Chapter 10
10
ROXIE
T he drive back had been quiet, but companionable. Roxie couldn’t help remembering the feeling of his mouth on hers, his tongue tangling with hers and the solid feel of him when she’d melted into him. When they reached the ranch, Gavin helped her out of the truck which was totally unnecessary, but felt incredibly right, and then Gavin showed her up to her room.
She caught him by surprise when she grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him inside her room. He gave her a confused look and she wondered if anyone had ever made him confused. Roxie gave him a sympathetic look, then pulled him in for a kiss and not just any kiss. His sexy, luscious lips covered hers. Instinctively, her tongue met his, and from that moment any idea that she was in control was gone. His passionate kisses became more hungry and demanding as he caressed her back. He kneaded and massaged. His touch relaxed all of the tension out of her back, neck and shoulders.
He lifted her off the ground, his hands cupping her ass. He placed her on the dresser, nudging her back as he leaned his rock-hard bulge against the juncture of her thighs.
“What are you doing to me, Roxie?” he asked with a low guttural groan.
She knew exactly what he meant. She could feel it. She could hear it. The way he looked at her and her body confirmed it. This gorgeous man wanted her and she wanted him—in that moment more than she’d ever wanted anything in her life.
He covered her neck with hot kisses, while his hands toured the contours of her body. She might not be model thin, but Gavin seemed to enjoy the curves of her body that she was proud of. She arched her back with every caress and aided him in exploring all of her.
He slid his lips down her throat and then pulled the baggy sweatshirt over her head grinning appreciatively when he realized she didn’t have on a bra. He kissed her naked breasts. Her nipples hardened as he sucked one into his mouth. The space between her legs warmed. Roxie worried that when he removed her leggings, he’d discover she had on no panties and that she was wet and ripe for him. In the employee locker room, it had just seemed to be too much effort to do anything more than pull on her leggings and the sweatshirt… now it seemed as if her body had known what her mind refused to acknowledge. She needed him, and not in a bodyguard sort of way.
With knowing hands, he cupped her breasts and teased her nipples between his fingertips. Arousal surged through her body. His lips licked and kissed as he found his way from one erect nipple to another and lashed it with his warm tongue.
Roxie bit her lower lip to prevent a scream from escaping her lips. Gavin teased the other nipple by tugging, pulling and rotating his fingers around the sensitive nipple.
Her hips swayed underneath him. She could feel his enormous cock pulsating through his pants.
His lips moved from her breasts and followed a trail of wanton desire to her navel. The anticipation of having his soft lips tease her in ways she’d only ever fantasized about made her quiver with excitement. She was more than ready when he rolled down her leggings, lifted her ever so slightly so he could remove them and her shoes, rendering her completely naked as he pulled her to the edge of the dresser.
“Nice,” he crooned in that lovely Dom tone she’d heard him use. Had she always been hoping at some time he’d use it on her? He rubbed his engorged cock against her sex. “I can’t wait to have you.”
“Yes, please,” she begged. Roxie had never begged for anything in her life, but she was willing to do whatever it took to feel Gavin inside her. This was right.
A sly smile crossed his face as he stood and pulled his shirt up over his body, exposing a tight, muscular torso and perfect muscle-laden arms. He toed off his boots and removed his pants.
For a fraction of a second, she couldn’t breathe. She forced herself up to a semi-seated position and Gavin scooped her up in his arms and off the dresser. The next thing she knew, she was up against the wall. He nestled his body up to hers. Goosebumps covered her arms and legs.
He spun her around by her hips, pulled them back and then bent her forward. He kissed her back while wrapping his arms around her, pushing himself up against her.
Her body tingled as she felt his cock between her legs, seeking her entrance.
He turned her around again, pulling her close. He kissed her neck and placed his hands on the back of her thighs and ass. He lifted her up with one strong arm. Roxie wrapped her legs around his waist and nestled her head into his neck. She knew she would never look at pole dancing the same again. From now on, it would be Gavin she was embracing. She kissed and licked him as he held onto her, moaning.
“Roxie,” he groaned.
She had no time to respond beyond wrapping her legs tighter around him.
