Chapter 16
SIXTEEN
She didn’t know how, after their conversation ended, she ended up seated at a table in the clubhouse common room with three other women, all curvy, all beautiful, all smirking, and all staring at her curiously.
Red had insisted that they would finish their talk later, when they were both more comfortable, and had some time to think over what was said between them. There he went, being all reasonable, when all she wanted to do was see that “but” he was going on about.
She was reasonable enough to realize they were both guilty of not communicating. And she’d been unwilling to trust that he actually loved her. No, it didn’t help that he’d been fucking every hole like a golf course slut, but…honestly, she couldn’t blame him for that. Not totally. Yes, he was an asshole to fuck other women while wanting to commit to her, but she’d been unfair in making him hold out because she wasn’t ready to let go of her fear.
They were both guilty. Period. End of. But she still needed something from him…and there was an unshakeable dread skittering up and down her back, like the other shit kicker boot was just barely hanging on, waiting to drop and ruin everything.
After Redtube shut down further conversation, he dragged her out of his office and into the common room, where he introduced her to Cluster, Tornado, Locust, Horde, and Patriot, then he introduced her to Cilla, Nadia, and Stephie, three of the four “old ladies.” Having read her fair share of MC romance novels, she didn’t need a crash course in MC terminology, so she just went with the flow, shaking hands, returning hugs, and generally feeling out of fucking place.
Before she could ask him what the hell he was doing, Red told her he needed to speak to Frost and that it shouldn’t take more than a half an hour, which meant she was sitting there, with those three women, trying to find something to talk about that wouldn’t make her look like a total loser.
Thankfully, Cilla spoke first, “How did you and Redtube meet?”
Oh, so an easy question. She fought the urge to reply with snark, ‘cause she was awkward like that.
“Oh, the usual modern, technophilic way—online. I was scrolling through Insta, saw one of his Reels, recognized the tatt on his back, and DMed him.”
Nadia snickered. “You saw one of his masked biker Reels?”
Cilla and Stephie turned to Nadia, eyes wide. “You’ve seen ‘em?” Cilla asked.
Nadia’s face turned bright red as she tucked her chin into her chest, looking all kinds of guilty. “Yessss, but only because Locust mentioned that Red did kinky shit online—how was I supposed to not look?”
Stephie prodded, her eyes bright, “Yeah? So…what are they like?”
“Like sex on two legs swinging around a baseball bat…without using his hands,” Nadia answered, wiggling her eyebrows. Cilla and Stephie giggled, and Val couldn’t help but crack a smile. The woman wasn’t wrong. While Val hadn’t had the pleasure of seeing Red’s “baseball bat” with her own eyes, she’d felt it, right up against her ass…and against her belly.
Soon…I’ll feel it inside me….
Suddenly, the idea of chatting with the old ladies had lost some appeal; she wanted Red to hurry the hell up so they could go. He’d already promised to take her to his house, where they were going to finish their conversation. And she was pretty sure they were going to end up on his bed.
A bed he’d already assured her was brand new. New mattress, new frame, new sheets.
A new beginning, he’d called it. A new beginning with her , a woman who still couldn’t believe he wanted her.
Does he, though?
Goddamn that voice for killing even a little bit of her buzz. She was nervous as hell about what the next two days would bring, but she was also…excited. She’d sucked it up, put her fear aside, and stood face-to-face with the man who’d hurt her, a man she was stupidly scared to meet, even after all they’d become to each other.
“What is that look on your face?” Stephie inquired, smiling a knowing smile.
Nadia snorted. “Is that how I looked when Locust first brought me around?”
“A little lost and a little horny?” Stephie replied. “Yes, yes it is. Although, I’m sure we all looked like that in the beginning; overwhelmed by everything that is the MC, and having the full attention of an alpha biker badass.”
Heat shot into her face as Val tried and failed not to shudder at that thought.
Cilla snickered, and Nadia nodded, smiling. “Yup, that’s it.”
Val offered a slight smile—she really liked these women. “So, how did you deal with it, being with your biker badasses?”
Cilla answered first, “Well, I’d been crushing on Patriot for months, not knowing that he was crushing on me, too. Eventually, he pulled his head out of his magnificent ass. Unfortunately, he did something pretty shitty that hurt me, but…well, he made up for it. And now, we’re solid.”
