REIGN: A Motorcycle Club Romance Novel (17 page)

~
20
~

Honey looked and looked, but she couldn’t find that fucking guy
anywhere. Not in the bar, not loitering around the motel, not in the grocer’s
or the gas station. She told everyone she saw that if they caught sight of a
stranger, tall and dark and anonymous, they should waste no time letting her
know.

Her word carried a lot of weight around Ditcher’s Valley, and she knew
that if anyone saw anything, she’d know in a few minutes. No one asked any
questions, either. Club business was club business, and club business was the
only thing keeping the crappy little town from being swallowed into the earth.

She paced around her little room, air conditioner blasting to keep
away the noontime heat, and ruminated on what she’d remembered that morning.
She’d ushered Georgia, the girl she’d woken up next to, out the door with a
flood of excuses and promises to call. Promises she wasn’t really sure she’d
keep, promises she didn’t really care if she kept or not. That girl wasn’t
important in the long run; Honey might be fond of her, but more pressing
matters needed attention.

Who was that man? What did he want with Reign’s new girl? What did he
want with the club? He didn’t look like a member of any of the other clubs in
the area; he didn’t have the air of a member. Of course, he could just be a
good imposter, but she had the nagging feeling he was a hired hand. And she had
learned that her nagging feelings were pretty accurate.

Maybe it’s just her hubby looking for his
wifey
,
she thought
hopefully. But that didn’t exactly mean that they were out of the woods; Reign
could still be in deep shit, and if Reign was in deep shit, the whole operation
was in deep shit.

Truthfully, Reign had been acting like president ever since Charcoal
had hit his 60
^th
birthday and begun to slow down. Charcoal wasn’t
even in town; he was in Cancun with his old lady, celebrating their thirty year
anniversary with a month-long vacation. Reign had been the go-to man while the
club’s president was away. What was that adage? “Cut off the head of the
snake…”

Honey considered making some tea, or at least a sandwich, to settle
her turning stomach and calm her nerves. As though the hangover she was
fighting wasn’t enough to deal with…

A sudden knock on the door inspired first surprise, then a jolt of fear.
She pushed the emotions away, knowing she was just getting ahead of herself,
and looked through the peephole. Endo was standing in the hall; she opened the
door for him, stepping aside to let him through.

“Jesus Christ it’s hot today,” he said, spreading his arms out wide as
though to absorb more of the cool air inside the apartment.

“What the hell are you doing out of the kitchen? It
ain’t
both our days off,” Honey said, shutting the door
behind him with a glance in both directions, making sure no one was lurking in
the hallway. She hated feeling this nervous and jumpy; it reminded her all too
much of how she’d felt when she’d first left her husband, afraid at every
little sound.

“I’m on break. Can’t a guy take a break to check in on his favorite gal?
And ask what the hell she’s been doing telling people to call her about a
mysterious stranger?”

Honey scoffed and crossed her arms across her chest.

“C’mon, give up the goods, little
darlin
’.
You see a stranger you fancy in the bar?”

“Far from it,” Honey said, debating whether or not to fill Endo in on
all the details. He was trustworthy, of course, and she didn’t have much to
tell him, anyway. Her boys trusted her instinct; he’d believe her if she said
she just knew something was up. But if she told Endo, it might get around, and
the last thing she wanted was a bar full of violent men looking for someone to
beat the shit out of.

She’d learned that lesson once before, when she’d told someone she
thought that a kid from out of town was spying on the club. The kid she’d been
talking about had, in fact, been spying on the club; but a
different
kid had gotten what the spy had been due. Some of her
boys, on the lookout for a “strange young guy”, had seen someone fitting that
rather vague description and unloaded their worst on the poor innocent kid,
while the
actual
spy had already
skipped town. She still hadn’t forgiven herself for that.

But if she swore Endo to secrecy…

But, of course, there were no secrets in the club. At least, not those
sort of secrets. The upper echelons had their secrets, of course, and members
always had some side-girl or hobby that they didn’t share with their brothers
(Honey knew, for example, that Road Rash loved painting watercolor landscapes,
and hadn’t told a soul), but anything that involved the club would get
circulated pretty quickly. Even Endo, who Honey loved more than almost any of
her other boys, was prone to drunkenly spilling the beans.

But she felt so shitty, she didn’t care, she just needed to get it off
her chest. Her pounding headache wasn’t helping her think logically, either.
She told him the whole story, what little of it there was, and waited for a
response. Endo scratched his beard thoughtfully.

