Tease: Mojave Boys MC (21 page)

To his relief, Maya was a swift shopper. She went into stores with a mission, grabbed what she wanted, tried on one or two things at most, and plunked the lot on the counter to purchase.

It wasn’t much different with the toiletries, though she took a little time to decide on scents. The longest she spent in one place was at the cellular store, choosing her phone. She was rather picky about that, but Vance would have been, too. Her phone carried her life–access to accounts, all of her contacts, and even her memories and entertainment–so it was ok to be selective.

He was amazed to have enough bags to fill the cargo space and overflow to the back seat within a couple of hours. He was also starving. He’d forgotten to eat anything in all the excitement. Rather than head back toward Wheelie, he valeted the SUV at the Bellagio and escorted Maya inside, wearing one of her new pairs of jeans and a sleeveless blouse. They ate at the buffet, which consisted of tons of fresh seafood, steak cooked to order, and all the side dishes he could imagine.

It was a feast, and they both regretted how much they ate by the time they were back in the car. “What next?” Maya asked, running her fingers through her hair in an absent, nervous gesture.

He assumed she meant with the crew, not between them. They’d avoided that subject so far, and Vance wasn’t exactly ready to cross that bridge yet. “I’ll have to get with the boys tomorrow morning and figure out what we want to do. I’m betting the Scorpions will be putty in our hands right now.”

She said nothing, but he saw the concern on her face. Rather than address it, Vance drove to the hospital to check on Dusty, finding him bandaged and medicated. He had two compound fractures in his leg, three cracked ribs, and a lot of skin missing from his right side, but he was in good spirits. From there, they went back to his house, and he unloaded the bags.

He wanted to offer her drawers and closet space, but he didn’t want to seem pushy, so he waited to see what she wanted to do. Maya stood in the middle of the bedroom, turning around and looking lost. Finally, she threw her arms up and asked, “Is it okay if I put my things away?”

Vance tried not to smile too broadly. “You don’t have to ask, Maya. Make yourself at home.” He’d made the right decision, letting her choose. If he could control himself and keep this up, things would go fine.

It was late, and Vance was exhausted. He yawned and asked, “Are you ready for bed?”

She shrugged. “I’m tired, but my brain won’t shut down. If you don’t mind, I’ll watch some television. I’ll keep it quiet if you want to go to bed.”

But Vance shook his head. “I’ll stay up with you.”

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

Maya watched Vance’s eyelids droop with a quiet smile and a sense of peace in her soul. She loved the comfort of lounging on his couch in her pajamas, her legs thrown across his lap. He leaned back with his head lolling against the pillows, and his feet were propped on the coffee table. He still wore socks; she had noticed he didn’t like to be barefoot often, but otherwise, he was down to a soft cotton t-shirt and boxers.

It was so homey. And so opposite what they had endured the past few days.

But it gave Maya a glimpse of what could be and a glimmer of hope. If Vance and his gang could reach a truce with the Scorpions, maybe she could live like this, with Vance, and not worry every day. She picked up her new phone and checked the updates she’d set to run. Franz had emailed her the link to her cloud, and she was downloading all of her contacts and information that had been backed up from her old phone.

Taking only a minute to marvel at technology, she returned her attention to the screen, letting the flashes of light in the movie lull her into a sleepy stupor. Her brain slowed finally, no longer rolling the film of the last couple of days like a movie on a continuous reel. She settled in and fell asleep.

She woke with a start, forgetting where she was and panicking for a minute at the feel of arms carrying her somewhere. She made fists and beat against the firm chest, but she landed on a soft pile and heard Vance’s soothing voice above her. “Shh, Maya, it’s me. It’s alright.”

Slowly, she remembered. She wasn’t with the Scorpions now. She was safe, in Vance’s house. He’d just carried her from the couch to the bed. Taking a deep breath, Maya calmed and realized she was shaking. She couldn’t recall her dream, but it hadn’t been a good one. She opened her eyes and looked up at Vance, his brow wrinkled in concern. She wanted to reassure him, but she still needed to catch her breath.

Sitting up slowly, she forced her heart to slow down, and she gave him a hesitant smile. “I think it was a bad dream. But I don’t remember it, so it’s fine.”

He was skeptical but nodded. “Get some rest, okay?” he said, tucking her under the blanket.

