Stoned (Unlikely Heroes Book 4) (6 page)

CHAPTER EIGHT

Karen wasn’t stupid. She knew now why Viper hadn’t wanted her around his sister. The way it looked to her, Viper had committed a hate crime. And Stoner had been involved. She didn’t want to believe Stoner would be part of a cold-blooded murder. But what else could it mean? He’d been there with those other men. He hadn’t tried to intervene. He’d stood aside while Viper murdered a man.

Her stomach roiled. Her attraction to Stoner was real, yet she knew next to nothing about the man, except he’d been a drug dealer in his past life. She’d thought she’d sensed good in him. But had she? Or had she imagined it?

“I had high hopes that you weren’t a bad man,” she whispered. “But I was obviously wrong.”

Stoner stared down at her, his gaze hardening. “You don’t know me at all. The sooner you realize how bad I am, the better.”

“When I escape, you’re all going down. Especially you.”

A brow shot up. “
Especially
me?”

“Yes. You could have stopped that murder, but you didn’t. You stood aside and let a man be killed!”

Stoner grabbed her arm and dragged her down the hallway. “You don’t have a clue what is going on here, Karen.” 

“So why don’t you enlighten me!” She yanked at her arm, but his grip tightened into her flesh. It was the first time he’d hurt her. Her heart sank. He was one of the bad guys. A leather-wearing badass biker who hadn’t stopped a cold-blooded murder. If she pushed him too far, he might truly hurt her. He might even kill her.

“You’re hurting me,” she whispered.

He halted, his gaze darting down to where he gripped her arm.

He thrust her away and stepped back. He didn’t apologize.

Yet he’d let her go, as if he hadn’t realized he’d been hurting her.

Karen stared up at him as she rubbed her sore arm. The man was so confusing. Who
was
he? He wouldn’t have released her if he’d wanted to hurt her. Right? There
was
good in him somewhere. She’d just witnessed that. Was he pretending to be something he wasn’t?

“You’re not as bad as you want me to think.” Her gaze never left his. “Or you would have kept hurting me just now.”

They stared at each other in the hallway, neither moving. “Do you want me to hurt you?” he asked softly.

Karen swallowed hard. Why did every conversation they had turn into sexual innuendos?

Because they wanted each other. The attraction between them smoldered, crackling through the air like a jolt of electricity. God, if he kissed her now, she wouldn’t stop him. She wanted him to shove her up against the wall, rip her clothes off and…

No!

What was she thinking? It would never get that far. As soon as he discovered her secret, he’d no longer want her. He would push her away in revulsion. The knowledge deflated her desire. She pulled her gaze away from his. Despair settled in, squeezing itself into her heart.

She’d once been desired by many men. In the past she’d shamelessly used her looks to get what she wanted, even going so far as having an affair with her husband’s younger brother and destroying her marriage. Something she now regretted. Her actions had hurt so many people. Most of all her daughter.

Over the years, Karen had dated more men than she could count, using her body to get what she wanted. She wasn’t proud of that fact now, wasn’t proud of the woman she’d once been.

But that had all changed three years ago.

No man would want her now if he discovered her secret. And that hurt. She wanted Stoner to want her, to
need
her. She supposed this was her punishment for all the men she’d used over the years, all the people she’d hurt with her callous actions.

The smart thing to do would be to push Stoner away before he found out the truth. Before he destroyed what little bit of self-esteem she had left.

“I apologize,” he murmured, staring down at the hardwood floor. “I didn’t mean to hurt your arm. I admit I can be a brute sometimes, but I don’t get off on hurting women. Forgive me?”

What?
Had he just apologized? She stepped closer to him, forcing him to meet her gaze.

She searched his eyes, seeking the truth. The coldness had vanished from his eyes, replaced by…what? Remorse?

She gave a slow nod. “Okay. Thank you. I accept your apology.”

They continued to stare at each other, neither moving, their bodies just inches apart. Heat flared in his eyes again. Her heart galloped crazily. She wanted him to kiss her, wanted to feel those wonderful lips against hers.

Just do it,
she urged silently.
Kiss me.

Then, slowly, he dipped his head.

“Hey Stoner!” a voice shouted from down the hallway. “We just pulled out the bong. Come join us, dude!”

Stoner jerked his head up. He glared at the other biker, then turned back to Karen. His gaze swept over her face, down her body, then crawled back up to hers.

“Wanna smoke some weed, Karen?”

She let out a snort. Was he joking? Then a small giggle escaped her lips. She stared up into his face. His too-serious face. He wasn’t joking.

The giggle turned into a full blown laughing fit. She fell back against the wall, clutching her stomach as hysterical laughter overtook her. This place, these bikers,
Stoner
…were all making her crazy. This had to be a bad dream. A very bad dream.

Stoner crossed his arms over his chest and watched her, a scowl darkening his features. That made her laugh even harder.

Then, amazingly, his lips twitched. Those striking hazel eyes brightened with humor. And then…he chuckled. “What’s so funny?”

“What’s so funny?” She let out another giggle. “You just asked if I wanted to smoke some dope. Seriously? Do I look like a pothead to you?”

His lips compressed, the smile disappearing, his gaze direct on hers. “Don’t tell me you’ve never smoked pot before.”

Karen sobered, the laughter fading away. “No, never.”

He cocked a brow. “Surely you’ve wanted to try it, at least once? Come on, it’ll help you to relax. I’ll sit beside you, show you how to do it.”

She sputtered. “You’re kidding me. You’ll
show me how to do it
? Seriously?”

He stepped closer, bending so his face was mere inches from hers. Her heart thudded against her ribs. She sucked in a breath.

“Just try it,” he whispered. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to you. You’re too high strung, Karen. You need to relax. If you want any chance of surviving this place, you need to chill out a bit, okay? Do what Viper wants, keep him happy, and you just might find a way out of here.”

