Phantom Riders MC - Hawk (2 page)

Chapter 3

Audra

I knew the huge biker in front of me wanted me. He was sporting a hard-on the size of a bat. Well, okay, maybe it wasn’t that big, but it was still massive, still, I got the impression that he didn’t let his cock rule him. If anything, he seemed annoyed by his reaction to me. As I watched him stomp away, I released a breath of relief and put my shirt back on.

I was thankful that he hadn’t taken me up on my offer to remove my jeans. All he would have seen would have been more bruises from Dane’s beating. I’d let the biker believe that I was being abused, when in fact the beating I’d received before leaving my ex had been the one and only time Dane had put his hands on me in anger. I would never remain in an abusive relationship, and my running away had everything to do with that.

And the fact that I’d seen him murder an innocent man.

The man I’d been with for three years, and thought I’d loved, had killed another man in cold blood. I knew because I’d walked into it while it was happening, only ducking out of sight when the shock had worn off and I’d realized what was about to transpire. Only I hadn’t been quick enough, and one of Dane’s men had spotted me. He’d let Dane go through with his intentions before letting everyone in the room know that I was there.

I leaned back against the stall door and closed my eyes, reliving the nightmare of the last two days. Seeing a man lying on the floor, blood flowing out of the bullet hole in his head, was an image I’d never get out of my mind. The look in Dane’s eyes when he’d realized that I was there had clearly warned me not to expect any special considerations if I caused any trouble, and I hadn’t. When it came to his business he was all business, and he didn’t let our personal relationship sway his actions. It was that, and the following happenings, that had showed me how serious he was.

And how screwed I was.

He’d beaten me and told me that I could expect worse if I told anyone what I’d seen. I think he’d truly believed that he had everything under control after that, that I was cowed into doing whatever he wanted. All it had done was show me how unstable he was, and make me want to get away from him as fast as I could.

The sound of motorcycles starting up jolted me back to the present. I grabbed my hoodie and rushed outside, expecting to see them riding off without me, relieved when I saw that they were still there. I picked up my step, aware that the three men were watching me, but the only one I was interested in was the big one who appeared to be the leader. His stony stare gave nothing away, and I sensed that he was a complex and very dangerous man.

“Thank you for not leaving me.” He could have, very easily.

He didn’t say anything, just motioned with a jerk of his head for me to get on behind him. I wanted to ask where we were going, but it didn’t really matter. He’d saved my life back at the station, whether he knew it or not. Wherever I ended up I would deal with it then. I didn’t have any money left on me, but I had my phone and Carol would wire me whatever I needed.

I climbed on, wrapped my arms around him, and we were off. The other two men pulled in behind us, and I couldn’t help but notice as time went on that they remained there, as if it were the natural order of how they traveled. Whenever we changed lanes, they followed suit, close, but not too close. Another thing that I noticed was the level of observation and awareness that cloaked the bikers. They were always on guard.

The man in front of me seemed to be aware of everything at the same time, and I wondered what he was looking for. Had I escaped one fire for another? At the time it had been my only option, begging to go with them and distancing myself from Dane’s henchmen, because I knew that they were probably going to kill me. What kind of danger had I put myself in with these men? I knew they were part of a biker club, but that’s all I knew.

As we continued down the highway, miles and miles of monotonous scenery rolled by that could easily have put me to sleep if I hadn’t been afraid of falling off the bike. Runners of grassy hillsides dotted with wildflowers and lakes, fences, and the occasional roadside signs went past in a blur. I became oblivious to the traffic around us, focusing on the loud rumble of the bike between my thighs, and the hard body I was clinging to.

My body was pulsing due to the constant vibrations of the motorcycle beneath me. It was a pleasant, gentle manipulation of the sensitive area of my sex. It wasn’t bad enough that it massaged my pussy lips until I was squirming against the leather seat, but the vibration stimulated my clit until I felt the tell-tale signs of an approaching orgasm. I knew my breathing had picked up and I turned my open mouth against the biker’s collar beneath his flying hair, hoping to drown out the sounds of my climaxing.

