Chapter 30
STOP PROJECTING YOUR SH*T ONTO ME
Rebel Pierce
While he slept, I traced my thumb gently along his eyebrow, feeling the roughness of his jawline and the slight scratch of his beard against my skin. As he released a contented sigh, a warm smile spread across my face, and he pulled me closer to his peaceful, slumbering body.
I hadn’t smiled so much in my damn life. No other man had ever ignited such a whirlwind of emotions within me. With his worshipful gaze and attentive gestures, he made me feel like the most important person in the world, like a queen. And despite the heavy shit going on, I couldn’t stop the giddy feeling bursting inside me. I was beyond happy, and it had been a long time since I’d been able to say that.
I’d only seen him look this peaceful once before, and that was when I showed up to his home and Siobhan was there. Her presence had a calming effect on him, like the sight of her brought him peace. His face beamed with love and pride as he looked at his daughter. Other than that time, his face always wore a stern expression.
With all the challenges he faced and the responsibility of leading a one percenter motorcycle club, it seemed necessary for him to project a tough exterior. But this J.D., the one who looked like he didn’t have a care in the world was a sight to behold. A sight I would enjoy seeing more of.
After we left his office, he brought me to his room at the clubhouse where he stayed whenever he wasn’t able to make it home. Which believe it or not was a relief. I didn’t know how I felt about fucking him in the room and possibly the same bed he shared with his wife. It would be kind of weird probably for both of us.
However, he fulfilled his promise, just as he said he would. He fucked me all night and well into the morning. I didn’t know the time right now, but I definitely didn’t want the moment of peace to end. So much shit was happening, and this was the first time we actually had a break from everything. I knew it wouldn’t last long, but I wanted to relish in the silence. Treasure the precious pause in time when we were able to just exist together, before shit got rough again.
He slowly opened his eyes and blinked a few times before a smile stretched across him face. He brushed my braids away from my eyes.
“Morning beautiful.”
“I’m not sure if it’s morning,” I said, chuckling. “But good morning. How did you sleep?”
“It was the best I’ve slept in years to tell you the truth.” He ran his thumb across my bottom lip. “I think this is the first time in a long time I’ve been able to sleep through the night.”
As I furrowed my brows, a sense of confusion washed over me. “Why don’t you sleep?”
“Nightmares. Ever since Dani and Luca died, I’ve had nightmares about the night I went to the hospital. And I have some nightmares where Dani is pleading with me to help them. But since you’ve been in my life they have lessened.”
Despite knowing he didn’t want my sympathy I couldn’t help but empathize with his difficult situation. Years without knowing the truth would drive anyone crazy especially when those in control of the investigations refuse to acknowledge what he knew to be true. And those in charge played a significant role in changing the course of his life. I could only imagine the guilt and helplessness he must deal with every day. It made me feel good that I could help him through this and help him find some answers.
“I’m sorry you’ve been dealing with this. You deserve answers and both Dani and Luca deserve justice. And I’m going to help you get that. I’m not going anywhere.”
Leaning forward, I pressed my lips against his, savoring the softness of his mouth. As he flipped me onto my back, his weight settled between my thighs, our lips locked in an unbreakable embrace. It was divine bliss when he kissed me. It was something I couldn’t wait to experience over and over again.
He rocked his erection against my core, only the fabric of his briefs and my panties separating us. Wrapping my legs around his waist, I let out a soft moan of pleasure.
“I want you,” he said as his lips brushed against mine. “I want to be inside you again.”
His insistent lips explored mine, leaving a trail of fire as they trailed down my neck and across my shoulders. I was shocked at my eager response to the touch of his lips. It had only been a few hours since we were together, and I already wanted him again.
“I want you too,” I said, running my nails across his bare muscular chest.
With a gentle touch, he unwrapped my legs from around his waist and pulled my panties down over my hips, but a loud knock on the door made him groan in frustration.
“Goddamn it! What!”
“Siobhan and Demon are waiting,” Caesar shouted through the closed door.
“I’ll be right there!”
He dropped his head against my chest, groaning. I ran my fingers through the thick, dark, silky strands of his hair.
“We’ll finish this later,” I said, laughing at the disappointment on his face.
He pecked my lips then crawled off me. “Siobhan is going to stay with Demon while I get this shit took care of.” He picked up his pair of jeans off the floor, then slid them on. “I need to make sure she’s safe while I handle this.”
“I think that’s best since we really don’t know who’s connected to this.” I got out of the bed, then pulled my panties back up over my hips. “We need to talk about your connection to Agent Revels when you get done.”
He walked towards me and pulled me into his arms. “There’s not a connection. I don’t know any Agent Revels.”
