uncle would do on her behalf. But to Josh? “I’m sorry he did that.”

He shrugged as though it was normal for best friends to punch each other in the face. “He did what he’s supposed to do.”

She nodded and stood on her toes so she could press her lips to the bump beneath his bristles. She took the opportunity to inhale a lungful of his familiar, comforting scent. Mmm. Sexy, too. “So, you cleared this with him?” She dropped back down as what he was saying began to make sense.

“I had to. The way it was unfolding on Friday was fuckin’ backward. I had to get the order of things right so there’d be no regrets all around. I didn’t want anything shadowing this.”

“Oh.” And that sounded like something her loyal Sergeant at Arms would do. It was then something else he’d said registered. “Uh, Josh?”

He was watching the progress of his hand as he brought it from under her hair and made a path down the side of her neck and over her shoulder. “Yeah, baby?”

“You called me…”

“My old lady,” he finished when she didn’t. He stepped back, releasing her, but snagged her hand. “Come on. We gotta get home. This convo can wait until later.”

She rushed to keep up when he dragged her around the truck and all but tossed her up into the cab. He was in the driver’s seat, bouncing out of the parking lot in the next few seconds.

“Seatbelt.”

She reached around and pulled the belt across without taking her eyes off of him. “Can you tell me what hap—?”

“No,” he interrupted. “Not ’til we get home.”

Home? Her home? “Where are we—?”

“Shh.” He cut her off and leaned over to turn on the stereo.

“Josh. I haven’t seen you in three days,” she said over a Linkin Park favorite. “I’d like to talk to you.”

“We did enough of that the other night. We’ll talk after.” He turned the music up.

“After what?” She had to shout to be heard.

He spun the dial until silence filled the truck. “After I pop that sweet little cherry that has my name written all the fuck over it.” Back up the music went.

Excitement swelled inside Tish, but was tempered by wariness. He was saying they were going to have sex. Now. Without talking first? Without clearing any of this up?

She pictured Josh naked, straining above her, their eyes locked as he thrust inside her.

Yes. What an excellent idea. They could talk later. She tried to keep her breathing even as she stared straight ahead, watching the truck’s black hood light up as they passed under street light after street light.

His old lady. He’d referred to her as his old lady. She clasped her hands together in her lap, her nerve endings buzzing as she started to trust in this. She was his. He’d done this in the way that made sense to him. With respect and humility, he’d gone to her eldest family member and asked permission to claim her as his own. He was a biker in a notorious MC, and he was gallant. Her fingers came up to tent over her mouth as a wave of goosebumps rippled down her arms and legs. She blinked away the moisture that filled her eyes and brought her hands back down before he could see her fighting not to cry. She didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. Not now. Not ever.

Her knee started bobbing. She
did
want to launch herself into his arms. She wanted to kiss him all over and tell him how much she loved him. She wanted to give herself over to him in the exact way he’d described a few days ago. Squirming in her seat, she couldn’t help but wonder how big this fucking town was. Shouldn’t they be closer to her house by now?

They stopped at the last set of lights before the turnoff to her neighborhood, and when the music went down, she couldn’t deny herself the pleasure of peeking over. He was looking at her, his features shadowed, mysterious, so sexy.

“Get over here.”

The low command had the air pushing from her lungs, and seeing as it was two in the morning and the streets were deserted, she didn’t think twice about hitting the button to release her belt before diving across the console. She devoured his mouth as he dragged her on top of him by her hips.

“Straddle me,” he mumbled around her swirling tongue.

She did, and he ate the whimper that came from her when she felt that substantial bulge hit her just right. She broke the kiss and tried to keep her head from falling back.

“Seal that little pussy to my cock,” he instructed as he pulled her forward so her face went into his neck—no doubt so he could see the road. She barely noticed when he hit the gas, and they were moving again.

