AN OUTLAW MONSTER (A Back Down Devil MC Romance Novel) (7 page)

The door shut behind me and I
looked at Harlee. I tossed the two beers to the bed. I heard a noise behind me
and turned, ripping open the door.

The two prospects were still
standing there. They were young, in black t-shirts with their all black leather
cuts on. They had earrings, tattoos, and tried so hard to look cool and fit the
fuck in. They had no idea the decision they had made.

“
Get
out of here,
”
I said.

“
We
were told to stay,
”
one said.

I gritted my teeth.
“
Did you just talk back to
me?
”

“
We
’
re doing what we were
told,
”
the other
said.

I nodded.
“
Doing what you
’
re
told.
”
I grabbed my
gun and put three rounds across the hall into a wall.
Inches from the
prospects.
“
Want
to talk back again?
”

One of them grabbed their left ear
and bent over, yelling. I wasn
’
t
sure if I tagged him or it was just the thundering sound.

“
Do
I have to say it again?
”
I asked.

The two prospects hurried away.

I slammed the door and put my gun
on the dresser.

“
Are
you always like that?
”
Harlee asked.

“
Like
what?
”

“
Abrasive.
”

“
They
call me the monster for a reason, darling,
”
I said. I pointed to the gun.
“
Now
…
I don
’
t plan on using that
…
but I would like to.
”

I walked around the bed and right
to Harlee. I towered over her. She looked up at me and I fought to not be
captivated by her eyes and natural beauty. The worst part of it was that she
wasn
’
t trying to use
her looks or body to get out of this. That made it even more tempting.

“
The
President and VP want you dead,
”
I said.
“
I should
have killed you. I was supposed to do it. But then shit got crazy. Now you
’
re here. I need to know
everything, darling.
”

“
Fine,
”
she said.
“
Whatever you want.
”

“
That
easy?
”
I asked.

“
I
’
m the one tied up.
”

“
Yes
you are.
”

I reached forward and touched her
chin. I tilted her head back all the way. I felt her exhale a shaky breath
through her nose, the air hitting my hand. I started to draw a line along her
jawbone, my mind wanting to know what the fuck I was thinking, and she winced
and pulled away.

“
Sorry,
”
she whispered. She
swallowed hard.
“
That
hurts.
”

I put my finger back to the same
spot and felt a little lump.
“
Turn
your head.
”

She did and I noticed a small
bruise.

When our eyes met again, I curled
my lip.
“
Who?
”

“
Daxton,
”
she said.

“
Jesus
Christ,
”
I said.
“
You
’
re Daxton
’
s
old lady?
”

“
No,
”
she said. Her hands
jumped, pulling at the rope.
“
No.
I
’
m not anyone
’
s old lady. No. I hate
Daxton. He was
…
it
was a mistake.
”

“
He
hurt you. What did he do and why?
”

Fuck, Trent, what does this have
to do with Night Soul trying to kill Duke?

“
It
’
s Daxton,
”
she said.
“
I
’
m sure you
’
ve
met him.
”

“
I
asked you a question.
”

“
He
grabbed my face, okay? I had bags packed to get out of the clubhouse. I wanted
out of it all. I never meant to get as close as I did. I had helped them out
with some stuff.
”

“
Killing
people?
”

“
I
’
ve never killed anyone,
Trent. I swear on my life.
”

The way she said my name and the
way she begged made my dick throb. I felt myself thickening, pressing against
my jeans. Yet I still stood there, even though it was becoming obvious that my
other
monster
wanted its own attention.

“
If
you tried to leave how did you end up at that gambling thing?
”

“
Rocco
and Gunner made me,
”
I said.
“
Gunner
pulled me into the room. Their main room I guess. They have everyone on the
wall.
”

“
What
do you mean?
”

“
All
your pictures.
”

“
So
that
’
s how you knew
me,
”
I said.
“
When I grabbed you, you
didn
’
t go all that
crazy. You looked at me like you had seen me before.
”

Harlee nodded.
“
They had the pictures in
order of everyone.
”

Her bottom lip started to quiver.
She blinked fast like she was about to start crying. I couldn
’
t give in and give a damn
though. If she needed to cry, then cry. If she needed to piss herself, then she
could piss herself.

