Biker Justice: A Skull Kings MC Novella (4 page)

“I just think you need to get to know him a little better,” Aspen said a little knowingly. “Plus...
you’re
the one driving us there. You said yes.”

True. So if anything negative came out of this, I was the only person to blame.

Aspen pointed out the unpaved road that led to the clubhouse. I finally pulled into the gravel lot and shifted into park. A cool breeze combed through my hair as I took Xander’s hand and followed Aspen’s charging figure toward the party.

The crowd was modest for a Skull Kings shindig. Half of the attendees were clad in leather and chains; the other half was comprised of old ladies, regular townspeople, and children. A bounce house shaped like a dragon jerked around in the middle of the adjacent field, its twitching belly full of children.

Liam was the first to break away from the crowd, spying Aspen immediately. Seeing him embrace and greet her with a kiss made my heart warm and ache at the same time.

“Glad you made it.”

His voice made ice crawl up my back. I turned to look at a grinning Logan, hands shoved sheepishly in his pockets. He spotted Xander lingering near my hip and squatted down to his level.

“Hey, buddy! What’s your name?”

“Xander.”

“Cool name. Mine’s Logan.”

They shook hands like business associates. I hid my smile behind my hand.

“I’m going to drop this off with Shayna,” I said.

Making sure to keep an eye on my son, I took my container of enchiladas to the buffet spread, where the reigning queen of Canyon City held court with a cluster of the MC’s old ladies. Shayna balanced her cigarette carefully as she gave me a one-armed hug.

“Who knew, huh?” she muttered in my ear.

“What?”

She jerked her chin toward Logan and Xander. “He’s great with kids. I bet you didn’t know that.”

“Why would I?”

Shayna shrugged. “Just thought you’d find it interesting,” she said with a mischievous smirk.

I scanned the faces of the other old ladies. “What are you guys not telling me?”

Heather, a redhead in her forties with a smoky voice, sighed dramatically, calling for my attention. “Logan’s
courting
you, Carmen. Isn’t it obvious?”

I straightened my shoulders. “Not exactly, no. It wasn’t my first thought when he tried to get me drunk and naked.”

Another old lady I didn’t recognize snorted. “Don’t act like you don’t like the attention. It’s just how the boys roll. We’ve all been there.”

I flinched.
Did
I like the attention? After all, as annoying as Logan was, our banter wasn’t malicious. It was almost like the dynamic of an older sister with a younger kid brother. This shift in our relationship made me feel dizzy, confused, and excited, but almost in a good way. Seeing him in this new light was...wrong.

But wrong was sexy.

Xander ran up to me, towing a little boy I recognized from his class at school. “Can I go in the dragon, Mom?”

I glanced toward the field. Several of the older Kings flanked the bounce house, supervising the kids. “Sure, honey. Have fun,” I said with a smile. I fixed my gaze on his running form, pretending I couldn’t see the old ladies giggling in the periphery.

“Oh, look! There’s Logan talking to Lisbeth!”

I fell out of my trance and turned to look at Logan a few yards away at the keg. Heat flushed through my face as the old ladies shrieked with laughter.

“Oh, ha ha. Fine, you caught me being interested,” I said sarcastically, stalking away.

Logan held two beers, one in each hand, as he chatted with Lisbeth.

“One of those better be for me,” I said, making him jump.

“It is, in fact,” Logan replied without missing a beat.

Lisbeth regarded me with wide, round eyes, as if I’d caught her doing something wrong. “Hi, Carmen,” she said quickly before hurrying away.

I frowned as I watched her go. “That was awkward. What were you guys talking about?”

“Nothing important. I was just grilling her about all those showers you took together growing up.”

Scandalized, I could do nothing but choke on my outrage and whip him with the back of my hand. “We
never
—I
babysat
her—plus, she’s still a kid!”

Logan laughed. “Relax! I was just joking!”

“Well, that’s a pretty tasteless joke.”

“I just like pushing your buttons.” He paused to take a drink out of his cup. “You’re hot when you get all flustered.”

My mind stopped and began running in reverse. In the span of two seconds, Logan went from irritating to predatory.

“Why didn’t you call me?” he whispered, drifting closer and closer to my body.

I stiffened and inched away. “I texted you,” I said.

The corner of Logan’s mouth curled up. “Texting
barely
counts.”

