Freedom to Ride - Resolution (Raven's MC) (5 page)

“Did you just bite me? It felt so good,” she whispered and gave him a contented smile.

“Aye, sorry. I didn’t want to wake Holly. You liked it, eh? You’re so kinky.”

Deanna giggled and kissed him before flopping on the bed lying on her front, Nate’s hands running up and down her back, kneading her sore muscles. Looking back at him when his hands ran over her backside she noticed the moans she made as he massaged her were making him hard again.

“Again?” she asked incredulously. “You’re like a machine Nate. Later, honey. I’m starving and I would love a nice long shower. . ,” she said as she began to crawl across the bed.

When she heard the bed creaking she peered over her shoulder to see Nate prowling towards her, a hungry look on his face as he stared at her naked body. She squeaked and tried to crawl faster, but Nate grabbed her ankles and slid her back across the bed and under him. She playfully tried to fight him, but he pinned her down and kissed her breathless.

“Nate, I need a shower. Holly will be up soon,” she complained smiling.

“Now you’re talking. You want a shower? Come with me,” he said and smiled wolfishly as he hauled her over his shoulder, slapping her naked behind.

“You have the cheek to call me kinky. You’re always spanking me,” she said upside down and Nate laughed as he walked into their en-suite bathroom, kicking the door shut behind him.

Deanna smiled happily as she walked down a quiet side street in the city centre, clutching shopping bags that contained Nate’s birthday presents. His birthday was only a couple of weeks away and she’d been excited to go shopping on her dinner break and find something special for him, the city was filled with hidden treasures.

She’d just visited the club’s favourite tattoo parlour where she’d discussed with Archie, the tattoo artist who’d previously worked on her, what she wanted. Two appointments had been booked over the following couple of weeks.

Deanna had decided to speak to Nate about getting a tattoo, as she knew she’d struggle to keep it a secret from him. If she faked illness like she had the previous time because she hadn’t wanted him to see her new tattoo until his birthday, Nate would be instantly suspicious. Plus, Deanna needed his approval.

She’d watched as the impact of her words had hit him and he’d immediately reassured her that her scars didn’t bother him. But she knew that deep down they did, even though he tried to hide it from her, he saw them as a painful reminder of his failure to protect her. Deanna realised that getting a tattoo to cover the wounds would help them both heal inside more.

One of the shops she’d just left had displayed a massive William Wallace six foot classic replica broad sword, and she’d run inside to order one for Nate. It had cost a small fortune but she’d seen the way Nate and the members had been fascinated with the historic weapons at Stirling Castle, also remembering his juvenile playing around with the Sgian Dubh at their wedding. Deanna thought that he’d be thrilled with it. She’d paid and arranged for it to be delivered to Megan’s house so Nate didn’t find it before his birthday.

She struggled to carry the bags that held his other gifts, including some new motorbike leathers, CD’s, DVD’s, clothes, his favourite aftershave and a new tablet. Nate was a very generous employer.

Deanna stopped when she spotted a fabulous pair of emerald green stiletto shoes, being her favourite colour and matching her eyes, in a shop window nearby. They had the biggest heel she’d ever seen and she just had to have them.

As she stared at the shoes in the window she raised her gaze and turned to walk inside the shop when her eyes caught the reflection of a man stood a few feet behind her. She froze in bone numbing fear.

She didn’t dare turn and face the man, she could only stare paralysed at his reflection. He was watching her intently and a slow evil smile spread across his face as he took a step towards her. Her body responded instinctly and she bolted for the door of the shoe shop, pulling frantically on the door handle and practically falling into the shop.

She stood there trembling and panting hard, refusing to look behind her. Finally finding a sliver of strength she raised her head and turned to look back outside, but the man was nowhere to be seen.

“Are you okay, miss?” asked a woman’s concerned voice behind her.

Deanna turned to see a well-dressed middle-aged woman stood at the shop counter, who was smiling nervously at her.

“Yes, sorry. I thought someone was following me and I panicked,” Deanna replied, her breathing now under control.

“Do you mean that man with blonde hair who was stood outside a few moments ago?  Do you want me to the call the Polis?” asked the woman, worried about the lady standing in front of her who looked absolutely terrified.

“No, it’s fine. I think I just over-reacted. I’d actually love a pair of the green high heeled shoes in the window please,” Deanna gulped, trying to take her mind of what she thought she’d just seen.

She slowly relaxed now that she felt safe inside the shop and knew she wasn’t going insane as this woman had seen the man too.

“Okay, if you’re sure. What size are you, hen, and I’ll go and get them for you?”

“Thank you. I’m a size five,” Deanna replied as the lady wandered off.

Deanna’s eyes returned to the window, but there was no-one in sight. Her whole body shivered as she could still feel the stranger’s stare boring into her back.

CHAPTER 6

Deanna pulled up in front of their home, got out of the car and slammed the door to her beloved black convertible Volkswagen Beetle that Nate had bought her for her thirty second birthday a few weeks before.

She walked across the road to the compound and kept her head down as she made her way to the office, not wanting the members to see how freaked out she still felt.

As she sat at her desk she sighed deeply and dropped her face into her hands. Her mind was swirling painfully as she tried to comprehend what she’d seen and not understanding it one bit. The roar of bike engines in the garage outside was a comforting sound.

A shadow appeared and blocked out the sunlight shining through the open door. She looked up as Nate walked in and came to her side and knelt on the floor next to her.

“What’s up babe? I shouted for you but you walked past me completely in your own world,” he asked, noticing the fear in her face that he hadn’t seen in a long time.

“I . . ,” was all she could reply before she burst into tears. Nate wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly and feeling the trembling running through her body.