I stepped out of his arms, picked my shirt off the floor, pulled it over my head then sat on the end of the bed. “You have too, J.D.,” I said, as I watched him pull his t-shirt over his head covering his beautiful body. “Think about it. Do you know anyone with the last name Revels?”
He sat on the bed beside me, pulled on his socks and boots. “I’m telling you, Rebel, I don’t know anyone named Revels. Why?”
“He’s got it out for you.”
He chuckled. “A lot of people have it out for me especially law enforcement, so I’m not surprised.”
I shook my head. “It’s not just that. I already looked into him but I’m going to do a deeper dive. I’m telling you something’s up with him. And there’s a reason he has it out for you that goes beyond just law enforcement being after you because of who you are. There’s more to the story than that.”
He ran his hands through his hair. “Do you have a picture of him?”
“No, but I can get one.”
He nodded and pecked me on the lips again. “Do that and we can go from there.”
“Okay. Tell Siobhan I said hello.”
He smiled. “I will. When she finds out you’re here, it’s going to be hard to keep her from coming inside the clubhouse which she knows I don’t allow.”
I laughed. “Let her know, I’ll see her next time.”
“Will do. You can use anything in here you want. And I’ll have Caesar send Rumi her, so you guys can talk.”
I rolled my eyes. “Great.”
He laughed as he headed out the door. As the door closed behind him, I collapsed onto the bed, relishing the softness as I closed my eyes. The list of things to do seemed endless. I needed to take a shower so I could get my day started. I also needed to look into who in the hell Agent Revels was. Then, I needed to find out what Detective Abrams had to say. J.D. and I were so caught up in one another we didn’t get around to discussing anything.
My eyes popped open at the sound knocking on the door. “It’s Rumi.”
I really didn’t want to talk to her, but I had to. We needed to get shit straight real fast. There was no way I would deal with her drama until we were able to go home.
“Come in,” I called out to my sister as I settled against the headboard.
As I crossed my legs under the other, I watched her enter the room and took note of her hesitant steps. We didn’t have a lot of time, but we were going to get shit straight before she left this room.
She sat beside me. I looked at her, but she kept her gaze forward. “You know I only want what’s best for you,” she said.
“I know.”
She looked at me. “He’s not the one for you.”
I let out a tired sigh, the sound echoing in the quiet room. “And how do you know that? You don’t even know him, Rumi.”
“I know men like him.”
I knew she was talking about Caesar. And even though he was an asshole to her when they were married, I did believe he truly loved her. He wasn’t ready to commit to her, and she didn’t want to wait for him so he could get to that place which was her right. But he married her before he was ready because he was scared he’d lose her even though that was what happened in the end. He regretted how he treated Rumi. He loved my sister. After all these years they still hadn’t moved on from each other. No matter how much she wanted to believe she had.
“J.D. is not Caesar.”
She rolled her eyes. “He’s got you in the middle of bullshit that almost got you and me killed, Rebel! How are they different? They live the same type of lifestyle. We’re at a damn motorcycle clubhouse for fuck’s sake. Are you willing to put up with shit like this forever? The women, the parties, shit that can get you locked up or worse?”
“What he’s got me involved in is him trying to find out what happened to his dead wife and son.” I ignored the trivial shit about women and parties. I’d deal with that when the time came if I had too. Right now, it wasn’t important. “It’s not his fault that certain people don’t want that to happen.”
Her brows furrowed. “Talk to me, Rebel.”
I laid my head against the headboard. “I can’t go into details, Rumi. Even though I’m dating J.D., this is still a case, and he’s entitled to his privacy. All I’m going to say is the man who tried to kill us was a cop.”
She gasped. Maybe now she understood the gravity of the situation. She was on the outside looking in and of course shit looked bad, but she didn’t know what the hell was going on. And I couldn’t exactly explain it to her, but she needed to trust me. I was doing what was best for me and for her.
“A cop?” she asked with disbelief on her face.
“Now do you understand?” I asked, but I didn’t really want her to answer. I wanted her to listen. “So could you please lay off the attitude? It’s making shit worse.”
“I don’t have an attitude.”
I looked at her and couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
“The hell you don’t. Stop projecting your shit onto me. I really like J.D. and he’s not Caesar. You need to deal with your feelings for him. It would make things easier for all of us while we’re here.”
“I have no feelings for Caesar other than hate.”
“That’s a fucking lie and you know it.” I grasped her hand. “I know he hurt you but even if you don’t want to work things out with him at least forgive the man so you can move on with your life without all the negativity. There’s a lot of shit happening and you’re just making it worse.”
