Ruled

  “Seriously, gorgeous, would it kill you to say yes?” Rylan leaned in so close that his lips brushed her ear. “You know I’d make it good for you.”

  She had no doubt. But Rylan was too damn dangerous to spread her legs for. Forget the fact that he physically resembled her ex-lover, with his golden hair and vivid blue eyes. That was an issue, sure, but not an insurmountable one. He and Jake might look vaguely the same, but Reese knew from experience that no man fucked the same.

  No, it was the other resemblance between Rylan and Jake that scared her—the reckless streak. Rylan didn’t seem to give a shit whether he lived or died. He breezed through life as if it were a game. One he evidently didn’t care about winning, otherwise he wouldn’t throw himself headfirst into dangerous situations without a single care for his well-being. And although he took orders from Connor Mackenzie, Reese knew he’d disobey his leader in a heartbeat if it struck his fancy.

  Granted, he didn’t seem to crave power the way Jake had, but the motives behind Rylan’s actions didn’t matter. Like Jake, he was too impulsive. Dangerously so.

  A man who didn’t think before he acted was a man who couldn’t be controlled.

  And for a woman who carefully planned every move she made, that was the issue. She refused to let another loose cannon into her bed, especially when she was well aware that men like Jake and Rylan were her weakness.

  “You know who else would make it good for me?” she said sweetly. “Beckett.”

  Rylan followed her gaze to the tattooed man across the room. Beckett was laughing at something his friend Travis had said. “Beck’s a decent lay,” Rylan agreed. “But he’s not what you need tonight. Too playful.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “And what do I need tonight?”

  “With all the adrenaline from the raid still burning in your blood? You need a good, hard dicking, gorgeous.” He nodded to their left. “Nash could probably give it to you.”

  Reese glanced at the man in question. Nash’s rugged features and lean frame were definitely appealing, but she wasn’t really feeling him tonight.

  “It’s too bad Lennox isn’t here. He’d give it to you as hard as you wanted.” Rylan grinned. “But he’s a one-woman man these days, so maybe it’s a good thing he’s at Con’s camp. This way your poor ego doesn’t have to take a hit every time he rejects you.”

  She narrowed her eyes. But she couldn’t argue with that. Lennox had made it clear that he was with Jamie now and not interested in screwing anyone else. And Jamie had made it clear what would happen if Reese made a play for Lennox’s bed ever again—that little bitch had beaten the shit out of Reese the last time they’d crossed paths.

  Not that Reese held a grudge. She’d be possessive of Lennox too, if he was her man.

  “I don’t mind rejection,” she answered. “It’s character building.”

  “Too much of it can crush a man’s ego, though.”

  Reese ran her gaze over Rylan’s confident frame. “Hasn’t worked so far.”

  “Inside, I’m hurt,” he said playfully. “I’m probably going to need someone to check me out later. Maybe if we danced, it’d soothe some of the sting.”

  Reese turned away from Rylan’s twinkling blue eyes and searched the room for Sloan, who was never far from her side. Usually lurking in the shadows somewhere, his watchful gaze fixed on her.

  When she couldn’t see him anywhere, a pang of unease tugged at her insides. He must have ducked out right after he’d walked her over to the rec hall, which was odd, because Sloan rarely left her alone. Then again, it was late. He’d probably gone to bed.

  The room felt unbalanced somehow without Sloan.

  “Too stubborn to take a turn with me?” Rylan countered, drawing her from her thoughts.

  Rather than give her the chance to reply, he took her hand and yanked her against him. Reese grabbed onto his broad shoulders by instinct, barely righting herself before he shoved one thigh between her legs and plastered their bodies together.

  Her traitorous hormones instantly kicked in. The last time she and Rylan were in this position, she’d been seconds away from taking him to bed, a foolish decision that had been interrupted by the arrival of the Enforcers. The events that followed had been a total shit storm. People had died. Good people, like Arch, whose death had left his pregnant woman all alone in this world. And Kade, whose death had been the push Connor needed to join Reese’s cause.

