Chapter Two #2
I couldn’t remember the last time a woman had grabbed my interest like this. Not I-want-to-fuck-her interested, although that was part of it. More like I wanted to get to know her interested. She’d risked her life to save a stray kitten. A fucking tiny ball of fur!
As Vice President of Riptide, I had the usual group of sweetbutts throwing themselves at me on a regular basis.
When I first landed stateside, I’d taken them up on it.
A lot. Hadn’t gotten any fucking action in the SEALs, at least not that kind of action.
But the novelty wore off pretty damn fast. I had to respect the women who were confident enough to sleep with whichever guy took their fancy that night, but that scene wasn’t for me.
I was no bloody saint, but even I had standards, and I wasn’t into sharing.
Lily’s brother Jack had been a stand-up guy. I had no doubt that if he hadn’t been blown away on that last mission, he’d have made a great addition to the Riptide family. And he sure as hell wouldn’t have allowed anyone to treat his baby sister as their personal punching bag.
I put the boxes of cupcakes down on the hood of the truck and held the door open so Lily could climb in with her backpack.
She held that fucking thing like it was the most precious bag on the face of the earth.
To her, it probably was. Her entire life was in it, not to mention that silly little furball.
“Thank you.” She settled onto the bench seat and reached for the seatbelt. I retrieved the bakery boxes and handed them to her. She gave me a blank look.
“Put them on the seat, between you and me. That way they won’t slide around and get messed up.”
“Oh. Right.” She took the boxes and placed them carefully on the seat.
I pulled the gun out and offered it to her, butt first. “You can have this back if it makes you feel safer, but you have to promise not to shoot me, or any of my pals.”
She looked stunned. “You trust me with a gun after I pulled it on you?”
I shrugged. “If I didn’t think you were trustworthy, I wouldn’t be taking you back to the compound with me. Think of it as a gesture of good faith.”
She took the gun and slid it into the backpack, earning herself a grouchy meow from the kitten. “Thank you.”
I didn’t tell her she’d have to give it up again when we got to the compound. I’d deal with that later.
I shut the door and strode to the driver’s side. Sliding in, I fastened my seatbelt and put the truck in gear. Minutes later we were on the road.
“Is it far?” Lily glanced over at me, one hand stroking the kitten whose head was just visible above the edge of the backpack.
“Nope. Should be there in fifteen minutes or so. It’s just outside the town limits.”
“Okay.” She sounded tired. Tired and scared. And young. Much too young for the way my cock was reacting to her presence.
I slanted a look at her. “How old are you?”
She frowned. “Old enough, why? How old are you?”
I felt my lip curl up in a wry smile. “I’m thirty-two, and I didn’t mean to come off sounding like an asshole. You just don’t look old enough to be running from so much crap already.”
“Well, I feel old enough.” She wrinkled her nose. “I turned twenty-one last month. Old enough to do whatever the hell I want as long as no one catches up with me.”
I had to laugh. “That about describes most of us on the planet. You made a good choice when you came looking for Riptide, though. Your brother was one of us, even if he hadn’t quite joined yet. We won’t let anyone mess with Jack’s little sister.”
Her expression softened. “Thank you. He said you were good guys.”
I wasn’t about to tell her that my last vision of her brother was the land mine blowing up the truck he was driving.
They’d had to scrape pieces of him off the ground and send him home in a sealed box.
She sure as fuck did not need that picture in her head.
He’d been in the lead vehicle, and Ace and I had been assigned to bring up the rear of the convoy.
Too far back to help, not that there was much we could have done if we’d been closer except die with him.
It was over in an instant. At least he didn’t suffer.
Here one minute, knocking on the fucking pearly gates the next.
Life in the SEALs didn’t come with a guarantee.
Given my respect and admiration for her brother, my reaction to her wasn’t exactly appropriate, but shit, I was a man and she was a woman, if barely legal.
A damn fine one who woke up every protective instinct in my body as well as a few lustful ones.
Lucky for me that stack of cupcake boxes between us blocked her view of my crotch.
