Chasing Claire (Hells Saints Motorcycle Club) (7 page)

Pipe was blond, blue eyed, and square jawed. His tousled hair was worn short and was made lighter in parts by the sun. His lips were naturally full and he was clean shaven. He was the only brother who didn’t have any tattoos. Not even one. A fact that even I found kind of strange. Pipe had underwear-model good looks, but there was a hardness in his eyes that I did not trust. He was definitely drool material for just about every woman with a pulse. But I really had never bothered to look at him long enough to see him that way. Now that I took the time, I still wasn’t interested.

“Just looking out for the club, little girl,” Pipe came back at me.

I made myself ignore the little girl part.

“Yeah, how’s that?” I asked.

“Lots of strange tail hanging around tonight. Brothers’ rooms are by invitation only. You know that.”

“I look like
strange tail
to you, Pipe?”

He was still standing in front of me in a way that didn’t make sense.

Yeah, Pipe standing in front of me in an effort to keep me from going to Reno’s room made no sense at all.

Unless . . .

“Get out of my way, Pipe,” I said quietly.

“Probably not a good idea, babe.” Pipe remained where he was, blocking my way.

“Are you seriously going to make me find a way to go through you?” I asked him.

“I might enjoy that.” He smirked.

I put my hands on my hips and held my ground. He chuckled heartily, but when I nudged past him again, he moved out of the way.

“Tell him I tried to keep you outta there,” he yelled after me.

Without turning around, I flipped Pipe the middle finger.

His laughter followed me down the hallway.

Feeling oddly compelled, I walked toward Reno’s room. Then, having reached it, my brain waged a battle with my heart. Both of them were wreaking havoc on my already-heightened senses.

I gave myself a minute to think this through.

Self-preservation was screaming at me not to knock on Reno’s door. Every instinct I had was telling me that opening that door would be bad for me, bad for him, and bad for any chance we had toward working things out for the better. The more I thought about it, the more I knew that for lots of reasons, this was a very bad idea.

I turned and moved to walk away. Just as I did, a very drunk Saint came careening toward me with an equally drunk blonde squealing with delight at being hoisted over his shoulder. She rode ass-up with her stilettos waving dangerously in the air. I had to flatten myself quickly against the door to avoid having my eye poked out.

Unfortunately, at that exact moment, they slammed into me. The door to Reno’s room swung open under the forced, quick pressure. The two lovebirds managed to right themselves again and move on, only to leave me to stumble hard and headlong into the very bad idea.

CHAPTER 13

I
t took a second for my eyes to adjust, and then what I saw made me feel sick. I inhaled sharply, trying to catch my breath, but that only made it worse. The stench of Jack Daniels, reefer, and cheap perfume hit me like a bucketful of cold, dirty water.

Moonlight cast an eerie glow on the large broken-winged angel tattooed on Reno’s back. The hard muscles of Reno’s denim-covered ass moved rhythmically to the squeals of the loudly orgasmic woman in his bed. Hypnotized, I watched as long, blood-red fingernails clawed their way into Reno’s back. A pair of six-inch heels pointed straight up into the air.

“What the fuck?” Reno snarled. Reaching for the piece he had laid down on the nightstand, he twisted his body to seek out the intrusion.

I needed to get out of there.

Fast.

As I turned to hurry back out the door, the wine bottle slipped through my sweaty palms. Falling hard, it shattered all over the floor. Crimson-coated shards of glass pierced me like fine needles.

I felt that sting everywhere.

“Christ, Claire.” Reno pulled himself off the woman and rolled over onto his side. “Is that you?”

Paralyzed now, I stood stupidly in the dark doorway. I was covered in glass, cheap merlot, and shattered pride.

“What’s going on?” the redhead on the bed called out. She looked from Reno to me and pouted. She didn’t bother to cover herself.

Reno didn’t even glance her way.

He left the bed and he started to walk toward me, as the bulge in the front of his unbuttoned jeans cried out in protest.

“What are you doing in here, Claire?” Reno was closer now, and the smell of Jack Daniels came off him in waves.

I shook my head and started to back out the door. Humiliation had a dark hold on me, and it squeezed at my chest.

Reno just kept on coming at me.