“What do you expect me to do, Rebel! I’m being pulled into shit I have nothing to do with and you’re not telling me anything. I just want to go home. I don’t want to be here especially with him.”
“I understand that Rumi, but this is what we have to do. There’s a target on me which means there’s a target on you. I know it hurts being around Caesar but it’s unavoidable. Maybe you just need to sit down with him. Clear the air. Get some closure.”
I wrapped my arm around her shoulder, and she laid her head against mine. “Every time I see him all I can think about is the past. I don’t want to live in the past. It’s hurtful. I’ve got a real future with Oscar, and I don’t want to mess that up wishing shit was different.”
She loved Caesar, but she can’t get over what he did. But she would never be able to move forward with Oscar until she dealt with Caesar. She had a lot of hurt she needed to let go of before she could move on with anyone.
“Talk to him, Rumi. It wouldn’t hurt anything. I believe you and him have a lot of things that were left unsaid. Deal with that shit then see where things stand. And stop trying to hide that you’re hurt by being an annoying bitch. He and J.D. are just trying to keep us safe.”
She lifted her head from my shoulder. “I’ll behave. You have my word.”
“Thank you. And as soon as everything is cleared up you can leave.”
“Thank God. Oscar is losing his mind that I’m away.”
I wasn’t even going to respond to that lie. Rumi using Oscar as an excuse to get away from Caesar was laughable. She was spending more and more time at my place, and this was the first time she had even said anything about Oscar having a problem with her not being around. The man worked all the time and most of it was done out of town. He might miss her, but he definitely wasn’t complaining about her spending time with me and her not being at home.
A knock sounded at the door then J.D. peaked his head in.
“That’s my cue.” Rumi rose off the bed. “Come find me later.”
I nodded. “I will. And go easy on Caesar.”
She snorted but didn’t say anything. J.D. pushed the door open wider and as Rumi walked by him, she smiled. The look on his face almost made me laugh. Hopefully now we could handle everything without them wanting to kill my sister.
He closed the door behind her and looked at me like he didn’t know what in the hell just happened which caused me to laugh.
“We had a little heart to heart.”
“That must have been one hell of a conversation,” he said as he sat on the bed beside me, leaning his against the headboard.
“It was. But you don’t have to worry about her anymore. She’ll be on her best behavior.”
He arched his brow at me in disbelief causing me to laugh harder. “I promise.”
“If you say so.” He pulled me into his arms. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
“How’s Siobhan?” I asked.
His fingertips lazily traced gentle patterns up and down my bare arms as I nestled closer to his side. “She was happy to go. She’s missed them and it’s been a while since she’s seen Rev which was all she could talk about.”
“Who’s Rev?”
“Dani’s crazy ass father. But it’s going to be so strange her not being around. I’ve never been away from her like this. It was hard to let her go.”
“That’s understandable but like you said, it’s the best thing for her. Too much is unknown for her to be here, and you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if something happened to her. She’s just a phone call away.”
He nodded, his hand gently gripping my thigh. “So, tell me about this Agent Revels and why you think he may be involved in this?”
“I’m not saying he’s involved, but there’s just something about him and when I outright asked what he had against you he got this look in his eyes.”
“What where you able to find on him?”
“Nothing out of the ordinary. His financials are normal for a Fed. Nothing stood out in his background or his work history.”
“Do you think he had something to do with Dani’s death?” he asked.
“At this point J.D., I have no clue. Anybody could be involved. The police, the Feds, the fire department for all we know. Anybody. Somebody really has a grudge against you to do all this.”
“The guy with Earl at the diner is connected to my cousin’s motorcycle club in Vegas according to Detective Abrams.”
I sat up. “What? You think your family had something to do with Dani’s death?”
“To be completely honest, I don’t know, Rebel. There’s no denying the connection. But I can’t see my family doing this to me.”
“So, what are you going to do?”
“I need you to keep digging especially into Agent Revels. I need to make sure everyone here that had anything to with their deaths is dealt with. Then I’m taking a ride to Vegas to find out what the hell is going.”
I laid my head against his chest listening to his heartbeat also while thinking about what my next steps would be. I had to get in touch with the guys. There was no way I could do this by myself without tripping alarms.
“I’m going to need to bring my guys in,” I said, looking into his eyes. “Are you good with that?”
He gazed down at me, and the relaxed features I enjoyed earlier had been replaced with the hardened exterior I’d come accustomed to. Carefree J.D. was gone.
“As long as you trust them. But if they cross me or the club that won’t end well for them.”
I laid my head against his chest, feeling the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. It wasn’t a threat but a promise. One that I took seriously, and I would make sure the guys did too.