October’s Ride with Atlas (Mustang mountain Riders #10)

4. Bex

CHAPTER 4

BEX

As my mind races, I try to keep my breathing even and not give any sign that I'm awake. He isn't letting me go. I'm not here as a bargaining piece like I thought. Then why keep me? What good am I to them to keep around?

I guess I'll be paired off with one of the guys. My dad always said that as long as I kept the food coming and the place clean, he wouldn't let the other guys touch me, not unless I wanted them. He said it wasn't typical in a club like his, but he'd protect me. Without his protection, I have no idea what will happen to me.

Atlas comes back into the room and closes the door. I don’t want to open my eyes, so I’m unable to see what he's doing, but I don't hear any other noise.

Then his feet shuffle on the floor across the room, and I can feel his body heat against my back since I'm facing the back of the couch, pretending to sleep. He pulls the blanket up over my shoulder and softly brushes a hand over my hair.

He thinks I'm asleep and is taking care of me. Most nights, I was lucky to even have a blanket in whatever house we were in, but here Atlas is pulling mine up to make sure I’m not cold. It's sweet, but he's still the man who kidnapped me, I remind myself.

Now that he isn't planning to give me back to my dad, I have to find a way to escape. He’s the only family I have left, and I don’t want to leave him. Even though he might have skirted the law, Dad always took care of me. After all, he was the one who came back for me.

The chair at Atlas's desk squeaks, and I’m sure he's now sitting at his desk. I can hear faint tapping on the keyboard, so I know he's on his computer. I wait to see what he is going to do, but I guess I drift off because the next thing I know, the lights are dimmed, and the room is quiet.

How long have I been out?

Turning over, I look around, and the room is empty. I stretch, and I'm a bit sore from the cramped position I’ve been sleeping in. I feel like I could go back to sleep, yet all I've been doing is sleeping. I spot a piece of folded paper on Atlas’s desk with my name on it, so I sit up and grab it.

Bex,

You need your rest, so I didn't bother you. When you wake up, come into the kitchen. You need to eat.

Atlas

I run my fingers over the words on the paper. The handwriting is masculine but still neater and fancier than I would have expected from an MC president.The tone is demanding. There is no doubt this is a command he expects to be followed. I tuck the paper into my pocket. As silly as it is, it’s a note to me, and I want to keep it.

Going to the door, I peek out. There is no one in the hallway. This might be my one chance to escape. I step into the hallway, not even bothering to close the door. I don’t want to make any noise and alert anyone that I am up.

Quietly, I head back down the hallway in the direction we came. Atlas's office is at the end of the hall, so I’m able to peek into open doors, but all I find are more offices or storage rooms. If I had more time, I’d snoop and try to find some information to help my dad, but I can’t risk being caught.

As I sneak down the hall, I come to another shorter hallway. To the right, I know it leads back to the main area and toward the kitchen. Looking to the left, I see what looks like a mudroom at the end and a door leading outside. There is no one around, so I quickly and quietly make my way to the mudroom.

Looking behind me, I want to make sure no one spots me. Once in the room, I duck behind the wall. That’s when my eyes land on the man sitting in a chair in the corner. A big smile stretches across his face.

“Now you wouldn’t be trying to escape, would ya?” he asks.

If the Mustang Mountain Riders are good men like Atlas claims, maybe I can appeal to him to let me go.

“I’m trying to get back to my father. I think there was a misunderstanding…” I start to say. Before I can plead my case, he stands and towers over me.

“No misunderstanding, Bex.” He says my name, and I panic.

I try to bolt for the door, thinking if I can just get outside, I can make a run for it. Though I’m fast, he’s quicker and grabs my arm.

“Now, you’ve done it. Let’s go take you back to Atlas,” he says, leading me down the hallway with a tight grip on my arm.

“Ow,” I say, trying to loosen his grip, but he ignores me and marches me right into the main room, where we find Atlas sitting on the couch. As he turns to look at me, I try again to yank my arm away.

“Ouch, let go of me,” I say, knowing there is no place I can run to now.

“Get your hands off her, Viper,” Atlas says in a voice that sounds deadly.

Viper immediately drops my arm as Atlas walks over to me, pulls me away, and tucks me into his side.

“She was trying to escape out the back door,” Viper says.

Atlas’s body goes stiff.

“That true, Princess?” he asks, looking down at me.

I just shrug my shoulders because there is no point in lying. Atlas takes my hand and leads me toward the staircase.

“I will take care of this. Have one of the girls bring her up some food. If you need me, I’ll be in my room.” After we take a few steps up the stairs, he stops and turns to look back at Viper.

“Don't ever let me catch you with your hands on her again,” Atlas says, his voice cold and emotionless.

He gently leads me up the stairs in stark contrast to the voice with which he just addressed Viper. Once we’re in his room, he closes and locks the door.

“I was trying to give you space to rest, but it seems we need to be closer,” he says, walking over to the closet and ruffling around.

My heart races, not knowing what his next move will be. My dad would beat anyone who tried what I just did.

When he walks over to me with something in his hand, I can’t tell what it is. As he approaches me, he says, “Give me your hand, Princess.”

I look at his outstretched hand for a moment before reaching out and hesitantly taking it in mine.

For a moment, he holds my hand in his and then, before I know what is going on, his other hand comes out and fastens something around my wrist.

“What is this?” I ask, staring at the black leather before he clicks a lock into place, securing it to my wrist. My eyes follow the chain connected to it and see him attach the other leather strap to his wrist. They look a bit like handcuffs, but not.

“This way, there is no more escaping.” He smiles at me with a hint of mischief on his face.

When I look down at the leather on my wrist, I realize the lining against my skin is soft, maybe faux fur lined.

“What is this?” I ask, holding my hand up, which is now attached to his.

“Handcuffs, so I can be sure you won’t try to run again,” he says, leading us over to the small table in his room.

He sits in one chair, and I sit across from him, while we rest our joint hands on the table.

“What kind of handcuffs are these?” I’m curious as I’ve never seen anything like these before.

“The short answer is BDSM handcuffs. They’re used when you want to restrain your partner… for fun.” He smirks.

Just the thought of him using these to chain me to the bed while he does wicked things to my body has my core throbbing. I shift in my seat and squeeze my thighs together. A move that doesn’t go unnoticed by him.

He opens his mouth like he wants to say something, but a knock on the door interrupts us. When he stands, it forces me to get up and follow him.

After he unlocks the door, there is a woman I haven’t met yet holding a tray of food.

“Hi, I’m Lily. I brought up some dinner.” She smiles at me and pushes her way into the room.

She sets the tray on the table we were just sitting at and turns to look at me again. That is when she notices the handcuffs and smiles.

“Give him hell. He needs a little spice in his life,” she whispers as she walks out the door and closes it behind her.

When I look back at Atlas, he has a soft expression on his face as he is looking at me. As soon as he realizes I’m looking at him, he seals his emotions and walks back toward the table.

Maybe he does have a soft side after all. Sadly, that turns me on even more. What is this man doing to me?