Whether it did or not I didn’t care at the moment. I couldn’t have stopped it if I’d tried. The decision had brutally been taken out of my hands and my control was non-existent. I let go with helpless abandon, needing to feel something other than the fear and terror of the last two days, something that made me feel good, and alive, and what better than a mind-blowing orgasm against a big, bad biker? I closed my eyes and clutched at the hard abs beneath my hands, riding out the blissful wave of release.

Once it was over and I’d come back down to earth, realization of what I’d done hit me like a rock. Embarrassment began to set in as I realized that there was no way the man in front of me didn’t know what I’d just done. How could I have let myself get so carried away? It was the damn bike’s fault. It was like riding a giant dildo that wouldn’t turn off. I wondered how long it would be before my body became used to it.

Gradually daylight began to fade away. The brightness went down with the setting sun, and I could just make out the dim glimmer of stars and a partial moon in the sky. The temperature fell with twilight, and I was beginning to think I’d have to ask to make another pit stop. Plus, I was freaking starving, and that thought reminded me that I didn’t have a cent on me. How was I going to get food without money?

Finally we took an exit off the highway, but it was another twenty minutes down a few back roads before we finally pulled into a bar. The neon sign on the road said “Juicy Lucy’s”. It was set away from the road, allowing for plenty of parking in the front, and the lot was packed, but we continued around to the back of the building, where it was dark and stunk to high heaven.

He pulled into a spot and cut the engine. “Get off,” he snapped.

“Well, since you asked so nicely,” I said sarcastically, and then moaned loudly when I tried to move. I ached everywhere! Ignoring the amused chuckles of his friends, I put my hands on his shoulders to steady myself, and eased my leg over the seat. When I went to take a step my legs buckled, and with a small cry I felt myself going down.

Fast as lightning an arm of steel wrapped around my middle and I was hauled up against a rock hard chest. I gasped at the impact. Without warning we were nose to nose, mouth to mouth, staring into each other’s eyes. I searched his deeply, looking for what, I didn’t know. Maybe something that would prove to me that he was an actual person and not the cold, hard man he’d shown me all afternoon. His chiseled face looked ravished by war, and what I saw in his eyes should have frightened me, but it saddened me instead. They were the eyes of a man without a soul, one who didn’t care, didn’t
feel
.

I didn’t realize that I’d lifted my hand until he grasped my wrist roughly to stop me in mid-air. I wasn’t even sure what I’d intended. “No,” came his flat, emotionless directive.

No?
Didn’t he like to be touched? My mind drifted back to the bathroom at the rest stop. There’d been a minute when I’d known that he wanted me, but he hadn’t acted on it, hadn’t even acknowledged that he'd been turned on. I’d been relieved at the time. Now, for some strange feeling, it felt personal.

“I don’t like being touched like that.”

I frowned. “Like what?”

“I can see it in your eyes. You think I need something. But you’d be wrong. I’ve stopped needing anything from a woman a long time ago. I don’t need or want your softness. When I want a woman,
I
do the touching, and it isn’t in the way of kissing or foreplay.
I fuck her.
”

That comment intrigued me. “You don’t kiss or do foreplay?” The softness of my tone sounded intimate in the darkness surrounding us.

“No.”

Wow, that was just sad. I felt sorry for his women. “So when you’re with a woman, you don’t care about her needs?”

His expression hardened, if that were possible. “No. I don’t get that fucking close.”

How could you not get close when you were fucking? And then it hit me. He held back his emotions because it wasn’t about getting physically close, it was about getting emotionally close. Someone had really done a number on him. “Well, since I wasn’t offering sex you don’t have to worry about it. It was a natural reaction to wanting to offer comfort to someone who obviously doesn’t need it. I won’t touch you again.” I tried to tug my wrist free, but he wasn’t turning me loose.

Keeping hold of my wrist, he nudged me away so he could dismount his bike. Once he was on his feet I had to look a long way up. I was five feet four, but he was a giant, at least six feet five, or more.

“We stay here tonight, do you have money?”

“No, but I’ll be okay.” It’d been a while since I’d had to fend for myself, but so far I wasn’t doing too badly. I glanced around. What little I could see wasn’t very appealing, especially the smelly dumpster.

