Ink (The Haven Series) (16 page)

“Nah, I g
uess I just ain’t interested. Not now I’ve upgraded to a newer model,” he said coolly, the barb aiming for a nerve and evidently striking home judging by the slight, yet unmistakable clenching of her jaw. “So looks like I’m batting two-for-two with the cheap shots. That’s work and my love-life – you wanna take a crack at the suit? Good luck, it’s Italian.”

She just smiled and shook her head, as if he was an unruly child she couldn’t work out what to do with. It bugged the hell out of him almost instantly.

“Those bikers must have an absolute field day with you,” she said, her tone registering mild amusement. “You try so hard, acting the big I Am. And it obviously must work for you in some circles, but not with them. You could bend over backwards, or any way you like actually, for Will and it wouldn’t make a blind bit of difference. They don’t trust you, they don’t respect you, and they sure as hell aren’t ever going to accept you. And that gets to you, doesn’t it? It’s a little crazy, Michael, because you were never that guy. I mean, you know all about staying on the right side of the law and yet there you are. Begging for approval from a bunch of murdering outlaws who wouldn’t give you the time of day if they didn’t need you.”

She knew just when to push, when to pull back. A soft smile
graced her glossy red lips as she stepped away, dipping her head as if giving way to him.

“I guess I just don’t get why you’d take such a risk. Do you know how many lawyers that club has gone through in the last three years alone?” she sighed. “And it’s not like you need the
m. The flash car, the suits, even the girl – all yours before you took this gig. And what have they got? Death-trap bikes, dirty denim and cheap skanks. Will, Sam, Colton ... they could never have what you have and they’ll only ever resent you for it. So maybe you just need to think about it. Whose side you’re on.”

***

Colton could hardly blame the girl for her reaction to his declaration, given that he’d preceded it by barging into her home and barking at her like she was some damn prospect he was hazing. One of those half-hearted little smiles tugged at her lips, suggesting a serious dose of scepticism at his growled words as she dropped her gaze back towards the floor.

But he wasn’t having that. And with one strong hand, he simply forced her face back up to his and claimed her mouth with his. Banding an arm around her slim waist, the biker pulled her flush up against his chest as her lips parted under the pressure of his to allow his tongue entrance - something in the contrast of his tough leather against her delicate lace urging him on. That and the eventual feel of her small hands at his waist as she gave into him, kissing him back tentatively at first.

A rough hand tangled in her hair as a fresh spark fuelled their kisses, her arms going around his neck to leave her dress held up solely by the way her body pressed tight against him. Before he did what any man in his position would have done – leant back just enough to send the lace slipping to pool at her feet, leaving her bare skin his to caress.

If the cops burst in this time, he’d have to think seriously about shooting them.

Her body actually trembled under his touch as he forced himself to slow down, turning her in his arms so her back was pressed against his chest. One palm pressed over the flat of her stomach, holding her tight to him again as he dropped his mouth to her shoulder. Eyes dark with lust met hers in the mirror again. His fingers grazed her ink before slipping under the thin strap of her bra to slowly ease it down, the kisses that followed hot on her skin.

“Fuckin’ beautiful ...” Colton muttered huskily, filling his hand with the firm curve of her breast and letting the pad of his thumb coax her nipple into a tiny hard bud. His mouth continued on its journey over her body until he was finally on his knees, trailing kisses right down her belly to the low waistband of her panties.

Callie’s head fell back on her shoulders, a soft groan falling from her lips and he knew in a second that she wanted this just as bad as he did. That was more than enough to send him to his feet, sweeping the almost naked little blonde off hers.

He didn’t give a shit if she was someone else’s.

***

CHAPTER 18

He didn’t do this.

He’d earned a place at the table in every Fallen Brothers clubhouse up and down the country – a debt he’d paid for in blood, his and others. With interest. His brothers welcomed him with open arms, women with open legs.

And with no old lady to come home to or to keep sweet, he took full advantage.

His brothers were the same, he knew that. If Sam kept actual notches on his bedpost, got wood would take on a whole new meaning ... But while women threw themselves at the charismatic sergeant when they were looking for a bad boy with a big heart, he was a different story.

Girls came to him when they wanted their bad boy just that. Bad.

He didn’t get attached, wasn’t interested in their life outside the clubhouse walls and certainly wasn’t sharing his. Skanks damn sure weren’t there for their sparkling conversation skills and he wasn’t having some
bitch knowing his business. Club shit, his family, feelings – it was all strictly off limits.

Most of the veterans of club life knew by now that they were never going to get anywhere with him, but there still seemed to be boasting privileges attached to bagging the club’s killer even for a night and there was a certain male pride to be had in keeping
them coming back to his bed.

But letting them leave satisfied was one thing, letting them get too comfortable was another.

The sex might be good but, for such an intimate act, it was always decidedly distant. No lingering kisses, no cuddles, no lingering gazes into drunken, make-up caked eyes. And the occasional passing-out-too-drunk-to-move episode aside, he otherwise made sure the chicks were long gone by morning.

He needed to be committed to one thing and one thing only - and that was his club.

So why the hell had he just broken every rule in his goddamn book with the little blonde currently curled up in his arms?

He couldn’t deny it, not to himself. He lov-
- Scratch that, he
enjoyed
the warmth of her body against his. The feel of one silky smooth leg hooked over his thigh and her perfect little tits pushing against his chest, her head pillowed comfortably on his shoulder.

It only made him want to push her onto her back and take her all over again.

He knew he probably wouldn’t have gone there in the first place if he’d had a hint that she’d just lay back and let him take advantage of the situation. He may have been used to taking what he wanted, but he’d never been interested in fucking some teary-eyed vulnerable chick.

