Rock Chick 03 Redemption (26 page)

Even so.

“I don’t think it’s that simple,” I told him.

He sighed and turned to me (but, I noted, he stil didn’t touch me). “Roxanne, I like Daisy, hard not to like her. But she’s made her choice. Something happens to Marcus, and she reaches out her hand to ‘the clan’ as you cal it, I expect everyone wil take hold.”

“Including you?” I asked, needing to know the answer to that as much as I needed oxygen.

“Includin’ me.”

I felt something settle in me. It wasn’t in my bel y, my heart or my mind. It was everywhere. It was in my soul.

Hank got up and walked through the dark room and turned off Springsteen in the middle of “
Jungleland
”.

He lay down beside me and again didn’t touch me.

“Whisky?”

“Yeah?”

“Nothing.”

I was stymied; I wanted Hank to touch me. I didn’t want to admit it but there it was.

I’d never touched him. I had but I’d never made the first move.

I lay there some more.

Oh, fuck it.
I thought and then rol ed into him.

My hands went to his chest and my lips went to his col arbone. His arm curled around my waist, Shamus got the hint, jumped off the bed and meandered out of the room.

“Thought you were never gonna do that,” he muttered and I could swear he sounded relieved.

I didn’t answer, I was busy, or at least my mouth was.

I explored his col arbone and neck with my mouth and tongue then I kissed him. He let me taste him, even tease him, al owing me control of the kiss and it was heady stuff.

Then I moved down, slowly, discovering his chest and abs with my hands, mouth, teeth and tongue. The whole time he stroked my hip, bottom and back, but otherwise, he didn’t touch me.

I took my time, enjoying the feel and taste of him and his response, which consisted of the tightening of muscles, low groans (my favorites) and sometimes his fingers would bite into me if I did something he real y liked.

Then I dipped lower, taking him into my hand and then into my mouth.

His hand slid into my hair.

“Fuck,” he said low.

“Fuck,” he said low.

I knew he liked what I was doing, I could tel and it turned me on, so much so I went gung ho, giving him al my best moves and making up new ones. Al of a sudden his hand left my hair, both his hands went under my armpits and he yanked me up onto his body.

Mmm, seemed it was time to get serious.

I sat up, moving to the side, saying, “Let me take off –” but he pul ed me back over him and pushed me up so I was straddling him. His hands went to my underwear and gave them a vicious tug. My hips jerked forward, the material tore and then my panties were gone.

“Whisky,” I said, stunned that he just tore off my underwear (maybe he
was
part caveman, except a real y good-looking one (and without al the hair)) but I had no time to process this. His hands were at my hips and he pushed down just as his hips lifted up and he slammed into me.

It felt great, unbelievably great and I nearly lost track of what I was doing. I bit my lip, control ing my desire to let him take over and bent forward, kissing his neck under his ear and said, “Hank, please. This time let me.” Partly, I did this because I wanted to give him something but partly I did this because it was fucking wel my turn.

His grip loosened at my hips, which I took as his affirmative answer, and I started moving slowly, exploring his neck with my mouth al the while. When it was time to stop playing, when I knew we both wanted more, I pul ed up but didn’t go down, thinking to give him a taste of his own medicine.

In his ear I said, “I want my car back.”

“Sunshine,” he groaned, his hands biting into me.

“Promise me Hank.”

He laid stil and, just when I thought I had him where I wanted him, his hands tightened and he flipped me to my back and took over, pushing in deep and then grinding.

“Whisky! It’s my turn!” I cried, wrapping my arms around him and lifting my hips into his.

“Don’t use sex to manipulate,” he told me.

I stared at him in the dark.

“You do it al the time!” I said.

“I’m good at it,” he quit grinding and started moving. I couldn’t help it, I moved with him. “And I don’t do it with anything that’s important.”

I ignored his arrogance and the fact he was ful of shit.

The night before he’d used it to try to manipulate me into staying. If that wasn’t important, I didn’t know what was.

