SLAM HER (9 page)

“You don’t want that coffee, do you?” he asked.

“No.” I smiled. “Sorry.”

He grabbed at the mug, ripping it from my hand. When his rough fingers touched mine, it sent a pulse that went straight to my chest and down between my legs. I shivered as my nipples pressed against the thin padding of my bra. My panties started to pull up, trying to absorb a wetness I did not welcome.

Slam put the mug down and asked, “Want a beer?”

“No thanks.”

“Okay. Just offering, babe.”

I saw the guy coming from the garage, wiping his hands.

My car’s done. Thank God. I shouldn’t have stayed here.

It was a strange fifteen minutes of my life. Staring at Slam, looking away, hearing him make passing comments about me. I shrugged it all off even though I was kind of turned on.

“My car is done,” I said.

“What?” Slam asked.

He spun around and charged toward the guy. He took a handful of the guy’s shirt and walked him backwards. I gasped and covered my mouth. I couldn’t look away though. I almost wanted to see Slam hit someone.

What is wrong with me?

Slam then let the guy go and grabbed the guy’s shoulder, shoving him back.

Then Slam turned and walked toward me.

“Sorry, babe,” he said. “It’s going to be a few hours.”

“What? How? Why?”

“Nick says so,” Slam said. “Said something with the filter or whatever. No big deal. We have all the parts.”

“I…” I looked at my bag. I shook my head. “No, Slam. Just shut the hood. I don’t have any credit cards with me or anything. I can’t afford any car repairs.”

“Hey,” he said. “I didn’t say a word about you paying.”

“What? How?”

“Who do you think owns this place?”

“You do?”

“Part owner,” he said. “Plus, we don’t work on cars. I’m doing this as a favor.”

I clutched my bag and stepped back. “Why?”

“Because I’m a nice guy.”

“No you’re not. You told me you’re a villain.”

He laughed. “You remember. That’s good.”

“Seriously, Slam…”

“Jesus Christ, Belle. I’m doing you a favor. I’m sorry things got out of hand at the restaurant. I’m a total hothead, okay? I didn’t mean to stir up trouble in your work. Last thing you need is to be broken down on the side of the road again.”

“Why would you care? Wouldn’t you be there to save me?”

OMG, Belle, are you flirting back right now? With this guy? This… biker outlaw thing…

Slam winked and reached for me. His pointer finger grazed my chin. “Always, babe. I’ll always save you. But for now, you’re going to do me a favor.”

“What’s that?”

“I have to get out of here,” Slam said. “I can’t take this place and I’m hungry. I had breakfast an hour ago but I could eat again.”

I started to shake my head.

Slam breezed right by me. “Suit yourself. You stay, you pay.”

“Excuse me?”

I turned and started to chase after Slam.

Next thing I knew I was standing at the side of a motorcycle. Slam grabbed a helmet and handed it out to me.

“Take it,” he said. “Come for a ride. Taste the open road, babe. Live a little.”

“You can’t go into town,” I said.

“I won’t. We’ll go west. I know a little place. We’ll grab a slice of pizza and hang.”

I shut my eyes and grabbed the helmet. I couldn’t believe what I was about to do. But it seemed like the lesser of a hundred evils. Meaning… if I stayed I’d be around an entire club of bikers. If I went with Slam, it was just him. Me and him.

I climbed onto the back of the motorcycle a minute later and slipped my hands around Slam’s body. I felt leather and then hardness. Muscle. All fucking muscle.

The rumble of engine made me shiver between my legs.

So did Slam.

His version of a
little ride
was different than mine. We blasted out of town and down the road I had broken down on. I couldn’t talk to him or ask where we were going. I was locked to him and his command of the motorcycle. It was freeing yet I felt anxiety. This was the kind of stuff that always got me into trouble. I couldn’t just say thanks and walk away, right? I had to end up with my car getting fixed and taking an hour long ride with Slam.

When he did stop, it was a small pizza place. You wouldn’t know it was a pizza place because it was an apartment building. A small sign stuck out that said
Angie’s
in small, black text.

“This?” I asked him.

“Best pizza you’ll ever have. And the view…”

He pointed and when I stepped to the side of the building I realized we were at the coast. The water crashing ten feet down into jagged rocks. The rumble of the motorcycle was fresh in my ears still but when it faded, in came the sound of the ocean.

I felt my throat tighten a little. It was so beautiful to me. Something that was so close yet I never got the chance to take advantage of. The meaning was so much deeper though. My mother loved the coast. She loved to take random road trips to different parts. Or on a nice day she’d just drive the coast.

When I saw the ocean it made me feel closer to her. If there was such thing as heaven, for my mother it would be the coast.

“You okay?” Slam asked.

“Yeah. Just… tired. I need a drink.”

Slam opened the door and the pizza place was small and worn. An elderly woman saw Slam and almost did a cartwheel. She let out a cry and hurried from behind the counter right to him. She reached up for his face. Slam bent and the woman grabbed his cheeks and pulled him down.

“Spencer!” her voice cracked.

Spencer? Was that his real name?

I felt myself blush as Slam looked back at me, curling his lip.

I had a little piece of information on him now.

Spencer.

How proper of a name for a guy thick was muscles, tattoos, and a criminal record that went for miles.

“I haven’t seen you in a long time. Where have you been?”

“Working. You know that. Hey, Auntie Ang, meet my friend. This is Belle.”

The woman looked at me. She had blue eyes like mine.

“Oh my,” she whispered. “You are beautiful. So beautiful.” She looked at Slam. “I told you, stay out of trouble and find a beautiful woman to spend the rest of your life with.”