I moved away from him until I felt the wall press hard and unyielding against my back. There I stood helplessly as Reno moved in on me.

With one quick sweep he settled himself between my legs and put his hands on either side of my head. In less than a minute, Reno had caged me in. Tight.

“Claire, what are you doing in here?” He drew so close I could feel his breath on my lips.

“I heard you were back,” I managed to squeak out. My knees were suddenly jelly and my heart was doing this thing where it would beat fast and then stop dead, before it picked up that rapid pace again. I thought I might be dying.

His beautiful amber eyes melted into mine. His long deep caramel-colored hair fell over his face.

“Yeah, baby. I’m back. But that still doesn’t tell me what you’re doing in my room,” he said.

The shadows covered us and beams of moonlight danced on the darkened room behind us.

“I . . . I . . . I wanted . . . I wanted to . . .” I tried with all I had to fight my way back from the brink.

Jesus.

Like some dark sorcerer’s spell, the sound of his voice held me hypnotized.

I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t look away. Reno pressed me deeper in the shadowed corner alcove. Darkness and light swirled like jeweled pieces of kaleidoscope glass around us.

My words were stuck between worlds.

“What, baby? You wanted what? Tell me what you want, Claire.” His hips, hard and inviting, pushed against my core.

“I . . . I . . . wanted to say . . . uh . . .” My mind went blank.

His thumb brushed my lips.

“You wanted to say what, Claire?”

Then his eyes left mine and moved to my mouth. Reno’s hand moved leisurely past the hollow of my throat, down to my breast. The back of his hand skimmed lightly up and down over me.

“What is it that you came in here to say, baby?”

Oh, God, his other hand was moving to the back of my neck, cupping it. Holding it tight.

“I came to say . . .”

Reno’s heated gaze paralyzed me. He tweaked my nipple.

Oh, my God.

I tried again.

“Just came to say hello, Reno,” I finished lamely.

Reno let out a deep feral sigh.

“Hello there, Claire.” His tongue moved over his lower lip, like he was getting ready to eat.

Then he leaned in until the side of his cheek touched mine, and as he ran his fingers up and down the back of my neck, he whispered into my hair, “What took you so long?”

When his mouth dropped to just below the curve of my ear and he softly sucked on the lobe, I felt a shot of moisture soak through to my panties.

“Reno, you’ve been drinking.” I fought to keep myself steady.

“Yeah, baby, I have. I’ve been whoring too. Been drinking and whoring you off my mind for too long now.” His forehead touched mine, then I felt his whole body sigh against me.

Oh, boy.

My knees turned to jelly and my mouth went dry. On its own, my tongue reached out and wet my lips. When Reno touched the tip of his tongue to mine, I flooded. Again. I felt my nipples swell and push against the soft lace of my bra, as if reaching toward him. In a soft whimper, I found my breath. The heat of his amber eyes turned my own into a sea of liquid blue. I began to crest on a long, high wave. In answer, Reno hardened and ground into me. He felt the want in me. How could he not? Every cell in my body was crying out to him.

His hands buried themselves deeper into my hair. As he captured the soft masses in his big rough palms he tugged on the long strands and pulled my head back.

Then Reno’s mouth touched me everywhere.

I came undone.

I arched toward him as I felt his soft lingering kisses rain all over me. The rough stubble of his jawline chafed deliciously against the curve of my cheek. Traces of wet cascaded down my neck, then back up again. Reno’s mouth enveloped me in a salty sea of smoothness. Gently probing, I felt his warm mouth press against mine. His tongue parted my lips until it was moving inside, pushing and thrusting.

Long. Hard. Deep.

My whole being emptied then and filled with a kind of time and space where only the two of us existed. I was more aware of Reno than I had ever been of anything in my life. He was a part of me, and I was a part of him. The darkening of his hooded eyes,
the scruffy stubble on his hard jaw, the thin scar that hit his cheek midcenter, there was nothing I did not see, nothing I did not want. Nothing I would not give.

I groaned against his mouth as I felt his tongue leave mine, disappointment sending shockwaves through to my soul. Then it was back, gliding over my lips. When he bit and tugged on my lower lip, I pulsed and tightened. I moved into him then. Rubbing against him, trying to ease the pain of wanting him. I was like a cat, caught in the rhapsody and confusion of that first heat.