His cock found her entrance and he surged forward, filling her in one strong move with his long, hard cock. Roxie lost focus. Her breath caught in her throat. She wondered how long she’d wanted this? How long had it been him she was secretly hoping for?
“God, you feel so good,” he whispered as he thrust in and out of her. He didn’t give her body time to adjust. It felt almost like she was being split in half, but she didn’t care. Nothing and no one had felt as right as Gavin Briggs plundering her body.
They moved in unison, wrapped in their shared passion. His kisses were full of heat and desire. His hands moved all over her body. He teased every curve. He ignited every cell of her body.
Her mind raced with pleasure and wanton desire. He dragged himself back only to thrust in again. Her pussy fought to keep him inside. She’d never known her pussy to be so greedy. It felt right for him to be moving inside her—faster, deeper, harder. There was no doubt as to who was in command of this encounter, and it wasn’t her.
Gavin’s need was primal and raw. He pounded into her, and she welcomed it. As he thrust into her, her inner walls shook and quivered as she tried to wrap her head around the intensity of the pleasure he was giving her. Her breath sped up and became ragged as she called his name over and over. Her orgasm barreled toward her at an unrelenting speed. Her body stiffened in anticipation. Then suddenly, she fell over the edge as he gave one hard, ferocious thrust deep inside her, and she screamed in ecstasy, her pussy spasming as she clamped down hard, her legs trembling as she writhed in his hold, greedily milking his cock, savoring every bit of pleasure as he held her in his arms.
Without a word, he carried her to the bed and fell back with her, maneuvering her into position until she was beneath him, savoring his weight. He rolled from her and kissed her gently.
“That was unexpected… well not totally unexpected, but certainly welcome. I just figured we’d have more time to talk. For the record…”
“I know all of the members get tested every three months and nobody has unprotected sex unless they are a committed couple. I just had my annual physical, including testing for STDs. I’m clean and have been on the pill since I was in my teens.”
Gavin laughed and kissed her on the nose. “So much for the safe sex talk. You should get some sleep and I need to go down and check in on where we are with trying to figure out who’s after you.”
“I can come with you.”
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “They’re going to want to give me shit about sleeping with you before it turns into a serious discussion about whether or not I can still maintain my professional objectivity while fucking your brains out.”
“Does that mean this wasn’t just a one-time thing?” she said, hoping there was more of a teasing note in her voice than the desperate, pleading one she was feeling.
“Count on it. I’d actually prefer to move you to my room, but I’ll leave the timing of that up to you.”
Roxie was surprised. He sounded serious and she knew from the rumors about him, Gavin only had contracted sex with willing members of the club—and there were legions of them.
“Get some rest. You’ve had a long day.”
“Okay,” she said quietly watching him roll from the bed to pull on his clothes and leave the room.
GAVIN
Gavin paced the ranch’s dining room that had become the war room, his boots thudding softly against the wooden floor as the rest of the team sifted through documents and computer files. The charged energy in the air was almost tangible, the kind that came with knowing they were getting closer to answers but still weren’t quite there.
“Got it,” Hawke called out, his fingers flying over the keyboard. “The lawyer, Alan Kessler, filed a separate set of estate documents six months after Jeremiah’s death. These look legit on the surface, but the signatures don’t match the originals.”
“Forgery?” Gavin asked, leaning over Hawke’s shoulder to study the screen.
“Textbook,” Hawke confirmed. “And it gets worse. The funds from the estate were funneled into an offshore account. Guess whose name is on it?”
“Kessler’s,” Gavin said, his voice flat, already knowing the answer.
“Bingo.”
Gavin’s jaw tightened as he straightened. “So he stole everything Roxie was entitled to.”
“Not just that,” Reed chimed in from across the room, holding up a police report. “Turns out, the parents paid him a hefty fee and Kessler’s been cozy with some of the same people Jeremiah owed money to. Looks like he’s in deep with Carter Dugan’s crew.”
“Dugan again,” Gavin muttered, running a hand through his hair. The loan shark’s name had been cropping up too often for comfort.
“And then there’s this,” Jesse said, dropping a stack of printouts onto the table. “Margaret and William Albright. We dug into their financials like you asked. They’ve got payouts listed as ‘consulting fees’ to a private investigation firm and like Hawke said to Kessler. Worse, the private investigation firm has ties to a couple of hitmen.”