Stephie hummed, nodding. “For me and Horde, it was a casual fuck situationship that evolved into more. Once he hit this, he never wanted anyone else.” Stephie ran her hands up her body, then circled her own face with a finger. “And who could blame him? I’m fucking fabulous.”
“You are that, bestie,” Cilla agreed, grinning.
“What about you?” Val asked Nadia. “Do you and Locust have a love story?”
Cilla and Stephie both cringed, and Nadia snorted, rolling her eyes. “More like a Dateline Special.”
Curious as fuck, Val remarked, “Oooo, how so?”
“The asshole was acting under orders from Frost to seduce me for information about my stepbrother. Needless to say, when I found out, I was devastated; I thought what we had was real, and I knew I loved him. I cut him off, did somethings I wasn’t proud of?—”
“Oh, but you should be, girl. That shit was hilarious,” Stephie exclaimed, making Cilla and Nadia laugh.
“Anyway, it took him low-key stalking me for me to finally listen to him. He explained what happened, that he really did love me, then he offered to leave the club to be with me.”
“Whoa…” Val muttered. She didn’t know much about MCs, but she did know that leaving a club was a big fucking deal.
“Yeah, that’s what clinched it for me, his willingness to give up something that was life or death to him. In the end, though, there was no way I could live with myself if I made him give up something that meant so much to him.”
Something that meant so much to him….
Like Red’s thirst trap persona?
Yes, she loved him, and him being the man so many women wanted was kind of an ego boost, especially since he’d been determined to have Val as his woman. Yes, she understood that his online exploits were feeding some need inside him. But…did she like the temptation being a living, breathing sex symbol provided? Hell no.
But that’s where trusting him came in.
Could she do it? Could she trust him to remain faithful to her—once they committed to one another—despite having tits and ass presented to him on a platter every fucking day? And if not…would she make him give it all up for her?
Before she could continue to spiral down that dark and dangerous path, Red sauntered back into the common room, a frown creasing his rugged features.
She stood up, moving toward him without thinking, needing to smooth that crease.
“What’s wrong?” she asked as he reached out to cup her face between his two large hands.
He brushed his thumbs over her cheeks and peered down into her face, his eyes filled with conflict. Releasing a sigh, he pressed a quick kiss to her lips.
“Nothing for you to worry about, baby,” he replied, making Val narrow her eyes at him.
He chuckled, then kissed her again, making Cilla, Nadia, and Stephie sigh loudly from behind her. “Seriously, my Daisy, it’s just some personal shit with the prez. I’ll handle it. Also, I let it be known I’ll be no-contact for a few days.”
That made her stomach drop into her toes. A few days? He was serious about fucking her all weekend?
Of course, he was. The man is always serious about sex.
“Awww, he calls her his daisy,” Cilla cooed, jerking Val from her lascivious thoughts.
“What does it mean?” Nadia asked.
Red smirked, looking over Val’s shoulder at the women huddled at the table, staring at them, enraptured.
“When she and I first connected online, her Insta handle was @xxxDaisyChainxxx.”
Val snorted, interjecting, “Yeah, and he thought it was a sex thing, but it was completely innocent. My mom and I would make daisy chains during the spring when I was a kid. They’re precious memories to me…but sex god @RedDevilDog turned it into something dirty.”
“Of course, he did,” Nadia said, grimacing.
Red grunted, wrapping his arms around Val and tightening them so she was crushed against his chest.
“Enough of this,” he declared, “I’m getting the fuck out of here, and I’m taking my woman home, where I plan to change her handle to @fuckedrealgood.”
Val gasped, heat burning her neck and cheeks, as she slapped at his chest. He only chuckled, then maneuvered her toward the door.
“Come on, baby, I’m taking you on my bike. We’ll come back for your car on Monday morning,” Red drawled against her ear, making her nips tight and her cooch twitch.
Fuck, she was going to come during her ride to his house; that beast vibrating between her legs, and those words echoing in her ears. Yeah, she’d be done for by the time they arrived at his place.
Pulling back, Red curled his lips in a leer. The asshole could see everything she was thinking on her face.
“I got you, baby, don’t worry,” he purred.