Not wasting the opportunity to taste him, Tish cradled his head and licked at the thick cord coming up from his shoulder as she began doing exactly what she’d wanted to do for days now. She pressed her whole body into his and ground her needy core into the slab of iron laying across his hips.

“I can feel how hot your cunt is through our goddamn clothes, Tish. Christ, I can’t wait to get inside you. I’m gonna live there for days.”

“You’re not going to leave me the way you did last time, are you?”

“Fuck, no. All the bases are covered, and it’s our turn now.”

“Okay. I haven’t missed school or work in three years.” She nibbled on his earlobe and sucked it into her mouth before pulling back, so it smacked quietly on its way out. “But I’ll be unavailable for the next few days. We can celebrate this, can’t we? It could be considered an occasion?” She hugged him. “It is to me, and I’m very excited.”

He paused at a stop sign and brought her out with a grip on the back of her shirt. “I’m talking about fucking you raw, and you’re telling me you’re excited to take a few days and spend them together. Do you see the massive difference there?”

She smiled and shrugged. “What I see is a guy’s brain, and a girl’s. I’ll always think with my head. You’ll always think with what’s in your pants. We complement each other.” He gave her a low moan when she put her hand between them and squeezed his shaft. “You have a beautiful cock, and I can’t wait to have it. There’s a compl
i
ment for you while I’m at it.”

“You’re too adorable for your own goddamn good. You’re gonna walk all the fuck over me.” He let her go and got the truck moving again.

Her mouth went crooked. “I’m using the word ‘cock’ instead of ‘stuff,' I’m even grabbing yours, and I’m adorable? Guess I have to work at being sexy.”

“You don’t have to work at shit. It comes naturally, and that’s what make you so irresistible.”

She pulled her hand back and rubbed her pussy on him again. “Thank you.”

“Thank
you
.” He spread his hand out across her lower back and held her so he could pump hard between her legs.

“Shit, Josh.” He did it again, sending a bolt of lightning striking out from her clit. She moved faster, the friction so incredible. Because she’d worn a skirt today, and it was already up past her thighs, all that was between them was his jeans and the thin material of her damp panties. “I could come like this. It’ll be so much better than it was the other night.”

The truck slowed as they turned a corner. “I think you better tell me what you mean by that.”

She held on and shifted to try getting closer. “I used my wand to get off after you left me on Friday. I came four times, remembering everything you did to me. I was exhausted by the time I finished, but felt like shit because you weren’t there to share in the fun that wasn’t in any way fun
because you weren’t there
.” She’d tightened her grip on his hair and punctuated her words by bumping his head back into the seat. She was gentle, but still got her point across.

“Next time you work that pussy, I’m going to be front and center. If I’m not, you don’t do it. Understand?”

Yes, Master.
“Okay.”

“See? Clear communication, you go along with what I want, we’re all happy.”

She giggled, and then a thought struck her. “What if you get excited again and want to give it to me hard. Will you run away because you think you’ll hurt me?”

He groaned. “I
am
going to give it to you hard, but that won’t be until I’ve gone as easy on you as I can. If I do hurt you, punch me in the fuckin’ head, twist my balls, but don’t make me stop fucking you.”

The truck bumped, jostling them then came to a sudden stop. He threw it into gear, grabbed the neckline of her tee, and ripped it down the front. Next, her bra was snapped, and then her breasts were in his hands, one of her nipples in his mouth. He killed the engine and quiet descended, only the wet sounds of his sucking playing around them.

The savagery of his actions would have shocked some women. Not her. This was Josh. This aggressive, fiercely dominant man who took what he wanted with a passion that consumed. It was one of the many things that made him so attractive; his ability to take over and bring everything around him under his control, including her. This power over others was also what made him such an integral part of his family. When it came to the MC, he was loyal and steadfast, a protector to his very soul. He ruled every situation he and his brothers went into and made sure they all rode home together afterward. Sure, he had the ability to lead, but for some reason he left that to Nick and Chase, and instead chose to keep order and watch over those he considered his responsibility.