“Oh, I’m not…”

“Auntie Ang,” Slam said, cutting me off. “I just got out of prison again.”

The elderly woman looked at me. “Men, right?”

“I’m…”

Slam grabbed my hand. I flinched and wanted to rip my hand away. He gave a sideways glance that told me not to do anything stupid.

So I kept my mouth shut.

“Auntie Ang, how about a few slices?” Slam asked.

“You got it,” she said and snapped her fingers.

Slam tugged at my hand and mouthed
come on
.

I walked through the pizza place to the kitchen. It looked like a regular kitchen in a house. There was a small TV on the corner of the counter with the local news blaring. We then went through the back door and outside. There was a deck off to the right and two picnic tables down on a small yard. At the edge of the yard it dropped off down to the ocean. It was an amazing view.

“Figure we could kill some time here, babe,” Slam said. He jumped up and sat on the top of a picnic table and took out a cigarette. He lit up and took a drag like there was nothing wrong with the world.

I slowly crept to the edge of the yard. A nice breeze hit me in the face. The rushing of the water, crashing into the rocks, it was so soothing. When I was a baby my mother had some kind of sound machine thing and she would set it to the sound of the ocean for me.

I felt my throat tighten a little and my eyes flooded with tears.

I took a shaky breath and had to get control of myself. It had been a weird day so far and I didn’t need it to get out of hand.

I inched forward again, my toes going over the edge. The drop wasn’t all that far. The points of the rocks would be a problem… but I sort of wanted to touch the water. I knew this had to be a place on the coast my mother never got to.

In that exact moment I didn’t know what the hell I was doing. I literally dangled my right foot over the edge.

I felt hands grab my waist and pull at me.

I let out a scream and thought I was going over the edge.

“What the hell are you doing, babe?”

I was spun around and I grabbed at Slam, my hands at his leather cut. My body pressed against his. I stared up at him, his eyes big, evil, yet concerned as he looked down at me.

He towered over me like no man ever.

“I… my…”

“Were you just trying to hurt yourself?” he asked.

I put my head forward for a moment and rested it against Slam’s steel like chest. I let out a long breath, trying to collect all my thoughts.

Then I moved my hands to Slam’s chest and pushed. I hurried to wiggle away from him.

“Don’t touch me,” I said.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” he asked.

I made it two steps before Slam grabbed my arm and pulled at me. “What the fuck was that about?”

Anger rose up in me and I looked at Slam. “Nothing.”

“Bullshit. Nothing? Don’t lie to me, Belle.”

“What does it matter to you? We’re not friends. We’re nothing. Leave me alone.”

Slam let my arm go and I walked back to the picnic table. I tried to secretly wipe my eyes but there was no hiding it. Of course, right then, my fucking cell phone beeped. I took it out and saw it was Kyle, again. I threw the phone to the table and shook my head.

“Does it have something to do with your phone going crazy every ten minutes?” Slam asked.

I looked over my shoulder at him. “What?”

“You keep getting texts. Like crazy. What’s going on? Are you in trouble, babe?”

“Again, stop trying to be something to me,” I said. “I should have never gotten on the back of your motorcycle, Slam. I shouldn’t have come to your garage to apologize.”

Slam didn’t give up. He stepped toward me, his front inches from my back. Shit, the heat even with a little distance was intense.

“But you did come,” he said. “For whatever reason, you did. That’s why I offered you this ride, babe. Whatever you got going on, leave it on the road. That’s why I ride. You think we’re out there looking for trouble? Not a chance, Belle. We protect this town, this entire area.”

I swallowed hard. “I need to catch my breath. Is there a bathroom in there?”

“As soon as you walk in, go to the right. If Auntie Ang comes for you, just stand there and take it. She loves hugs and she’ll kiss your cheek fifty times. Just go with it.”

I opened my mouth to say something but I couldn’t. Right then I lost my breath. Just looking back at Slam did that to me.

Instead of saying anything else I walked away.

It wasn’t until halfway through freshening up did I realize I had made a huge mistake.

I left my cell on the picnic table… right where Slam could see it.

fifteen

(slam)

*THEN*

I leaned against the car and enjoyed my smoke. Belle stood next to me, fucking beautiful little thing she was. I could still hear her half-drunk voice giggling that night at the bar.

“So who did you beat up today?” she asked, probably trying to be cute.

I looked at her and grinned. “No fighting.” I opened my leather cut and showed her my gun. Then I winked.

I swore she was going to pass out right there.

Yeah, we had been on a little bit of a run dealing with some shit. Nothing major, but someone throwing words around that shouldn’t have been said. So we had to take a ride and put our foot down. You know, into some mouths, sides of the faces, crush up some ribs. I sadly had to use my weapon, but that was not my fault.

“It’s true about you,” Belle said. “Your people.”

“What’s that?”

“You’re bad.”

“So bad,” I said. “So bad that I stopped to help you so you wouldn’t get stranded. That’s a hell of a way to say thanks.”

I stared Belle down, enjoying the little bickering between us.

“I’m going to stand somewhere else,” she said.

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll be right here waiting.”

It only took Ari about half an hour to come back with what I needed. Poor guy had to drive a fucking car because of the tools required to change the hose on Belle’s car. I had no fucking clue why I was doing it.

A while back, before Hammer was sent to prison and killed, I sat one night pounding beers with him. He told me the MC was designed as a way to create a brotherhood. Not to be rebel outlaws but to create their own path to survive. There were always fights and always would be, but when opportunity came to show a different side, we were all to take it. That didn’t mean favors and being upstanding citizens though. Maybe helping Belle was a mistake. To me, it was just one of those opportunities.