Chapter Five
Gideon
I’m on the run from my ex-boyfriend.
I knew a lie when I smelled one and Liss reeked of it. I wanted to believe she was telling the truth. I wanted her to trust me. But that was just my heart—or my dick—talking. Whoever that kid was, he meant bad news, threatening her.
That’s a message you have to deliver yourself. He’ll beat you for it, Larissa.
No one would hurt that woman on my watch.
“Can I get back to work now?” Liss asked, petulant.
I stepped aside. She slid off the counter, stomping out of the kitchen. I watched her go. She was so goddamn skinny and small, but she made up for it with an attitude the size of Texas to protect herself.
I pulled my phone from the pocket of my cut and dialed Credence’s number. With his history as a bounty hunter, I could use his skills right now. He answered on the first ring.
“Hey, Big G. What’s up?”
“Are you busy?”
Credence paused, punctuated by the clatter of metal.
“Just working on my bike. I haven’t been giving her the attention she deserves lately. A tune-up was long overdue. Why?”
“I need you to do something for me,” I replied. “And don’t make a scene about it.”
“Is this outside of our Prospect’s field of expertise?”
Meaning there better be a good reason why I was saddling Credence with this burden, instead of Crash, who was supposed to prove himself by doing menial shit for us.
“Crash can’t keep his mouth shut to save his life,” I said.
“Sensitive issue, got it. Give me details. I’m all ears.”
I caught a glimpse of Liss through the kitchen doorway, delivering two bottles of beer to Vlad and Blackbeard, locked in a game of chess. She pointed to the queen and gestured at the board, saying something I couldn’t make out. Blackbeard raised his eyebrows with delight and moved his queen.
“Checkmate,” he declared.
Vlad scowled at Liss.
“I’ll get you back for that, little girl.”
She laughed and returned to the bar. My heart squeezed.
Liss fit in well here. She wasn’t shy around the guys, and she seemed perfectly capable of holding her ground. It pissed me off when Spike flirted with her, but she didn’t seem bothered by it.
“Big G?” Credence said, pulling me out of my thoughts. “Are you still there?”
I scrubbed a hand over my mouth. She was going to hate me for this.
“Dig up everything you can on Liss. Her real name is Larissa, but she didn’t give a last name. Keep it strictly between us.”
Investigating the background of potential members was standard practice for the club. The last thing we needed was an undercover cop or a wife-beater infiltrating our ranks. On rare occasions, we went snooping into more private matters—girlfriends, wives, siblings, teenagers. Unless there was a very good reason for doing so, it was generally frowned on to poke our noses into the personal lives of our brothers.
Liss wasn’t joining the Blackjacks though. She wasn’t claimed by anyone—not me, and sure as hell not by Spike. She was simply passing through. There was no reason to snoop into her past.
By asking Credence to do this, it showed I had my doubts about Liss. If the club knew that, they would clam up around her, wary and guarded, until Credence cleared her name. But I couldn’t sit here and twiddle my thumbs, doing nothing. When Liss found out that I went behind her back…there was a good chance she might never forgive me. Could I live with that?
My job was safety, orchestrating a smooth ride. Whether Liss liked it or not, that included her, even if she wasn’t part of the Blackjacks MC. She was still my responsibility, my guest, my little runaway thief. It didn’t matter whether she stayed here permanently, or climbed out of my window in the middle of the night so she didn’t have to say good-bye. I would rather risk her wrath than visit her grave with a useless apology on my tongue.
“What kind of dirt am I looking for?” Credence asked.
I thought about the scrawny kid Liss had been talking to earlier. I thought about how rattled she’d been, shutting me out. Refusing to tell me what the hell was going on. Desperate enough to lie as long as she didn’t have to speak the truth.
“Anything,” I said. “Someone wants to rough her up.”
“Boyfriend?”
I shook my head, leaning back against the kitchen counter. It was hard to put into words that gut feeling, knowing somehow that it wasn’t a boyfriend.
“I don’t think so. Maybe she got involved with the wrong crowd. Just find out what you can.”
“Will do.”
