LOGAN (BAD BOY BIKER ROMANCE) (7 page)

"Eddie," he said. "I've had a really crappy day. In fact it's one of the worst ones I've had in a while."

Eddie fumbled off the bed and managed to stand in front of him. He grabbed at Logan's shirt. For the briefest of moments Logan feared he was about to throw up all over him.

"I can help you with that," he said, barely standing.

Very gently he nudged Eddie with his hand. Eddie fell over onto the bed. He seemed almost oblivious he had suddenly changed locations. "I can really help you, like I use to. You 'member how I made you feel?"

Logan made a quick call to a Hang Around who was assigned to be on standby that night. "Get over here. Now." Logan said, and hung up.

Eddie was looking at him with a heavy sulking expression. "Oliver," he said, pouting.

Logan just looked at him. "Yeah? What about him?"

"He's the one keeping us apart. He's the one you love now."

Logan did not have time for this. "Get your clothes on," he commanded. But Eddie didn't move. In fact, Logan wasn't sure he could even dress himself.

Logan attempted to put clothes on him, but he kept resisting. Eventually, he gave up and tossed Eddie's clothes onto him. Eddie laughed, then cried.

Logan thought that shooting him wouldn't really solve anything. Instead, he wrapped Eddie in the bed's comforter and pulled him up into a standing position.

"Oh, kinky, baby," Eddie said, grinning. He was actually drooling at this point. "Just like we use to."

Then Logan put him over his shoulder and stood up straight.

Wrapped snuggly in the comforter all Eddie could say was, "Oaf!"

Praying he wouldn't barf on him, Logan headed out the apartment and down the side stairs to the ground floor.

"Oliver," Eddie said. "You gotta watch out for him. He's... he's a spy."

Logan passed a couple outside. They gave him a curious look but steered clear. They knew who he was.

At the edge of the street, near the entrance to the parking lot, Logan eased Eddie down to stand beside him. He kept one arm around him so he didn't fall over.

"A spy for who?" Logan asked, not caring. You could only play along with a drunk for so long. He looked in both directions for the vehicle that would be arriving any moment.

"The Silver Hounds."

"Uh huh," Logan said. "Why do you say that?"

Satisfied to finally have his full attention, Eddie grinned. "He told me. Before. He was sent here to spy on you for the Silv..." He burped. "Silver Hounds."

Logan was aware that Oliver had a history with the Hounds through Jonah. But he didn't know the specifics. Normally, he wouldn't even be concerned. Everyone in the Biker world had a history with other Bikers. But in light of recent events, Oliver and the Hounds might be a cause for concern.

When Logan didn't say anything Eddie said, "Send him away, baby. He's all bad and you know it. You only need me!" He started to cry again.

Mercifully, a dark van pulled up to the curb beside them. Logan opened the sliding door. Bryce, a Club Hang Around, greeted Logan, then looked perplexed when he saw Eddie cocooned in a comforter. "What's up, boss?" he asked.

Logan hoisted Eddie into the van and gently laid him down across a back seat. "You know where he lives, right?" He gave Bryce Eddie's apartment keys. "Get him home safe."

"You got it," Bryce said.

Before Logan shut the door Eddie said, "He's a spy!" Logan shut the door, and watched the van pull away down the street.

Silver Hounds. He had to know if there was more there.

His personal cell phone rang. He didn't recognize the number, but answered anyways.

"Hey, you," came a soft voice. "It's Oliver."

"What a coincidence," Logan said, mildly surprised.

"Why is that?"

"Because I was just talking about you."

"Really?" Oliver said, surprised. "With who?"

Was that worry in his voice? He couldn't tell. "With drunk people," he said.

Oliver laughed. A wonderful easy sound.

I could get use to that sound, Logan thought. Then he shook his head. First, he needed answers. And he hoped Oliver was willing to give them because he was not in any mood for evasiveness.

Oliver said, "I saw you at Hot Rocks. I wanted to say hi but you seemed-"

Logan cut him off. "I need to see you," he said. "I'm coming over."

Chapter 8

Oliver

Oliver hung up, both thrilled to know Logan was coming over, but perplexed at his tone.

Was he angry? Oliver couldn't really tell as they didn't even really speak. And he didn't know him well enough to gauge his manner.

Still, he was coming over. That, at least, was a good thing.

Quickly, he cleaned up his motel room. Then he got down to cleaning himself up. Thankfully, most of that work was done when he had gotten ready to go to Hot Rocks earlier.

