"I gotta get this," Liam apologized. He hated that the club was interrupting this moment, but this was his life. Her life now, if she would have it. It was a wakeup call that she would have to face sooner rather than later.She understood, so she nodded, but damn did she resent that phone. Rolling over, she pulled the covers tightly around her body and listened. He hung up and turned so that he spooned her from behind, nuzzling his lips in the crook of her neck."We gotta go," his voice was still deep and slow with the relaxation of their previous activities."We?" she asked, closing her eyes. Denise wanted to soak up whatever time she had to enjoy this. It had been so long since she allowed herself to enjoy the closeness of another human being, and she didn't want it to end."Meredith is awake and she's not being very forthcoming with the information that we need. Dad seems to think that you may be able to talk to her."Allowing herself a moment, she snuggled up to him, shiv
"Rooster, you got nothin' on me," William appealed to the young man he'd known since birth. "What you have is a bunch of circumstantial bullshit.""Pretty good bullshit though, even you gotta admit that. We have Tyler Blackfoot at Meredith's house hours before the newscast. What she said implicated your club in the death of a prominent citizen."Grinning, William interrupted, "We are Harley enthusiasts.""You wanna talk about some bullshit? That's the biggest load I've heard in a while. You're fingerprints are all over this, William.""Then show me. Where are they? What can you pin on me? Because if you can't, then cut my ass loose."Rooster got up from his chair and walked over to the door. "You know what? I think we might have some more questions for you. I can legally hold you for twenty-four hours, and I think that's what I'm going to do. Maybe I can even dig up an old warrant.""Fuck you, Rooster.""My name is Officer Hancock, don't forget it."William smirked. "Do
The smell of hairspray caused Denise to cough as she finished her hair. She was trying desperately to make it look how the hairstylist had made it look. Taking her hands to it, she artfully mussed it, smiling at the end result. She had never been good at hair or cosmetics, but tonight she wanted to be. Unlike most nights, she had also taken great care with her makeup, hoping that Liam took notice.Walking over to the bed, she glanced at the outfit she'd laid out for herself. Sparkles had convinced her she was wearing clothes two sizes too big, and she had to admit Sparkles had been right. Smoothing her hands down the shirt she wore, she blew out a nervous breath."What the hell, Denise. You only live once right?" she whispered to herself. This was the time to make the changes she had wanted to make for years. Liam was giving her that option, and she knew that she'd be crazy not to take this opportunity and run with it.* * *Liam sat on the couch in his living room, twiddling h
"So I talked to Mom last night. To see what she had to say about Richard."Liam groaned. He really didn't want to talk about club business, especially not after the amazing night he'd had with his lady. However, he knew this was important. There had to be a reason that Richard was looking into framing the club, and he needed to know why."Do tell.""According to her, there was a power struggle at one point between him and Dad. During that power struggle, Mom says that she and Richard got close. What she meant by that, I don't know. She wouldn't go any deeper into it than that. She did tell me that Richard wanted to break off into his own charter, and Dad wouldn't approve it. They had a protection run for Jeffrey Norris. Apparently he was skimming off the top of the books for the city and buying black market electronics. He would in turn sell them on the street for a straight profit. That money then came back into the drug trade. Mom thinks that Jeffrey and Richard had a back-end
Denise sighed deeply; it had been a very long day. She and Mandy had decided to completely clean the house they had been calling home, and her body was screaming. It was obvious to her she needed to start a workout program once her body allowed her to actually bend her arms after this. Of course Mandy hadn't felt anything, she'd run off with Andrew as soon as the sun had gone down. They had started having bonfires at night with other club kids and some of the younger club members. It had bothered her at first, but now she realized just how much she enjoyed her peaceful nights. She also loved that her kids had met others who lived this life and who understood it. The development of her kids was the most important thing to her, and in the past few days she realized just how much of a home they had made here. Their independence gave her independence, and that was a great gift that she had not counted on when she started this."Oh shower, how I love you," she moaned, letting the hot wate
"As alone as we can be with a clubhouse full of people around," she quipped."I wish we were completely alone. Just you, me, and the kids. I don't want all this other stuff, I don't need it right now. It stresses me out," he admitted. His eyes were jumpy and darted back and forth between her and the door.Understanding dawned on her when she realized this was his coping mechanism. He wanted to bury himself in her life to escape from his. Not deal with his Mom or any of the drama that whole situation brought. She had to get his mind on something else. Sex would never be the answer to any of their problems. "Besides, before we get some alone time I need to check on my kids, and I want to check on Meredith."He groaned, knowing that she was right. They each had responsibilities, and it wouldn't do to throw them to the wayside. After seeing his mother, he felt vulnerable. He hadn't been prepared to see her that soon, hadn't expected the anger that came so quickly. In retrospect he sh