***
By midnight, Liss and I returned to my place. Neither of us mentioned the altercation behind the clubhouse with that unwelcome visitor. I hadn’t heard anything from Credence yet, but that wasn’t unusual. It took time to unearth information when people like Liss wanted to bury it six feet under and never look back.
“You made bank on those tips today,” I said as she dismounted and unbuckled her helmet.
“Surprised the hell out of me, to be honest,” Liss replied. “I was expecting an extra twenty bucks, tops.”
“Now that your pockets are flush with cash, I suppose you’ll be heading out tonight when my back is turned.”
Her expression faltered and she glanced away, setting the helmet on her seat.
“That was always the plan.”
“You can change it if you want,” I countered.
Liss shot me a look as if to say, you know it’s not that simple.
“Believe me, it’s better this way.”
She paused and stepped closer, sliding her hand up my chest. My heart thundered against my ribs and every inch of my skin went hot. God help me, I liked it.
“Although,” she continued. “I wouldn’t mind sticking around to blow off some steam if you make it worth my while.”
Tempting. Very, very tempting, and entirely against my better judgment.
When Liss arched into me, my hands automatically found her hips, clutching her tight. She smelled like the clubhouse—booze and cigar smoke—with the faintest hint of my soap. It wasn’t helping my rapidly growing hard-on.
Liss trailed her hand over my shoulder and cradled the back of my neck, threading her fingers through my hair.
“You’ve been a knight in shining armor,” she said. “Let me show my appreciation by riding you until you see stars.”
Her words hit me like a splash of cold water. Grasping her hips firmly, I pushed her back, putting her at arm’s length. I wanted her so fucking bad but that wasn’t the point.
“No.”
Liss blinked, partly disappointed, partly incredulous.
“No? What guy in his right mind would turn down an offer like that?”
I climbed off my bike and started for the house.
“I don’t want you anywhere near my bed if you’re harboring even a sliver of obligation toward me.”
Liss sputtered, still standing at the curb as she spread her hands in confusion.
“It’s a compliment, asshole.”
“It’s coercion, sweetheart,” I shot back, unlocking the door. “And I don’t mess with that shit.”
I paused on the threshold and glanced over my shoulder at Liss.
“Are you coming in?”
She crossed her arms and cocked her hip, sulking.
“Are you going to fuck me?”
“Nope,” I said without blinking. “But I’ll make you something to eat. Then you can pretend to go to bed, wait around until I fall asleep, and climb out the window.”
Liss shifted in place, looking annoyed. Her gaze drifted back to the dark street. For a split second, I was certain she would vanish into the night without another word.
“If you’re worried about your ex-boyfriend causing trouble,” I said. “I’m not.”
Turning around, I lifted my shirt just far enough so she could see the Glock tucked into the waistband of my jeans. Liss lowered her gaze and scuffed her battered boot against the sidewalk.
“You should be.”
“Then we’ll hash it out when he gets here,” I replied. “Otherwise, I’ll be in the kitchen.”
I stepped into the house, leaving the door open if Liss decided to join me. As I started gathering ingredients and warmed up the stove, I heard the soft click of the door close. A moment later, I glimpsed Liss as she tiptoed toward the guest bedroom. The rush of the shower made me duck my head with a small smile, pleased that she decided to stay after all.
I was halfway finished cooking a grilled cheese sandwich, the pan sizzling hot, the bread crisp and golden brown, when Liss entered the kitchen. Her damp hair was combed back, and she wore nothing but a towel. I swallowed around the lump in my throat as I took in the sight of her bony, bare shoulders.
On her right arm was a bruise the size of a man’s hand. I could clearly see the outline of his fingers, squeezing so tight that he was lucky he didn’t break bones. The towel only came to mid-thigh, granting a view of her scratched-up knees, peppered with black and blue.
Then Liss tugged at the corner of her towel and let it drop to the floor. Before I could stop myself, my gaze swept over her from head to toe. More bruises, a handful of scars. Pebbled nipples in the softest shade of brown I’d ever laid eyes on. Hip bones and ribs too visible for my comfort. The patch of dark hair between her thighs that wouldn’t smell like booze or cigar smoke or my soap, it would smell like her—slick and warm and all mine.