As he checked his hair he had a sudden thought. Could Logan have found out he made out with Ryder? Was that the reason for his odd tone?

If he was honest with himself he would say no, it wasn't. These guys are used to having lots of boy toys. They also usually didn't give a damn who those guys hooked up with on their off hours.

Usually.

If that was the case he would tell him the truth. No more lies. Regardless of what it was. He was bound and determined to start out fresh and without creating any problems for himself here.

And he wasn't going to start with the man he fully intended to make his own.

There was a firm knock on the door.

Heart pounding, Oliver answered it.

Logan stood before him. He was tall, wearing a black leather jacket over a grey t-shirt. His eyes regarded him with warmth, for which he was relieved. But there was something to his expression. He was in business mode.

"Hey," Logan said. He walked in without waiting.

"Hey, yourself," Oliver said, closing the door. He couldn't decide if he should be throwing himself at him, or fleeing down the street.

Logan stood in the middle of the motel room, as if unsure of what to do with himself.

"Beer?" Oliver asked, trying to help him decide.

"Yeah, that would be great," he said. He removed his jacket and threw it across a chair.

As Oliver passed him toward the mini-fridge he smelled his cologne, his faint musk. He very much smelled like a man. And this turned him own more than he expected.

"So, you sounded... I dunno. Strange on the phone," Oliver said as he grabbed two beers. He handed one to him as Logan sat on the edge of the bed.

Not quite knowing what the situation was, Oliver sat on the chair instead of beside him, like he wanted.

Logan took a swig of the beer. He looked frustrated. But at what Oliver didn't have a clue.

"Yeah," Logan said at last. "It's been a trying day."

"One of those days, huh?" Oliver said. "Those days really suck."

He nodded, and for the first time smiled at him. Oliver's heart melted at such a beautiful sight.

Oliver took a timid sip of his beer, then worked up the courage to ask, "Want to talk about it?"

Logan regarded him, as if sizing up his words. "Nah, its all business really. Nothing to worry about."

"That's cool. I understand," Oliver said.

Logan went quiet again. Oliver grew more worried. What was going on?

He gave up and decided to just come clean. New beginnings and all. "Look," he said. "I want to tell you something. You might not like it."

Logan froze, bottle at his lips. He lowered it, eyes locked onto his. "Tell me what?"

Oliver took a breath, then said, "I'm sorry about Ryder."

He looked flummoxed. More than flummoxed, he looked shocked. "Ryder?" he managed to ask. "What about him?"

"Well, I wanted your number, to call you. And Eddie wouldn't give it to me..."

"Forget about Edward," Logan said. He looked at him inscrutably. "Ryder?"

"I wanted your number, so I got it from him."

"He gave it to you?" Logan's voice started to rise.

"No, no," Oliver said quickly. "I took it from him without him knowing."

Now Logan looked absolutely befuddled. If he wasn't such a big tough guy Oliver would describe his expression as cute.

"How did you do that?" he asked, genuinely interested.

"I made him think I was... into him," he said slightly embarrassed. "While he was, uh, caught up in the moment I went through his contact list on his phone." He offered him an innocent smile.

For several heart beats Logan did nothing. Just stared at Oliver agog. Then he burst out laughing.

Surprised, Oliver started to giggle.

Logan kept laughing. He laughed so hard he fell over on the bed, spilling his beer.

Oliver was laughing, too. More with relief than anything. He really had been unsure what Logan would do. Now things seemed okay. For the moment.

Logan sat up, wiping tears from his eyes. "Ah, geez. I needed that."

"So you're not mad at me?" Oliver asked. He hated how timid he sounded.

"What?" Logan said. "No, I'm not mad. Is that what you thought?" From the look on his face he realize that's exactly what Oliver must have been thinking.

He put his beer down on the side table. "Come here for a minute." He patted the bed beside him.

Oliver put his beer down, too, and sat next to him. Just brushing up against him made Oliver feel all mushy inside. Like sitting with his first crush.

Logan looked at him with a soft expression, but he was being serious now. "Look, I got a lot of stuff on my plate right now. Club Business. And it makes a guy more than a little paranoid. I got to be. Its how we Bikers survive."

Oliver nodded. He knew this already.

"So, I hate to start up the twenty questions with you again. I know we kind of started earlier, but now I need to be sure of a few things."

"About me?" Oliver asked.

