“Yes. My ass thanks you, too.”
He chuckles and runs his hand over his chin. “There’s some gear inside for you too.”
“Thank you.”
The guys walk the bike out of the garage, into the driveway and turn it over. The rumble is much more polite and refined than Rock’s regular ride. He smirks at Murphy, then lifts his gaze to me. “Guess we’re just two civilians out to enjoy the freedom of the road, babe.”
“Fine by me.”
The guys think that’s hysterical.
Trinity wraps me in a hug. “I’ll miss you. Have fun and take care of your man.”
“Oh, I plan to.”
Murphy overhears that and snickers then joins his brothers. Rock motions Murphy to his side and together they adjust pegs, bars and other parts. Z adds his two cents about some of the changes and the three of them go back and forth.
Trinity lets out a whoop and squeezes me again. “They’ll mess around with that bike all night if you let them, Hope.”
“Good God, I know.” I turn and run my hand over the vest Wrath just gave her. “I’m so happy he finally gave this to you. He was planning to do it at the engagement party. Right before—” Even thinking of speaking the words sends my heart into my stomach.
Her face softens and her gaze darts to Wrath. “Really? You were okay with that?”
“Of course. It seemed really important to him to do it in front of the whole club.” Given the nature of their relationship and their past…relationships with other…members of the club, I understand Wrath’s reasoning.
Her eyes well up. “I didn’t realize.”
I flick my hand over the leather. “Just so you know, it goes really well with that skirt thingie, stockings, heels and nothing else.” I wiggle my eyebrows and she laughs.
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
Behind us, the club party’s kicking into high gear. After a summer of solemn brooding, it’s refreshing to see the guys relaxed and carrying on. But I’m happy we’ll be leaving before it gets too wild. Wrath stalks Trinity like a panther, scooping her up and making her squeal. “I’ve got a surprise for you too.”
“Is it in your pants?” she asks with a straight face.
“No, angel. Maybe later if you’re good.”
Next to them, I snort and Wrath glances down at me with a grin. “Go tell him to get his ass moving, Hope.”
Maybe another hour later and we’re finally on the road. I’m sweating under the heavier leather jacket Murphy insisted I wear and I’m thankful for the bandanna Trinity tied around my forehead to catch the perspiration already dripping underneath my helmet.
Physical concerns aside, I’m excited to be alone with my man doing something that brings him peace. And I’m grateful he wanted me with him. I haven’t been on a bike all summer and realize I’ve missed it. Not that any of the brothers had offered, but I don’t think I could ever ride behind anyone but Rock.
Roads I’ve driven plenty of times take on a different, raw kind of beauty when experienced this way. I do my best to be a good passenger, not shifting my weight too much, tucking close to Rock’s body and holding tight—which certainly isn’t a hardship. I’m so thankful he’s in my arms again, I’m probably squeezing the life out of him, but he doesn’t seem to mind.
Even though the bike’s new to him, he guides it effortlessly. Completely in tune with the machine. Concentrating on the road ahead of us, but relaxed and graceful.
Once we’ve covered a lot of highway, Rock pulls over at a rest stop on the Mass Pike. Inside I simmer with heat remembering the last rest stop romp we had. I dismount, hand him my helmet, tug my hair free from its elastic and bend over to stretch. Rock slaps my ass and growls in my ear as I straighten up.
“What’re you doing, Baby Doll?”
“I’m stiff.”
He slips his leather gloves off and rubs my lower back for a few minutes. “Better?” he asks before kissing my cheek.
“Yes. This is much more comfortable for me, but I’m trying to keep still, so—”
“Relax, I got you, Hope.”
“I know.”
He takes my hand and walks us inside, where we grab a bite to eat and drinks. “How do you feel about Maine?” he asks, after I return from the bathroom. “Should be quiet this time of year. I’d like to sit and stare at the ocean for a few days.”
“Sounds perfect.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
A bite of jealousy snaps at me as Rock takes off. I haven’t ridden any great distance in way too long. And never with Trinity at my back.