  “Get out of your head,” Rylan murmured against her cheek.

  Damn. Was he reading her like Sloan did? She clenched her fingers over his shoulders, but, for some stupid reason, didn’t shove him away. “I’m not . . .” She trailed off.

  “Not thinking about your next move?” he mocked. “Planning the next attack? Mentally counting all the bodies you might leave in your wake?”

  His faint laughter grated. And damn him for knowing what was eating at her. Before his extended stay at Foxworth two months ago to train her people in the art of guns and combat, she never would’ve used the word perceptive to describe this man. But he’d proven her wrong during that visit. Rylan was far more observant than she’d ever given him credit for.

  His rough thumb traced a path up her neck to her mouth. He rubbed her lower lip, slowly, seductively. “You need to fuck,” he whispered.

  Tension gathered inside her, tightening her muscles, pulsing in her core. He was absolutely right. Sex was a surefire way to release all the volatile energy surging through her veins.

  “Use me tonight, Reese.” He buried his face in her neck as he continued to rub up against her. He wasn’t moving in time to the fast-paced beat pulsing out of the rec hall speakers, but to his own slow, sensual rhythm. Each grind of his hips weakened her resolve. “Use me however you want. Fuck me however you want. Just . . . say . . . yes.”

  A shiver racked her body as his warm mouth latched onto the side of her throat. He kissed her hot flesh, then sucked hard enough to make her moan.

  That got her a low chuckle. “You know you want to.” He licked a path along her jaw and upward, until their lips were a mere inch apart. “We’ll burn so hot together, baby.”

  She didn’t answer. She couldn’t, because her throat was clamped shut. God, of course they’d be hot together. Her entire body was close to going up in flames. The feel of his erection against her thigh made her weak-kneed and achy.

  But . . . she didn’t trust herself when she was around him.

  The truth was, there was a reason she was drawn to loose cannons.

  Because she was one.

  She was only careful because she forced herself to be, but those wild tendencies that had gravitated toward Jake lived inside her too. She was driven by base urges just like Jake had been, and she struggled every second of every day to hold on to restraint and be the kind of leader her people deserved. The kind of leader Jake had failed to be.

  Rylan tested that restraint, and she didn’t like it.

  Where was Sloan, damn it? Panic rolled through her as she peered past Rylan and once again searched the room. Sloan grounded her. He was the only one who—her panic faded when she spotted him near the door. A breath of relief slid past her lips.

  “I’m down with Sloan joining us. The more, the merrier,” Rylan said after he’d twisted his head to track her gaze.

  Sloan stared back at them, steady and reassuring. I’m here, his eyes telegraphed from across the room. Reese watched as he settled his broad shoulders against the wall, crossing his arms and resting one ankle over the other.

  She turned to Rylan, who took her renewed attention as an invitation. He shifted her around so she couldn’t see Sloan anymore and nuzzled her neck again, whispering, “What’s it going to be, gorgeous?”

  No.

  Yes.

  Her body was a fuse waiting for a spark. Primed for sex. Aching for it.

  She felt the
unshakable gaze of Sloan at her back. Yeah, if she didn’t pull out of this maelstrom of guilt and worry, she wasn’t going to be good for anything.

  Now, more than ever, she needed to be sharp and ready. She looked up into Rylan’s heated gaze. He never took anything too seriously, was rumored to be one of the best fucks in West Colony. Sex with him would be the greatest distraction she could ask for.

  Except . . . she still didn’t trust herself. She didn’t trust that she could give in to Rylan and come out of it unscathed.

  But she did trust someone else.

  Abruptly, she pulled out of his arms. “Follow me.”

  She turned on her heel, not waiting to see if he followed. The hard boots hitting the floor answered for him. Sloan straightened as she arrowed in his direction, and by the time she came to a stop in front of him, he’d reached his full, towering height.

  “You said I needed a man tonight,” Reese muttered. “Is he the one?”

  Sloan’s hazel eyes locked with hers. “I can’t think of a better person in this room to pull you out of your head.”