"Yeah," he said, nodding his head. He could tell he didn't want to be doing this with him but he had to.

"Okay," Oliver said. "Fire away."

Logan looked at him a moment, then asked, "Are you with the Silver Hounds?"

Oliver froze. He felt his throat go dry. He blinked in surprise at Logan who was watching him intently.

No more lies, he thought.

He collected himself, and looked directly at Logan.

"I was," he said. Logan watched him, waiting.

"I had been with a guy who ran with them. I was his boyfriend for a long time. But things didn't work out. So I left. Came here to try and get away from him and his asshole friends. I wanted to start a new life for myself without his... cruelty." Oliver looked at him again, locking eyes. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. We really didn't get a lot of time to talk."

Logan watched him for several long moments. Then he sighed, and visibly relaxed. "Okay. Thanks for telling me. And you're right, we didn't get much time for me to vet your past. It's just that things are getting a little nuts right now and I still have to be certain of a few things."

Oliver swallowed. "Whatever you want to know," he said.

"Who is he? Your old man?"

"Ex-old man," Oliver said with emphasis. "His name is Gavin. And he's the Sergeant-at-Arms for the Silver Hounds." This information didn't seem to impress, let along scare, Logan in the least. Oliver took this as a good sign.

"How long were you two together?"

"About three years. Three years too long, to be honest. The whole time we were together I just wanted to leave. But I didn't have many options. Plus, I got use to that life, being his property. I guess I was just scared to try and make a change."

"What made you finally leave?"

"His obsessiveness. He actually beat a man to death over me. A Hang Around for the Hounds. This guys was sweet and all, but I guess he made Gavin jealous. Every man who talked to me made him jealous. Anyways, after I found out Gavin had killed him I decided to get out. Get out before I was the one he would beat to death next."

Oliver caught himself starting to cry. After a long moment, Logan put his arm around his shoulder.

"Sorry to push you for all this," Logan said. "But I'm in a situation now where I have to be sure." He kissed his forehead.

"It's okay," Oliver said between sniffles. "I totally get it. You guys gotta know who you're dealing with. It's tough, having to keep your guard up all the time."

Logan chuckled a little. "Yeah, but if we didn't then there wouldn't be any Bikers left. We'd all be in jail."

Oliver laughed at that. He hugged him, and he returned it back.

As he held him Logan asked, "People in my crew, they are always wary of spies from other Clubs. Getting into our business, messing things up. You know I'm gonna check out your story."

Oliver pulled back from him, a look of terror on his face. "Oh, please don't tell Gavin I'm here!" He was almost shouting with fright. "He'll take me back. Kill me even!"

Logan held up his hands, trying to placate him. "No worries. I'll make sure no one ever knows you're here. I'll just tap into the Biker gossip channel and see what is said about the Hounds. I'm sure it will come up that you ran away. Bikers love complaining about their boy toys. But no mention of you being here. I promise."

Oliver could see his logic. He had to know for certain. Not just for him, but for the rest of the Macabre Jesters piece of mind. He nodded.

Oliver buried his head into Logan's chest. "Just don't let him take me, please."

"I promise that will not happen," he said. He sounded emphatic.

After a few minutes Oliver regained his composure. He felt something with him. He sensed it before. Not when Oliver first looked at him, he was gorgeous after all, but when they first kissed. There is a sense of being with him that gave him a feeling of completeness. Of being whole.

Oliver really could not explain it, but he did know he had never experienced it before. If scared him as much as it thrilled him.

Now Oliver was in his arms, and if felt... right.

Logan eased his face up so he was looking at him, in his eyes. Oliver could get lost in that gaze. Perhaps he already was. Such a warmth hidden deep within that tough biker exterior. And he had shared that with him. He hoped he would share that with him again.

Oliver needed him to.

As if he could read his mind, Logan leaned closer and kissed him. Soft and gentle. His tongue probing for his.

Suddenly, Oliver pulled away from him. He looked at Logan in alarm and confusion.

"What about Edward?" Oliver asked. He was determined to know once and for all what their deal was.

"Eddie?" Logan asked. "Like I said, before he was just a fling. Now he is just a regret."

"So he is not your boy toy?"

He laughed, "Not at all. I did buy him a stupid volvo he wanted, but that's nothing. Other than that there was nothing serious. Not in the least. And he is certainly not in the running for the job of being my boyfriend."

Oliver felt relieved. "So that position is available?" He grinned.