Revolution (The Lone Riders MC Series Book 1) (26 page)

She put her other hand back on Coby’s waist, closing her eyes as the sun hit her face, the wind instantly cooling her. And there was a part of her that wished they could just keep on riding. Far away from here. But another part of her – the part that still held on to rationale and reality – knew that could never happen.

Coby pulled the bike over into a lay-by, kicking up more dust as he spun it around, before killing the engine. Pulling off his helmet he pushed a hand through his hair. Lexi did the same, shaking her hair out as she climbed off the bike.

‘Well, you certainly know how to take a girl out into the middle of nowhere,’ she said, turning around to take in the view of open road, and not much else. They were surrounded by something that resembled only wasteland, although Lexi could see
Paradise
out in the distance. They were actually looking down on the town from where they were.

‘It’s quiet. Not that many people come through here, not unless they’re lost. That’s why we got the cabin up there, behind those hills.’

Lexi shielded her eyes from the sun, looking up to where Coby pointed. ‘I didn’t realize the cabin was so far outside of
Paradise
.’

‘Yeah, well, you know how it is. Can’t have everything in one place.’

‘So, why are we here? By the side of the road? Why not go to the cabin, if you want some privacy?’

Coby smiled, turning around so he was facing the back of the bike, but he was still straddling the huge leather seat. ‘Who said anything about wanting privacy?’

She smiled, too, placing her hands on the pillion pad, leaning forward to kiss him, parting his lips with her tongue, silently ordering him to open his mouth wider, moaning quietly as he did just that. ‘Now I know why you wanted me to wear this skirt,’ she whispered, her mouth still resting on his. ‘Which is probably highly unorthodox, I mean, what if I came off the bike, huh? My legs wouldn’t stand a chance.’

He reached out to push her hair back from her face, kissing her a little harder this time. ‘Your legs are gonna be just fine, darlin’. I’m the best ride you’re ever gonna get round here, remember?’

‘Yeah. Ain’t that the truth,’ she groaned, closing her eyes as he slid a hand up under her short denim skirt, finding the edges of her panties, his fingers sliding into the sides, and then pulling away.

‘Take them off.’

‘Is that an order?’ But she was already slowly pushing them down.

‘It’s a request.’

His eyes stayed locked on hers as she stepped out of her panties, crouching down to pick them up, tucking them into the top pocket of his cut.

‘Come here,’ he whispered, pulling her down by her hips so she straddled him.

‘You got something in mind here, soldier?’

He smiled, pulling off his leather gloves and placing them behind him. ‘Always, beautiful.’ He kissed her gently, his mouth moving slowly against hers. ‘Jesus Christ, I’m about to live out one of my favourite fucking fantasies.’

‘Again,’ Lexi whispered, her fingers lightly stroking the back of his neck, her legs hooking around his, keeping her steady. ‘You’re about to live out one of your favourite fantasies, again.’

He smiled, unzipping his jeans. ‘Aye. Again.’

Lexi raised her hips slightly, closing her eyes as he lowered her back down before sliding effortlessly inside her, and all she felt was an overwhelming surge of excitement – the thrill and the danger of being caught fucking by the side of the road probably the biggest turn on she’d ever had. Just like the first time they’d done this, all those years ago. And they hadn’t been caught then, either.

‘Oh, Jesus, you feel so fucking good,’ Coby moaned, his fingers stroking her inner thighs, and Lexi couldn’t help but let out the tiniest of groans as she pushed down on him, his breath warm on her neck, the rough denim of his jeans rubbing against her skin. ‘So, so good.’

‘You are such a bad influence,’ she groaned, gripping his shoulders tighter as he pushed deeper, his hands still on her thighs, his thumb touching her, stroking her, helping those beautiful tingles spread further and faster up her body, her legs already beginning to feel the effect.

He laughed, that deep, incredibly sexy laugh of his and she groaned louder, arching her back slightly, pushing herself down on him again, pulling him in deeper. ‘A bad influence, on a bad, bad girl,’ he whispered, his mouth almost touching hers.

