Night After Night (Night Riders Motorcycle Club Book 1)

This is a work of fiction. Any names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons--living or dead--is entirely coincidental.

Night After Night copyright @ 2015 by Kathryn Thomas. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.

Book 1 of the
Night Riders Motorcycle Club
trilogy

CHAPTER ONE

“It’s a bad idea.”

Lauren Nichols sighed as she ran a brush through her long brown hair. Of course Drew disagreed with her. What else was new?

“We already talked about---”

“I know. I know.”

Leaving the rumpled bed sheets, he drew her close to his broad chest and smiled into her neck. He smelled good. Almost too good after a night under the covers. While Lauren pretended to sleep, she heard him slip into the shower, towel off, and creep back to her side. It was kind of sweet that he wanted her to wake up to find him pressed and polished.

“Drew, I---”

Silencing her with a swift kiss, Lauren couldn’t resist the lure of his tight lips. He was always a good kisser; that was one of the first things she liked about him– kind of loved about him. As their tongues twirled together, she relaxed and held him. She relished the feel of his hand tightening around her wrist, and she was about to deepen their kiss when Drew suddenly pulled back with a small frown.

“Sorry,” he teased, his eyes sparkling. “Got a little rough there.”

But a part of her wanted that. When she told him of her plans, she almost wished that he would stomp his feet and toss her to the bed– tell her that she was his woman and that she wasn’t going anywhere. Old-fashioned? Sure. But Drew whining and saying that he wanted to settle down did nothing for he– the prospect of the open road did.

“It’s okay,” she said. “Whatever.” Tying her hair behind her head, she watched his reflection in the glass as he sank to the edge of the bed with a heavy sigh.

“’Whatever’?” he said. “That’s all you have to say?”

Lauren had a lot more to say, but her parents were right downstairs, and she had promised them a friendly meal before she set out. Turning back to Drew, she flashed him a bright smile. “I can say other things,” she murmured. “Do other things, too.”

Winding her legs around his lap, she felt Drew growing hard. She liked that her nearness did this to him. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to give in and let him make an honest woman out of her. Even as her soul groaned at the prospect of table setting and flower arrangements, Drew would be good to her. Her parents would be happy if she stayed.

And right on cue, there was a knock on the door.

“Waffles!” her mother cried. “You two coming down?”

Drew started to answer when Lauren turned his face to hers with a gentle smirk. She pushed her finger to his lips and shook her head. Let him stay silent. Making love in the dark when her parents were fast asleep was one thing, but she wanted to take him now, with breakfast cooling just below the steps. Let him loosen her hair and, if he drilled her hard enough, Lauren would bite down on her tongue and cry out as he rode her to unparalleled heights. She imagined him kissing her harder than ever before she straightened her skirt and beckoned him to the table where she used to crayon to her heart’s content. But she would leave her hair loose and she’d keep Drew from going back to the shower– let the stink of sex come off them in waves as they asked for more maple syrup.

“Be right down, Mrs. Nichols.”

Drew was back in the mirror before Lauren and when she saw him push his blonde hair behind his flushed ears, she went back to her first thought. She needed some time to herself before she dove in for good.

“Lauren? You ready?”

“Not just yet.”

Joining him in the glass, Lauren straightened her hair and managed to smile. One more breakfast. Sure, she would probably come back to him in the end, but as soon as her mother started to clear the table…

“Okay,” Lauren said. “Let’s go.”

Drew took her hand, and he led her down the spiral staircase, holding her softly, like something that he didn’t want to break out in the open. A part of Lauren still wanted him to jump her bones right here and now, her parents’ shock be damned. But that wasn’t Drew. He liked sex, but he liked his pristine image even more. So was this to be her life? A porcelain doll at his side…?

“There they are!”

Quinn Nichols clapped her hands fast and pulled her daughter close. Sinking into her mother’s embrace, Lauren remembered skinning her knees and letting mud pies stain her white dress. Quinn could be harsh when her baby girl spoiled the scene, but she was sweet in the end. Lauren loved her mother for that.

“About time.” Her father was an entirely different story.

Carter Nichols fluffed his newspaper. No tablet for him; her dad was old school. Scrunching her face, Lauren let Drew hold out her chair and she sat heavily as she unfolded her napkin across her lap. “Sorry, Dad.”

Failing to make eye contact, her father just sniffed and turned the page. “This how you plan to keep time out on the road?” Even more than Drew, Carter was anti her plan. To hear him tell it, he had paid for her education, even though, in the back of his mind, he only wanted Lauren to snag a husband– to be one less thing that he had to worry about. Drew’s presence almost connected the dots.

But Lauren was about to throw a fresh wrench into the mix. “Just planning to follow the sun, Dad,” Lauren said.

Carter finally set his paper aside.

“The sun sets, Lauren,” he said. “What then?”