“Hey, what do you think about taking off for a few days ourselves?”
She stares up at me in surprise.
“Now?”
Things seem okay. It’s not like guys aren’t here day and night to handle anything that comes up.
“Sure, why not?”
She tucks her bottom lip under her teeth, her gaze roaming around the clubhouse. “What about Mariella?”
“What about her?”
Her hand goes to her hip and her face pulls into a mask of exasperation. “I can’t just leave her. Hope’s not here either.”
“No one’s gonna bother her. Besides, Heidi’s around, and they seem to get along.”
“She’s a kid.”
“She’s closer to Mariella’s age than you are.”
She smacks my chest. “Thanks.”
Time to pull out the big guns. Hooking my hands over her shoulders, I turn her to face me and lean down to meet her eyes. “Please, baby. It’s been a rough summer. I want some alone time with my girl.”
There it is. A hint of a smile at the corners of her mouth. I got her. “Okay. Where?”
Shit, anywhere. Doesn’t matter as long as she’s with me. “How about north, to the Adirondacks. We can stop at Ausable Chasm. Try some rock climbing or just hike through the trails. You can get some nice photos up there this time of year.”
“Okay. When?”
I glance around. “Tomorrow morning. I want to make sure these fuckers don’t get too out of control.”
“They’ll probably be partying all weekend.”
“I’ll let Z sober up, then put him and Murphy in charge.”
Her lips quivers with laughter. “Not Teller?”
“Nah, he’s got enough to worry about. Come on, let’s grab something to eat.”
On our way back from the kitchen, we stop to talk to a bunch of people. In the living room, I catch sight of Heidi draped over Murphy, giggling and generally acting like a high school girl.
Even after I eased up on the lock down restrictions, Heidi begged to stay up here since Teller frequently left her alone at their apartment. I’m suspicious of a teenager who doesn’t want to have an apartment to herself, and suspect it has more to do with keeping tabs on Murphy, since Axel has an apartment near campus. She’s been spending a lot of time up here. Usually it’s fine, and she does help out around the place. But tonight, with all the dirty shit going down, I’m not too happy about her hanging out. Axel’s nowhere to be found and I’m tempted to find him, hand him a hundred bucks and tell him to take his girl and get lost for the weekend.
In an attempt to feel out the situation, I drop down on the couch opposite where Murphy and Heidi are hanging out and pull Trinity down with me.
“Rock seemed pleased with the bike, Murphy. You did a great job with it,” Trinity shouts over the music.
Murphy grins like an idiot. “Yeah. I think Hope liked it too.”
“She did,” Trinity confirms.
Z joins us, rubbing his hands over his face.
“Hey, Trin and I are gonna take off tomorrow morning. Think you two dipshits can hold the place down for a couple days?” I ask, pointing at Z and Murphy.
Heidi giggles. Z flips me off.
“What crawled up your ass?” I ask.
“Nothing. Fuckin’ Inga must’ve just gotten out of rehab. Keeps calling Dex, trying to see if she can come back.”
&nbs
p; “Hell fucking no.”
“Rock will kill you if you let that skank come back to work there,” Trinity agrees.
Z nods. “I know.”
“Hypocrite much?” Heidi mutters while glaring at Trinity.
The silence that descends on our corner of the room’s pretty intense. Murphy shifts. Z glares at Heidi and Murphy.
Trinity’s eyes narrow but she holds her tongue. Guess what? I don’t have to hold mine. No fucking way is this mouthy little brat giving Trinity shit. Especially not right in front of me. I thought we were done with this.
I snap my fingers in front of Heidi’s face to get her attention. When she swings her gaze my way, her eyes are wide. It just sunk in she might have made a mistake. “Listen, little girl, she ain’t calling Inga a skank because she’s a porn star or works as a stripper. She’s saying she’s a skank because she came into our clubhouse and kept trying to hook up with Rock, even though she knew he and Hope were together. Do you comprehend the difference, kid?”