I inhaled sharply, trying to still my heart. “Logan, what exactly do you want from me? You’ve been in town for a couple of years already and started pursuing me barely yesterday.” And by “pursue” I meant
trying to get in my pants.

“Is it so wrong that I find you sexy and irresistible?” Logan said, grabbing for my hip.

I ducked out from under his reach, casting a panicked glance at the crowd. “Someone could see us!” I spotted Xander in his green tee shirt standing in line for the bounce house, a suitable distance away.

Logan placed his hand tentatively on my shoulder. It hovered cautiously for just a second before touching down on me. “Then, why don’t we go somewhere nobody can see us?”

I turned to look at him, wide-eyed. He grinned and tilted his head toward the clubhouse.

* * *

I
t was my first time inside the Skull Kings man cave. The track lights in the ceiling were tacky, but they cast a sexy, dim light in the windowless space. Harley-Davidson memorabilia lined the walls, along with some photos of the Skull Kings over the years. I even recognized Harry, the original Buddy’s owner, mugging beside Liam Olsen’s father inside of a frame.

Logan’s hands pressed into my shoulders from behind as I contemplated the photograph.

“Give me what I want,” he whispered.

I shivered as he combed my hair off of my neck. He pulled my shirt off of my shoulder and kissed my skin there. I closed my eyes. “My kid’s outside. I can’t.”

“But you want to, don’t you?”

I licked my lips. I’d spent the days since that night we’d sexted thinking about all the reasons Logan and I were a bad idea, whether it was just sex or something more. But whatever reasons I came up with buzzed around in my head like fruit flies, darting beyond my grasp every time I reached.

Before I could string together two words, Logan’s hands slid around my waist and pulled me against his chest. His hips bumped against my rear, and he lingered there, holding me close.

“This won’t take long,” he whispered, already working my jeans open.

I moaned, partly out of protest, but mostly from excitement as his hand slid down the front of my panties. He breathed steadily against my earlobe as his fingers groped toward my pussy.

“Mm,” he intoned in delight, finding me wet as his fingertip grazed my clit.

I turned my head to kiss him. My mind liquefied as our mouths melted together, swirling and sucking and breathing as one unit. After a few moments, Logan unstuck himself and slipped his hand out of my pants briefly enough to lead me to a black leather couch. Then, he gently eased me down into a sitting position and knelt between my knees.

“Logan, please. We can’t,” I said breathlessly. Even though I wanted to,
so badly,
somebody in this room had to keep her head on straight.

Logan glanced up at me, blue eyes burning against mine. “Trust me,” he said.

My stomach heaved as he pulled my sandals off and began tugging my jeans to the floor. He made no moves to undress himself. I bit down on my lip as he curled his index fingers over the waistband of my panties.

“I want to taste you,” he murmured as he slid them over my legs. They ended up in a ball in his fist, and he chucked them to the side.

Cold air licked up my legs when he pushed my thighs apart. My pussy tingled, exposed and vulnerable. Logan kissed my knees, working his way up slowly. My stomach coiled tightly, and I had to keep reminding myself to breathe.
Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.

Finally, Logan drew close to me, close enough to feel my heat on his face. He grazed his bottom lip against my outer folds, his eyes on mine, as if he were asking for permission. “Is this okay, baby?”

I gasped as I felt the air of his words brushing against my wetness. I nodded.

Logan drew apart my lower folds and began licking at my clit in earnest. My breath hitched as I squirmed on the couch. He had to hold my hips in place as his lips and tongue worked their magic.

“Oh...oh...”

My chest heaved when he slid his fingers inside of my pussy, stroking at my G-spot as his tongue matched his rhythm. The edges of my vision turned black as my brain melted into goo, unable to concentrate on anything but sheer pleasure. I gripped the edges of the couch cushions, needing him all of a sudden, his mouth on my breasts, his cock inside of me...

As if reading my mind, Logan groaned. His free hand whipped down to his crotch where he began rubbing the bulge in his pants.

“Fuck me,” I said through gritted teeth. I grabbed Logan’s sandy hair in my fists, squeezing and pulling.

When he attacked my clit and pussy with more vigor, I cried out. My back arched off of the couch, raising my breasts to the ceiling. Logan reached up and squeezed me there, his grip strong and forceful through layers of fabric. His index finger slipped past my collar, past the edge of my bra, and brushed against my nipple.