Meredith closed her eyes as the doctor performed a rape kit on her. She tried to transport herself to a time where she felt safe and secure. She realized it'd been a long time since she had felt that way for any long stretch, but it surprised her to realize she'd felt that way with Tyler every time they had been around one another.The doctor raised her head from between Meredith's spread thighs and snapped her gloves off. Straightening up, she grabbed a digital camera. "I'm done, Meredith. Now let me get some pictures of your injuries."It was obvious she was trying to be careful with her patient, but Meredith still felt as if she were on display. She tried not to wonder where this woman had gotten her MD, and it bothered her a bit that Tyler had greeted the woman with a hug. He didn't greet people with hugs, and it had struck her as odd. The look that had passed between him and Ashley, the doctor, had made her inexplicably jealous. It spoke of nights spent together and secret lia
Richard Joyce knew he had to do something. Bookies were this close to putting out hits on him, but one in particular was willing to deal. He wanted a piece of property located on Highway 185 that belonged to the club. If he could get his hands on that land, he knew he would be able to wipe his slate clean and perhaps live another year. A plan had developed in his head. He could give the bookie a small piece of the land and then take the rest to sell for a profit. The overage would allow him to set up residence elsewhere and stay alive. He had to get this taken care of and the sooner the better. The bank would know sooner rather than later that he'd begun to skim off the top. Prominent citizens of Bowling Green were bound to start noticing their bank accounts becoming smaller. Amounts taken out weren't exorbitant, but Richard knew that many of them kept a close watch on their accounts. His game was about to be up, and he knew it. Something had to happen, and it had to be now. When this
The temperature in the cab of the truck was downright frigid as Remy drove to Tyler's house to drop off Addie first. Tatum refused to meet his gaze and that flat out pissed him off. If she was going to give herself to another man and then have the balls to sit in front of him like this, she should at least have the decency to meet his eyes when he looked at her."Am I going to have to explain to Tyler why I'm dropping you off at one in the fucking morning?" Remy glanced in the review mirror of the truck, looking back to where Addie sat in the extended cab."No," she shook her head, looking about as tired and unhappy as he felt. "He's at the clubhouse. He and Mom had planned to stay and they took Caelin with them."Well, thank God for small favors, because the one person besides Liam he didn't want to face off with tonight, was Tyler."You're lucky I don't call him and tell him where the hell you've been. How could you let her go up there with him?" he questioned her, the irrita
Tatum's heart beat through her chest as she followed Gavin upstairs to a much quieter part of the house. Her mouth was dry – the result of her nerves, or the alcohol she'd consumed – she wasn't sure which. Her hand gripped Gavin's tightly, but she knew it wasn't because she was excited, it was because she wanted to yank on it, and stop him from leading her into the empty bedroom. Part of her wanted to put a stop to it, the other part wanted to go through with this so she could throw it in Remy's face. Those stubborn traits she'd inherited from her dad were alive and well tonight.She glanced over her shoulder, spotting Addie pulling out her phone and making a call. The worried look on her friend's face told her all she needed to know. Addie was probably calling in reinforcements and her time had suddenly become very limited."You feelin' good?" his deep voice questioned in her ear, causing her hair to stand up and goosebumps to appear on her arms. This time it was different than wh
Remy was in a piss-poor mood, had been since the night of the Christmas party and everything that had gone down with Tatum. He bit off the head of anyone foolish enough to ask if he was okay. He'd been eating lunch by himself, and overall had been a miserable fucking loner. Even right now, while everyone else was partying their asses off, his big date was being in the gym and beating the ever-loving shit out of a heavy bag. It was the only thing that seemed to calm him the last few days.Hearing his fists connect with the bag felt good, even if it was muted by the gloves he wore. His arms burned, his shoulders and back ached, his chest heaved, and sweat poured down his forehead and into his eyes; making them sting. The sting felt good though, because it distracted him from the guilt he felt for the way he'd treated Tatum. And that guilt was pressing down on him like he was trapped under a thousand-pound boulder.He'd felt every emotion on the spectrum since she'd walked out on him