Maya frowned at him, confused. “Where are you going?”

“I didn’t know if you wanted me here. I thought I’d give you some privacy.”

Why was he acting like this? First, talking about not telling her what to do, then giving her privacy or space? She screwed up a demanding expression and told him, “Vance, get your ass in this bed. I know I left, but it wasn’t you I was leaving. It was the situation. And it looks like I can’t exactly escape that. As long as I’m in the middle of all this, I want the good that comes with it.”

Vance smiled at her and threw himself in the bed, instantly devouring her mouth. Her insides melted, and she didn’t protest as he drew her pants down, followed by his boxers. She wanted him, and she found him ready and willing as she wrapped her hand around his throbbing erection.

She didn’t waste time with foreplay but drew him right to her center, lifting her hips to meet his thrust as he entered her. She cried out with instant pleasure, and he grunted, moving hard and fast as he took her soaring into the atmosphere. They came together in a frenzy, and Maya lay there, panting with her gaze unfocused for a long time before she came back to earth.

“I love you, Maya,” she heard Vance whisper as he pulled her to his side and wrapped her tight against his body. A single tear fell from her eye at the confession, and she wanted to tell him the same, but she couldn’t seem to get the words out. “You don’t have to say it,” he rasped, kissing the top of her head. “I already know.”

With that escape, Maya was ready to sleep, and she nuzzled her face into Vance’s shoulder as her mind shut down.

***

Not expecting the warmest of welcomes, Maya let Vance lead the way into the Wheelie Bar but nods and waves with smiles from most of the men in the room eased her tension. When she took a seat on a barstool and Joe actually came around the bar to hug her, she knew she was alright, despite having been at the heart of the commotion more than once.

“Good to see you,” Joe told her with a chuckle.

She hugged him back. “You, too.”

He reached out to Vance, drawing him into one of those shoulder bump man-hugs. “Any word?” Vance asked by way of greeting, and Maya rolled her eyes. All business, of course.

“Not a peep,” Joe said, shaking his head. “Donnie put his ear to the ground, and it sounds like they’re waiting for us to make contact first.”

Maya frowned at Vance in question, and he explained, “He knows a guy that knows a guy and so on. Donnie’s got a connection that leads back to the Scorpions. It’s not a hundred percent reliable, but it gives us an idea what to expect.”

That was good to know. Any insight was helpful, as long as it wasn’t directly misleading.

Vance went on, “Let’s get the crew together so we can talk through our options.”

Joe nodded and glanced at Maya. “You know how to bartend?”

Maya laughed. “I don’t think anyone here is going to order something I can’t mix or pop open. I can handle it.”

“I don’t want her out here alone,” Vance snapped.

Maya turned to him, putting a hand on his arm. “I’m not alone.” She gestured to the full house. “I doubt you’re disappearing with all of these guys. I’m fine.”

He seemed reluctant but nodded anyway. “If you need anything, ask Keno over there.” He pointed to a tall guy with jet black hair, one of the men Maya wasn’t as familiar with. Still, she promised and kissed him soundly before sending him on his way. It was like sending a kid off to school, and she smirked, wondering if all men were such children at times.

But as she made her way behind the bar, she realized she would rather have Vance, flaws and childish behavior and all, than not have him at all.

***

“You don’t really think it’s over, do you?” Burt asked, looking less than pleased to be in a chair that wasn’t at the head of the table.

“Not at all,” Vance answered, swinging his feet up and leaning back in the head seat. He hadn’t wanted the leadership role, but if it was his, he was going to remind Burt that he’d been relieved of that duty. “But I think we have a minute to make up our minds over how we want to deal with the Scorpions. We could probably get to a truce right now without a fight.”

“I would agree,” Caleb spoke up, “except
Tres
tends to be a little less reasonable. I don’t think he knows just how bad he’s hurting. He thinks he can control his crew without help, and he probably hasn’t counted how many men he’s down.”

“That’s because he’s not missing men,” Vance said. “He’s actually picked up a bunch more, but they’re all young hoodlums from local gangs who don’t know the meaning of club loyalty.” He thought about whether or not to tell them what he’d witnessed, and he finally said, “He killed one of them as an example because the guy leaned on my bike.”