Regaining my self-control, I closed my eyes and inhaled a steadying breath.
“What the fuck are you doing?”
My voice sounded raw. Wrecked.
“Convincing you to change your mind,” Liss replied.
My resolve was threadbare, trembling and so close to the breaking point. The smell of burning bread snapped me out of my reverie. I hadn’t been paying attention to the grilled cheese, and now it was starting to smoke.
Swearing under my breath, I snatched the pan away from the stove and shut the burner off. The sandwich was charred black. I pushed it aside and braced my hands on the counter, fighting to regain my composure.
A naked Liss was both heaven and hell. Seeing all those places I wanted to kiss her, taste her, was nothing short of the sweetest torture. Tallying those bruises and scars though put a chokehold on my libido.
Finally turning to face her again, I stepped closer.
Liss’s gaze never left mine, looking up at me through her lashes. Her body strained toward me, taut and eager and too damn young for an old man like me. The raw adoration in her face hit me like a knee to the groin, knocking the air out of my lungs. She’d been scraping by to survive, and now that someone was finally on her side—probably for the first time in her life—it made sense she would slide down the slippery slope of hero worship.
I crouched and retrieved Liss’s towel. I wrapped it around her shoulders, making sure I didn’t touch her—not even an accidental brush of my knuckles. A slight wrinkle of confusion formed between her brows.
“You don’t owe me anything, Liss,” I said.
She frowned.
“What are you talking about?”
“Someone taught you this,” I replied. “Using sex as a bartering tool. Expecting sex in exchange for a favor. If I welcome a woman into my bed, it’s only out of her own free will.”
Liss swallowed. The tips of her ears turned a fierce red and she tugged the towel tighter around herself, furious and embarrassed. I reached out and grasped her chin lightly, tilting her head up until her big brown eyes fixed on me with that familiar fire. Now that her vulnerability had been rejected, she was gearing up to start hissing and clawing again.
“If you’re not interested,” Liss spat. “Just say so.”
“If you think I’m not interested, then you’re fucking blind.”
Her gaze flicked up to my face, studying me.
“I’m not your knight in shining armor, Liss,” I continued. “I’m just a biker who’s done some questionable shit in my lifetime. You’re in a rough spot right now so I did what I could to lend a helping hand.”
Liss tried to smooth her hair behind her ear again—a nervous habit she hadn’t shaken yet despite her haircut.
“What if I want to show my gratitude?”
I stifled a sigh. She sounded so innocent when she talked like that. She had a sharp tongue, and those marks on her body suggested she’d been through hell, but she was still young, naive, with a tender heart underneath it all.
“Then write me a note,” I said. “Send some flowers. Whatever. If you could read my mind…” I shook my head. “You would agree I’m no saint. But I can’t do this. It wouldn’t be right.”
Liss ducked her head. Her hand strayed to my cut, lightly tracing the worn and frayed stitching. It seemed more like a comfort-seeking gesture than anything else. The sting of rejection had to be a hard pill to swallow. I pulled her close and brushed a kiss to her temple.
“Get dressed,” I said softly. “I’ll take another stab at this grilled cheese.”
Liss nodded, silent, and padded back to her room. When she was gone, I blew out a shaky breath. If there was a God, he was a cruel man to test my patience like that.
I deposited the burnt sandwich in the garbage, and started over. While I worked, I kept one ear open, listening for signs of Liss. I wouldn’t be surprised if she packed up right now and walked away after I turned her down. An engine rumbled outside as a car passed. When I set the sandwich in the pan and the grease hissed, I glanced over my shoulder.
No sign of Liss.
Maybe I should go talk to her.
I couldn’t force her to stay, but I didn’t want her to think she had no friends in this world she could count on.
Then the pop-pop-pop of gunfire ripped through the air.
Glass shattered around me in a stinging shower of shards. Pain seared through my left shoulder. I dropped to the floor, pressing myself back against the cabinets as I fumbled for my gun.
One thought flared bright in my mind above everything else.
“Liss!” I bellowed.