WOLF: An Evil Dead MC Story (The Evil Dead MC Series Book 4) (12 page)

CHAPTER EIGHT

Shannon reclined on the chaise by the pool at the swank hotel in Vegas that she’d booked for them. She flipped from her back to her stomach adjusting her sunglasses and looking over at the other girls. Crystal was to her left. Angel was to her right, Natalie the next chaise over and Mary’s chaise was empty. She lifted her head to scan the pool and saw the petite Asian beauty in the water, standing waist deep in the shallow end. She had her back to a man, her hand pulling her waist-length silky dark hair to the side as she twisted to look over her shoulder at the man who was admiring her full back tattoo. It really was beautiful artwork. A stunning peacock surrounded by flowers, its long tail curving down her hip. The gorgeous hunk in the pool lifted his hand to trail a finger down her spine, smiling at her. Red Dog would flip his shit if he saw that. But Shannon knew Mary was just flirting. She only had eyes for her big red-headed Viking.

“Your drinks, ladies.”

Shannon looked up to see a bare-chested waiter with a tray of drinks standing behind their chaise between her and Angel. Her eyes, hidden behind her shades, skated over his muscular body as he began taking the drinks from the tray and setting them down on the small table between them. She smiled. The perks of staying at a five star hotel, they certainly thought of everything, even gorgeous eye-candy waiters.

Just as she was reaching for her Appletini, Shannon heard booted feet behind her and saw the waiter’s eyes widen as he looked at something behind her.

“Beat it,” she heard in a deep growly voice coming from behind her.

The poor boy lifted his empty tray in front of his chest, as if that would be any protection, and stepped hastily back.

Shannon saw Angel’s eyes widen as she pulled her own sunglasses off and looked beyond Shannon, murmuring under her breath, “Oh, crap.”

Before Shannon could twist to look behind her, she felt a sharp slap on her bare cheek, revealed beneath the skimpy bikini she had on. And then a weight against her hip as someone sat on the edge of the chaise with her.

She twisted to look over her shoulder to see Crash’s big body. His hand now slowly rubbing over the skin he’d just smacked with his palm, and a grin pulling at the corner of his mouth.

“Hello, Princess.”

She swallowed, looking beyond him to the line of leather-clad bikers standing with arms folded, booted feet spread, looking intimidating as hell. Cole stood at the foot of Angel’s chaise, Mack at the foot of Natalie’s and Wolf at the foot of Crystal’s. Green stood off to the side, his eyes scanning the many other bikini-clad hotel patrons lying around the pool. Red Dog stood off to the side, his eyes scanning the pool, obviously looking for Mary.

Her eyes returned to Crash.

“W-What are you doing here?”

“You didn’t really think this little trip of yours was going to fly did you?”

“Come on,” Mack snapped at Natalie.

“Let’s go,” Cole growled down at Angel.

“Go where?” Shannon whispered, looking back at Crash.

“To the rooms you’ve paid for,” he replied. And she couldn’t tell if he was pissed about her paying for all this.

He pulled her to her feet and she grabbed up her bag. Angel rose to her feet, as did Natalie.

As Crash pulled Shannon behind him back toward the hotel, she saw Red Dog walk over to the edge of the pool and snarl, “Mary, get your ass over here.”

Mary swam to the edge near his booted feet and looked up at him, biting her lower lip.

“Hey, baby.”

Red Dog didn’t hesitate in reaching down, grasping her around each wrist and hauling her dripping wet body straight up and out of the pool. Then he bent and put a shoulder in her stomach and hefted her over his shoulder. She squealed as his hand came down in a loud smack on her wet ass cheek. Then he walked over to her chaise, grabbed up her bag and followed behind them.

Shannon saw Crystal still on her chaise.

“What about Crystal?” she asked.

“Don’t worry about Crystal. Wolf can take care of her. It’s you that you need to be worried about right now.”

“Crap,” she whispered.

“Exactly, sweetheart. And you’re in a pile of it, pulling a stunt like this.”

****

Red Dog carried Mary to the bank of elevators. When the doors for two different elevators slid open, he took the second so they could have it to themselves. Stepping inside, with her still slung over his shoulder, he twisted so her head was hanging near the row of buttons.

“Push the button for your floor, Mary.”

“No,” she refused.

His palm came down in a smack on her cheek with the sharp crack echoing in the confined space.

“Ooww,” she howled.

He jabbed the button for the top floor.

“That’s not my floor,” Mary informed him.

“Don’t matter. It’ll give us a nice long ride.” He dropped her to her feet then, his eyes skating over her bikini clad body. “Had half the guys down there drooling over you. You’re such a little exhibitionist.”

Her hands landed on her hips. “Since you met me in a strip club, I guess you already knew that.”

“Even back then, when you were dancing, I don’t think you ever realized how stunning you are.”

Her chin lifted at the compliment. Damn, but it was hard to stay angry at him when he said sweet things like that to her. She was glad he hadn’t shown up five minutes earlier or she’d be bailing him out of jail for assault on the guy at the pool. “You are such a party pooper.”

“Don’t give me any of your sass. You’re in a shitload of trouble, china-doll.”

“I knew we shouldn’t have texted you boys.”

Dog shook his head. “You hadn’t, it wouldn’t have mattered. Two minutes after you texted I got a second text.”

She narrowed her eyes. “From who?”

He grinned. “Mama Wu ratted you out, babe.”

“My mother? That didn’t take her long.”

“She likes me better than you.”

“She does not, she’s terrified of you.”

