An Outlaw Wedding (12 page)

“Funny,”
Tarren
said in a bland voice. “You remember when I
told you I fucked Lucas? Or I guess it was the other way around because all I
could do was
hang
on for that ride.”

Alexis
shook her head and started chuckling. “Please, no details.”

Tarren
shook her head,
too. “No, but, well, I thought it was only going to be that one right,
ya
know? Anyway it seemed like that since we went our
separate ways and all for a while, but then things kind of picked back up.”

“So
you’re Lucas’s old lady?”

Tarren
held up her
hands. “Hold the fuck up now, let’s not
get
crazy.
Being an old lady is serious shit, you know that.”

Alexis
nodded.
“So then what?
You’re like boyfriend and
girlfriend then?”

Tarren
was quiet for a
few moments, and Alexis could tell she was really thinking hard. Her friend
wore a hard exterior, tried to play things off like they were nothing, but deep
down Alexis knew she kept a lot of shit buried.

“You
want to be his old lady, don’t you?” Alexis said more quietly, and when
Tarren
looked up at her she knew her friend had been trying
to play it off like it wasn’t a big deal. “Why don’t you just talk to him? You
guys have something between you. I know you do because I can hear it in your
voice whenever you’ve talked about him.”

Tarren
exhaled loudly
and leaned back in her chair. She picked at the hem of her tank top and then
rested her head back on the chair. “Yeah, you have always been the one to see
through my bullshit,”
Tarren
said but still stared at
the ceiling. “I think I love him, but I think he only wants sex with me. I mean
isn’t that all he’s after with any girl he spends a significant amount of time
with?”
Tarren
looked at her then, and there was this
vulnerability in her eyes that Alexis had never seen before.

She
didn’t want to say that yes, Lucas was like that, as were all the single
members of the club. They had a lot of random sex with the club whores, and
although Alexis wasn’t all about that and found it pretty disgusting, that was
just the lifestyle they chose to lead. “If you care for him as much as you say
you do—which I can see on your face that you do—then you need to tell him.”
Alexis had no clue how Lucas felt, and yes, he was one of the bigger man-whores
in the club, there was no doubt that he could care just as hard and deeply as
the other men that had old ladies.

“My
biggest fear is spilling my heart, something you know I don’t do, and Lucas
just telling me this is nothing more than a sexual relationship.”

“Do
you think that is really what he would say?”

Tarren
didn’t respond
right away, but instead shook her head and sighed heavily. “He acts differently
with me, and I’d like to think it’s because I mean more to him than the tramps
he fucked before we started going out on what I consider dates, but…” She
shrugged and looked at the ground again. “I honestly don’t know what Lucas
wants out of life, and if what we are doing would be classified by him as
having a good time with a girl that he trusts.”

“I
don’t believe that, but what I do know is that if you don’t talk to him all
you’re going to do is worry about it, and then you’ll end up having a ruined
relationship.”

Tarren
nodded and
stood. “Thanks for listening to me. I honestly have had no one I trust as much
as I do you, Alexis.”

Before
Alexis could say anything else Lucas and
Nico
pulled
up on their Harleys, and the sound of their engines was so loud it blocked
everything else out.

“Yeah,
and that’s my cue to leave because the way I’m feeling I don’t think I could
keep my mouth shut.”

They
both stared out the office window and saw
Nico
and
Lucas speaking. And then there was that damn Red club whore that had been
keeping her distance until right now. She stopped beside
Nico
,
but just before Alexis’s heart rate increased and her anger intensified,
Nico
moved away from her and toward the office. But Red
clearly wasn’t going to give up just because one Landon twin didn’t want to
give her the time of day. Red all but pressed her tits against the side of
Lucas’s arm, and when he turned to the side, disengaging her from him, she
walked over to his bike. It was like watching a train wreck, and neither Alexis
nor
Tarren
could look away. Red moved her hands along
the gleaming chrome and leather of Lucas’s bike, and although they couldn’t
hear what she was saying, her body language told them she was trying to seduce
Lucas.

“God, what a skank.”
Alexis hadn’t
meant to say that out loud, and when
Tarren
snorted
they both started laughing.

“Yeah,
well at least he isn’t all up on her like I thought he might be.”

Alexis
looked over at her. “If you guys are together he wouldn’t do anything to betray
you.”

Tarren
smiled, but it
was totally forced, that much was clear. “We never said there was anything more
going on between us than what we are doing, girl.” She sighed again. “I’m not
about to go out there and act like a jealous old lady. Some booty calls and
occasionally going to dinner doesn’t make us exclusive.”

Alexis
didn’t say
anything,
because there was nothing else
she could say that would make
Tarren
feel better
about the situation. She would be the one that had to take control of her life
and go after Lucas if she really wanted him.

“Okay,
I better get out of here.”
Tarren
gave Alexis a hug,
and then
Tarren
was walking out the door and moving
past
Nico
.

Alexis
watched her friend walk right past Lucas and Red, but she also didn’t miss how
Lucas followed
Tarren
with his gaze the entire time.
Even from the distance that was obvious. And when
Tarren
lifted her hand in a clear response to something Lucas said, she knew that this
was serious for her.
Tarren
had never acted this way
over a guy, but could Lucas focus on
Tarren
and give
her what she deserved? Red reached out and smoothed her hand over Lucas’s arm,
and that was when Alexis turned away. The side door opened, and she scented the
leather smell of
Nico
before he grabbed her around
the waist and turned her around.