The room went quiet as the implications sank in.
Gavin’s fists clenched at his sides. “So, to recap: Kessler stole Roxie’s money, Jeremiah’s debts put her on Dugan’s radar, and her in-laws might’ve hired Kessler to steal from her and probably someone to make sure she stays silent.”
“Pretty much,” Reed said grimly.
“Shit,” said Gavin. “I need some air.”
“Really?” teased Jesse. “Reed assured us you’d done that when you were gone so long.”
“Enough,” said Reed.
Gavin stepped out onto the front porch, needing a moment to clear his head. The cool breeze was welcome against his heated skin, but it did little to calm the storm brewing inside him.
The door creaked open behind him, and Roxie stepped out, her expression guarded.
“You and I are going to have to come to a meeting of the minds about you doing what you’re told.”
“Perhaps, but that’s a discussion for another day,” she quipped. “What’s going on?”
Gavin turned to face her, his chest tightening at the sight of her standing there, vulnerable but still so damn strong. He knew he couldn’t keep the truth from her.
“We’ve got answers…well, at least some of them,” he said, his tone gentle but firm.
Her brows knit together. “What kind of answers?”
Gavin took a deep breath. “Your lawyer, Kessler, forged documents to steal your inheritance. He’s been working with the same people your husband owed money to as well as your in-laws if we are correct. And speaking of your in-laws… they may have hired someone to hurt you.”
Roxie stared at him, her face pale as the weight of his words settled over her. “My in-laws?” she whispered, her voice cracking.
Gavin nodded. “We found payments to a private investigator with ties to some dangerous people.”
She sank onto the porch railing, her hands trembling. “I knew they hated me, but… to do something like this? To hire someone to…” She trailed off, her voice breaking.
Gavin stepped closer, crouching so they were eye level. “Roxie, I know this is a lot, but we’re going to get through it. We’ll make them pay for what they’ve done.”
She shook her head, tears glistening in her eyes. “And Jeremiah? The debts? The lies? He wasn’t who I thought he was, was he?”
Gavin hesitated, hating the pain in her voice. “No,” he said honestly. “He wasn’t. But that doesn’t mean you deserved any of this.”
Her shoulders sagged, and she buried her face in her hands. “I don’t even know what to think anymore.”
“You don’t have to figure it out tonight,” Gavin said softly. He reached out, his hand hovering near hers before finally resting lightly on her shoulder. “But you’re not alone in this, Roxie. I’m here. We all are.”
For a long moment, they sat in silence, the energy between them shifting into something deeper, more intimate. Gavin’s hand lingered on her shoulder, his thumb brushing gently against the fabric of her sleeve.
When Roxie finally looked up, her eyes held the remnants of her tears, but a bright, fierce flame burned within them. “I will not be anyone’s victim,” she said, her voice steady despite the tears.
“You’re not,” Gavin said, his voice low and intense. “You’re a fighter. And you’ve got people in your corner now.”
Her lips curved into the faintest smile, and she shook her head. “You’re really something, you know that?”
Gavin grinned, the tightness in his chest easing just a little. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Roxie let out a soft laugh, the sound bittersweet but genuine. “I guess I don’t have a choice but to trust you, do I?”
“You do have a choice,” Gavin said, his tone serious again. “But I hope you’ll trust me anyway.”
She met his gaze, and the world seemed to narrow to just the two of them. Gavin felt the pull between them, the unspoken connection that had been building since the moment they met.
But he forced himself to stand, breaking the moment before it could go any further. She needed time and space. “Get some rest,” he said, his voice gruff. “We’ve got a lot of work to do tomorrow.”
Roxie nodded, her eyes lingering on him as he turned and walked back into the house.
As Gavin stepped into the dimly lit hallway, he could feel his teeth grinding. Those who were behind this had made a grave mistake coming after Roxie.
Because now, they were going to answer to him.
When he re-entered the war room, it was alive with quiet energy. Papers were spread across the large oak table, along with a laptop projecting a digital timeline onto the wall. Gavin stood at the head of the table, his sharp gaze scanning the details they’d managed to compile. The team had been working hard to connect the dots that painted an increasingly grim picture.