“Wyatt, don’t,” Trinity says while clamping her hand around my arm. Without taking my eyes off Heidi, I slip Trinity’s hand in mine and squeeze her back.
Murphy glares at me, and I raise an eyebrow, daring him to open his mouth. Heidi sputters but I’m not done lecturing her just yet.
“You want to be treated like a big girl around here? Show respect. Don’t talk shit about things you don’t understand. Especially when you shouldn’t be up here in the first place.” I let that threat hang, because I’m well within my rights to kick her underage ass out.
The situation’s so awkward, Trinity looks like she wants to melt into the floor right along with Heidi. And no, I shouldn’t be in the middle of chick business, but this needed to be said. I’m sure if Hope were here, she wouldn’t have let Heidi get away with that shit. She just would have said it much nicer.
Jesus Christ, am I really taking over Hope’s role while she’s away?
Heidi surprises me by apologizing. I expected her to storm off in one of her famous fits. “I’m sorry, Trinity.”
Trin shakes her head and stares at me before turning to Heidi. “I understand.”
Murphy’s still making a face at me and brother’s walking on thin ice, since as far as I’m concerned this shit with Heidi and Trinity is his fuckin’ fault.
Well, twenty-five percent his fault. Twenty percent? Whatever. I also want to call Heidi out for being a hypocrite herself, since she’s basically sitting in Murphy’s lap and her boyfriend’s nowhere in sight.
But I don’t. That’s treading into territory that’s none of my business.
See? If everyone minded their own damn business we wouldn’t have any problems.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
We cross the Maine state line after dark. Because it’s off-season, most businesses seem to be closed. Rock slows and turns down a road which leads to a group of family-oriented motels dotted along the beach. When we find one with a vacancy sign lit up, he pulls in.
The manager’s just about to close the office when we walk up. Well, I hobble up onto the porch. This ride was far more comfortable thanks to Murphy’s genius, but my ass and legs still fell asleep somewhere back in New Hampshire.
“How can I help you this evening?”
Rock answers the manager’s question. I’m too busy bending down to pet the little white fluffy dog who peeked out from behind the counter.
“Need a room for a couple nights.”
I’m only half-listening as Rock makes the arrangements. I’ll sleep in the sand as long as we’re together.
Rock carries everything upstairs. Our room’s on the corner, facing the ocean and even has a hot tub tucked away on the balcony.
“Should have taken you someplace fancier, but—”
I stop him with a hand against his cheek. “This is perfect.”
He presses a kiss against my palm and takes my hand. “Moonlit walk on the beach?” His voice sounds relaxed and gruff at the same time.
“Sounds romantic.”
I think romance is the last thing on Rock’s mind as we stop before the parking lot pavement turns into sandy beach to remove or shoes. Rock kneels down, gently tugs my boots off and rolls my jeans up while I lean on his shoulder. I dig my feet into the cool, grittiness as we trudge down to the water’s edge. It feels refreshing after the long ride.
“Coldcoldcold!” I yelp as an icy wave rolls over my feet. Behind me, Rock chuckles and pulls me back. His arms hold me tight, but I feel like it’s the first time I’ve been able to breathe in months. We stay that way for a while staring out at the moonlight flickering over the black, glittering waves.
“Missed you so much, baby.” Rock’s lips press a soft kiss against the side of my face. His raw voice tears my insides to pieces.
“Missed you too,” I whisper.
“Come here.” He takes my hand and walks us farther away from the water, drops down into the sand and motions me to join him.
I kneel in front of him, bracing my hands on his knees.
“I’m so sorry, Hope.”
“For?”
“Everything.”
He drops his legs to the side and stretches them out so I can crawl into his lap. My lips find his cheek, kissing him over and over. “Not now. I love you. I’m so happy I have you back. No bad stuff tonight.”
He takes my hands, warming them and pulls us up off the soft, sandy floor. We don’t speak as I follow him back to our room. Not a word as he pulls me inside, shuts the door and pushes me against it. His familiar, enticing scent of wind and leather mixes with the ocean air that still clings to us. Like heaven.
