Smolder: A Devil Chaser's MC Romance (9 page)

“Who do you know that would bet against Tennessee? Isn’t that sacrilegious or something?”

“Sheppard. He’s not even an Ole Miss fan. I think he does it just to piss me off.”

“Well, check the scores. Maybe Tennessee is winning so you can rub it in his face when he loses the bet.”

“Ole Miss is really good, but I think we have a real good chance of winning tonight. I hope so, or I’ll never hear the end of it.”

I turned on the game, and sure enough, we were beating Ole Miss. Taylor clapped her hands and cheered for the Vols. She had always been a big fan of UT and loved watching football with Ace.

“Ace would love this. I miss watching the games with him. He’d yell at the screen like he expected them to hear what he was saying. It was so funny to see him all riled up,” she said with a smile.

“I remember. You were always yelling right there with him. You two were a pair. I’d never go to an actual game with either of you. It would be embarrassing as hell.”

“Whatever! I think it would be awesome. I think we should go! There are a few games left. Let’s just pick one and go,” she said excitedly.

“Maybe. Let’s start with a scary movie. That’s about all I can deal with for now.”

“Don’t be such an ass.” Taylor said as she laughed. She playfully slapped my arm and smiled. I wondered if it could always be like this with us. Could she ever be truly happy with me or would she come to hate me when she realized who I really was?
      
Taylor got up and put the movie in. She came back over to the sofa and sat close to me. She nestled into the crook of my arm and laid her head on my shoulder. I rested my hand on her hip, and I could feel her body relax against mine. It was killing me having her so close. I was fighting the urge to kiss her when she rested her broken arm on my thigh. It was inches from the growing bulge in my jeans, and I was thankful for the barrier of the cast. She began tracing imaginary circles on my knee with her fingertips as she settled in closer to me. She had no idea what she was doing to me.

“I’ve really had fun today. I missed you this week,” Taylor said. She lightly kissed the edge of my cheek. I turned to look at her, and I saw the lust in her eyes. I just couldn’t help myself, so I leaned down and pressed my lips against hers. She didn’t seem surprised, instead she turned her head towards me deepening the kiss. At first it was slow and sensual, but it began to build into something more when she opened her mouth. When our tongues met, I couldn’t control my hunger for her. I reached for the hair on the back of her neck and pulled her closer to me. A deep moan vibrated through her as her hand began to roam over the muscles of my chest. Her mouth was perfect -warm and wet as her tongue raked over my bottom lip. I felt consumed with need. I was battling the thoughts in my head. I wanted her so damn much, but I knew I would never be good enough for her. She was starting a new life for herself after Ace, and I would only fuck things up. I desperately wanted things to be different. I wanted to go back and fix the mistakes of my past so we could have a future together, but it just couldn’t be done.

When I broke free from our embrace, I could see the want in her eyes, but I refused take advantage of it. I knew I’d end up hurting her if I took this any further. I couldn’t tell her the thoughts that were racing around in my head, so I just stared at her in hopes that she would understand. She didn’t say a word as she settled back into her previous position beside me. She didn’t push me or ask questions. She seemed to know what my silence meant and didn’t press me for more.

We watched the rest of the movie without really talking. She grabbed my leg during a couple of scary parts, and laughed when I almost jumped out of my seat during the birth scene. It may have been the worst movie I have ever seen, but she seemed to enjoy it. Other than the few awkward moments after the kiss, it was a great night. I really didn’t want it to end.

“Can you stay here tonight? I really don’t want to be alone after watching that,” Taylor asked. I could tell she was nervous, and there was no way that I was going to leave her after watching the birth of that demon spawn. Hell, even I was a little freaked out.

“Yeah, I’ll sleep on the sofa, but I gotta get up early so I can finish the bike. Sheppard will have my ass if it’s not ready on time.”

“Okay. Thanks again for tonight. I hope you aren’t gonna go AWOL again. I hate it when you don’t come around.”