Even as I said it he began digging into his pocket. He pulled out a roll and peeled off a few bills. I shook my head when I realized what his intentions were, I hated owing people, but he only crammed the money into my palm and then released my wrist.

“Stay out of trouble. We leave at six in the morning if you’re going with us.”

Not, “if you want to go with us,” but “if you’re going with us.” What a way to make me feel welcome. It was easy to read between the lines. He didn’t care one way or another, and I had a feeling that if I didn’t show up on time he wouldn’t come looking for me. Without a vehicle of my own and being basically out in the middle of nowhere, I didn’t have much of a choice. It would be better if I waited until we reached a town or something more significant than a back roads bar.

As for his comment about staying out of trouble, he didn’t need to worry. I didn’t want to bring any unnecessary attention to myself. Dane had people looking for me. With his money and resources, it was going to be hard for me to just disappear. There were very few people I could trust right now.

“What about what I owe you?”

“It’s only a couple hundred bucks.”

He said it as if it were nothing, which I would have agreed with two days ago, but now my situation had changed. Two hundred dollars suddenly seemed like a lot of money. “No, I mean for taking me with you back at the station. I told you I’d pay you.” I was probably a fool for reminding him of that fact.

“Fuck, we’re even. You taught me an invaluable lesson.” He began to walk to the door.

“What’s that?” I asked, following him.

“Not to pick up pint-sized bitches with flaming red hair.”

Chapter 4

Audra

His cold, indifferent comment floored me, and I wasn’t sure why. He didn’t have to take me when we were back at the gas station, I hadn’t made him do anything. His lack of empathy caused me to slow down from following him into the bar. For the first time since I’d been on the run, I felt tears fill my eyes. I really was on my own. He didn’t even glance back to see if I was behind him before the door closed.

I leaned against the building, pissed at myself for the tears that fell down my cheek. Pissed that I was in a hopeless situation that was probably not going to end well, and the only true friend I had that I could count on was a thousand miles away. I’d had plenty of friends with Dane, but after what had happened, I didn’t dare trust any of them now.

What in hell was I going to do? I glanced down at the crinkled money in my palm. The dim light above the door next to me was enough to show me it was a couple of hundred dollars. Was there a bus stop around here? I didn’t remember passing any on our way here, but I hadn’t been looking for one. I decided that I should just go inside and get something to eat, spend the night, and think about what I was going to do in the morning.

Cramming the money into a pocket, I opened the door. The first thing that hit me was the thick flume of smoke, a combination of the open grill behind the bar and cigarettes. The place reeked of cheap perfume, grease, smoke, and sweat. The reason became apparent as my eyes began to adjust to the dim lighting. Every bar stool, booth, and table was occupied with the kind of men who looked like they worked hard and played harder, and it was obvious that personal hygiene wasn’t at the top of their list of priorities.

The women walking around with trays of drinks were dressed like the girls that were working the stripper poles, nearly naked in tiny G-strings and sky-high stilettos. They were clearly there to provide the men with eye candy and whatever else they wanted because several of them were giving lap dances, and there was a couple fucking in plain sight in a booth.

People really did that kind of thing out in the open? Well, I was seeing it firsthand. The places Dane and I frequented were filled with upper class, stuck-up, dressed-to-the-nines couples who held themselves in such high regard that their noses disappeared in the clouds. I’d been part of that circle, though I’d never felt as if I belonged. Looking back, I could admit that I had let Dane shape me into the kind of woman that he wanted me to be.

I decided that the safest thing I could do was focus on the bar and make my way there to order a hamburger. It was easier said than done, considering that I had to weave in and around closely spaced tables. By the time I reached the bar my cheeks were burning from all the pinches and pats I’d received along the way. The filthy comments were somehow worse, but I decided I could put up with them if it meant not being dragged down on someone’s lap for something else.

“Help you?”

The man was thin, wearing a dingy gray t-shirt and jeans beneath his heavily stained apron. He had a bandana tied around his forehead, and stringy, greasy-looking hair that hung down to his shoulders, and it appeared that he didn’t own a razor. My empty belly wouldn’t let me turn around and walk away.

