Chapter 11
Seek
Ipulled into a gravel parking lot and frowned at the building in front of us.
“You live at the bar?” I eyed The Bunker in the light of day and seeing it now I wasn’t sure how Brad had thought it was anything but a biker bar.
We sat in the truck, unbuckling our seatbelts, but neither making a move to leave the small, quiet bubble we had.
“Clubhouse,” Hush grunted, then pointed to a larger building that stood behind The Bunker. I hadn’t noticed it last night.
He had a butterfly bandage over his cheek and it made him look more dangerous somehow than normal.
A primal need stirred down low in my belly.
It was hard to keep my eyes off him. I let my gaze wander over the property they had out here in Marana.
I had no idea there was even a motorcycle club out here.
Not that I knew much about clubs. A boyfriend I’d dated in high school had a bike, and that was the most experience I had with motorcycles.
“You live in a clubhouse…” I shot him a grin. His gaze was steady on me again, making me nervous. I talked when I was nervous. “So, kind of like a dorm? Looking more and more like a frat boy by the minute.”
The expression that covered his face made it worth it. It was fun teasing him. He looked sort of dangerous and ultra-sexy when he scowled, and yet I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. It was just a feeling I had and I tended to trust my instincts.
“Seek.” My name came out in a growled warning.
Chuckling, I shook my head. “Fine. Not a frat boy.”
“Not a boy.”
The smile slipped off my face and our eyes clashed. “I noticed that.”
Something flickered there in his eyes. “I’m too old for you.”
I scoffed. “I’m not a girl either, Hush. I’m thirty years old. If I want to date an older man, then that’s up to me.”
“I don’t date.”
My eyes narrowed as irritation flared to life within me. He’d said that before. “Then why did you kiss me?”
He didn’t speak, just stared at me and my irritation fired into anger.
“If you don’t want me, Hush, that’s fine. But don’t give me bullshit excuses like ‘you’re too old’, or ‘you don’t date’. I’m a big girl. Just give it to me straight. Stop jerking me around.”
His expression got darker with every word I spoke, but I was too pissed off to stop.
He was the one who’d driven me home, twice, and knocked on my door before giving me a kiss that had all but melted me on the spot.
I could feel the passion behind it. It wasn’t a casual kiss.
He was as caught up in whatever this was as me.
I squeaked out a protest as he snatched me out of my seat—somehow managing not to smash me into the steering wheel—and dragged me over until I was sprawled on top of him. My legs were straddling him and as I shifted to gain my balance I was very aware of a certain part of his body.
He ground his hips upward and I gasped as my pussy throbbed. His dick was hard. Before I could say anything his hand fisted in the hair at the back of my head and yanked my mouth down to his.
I should be strong and stand my ground, shove away from him and tell him to fuck off with his stupid games. Only once our lips touched and his tongue delved into my mouth, I lost all self-control. I could berate myself for it later, but now, I was going to enjoy myself.
Damn him, to feel like this, it was worth the games.
His hands ran up my sides and I moaned into his kiss, rocking against him. The attraction was hard to resist and I basically ended up rubbing up against him every time we came into close contact. I’d be embarrassed about that if I didn’t want to do more. So much more.
He wasn’t holding me into the kiss anymore, instead his hands were wandering.
One was creeping up under my shirt and every cell inside of me froze, waiting for the contact I craved.
That huge hand cupped my breast and I broke away from his lips, letting my forehead fall against the truck seat next to his.
His fingers twisted my nipple and my hips bucked hard.
I was wet and aching, needing him to give me more.
“Hush,” I groaned as he continued to play with my nipple while he began sucking on the side of my neck.
He’d suck, then rake the spot with his teeth.
I should be worried about him giving me a hickey, but I couldn’t seem to scrape together the mental fortitude to care.
Nothing seemed to penetrate the bubble of pleasure he was creating within me.
My breathing was coming hard and fast. It’d been so damn long since I’d let a man touch me, and I don’t remember ever being touched like this.
He was superior to every other man I’d been with, draining my will with one kiss while setting a chain reaction off within my body.
Turning my head, I bit his shoulder, making him growl.
I didn’t care if it was a warning or in pleasure.
I hoped it was a warning. I did it again.
A sharp rapping sound made me jump. Jerking back from him, I looked over and found a man standing outside my truck with a wide grin on his face.
Heat flooded my face and I glanced down when I realized Hush was still gripping my breast. I smacked his forearm and he let his hand drop. He was glaring at the man outside the window. If looks could kill that guy would be a smoking hole in the ground.
I cleared my throat and started to disentangle myself from him, trying to move back over to my seat as gracefully as I could.
Hush’s aggravated sigh filled the cabin before he rolled down the window. He just stared at the other man, waiting for him to speak.
At least it’s not just me he’s quiet around.
“Sorry, Hush,” the man said with a laugh. He nodded his head at me in greeting. “Just checking to see who was here.”
“Just a friend givin’ me a lift home,” Hush muttered.
The man bit the insides of his lips. He seemed to be debating and must have lost the will to stay quiet. “Hell of a friend. Mind giving me a ride home?” He winked at me, making my blush reach all the way to my toes.
Hush’s response was like that of a rabid dog. He made an angry sound deep inside his chest. My eyes widened, and my core pulsed. The act of aggression shouldn’t turn me on, but here I was, a wet mess watching two men in a pissing match.
“Back off, Priest.” He shoved out of the truck so fast Priest had to jump back to avoid being hit by the door.