Yup, definitely going to cream my pants before he even touches me.
From behind their retreating forms, Nadia called out, “We’ll see you Monday morning—if you survive.”
The women’s giggles followed Red and Val out into the parking lot.
Before anything freaky-deaky could be had, Red stopped at the grocery store. Parking, he turned to look over his shoulder at her. She was pressed up against his back, a black half helmet on her head, her hair loose and probably snarled around her shoulders.
Now she was rethinking her stance on hair ties.
“Need to stock up. Can’t be starving my woman—you’ll need fuel, and I seem to remember something you said about chocolate, my dick, and your mouth….”
She gasped, her eyes flying wide. She jerked her head toward the car beside them, hoping some kid didn’t hear.
“Will you keep it down?” she demanded. “Also, that was something I read in a book, it wasn’t something I ever said I’d do.” She huffed, sticking her chin in the hair haughtily.
His gray-hazel gaze speared her, and in his eyes she saw scorching heat, blazing desire, and a flash of humor—all of which made her warm all over.
How the hell was she supposed to keep her wits about her for their conversation finale if she couldn’t even ride behind him on his bike without getting a wettie?
“Right,” he drawled, chuckling.
She huffed again, and let him take off her helmet, securing it in his saddle bag.
He helped her off the bike, waited for her legs to hold her up, then took her shaking hand in his.
This…this was the first time she’d ever been seen in public with him. Her…the chubby, utterly white bread computer nerd was walking, hand-in-hand, with a man who made even blind women do a double take.
But he didn’t seem to think anything was weird, wrong, or out of place.
As they walked from the parking lot to the entrance, people stared. Of course, they did—but Red didn’t seem to notice. He just kept walking, his pace steady, his stride confident, his hand gripping hers like it was his lifeline.
Like she was the one thing he didn’t want to lose.
Hurrying alongside him to keep pace with him—her legs were comically shorter than his—she didn’t bother telling him to grab a cart so he could fill it with whatever he planned to feed her over the next two to three days.
Right inside the door, he grabbed a red basket with black handles with his free hand, and lead her toward the meat section. He grabbed $200 in steak, $50 in chicken, and then hit the deli counter for gourmet cheese. He snagged a few potatoes, an onion, a pepper, and a carton of eggs.
When they finally hit the self-checkout, she was panting, and he was easy breezy, like he hadn’t just hauled ass through the Weis. Again, people were staring, and they weren’t even bothering to hide it. She grit her teeth and ignored it, knowing it didn’t bother him as much as it bothered her. She knew him being a beautiful beast was something she had to deal with because it came with public attention, which meant that when she was with him, attention was on her, too.
Fighting the urge to tug her t-shirt down to hide more of her pooch, she watched as Red scanned each of the items—still one handed—and then paid. When he tried to bag his groceries one-handed, she drew the line.
Scoffing, the pulled her hand from his grip. He grunted in displeasure, glared at her hand, and then tried to grab it again.
She chuckled. “Come on, you don’t seriously think you can bag your groceries with only one hand,” she teased, moving toward the end of the checkout to start loading the groceries into bags.
Red growled, coming to stand right behind her, close enough that she could feel his body heat against her back.
Goddamn, down boy!
“I don’t like not touching you, baby,” he admitted, a sort of disgruntled pout in his voice.
She grinned, shook her head, and finished bagging while he just stood there watching.
“For someone who likes to get their groceries delivered, you seem like a pro at this,” he remarked.
She shrugged. “I didn’t always have a computer, and I needed money when I lived in the group home. I worked at a grocery store as a bagger for a year, saving up money for a used PC. After that, I didn’t look back.”
Grabbing the bags in one hand, Red snagged her hand with his other, and hurried from the store. Storing the bags in his saddle bags, he helped her put on her helmet, helped her onto the bike, then got on himself.
As the bike rumbled beneath her, she laughed, making Red turn his head to grin at her, his smile slamming into her like a sex hammer.
“Just hold on, baby,” Red called over the throatiness of the engine. And she did, she held on as he roared from the parking lot.
They were so caught up in their urgency to get home, neither of them noticed the pregnant woman glaring at them from the car parked next to the cart return, her face red with rage, her purpose fixed, her intent devastating.