She breathed in deep, her stomach contracting as she felt the wave start to wash over her faster, felt the rhythm speed up. And then it was happening. He was shooting out into her with a force that was breathtaking. She could feel every spasm, every push he gave, and she took it all, needing that lifeline he could give her, wanting every single part of him to be a part of her, too.

‘Fuck!’ he shouted, throwing his head back and laughing. He was done. But she wasn’t, and she arched her back further as he stayed inside of her. ‘Need some help, kid?’ he asked, his eyes now locked on hers.

She nodded, pushing his hair back behind his ears, kissing him slowly, moaning quietly as his fingers started working their magic, touching her, taking her to that point of no return. She let go of him, leaning backwards, her fingers clinging on to the bike, her legs gripping his tighter, and as he swiftly replaced his dick with his fingers she let out a howl of pure pleasure, her thighs opening wider, her inner muscles clutching him tighter as she came in a barrage of cries and screams so loud he had to kiss her to shut her up.

‘Jesus, Lexi, keep it down, sweetheart.’

He slowly pulled out of her and she stretched out, smiling lazily. ‘I love you so much, Coby Walker.’

‘Yeah.’ He grinned, reaching behind him to retrieve his gloves, pulling them back on. ‘Can’t say I blame you there.’

She pushed him gently. ‘Watch it, old man.’

‘Hey, missy. Less of the old man, hmm?’

She leant forward, grabbing hold of his cut, pulling him to her, kissing him deep. ‘If it wasn’t for the fact you’ve got one of the hottest bikes in the compound I probably wouldn’t have bothered opening my legs for you again.’

He raised an eyebrow, an action Lexi found unbelievably sexy.
 
‘Oh, really?’

‘Yeah,’ she whispered, her fingers still holding on to his cut, the leather soft between her fingers. ‘Really… well, that and the fact that the older you get, the sexier you become…’ Her mouth rested on his. ‘So-damn-sexy…’ She let her fingertips trail over his rough face as she kissed him long and slow.

‘I’ll take that as a compliment.’ He smiled, his hand running up her leg, his thumb stroking her inner thigh.

‘Good. Because I really do love you, Coby. All the shit we’ve been through, all the crap that’s still to come, none of it matters. As long as I’ve got you. And Ozzie.’ She pulled him in for one more kiss, the roughness of his beard on her skin familiar and comforting. ‘We
are
gonna be okay, aren’t we?’

‘Our little family is gonna be just fine, baby. I promise you that. Everything I do now, I’m doing it for you, and our boy. I really need you to believe that, Lexi. Okay? Everything I do now, it’s for us.’

She smiled, a not entirely confident smile, but she’d been around this life for far too long to think that anything was guaranteed. ‘We haven’t even lived together, Coby. We stay over at the clubhouse all the time, or you go home to your place and I’m back at mine… but we’re mainly there, at the clubhouse. And we can’t keep doing that when Ozzie’s here. We need to start being a family. Are you really ready for that?’

‘Are you?’

She looked down, watching as her fingers ran the length of his cut, sliding down to touch the denim of his jeans. ‘I have to be.’

‘His family won’t
be
just you and me, Lex. He’s gonna have a whole heap of people there to look after him – to look
out
for him. So we
can
do this. He’s gonna be loved, baby. He is gonna be loved, so much.’

‘I know.’ She smiled again, a slightly more confident smile this time.

‘All you need to know, kid, is that I am doing everything in my power to make sure things get better for us.
Everything
in my power.’

Everything. And even if he wasn’t completely proud of every action he was taking – every action he’d
taken
– he knew he was doing the right thing. The only thing he
could
do now. Times were changing, for everyone. Times were changing…

Twenty-Seven

Charlie Hart stepped out of the taxi, cradling his baby grandson to him, his mass of dark hair covered by a tiny black bandana sporting the Lone Riders colors.

