Ryder (8 page)

Another two weeks
had passed by and the pesky blond from the agency was due for the next house inspection. Other than the day I had to drop into the offices to get a spare set of keys, I hadn’t seen much of her lately. Thank fuck.

Mia and the kids were playing in the back yard. There wasn’t much of a garden back at the Scorpion
s MC compound, so I really was happy that for now, they had the chance to relax.

Watching them from the bench in the garden
, I glanced at my watch. Jade would arrive at any moment—the bitch was never late for an appointment. 

We should probably all have gone inside,
but I couldn’t bring myself to break up the fun the three of them were having. Isabella had just started walking and she loved tumbling on the freshly mowed lawn when Jamie pretended to chase her. That made Mia, who hadn’t been sleeping well at all, laugh out loud. I could see it brought her temporary relief from our fucked up situation away from the club. Fun wasn’t something we experienced often.

Mia and I worried about the other club members and their safety. But I knew it was best for us to be here, away from imminent danger. Unless, of course, we were located by the rival gang—or the cops. Life fucking sucked.

Hopefully they’d be just fine in the time I was dealing with Jade. I laid a kiss on Mia’s forehead and told her to be vigilant while I was gone. She nodded solemnly, her eyes sad as she watched me hug each of the kids before I went indoors.

I heard the
familiar clicking of heels come up the pathway and smiled to myself as I went to open the door. Jade made a grand entrance every time she came to the house. She was like a fucking whirlwind. It was hard to ignore her presence when she was around. She was always polite and sweet to Mia and especially to the kids. I frowned. Somehow I seemed to piss her off and she turned all bitchy when she spoke to me. Well, the feeling was fucking mutual.

Sure as hell, she’d be busting my balls again. Pushing every button to drive me crazy till I wanted to grab hold of her. I hadn’t had pussy in weeks, my balls were aching for release. I wasn’t fond of D.I.Y., I’d much rather fuck a bitch than take matters into my own hands.

I was on edge, from everything going down at the club, from not having been able to go for a long bike ride in weeks, and from lack of pussy. A sick Mia and looking after her and the kids had definitely taken its toll. The cure to calm me down was usually a hard, mindless fuck, and I was in desperate need of one.

I jerked the door open before she could knock. The surprise on her face was priceless. But then I sucked in a breath. Standing in front of me, she wore a tight as hell white button down shirt and an even tighter fucking pencil skirt. Her blond hair was swept up into a sophisticated bun, yet the soft tendrils that refused to be contained, softened her face
and curled on her neck. Her juicy lips were glistening in the sunlight. She’d obviously applied that lip-gloss shit. I could even smell it from here. Strawberry. Fuck me.

I glared at her
. Half of the fucking buttons on her shirt were undone and from where I stood, I could actually look down her top and see her tits, barely constrained and pushed up from the sexy as fuck white lacy bra that peeked out.

Jesus fucking Christ.
Princess bitch had better guard her pussy, or she’d be my next fuck.

A lump in my throat and a hard lump in my jeans prevented me from speaking. I growled, and took a step backward to let her in. The air that whooshed past my nostrils as she scraped past me smelled of vanilla and strawberry. My cock jerked
as her arm brushed my chest.
Fuck.

As usual, she had the annoying clipboard plastered to her side.
She was wearing reading glasses today. It looked sexy as fuck on her.

“I’ll make this quick,” she said, hardly looking in my direction.

I’m not sure why, but it annoyed the living crap out of me—both the fact that she avoided looking at me, and that she was in a hurry—as if she had somewhere better to be.

“Why in
a rush, Princess?”

“None of your damn busines
s,” she snapped. Yeah, she was in top form today.

“Somewhere better to be?” I baited her. For some fucking juvenile reason I wasn’t resting till I knew why she was so desperate to get awa
y. After all, it was her idea to do the ridiculous fucking inspections. Yeah, I was riled up. I clenched my fists, ready to smack something. Hard.

Her eyebrow rose as she appraised me for a second. “As a matter of fact, yes.”

Stunned by her frankness, I took a step back. “Yeah? Where?” Jesus, I couldn’t just let it go. I felt like grabbing her and shaking the fucking truth out of her. Usually I couldn’t give a fuck what other people did, as long as they left me the fuck alone. Why did I even care?

“What I said seconds ago. None. Of. Your. Goddamn. Business.”

I followed her around the house. Fuck, I was sulking like a kid. Even my dick went limp.

Her phone rang. She quirked an eyebrow when she saw the caller id. I watched as a blush spread over her neck and up her cheeks. Fuck.
It was a guy.
Fucking asshole.