“Yeah, yeah, ok, I think I know the guy you’re talking about. I
thought he was just a man on the run from his wife and kids or job or some drug
fiend or something. But if you think something more’s going on, I bet it is.
The question now is…what do we do? I sure hate to think that little girl’s
gonna
get dragged back to wherever she came from,” he
finally said.

“Who cares about her?” Honey demanded, immediately realizing that, as
much as it surprised her, she did. She would feel awful if Reign’s little
girlfriend got hurt or killed by her cop ex-husband. Not so awful that she
wouldn’t get over it, but pretty bad all the same. The girl was so jumpy, but
seemed sweet, had a real genuine smile…it was hard to
not
feel a little empathy for a girl like that. And Honey had her
own reasons for caring whether or not the girl made it to Mexico and safety.
Endo shot Honey a knowing look and she threw her hands up and nodded.

“Okay, okay, yeah, we’re not the bad guys, right, we care and shit. So
what do we do?”

“That’s the question of the hour, pretty baby. Let’s discuss it over a
drink? You look like you could use a Bloody Mary or two,” Endo said, reaching
out and pulling Honey into his arms. She had to laugh; Endo almost always made
her laugh just by looking at her or touching her. He just made her happy. He
didn’t quite chase away all her bad feelings, but he certainly made them a
little better. And a Bloody Mary sure sounded fantastic. Better than fantastic,
even. It might help her think a little clearer, too, if it helped shake away
her hangover.

“Who’ll man the kitchen?” She asked, still concerned about the bar’s
welfare when it was her day off and when, in fact, no one would complain too
much if the kitchen closed for the night. All the better to get drunk on an
empty stomach.

“We’ll get that little shit-eating recruit in there, he’s supposed to
be something of a cook,” Endo said, beginning to gently rock Honey back and
forth in his arms. His beard scratched at the side of her face.

“Alright, you pour, it’s my day off,” she said through a tight-lipped
smile. She shouldn’t be smiling. She should be worrying. But it was hard to
worry in that moment, with a nice drink to look forward to and one of her
favorite biker’s arms wrapped around her.

She’d keep an eye out in the bar, she’d stop herself from drinking too
much. Everything would be fine. She was sure of it.

~
21
~

My god, but she looks good in this thing,
Reign mused as he watched Gabriella’s long black
hair fly out behind her in the rushing wind. The smile on her face was a rare
one; true and unrestrained, a smile he’d only seen once or twice so far.

Too bad she’s
gonna
use
it to hightail it to Mexico,
he
thought sourly. He’d inspected the engine and every inch of the car before
letting Gabriella drive it off the lot; he’d noticed her slip a couple extra
hundred into Frankie’s hand when they shook on the deal and thought it was
cute.

It also told him a little more about what Gabriella might be trying to
hide from him. Not that he cared. He didn’t care about money; he had plenty.
He’d have given her some, if she hadn’t already told him she had some. He would
give her more, if he thought maybe she needed it, but apparently that wasn’t
the case.

“Hey, take this road,” he said, pointing to a dirt road that veered
off from the long, lonely street.

“This car handles like a dream,” Gabriella said, clearly enamored. It
had been written all over her face as soon as she slid into the driver’s seat.
She was in love; with the car, of course. Reign didn’t dare hope that she might
be in love with him, too. Not that it mattered, not that it mattered, he had to
keep reminding himself of that.

The car barely bumped over the dusty, uneven road as it wound into the
desert. Gabriella leaned forward and squinted, apparently catching sight of
their destination through the ever-rising sand.

“Where are we going?” She asked, turning to him for a moment before
putting her eyes back on the road. She was a safe driver. Of course she was a
safe driver. It made him happy to know he didn’t have to worry about her
getting overzealous in her hot new wheels and running herself into a ditch.

“A mirage,” he said with a smile. She looked back at him quizzically,
but he only grinned at her slyly. They rode on, the radio playing loud, a
classic rock station. Stevie Nicks was singing about how players only love you
when they’re playing. The sky was so blue it almost hurt to look at. A bird’s
eye view: red convertible, brown dust, a black-haired, sun-kissed couple
exchanging playful glances. Other lovers, under other circumstances, would have
been picturesque in their excitement over something new and amorous.