“What do you do for Riptide? Other than fetching cupcakes?”
“Umm.” Shit. How was I supposed to answer that one? Most of what we did was classified. “Security details mostly. Play bodyguard to rich people. Or whatever needs done around the clubhouse. I’m pretty handy with tools.”
“Like a mechanic?”
I shook my head. “Nah. I leave that to Ghost. I’m more of a builder or reno kind of guy. Fixing holes in walls, plumbing, electrical. That kind of shit.”
She raised her brows. “Holes in walls?”
“Put a couple dozen guys in the same house, sometimes things get rough. Parties can get pretty wild when the guys get drinking. Ace has rules but they don’t always get followed.”
“Who’s Ace? The boss?”
“Sort of. He’s the President, but we all get a say in things so he’s not really a boss.” Damn. We all understood the rules. Someone had to be in charge, but trying to explain it to an outsider was tough.
“Like a democracy.” She shifted position, and her shirt sagged open just enough to let me see the swell of her breasts.
Shit! The girl had curves on her. Woman, not girl, I reminded myself.
She might be way too young for how my body reacted to her presence, but she was definitely a woman.
Not that it helped with how tight my damn pants were getting.
My cock didn’t care how young she was. I tried not to look at her breasts.
“Yeah. Like that. Something comes up, we all get to vote on it.”
She looked thoughtful. “Are they going to have to vote on me showing up?”
“No. That’s not a thing that we’d put to a vote. We protect our own, and by extension you’re one of ours.” I didn’t mention that I was already considering her mine.
We rounded the last curve, and the gates of the compound came in sight.
The prospects manning the gate recognized my truck and waved us through.
A grove of trees hid the clubhouse from sight until we rounded the curve in the driveway.
Perfect setup for us -- no chance of a drive-by shooting or anyone spying on the club from the road.
The clubhouse itself was an old mansion with a huge porch spanning the entire length of the front. Thor came out the door as we pulled up. I hopped out and went around to open Lily’s door for her.
“I sent you for cupcakes, not entertainment.” Thor grinned.
My eyes narrowed at the implied insult to Lily. “Watch your tongue. Lily here is the sister of one of the guys who didn’t make it back. Your cupcakes are in the truck.”
“Shit. Sorry. My bad.” Thor spoke directly to Lily. “I’m not really housebroke yet, but Janet’s working on it.”
“I’m working on what?” Janet appeared behind him.
“Making me more socially acceptable.” He draped an arm around her shoulder.
Janet rolled her eyes. “Yeah. I have a feeling that’s going to be a lifetime commitment.”
“Which is why we’re getting hitched.”
She laughed. “And here I thought it was because you can’t seem to keep your hands to yourself.”
“Well, that too.”
I reached into the cab to retrieve the boxes of cupcakes. Lily stood beside the truck, looking awkward and unsure of herself. She was wearing a baseball cap pulled down low enough to almost hide the colorful black of her eye.
Janet bounced down the steps and held out her hand. “I’m Janet, the bridezilla. Rattler didn’t mention he was bringing a friend back for the cupcake tasting, but you’re welcome to join us.” To her credit, she didn’t mention the black eye or the way Lily flinched away at her approach.
Lily smiled shyly. “I’m not exactly a friend. We met at the bakery, and I asked about Riptide. I needed somewhere to go, and my brother talked about you a lot before…” Her voice trailed off just as the kitten let out a plaintive meow.
“You have a cat?” Janet’s gaze dropped to the backpack just as Scrapper managed to stick his head out from under the flap. “Can I see it? It must be stuffy in the backpack.”
“How about we all get inside and we can do introductions there?” I nudged the truck door shut with my knee and gestured for Lily to precede me up the stairs.
Janet grinned. “Good plan. Mom is waiting for us in the kitchen, and most of the old ladies are here already. Just waiting on Emma. Ace said she was finishing up something, but she’ll be here soon.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
I glanced over at Lily. She had that panicky look on her face, like a wild animal right before it bolts for safety. Her knuckles were white where she held onto that backpack with a death grip. The kitten was looking around with its ears pricked up but made no attempt to get out of the backpack.