Desperate.

Aching.

Primal.

The smoldering fire, which had started the minute I had first laid eyes on this man, rose up and ignited. Panting, I opened to him. I was lost. Deep swirling sparks of heat pulled at my every nerve ending. Reno’s hands moved all over me. His strong fingers lingered and pulled against my swollen nipples. Over and over again he plundered, stopping only after he had drawn them into hard peaks. Satisfied, his hands rode up to the back of my neck and pulled my mouth to his again. Reno kissed me again and again until I thought our lips would fuse together in the heat. With a groan, his lips left mine to move down the soft cotton of my T-shirt. Biting gently, his mouth made small, wet circles on the thin fabric. I wrapped my hands in his hair and arched my back, pulling him toward me.

With easy strength he lifted me up against the wall and held me there.

Breathing heavily, Reno’s husky voice was heavy with tender violence. “Baby, wrap your legs around me. Yeah, darlin’, that’s right. I’ve got you, baby.”

When I felt Reno’s hand dip inside my panties and push against me, I moaned into his neck. Moving my hips, I thrust hard against
his fingers. He pulled at the swollen nub, rubbing and gliding into the wet, intimate folds. Reno played with me like that, on and on, creating currents of tortured pleasure throughout my body.

I needed release.

My body was begging for release.

When I bore down on him in frustration, Reno whispered against my hair, “Relax, baby, I got you. Let it happen. I’m not gonna stop. I fucking love this. I’m not gonna stop, baby. Until you come for me. I’m not gonna stop.”

Those words released a deep hard spasm that I felt everywhere.

Reno let out a throaty sigh, cupped me gently one last time and slowly pulled his hand away from my hot center.

“That’s it, baby. Feel that. Feel that and remember how good we are together,” he murmured soothingly.

We rested against each other, feeling our hearts beating together and our breath slowly returning to normal. Reno carefully lowered me down to the ground and cradled the back of my neck. He drew me to him.

“Baby, I missed you,” he said.

“Me too. Reno, I missed you too,” I groaned. I never wanted to let him go. Not ever. Not ever again.

Before another minute passed, I wanted more. I wanted to feel him inside of me. I needed to feel the heat of his bare skin against mine. I wanted to run my tongue over the beautiful intricate lines of his inked body. I wanted to trace over the smooth, bumpy ridges of each warrior scar.

I wanted all of him.

These stolen minutes weren’t enough, and I knew it was not enough for him. He was still rock hard against me. I wanted to give him back what he had so expertly given me.

Sliding my tongue into his mouth, I kissed him hard. Reno groaned and moved both of his hands to the sides of my head. I felt
a clenching deep in my belly as I began to build again. Then I felt something inside of me burst wide open.

I whimpered in total surrender.

Because I loved this man.

I loved him. I loved him. I loved him.

That thought fluttered all around me, like a swarm of brightly colored butterflies, waiting for their chance to land gently in his heart.

I opened myself up to catch those words and give them to him.

And that’s when I heard her.

CHAPTER 14

Y
ou want some play, beautiful? Plenty of room in his bed for the three of us. My name is Cherry, but you can call me anything you want, sugar.”

Snap.

Spell. Broken.

Just. Like. That.

Those words came crashing in, pulling me out of that magic place and into a vat of cheap perfume. I felt myself fall back to earth and land hard.

I love yous
lay all around me, broken-winged on the floor.

Cherry was still talking.

“I don’t mind sharing, sugar. Reno and me, we’ve been to that party before. Haven’t we, honey?” Her tone sounded honest, sincere, and completely devoid of jealousy or malice. For Cherry, it was just a way of life.

I felt sick.

In an attempt to move away from Reno, I pulled against the tight bicep that held me prisoner. He loosened his grip, but still held on. His gaze spun to the woman on his bed, then pivoted back to me. He didn’t say anything, but his hold tightened.

The hard, lean planes of Reno’s face tensed and a muscle clenched near his jaw. His gaze volleyed back to her.

“Cherry,” he growled in warning.

Undeterred, she glanced at Reno and waved her hand at him.

“What do you say, beautiful?” She smiled at me.