And besides, this was
Callie
.

He recognised that as the dangerous thought it was though. Acceptance that she was different, not just some face in the crowd to be passed around his brothers. A suggestion that she in some way mattered ...

But in the end, she’d made it fucking impossible for him to walk away. He could see in her eyes that she’d made up her mind not to back out, but it was more than resignation. She’d been the one to reach for him, a new fire crackling to life and sparking something in him as she pulled him into a fierce kiss on her bed.

He may have been able to hide it well when he needed to, but he was still only human.

And that breathless little moan she made the first time he thrust deep inside her was hotter than hell. Their bodies seemed to fit together like she’d been made just for him and the look in her hazy gray eyes, coupled with the way she responded to every move of his, had only encouraged him. Making him lean down for long hungry kisses, tiny beads of sweat breaking out on their skin as they lost themselves in each other ...

But now, even as he ran a strangely gentle hand over the enticing tumble of loose curls spilling down her bare back, there was only one thought foremost in his mind.

He didn’t do this.

***

Will knew he was spending more and more of his time cooped up in the sanctuary of his office, rather than out by the bar with his boys, but he just couldn’t face the inevitable raucousness of the clubhouse. It never seemed to matter what shit they were dealing with, the Fallen Brothers didn’t believe in letting the bastards grind you down.

Even for the very guys facing a serious stretch inside, it was simply business as usual. But that said, his sergeant was uncharacteristically quiet as he slouched back in the chair opposite him – obviously having decided just to wait for his president to tell him what he wanted in his own time. Sam always had been good at reading people.

The subtle drift of the blonde’s gaze wasn’t lost on Will though, even if his eyes only flitted to the framed photograph for a second before the elder of the two men cleared his throat as he stood up. It broke the moment and sent Sam’s eyes snapping back to his.

“Drink?” Will asked gruffly, already grabbing a couple of glasses from one of the shelves behind him and fishing a bottle of whisky out of his desk drawer.
He got a shrug of acceptance from his brother and sloshed out generous measures, handing one to Sam and then sitting back down heavily go stare at the amber liquid in his glass and throw back a gulp.

“Listen, Will ...”

“I’ve asked Reno to look into Corsada,” Will interrupted, pressing ahead now he’d started. “Jesus, Sam, you know this club’s track record with lawyers – we can’t take any chances. And we may do all right with all the day-to-day intel shit, but Chip’s the one you really want doing your digging, ain’t he?”

“True that,” came the nod. “Dude may be a doofus in the real world, but give him a computer and he’s a goddamn genius. Nah, I get it, man. So ... he find anything?”

“Ain’t heard back yet. I want him going deep. Corsada takes a shit I don’t like the smell of, I wanna know about it. But I also want to know what you think.”

“Not following
ya, boss.”

“You earned those patches, man, and I trust your judgement,” Will sighed, rubbing a weary hand over his beard. “You make tough decisions all the time, Sam. You go with your gut and your instinct’s pretty damn good. So what’s your feeling on trusting this guy? You sure you got it right about him and Hunt for a start?”

“Oh, I got that one loud and clear,” Sam nodded grimly. “He’s definitely nailed the bitch. But whatever the hell they had going, I wasn’t exactly feeling the love in the room. So I don’t think he’s in bed with the feds, literally or otherwise. But as far as trusting him goes? Hard to say. I mean, he ain’t one of us – but ...”

“But?” his president pushed.

Sam took a long drink before answering, shrugging his shoulders as he looked up with understanding in his clear blue eyes. “This ain’t gonna play out like with Taylor, man,” he said, with sympathy and certainty in his statement, but alongside reluctance to even say the name. “This guy ain’t Walker and--”

“And I ain’t got another daughter to screw information out of,” Will said roughly, reaching for the photo frame. This time the pain
was laid bare on his face. “Just a club full of sons I ain’t gonna see fucked over. Not again.”

FLASHBACK

“You gonna let him ask you to do this?” Sam heard Jake hiss in his ear as he stood grim-faced by the roadside. Dusk was falling fast over Haven and a strange peace seemed to have fallen over the deserted hills surrounding the city. “He ain’t thinking straight, brother ...”

“Gotta do my job, man,” the blonde shrugged. But his shoulders felt like lead and there was worry etched on his brow.

“I’m just sayin’, Sam. Who knows where his fucking mind’s at? He gonna hold you responsible if he changes it too late?”

“You think I ain’t thought of that, Jake?” he snapped. But he shook his head with a sigh. There was no point them turning on each other – they had enough shit to deal with without creating any more. “Seen Colt?”

“Not yet. Probably still clearing up after Walker. Christ, I can still hear that god-awful screaming in my head,” the biker muttered. He gave himself a little shake, no doubt against a shiver coursing down his spine, before glancing up at the sound of a van pulling over close by. “Shit, here we go.”

All the assembled Fallen could do was watch as a pale-faced prospect climbed slowly out of the driver’s seat, shooting them almost pleading looks as he stumbled round the back and opened the door.
He stepped out of the way as their president emerged, one large hand fisted in the hair of the young woman he dragged with him.

The woman who had once been her father’s little brown-eyed girl, curled up on his lap as he read her bedtime stories in the clubhouse before church. The woman who had once been the teenager who’d harboured a crush on Sam himself since she was about twelve, spending hours playing with the ends of her long dark hair as she watched from a window when he'd pull into the yard.

The woman who - with the kind of deviousness they would only have expected of her estranged mother - had grown up to turn on the only family she had ever known, spilling their secrets to the club’s own lawyer between his sheets. Enough to tear them all apart.

“Daddy,
please!
” Taylor sobbed. The sheer terror in the cry made even the battle-hardened sergeant wince.