“
So
they told you to poison Duke,
”
I said.
“
They gave
you the poison. Said to pour it into his drink.
”

“
Yes,
”
she whispered.

“
Then
what?
”

“
Then
go back to them. I don
’
t
know from there
…”
She
turned her head.
“
I
never wanted this. I
’
m
not a killer. I don
’
t
want to get hurt.
”

“
Look
at me, darling,
”
I
said.

Harlee did and I saw how glossy her
eyes were.
“
I don
’
t want to die, Trent.
”

I wasn
’
t going to tell her she wasn
’
t going to die because
that was a lie. I had to keep the fear and get everything out of her. Because
if I didn
’
t, the
other guys would. They
’
d
do it by any means necessary with death as a bonus at the end of it all.

A tear fell from Harlee
’
s eye and ran down her
cheek.

I thought about wiping the tear
away but I held back.

Instead, I reached down and put my
hand to hers. She wrestled with the rope and turned her hand to grab at mine.

“
Are
you really a monster?
”
she whispered.

Stop tempting me, darling, or
you
’
ll
meet the monster.

Before I could respond to Harlee
’
s question, the door to my
room exploded open.

I turned and saw a gun.

**

“
You
motherfucker,
”
Duke
growled as he swung his gun at me.

Whatever he had been drinking
worked to my benefit and against his own. He missed me by a mile and stumbled
to the left. I quickly shoved him into the corner of the wall where he hit with
a hard thud. I lifted my foot and kicked, slamming his hand to the wall making
it so he dropped the gun. I kicked the gun out of the way and then grabbed Duke
by the shoulder.

“
What
are you doing?
”
I
asked.

Duke swung with the back of his
hand and got me in the jaw. He turned and swung a left fist and it was nothing
short of getting hit with a brick to my cheek. I felt my neck crack as it
turned and I instantly tasted blood.

Duke was in war mode and wanted to
kill his enemy. I watched the way he looked at Harlee and he had her pegged as
the enemy. Again, I totally understood it. She had been sent to kill him and
she had come within a minute of actually doing so.

As Duke jumped over my bed, I tried
to grab for him but missed him. Harlee let out a wild scream, kicking and
pulling at the rope around her wrists. Not that she would stand a chance
against Duke to begin with but having her tied up and unable to try and defend
herself made it all that much worse.

I saw Duke bring his fist back.

My eyes went wide.

The guy could blackout all he
wanted. He could get angry. He could want to fight. But if he thought for a
second he was going to hit a woman, fuck him.

I raced around the bed and hooked
my right arm to his arm and twisted, taking him down. He crashed to the
nightstand, knocking a lamp over. It shattered. The nightstand fell over, a
drawer opening, leaving a spilled mess of bullets and condoms.

All part of the life, my
friends. All part of the life.

I took a swing at Duke
’
s face with my left hand
but had a bad angle. He growled and grabbed my shirt.

“
She
tried to kill me!
”
he
yelled.

“
She
was forced to try!
”
I
yelled back.
“
I saved
your ass.
”

I pulled Duke up to his feet and
slammed him against the wall. He moved fast -
trained like an assassin
-
and rammed both of his palms into my chest. I left my feet for a split second
and crashed into the chair and sent Harlee to her side. As I turned, I saw the
left side of her body hit the floor. I dropped down and grabbed for her.

“
Are
you okay?
”

I felt a hand grab my neck and
pull.

I threw an elbow back and hit Duke
in the gut.

Just like that we were tangled
right back up, going across the bedroom into another wall.

Finally, help started to arrive.

Jasper, Kye, Xavier, and Tristan came
charging into the room. Two grabbed me, two grabbed Duke. He was still trying
to get at me as I just stood there.

“
Everyone
calm down,
”
Jasper
said.

“
You
’
re letting this happen?
”
Duke growled, looking at
Jasper.
“
Letting that
bitch in here?
”

I shook my right arm away and got
another punch at Duke, clipping the edge of his jaw.

Kye grabbed my arm again.
“
You touch him again,
Trent, and I
’
ll slit
your throat.
”

Trev entered the room and looked
around.
“
Holy fuck.
”

There were two guys each holding
onto me and Duke. And there was Harlee on the floor still, just laying there on
her side, unable to move.

“
First,
someone pick her up,
”
Trev ordered.