She didn't answer, letting it go to voicemail.

“It’s a date, isn’t it? With a guy.” I was
worse
than a dog with a bone.

She laugh
ed. Actually thought it was fucking funny. Fuck me.

“If you must know, I don’t date
girls
.”

She thought
that
was funny? My blood started racing through my veins. “So it
is
a date then? With a guy?”

“Yes, Ryder. With a
guy
.”

She avoided my eyes. The pink of her cheeks intensified. Nervously, she licked her lips. I clenched my teeth.
Who the fuck is he?
Some rich, spoiled, Ivy League fucker with a flashy car and fancy tastes. Yeah. I knew the type.

Everything I never wanted to be.

“So Princess, is he your boyfriend?” My eyebrows rose of their own accord, my arms folded across my chest. Waiting.

She shrugged. “Kind of.”
Her eyes were avoiding mine.

“
Kinda? What the hell answer is
kinda
?
Either he is, or he isn’t
.” I exploded, letting the breath I’d held in huff right out.

My eye started twitching. Jesus, that hadn’t happened in ages.

Why did she have this affect on me?

“Hope you’
re going to change out of that tight shirt. And skirt.”

“Ryder. You’re not my father. I can dress how I want to. I can date who I want to. I’m an adult, remember?”

“Christ, Princess. It’s not your father I want to be. Unless you have daddy issues you want me to help you with. I’ll gladly pull you over my knee and spank the living shit out of you for being a naughty girl, before I fuck you.”

“Could you be any more
caveman
? Pounding your chest and grunting. That approach may have worked for you before, but frankly it does nothing for me.” She rolled her eyes at me, her fists in tight balls. Cheeky little bitch. Feisty too. I liked that, it made me hard. Again.

“Yeah? I bet if I stuck my fingers under your tight skirt and felt your panties they’d be
soaked
. I bet you’d love me to drag you off to my cave by the hair and fuck you senseless.” She gasped, her eyes widening.
I was fucking fifteen again
.

“You wish,” she bit back, her eyes sparkling. My cock jerked in my jeans.

Fuck, I loved a challenge.

“Ever had a real man, Princess? A man that makes you want to please him? A man who takes such good care of you, in every way, fucking you senseless till you can’t think straight?
Well, let me know when you’re ready.”

“
Never
. Not going to happen in this lifetime.” She bit her bottom lip. “
You’re not my type
. I don’t do
bikers
.”

I grabbed her arm. “Fuck. You play dirty. That was low. Even for you.”

“Yeah? Well let me go, so I can get out of here. We don’t like one another. That’s clear enough.” Her lower lip was trembling.

Maybe I was getting to her like she was getting to me?

The green eyed monster wouldn’t let me go. He drove me fucking crazy; fucking with my mind. I gritted my teeth. “I’m not letting you go till you fucking tell me about your boyfriend. And guess what, Princess?
I’m going to fuck you.
Just so you can compare a real man to your boy.”

Her eyes went wild. She slapped me so hard my head cracked sideways.
Good.
I liked that my face stung. It made the fucking burn in my guts less intense.

“
That’s the second time you’ve slapped me. But that’s OK. I’m fucking used to horsepower between my legs. I like my women strong and full of kick. So be ready, darling, for the fuck of your life. I guarantee it will be nothing short of spectacular.”

She drew in a sharp breath.
“I’m guessing your dick must be really small. Cause if you need to give me such a sales pitch, your package is obviously lacking.”

I threw back my
head and roared with laughter. “Oh baby, you have no idea what’s waiting for you. The ride of a lifetime. And a hundred percent money back guarantee if you aren’t satisfied. Only, my guess is you
will
be begging for seconds.”

“You don’t listen well do you? I said
never
. As in N.E.V.E.R.” She snarled, her eyes on fire.

It wasn’t funny anymore.
She was serious. Fuck.

I grabbed hold of her shoulders. Her eyes snapped to mine. They were burning holes through me. Her body trembled beneath my grip. My insides were churning.

“You’ll never want another cock once you’ve had mine. And you’ll beg me to fuck you. Long and slow. Hard and fast. Against the wall. In your bed. Anywhere and everywhere. You won’t ever get enough. Your body will respond to me when I just enter the room, quivering for me, your juices flowing the second you know I am near. And I will know you are wet for me before I even touch you.”

She shook her head
, her body shaking with rage. I fucking loved getting this much fire out of her—and I wasn’t even fucking her yet.