  Rylan’s breath was hot on her neck, and Reese had to fight to keep from shivering in sexual delight. She shook her head instead. “He’s reckless.”

  Sloan nodded.

  “It’s not wise.”

  Sloan nodded again. “If we did everything that was wise, we would’ve been dead a long time ago.” He lifted his hand as if to cup her cheek, but the touch didn’t land. It never did. He always held himself back.

  She knew, because she wasn’t dumb or blind, that he lusted after her. He’d never made a move to scratch that itch, but it was always there between them, like the caress that never happened. Reese had become accustomed to it, as much as she expected the sun to rise and the rain to fall. Sloan was the one constant in her life.

  Rylan coughed. “I’m right here, you know.”

  They both ignored him. Reese kept her eyes on Sloan. If he was with her . . . then maybe she could hold on to some shred of control. Maybe the fiery lust, the recklessness Rylan stirred in her, wouldn’t spill over into other more vulnerable areas.

  “Only if you’re there,” she whispered to Sloan. “I don’t trust myself.” In other words, she needed him to be the lifeline he’d always been and pull her out of the quicksand when it threatened to swallow her.

  Sloan searched her face, but she wasn’t sure what he was looking for. He went quiet, as if he was turning the proposition over in his head a few dozen times, until finally he nodded again. “If that’s what it takes to ease your mind, then I’m there. Nothing will happen that you don’t need.”

  “Interesting choice of words there, brother,” Rylan noted. “What about giving Reese what she wants?”

  Sloan’s gaze hardened when it shifted from her to Rylan. “She gets it all.”

  4

  Rylan had slept with a lot of women over the years. A helluva lot. But he could honestly say this was the first time a woman had consulted her . . . her what? Lover? Lieutenant? Whatever Sloan was to Reese, he was clearly important enough that she needed to ask him before making decisions about her pussy.

  Which was all sorts of fucked up.

  Other men might’ve walked away after that bizarre exchange in the rec hall, but Rylan wasn’t other men. He was the man who’d wanted Reese from the moment he’d met her. The man who was finally going to feel her naked curves pressed up against him as she rode the cock that was downright aching for her.

  If she wanted an audience, fine. He didn’t have a problem with Sloan taking a front-row seat to what was bound to be some pretty spectacular sex. Hell, he’d be cool with Sloan joining in, if that was what got Reese off.

  But the perpetually somber man gave no indication that he was interested in getting his rocks off. When the three of them entered Reese’s bedroom, Sloan flicked on the light, marched to the lone armchair near the bed, and lowered his muscular frame onto it. Then he crossed his arms and said nothing.

  Rylan looked around the room. The bed and chair were the only pieces of furniture. And unlike in his cabin back at Connor’s wilderness camp, there were no items of clothing littering the floor, no clutter, no guns and holsters and ammo strewn about. Everything was neat and orderly.

  “Take your clothes off.”

  Reese’s throaty command drew his gaze back to her. Her brown eyes were bright, glittering with lust. He didn’t know if she was still riding the high of the raid or drunk off the bourbon, but he’d never seen a sexier sight. He could feel the sexual energy radiating from her body, the heat of it going right to his balls.

  “Do it for me,” he drawled.

  She smirked. “You don’t get to give me orders tonight, honey.”

  He smirked back. “Then you don’t get me naked.”

  A smile played on her lush lips. She tilted her head and said, “Sloan.”

  The big man rubbed a hand over his dark, neatly trimmed beard. “Rylan,” he said brusquely. “Take off your clothes.”

  Rylan’s hand slid down to his zipper as if it had a mind of its own.

  Fuck. What the hell was he doing, taking orders from this asshole? Yet he couldn’t stop himself. Something about Sloan’s low, steady voice was damn near hypnotic.

  Reese’s smile widened as Rylan unzipped his jeans. He kicked off his boots, shoved the denim down his legs, and then drew his shirt up and over his head.

  “Socks,” came Sloan’s restrained command.