“Are you saying he does have control?” Burt asked.

“No, I don’t think he can corral those thugs,” Vance told him. “And I think he knows it. That’s why I feel like now is the time to sit at a table together and negotiate.”

“I don’t think we owe them anything,” Tick Tock argued. “They came in here, guns blazing. They took your girl and planned to sell her to the top bidder. They set up shop and wanted to take over our territory. We’ve been here too long for that shit. I don’t see any negotiations. I think we make demands.”

“He’s right,” Caleb agreed. “I know I’m new in here, but I know the history. Cougar made sure of that. We’ve been around too long to just offer this new crew a compromise in our territory.”

Vance had the same feeling, but he didn’t want to voice it without agreement all the way around. Now that he had backing, he said, “If that’s the case, we need to make one more strike. They’re down but not out. We need to hit hard so they have no choice but to settle for whatever we ask.”

“What do you suggest?” Buddha asked from the far end of the table.

Looking around the table, Vance took a deep breath. “We’ve crippled the club with headcount. Their leadership is all but destroyed. We need to take it a step further and cripple their business. Then, we’ve got them by the bootstraps.”

Slowly, the others began to nod their agreement. Satisfied, Vance sat up straight and leaned on his elbows. “I have an idea, but it’s going to take some manpower and a lot of firepower.”

***

Maya clenched her jaw as she stared at Vance. “Why can’t you just tell me what you’re going to do?”

Looking exasperated, Vance slammed his glass on the kitchen counter. He hadn’t wanted to share anything with her, knowing how worried she would be, but he couldn’t exactly leave her alone overnight and risk that she would come looking for him. “It’s better if we talk about it after the fact,” he stated plainly.

She gave him an icy glare. “You’re planning some sort of big fight with the Scorpions. I’m not stupid. You might as well tell me what you’re going to do.”

“I know you aren’t stupid, Maya,” he sighed. Dammit, how had this turned into an argument? They’d come back from the bar, made love, and cooked lunch together. Everything had been great, and he’d made the mistake of telling her that he was going to be out late tonight and might not be back till morning. Club business. And now, she was demanding to know what that business was.

“If you know that, what else do you want from me?” he asked, feeling like he was trapped.

“The whole truth!” she exploded. “I want to know where you’ll be, who’s going to be shooting at you, and whether I should be worried that you aren’t coming back this time!”

“No one’s going to shoot at me,” he told her. The plan was to get in, do the deed, and get out before anyone knew they’d been there. A couple of guards might be posted, and that would be the extent of any resistance they might meet. “It’s a quick thing that doesn’t involve direct contact.”

She crossed her arms over her chest, giving him a hard look, but Vance had a hard time drawing his eyes away from the beautiful cleavage the position accented. “If it’s that simple, it should be easy to tell me,” she insisted. “And I want you to talk to me, not my boobs.”

He drew his gaze up to her face, feeling a bit sheepish. “Maya, please—”

“Don’t even try that,” she cut him off sharply.

Falling into a chair at the kitchen table, he rested his elbows on his knees and put his head in his hands. “You are a headache sometimes,” he mumbled. “If I tell you, I want you to promise you’ll stay here, locked up tight.”

She pressed her lips together. “As opposed to what? Dancing naked in the yard? Come on, Vance.”

With a sigh, he said, “We’re going to one of their storage facilities and blasting it. I figure they probably have at least three million in drugs stashed there. Destroying it assures we’ve got them wrapped around our fingers.”

She didn’t say anything, and Vance glanced up at her. Her expression was stoic, and he wanted to curse and throw things, maybe break a few plates.

“I know you have an opinion about this,” he grumbled. “Are you going to express it or drive me crazy with that look all day?”

She shrugged and sat down beside him. “It’s better than going in and having another shootout. I don’t like it, but I don’t care for drugs either. If I had to choose, I’d pick guns any day. So, if you really think you can do this without getting hurt, do it.”

Vance didn’t know what to say to that. Fear and pleas or even demands to not do it he could have handled. He would have expected that. But a virtual signature on the dotted line was something he hadn’t considered coming from Maya. Clearing his throat to give himself time to think, he said, “I won’t get hurt. And what’s more important, when it’s done, I can basically guarantee our safety with these guys. We won’t have another run-in.”