‘Well, kiddo, here we are.
Paradise
. Your new home. The town you’re gonna grow up in.’ He kissed the top of Ozzie’s head, hugging him closer. ‘And it’s a town I haven’t visited in so long.’ Charlie looked up at the compound across the road, most of it in darkness now except for the string of lights hanging from the canopy that lit up the area just outside the clubhouse.

He felt his stomach churn slightly, at the memories being dredged up inside of him. At the prospect of what was about to go down in that compound over the next few days. But it had to be done. Charlie Hart had a long memory. It was time.

‘You’re finally gonna meet your dad, son. And, even though he’s not the man I would have chosen for your mum, he’ll look after you. He’ll look after you both, I have no doubt about that. Because I’m gonna make sure he does.’ Ozzie shifted in his arms, half asleep but aware that something was going on. Charlie kissed him again, rubbing his back. ‘Yeah. You’re gonna be okay here, kiddo. Because your granddad isn’t going back home until everything is just the way he wants it to be.’ He took one more look over at the compound before turning his back on it. ‘Come on. Let’s give them all a bit more time, hmm? Me and you, we’ll go get ourselves something to eat. Won’t do anyone any harm to wait a little bit longer.’

He headed off along the street, pulling his cap down over his eyes, not stopping until he reached a small diner on the corner. Walking inside he smiled over at the waitress, nodding when she mouthed
‘coffee
?’ He’d drank enough of it to drown in over the course of the day, and all the travelling and the hours he’d spent on the road since he’d got here were finally starting to get to him, so Christ knows what it was all doing to his baby grandson. But another cup wouldn’t do any harm. If anything it might recharge his weary batteries. He wasn’t a young man anymore. Sometimes he needed a kick-start.

Swapping Ozzie over to his other arm he walked towards the back of the diner, to a table set away from the window, tucked in a corner. He slipped into the booth, keeping Ozzie cuddled against him.

‘Everything okay?’

Charlie looked up at the man sitting opposite him. ‘Everything’s fine. Me and the little fella, we’ll head over to the compound in a little while. Just want the lad here to have his bottle before we go. It’s been another long day for him.’

The man smiled at Ozzie, who held out his arms, smiling the biggest smile back at him and the man reached over and took him from Charlie, hugging him tight. ‘Hey there, little guy. How you doing, huh?’

The waitress stopped by their table, poured them some coffee, took Charlie’s food order, and happily obliged when Charlie asked her if she’d mind heating up his grandson’s bottle in their microwave. She took Ozzie’s bottle and left them with a friendly smile, aimed mostly at Ozzie. Because what woman could resist a gorgeous baby face? And Ozzie, he sure as hell was gorgeous.

‘Does Coby know the score?’ the man asked, cradling Ozzie in the crook of his arm, the baby quite happily amusing himself with a paper napkin he’d picked up from the table.

Charlie nodded, taking a sip of coffee. ‘He’s up to speed.’

The man kissed the top of Ozzie’s head, receiving a big smile in return. ‘And
Tay
?’

‘He’s got no idea. Coby’s played a blinder.’

‘He’s a good man. Coby. A very lucky man.’

Charlie looked at him. ‘You played your part well, too.’

The man lowered his head, his fingers fanning out on Ozzie’s tiny chest.

Charlie leant forward, clasping his hands together on the table in front of him. ‘You didn’t love her. Not the way Coby did – does. And it might not be what I want for my daughter, but… she can’t escape any of this any more than the rest of us can. She doesn’t really want to walk away because, if she did, she’d be lost. So if she has to live in this world, then I want her to live in it with a man who can protect her and love her and keep her safe…’

‘Lexi can keep herself safe.’

‘She thinks she can. She thinks she can do anything, and that’s because I taught her well. Sure, she can hit out and fight as good as any man I’ve met. She’s tough. But since Ozzie arrived, she’s changed. She’s lost a bit of that tough edge. She’s more vulnerable. And she needs him. She needs Coby. Just as much as he needs her.’

‘And this is really what you want for this chapter?’