Kye broke away from me and grabbed
the chair. He was too damn rough and I tried to pull at Xavier but he had a
damn firm grip on me.

“
Second,
what the fuck?
”
Trev
yelled.

“
That
bitch wanted to kill me,
”
Duke said.
“
And you
’
re letting her stay?
”

“
No,
I
’
m not,
”
Trev said.

“
What?
”
I asked.
“
I thought we talked, Prez.
”

“
We
did. I
’
ve changed my
mind.
”
Trev stared at
me. His eyes were dark, evil. He had the eyes of a guy running outlaw.
“
I want her gone,
Trent.
”

ten.

(harlee)

I want her gone, Trent.

Well, that was all I needed to
hear. I started to kick and wiggle my hands, desperate to get free.

“
Kye,
shut her up,
”
Trev
said.

The guy who had carried me to the
room and tied me to the chair moved his hand. He was either going to grab a gun
or a knife.

Trent fought out of the hold of the
guy holding him and grabbed at Kye, throwing him across the room like he
weighed nothing. The way Trent manhandled the burly bikers was intense.
And
sexy.

He stood, blocking me, and said,
“
Not a chance. Prez, we had
a deal here. She was talking to me before Duke busted in and fucking went
crazy.
”

“
You
want to see crazy, asshole?
”
Duke asked, his voice slurring.

“
Tristan,
take Duke to the bar,
”
Trev said.
“
Get him a
drink and a blowjob.
”

“
Someone
say blowjob?
”
a voice
asked.

It was another member entering the
room. He was rough looking in a sexy way with really nice eyes. His pants were
open and he was touching himself.

I gasped.

“
Cash!
”
Trent yelled.
“
Put your shit away.
”

A woman appeared, rubbing her jaw.
“
Hey. You said you
’
d take care of me now.
”

“
Get
the fuck out of here,
”
Trent said.

“
Everything
good here?
”
Cash
asked.
“
You need
help?
”

“
Thanks
for the offer,
”
Trev
said.
“
Now go. Finish
up. Repay the favor to your friend.
”

“
Come
on, sweetie,
”
Cash
said. He turned the woman around and sent her walking. He then looked into the
room, grinning.
“
I
’
m not eating that, man. I
know what
’
s been
there.
”
He shook his
head fast.
“
But she
’
s good at sucking. She was
wearing a lot of lipstick if you catch my drift
…”

Cash was then gone and I was even
more confused.

“
What
did she tell you?
”
Trev asked.

“
You
want this now?
”
Trent
asked.
“
Right here?
”

“
Yes,
”
Jasper said.

I had been slowly picking up the
names and positions of all the guys. Some I remembered from the Night Soul
clubhouse, some I didn
’
t.

“
Go
ahead, darling,
”
Trent said to me.
“
Tell
Trev.
”

I looked at Trent. I shook my head.

“
He
can
’
t save you,
”
Trev said.
“
I can.
”

I forced myself to look at Trev. I
wanted to be mad at them all. But the truth was that they were the ones who had
me.

“
They
have all your pictures on a wall,
”
I said.
“
That
’
s how I knew some of your
names and faces. How I knew who Duke was. Rocco and Gunner probably won
’
t stop after this either.
Gunner took me into their meeting room and showed me the pictures. Pointed out
a few of you. Told me what to do. I
’
m
sorr
…”

“
That
’
s enough,
”
Trev said.
“
Jasper, cut her.
”

I tensed up.

Jasper took out a knife and came at
me.

Trent stepped to the side.

Now even he wasn
’
t going to save me.

**

Jasper put the blade to my hand. He
then turned it and started to cut. He wasn
’
t
cutting me, he was cutting the rope. Repeating the same motion on my other hand
and I was finally free. Only I still held onto the arms of the chair.

“
Here
’
s the plan,
”
Trev said.
“
Duke is right with
everything. You were going to kill him. Don
’
t
lie to me either. If Trent hadn
’
t
been there
…”

“
Yes,
”
I whispered.

“
I
’
ll be honest,
”
Trev said.
“
You shouldn
’
t be living right now. The
message back to your friends should be your body. But since Trent put up a hell
of a fight for your safety and my assumption you
’
ll
do what is needed, I
’
m
going to compromise.
”
Trev looked at Trent.
“
I
want you both out of here. Take her to your place. Let Duke drink it off and we
’
ll catch up tomorrow.
”

“
That
’
s smart,
”
Trent said.
“
If Rocco plans an attack,
he
’
ll come here
looking for her.
”

“
I
’
ll have prospects watch
you,
”
Jasper said.