“I’ll be around. We have a party at the clubhouse Saturday night. I’ll come by and take you.”

“Great. I’m looking forward to it. I’ll probably head home after that. I’m feeling a lot better, and there’s really no reason for me to stay here.”

“You’re not going back. I don’t trust your friend to leave you alone just yet.”

“You might as well face it, Renegade. He lives in the same town. We’re going to cross paths at some point. I can’t hide out here forever.”

“There’s no reason to rush things either, Taylor. I’m not ready for you to go back yet.”

“Why not? Is there another reason you don’t want me to go?” Taylor asked. She was trying to push my buttons, but she was right. I had to let her go.

“I’ll get Bobby to go to your place this weekend and set up the new security system. At least that will help while you’re at home. I’ll get Bulldog to go with him, so they can bring your car back.”

“Okay. Thanks, Ren. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. I really do think it’s time for me to get back to the real world. I can’t keep my life on hold just because Gage is an asshole. I can handle it.”

“You know you can stay here as long as you want. It’s up to you. I’ll always be here when you need me.”

“I know that. That’s one of the things I love about you.” She kissed me on the cheek and headed for the bedroom. She looked back over her shoulder like she was hoping that I was going to say something else. I wanted to tell her to stay, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

Chapter 14

Taylor

At this point, I have two choices. I can step up my game and push Renegade to accept what’s going on with us, or I can just walk away without turning back. I’ll only be here a few more days, so I don’t have much time. If I’m ever going to make my move, it has to be tonight. I hadn’t seen Renegade since our kiss, so this may be my last chance to make my move.

There’s a party at the clubhouse tonight, and everyone will be there. I have on my dark denim jeans and a wrap-around knit shirt that shows off way too much cleavage. I decided to wear my brushed leather boots and several silver bracelets that hang loose around my good wrist. I left my hair down with wavy curls and sprayed on just a hint of my favorite perfume. My makeup is light, but I wore my eye shadow dark so it would show off my eyes. The sleeves of my shirt are loose enough to pull down over most of my cast, so it isn’t quite as noticeable. I know everyone can still see it, but it makes me feel better to cover it up as much as I can.

Renegade offered to come by and pick me up, but I decided to ride over with Courtney. I want to be able to make an entrance. He’s going to have to work for it tonight. I’m not going to fall all over him like a lost puppy. I know most of the guys, and it’ll be nice to hang out with them some. If that makes him a little jealous, then it will all be worth it.

Courtney was about 15 minutes late when she pulled into the driveway. I walked outside and met her at the car.

“Damn, girl. You’re dressed to impress tonight! I love that top.” She was smiling ear to ear, and I could tell she was excited about tonight.

“It might be a little much, but I decided I needed to spice things up a bit.”

“I’m a firm believer in showing off what ya got. You can never go wrong when you let the girls out to play,” Courtney said with a wink.
      
“Well, I hope you’re right. I need
the girls
to work their magic.” I hoped that I’d get Renegade’s attention tonight. Hopefully, it would all work in my favor and not completely backfire. I’d hate to see this all blow up in my face considering I don’t exactly have a great track record where Ren is concerned anyway.

“We’d better get rolling. Bobby hates it when I’m late. He might as well get used to it. I’m late to everything. I don’t mean to be, but I guess you could say that I’m just easily distracted.”

“I think it’s in our genes to be late. Guys just need to get over it and plan on us taking longer than we say.”

“I like your way of thinking, girl,” Courtney said smiling.

Everyone was already at the clubhouse by the time Courtney and I walked in. Several guys were playing pool while the others were drinking at the bar and sitting at the tables scattered throughout the room. Tessa was sitting with Bishop at the bar, so we went over to say our hellos.

“Hey there, chickeroo! What’s shakin’?” Courtney asked.

“Enjoying my free weekend! Mom has the kids, so Bishop and I have the weekend to ourselves. It’s been awhile since we’ve been alone, and I’m looking forward to our
alone time
,” Tessa said, giving Courtney a wink.