“
Mmm
, you smell like lemons, and you know how much I fucking
love those.”

She
snorted, but had to stifle a moan when he slipped his hand down her belly and
between her legs. Her leggings did nothing to shield herself from his wandering
fingers. “
Nico
, you have to stop. My dad could walk
in here at any minute.” She moaned out the last word, and just as he went to
pull his hand away the door that led into the garage from the office opened,
and of course her father stood there. Brick looked a little confused at first,
but she knew he could tell what had been going on.

“Boy,
I told you the last time we talked to respect my little girl, and to respect me
and this club.” Her dad took a step closer and pointed a grease covered hand at
Nico
. “If I ever see you doing this shit with her
again under this roof before…” He stopped himself from finishing that sentence,
and Alexis looked between her dad and
Nico
. “Just
have respect, got it?”

“Yeah,
I got you, sir.”

Sir?

When
the hell did
Nico
start calling her dad sir?

“Um,”
she cleared her throat, embarrassed that her dad had walked in on them doing
anything sexual, and even more so because she was working.
“Sorry,
Dad.”

He
grunted in response. “Call your mother. She said she has been trying to call
your cell and the office, and there isn’t an answer.” Brick looked over at
Nico
once more, glared at her boyfriend, and then turned
and left.

“What
in the hell was that about?” she asked.
Nico
looked
genuinely uncomfortable, and that had her laughing. “You know what?
Never mind.”

Nico
moved toward
her again and wrapped his thickly muscled arms around her waist. “Baby, how
about I take you on a ride?” He kissed the top of her head, but she could tell
he was still tense and nervous over something.

She
pulled back and looked into his face.
“What’s going on with
you all of the sudden?”

He
smoothed his hand over the back of her head.
“Nothing, baby.
But about that ride…”

“Okay.
I’ll be finished here after four. Pick me up then?”

He
nodded and leaned down to kiss her on the tip of her nose. “Okay, it’s a date.”
He let go of her and turned to leave her alone in the office. All Alexis could
do was
stare
at him and watch as he strode back to the
garage. How
could a man so big, so fierce and strong in his
own right, be so gentle and sweet to her? He had always been like this with
her, and judging by the way he looked in leather, with his Harley and the ink
that covered his body, people would probably think him the worst kind of bad
boy by his looks and reputation alone. He was associated with the club, and had
done plenty of wild and reckless things in his life to make the people of Steel
Corner look upon him and the other members like a stain on their picturesque
community. But screw them all and their high and mighty attitudes. She loved
Nico
, bad boy attitude and all. He was the man she wanted
to marry one day and have children with.

She
pulled her focus away when she could no longer see him, and saw that Red was
still standing by Lucas’s and
Nico’s
bikes. That girl
was trouble, and if she wanted to last in this club she’d better back the hell
away from men that weren’t single.
Tarren
better get on telling Lucas that she wanted him as more than just
a booty call, because Lucas wasn’t the type of grizzly to open up his heart to
a woman even if he loved her.
At least he hadn’t been in the past.
Alexis supposed things could have changed over time, but judging by the
whispers and rumors that she heard circulating through the club from the club
pussy, it was clear Lucas liked to show his “affection” to anyone that wanted
it. God, it always seemed like something was going on that would end in drama
at The Grizzly MC clubhouse.

Chapter Eight

The
wind was chilly as the sun was lowering behind the horizon. The deeper they
went into the woods, and they higher they ascended the mountain, the more the
temperature dropped and the trees became thicker all around them. But
Nico
hadn’t brought his truck, and instead had his female
on the back of his Harley with her arms wrapped tightly around his waist, and
her head resting on his back. There was nothing better than this feeling of
freedom with the woman that he loved. But his nerves were already getting the
best of him and twisting his gut uncomfortably.

Another
twenty minutes driving up the mountain and
Nico
finally pulled to a stop in front of a clearing. There was small brook that
moved through the center of the patch of flowers and grass, and the trees
opened so that the sun could actually pierce the top. He cut the engine and
climbed off and helped Alexis off the bike, too. For a second he kept his hands
on her waist and stared down at her. Did she knew what he was about to do, that
he had this ring sitting in the inner pocket of his cut and was nervous as
fuck? Shit, he hadn’t felt this unsure about anything in his life, but he
supposed even the toughest motherfuckers felt skittish when they were about to
pop the big question. He grabbed a bag from one of his saddlebags and led her
to the center of the clearing. Then he laid out a blanket and gestured for her
to sit down.

“Are
you sweating,
Nico
?” she asked, and he could hear the
confusion in her voice. It wasn’t really that hot outside, especially being so
high in the mountains.

Fuck,
his hands were even shaking. “Dammit.” He sat down beside her and looked at the
brook.

“
Nico
, what’s wrong?” She touched his shoulder, and he could
scent the way she was worried about him.

“Everything
is okay, baby.” He turned and faced her, and before he lost his nerve he
reached inside of his cut and pulled out the small black box. She looked down
at it, and her eyes widened. “I meant to say all this sweet and endearing shit,
make you know how important you are to me and that I love you more than
anything else.” He ran his free hand over his hair and exhaled roughly. “But I
feel out of my element here, and have never felt so nervous in my fucking
life.” He hadn’t been good with all the sweet, sappy shit, but whenever he was
with Alexis it just came from him. Now it seemed he was at a loss for those
saccharine words that would tell the woman he loved more than anything else
that he wanted her as his wife.