“A cheeseburger and coke, please. No fries.”

“Sure.” He turned halfway around and yelled over his shoulder, “One cheeseburger, Sam!” Then his eyes came back to me. “Haven’t seen you around here before. A pretty lady like you, I would of noticed. You with someone?”

“I, ah, came in with some bikers.” I thought it would be better and safer for me to at least admit that.

He frowned. “What bikers?”

I glanced around the room until my gaze landed on the three men I’d ridden in with, crammed into a circular booth in the corner. Two of them were heavily involved with women, while the man I’d ridden behind all day sat back with a bottle and glass in front of him. He was anything but relaxed, even I could see that. As if something had passed between us, he suddenly looked up, locking his stony gaze on me.

“Fuck, don’t tell me you’re with Phantom Riders.” I nodded. “You with Hawk? He’s a mean son-of-a-bitch.”

Hawk? Since the other two had women on their laps, I assumed the bartender meant the steely-eyed beast eyeing me from their group. So now I knew his name, and it suited him. I glanced back at the man behind the bar, wondering if I should lie. But then, since he knew Hawk’s name he must know what kind of man he was. He certainly knew him better than I did.

“Burger up!”

Before I could answer him he turned, grabbed the plate the cook had set down and placed the cheeseburger down in front of me. “That’ll be eight dollars.” Then he went to the soda machine and poured me a coke.

“Do you have rooms for rent?” I questioned, digging out one of the hundred dollar bills.

His snort was followed with, “This ain’t no fuckin’ hotel, lady. The only rooms we have here belong to the working girls.” He leaned over the counter, saying in a low tone, “You want to earn a little money?”

I just glared at him until, laughing, he backed away and went to the register. When he returned with my change I picked up my plate and glass and turned around. There was nowhere for me to go but to the booth where Hawk was sitting. He watched me approach, like a predator scenting blood, and the closer I got the more nervous I felt. I was thankful his friends sat on either side of him, which meant that I wouldn’t have to sit next to him.

I sat down on the very edge of the seat. “Sorry that I have to invade your space, but there’s nowhere else for me to sit.” His grunt, the only acknowledgement he made, made me want to throw my coke in his dark face. His two friends were oblivious to everything but the naked women on their laps. “Would you like some?” I held up my burger before biting into it. Maybe I could kill him with kindness.

He remained silent, reaching for the glass in front of him. I shrugged and took a big bite, starved. “You know, there aren’t any rooms for rent for tonight.” I kept eating my burger, not really expecting him to respond. But the more he ignored me, the more I wanted to bug the shit out of him. “This burger is really good, nice and juicy. Sure you don’t want a nibble?” I was stupid for taunting him, he looked anything but friendly right now.

I smiled and took a sip of my coke. “So, where are you going to sleep tonight?”

“Where’d you come from, baby?” The biker next to me had finally realized that I was there. His girlfriend gave me a look, dismissed me, and went back to sucking on his neck. “Shell and I are getting ready to call it a night. You can shack up with us as long as you let me inside your sweet pussy.”

He was drunk. I felt my cheeks burn, but I was determined not to let Hawk see how uncomfortable I was. “That’s a tempting nice offer. I’ll think about it.”
When hell freezes over
. I kept that thought to myself. I moved so that they could exit the booth, and then sat back down.

I finished my burger, which was surprisingly good, and drank down my coke. Having food in my stomach felt good. Now all I had to do was find a place to sleep for the night. Hawk’s other friend and woman finally crawled out of the booth and left, to go to her room, I supposed. It dawned on me that the reason Hawk had said they were staying the night there was because he knew they would be sleeping with the women there.

I wondered who Hawk would be sleeping with. Would he touch her, fuck her? And why did it matter to me? We’d just met, and I knew we’d never be friends. He was just the means to get me somewhere far away from Dane. Yet I couldn’t help but be aware of him, the way he looked at me, as if I were something he wanted but hated at the same time. Maybe I reminded him of someone.