She looked like a wildcat, hissing at me.
“Screw you, Ryder Knox. I’ve got news for you. So listen up. I’m going to marry my
kinda
boyfriend. He’s perfect for me.
You and I will never happen.
Find some other woman to degrade with your bullshit.
It won’t be me
.”

Her fists
hammered my chest and she gave an almighty shrug that loosened my grip on her shoulders. My arms dropped to my sides. Stunned, all I could do was stare at her as she stormed off.

No woman had ever said no to me. Usually they lined up to suck my dick.

Jade reached the door, stopped and turned back, glaring daggers at me. “Oh. And Ryder? I won’t be doing another inspection. Uncle Eric will arrange for someone else to do it.”

I sneered.
“Suit yourself, bitch. There’s plenty of other pussy out there.”

The door shook as she left.
Fuck her.

Why the
fucking hell was I feeling sick to the stomach?

My phone buzzed in my pocket. What now? Irritated, I withdrew it and checked for caller id. Max. I hadn’t spoken with my brother in over a year. What the fuck did he want
now
?

“Hey, Max. What's up, brother?”

“Ryder. I'm good. When are you going to give up that shit in LA and come to work for me in New York? I need you to help me run Grant Global. I could do with a mean motherfucker like you to keep things straight—if you get my drift.” He chuckled softly.

Since he’d left the club, things had worked out well for the little bastard. Always the fucking golden child, he was adopted by a rich family. The Grants had sent him to a grand school where he really applied himself and came out top of the heap.  He
changed his surname to theirs—shaking off his past and anything that reminded him of Marianne, and the father who never acknowledged him.

He was no longer a Knox.
Or any part of Jake.

He was Maxwell Grant. A self made man.

Little did I know then that Max would be one of America’s greatest philanthropists. He used part of the profits—of the millions of dollars his company made—to rescue homeless boys, and to keep them off the streets. Yet, the irony would always remain that the one boy he could never save, was his own blood.

Like I’d said, Max was always the smar
t one. I was proud of the little shit—that he had risen from the ashes and made something of himself. But I'd never tell him that, because then he’d never stop nagging me to leave this life behind and become someone he believed was ‘respectable’.

On some level, Max understood that the Scorpions MC was as much my adopted family as what the Grants were his. That didn't stop him from trying though. He was a tenacious asshole. He never gave up when he wanted something—just like me. I had to laugh at that.

“I know you're a busy fucker, so just spit it out. You didn't call to just hear my voice.”

“Right. You were always the perceptive one. Too smart for the life you lead.”

“Don't start,” I warned.

“I'll get to the point. Rebecca Clarke, one of my employees, had some trouble in France. She’s in Germany now, but she’s in need of a break. She’s planning to visit her cousin in LA
.”

“What the fuck has that got to do with me?” I growled.
For fuck sake, I didn't need another bitch to babysit.

“I need to know that's she’s ok while she's in LA,” he said simply.

Max had never asked me anything like this before. This bitch meant something to him.

“She got you by the dick, brother?” I chuckled, enjoying this.

His silence confirmed my suspicion. He sighed. “Yeah. It’s complicated.”

“Since when hasn’t wanting a bitch been complicated? It goes with the territory.”

“You’ve suddenly become very knowledgeable about women. Some woman busting your balls, brother?”

It was my turn to sigh. “No, nothing like that,” I lied.
I didn't need extra shit on my plate right now.

“So you'll do it? Watch out for her? I'm trying to organise to be in LA at the same time she’s there, but I won't be able to be away from New York for a full two weeks.”

“Tough life being the CEO of your own company,” I teased. Yeah, little brother had done good. And now he’d fallen for a bitch.

I ran a hand over my face.

Pussy was the downfall of every man. No matter how smart, how rich, or how tough a man was, when he got struck by pussy, he was a gonner. I'd seen it time and again. Even my best friend, Cobra, had lost the mighty battle. He’d give his life for his pussy.

It was actually hilarious watching the big man, fearless on every level that counted, being led by the dick by one small woman.
Cobra was putty in her hands. He turned into a puppy dog whenever she was around.

I smiled—I’d never put my theory to the test, but I’d put money on it that Cobra would chose his bitch over me when the chips were down.

The weird thing was, I was starting to understand how a man could feel like that.

We were all cursed. Fuck Adam—he started it all
by taking a bite of that fucking apple. 

“So, Ryder. Can I count on you?” Max sounded tired. He wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t really important to him.

“Yeah, Max. I’ll do it for you. Just send me the details a day or two before she arrives.”

He
blew out a long breath. “Thanks Ryder, I owe you.”

Max was fucked.  H
e had it bad for that Rebecca chick.

Thank fuck I still had full control over my dick.