I decided, instead, to go back to the matter at hand, or at least one of the matters at hand. “I want my car back,” I demanded but it came out kind of breathy.

“Quiet,” he returned.

“I want my car back,” I repeated.

He kissed me, I went dizzy. He kept my mouth busy so I wouldn’t talk and my body busy so, after awhile, I
couldn’t
talk.

Then, I felt it. I twisted my head and tensed, breathing into his ear, “Whisky, I’m going to…” I didn’t finish. He lifted my legs with his hands behind my knees and pounded into me and I lost the ability to speak.

When he was done, he rol ed to the side, then to his back, taking me with him. I lay on top of him for a while, my head on the pil ow next to his, my forehead pressed to his jaw.

Final y I said, “That wasn’t fair.”

“The first time
you
touch
me
, it’s so you can ask me for your car so you can leave me. I didn’t feel much like playin’

fair.”

“Hank.”

He interrupted me. “You were cal in’ me Whisky a few minutes ago when you intended to make me do what you wanted by takin’ me in your mouth.”

I realized then that he was angry and I came up on my elbows.

“Are you angry?” I asked, even though I knew he was.

“You
are
‘She’s the One’
.” I gasped.

“I am
not
‘She’s the One’,” I snapped.

“You’re completely ‘She’s the One’.”

“Am not!” I shouted.

“Please tel me we aren’t havin’ this ridiculous conversation,” he said, sounding exasperated.

“You started it,” I returned.

“I see. We
are
having this ridiculous conversation.” I made a strangled noise.

He rol ed me onto my back and then his weight moved and he reached over me, switching on the light. Then he settled on his side, towering over me and looked at me.

Before he could say anything I said, “I want my car.”

“You aren’t leavin’,” he replied.

“No. I’m not. I just want my car.”

“Then you aren’t gettin’ it until I know you won’t do anything stupid, like leave.”

I scowled at him. “I said I wouldn’t leave, I won’t leave.”

“I hate to say this Sunshine, but I don’t trust you. You think al igators are cute and you got friends who’l drop everything to drive across country to bring you your stuff and that’s because you got a heart bigger than the state of Colorado and what happened today flipped you out. Not, I’m guessin’, what happened to you but what happened to Daisy while she was with you. I give you back your car and you’re gone.”

He was so right.

I
hated
that.

“It’s
my
car.”

“You’re
my
woman and I don’t want you off on your own with Flynn and God knows who lookin’ for you.” My body froze.

“Bil y?”

Hank stared at me and I knew he’d said more than he intended.

Then he muttered, “Fuck.”

I felt fear steal through me.

“Hank, talk to me,” I whispered.

His thigh moved over mine and he pinned me to the bed.

“Roxanne, you’re safe. No one’s gonna harm you,” he

“Roxanne, you’re safe. No one’s gonna harm you,” he said.

“Talk to me,” I said, louder and slightly more hysterical this time.

He sighed. “Got word before I came into the bedroom.

Jimmy got one of those boys to talk. Flynn got away from them.”

Good God.

My body jerked and Hank’s arm went around me, pul ing me into him.

“No one’s gonna harm you,” he repeated.

“Hank, he knows where you live. I have to get out of here.”

“Roxanne, listen to me.”

I started squirming, total y panicked, trying to escape.

“Roxanne, dammit,” he swore, but I didn’t quit struggling.

He dropped to his side and rol ed me into him, wrapping his arms around me, pinning mine to my body and he tossed a heavy thigh over mine. He was so strong, resistance was futile so I stil ed.

“He hurt me,” I told Hank’s neck.

“I know.”

“He’l do it again.”

“No he won’t.”

I lay there breathing heavily more from anxiety than my struggles.

“I’m scared,” I admitted and it took everything I had left to do it.

Hank’s arms and leg tightened. “I know.”

After a few minutes of internal struggle, I relaxed into him After a few minutes of internal struggle, I relaxed into him and he let go, reached out and turned off the light. Then he fel to his back, me partial y on top, partial y in his side, keeping one arm around me.

