8. Crank
CHAPTER 8
CRANK
Usually, the officers were the only ones who rated a bedroom at the clubhouse, but since I’d been working so closely with Atlas, I’d been given a small room barely bigger than a closet on the top floor. That’s where I took Poppy. There was no way I’d let her go back to her place, not after what she’d been through and especially not with the Savage Bones still out there thinking they’d gotten away with what they’d done to her.
“It’s not much, but you’ll be safe here for as long as you want to stay.” I pushed the door open and stepped back so she could enter first.
“Do I get to meet your cat?” She glanced back at me, her eyes sparkling. Even though she was about to catch me in a bald-faced lie, it made me smile to hear the teasing tone in her voice.
“About the cat…” I started.
“You don’t have one, do you?”
I dropped my chin. “Well, I didn’t have one until yesterday, but I got one for you.”
“For me?”
“I didn’t want you to think I was a liar.” Damn, that sounded so fucking stupid.
Poppy spun around to face me. “Where is it?”
“She’s kind of a hellion, so I put her down in Atlas’s office for the night.” Hellion didn’t begin to describe the feral cat I’d picked up from a no-kill shelter. With time and a little love, I hoped she’d learn she could trust me. Kind of like Poppy.
“I can’t believe you got a cat for me. Why would you do that?”
The feelings I had for her swelled through my chest. I couldn’t hold them back anymore. “Haven’t you figured it out by now? I’d do anything for you, Poppy.”
She looked up at me, her brows knitting together. “Why?”
That one word hung between us. I’d come too far to turn back. I lifted my hand and grazed her cheek with my fingertips. “I fell for you the first moment I saw you. It was at the Merc, and you were struggling to bring some boxes in from the back.”
“I remember. You came over and asked if I needed help.” She nestled her cheek into my palm. Fireworks exploded up my arm.
“You told me you could do it yourself.” I smiled at the memory. She’d been full of fire and sass, even back then.
“But you didn’t listen.”
I shook my head, not wanting to say anything that would ruin whatever magic was flowing between us. I’d dreamed about a moment like this for too damn long to rush it.
You’ve been looking out for me ever since, haven’t you?” Her head tilted back, and she stared into my eyes.
Feeling guilty at being called out, I nodded. “Yeah, I have. I knew you wouldn’t give me a chance while I was still in the MC, so I held back and kept an eye on you from the shadows. Once we eliminate the threat from the Savage Bones, I plan on breaking with the club so I can tell you how I feel about you.”
“How do you feel about me, Crank?”
“Hell, Poppy. I love you.”
The moment drew on forever. While she stared up at me, I lost myself in her eyes. I’d blown it… what kind of asshole comes onto a woman right after she survives an assault? Standing there, my heart fully exposed, I waited for her to shut me down.
Instead, she rose to her tiptoes and snaked her arms around my neck. Then she pressed her lips to mine, her touch so slight, so gentle, that I wondered if I was imagining it.
“Are you sure about this, angel?” I mumbled.
“I want to feel loved tonight.”
Knowing one night would never be enough, I wrapped my arms around her waist and took the kiss deeper. The desire I’d been tamping down for months roared through me, but I held back. She needed to be worshiped tonight, treated with care and a gentleness I wasn’t even sure I possessed.
Her fingers slid through my hair, pulling me closer. I deepened the kiss even more, my cock swelling with need as my tongue pressed against the seam of her lips.
Noise from down the hall tugged at my attention, so I kicked the door behind us closed. I’d waited for her for so long. I wouldn’t let anything pull us apart now.
Her palms grazed my arms as she brought them down over my chest. Every part of me ached for her touch. When she slipped her hand under my shirt and her fingertips brushed my abs, I almost lost my grip on the sliver of control I clung to.
I don’t know how we moved across the room, but the backs of her legs hit the edge of my mattress, and she fell backward. Seeing her in the middle of my bed—exactly where I’d imagined her for so long—had my cock straining against my zipper. I couldn’t remember ever being so goddamn hard.
On my hands and knees, I hovered over her, searching her eyes for any sign of hesitation. Stopping now might kill me, but she was in charge.
“Come here.” She fisted her hand in my shirt and pulled me down.
Our lips met, parted, and met again. I propped myself up on an elbow, so I didn’t crush her under my weight while I ran my other hand over her hip. No telling how many hours I’d spent dreaming about sliding my palms over her endless curves. Touching her now—knowing I was the reason for the low moans coming from the back of her throat—had me way too close to blowing my load.
“Damn, baby. You feel so good.” My words disappeared into her mouth as she finally opened for me. Her tongue tangled with mine, driving me completely out of my mind.
Her hands slid under my shirt, working it past my abs and chest until she pulled it over my head. Then her eyes widened as her gaze swept over the dark ink covering my chest. She lifted her hand and traced the wings spreading across my pecs. Her touch was electric, and I relished the burn.
“Your turn.” I helped her sit up, then slowly lifted her shirt over her head. She had on a sports bra underneath that dipped low in front and showed off the deep cleft between her cleavage. I practically drooled when she reached behind her back and undid the clasp.
Chest to chest, my mouth found hers again. With my hands free to roam over her skin, I couldn’t get enough. She must have felt the same since she reached for my waistband and undid the button on my jeans. Pre-cum spilled from the tip of my cock as anticipation rolled through me.
“Pinch me, angel.” I pulled back just far enough to meet her gaze.
She chuckled, her eyes sparkling with humor. “Is that how you like it? A little rough?”
“I just want to make sure I’m not dreaming.”
“Crank.” My name left her lips on a breathy sigh, and I watched her tweak my nipple between her fingers. “Satisfied?”
“I’m on my way.” My fingers fumbled with the damn tie on her joggers. Instead of pulling it loose, I ended up making a knot. “How the hell do these come off?”
“Patience, my bossy biker.” Poppy brushed my hands away and worked the knot free. Good thing she did, because I was about to rip the damn pants off with my teeth. She slid them down her legs and kicked them off with her feet. In nothing but a pair of pink and purple striped bikini briefs, she was the sexiest woman I’d ever seen.
“You want me to wear a condom, baby?” I would have given everything to slide into her and feel her heat with nothing between us. As far as I was concerned, she would be the last woman I’d ever be with. I was ready to commit to her forever.
She shook her head. “Unless there’s something I need to be worried about, I’m on the pill and have that part covered.”
“Nothing to worry about from me. You’re the only woman I’ve even thought about for the past year.” I slid my hands under her ass, ripped her underwear away, and pulled her onto my lap. Her tits pressed against my chest as she opened her legs and put one on either side of my waist.
I nibbled on her neck as my hands cupped her breasts. Fuck. Being with her was heaven on earth. Her nails raked lightly over my shoulders, her hips grinding into me. My finger trailed over the soft roundness of her belly before dipping between her legs to find her soaking wet.
Time stood still as I slid my finger into her slick heat. My cock pulsed, so damn eager to engage. I wouldn’t last more than a few seconds based on the way my body reacted to hers. But her pleasure came first. I gritted my teeth as I lifted her up. She spread her legs wider and angled her hips to take me. Then she sank down onto me, one excruciating inch at a time.