“I…” She wanted to tell him that she didn’t care. There was always the moon, and she wanted the chance to grope through the dark and explore… hope… “I’ll figure it out, Dad.” She wouldn’t embarrass Drew at her father’s table. Smiling at her boyfriend, she patted his hand. “Just a few weeks,” she said. “I’ll be back in no time.”

Drew started to grow hot under his collar, and Carter seized on the sight.

“You see?” he said. “Drew doesn’t want you to go. Do you, son?”

Lauren tensed as she waited for Drew’s response. As much as he protested, he said that he got it in the end. She wanted to feel the wind on her back, see everything that might be out there, and Lauren swore that she would come back. And she would. She probably would. Unless…

“I will miss you, Lauren.”

It could have been sweet, should have sounded that way, but there was something slightly threatening in Drew’s tone– like she should only go at her own risk. Maybe he wouldn’t be there when she came back. As his hold tightened around her hand, Lauren longed for it to feel warm, welcoming. But it was like he wanted her to come around under her father’s harsh gaze and throw her hands into the air– suddenly just say that she was just kidding. They could start picking out china patterns as soon as breakfast was done. And it would probably happen soon enough. It was just a trip. A long drive. And Lauren wanted Drew to believe in that.

“I’ll miss you, too,” she said. She kissed his cheek and tried to turn the conversation back to her father’s discarded paper, but Carter formed a fist, and the table shook under the force of his blow.

“Then stop this foolishness and grow up already!”

He wanted that the second she was out of diapers. Because babies, little girls, were messy. Wives like Quinn batted their eyelashes and held their tongues, but that wasn’t Lauren. Not yet. Maybe never…

“I am grown up, Dad,” she said. “And I’m just trying---”

“Are you really okay with this?” Carter ignored his daughter and focused all of his attention on Drew and pressed his hands to his hips. “Why don’t you man up and keep her close to home?”

Lauren was ready to lay into her father when she saw Drew squirming out of the corner of her eye. He was dancing too close to her father’s line of thinking, and Lauren started to head back to her room, ready to leave now, when a set of fingers curled around her wrist. “Dad! Don’t---”

But the hands were Drew’s, and Lauren had to look twice as Drew tried to stand tall.

“Your… your father has a point,” Drew he said.

He does not!
Lauren told him; she whispered into his ear over and over again as they lay side by side. Carter Nichols wanted to control her, and Lauren was not to be held down. Drew said that he got it, that he wanted her to find herself, that he wanted her to be whole with him. And Lauren believed him.

“We… maybe we should start making plans.”

Plans?
“What are you---?”

“Look, Lauren.”

She let him take her hand, and Lauren tensed as she waited for whatever he might say.

Turn around. Come back to my side. You said that you got---

“But… you’d be better off… you’d…”

He couldn’t finish the thought, and Lauren leapt.

“I just want some time to myself!” she screamed.

“Lauren, you---”

Pushing past her lover, Lauren stared her father down. “And I’ve earned this,” she said.

Carter’s laugher shook her to the core of her soul. “And what happens when you need my help?” he asked,

Lauren would sooner die than ever ask for it, and she stretched close to her father’s height and glared at him. “I won’t,” she said.

Leaving the table, Lauren packed faster. She had promised that she would stay through that night’s dinner, but she wanted to leave now. Leave and never look back…

“Lauren?”

Drew lingered in the doorway, and Lauren was stiff as he took her hand.

“Please… please don’t go.”

CHAPTER TWO

Seeing her reflection in his sad dog stare, Lauren hesitated. To look at him on paper, to explore him in the flesh, he appeared perfect. He had never been anything but good to her, and the sex…She had some complaints there. Every time she wanted to try a different position, introduce a little kink into their routine rituals, he made like a choirboy. Her mother would say that suggested a good husband, a loyal man who would never get bored and never stray. And maybe there would come a day when she’d be grateful for the security, but right now…

“If you think I’m spending one more night here---”

“Lauren– ”

“With my father judging me, thinking that I can’t take care of myself– because I can– ”

“I know that,” he whispered. “But why can’t you just let me take care of you?”

Before she could answer, Drew pulled her into a soft kiss. Tensing against his chest, Lauren was slow to wind her arms around his waist, but she finally held him close. Remembering their strolls down the quad, Lauren always felt a slight thrill when other girls saw what was hers and yearned to just hold his hand, craved to know his kiss. If those girls could see and corner her now, no doubt they would blast her for being the world’s worst girlfriend. Maybe she was, and when he ended their kiss with a smile and a stroke of his fingers down the side of her face, Lauren’s mind exploded with a wild idea, and she playfully danced her fingers down his neck.

“You want to come with?”

He looked like the ground had been kicked out from under him. “Oh! I… but you said–”

“I know,” she purred. “But it might be fun to have some company out on the open road. Think about it. You and me. Miles and miles to explore. It– ”

“You know… you know I can’t,” he stated plainly.

“But why not?” she asked, hearing the childish tone in her voice but not caring as soon as the words passed through her lips.