Soft, loving reunion kisses spiral into less polite, more demanding kisses that push me flat against the unforgiving wood. His fingers trace everywhere, my cheek, my jaw, my neck, under my sweatshirt.
“Loved having you at my back the whole way here,” he murmurs against my ear.
“I loved being there.”
He captures my wrists, pulling them up over my head, pinning them to the door with one hand and tugs my sweatshirt up with the other.
Ten seconds inside our room and he has me breathless.
He releases me long enough to push my sweatshirt higher, tugging it over my head and tossing it on the round table next to us. As soon as it’s gone, he gathers my hands behind my back, thrusting my breasts forward. His mouth curls into a slow smile.
“It’s like you knew,” he says as he stares at the front clasp of my bra. Easily he flicks it open with one hand—which yes had absolutely been my intention when I bought it—and lowers his mouth to sweep his tongue over my nipple.
“Oh, please, Rock.”
“Please, what?” he asks as he runs his hand up my ribcage, stopping to cup my breast. I whimper and he chuckles. I want him so much, but he’s intent on teasing me. “You have no idea all the filthy things I planned to do to you while we were apart.”
“Show me.”
He releases my wrists, but the warning look in his eyes keeps them in place. There’s a soft pop and ticking sound as he undoes my jeans and pulls them down my legs. He helps me step out and tosses them aside. On the way back up, he presses kisses against my legs, belly, breasts and finally my mouth. While he’s busy teasing me with lips and tongue, his hand runs down and over the top of my panties, heading straight for the wet satin at my opening. Against my mouth, he grins. “Spread your legs.”
I slide my feet apart and tilt my hips, offering myself up. “Good girl,” he whispers as he teases me through the thin satin. Running his fingers back and forth from my clit to my ass. “Oh,” I sigh. So good. Perfect. Right there.
His fingers slip under the fabric and slide inside me. We’re nose to nose and his storm-gray eyes darken, losing a bit of control.
“Kiss me,” I whisper.
As his lips meet mine, I arch my back, pressing my pussy into his hand, dying for release, but wanting to wait for him to give it to me. I can’t stand not having my hands on him for anoth
er second. He’s knotted with muscles that flex with each movement and my hands can’t stay away from his thick, strong shoulders. Intense waves of need grow and my body twitches. He adds a finger and keeps slowly working me until the pressure building inside almost hurts.
“Rock, I think—”
“Don’t think.”
My back arches even more, grinding myself against his hand. The heavy panting breaths and loud moans, I realize belong to me.
Then I explode. All those waves of need are satisfied in sweet, perfect pleasure.
I’m still trembling when he pulls away from me. Delirious and dreamy, I watch as he drops his shoulder and I let out an unladylike giggle-snort when he throws me over it. “You’re a little obsessed with this caveman carry,” I tease while smacking my palms against his perfectly tight ass. I get a swat on my butt in return.
“I think it’s actually called a fireman’s carry,” he says while tossing me on the bed. I barely have time to orient myself on the mattress before he’s hooking his thumbs in my underwear and dragging them down my legs, throwing them somewhere near our luggage.
“No fair. Now I’m naked and you’re not.” I try to work my mouth into a pout, but end up laughing instead.
Rock’s laughing too, and the sight seizes my heart. He’s so serious and hard all the time. I love when he smiles. “Pretty proud of yourself, huh?” I tease.
“Yup,” he answers as he drags his shirt over his head.
I kneel up and skim my hands over all his newly exposed skin. “I can’t get enough of you.” I tip my head up so he can see how serious I am.
He presses his palms against my cheeks. “Same here.”
My hands work his belt loose and I don’t have the same kind of patience he does, because I shove his jeans and boxer briefs down his legs until he takes over and kicks them off himself. Then he’s naked before me. A sexy, muscled god with hard ridges, smooth defined muscles and an impressive erection. He’s so handsome. Sometimes while we were apart, I wondered if my mind exaggerated how sexy, how beautiful he is, but no, he’s even better in the flesh.