“Jeremiah’s first debt to Carter Dugan was recorded three years ago,” Reed said, gesturing to the timeline. “It started small—poker games, probably—but within a year, he was in deep.”
“Deep enough for Dugan to start applying pressure,” Jesse added, leaning back in his chair. “My guess? Dugan saw Jeremiah as a way to launder some money or gain access to Albright family assets.”
“And when Jeremiah died?” Gavin asked.
“Dugan didn’t care,” Hawke said, tapping a pen against his notebook. “The debt doesn’t die with the man. It shifts to whoever’s left holding the bag. In this case, Roxie.”
Gavin’s jaw tightened, his eyes narrowing as he absorbed the implications. “So, Dugan’s crew goes after her perhaps with her in-law’s blessing or worse, at their behest. All the while Kessler is siphoning off the estate to cover his tracks, while the Albrights turn a blind eye.”
Reed nodded. “Kessler likely figured no one would notice with Roxie overwhelmed by the in-laws’ smear campaign. But when that wasn’t enough to shut her up…”
“They escalated,” Gavin finished grimly.
Gavin caught sight of Roxie lingering near the doorway, her arms crossed and a hesitant look in her eyes. She’d been standing there for a while, watching quietly, as if debating whether to step in or stay out of the way. He could tell she was drawn to the room—the energy, the unspoken rhythm of teamwork and camaraderie that came so naturally to him and his men but might have felt entirely foreign to her.
“Come in,” he said, his voice low but inviting.
She hesitated before stepping forward, her hands fidgeting at her sides. “You’re really going all out for this, aren’t you?”
Gavin leaned against the edge of the table, his arms crossed. “You think we’d do anything less?”
Roxie looked around the room, her eyes landing on the timeline and the tangled web of connections they’d laid out. “It’s just… a lot. For me. For someone you barely know.”
“Doesn’t matter how well we know you,” Reed said, his voice steady. “Someone’s targeting you, and that’s all the reason we need.”
Roxie’s throat tightened, and she looked down, her fingers brushing against the edge of the table. “Thank you,” she said softly. “I can’t say that enough.”
Gavin stepped closer, his presence grounding her. “You don’t have to thank us, Roxie. Just let us do our job.”
She looked up at him then, her eyes searching his face. “It’s more than a job to you, isn’t it?”
Gavin’s lips pressed into a thin line, his silence confirming what she already suspected.
“Gavin,” Reed interrupted, his voice breaking the charged moment between them. “You might want to see this.”
Gavin turned, his focus snapping back to the screen. Reed pointed to a highlighted entry in the financial records they’d uncovered.
“One of Kessler’s offshore accounts shows a recent deposit from a shell company. We just got back the results from the deep trace—it’s one of Dugan’s operations,” Jesse said.
“Payment for services rendered,” Dawson guessed.
“Or to fund the next attack,” Gavin said darkly.
The room fell silent, the weight of his words settling over the team like a heavy fog. Gavin turned to Roxie, his protective instincts flaring as he saw the worry flicker across her face.
“Hey,” he said, stepping toward her. “We’re ahead of them now. We know their playbook.”
Roxie nodded, though her shoulders remained tense. “What’s the next step?”
“We dig deeper,” Gavin said firmly. “And I confront Kessler.”
Her eyes widened. “You’re going to him directly?”
“Yeah,” Gavin said, his tone unflinching. “It’s time to put some pressure on him. People like Kessler don’t crack unless they’re cornered.”
Roxie reached out, her hand brushing Gavin’s arm. “You’ll need to be careful.”
The others in the room laughed. Reed explained, “Guys like Kessler need to be careful of men like us. The little rat bastard doesn’t stand a chance against Gavin.”
The unexpected touch sent a jolt through Gavin, but he kept his expression neutral, nodding once. “I will be. Go on up to bed. Get some sleep. We’ll handle this.”
She looked as if she might argue and then seemed to realize his friends, comrades-at-arms and business partners were watching them. She might want to argue, but it seemed she had decided to reserve that for when they were alone. She nodded and then headed back upstairs.
Standing there, feeling the loss of her presence, Gavin felt a new purpose settle in his chest. This wasn’t just a job anymore—it was personal. And he wasn’t going to let Roxie down. Not now, not ever.