Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
A Little Backstory
T he last time Nelle looked at her phone to check the time it was just before three. The dead of the night. No sounds other than the breathing of Slade as he slept. Something about watching him sleep was just… powerful.
He looked like a sleeping lion. A beast. A monster. A protector. Knowing that with just the softest of touches he would wake, grab her, check on her… and he’d probably fuck her again, then fall right back asleep.
Nelle wasn’t sure she ever truly had been in love before. So she wasn’t even sure if that’s what this was right now. This could have simply been an extension of lust meets need. The fact Slade could eat her clit, nibble her nipples, then offer to kill someone to keep her safe… was that love?
Or maybe that was their version of love.
Nelle took a deep breath. She looked forward again. Across the dark bedroom. Tears kept coming to her eyes. She wasn’t fully crying. She wasn’t bawling. She wasn’t making noises or anything like that. But the tears were steady. They came. They ran down her cheeks. More followed.
Slade let out a groaning noise that worried Nelle. She looked over her shoulder and saw him thrash his head side to side. Grunting and making inaudible noises. Nelle touched his shoulder and his eyes popped open.
“Nelle,” he said as he quickly sat up. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
“I think you were having a bad dream.”
“Those are all I have. Part of the life.”
Nelle swallowed hard. “Who are you, Slade? Where did you come from?”
“What?”
“Tell me about your parents. Your life.”
“What the fuck, sweetheart? You want to know about my life?”
“I just need to know. Before we go on.”
“Go on… where?”
That’s when Nelle turned to face him. She was still naked. She cupped her hands to Slade’s strong, chiseled, outlaw face. She took a deep breath.
“Slade, I know what I have to do to end this mess.”
Maggie moved behind the bar, blinking fast, ready to make coffee.
“You didn’t have to wake her up,” Nelle said to Slade.
“I barely sleep,” Maggie said. “No worries. If this is what I can do to help the club, then so be it.”
“Thanks, Maggie,” Slade said with a grin.
Nelle saw the look on Maggie’s face. She was in love with Slade. Definitely. So…
“Why me?” Nelle whispered to Slade. “What the hell, Slade? That woman is in love with you. Put your ink on her.”
Slade grabbed Nelle’s mouth. “Never tell an outlaw where to put his ink. Ever. Now I’m going to tell you something about me and you’re going to tell me your plan. Cyrus will be here any minute to listen.”
Nelle swallowed hard. “Okay. Sorry.”
“You want to know about me? My old man was a mechanic who ran with bikers that had no vision. They were just looking for fights and things to steal. My mother couldn’t keep a needle out of her veins so she ended up in rehab a few times before just killing herself. Never knew if it was accidental or not. Never cared to ask. My old man hated that my mother died. He hated that he could never cut it as an outlaw either. So he took it out on me.”
“Are those your dreams? That’s why you were-”
“I taught myself how to manage life. That included money. Lenny owned the garage and he had a parts deal with JC . I remember the first time I met Johnny. Guy was larger than life. There was a problem with the local police tracking the guys down. I offered to do it. I offered to step in and help. My father hated that, but JC loved it. He took to me. I took to him. That’s how I got involved.”
“And your father?”
Slade gently touched Nelle’s face. “I get what it’s like to have a fucked up family dynamic, sweetheart. My father tried to be a tough guy outlaw with the wrong crew. Got popped and went to prison. Tried to make it with a crew on the inside and was killed.”
“Oh, Slade…”
“No, sweetheart. There’s no sympathy for that. You wanted to know. Now you do. Now it’s your turn to talk.”
No sooner did Cyrus appear from the depths of the clubhouse looking monstrous and annoyed. Maggie moved faster. She lined up three cups and hurried to pour coffee in each. Cyrus settled at the bar, nodding to both Slade and Nelle.
“Do I ask?” Cyrus said.
“You just did, Prez ,” Slade said.
“I need you to hear me out,” Nelle said.
“I’m sitting here, aren’t I?” Cyrus asked.
“Damien is a psycho,” Nelle said. “I’ve known it from the second I met him. Was forced to meet him—forced to be near him. He killed my sisters. He wants me dead.”
“Things we all know, Nelle,” Cyrus said in an annoyed voice.
Nelle lifted her coffee cup and sipped the coffee just black. She had never drank it that way before.
“I don’t know what the terms are for the motorcycle club and all, but I can’t imagine you guys fighting against Damien and his guys being a good thing.”
“Nelle, if you’re even thinking about giving yourself up to Damien…” Slade said.
“We won’t allow it,” Cyrus said. “You have Slade’s ink. That means something around here.”
“And I want to prove myself to you,” Nelle said, staring straight ahead. “If Damien can’t come near me, he’ll find other ways to hurt and attack. Unless I give him something else.”
Slade felt Cyrus’s eyes lock to his. The word rat … Slade refused to think Nelle would do anything to hurt the club like that.
“Maggie,” Nelle said. “I need some whiskey in my coffee.”
Maggie did as told. Nelle drank the whiskey coffee and then stood up from the bar. Cyrus and Slade looked at her.
“I’m going to give Damien my father.”
Cyrus walked back to his room, rubbing his jaw. Once in there, he took a swig of whiskey and crawled into bed. Two naked deecees groaned and he wrapped an arm around each one, pulling them close to him. Without opening their eyes, the deecees went to work. They reached down and both grabbed Cyrus’s cock, stroking him to life. That would help take his mind off things for the moment.
Meanwhile in another part of the clubhouse, in Slade’s room, he held Nelle against him. Her head on his chest. Both of them wide awake. Nelle’s words seemed to hang in the air.
“It’s nothing to think over,” she whispered to Slade. “I know what this means. Maybe I’ve wanted to do this all along. After everything he’s done.”
“That’s your father, sweetheart. That’s your blood.”
“Blood means nothing. Blood… that was my sisters. They’re dead now. They’re dead because of him. My father. Their father. I don’t even need to see him, Slade. I don’t want to. I can just end this. All of it.”
“There’s a chance that won’t be enough for Damien,” Slade said. “He’s the kind of the guy that just wants…”
Nelle lifted her head and looked at Slade. “You’re the outlaw. Figure it out.”
“Did you just tell me what to do?” Slade curled his lip.
“Maybe I did…”
Nelle slithered her way on top of Slade. She reached down between his legs, cupping at his jeans.
“You’re going to use your cunt to get your way,” Slade growled. “Is that a forever thing?”
“Are you saying you want to be with me forever?”
The moment between them froze.
Slade touched Nelle’s face. “Yes, sweetheart. I want to be with you forever. I mean that too.”
They kissed.
Then they fucked.