I tried to keep my mind quiet. Luckily I was exhausted so it worked. I’d think about it tomorrow. Or not at al . I was thinking not at al sounded good.

“I’m not your woman,” I said, drowsy.

“You are,” he returned.

Jeez.

There real y was no shaking this guy.

“I’l die. I’l go with Bil y. I’l do whatever so no one gets hurt,” I promised.

“It won’t come to that,” he gave me a promise in return

“I want my car,” I went on, stubborn.

“We’l talk about it tomorrow night.”

“I’m going to be at the Haunted House tomorrow night.” I heard his head move on the pil ow, probably he was shaking it because he thought I was a total idiot.

“You’re a nut.”

Okay, he was shaking it because he thought I was a nut.

“No I’m not,” I said.

He didn’t answer.

I lay there for a long while. I felt the tension leave his body, his hand now relaxed on my hip and I figured he was asleep.

“I didn’t start touching you to get something out of it, I did it because I wanted to,” I told his sleeping self.

“That’s good to know,” he replied, his voice low and sounding tired but definitely not asleep.

sounding tired but definitely not asleep.

I jerked up on my elbow. “I thought you were asleep!”

“Nope.”

Shit.

I settled back down.

“I real y do think you’re a jerk,” I said, though even I could tel I didn’t mean one word of it.

“For not being asleep?” Now he sounded both tired
and
amused.

“Wel … yeah.”

“I wasn’t asleep when you sang ‘Because the Night’

either.”

Holy cow.

I jerked up on my elbow again. “Please tel me you’re kidding.”

“Nope,” he said again.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

I rol ed away, he rol ed with me, caught me around the waist and pul ed me back into his body.

“Now, I have to leave,” I said.

“Why?”

“It’s embarrassing. My singing sucks.”

“It sounded good to me.”

“That’s because you like me.”

He kissed my neck.

Then he settled behind me and said, “Yeah.”
Chapter 15

My Day with the Boys

I heard Hank’s phone ringing, he muttered an oath and leaned over me to pick up his cel from the nightstand.

“Yeah?” he answered, his voice husky with sleep.

My eyes flickered open, it was stil real y dark.

My eyes shut again and I curled into Hank. Shamus pressed into my back.

“Where?” Hank asked.

He seemed resigned, not tense. Since he wasn’t tense, I figured my world was not about to come crashing down so I didn’t get tense.

Then he said, “Got to take care of somethin’ at home, then I’l be there.” Another pause, then, “Yeah.” Then I heard the beep of him disconnecting the cal .

“Whisky?” I whispered.

There were more beeps. Hank was making a cal .

“Just a minute, sweetheart,” he answered then he talked into the phone. “Jack? Hank. I need to go out and I need protection for Roxie.”

He stopped talking. I got up on my elbow and pul ed my hair out of my face. Shamus gave an enormous doggie groan of protest.

“Fuck,” Hank said then paused. “Yeah. I’l take her there.

Twenty minutes, tops.”

Another beep as he disconnected.

“What’s going on?” I asked, looking at his shadow in the darkness.

He moved, the light came on and I blinked. Shamus jerked to his bel y and surveyed the scene, preparing for al doggie possibilities open to him; early walk, early breakfast or some sort of pets and cuddles.

“There’s been a homicide and it’s connected to a case I’m on,” Hank told me. “I’ve got to go to the scene. I need to take you to Lee’s offices. You can go back to sleep there.

I’l pick you up later.”

I blinked again, but not because the light burned my eyes.

Lee’s offices?

No way in hel .

“I can go to Uncle Tex’s,” I suggested.

He shook his head, pul ed away, got out of bed and walked to the dresser.

“Please don’t argue, I want to be sure you’re safe and Lee’s boys can keep you safe. Get some stuff together. A change of clothes, whatever you need for the morning. We have to leave now.”

Was he serious?

“Now” wasn’t an option for me. He knew I was high maintenance. He’d said twenty minutes, some of that was travel time. I needed to choose an outfit, I needed hair stuff, body stuff, makeup. I needed twenty minutes just for the outfit.