She searched his gaze. He was trying to tell her something. But…what? That if she cooperated, he might help her escape? Would he do that? She had no clue. His expression remained unreadable, his eyes emotionless, keeping his true thoughts hidden. What was Stoner up to?

She puffed out a breath. “Okay,” she said at last. “Just…one little, um, whatever you call it, uh, joint.”

He stepped back. “It’s a bong, Karen, not a joint. The smoke is filtered through water before you inhale it. The water supposedly removes most of the toxins from the smoke.”

He made it sound easy, like it wasn’t so bad. Like it was safe.

“Like a humidifier?” she asked.

His lips twitched. “Sort of. You’ll see. Come on.” He snagged her hand in his and pulled her down the hallway. The warmth from his hand radiated into hers, heating her chilled fingers, making her overly aware of his presence, making her
want
. Him.

They entered a room two doors down and paused in the entryway. Music blared out from speakers mounted on the walls. Eighties’ rock. Karen recognized the song, but she couldn’t name the band. Marijuana smoke filled the room. Karen’s eyes watered. She coughed. She wrinkled her nose at the smell. How could anyone
enjoy
this?

Stoner pulled her farther into the room. “You’ll get used to it. It just takes a few minutes.”

Someone turned the music down. Karen felt eyes on her.

Trying to see through the smoky haze, she was able to make out a huge sectional couch sitting in the middle of the room. Full of people. At least eight or ten of them. Others sat in chairs around the room, passing around the bong.

She recognized the handsome Rebel seated in the middle of the group on the couch. Scar, the dog he’d rescued, lay on the floor at his feet. Rebel pointed at her.

“Look! It’s Penelope Cruz! Isn’t she hot? No, wait! That’s…that’s Eva Longoria! Oooh! Come here, baby.” He patted his lap.

Karen snorted out a laugh. She glanced at Stoner. He shrugged. “He’s stoned, Karen. He sees you, but his mind interprets you as something else.” He lowered his voice. “Though honestly, I think you’re hotter than both those actresses.”

Her heart skipped a beat.
He did?

“He’s having delusions.” She pulled her hand from Stoner’s grasp. “And so are you. I don’t want to do this. I want to go to bed. If you’ll just show me where I can sleep, I’ll leave you alone for the rest of the night.”

“Look!” Another man shouted from an armchair near the far corner. “I see giant pussies!” He reached up toward the ceiling. “I can touch them! Ooooh, they’re wet for me!”

Snorts of laughter erupted from around the room.

“You need to get laid, Weasel,” someone said from behind Karen. “I sure as hell don’t see any pussies.”

Despite herself, Karen chuckled. She jerked her gaze to Stoner’s. He was watching her with unveiled desire, his eyes smoldering with a dark intensity.

Her breath caught. She needed to get out of this room and away from these people, away from
Stoner
, now.

Before she did something she feared she might regret.

Turning on her heel, she stumbled for the door.

“Don’t go, Eva!” Rebel squealed. “Come sit on my face!”

“I see huge tits!” the guy in the corner was bellowing as he continued to reach for the ceiling. “Double-double Ds!”

Ignoring them all, Karen stumbled out into the hallway. She gulped in fresh air, trying to free her lungs of the marijuana smoke. These guys were all frickin’ nuts. She wanted no part of this.

Strong arms came around her from behind, pulling her against a hard male body.

“Those guys are just high,” Stoner whispered in her ear. “Don’t let them get to you. If you want to go to bed, I’ll take you to bed.”

If you want to go to bed, I’ll take you to bed.

Her heart thundered. She swallowed hard. His arms were wrapped around her stomach, just beneath her ribcage. His fingers pressed into her lower abdomen, holding her in place. She shifted. The evidence of his arousal pressed into her back.

“Let me go.” She squirmed against him. “Please.”

He turned her in his arms until she was facing him. “Not yet,” he whispered, his gaze hot on hers. “You’re strung tight as a fucking bow. Let me help you relax.”

He lowered his head.

She stared, unable to move, as his mouth came closer. But he didn’t kiss her. Not on the mouth. Instead he turned his head, then nuzzled his way up the side of her neck to her earlobe. Karen shivered. He teased and sucked on her earlobe, then made his way down and across her collarbone, pressing little kisses against her skin, all the way to the other side of her neck. He paused at a spot beneath her ear and sucked.

The breath whooshed out of her lungs. Her legs trembled. Her hands moved upward, slipping inside his vest and clutching at his T-shirt, feeling the hard muscles beneath the thin cotton. Desire shot through her, centering in her lower abdomen, making her squirm with need. God, it had been so long…

“Neal,” she said breathlessly. She wanted his mouth on hers. Now.

He lifted his head, his gaze searing hers with the passion that consumed him. “I know, baby,” he whispered. “You have no idea how many things I want to do to you.” He lowered his voice and whispered in her ear, telling her in explicit detail what he longed to do to her.   

His crudeness didn’t repulse her. Instead, it made her even hotter. God, she wanted him like she’d wanted no other man before. How could that be?

“God yes,” she whispered, unable to deny the need that raged through her body. Too caught up in him to care at that precise moment what would happen if he discovered her secret.

He headed down the hallway, urgently pushing her in front of him. Karen stumbled a couple of times before he scooped her up and carried her the rest of the way. He mounted the steps at the end of the hallway, then went up, and up, clear to the top. To the third floor. Karen clung to him, trying not to think about the ramifications of her actions if she went through with this.

Dear God, she was about to have sex with a stranger. A hot, sexy stranger with shaggy, sandy-colored hair and striking hazel eyes. A big, muscled, badass biker dude. A criminal. A drug dealer. A murderer.

What the
hell
was she thinking?