My entire body shook as my pussy walls tightened around his fingers. I could feel it coming. I was done for. Then, he pulled some maneuver with his fingers that pushed me over the edge, and I came. Right in his mouth.

My pussy spasmed. He licked at my leaking, dripping hole as I endured wave after wave of orgasm, the most intense one I’d had in a while. Finally, I came to a shuddering stop and stared, panting, at him as he wiped his mouth.

“Damn!” he said breathlessly, as if he were the one who’d just climaxed.

I caught sight of the clock just over his shoulder. Just as he’d promised, it hadn’t taken very long at all.

* * *

T
he atmosphere outside was just as we’d left it. Kids screamed in the bounce house. The air was pungent with the smell of grilled meat. Logan gave me a flirty smile before disappearing to get me another beer.

“Well, aren’t you glowing?” Aspen remarked, sidling into my view.

I rolled my eyes. “Please. Don’t say anything, or I’ll punch you.”

“Aw, why do you have to be like that? For what it’s worth, I’m happy that you and Logan have been hitting it off.”

“Sh!” I hissed. “Look, I’m not like you, okay? My life isn’t a Jane Austen novel. I can’t just go trusting every guy that thinks I’m decent to look at. It’s different when you have a kid.”

“Still doesn’t stop you from having a taste, though, does it?”

“Shut up. Just shut up.”

Aspen chuckled as her gaze wandered across the yard. I caught her staring at Liam, who was making googly eyes back at her. I sighed. Part of me was annoyed. Did Aspen and Liam have to be so perfect?

And where was Logan with my beer?

I shaded my eyes, scanning the crowd. Xander was nearby. Somebody had given him a water gun, and he was having fun darting around the field with some other kids. I was irritated for a second, thinking about him sitting in his damp clothes on the drive home. Then I continued looking, grazing over clusters of Kings and commoners, old ladies and prospects, until I found him.

Talking to Lisbeth.

Her arms were crossed defensively over her chest. I couldn’t read lips, but I recognized Logan’s stance immediately. His crooked smile, the loose way he jutted out his hip, it was all typical Logan, and Logan was typically a flirt.

That’s just how he is,
I told myself.

––––––––

T
he Sudsy Lady Laundromat was the last stop on the main drag before you crossed the railroad tracks, which was the dividing line that designated what was “in town” vs. not. Most people preferred to work in town and closer to the interstate. Lisbeth, of course, was a creature of her own devices; when Liam demanded that she find a job, none of the in-town businesses would do, except for the Sudsy Lady.

Which was why I, a woman with her own washer and dryer, was cajoled into checking up on Lisbeth by her suspicious brother.

I parked the car and hauled a hamper full of clothes out of the backseat. The door to the Laundromat was propped open, and I immediately knew why upon walking in. Even with the afternoon sun beating down on the earth, it was still much cooler outside. I spotted Lisbeth easily leaning against the counter, looking miserable with her dark hair stuck to her forehead and neck.

“Carmen!” she uttered in surprise.

I raised my eyebrows, feigning surprise. “You work here?”

Lisbeth nodded and smiled. “Yeah. I mean, it wasn’t my first choice, but...” She followed me to the washers where I began loading my clothes. “I wanted to work at Amazon, actually, but my brother said no. Noah even said they’re always hiring, pretty much.”

“Hiring
dancers.
If I were Liam, I’d say no, too.”

“What about bartending? I’m nineteen now, so I can legally serve alcohol.”

I got the feeling this was exactly the conversation she’d had with Liam. I sighed. “Well, there are plenty of other bars in town where you can actually wear clothes, with air conditioning to boot.” I grabbed a sock and wiped my damp forehead before tossing it into the washer. “I must’ve passed a dozen ‘help wanted’ signs on my way here. Why’d you choose this place?”

Lisbeth sank into a plastic chair, her shoulders sloping downward. For a split second, she looked just like the little girl I used to babysit almost ten years ago. But then I blinked, and the little girl was gone. When she gazed back up at me, there was a weathered hardness in her eyes, clearly the look of a young woman who’d seen and been through a lot. She kept rubbing her forearm with her right hand. There was a strange tattoo there, the lines of a compass over the outline of a rose.