“She is not, she loves me. Every Tuesday I bring her Crab Rangoon from Jimmy Wong’s.”

“She sold me out for a fried dumpling?”

“Well, they’re pretty good wontons.” He reached over and hit the emergency stop button.

“What are you doing?”

“Just rode 400 miles for you, Mary. Now you’re gonna make it worth the trip.” His hands went to her ass and with a toss, he had her up and pinned to the wall.

She grinned up at him, happily wrapping her legs around her man and pulling his head down to hers.

****

“Whose idea was this?” Crash asked Shannon as he followed her into her hotel suite.

“Mine.”

“Thought so. You footing the tab?”

“Maybe.”

“I’m gonna cut you some slack here, seeing as how I know how upset you were before I left.”

“We just wanted to do something nice for Crystal’s birthday.”

“I’ve got no problem with that. But you and the girls loose in Vegas, I’ve got a big problem with
that
.” He studied her. “I know we haven’t been together long—not like Cole and Angel, not like Dog and Mary, so let me be clear. You don’t ever pull a stunt like this, Princess.”

She stared up at him.

“I mean it. Do not pull this shit again. If I’d come home and found you gone…” He shook his head. “You think I need a flashback to the day you gave yourself over to that piece-of-shit Brit? You think I need a reminder of that?”

Crap. She hadn’t thought of that, of what would run through his mind when he found her gone. “I’m sorry, baby.”

He grabbed her up and tossed her on the bed, coming down on top of her.

“Yeah, and you’re about to spend an hour on your back showing me just how sorry you are, sweetheart.”

She grinned up at him, cupping his face in her hands. “Maybe I should get in trouble more often.”

“Baby, I’m beginning to realize troublemaker is your middle name.”

“
Crash!
”

****

Natalie opened the door and walked into her suite. Mack stalked in behind her, booting the door shut.

She stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door.

He gritted his teeth. She may have the hot Irish temper of a true redhead, but he wasn’t about to let her win this match.

He threw the door to the bathroom open, and it bounced against the wall. He had to fling out his arm to keep it from bouncing back on him. The bathroom was huge, and she stood four feet from him, her arm moving up and down as she violently yanked a brush through her hair again and again.

His eyes swept down over her body. She was wearing a one piece bathing suit, but she still had a great body with a nice firm rack and killer legs.

“You tryin’ to give me heart failure?”

Natalie tossed the brush to the vanity with a clatter. “No, I’m not trying to give you heart failure. Honestly, you are so dramatic.”

“Oh, I’m dramatic? Is that right?”

She flung her arms out. “Looks that way to me.”

“You know how much shit I’m dealing with in the club right now? You think I’ve got time to drop everything and chase you across Nevada?”

He advanced on her, and she took a step back, her tone suddenly changing. “Okay, I can see you’re angry.”

“Angry? Woman, angry doesn’t begin to cover it. Try livid.”

“I don’t see that this is a big deal.”

“Think we had this fight once already.”

“What fight?” Natalie frowned.

“This. You. A girl’s weekend in Vegas. Thought I was pretty clear,” he bit out tightly.

“And I Thought
I
was, too,” she bit right back.

“I see there’s only one way to deal with you.”

Her hands landed on her hips. “Oh, really?
Deal with me
? Is that what just came out of your mouth?”

Without answering, he grabbed her by the arm, pulled her out of the bathroom and over to the bed. Then his hands were at her waist and she was flying through the air to land on her back on the bed.

She looked up at him in shock. “Did you just manhandle me?”

He grinned down at her, tearing off his cut. “Yeah, woman, I did. And you know what?”

“What?”

“You liked it.” With that he moved over her, his mouth coming down on hers, silencing any protest she was about to make. A moment later, her arms were sliding around his neck as she moaned into his kiss.

And a moment after that, she broke off long enough to say in a panting voice, “It took you long enough to get here.”

“Smartass,” he growled down at her with a grin before his mouth came down on hers again.

****

Cole backed Angel up, advancing on her across the hotel suite, the look on his face thunderous.

“Do I gotta remind you who you belong to, Angel?”

“Cole…”

“Not playin’ with you, babe.”

“No. I know who I belong to.”

“You want a trip to Vegas, all you had to do was ask. I can swing it, it’s yours. What you do not do, babe, is sneak off behind my back.”

“Cole, it was just a girl’s weekend.”

“Then I put some guys on you.”

“Prospects?”

“Prospects. Brothers. Whoever I have to, to keep you safe.”

“We were perfectly fine, Cole.”

“You forget how easily a drink can be dosed? Huh, Mama, you forget? Only takes your back to be turned for a second for something to be slipped into your drink. They get you alone—cut you off from the group, you’re fucked. You forget that happened to you? You forget where I found you?”

“No, Cole. I’ll never forget.” She looked at her feet. He lifted her chin with a finger.

“I’m not makin’ this point to bring up bad memories. I’m makin’ this point to make you understand. None of that would happen if you got my boys covering you. Watching you.”

“Cole, I’m sorry.”

“Babe, I know you’re sorry, but I’m still pissed. You’re lucky you texted me. If I’d have gotten back to San Jose…and found you gone…”

Angel’s eyes filled with tears.

“Cryin’ ain’t gonna save you this time, Mama.”

She closed the space between them, pressing against him, her mouth brushing his softly, hesitantly. Almost as if she were asking for permission, persuading him to open for her. And he did. His body remained stiff, unyielding, but she kept on until suddenly she felt her back hit the wall as he trapped her against it.

“I’m still pissed, Angel.”