I got it. We could be overwhelming at first, and she’d had a rough time of it already.
The bruises on her face and arms were sure to raise questions that she might not want to answer.
I wanted to wrap my arms around her and reassure her, but my hands were full with the boxes of cupcakes.
I glared at Thor. “Get your ass down here and take these. I’m not the one getting hitched. ”
Thor bounded down and relieved me of the cupcakes. Being the VP gave me the authority to bark out orders, and I occasionally took advantage of it. When I said jump, everyone but Ace jumped.
I stepped over to Lily and wrapped an arm around her. She melted into my side as if she wanted to disappear. Fuck, but that hit every protective button I had.
Thor looked thoughtful, and I could see the wheels turning in his head. I didn’t care. She’d been through enough in the past twenty-four hours. She didn’t need any more stress.
We all headed inside, and sure enough, Mom was waiting for us in the kitchen along with Sophia and Rylie. “Just in time!” Mom bustled over to take the boxes from Thor. “The ladies are out back and they’re already into the drinks. You know how they can get when they have a few under their belts.”
Thor slanted a look at Janet. “I thought you weren’t going to start until Rattler here got back with the cupcakes.”
Janet shrugged. “They were getting restless, and I didn’t know Rattler was bringing someone back with him. I figured a few beers would hold them for a while.”
He nodded. “True.”
“Are you going to introduce us to your friend?” Mom slanted a glance at me as she opened a box and arranged cupcakes on two serving platters she’d laid out on the table.
“This is Lily. Her brother was in our platoon and didn’t make it back. She needed somewhere to regroup and decide what to do next, and she remembered her brother telling her about us.”
“I came into town on the bus and ran into Rattler at the bakery. Just a coincidence but I asked if he knew where to find Riptide, and he offered to bring me with him.” Lily lifted her chin as if defying anyone to question her right to be here.
“Nice to meet you, Lily.” Mom was sensitive enough not to overwhelm Lily with questions. She addressed her next remark to me. “You took long enough.”
I shook my head. “The cupcakes weren’t ready when I got there. The order got mixed up and they thought we were picking them up later, so I had to wait while they finished them.” I glanced over at Thor. “Sorry. Should have texted to let you know.”
“Well, you’re here now so that’s what matters, and these all look delicious. It’s going to be hard to make a decision.” Mom smiled at Janet. “Luckily I’m not the one who has to decide.”
Just then Scrapper decided he’d had enough of the backpack. Digging his little claws into the material, he pulled himself up and jumped to the floor. Landing on all fours, he looked around defiantly before sauntering over to Mom, purring loudly as he rubbed his little body against her leg.
“Well, what do we have here?” Mom laughed as she scooped him up and held him in front of her.
“I am so sorry! I didn’t think he could escape.” Lily moved to take the kitten back.
“No worries. He’s cute. I’ve always had a thing for gingers. We could use a mouser around here, especially in the outbuildings.” She kissed the top of Scrapper’s little head and handed the kitten back to Lily. “He might have to grow a bit first though. I think the mice are bigger than he is.”
Jake wandered in from the back, slapping me on the back. “Oh, you’re here. Good. The old ladies are getting restless out back. Sent me in for some more drinks.” He eyed up Lily and the kitten. “And who do we have here?”
Lily looked over at me, and I held up a hand. “This is Lily. How about we take the cupcakes and drinks out back and I can introduce her to everyone at once instead of telling the story over and over again?”
“Great idea.” Janet picked up one of the platters of cupcakes. “Everyone grab something and let’s get moving.”
Lily moved closer to me, backpack in one hand and Scrapper in the other. I lowered my head to whisper in her ear. “It’s okay. They’re mostly harmless, they just get a little loud when they’re drinking. The guys behave themselves when the old ladies are around.”
We headed down the corridor to the back door. As we exited into the blinding sunshine, we were greeting with a chorus of “Cupcakes!”