Tatum's blue eyes took in the party-goers around her. In different parts of the room, she could see members of her graduating class, some kids that were now seniors, and a few college kids. God, this had never been her thing, she'd never found high school or college parties worth anything to her. She could see everything that went on at them and more, at the club parties. Plus, this was a mob mentality – everyone here went along with everyone else, and it was so boring. Nobody had any individuality. Normally, she'd have tossed the invitation in the trash can and not even thought twice about it. She would have spent the night at the club's New Year's party and have an actual good time with her friends and family.Tonight though, she was on a mission."Do you see anybody?" Addie asked as they surveyed the room.Tatum took a drink from the bottle of Strawberry Boone's Farm she carried in her hand. It was the bottom shelf stuff, guaranteed to get you loaded in the least amount of tim
Tatum had never felt anything like the all-consuming lust that blasted through her as soon as Remy grabbed her hip and pulled her deep into his body. She'd thought she had but damn, she was wrong. Her fingers grasped at his shirt, trying to ground herself in the feelings, when she felt his bare palms slip up under the hem of her dress. The sharp intake of breath, and the way he nipped at her lip indicated he'd discovered she'd worn a thong."Fuck, Tate," he moaned as he pulled his lips from hers.She almost cried as he abandoned her lips and smeared his mouth down her neck. She felt the sharp nip of his teeth down to the core of her body. It caused her nipples to tighten further against the lace of strapless bra, and before she knew what she was doing, she was rubbing up against him."Please, Rem," she gasped out when she felt one of his hands on her ass venture back over her hip, and closer to the wetness and heat she felt between her thighs."Has anybody touched you?" he grow
He knew the second she walked in, just like he'd known when she'd entered the bakery. Even seven shots of Pappy in, he could feel her, he knew she was there by the way the hair on the back of his neck stood up, the goosebumps he got on his arms and the way his dick stirred to attention. He wasn't sure what kind of hold Tatum Walker held over him, but it was strong, maybe dangerously so, like some sort of Jedi Mind Trick he'd never be able to resist. And dammit if his hand didn't shake as he took his next shot."Too much for you?" Drew asked as he noticed the slight tremble of the other man's hand.How did he tell the man sitting beside him, he was hard up for his little sister? Easy. He didn't."Nah, I'm good, but I gotta hit the head. Be back."Plan number two when plan number one didn't work? Run and hope she wouldn't follow. As much alcohol as he had consumed, he wasn't sure he could push her away this time. After all, he was only a man and he wasn't immune to the way she lo
He should have brought a date. Those were the first words Remy thought when he walked through the door of the clubhouse. It hit him like a ton of bricks, and all he wanted to do was turn around and head back to Cash and Harper's. Normally, he lived at the clubhouse, but he'd had dinner at their place tonight. He could relieve the babysitter watching Maddy, and he wouldn't have to worry about keeping his guard up.Couples were paired off, which meant anyone without a plus one would be inevitably thrown together. Looking up, he saw mistletoe was hung randomly around the room. Shit. Since he was the youngest, he seemed to be one of the few without a woman on his arm. Sure as the world turned, he'd find himself thrown toward someone tonight.Gazing around the room, he didn't see Tatum and for that he was extremely thankful. He'd been able to avoid her since the day at Harper's bakery, but it'd hadn't been easy. Not that she'd gone out of her way to be around him but they were in the sa
Remy told himself to slow down as he grasped her neck, hauling Tatum closer to him. He cautioned his lust-drunk body not to make a fool of itself. He warned his libido not to let this go too far. They were in the middle of the bakery, in the middle of downtown. Anyone could walk through that door from some dumbass off the street, to her brother, to her dad. But he couldn't stop, couldn't force his hand not to trail down her body and grasp her tight ass in his fingers. He wanted desperately to pull her lower half into his, wanted to shove his thigh between her legs and feel the heat he knew would be there. His tongue was forceful as it made its way into her mouth, testing how far she'd let him go.Turned out she'd let him go as far as he wanted to.His brain tried to warn him that this was progressing too quickly. It was getting too out of control, too fast. If he didn't watch it, he'd be picking her up and putting her ass first against the nearest wall. He was losing his mind, losi
Son of a bitch. Something in the way Tatum's gaze met his made him think he'd said those words loud enough she could hear them. But fuck, she looked amazing. Even more than she usually did. Tatum had been gorgeous for a long time, but with her hair in this new cut, she looked sexy, and almost… sophisticated. But this was Tatum. She'd never fully be a lady, not really. She didn't do dresses unless she had to, she didn't do caked on makeup, and she could hang with the guys – no matter how raunchy it got."Do you like it?" She asked again, this time looking much more unsure than when she'd started out. Very slowly, she ran her fingers through her hair, giving it a tousle.Remy cleared his throat, not sure how honest he wanted to be, but at the same time knowing he couldn't help but be honest. If he lied to her, she would know, and it would do nothing to help the situation they seemed to always find themselves in. The two of them always seemed to be either pushing or pulling at each ot