As the dust began to clear, Reign watched Gabriella’s eyes twinkle
slightly. Their destination was becoming more vivid, less of the haze of heat
to obscure their view. An oasis if there ever was one: the road ended in a ring
of tiny but strong trees and bushes, all centered around a small lake, the
water greenish-blue from the reflection of the sky. Gabriella turned to Reign,
a smile on her face as big as the desert itself.

“What is this?” she asked.

“A lake,” Reign said.

“In the middle of the desert?”

Reign shrugged. Who knew how long it had been there, where it came
from, how it formed? In the heat of the day, the oppressive monotony of the
desert sand, it was a gift from God. Cold, clear water, perfect for swimming
off the midday sweat.

“Can we swim in it?” Gabriella asked, brow furrowing. “Is it, like,
polluted or, like, have weird algae?”

 
“Algae yes, polluted no.
But we can swim in it; everyone does. The algae is just around the edges.”

As the car pulled up to the little lake, which was only about half the
size of a football field, Gabriella peered in earnest at the still pool.

“I don’t have a bathing suit,” she said, turning back to Reign, who
grinned boyishly. She blushed, knowing that he knew that as well as she did.

Reign loved seeing her blush. He wanted to make her do that all the
time. He wanted to do lots of things to her, and for her, all the time. But he
didn’t have “all the time”: he had now. And now he was going to do his damn
best to show her everything he wished he had “all the time” to show her.

“Last one in,” he said, shedding his jacket and shirt quickly before
dashing towards the water, kicking his boots away even as he undid his belt and
threw his pants off to the side. Gabriella clasped her hands to her mouth to
stifle a laugh; handsome as he was, he still looked hilarious, his pale butt
nearly gleaming in the strong sun. He splashed into the water with a bellow,
turning to her, his manhood exposed for only a moment before disappearing under
the water.

Even that little glimpse, though, was enough to get Gabriella’s mind
turning with memories of what she’d already experienced – and fantasies of what
she might experience in the future. She walked slowly towards the water, still
nervous about exposing herself to him. He floated on his back in the water,
eyes closed, a serene smile on his face.

“Water’s fine, baby,” he said, craning his neck to look at her as she
stood uncertainly at the edge.

Gabriella gulped. He’d only ever seen her in the dark…what if he
didn’t like what she offered in the full light of day?

“If you don’t come in, I’ll throw you in,” he said, playfully
threatening. He turned over in the water, his chest now facing her as he tread
water.

“Is it deep?” Gabriella asked, desperate to stall.

“You think I won’t do it? I’ll do it,” Reign said, now beginning to
stride towards her, the water parting before him.

“No, no! I got it, I get it, I’m getting in,” Gabriella said, the idea
of being thrown into the lake the only thing worse than the idea of shedding
all her clothes in broad daylight in front of this way-too-handsome-for-her
man. Blushing, she kicked her shoes to the side and turned around.

“Aw, come on,” Reign groaned, and Gabriella shot him a look over her
shoulder. With a deep breath, she shut her eyes and threw her shirt off,
letting it land near Reign’s jeans.
Like
a
band-aid
,
she thought, knowing that the longer
she took to expose herself the more ashamed she’d be.

In a moment, she was undressed, still with her back turned to Reign.
He didn’t mind the view one bit; her luscious hips opened up onto her wide,
inviting bottom, plump and edible. Her long black hair hung to the middle of her
back, and when she turned to look at Reign again over her shoulder he watched
as it waved and slid like silk over her skin. He felt his cock twitching as he
imagined that hair cascading over his chest, suffocating him with her scent,
each strand tickling him from head to toe…

Gabriella was bolstered when she saw the way Reign stared at her naked
body. It made her feel like Venus in the oyster shell. She turned and waded
into the water, her tanned skin glistening in the sun and heat.

Reign let his eyes eat up the sight of her; she was perfect, every
curve and inch of her inciting a riot in his nerves, his cock throbbing to life
as the water parted before her. She gasped then giggled as she waded further,
the water lapping up to her delicate sex, the blush in her cheeks only making
her more attractive. She eased herself further in, the water slowly covering
her, much to Reign’s consternation. She paddled over to him, the relief of the
cool water evident on her face as she smiled and closed her eyes.

“Told you it was nice,” he said as she got closer. She laughed, the
sound like tinkling bells to his ears. It was all he could do not to grab her
right then.