‘It’s what needs to happen. Things have to change because this is where my grandson is going to grow up. It’s been a long time coming, but we had to wait until all those pieces fell into place. Until everybody knew what the fuck they were doing with their lives.’

The man looked straight at Charlie. ‘Even after all this time, you’re sure you want to do this?’

Charlie nodded, taking another sip of coffee. ‘For my daughter. For my grandson.’

The man looked down at Ozzie again, watching as he pulled the napkin apart, his concentration totally on the job in hand. And then he raised his little head, a fistful of torn napkin in his hand that he held out to the man, another big, baby smile on his face. ‘Then we do it.’

‘We help
Coby
do it.’

‘We help Coby.’

‘Just like
he
helped
you
, Shane.’

***

‘Jesus Christ!’ Kip sighed, leaning back against the wall, lighting up a cigarette. ‘And you fucking tell us this
now
? Half an hour before Dad’s due to turn up with my goddamn
nephew
?’

Lexi had pulled her brother aside, wanting to talk to him alone. While everyone else got used to everything Tay had just told them – about Shane’s death, about Coby’s visit to
England
; about the real nature of his and Lexi’s relationship – she wanted to talk to her brother alone.

‘I don’t give a fuck about Shane. Not really. I mean, I liked the guy but… what
you’ve
done… You kept my nephew a secret, Lex.’

She leant back against the wall beside him, taking the cigarette from him.

‘I thought you’d given up,’ Kip said, watching as she took a drag, blowing smoke up into the night sky.

‘I have. Once I knew I was pregnant that was it.’ She handed the cigarette back to him. ‘I just needed that one drag.’

‘What a fucking couple of days, Lex.’

‘I know,’ she sighed, stuffing her hands in her pockets, staring straight out ahead of her, into the darkness of the dimly lit compound. ‘And I’m sorry. I really am. I didn’t want any of this to happen, it just… nothing was making sense at the time, Kip. Nothing. Coby was the only one who made me feel anything back then. Everything else was just numb.’

‘Jesus!’ He pushed a hand through his hair, throwing his head back. ‘This is fucking crazy!’ He looked at her, right into her eyes. ‘Is that it now? No more skeletons to come tumbling out of that closet? You told me everything?’

She looked back at him, smiling a small, quick smile before turning her head away from him, looking down at the ground.

She heard him breathe in deeply, exhaling slowly. ‘I guess it’ll be good to see Dad again. Be strange, though. Seeing him over here. But good. I mean, I haven’t seen him in so long.’

‘Too long, Kip.’

They looked at each other. ‘We’ve got to start being a family again, sis. All of us, this whole club, everyone. We’ve all got to start being a proper family.’

‘This is supposed to be a brand new start, Kip. The beginning of a new era.’

He was the first to turn away, taking one long, last drag on his cigarette before he flung it to the ground, stamping down on it with his boot. ‘So much shit, Lexi. You’ve kept so much shit hidden from us.’

‘I made mistakes. But I’m trying to fix them now. We all are.’

He looked at her again. ‘When’s Dad getting here?’

‘He said he’d call when he was on his way.’

Kip reached out and took her hand, an action that made Lexi’s eyes fill with unexpected tears. ‘You okay?’ he whispered, squeezing her hand, which made those tears start to fall slowly down her face.

She nodded, quickly wiping her eyes with the back of her other hand. She didn’t want to do this, didn’t want to fall apart. The last time she’d done that she’d vowed it would never happen again. Lexi Hart didn’t fall apart. She didn’t do that. ‘There was a part of me that didn’t
want
to come back here, Kip.’ Her eyes met her brother’s again, his hand still holding tightly on to hers. ‘Because I knew the crap I’d caused, the pain some people still felt at everything that had gone on. But I
had
to come back.’

‘Because of Coby?’

‘Because of Coby.’