The outside door opened and I instinctively looked toward it. The breath caught in my throat when the two men I’d been running from earlier walked through. Quickly I turned away from them, my eyes meeting Hawk’s. I could feel my heart rate pick up speed. How the hell had they found me? It didn’t make sense!

“Hawk—”

I didn’t know what I was going to say. It didn’t matter anyway, because suddenly Hawk jerked me over to him and my face was down in his lap. My first reaction was to get up, but he held me firmly at the back of my neck. To the casual observer it looked like I was giving him a blow-job, and maybe that was his intention. I turned my face slightly away from his zipper, so that I could breathe. It shocked me that he was hard as stone.

With all the naked bodies walking around us it shouldn’t have surprised me that he was horny. I brushed all that aside, my thoughts returning to the two men. I had no idea what they were doing, but something warned me if they were coming our way I would definitely feel a reaction in Hawk’s big body. All I could do was wait for some sign. Movement beneath my cheek drew a moan from me and before I knew what I was doing I was rubbing against his hard-on like a cat seeking attention.

The deep rumble of his groan forced me back to reality and I ceased moving, holding my breath. What in hell was I doing? This time when I pulled back he let me. I could barely meet his eyes until he snapped, “Get out.”

I quickly scooted out of the booth, realizing that Hawk was right behind me. Before I could question him, he grabbed my arm and proceeded to jerk me in the direction leading to the back of the bar. I glanced around the bar wildly, but I didn’t see Dane’s men anywhere.

“They left, but they’ll be back.” We entered a dark hallway, and halfway down he stopped us at a door. I expected him to knock, but instead he lifted his leg and kicked the door in, causing the occupants in the room to scream out in fear. “Out!” he snarled.

I barely had time to acknowledge the naked couple before they snatched up their strewn about clothes and rushed past us. As the man passed me I recognized him as one of Hawk’s men. We made eye contact long enough for him to wink at me. Once they cleared the threshold, Hawk pulled me inside and slammed the door behind him.

“Take your clothes off.”

“What?” He had to be kidding.

“Take your clothes off.”

I know that my jaw dropped at his demand. When I realized that he meant it I began to back up, slowly shaking my head. “You’re crazy!” I whispered sharply. Okay, maybe I had removed my shirt in the restroom, but that had been of my own accord, and he’d said “clothes,” as if he meant
everything
.

“Take your fucking clothes off.” So far he hadn’t moved from his spot, yet I’d backed up until my back was against the wall. “Those men knew how to find you, which means there’s a bug on you somewhere.”

I tried to decipher what he was saying, but my brain wouldn’t wrap around the idea that he thought I had a bug on me. He took a menacing step toward me, and that was all I needed to do what he wanted. Strangely, I wasn’t afraid of Hawk, only of what having his hands on me would make me feel. I was attracted to him in a strange way that left me confused. Maybe it was because I knew that he wasn’t attracted to me, and I looked at it as a challenge.

I quickly removed my hoodie and handed it to him, kicking off my shoes at the same time. As Hawk began going over it I unzipped and rolled down my jeans. I quickly began to unbutton my shirt when a memory reminded me of something.

“Just a minute.” I waited for him to look at me. “There’s no way there can be a bug in these clothes because they aren’t mine. I took them from a laundromat.”

He hesitated for only a second. “I want everything.”

Deciding not to argue with him, I finished with the buttons, removed my shirt, and threw it at him. He caught it to his chest and I swear I saw the tiniest curve of his mouth that revealed that he was amused at my irritation. He examined my clothes thoroughly, finding nothing, as I expected. Then he turned those dark eyes on me, running his gaze up and down my body and missing nothing.

Leaving me insanely hot and needy.

“
Everything
,” he demanded. “Or did you borrow your underwear, too?”

No, the underwear I had on was mine, a thong Dane had purchased from Victoria’s Secret, and the only thing that he liked me to wear under my clothes. The way Hawk’s gaze moved over me turned me on when it shouldn’t have. I was no stick figure, my short height gave me curves I’d spent half my adult life hiding, until I’d realized that some men liked meat on their women. The coffee eyes on me now revealed that Hawk was no exception.