  Rolling his eyes, Rylan peeled off the thick wool socks and flicked them onto the hardwood floor. He was fully naked now, and he grinned when Reese’s gaze fixed on his very prominent erection. He could see her studying the barbell piercing on his cockhead, as if trying to decide whether or not she was going to enjoy it.

  He fisted his cock and gave it a slow stroke, thumbing the piercing with deliberate showiness. “What now, gorgeous? I’m naked and hard and it’s all for you.”

  She didn’t answer. And she remained fully dressed in skintight jeans plastered to her long legs and a tight sweater clinging to her tits. Those big brown eyes continued to gleam, darkening with pleasure as he gave his dick another pump.

  The longer she stared, the closer he got to the brink. “I need to come before I fuck you,” he muttered.

  That finally got him a response. “Any reason you can’t come while you’re fucking me?” She toyed with the hem of her sweater, absently sliding the fabric up an inch.

  His gaze tracked the motion of her hand, focusing on the narrow strip of flesh that had just been revealed. He swallowed a groan, resisting the urge to rip that goddamn sweater to shreds. He wanted her naked, but he was afraid that if he barked out another order, she’d kick him out on his ass.

  “I’ll last longer if you suck me off first.” He shuddered out a breath. The thought of those pouty red lips around his dick almost caused him to shoot in his hand. He glanced at Sloan, whose faint smile told Rylan that the man knew exactly how close he was to losing it.

  Rylan held Sloan’s gaze and forced out a mocking laugh. “Seriously not interested in joining the party? You’re just gonna sit there and watch?”

  Sloan arched a brow. “Not if all you’re gonna do is talk. Because if that’s all you have to offer her, then she was right to turn you away before.”

  Rylan’s nostrils flared. “Fuck you.”

  The man chuckled. “I already turned you down.”

  “Sloan,” Reese chided without turning around, “be nice.”

  “Only if you’re extra rough with him. He’s annoying me.”

  She threw her head back and laughed, and the sight of her exposed throat summoned a growl from Rylan’s mouth. He snapped his arm out, bunching his fingers in the soft fabric of her sweater to wrench her toward him.

  “You wanna know what I have to offer?” he bit out. “I’ll fucking show you.” Then he cr
ashed his mouth over hers before she or her guard dog could say another goddamn word.

  Reese gasped, startled. The moment her lips parted, his tongue slipped past them, thrusting deep. She tasted like hot sin, fierce and wild, and the blood in his body pounded harder with a driving need to claim her as his own. He laughed internally at the utterly nonsensical thought. Tethering her would be like tethering the tide. Impossible. The minute you had her, she’d slide from your grasp, teasing you to come after her and try again.

  But for now, he had her. He had her fevered lips clinging to his. Her tongue licking a fiery path inside his mouth. Her delectable body sliding against his.

  He’d take it. He was a simple man. He liked to fight and to fuck and he’d wanted Reese for far too long to put conditions on this encounter.

  They devoured each other with their mouths. He tunneled his fingers into her hair and pulled her head back with a sharp tug to get her mouth in a better position for his invasion. Her fingernails dug into his biceps and he shuddered at the thought of those marks on his shoulders, down his back, on his ass cheeks.

  Reese kissed like she did everything else—with every ounce of energy and life she had in her. This was what outlaw meant. Living one’s life to the very edge. If Rylan wanted a sedate, tame existence, he’d live behind the gates of West City and slowly kill himself with normalcy.

  Nope. This passion—this life—was what he craved. And there wasn’t more of it in all of the land than in this one woman.

  The need for release throbbed in his cock. He tore his mouth away and shot a fierce look toward Sloan.

  “No more waiting,” he growled. The two of them were turning him into a reckless animal—Reese with her scorching body rubbing all over his bared aroused one, and Sloan with his impenetrable gaze and commanding nature.

  The other man’s eyes dropped to Rylan’s cock and . . . lingered? Rylan felt himself swell even thicker, which wasn’t that much of a surprise. He’d shared plenty of women and wasn’t at all shy about showing his dick to anyone who was interested in looking.