chapter 33
Jericho
There was nothing I hated more than being out of it physically. But the beating had taken its toll on me. I’d texted Roxie several times, but there was no response. Reed saw me check my phone for the hundredth time.
“You want Jacko and me to go look for her?”
“Shit, I hate to ask you to after the way you guys saved my ass tonight, but I don’t think I can sit long on the bike.”
“Wait.” Reed pulled out his phone and looked at it. “It’s from Pepper. She’s heading this way with Roxie.”
“Great.” I leaned back and put the ice pack on my ribs. We’d taken care of the cuts and added glue to the deepest one, a trick I’d learned from Evie when she’d had to patch up Cash. One thing was for damn sure, the MC life came with a lot of cuts and bruises, even gunshots. I’d had to recover from one of those too. And it had come from a Bedlam member’s gun, back when Dreygon had lost his mind completely. At the time I remember thinking how the old man had taken me in and raised me. He and Evie and the others at the compound had been my only family. Then he’d gone so fucking nuts, he’d ordered one of his cronies to shoot me. That betrayal had hurt far worse than the damn bullet. That feeling of knowing that the man you’d counted on as family had turned into a crazy fucking monster.
I was just dozing off when Roxie and Pepper pulled into the driveway. Feeling like I was made of stone, I sat up stiffly. I could tell something was up, the second I saw Roxie’s face. Everything about her was becoming perfectly familiar to me.
Pepper came in behind her.
Roxie sat next to me on the couch. “I’m dying to hug you, but you look so fragile, like everything hurts.”
“Everything hurts, but I was thinking that some kisses might just wipe away some of the agony. I say we head to the bedroom for some major first aid.”
“Damn, Richo,” Reed said, “you can barely take a breath, but you’re ready to go into the bedroom.”
I looked at him. “What’s your point?”
Pepper and Roxie laughed. Roxie got up. “First of all, I just want to say that what you did down in the cellar was impressive. But you were outdone. I was in the office at Candy Strippers and Trace was coming for me—”
“What?” Jericho said.
“It’s all right. He didn’t get near me because Pepper, Rambo, here threw him on his back right in the middle of his sleazy night club. Left him writhing in pain on the hardwood floor.”
Reed gazed with admiration at Pepper. She blushed. “Just a little move I learned in the service.”
“Shit, woman,” Reed said, “you’re a handy little thing to have around. As long as I’m not the one you’re angry at.”
“Little chance of that.” Pepper threw her arms around him and kissed him.
Roxie sat on the coffee table across from me. “The flash drive was the security footage from the parking lot murder.” There was a twinkle in her eyes that I hadn’t seen before. “Sean was outside in the parking lot throwing up. It was two guys from that motorcycle club, Bent for Hell, who had followed the victim out. The video shows one of them shoving him. The guy fell and hit his head. That’s how he died. My brother had been so out of it, he had no idea what happened. Trace talked him into thinking that he’d killed the man.”
“Gamble lied to you. He blackmailed you with something that had never even happened. Holy shit, he’s an even bigger fucker than I had him figured for.”
“I haven’t told my brother yet. What a load this will be off of them. Just what Nancy needs.”
“So that asshole was blackmailing you?” Pepper asked. “I always wondered why someone like you would stay with a man like that.”
I reached for Roxie’s hand. “She’s much more suited for someone like me. I’d wink but all of my face muscles hurt.”
Roxie got up and sat next to me. “You poor guy, you went through all that for me.” She kissed my shoulder. “No one’s ever done anything like that for me before.”
Pepper cleared her throat.
Roxie reached over and took hold of her hand. “Except for Pepper, of course.” She looked over at Reed and Jacko. “And you guys too. I remember seeing all of you fight that first night when you came into Candy Strippers. You guys are scary and amazing.”
“Another set up by Gamble,” I commented.
“Yep,” Roxie said. “He really had this all worked out. Only none of it turned out for him. Of course, he can still sell everything and start up a casino in Atlanta.”
Something occurred to me. “Gamble will have to leave town.”
“Why?” Roxie asked.
“You said it was Bent for Hell on the tape?”
“Yes, you can see their cuts pretty clearly. It was that one guy I always remember because of his white hair.”
I glanced at Reed. He seemed to have come to the same conclusion as me.