“Shit, Deanna. What the hell happened?” he asked, pulling away. Cradling her face in his hands he wiped the tears trailing down her face with his thumbs.

“I saw him,” she said so quietly Nate struggled to hear her.

“Saw who?”

“Lee.” The name was whispered so softly as though she feared that saying his name would make him suddenly appear.

“What are you talking about? What happened?”

“I was in the city. I’d stopped when I spotted some shoes in a shop window. I was about to walk in when I saw the reflection of a man stood behind me. It was Lee. I swear to God it was him. He took a step closer to me and I just freaked out and ran into the shop. When I looked back he’d gone. I know this sounds crazy but I swear it to you Nate, it was Lee.” She said it so adamantly that Nate instantly believed her.

“I believe that you saw something. But Lee is locked up in prison. It can’t have been him.”

“I know. It’s driving me mad. Please could you ring Ethan and ask him to check? Please Nate. I didn’t imagine him, he was there. The woman in the shop saw him too and was going to call the Police. Nate, what do I do?” she asked, pleading in her eyes.

“Calm down. Let me ring Ethan. We’ll check that the fucker is locked up in that shithole where he belongs. We’ll go from there. Everything will be alright,” Nate soothed, kissing her forehead.

He was burning up inside knowing that something, or someone, had frightened her. But he also knew that it couldn’t be Lee. So then who else could it be?

Nate held Deanna in his arms as he pulled his mobile out of his pocket and called Ethan.

Deanna hid in her office at the compound like a coward, feeling the stares and hearing the whispers from the members. It had been a few days since she’d seen the person who looked like Lee.

Even though some of them believed her, including Nate, Megan, Ethan and Alice, most of the others regarded her with sympathy but thought that it was something she’d imagined. It hurt to know that some of the people she’d come to respect and care about thought that she might be losing her mind. She knew she wasn’t - every time she closed her eyes she could picture the man’s face glaring at her back.

Nate had spoken to Ethan who’d checked and Lee was indeed still locked up in prison and was a complete and utter mess, often shouting and jabbering like a lunatic. Ethan promised that he’d find out if there was any CCTV in the area where she’d spotted the strange man and he would look into it. But nothing had come of his investigations. She was grateful to him and was happy to know that in some way he did believe her, but no one knew who the unknown man could be.

When she’d been attacked months before by Lee it had hit the local headlines, especially as it concerned someone linked to the notorious MC. Nate was worried that she’d attracted a deranged stalker who had changed his appearance to match Lee’s for their own sadistic reasons. Nate was taking the situation seriously, but the rest of the MC weren’t really concerned.

Deanna worked late into the evening, the summer months were overwhelming and the amount of work that came into the garage was exhausting everyone, but they all banded together. Nate was always the busiest, having the privilege of being President, but the brotherhood and bonds between the members were obvious especially during difficult and stressful times.

The garage, clubhouse and shop’s success seemed to grow every day and they were doing really well financially. Also with the good reputation of McKnights, their popularity was growing and both organisations were renowned and highly respected across Scotland. At least money wasn’t something else she had to worry about.

One warm summer evening Deanna sat typing on her computer, only a couple of the members remained working in the garage, including the sleazy Alastair. He had kept his distance from her since the night of the party but she’d occasionally caught him staring at her in such a way that made her uneasy.

Deanna lifted her head when a shadow fell across her and she saw Shaun, a regular customer of the MC, standing before her. She looked up at him and smiled, but she didn’t understand how he could wear a beanie hat and such thick clothing during the summer. She was in a light summer dress and was hot just sitting in her office, even though an evening breeze blew through the open door. Shaun was a tall man with a moustache and thick goatee beard and quite a big paunchy belly for such a lanky man, making him look odd.

“Hello Deanna. I’ve come to pay for the repairs to my bike,” he said in a quiet voice, staring down at her.

“Again? I think you should give up riding it. It’s the third time you’ve had it in for accidental repairs in a month,” she joked and he smiled, but it looked strained.

As she stared into his face a flicker of recognition entered her mind, but she shook her head to clear it. Shaun practically lived at the compound, always hanging around and talking to the members.

“Here’s your invoice,” she said as she handed him the form and processed his credit card payment.

“Thank you. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you again soon,” he said in a jokey way, but the steel behind his eyes made her pause.

“Bye Shaun,” she said as he left.

She watched as he walked over to his bike, sharing a look with Alastair who nodded his head at him in recognition and then walked inside the clubhouse as Shaun rode away on his bike.

Deanna finally turned off the computer, rubbing the back of her aching neck, impatient to see their waiting daughter who was across the road at their home.

Alice always babysat when Deanna worked as she loved to spend time with Holly who she considered to be her first granddaughter, even though biologically she wasn’t. Through the week Alice stayed over at their house, her own home nearly an hour away in a seaside town on the west coast of the River Clyde.

Deanna grabbed her bag and walked into the clubhouse in search of Nate which was where she’d last seen him. As she walked inside she felt a hand on her arm pull her to a stop and she whirled around to see Alastair’s leering face.

“You looking for Nate?” he asked.

“Yes. Do you know where he is?” she asked politely, feeling very apprehensive being alone with him.

“He’s busy, but I ain’t,” he ogled, leaning down as his grip on her arm tightened.

“Please get off my arm, you’re hurting me.” She tried to pull away but he wouldn’t release her.

“Stop being a fuckin’ tease. I see you staring at me. I know you want my cock. We can go round the back and I’ll fuck you. You’ll soon forget about your wanker of a husband.”

“Get the hell away from me. Never speak about Nate like that again. Stay away or I’ll make sure you’re thrown out of here on your arse,” she said harshly as she jerked her arm out of his grip and turned away, walking quickly towards the closed meeting room door.