He let go of her hand, slipping an arm around her shoulders, pulling her in against him and she clung tightly on to his waist. ‘I never stopped loving you, Lexi. You’re my sister. I couldn’t do that, I couldn’t stop loving you. I can’t deny that I hated you, for a long, long time. Shit, I’m like Dad in that respect. I bear grudges far longer than I need to. But I never, ever stopped loving you.
 
No matter what I told you.’

‘You told me I was dead to you.’

‘I’ve been a prick, okay?’

She looked up at him, throwing him a smile before she kissed him quickly. ‘Yeah. Not gonna argue with that one.’

‘Bitch!’ He laughed, tickling her waist, making her giggle out loud.

‘Well, there’s a sight I wasn’t expecting to see any time soon. But it sure warms my heart to see it now.’

They both looked over at Angie, who’d just come out of the clubhouse.

‘Listen, Lexi, sweetheart, your daddy’s just called. He’s gonna be on his way over here soon and, he’s only in the diner across the street, so, he won’t be long. You ready for this?’

Lexi let go of Kip, folding her arms across her chest. ‘Where’s Coby?’

Angie nudged her head in the direction of the clubhouse. ‘Inside. He’s talking to Kel and the others.’

‘Is everyone… are they all right? I mean, with everything?’

‘Darlin’, nobody’s all that concerned about Shane. Maybe one or two of them are a little bothered by the secrecy surrounding Coby’s visit to
England
, you know, the lack of a vote, all that kind of stuff. Solo decision making never does go down all that well around here, as your stepfather’s already found out. And of course they’re sad that you felt the need to keep Ozzie from everyone here for so long. We’re your family, honey. So secrets like that cut deep. But they understand.’ She looked at Kip. ‘You doing okay, baby?’

Kip nodded, just as Jesse walked outside.

Angie looked from him to Lexi. ‘You two want a couple of minutes?’

Lexi locked eyes with Jesse. ‘Please.’

‘Your daddy’s on his way, remember? So don’t be too long, okay?’

Jesse took Kip’s place against the wall beside Lexi, waiting until Kip and Angie had disappeared inside before he spoke. ‘A baby, huh?’

‘I’m not going over it again, Jesse. We explained everything in there.’

‘I know but, Jesus, Lex… come on! It’s still a shock. I had no idea all that shit was going down between you and Coby.’

She stared at the ground again, scuffing the heel of her boot on the wall behind her. ‘It’s complicated. But we’re getting there.’

‘You think he’s ready to be a dad?’

‘I wasn’t ready to be a mum, Jesse. But I had to get used to the idea pretty fast.’

It was Jesse’s turn to stare down at the ground. ‘You know, there’s still a part of me that wishes you hadn’t come back here, Lex.’

She felt her heart break listening to those words. Because Jesse really hadn’t deserved any of this crap. She’d hurt him in ways he didn’t even know about, and that pain would never go away. The weight of those lies, the secrets she could never reveal, they would always be with her.

Jesse’s eyes met hers again, a few seconds of silence passing before he spoke again. ‘I only ever wanted you to come back here if you were coming
 
back to
me
.’

‘I’m so sorry, Jesse…’

‘I could have given you everything, Lexi.’

She shook her head, trying so hard to keep those tears she was determined not to cry at bay. ‘No, baby, you couldn’t. We couldn’t have had any of this.’

‘We could. There’s no reason why we couldn’t.’

There were so many reasons. And she had to turn away from him when she saw he had tears in his eyes, too. Hadn’t she caused him enough pain?

‘Come here,’ he whispered, pulling her into his arms, and she clung on to him, remembering how it had once been with this man. And how she’d ruined it all because of something she should never have gone near. That dangerous game she’d started to play. And how that game had been the catalyst for everything that had happened since. ‘I’m always gonna care about you, you got that?’

She looked up at him, kissing him quickly, their lips locked together for what was probably a little longer than they should have been. But it felt like a proper end to what they’d once had – a finality. That line had been drawn under their cracked and confused relationship, giving them both the permission they needed to finally move on. ‘Ditto.’ She smiled, hugging him once more, careful not to aggravate his still extremely painful shoulder.