Gabriella felt the heat that had taken up residence in her skin
slipping away as the cool water enveloped her. She cast short, furtive glances
at Reign, still ashamed of her nakedness. His hair was wet and clung to his
forehead and neck, like a frame for his handsome face. Droplets of clear water
clung to his beard. His lips were parted, his mouth full and moist, her own
tongue darting out to lick her lips, instinctively, wanting to be nearer to
him.

Her body felt weightless, her nipples tight and hard from the sudden
cold of the water, her pussy awakening as she let her body relax. The water
seemed to warm up the closer she got to Reign. Or maybe it was her imagination,
her own body temperature rising as she felt that magnetic pull towards him, his
torso gleaming and shimmering, his manhood hidden under the rippling water.

The thought of it, though, was enough to increase the blush on
Gabriella’s cheeks tenfold. They were close now, close enough to touch;
Gabriella felt Reign’s eyes on her, the distorted view of her body beneath the
water’s surface.

When she thought she couldn’t stand another moment under his gaze, the
heat and promise of him making her almost pained with wanting, he leaned down
and laid a soft kiss on her lips, light and fluttering, like her heart as it
raced beneath her ribs. Gabriella closed her eyes and moaned into the kiss as
Reign’s arms came to encircle her; she found she could stand in the water, on
her tiptoes, and stopped paddling, letting herself be drawn into his embrace.

Reign’s fingertips picked up on each inch of her body as they made
contact, sending back thrills of energy to his mind as he drew her in, her face
tilted upwards to meet his lips. She tasted like salty desert dust and cool
water all at the same time, her lips full and soft beneath his.

He felt a humming moan escape her lips, felt the vibrations roll through
his body, making him want her even more. He raised one hand to her throat,
gently taking hold of it and tilting her head back as his lips fall to her
jawline, kissing alongside her chin and towards her ear, then down her long,
slender neck. Each kiss made him want the next one more, seemed inevitable,
inciting little shudders from her body and cries from her mouth as she closed
her eyes and lost herself in the pleasure.

Gabriella felt Reign’s kisses like feathers against her flesh,
tickling her down to her pussy, filling her with a tingling need for more. She
felt her eyes roll back, a feverish heat in her body, her desire rising up and
threatening to overcome her. No one had ever had this effect on Gabriella; she
had always been so demure, so shy. Now, with Reign, she wanted to be dirty, she
wanted to be taken wantonly, she wanted to beg for it.

“I want to feel you inside me,” she said, suddenly, shortly, the sound
of her own voice surprising her. Reign growled against her, dragged his teeth
against the tender flesh of her neckline, his cock springing fully to life at
the sound of her voice. He gripped her tighter, one arm around her back, the
other cradling her ass; she could feel his hardness pressing between her
thighs, squirmed in his clutches, heart beating heavy now as her own desire
reached a peak. “Please, fuck me.”

“Not until I’m ready,” Reign said, his voice a snarl, his mouth buried
in her throat, his fingers digging into her, sending fireworks to her brain
with each pressure point. She felt her nipples graze his hard chest and moaned,
arching her back, wanting more.

Reign pulled back slightly, their eyes locked as he brought one hand
to her chest, his thumb just grazing one of her nipples as he took hold of her
breast. She moaned as he massaged her, his fingers now coming together to tweak
her nipple gently, drawing her closer, her body asking for more. He responded
by pushing her back, keeping her in a state of need, the sensation of his
fingers playing with one breast, then the other, a slow and delicious torture.

“Please,” Gabriella moaned, her eyes closed in pleasure as Reign’s
head dipped low once more, his lips taking the place of his fingers, closing over
her erect nipple and flicking it gently with his tongue. His hand favoured the
other nipple as his tongue danced over the hard nub, sucking it inwards,
feeling the slight shaking of Gabriella’s begging body as he kept her at bay.
 

Suddenly, Gabriella felt herself lifted as Reign grabbed her waist,
raising her halfway out of the water, her clit pressed against his stomach. His
mouth still hovered over her breast, his tongue darting forward to lap at her
nipples as her clit ground against his hard torso. She shivered, the fire
between her legs roaring, moaning as he took her nipple between his teeth,
giving it the slightest nibble, making her clutch him closer and tighter. Her
pussy, wet with desire, rubbed into his ribs as his hand came up to fondle her
breast; she felt weightless, airy, dizzy with desire.

And, just as suddenly as he’d lifted her, he let her fall, her clit
screaming with need for stimulation. She landed on her tiptoes once more, and
Reign spun her around, now grabbing her from behind, his hard cock pressed
against her plump ass, just barely grinding between her thighs.