My eyes got even bigger. Priest was a monster.
I’d thought Hush was huge, but Priest had a few inches and more than a few pounds on him.
And it looked like they were about to start fighting.
Considering Hush had just come from the hospital with a concussion I figured that wasn’t the best idea, so I jumped out of the truck and rushed toward them.
“Stop!”
They both spared me a quick glance, then went back to squaring up on each other. Hush swayed a little. I only noticed it because I knew he’d just come from the hospital. Priest had seemed like a jovial kind of guy at first, but now he was all business.
“You going to fight us all, Hush?”
“If I have to.” A large hand wrapped around my bicep and Hush pulled me behind his body.
Priest cocked his head like a curious cocker spaniel, muscles relaxing. “You seem awfully protective of your friend. Like the way you’d protect your old la-”
“Fuck off.”
I didn’t understand these men. They were friends—at least I assumed they were—but they were ready to go to war with each other. Over what…me? Not exactly. I couldn’t figure that out either.
“Spoke to Riptide. Someone gave him a nasty black eye and a bruised jaw.”
“Maybe he should mind his own fuckin’ business then,” Hush warned. It was clear he was also telling Priest to do the same.
Priest didn’t seem inclined to take that advice.
He rubbed his jaw, his eyes straying back to me.
I felt Hush’s muscles bunch under my hand.
I’d put it on his back to restrain, as if that would work.
My hand helped steady him, as well, because he was still swaying slightly.
Worry that he was going to drop right here weighed heavily on my mind.
He didn’t need to be doing this right now. He should be resting.
“Wonder what you were fighting over, Brother.” It wasn’t a question.
“Over the fact that none of you will keep your nose out of my shit,” Hush said, but he was starting to relax now that Priest had backed off a step.
“Well some of those assholes care about you. Enough to take your wrath and your fists in order to knock some sense into that thick head of yours.” Priest held up his hand in a surrendering gesture when Hush took a step toward him, closing the gap.
“Just something to think about,” Priest said as he turned and left.
My heart was beating so fast in my chest it was a wonder it didn’t crack a rib.
I hated standing here watching them get into it.
Most of the time the fights I’d seen were over quickly.
More like wrestling matches where they weren’t really hurting each other.
This had been a slow, intense build up that had my already heightened senses—thanks to Hush’s hands and mouth on me—fraying even more.
Something serious had just happened, and something that was potentially dangerous.
Worse than a concussion. Priest had said they cared about him.
That really was something to think about.
They were willing to risk serious physical harm for Hush, but…
why? What was going on? What were they all fighting over?
It was frustrating feeling like an outsider—only that’s exactly what I was.
I got the vibe that these men were close, but they were all in each other’s faces.
Jo and I fought all the time, but we never hurt each other, physically or emotionally.
We were careful not to say something in the heat of the moment that would put a crack in our foundation.
These guys seemed willing to rip the whole house down around their heads.
Hush remained still, head slightly lowered as Priest walked back to the building that was their clubhouse. He seemed to need a minute to compose himself so I waited silently.
When he faced me, I let the question whipping through my mind come out. “What was that?” It was way more breathy than I liked, but I was all jacked up on adrenaline.
“Nothin’.”
“That wasn’t nothing.” I waited for some kind of explanation.
He stood there, arms crossed over his chest, staring in silence. His unwillingness to explain made me angry. He seemed to bring out a lot of emotion in me. I was usually a happy-go-lucky kind of girl, but he had me all over the map.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” I asked.
He just watched me, securing his silence around himself like armor, a grumpy look on his face.
I threw my arms up in exasperation. “Fine, don’t say anything.” I started to stomp back toward my truck only to be jerked to a halt when his arm slid around my waist.
He yanked me back against his chest and I froze.
My skin tingled, wanting him to touch me again.
I could feel his breath against my ear. My eyes closed as his hand smoothed down my body.
He dug into my pocket and I frowned when he pulled my phone out.
One handed he punched in a number, then sent a text to it from my phone.
I glared at him over my shoulder. He had me all knotted up and I didn’t like it.
“You can’t keep blowing hot and cold, Hush.
I can’t do casual with you,” I told him.
He stared down at me, his eyes glued to my lips.
“Either you want me, or you don’t. But I’m not going to let you jerk me around.
If you decide that you want to try this, I’m going to need you to realize that I’ll want more than sex from you.
” I turned in his arms and shoved his chest hard enough that he took a single step backward.
It was disheartening since I’d put my full force into that push, but it created the distance I needed.
More than that, he looked at me like he’d been punched in the gut.
I’d made my point. I snatched my phone out of his hand and walked around my truck.
He didn’t pursue me, quietly watching as I drove off.
“Asshole,” I muttered to myself as I looked in my rearview.
Something told me he’d be worth the wait, but I didn’t know if I could take the constant emotional torment until then.
Not to mention the looming threat of a knock down fight with his closest friends.
Somehow I had something to do with that and the thought of causing a rift between him and his family made my heart ache.
Turning my music up to full volume, I found some angry rock music—not usually my favorite—and screamed along with the lyrics on the way home.
Hopefully it would be cathartic to release the tension Hush had created, otherwise I was going to have to work it off in some other way.
I could count more than one way I’d enjoy working my anger off with Hush.
Even though he was the one who’d pissed me off, I’ve always heard a good bout of hate sex could do wonders for your mental state.