“
I
don
’
t need fucking
protection,
”
Trent
said.

“
Yes
you do,
”
Trev said.
“
Now get your shit and get
out of here.
”

Trev and Jasper walked toward the
door.

I called out,
“
Thank you.
”

Trev stopped and looked back.
“
Don
’
t thank me. Thank Trent. Know that right now
your ultimate fate is to die. You have no idea the war you
’
ve stepped into.
”

They left the room and Trent
crouched down in front of me.

“
We
better get out of here,
”
he said.

“
This
isn
’
t fair to you.
This is your clubhouse. It
’
s
where you
’
re safe. I
’
ll just go. Or just let
them kill me. It
’
s
probably better off that way.
”

Trent
’
s
hand shot out and touched my cheek.
“
No,
darling, it
’
s not
better off that way. I need to get out of here anyway. If Duke and I go eye to
eye again, one of us is going to end up dead.
”

“
So
you really are a monster, huh?
”
I asked, forcing myself to grin, to lessen the tension.

Trent stood up and looked eighty
feet tall. But his sexy eyes seemed like they were inches from my face.

Then he spoke.

“
Darling
…
we
’
re all monsters.
”

**

Trent
’
s
place was pretty surprising for a bad ass biker guy. It was clean, put
together, yet it had a little bit of a tough manly smell to it. He shut the
door and locked all three locks on the door.

“
Stay
away from the windows,
”
he said,
“
Just in
case we get attacked.
”

How soothing.

He tossed my bag onto the table and
then opened the fridge and offered me a beer. I took it, figuring a beer or ten
couldn
’
t hurt
anything.

“
I
brought us a drink back at the clubhouse but that got all messed up.
”

“
What
’
s with Duke?
”
I asked.
“
I mean, I know he was mad
about me
…”

“
He
did two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. When he saw the towers fall he was riding
with his first outlaw club. It wasn
’
t
the life he wanted so he went to fight a greater enemy. He was never the same
again. That
’
s all I
’
m going to say.
”

I swallowed a lump of guilt. I had
come that close to killing a man who had been fighting for my freedom? A man who
returned to his country confused, hurt, and wanting the life of freedom and
fighting enemies.

I drank half the beer in silence
and then grabbed my bag.
“
Do
you mind if I take a shower?
”

“
Down
the hall, second door on the right,
”
Trent said.

Then he turned around. It looked
like he was in pain or just angry about something.

I walked down the hall and entered
the bathroom. I shut the door and locked it. Looking in the mirror, I looked
like eight shades of hell had washed over my face. I was still in those tight,
stupid clothes from the gambling thing. I grabbed for the bottom of my shirt
and lifted it over my head. It felt so good to get that shirt off. Next came
the pants. I had to wiggle and wrestle out of them they were so freaking tight
to my body. I slipped out of my panties and then reached back and unsnapped my
bra. I was then naked, in Trent
’
s
bathroom.

I sidestepped and turned on the
water. Bending slightly, I looked at my full breasts as they just dangled there
in front of me. When the water got hot, I turned on the shower and started to
step inside. Then I stopped and glanced back to the bathroom door. My mind
started to race. I had dueling voices messing with me. Before I could reason
with myself, I walked to the door and slowly unlocked it.

Just in case Trent wanted to
come in.

By the time I got into the shower,
I was fully turned on. To the point where my nipples were hard and sensitive.
Each time the hot water hit my chest, I would wiggle a little, trying to calm
myself. My thighs ached a little and I wasn
’
t
wet just because of the shower water. There was something else there, waiting
for Trent.

What is wrong with you? He
’
s a killer. He
’
s called the
monster.

I couldn
’
t help myself.

He had saved me and protected me.
Hell, even tied to a chair with my life in the balance, Trent had done more for
me than Daxton ever did. And before Daxton, my last boyfriend
…
let
’
s not go there.

I stepped into the water even more
and let it rush against my face. My hands touched my sides and ran down my body.
All I could feel were flaws.

All I wanted to feel was Trent
’
s hands on me.