“You think Gamble was blackmailing Griffin too?” Reed asked
“Yep, for money. Griffin already had enough guys locked up for murder. He probably paid Gamble off, and Gamble, who obviously had no idea who he was dealing with when he got himself twisted up with an outlaw club, probably kept pushing. Griffin must have told him to fuck off at some point. He threatened Gamble that they were going to come take back the money. Gamble called us because he knew he’d lost control of the situation.”
Jacko ripped open a bag of potato chips. “Fucking coward. He figured he’d start a war between us. Then Bent for Hell would forget all about their beef with him.” Jacko plowed his hand into the bag and grabbed a handful of chips.
“You gonna hoover those chips all by yourself or are you going to offer some to the rest of us?” Reed asked.
Jacko passed the bag to him. Reed took some and passed the bag around. I shook my head. “I’m thinking salt won’t feel too good on my mouth.”
Pepper took hold of the bag. “Roxie, if you still have that flash drive, you should take it to the police. It will help them close the case, and Trace might get into trouble for withholding information.”
“I thought about that. Only I sort of committed fraud at the bank. And Jericho was my accomplice. He pretended to be Trace when I went to get into Trace’s safe deposit box.”
Reed looked at Roxie and Pepper. “Holy crap, we need to get these two women Bedlam cuts.”
I laughed, remembering too late that it would hurt like fucking hell.
Roxie snuggled up next to me. “You poor baby, wish there was something I could do to help.”
I lifted a brow at her. “Uh, I believe I already floated that idea around the room once. I’m still game if you are.”
She kissed me. “After I go see my brother. And I think I’ll just mail the flash drive anonymously to the police.”
“Yeah, your buddy Gamble is going to have enough of his own troubles.” I pulled out my phone.
“Who are you calling?” Roxie asked.
“Griffin, the president of Bent for Hell. I told him I’d let him know when the coast was clear for him to take back his money. But I’m going to tell him to wait a week, so we can all get out of town first.”
Roxie reached down and took hold of my hand. We’d been so caught up in figuring out how to get her away from Gamble, we hadn’t really talked about anything else.
“If you’re going to see your brother right now, I’ll walk you out,” I said. “As long as you have time to wait for me to get up off the couch.” I glanced over at Reed and Jacko. “A little help for the prez, please.”
We walked out on the front porch. I stared down at the stairs. “When the fuck did those steps get so steep?”
Roxie circled in front of me. “This is far enough.” She wrapped her arms around me as if I might break in two, which was exactly how I was feeling.
I pressed my hand against the side of her face. “I’ve got a little place in Reno. It’s not a beautiful lake house, but it’s home.”
She leaned over and hugged me. “If you’re the
re, it’ll be home for me.” She dropped her gaze. “But I’ll find my own place in Reno. I’ll get a job. I need to have some independence.” She lifted her face to mine. “That way, my extremely hot biker bad boy can come to my house and pick me up for a date. You understand, don’t you?”
“I do. Besides, I look forward to some of that courtship stuff. As long as we skip the formalities and go straight to the wild sex.”
She smiled. “Yeah, I think we already skipped those. I’m off to tell my brother the good news. I think without this hanging over their heads, he and Nancy will be able to restart their lives. I might even be able to talk him into moving to Reno. There are more jobs there, and then I can still see Easton all the time.” She hopped up and kissed the side of my mouth, the only place on my face without a cut or bruise. “Thank you for helping me find my happily ever after.”
chapter 34
Roxie
My arms wrapped tighter around Jericho’s waist, and I shielded my face behind his back. It was a dark, almost moonless night. The desert landscape looked eerie as we swept by it on the back of his Harley. Pepper and I had spent the day moving into our apartment. A night out alone with Jericho was just what I’d needed. We both felt like a ride, and Jericho wanted to show me the place where he’d spent half his life.
We turned onto an unpaved road. The desert dust kicked up around us in a ghostly cloud. I peered over his shoulder as we neared the massive walls. In the shadows of the night, it resembled the stark outside of a prison or fortress, uninviting and creepy. Graffiti had been sprayed over most of the outside, and dense shrubs lined the entire foundation. A giant gate, hanging only by a few hinges, spanned the opening in the wall.
Jericho stopped the bike and rolled it toward the gate. The massive iron gate groaned as he pushed it aside. We rode inside. It was a ghost town of brick buildings and small cabins. Tumbleweeds had collected in massive mounds throughout the yard. Jericho rode toward the center courtyard and stopped the bike. We climbed off and removed our helmets.
Jericho took my hand and led me to a cabin. Dust seemed to be holding together the wood siding. The small windows were nothing but shards of glass.