“I bet! You two have been pretty busy these past few weeks. Are the kids doing okay?” Courtney asked.

“They’re doing great. They’re getting excited about Thanksgiving break. Christmas is just around the corner, and they’ve already started making their lists. Izzie is so excited about Santa. It’s so much fun having a little one that loves Christmas.”

“Christmas has always been my favorite holiday. It was the one time when we all spent time as a family. Mom would make cookies, and Ace would eat them all before we had time to set them out for Santa,” I said laughing.

“Are you planning on being around for the holidays this year?” Tessa asked me.

“Well, I’m planning on heading home in a few days. I’ll come back to visit, but I think it’s time for me to get back to the real world.”

“The real world sucks hairy donkey balls. I wish you’d stay here for a while longer,” Courtney said as she nudged me with her shoulder.

“I’ll see how it goes. Maybe something will happen to change my mind,” I tell her. I grin as I think about my plan for tonight. If it works at all, maybe I will be here for a little while longer. If it blows up in my face, I head home with no regrets. I’ll know that I tried, and that’s all I can do.

“I think the girl has something up her sleeve!” Tessa laughed.

“You could say that. Wish me luck!”

“Girl, looking like you do tonight… you don’t need luck,” Courtney said with a wink.

“I think I’ll go see if anyone wants to play me in a game of pool,” I told them.

“Sounds like fun. I’m going to see if I can hunt down Bobby and scrape Cindy off of him. She’s always crammed up his ass. It drives me nuts. I don’t know when she’s going to get it through her thick skull that he’s with me now.”

“She’ll figure it out. Just give it time,” Tessa said.

“I may have to help her figure it out if she doesn’t back off soon. I trust him, but damn. The girl needs to give it a rest.”

Courtney grabbed a beer and set off to find Bobby. Hopefully Cindy wouldn’t be a problem for her tonight. She was such an awesome girl. I giggled to myself thinking that I’d hate to see her have to stab someone in the neck for not keeping their hands to themselves. The girl is a little batty, but I’d seen the way Bobby looked at her, and it was obvious she didn’t have anything to worry about.

Doc and Goliath were in the middle of a game when I walked over the pool table. Goliath looked up at me and grinned. Damn, the man was hot. His gorgeous brown eyes sparkled when he smiled. His brown hair was thick and just barely brushed the tips of his shoulders. He had the kind of hair a girl likes to tangle her fingers in while they press against his hard abs. He obviously worked out. The muscles in his arms rippled as he bent over to make his next move. His jeans stretched tightly over his ass, and I couldn’t help but stare at the great view. My attention was drawn over to Doc when I heard him laughing. When I looked at him, I realized he was laughing at me. My cheeks felt warm, and I knew I was blushing from embarrassment.

“You see something you’re interested in there, doll?” Doc asked. “I thought you were Renegade’s girl.”
      
“I guess you thought wrong, Doc. I’m nobody’s girl at the moment,” I said resting my hand on my hip.

The sound of the balls hitting the corner pocket let me know that Goliath had finished the game. Doc huffed and said, “I’m taking a break.” He headed over to the bar, leaving me alone with Goliath.

“You wanna play a round?” Goliath asked. Damn this was going to be easier than I thought.

“You bet. That is, if you don’t mind losing to a girl,” I told him as I began gathering up the balls. I’d have to make some adjustments with the cast, but I could still give him a run for his money.

“Confidence… I like that. Too bad there’s no way you’re gonna win,” Goliath said as his hips brushed against my ass. He was reaching for the small block of chalk, and he made a point to touch me when he did. I got the impression he was interested in me by the way he was watching my every move. He couldn’t take his eyes off of my ass when I bent over to make my first move. I made a point to give him a
good
show. He even leaned over and helped me make a few shots. I was actually doing pretty well, even with the damn cast. I’d made several moves before I noticed Renegade sitting at the bar. He was staring at me with an intense look in his eyes. He was not happy. Cha-Ching! One point - Taylor.