“I start work next week,” he said. “You know that these positions---”

“Oh please,” she said with a groan. “Like your daddy can’t hook you up with another firm in a few months’ time.”

Drew backed away from her and pressed his hands to his slim hips. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” he challenged.

A part of her wished that she could take it back, but it was far from a lie. Drew’s dad had every major financier from Reno to LA in the palm of his hand. So what if he had to disappoint one friend; there were always others. And while Drew was still a young man, he should need to… he should want to take a chance.

“I’m just saying---”

“My father expects me to be responsible,” he started. “To, you know, be a grown-up?”

Lauren seethed as her fingers curled into a small fist. “So you’re saying that I’m not?” she said.

“I’m saying that your father is still going to let you walk out that door,” Drew said.

“Can you blame me?” Lauren said. “You heard–”

“And he made a lot of sense!” Drew said, his voice growing louder. “You don’t even have a plan. Just going to wander around from day to day, anything could happen to you…”

So was he concerned? Was that where was this was coming from? Sighing, she started to take his hand again.

“And you just expect me to wait,” Drew said. “Well you know what? Maybe I’ll have my own little adventure while you do your hobo thing.”

It might have been an empty threat, but his words stabbed her to the core. If he really loved her, he would let her go and trust in her return. Or he would drop everything and come with her. But to threaten her? To try to make her jealous to make her stay? “Now who’s acting like a three-year-old?” Lauren said. Drew didn’t buckle, and suddenly Lauren couldn’t stand the sight of him. “You know what?” Lauren started. “You do your thing, I’ll do mine. And we’ll see what happens when the summer’s over.”

Zipping up her bag, she stomped towards the top of the staircase. Would he follow her now, grab her arm and say that he didn’t really mean it, that he was simply terrified at the prospect of losing her? Lauren paused for all of a second, but when she didn’t hear his footsteps, when she didn’t hear the sound of his voice, she started to descend and set her eyes on the front door.

“Lauren! Wait!”

It was her mother. Not Drew. Quinn grabbed her arm and forced her daughter to face her.

“Mom, please–”

“No you please!” she said. “I’m still your mother, and you will listen to me.”

Here it was. A final lecture in a series of three. Lauren struggled some as her mother dragged her towards the sitting room and sat her down on the sofa.

“You’re not changing my mind,” Lauren started. “I–”

“You think I don’t know that?”

Lauren never thought that her mother could never surprise her. Never a hair out of place, her nails always perfectly filed, Quinn was all about appearances. On her graduation day, Drew had to be in every picture so that Quinn could line her scrapbook with the storybook images of her future son-in-law. If anyone wanted her to get with it and stay, her mother fit the bill.

So why was she sounding as if she agreed?

“You were stubborn from the day you were born,” Quinn said. “Naturally you were late to the party, and I–”

“I know, Mom,” Lauren said. “Labor for thirty-nine hours. You never thought that you would get through–”

“Did you suddenly have a baby?” Quinn said.

Backing down, Lauren lowered her eyes and held her tongue.

“I didn’t think I would get through it,” Quinn continued. “And your father was furious with you even then. He wanted you on a schedule before you even saw the light of day, but believe me, his face brightened so when he finally saw you.”

Lauren had heard that a million times, too. And sometimes, if she reached into the darkest corners of her memory, she thought that she recalled moments when her father looked at her with nothing but love and pride. In recent days, there was only frustration mingled with disgust. And now Drew had that same look. “I really have to–”

“I know, Lauren,” she said. “And I’m not going to tell you that you can’t.”

Cocking her eyebrow, Lauren managed a faint smirk. “Not going to lock me up and throw away the key?” she teased.

Laughing lightly, Quinn shook her head. “Now what would be the point of that?” Quinn pulled her daughter close.

Resting her nose to her neck, Lauren inhaled her jasmine scent. If anything was going to make her stay, this might do it.

“So listen to me.” Holding her daughter at arm’s length, Quinn fixed her face in a stern mark, but her eyes still brimmed with tears as she spoke. “Go,” Quinn started. “See what you need to see. Maybe you’ll even find something sweet.”

Lauren bit down on her lip. Torn between her desire to explore and the lure of her mother’s embrace, she felt the weight of everyone else’s judgment slip away.

“So you do get it,” Lauren said.

“I do,” Quinn said. “I don’t like it, but I understand.” Helping her daughter to her feet, Quinn walked Lauren to her car and patted her cheek. “But whatever you find out there, come back. Can you do that much?”

Lauren promised with a hug, and she finally slipped behind the wheel. Backing down the driveway, she caught a glimpse of Drew peering down at her from her bedroom window. A small part of her wanted to wave, blow him a kiss, just something to show him that she still cared, but when he closed the drapes and turned his back, Lauren hit the gas and took off. Maybe she would come back to him at the end of her journey, but, for this moment, she pushed him out of her mind and looked forward with a scared but excited heart.