“This was mine.” There was the slightest twinge of sorrow in his tone. “Some of my best memories and some of my worst,” he said. “It wasn’t a conventional lifestyle, but it was interesting.” His profile was perfect as if he’d been chiseled by an artist. “Never a dull fucking moment, as they say.” He peered down at me. “Hey, I heard from Griffin today. He said they took back the money Gamble owed them, then Trace fled to Georgia or someplace like that. The guy who shoved the man was hauled in for involuntary manslaughter.”
“Will he do time?”
“If he’s lucky. He was the guy talking to Gamble behind Griffin’s back. He’s a traitor. He’ll be safer behind bars than out on the streets.” He pulled me into his arms. “That’s life with outlaws. You still up for it?”
“Me?” I walked him back toward the motorcycle. “Have I shown you where I plan to have the word Bedlam tattooed?”
“You have not, but something tells me I’m going to like it.”
I walked him back to the bike. I swept my gaze around at the deserted compound. “Seems like we’re pretty alone here.” I took off my jacket and dropped it on the ground. Then I lifted off my shirt.
Jericho looked breathtaking standing in the shadows of the walls and buildings. His smile, the smile that had won my heart almost immediately, appeared. He stared down at my bra. “I like where this is going.”
I reached back and undid my bra. It fell to the ground. I pushed off my shoes. My striptease took a little turn there because the ground was rough and hard to stand on. I fidgeted on my bare feet as I unbuttoned my fly. “Mr. President, have you ever fucked someone on a motorcycle?” I peered up at him seductively, expecting him to look shocked by my lascivious suggestion.
He wasn’t. His lips pulled tight.
“Oh shit, you have,” I said disappointedly. I waved my arm at the bike feeling somewhat foolish standing in front of him nearly naked. “Of course you have. I should have known.”
“But I haven’t fucked you on my motorcycle, and you’re the only woman who matters.” He lowered his mouth to mine and kissed me.
He reached down and pushed my jeans and panties to my feet. I stepped out of them. Cool air swirled around me. It was so quiet, I could hear the tumbleweeds crunch against each other as the breeze pushed against them.
Jericho undressed. He was pure sex. Everything about him made me shiver with desire. He walked over and sat backwards on his bike seat. I climbed over the seat facing him. We kissed long and hard as his muscular chest rubbed against my nipples. His big hands cupped my ass, and he lifted me up. I straddled my thighs over him.
“Now about that Bedlam tattoo,” he said.
I pointed down to the intimate place on my inner thigh. “I thought it would be perfect right here.”
He reached down and traced the spot with his finger. “Fucking right it would,” he growled. Then he grabbed me and lifted me up. I came down fast and hard over his cock. The chrome on the bike glittered under the starlight. The strange deserted town, Jericho’s old home, surrounded us as he drove his cock into me.
It took me only minutes before my mind and body splintered with the ecstasy of having Jericho deep inside of me. I rocked my hips over him until his eyes drifted shut and that low, rough sound I’d grown to love rolled up from his throat.
For a long time, we sat naked in each other’s arms straddling his motorcycle. I reached to his face and fingered the small cut that was still visible on his chin. “A few months ago I was in such despair, it seemed that I was never going to be happy again. Worst of all, I was completely resigned to the fact that I was destined to be miserable forever. I didn’t see any way out of it. I had just given up on the notion of love and happiness.”
“Well consider that notion fulfilled. I love you, Roxie.” Jericho wrapped his arms around me and kissed me.
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Rain Shadow Books 1-5— NOW AVAILABLE
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*Seth is a part of The Barringer Brothers series, but can be read as a standalone.
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Jericho— AVAILABLE JUNE 12TH
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She’s trapped.
—I was a game piece in Trace Gamble’s fantasy world, where he was king and everyone else was a pawn.—
He made a promise.
—I will fight him for you, and I will win.—
What starts as one night of secret pleasure soon becomes so much more.
When Jericho Walsh was handed the Bedlam MC president’s patch, he decided to find more legitimate ways for the outlaw club to make money. A job providing security for Trace Gamble, a wealthy casino owner, takes Jericho and his two closest friends to Lake Tahoe. Jericho soon finds that Gamble can’t be trusted. But Jericho finds a reason to stay. Roxie Palmer. A terrible secret has Roxie bound to Gamble but Jericho has decided he’s not leaving Tahoe without her.