Taming Crow (Hells Saints Motorcycle Club) (9 page)

She was still looking at him like she wasn’t buying it. Then Crow remembered something the lawyer had told him.

“I’ve been meaning to take a look up in the attic too. I want to make sure that there are no bee hives or wasp nests…that shit loves to make a home in attics.”

“Jett's allergic to bees. I've never even considered hidden nests. That would be bad.” Melissa frowned, and a nervous shiver coursed through her body.

“Yeah. Good to check that out,” Crow said.

“Okay. You’re right. I’ll take you through the house.” She pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders and turned to lead the way.

“Gonna be looking in the basement and attic first. No sense exposing you to all that dust and mold and bat shit.” Crow’s eyes swept the length of her.

“Bat shit?” Melissa shuddered.

“You never know,” Crow shrugged.

“Go take a shower and get dressed. We’re going out after I make a list.”

“Going out? List?”

“The fuck?!” Crow said and looked around the room as if confused.

“What?” Melissa jumped.

“I’m gonna have to find out where that echo is coming from too.” Crow craned his neck in exaggeration.

Melissa looked at him for a minute. Then a small smile lifted the corners of her mouth and, even though it did not quite reach her eyes, Crow felt rewarded.

“I swear I do not do that with anyone else,” she said.

Crow liked the thought of Melissa doing something with him that she did not do with anyone else. As a matter of fact, he had plans for just that—him doing things to Melissa that made those whiskey colored eyes go wide in surprise at the things she did with him and no one else.

“Go change,” he commanded. His hands gripped her waist, spun her around and gave her a small shove forward. “Don’t have all damn day.”

Melissa tensed, but let herself be moved. She looked back at Crow one last time before heading up the stairs.

“You good with the bike?” he called out to her.

“The bike?” When she turned to look at him he saw the tiniest measure of excitement in her eyes. Then disappointment followed. “It’s raining. It’s supposed to rain all day,” she sighed.

“Sun broke out a few minutes ago,” Crow moved over to the window.

Melissa walked over to the glass pane and stood next to him.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Did
you
do that?”

Crow recognized the light teasing tone he had heard Melissa use with Jett. But this was different. Huskier. Warmer. And edgy with something that Crow wanted to explore. But before he had a chance to respond to her, Melissa smiled at him.

Really laid one on him.

A full-on bright, beautiful, nothing-held-back smile.

And his world stopped.

Just. Like. That.

And that smile made Crow feel like he
had
made the sun shine just for her. It made him feel like he alone had the power to push away the clouds, stop the rain and bring out the light.

Calm your ass down
, Crow told his dick as he watched not-so-mousy Melissa go upstairs to change.

“Did you do that?
”

Melissa could not believe she had said that to him. Now all alone in the bathroom she shook her head at herself in reproach.

“What is wrong with you? Acting like a teenage girl!
”
Melissa scolded her reflection in the mirror.

“Was not!
”
The reflection pouted back.

Melissa glared back at her image before turning on the shower.

She stood under the steaming spray of water and tried to figure out what the hell had just happened.

One minute she was sipping tea in her living room and crying over her wedding video. And the next minute she was
flirting
…oh yeah… that was the right word…
flirting
with Crow Mathison.

She should never have let him in.

Bad move
, she scolded herself again even as she decided to take the extra time and pour on the deep conditioner that would leave her hair shiny and soft.

Each anniversary since Jessie's death Melissa had felt an obligation to play that damn wedding video over and over again. And every year it got harder to look back and see how full of promise and happiness their marriage had seemed destined to be. She got no pleasure from looking at it now. Melissa knew that she watched the video as an act of penance. The knock at the door had sent a sense of relief coursing through her body.

Until she had answered it.

And then there he was again.

Crow Mathison.

The very man who seemed to take perverse pleasure in continually invading her space, messing with her plans and issuing challenge after challenge to her fragile peace of mind. She wasn’t sure why she had finally caved. Maybe it was because Crow never seemed anything but fearless around her. He was the only person she had met since Jesse died who did not dance around her widow status.

Or maybe it wasn’t him at all.

Maybe she was just tired of being sad all the time. That thought brought a measure of comfort and reassurance to her mind.

Just sick of the sadness.

Liar
, her traitorous body shouted at her as her nipples hardened under the warm spray of water. Something deep inside of her clenched and moistened at the thought of how Crow had touched her. Her heartbeat pounded and throbbed through her. Just the thought of him downstairs waiting for her made Melissa dizzy with the feeling of being poised on the edge of a cliff with nothing but wind below.

What was she doing?

The urge to turn off the shower and jump under the covers came over Melissa in a strong wave. But she didn't run and hide. Instead, she turned the shower dial away from the gentle stream of perfectly heated warm water to a full winter storm blast to shock some sense into herself. But the freezing water only served to heighten her senses. And her excitement.

Spending time alone with Crow today was a mistake she knew she shouldn't be looking forward to making. But it had been years since she had been on a bike. Jesse had forbidden her to ride with her dad while he was away, saying that it was her responsibility to keep herself safe for Jett's sake. Even then, Melissa had felt a tinge of resentment at his words.

It hadn't seemed fair. Jesse had been out risking life and limb signing up for tour after tour flying the not-so-friendly skies while Melissa could not even accept a Sunday afternoon ride from her dad while her grandpa watched Jett. But she had understood it too. It was painfully clear to her that Jesse could not be away doing what he needed to do and be worried about his family at home.

But still he had forbidden it.

Jesse had used those archaic words. When her father found out that Jesse was issuing decrees against her very freedom (her dad's words not hers,) he had gone ballistic. The memories of how that had added to the already strained marriage tied her stomach in knots. But now wasn’t the time to think about that.

Because she was going shopping.

What the hell could she contribute to a shopping trip for lumber and tools and stuff?

And more importantly, what was she going to wear?

Melissa dried herself off and ran to the window hoping that the sunshine was still holding out.

It was.

She hurried into her bedroom and automatically pulled out the dresser drawer that held her T-shirts. She looked at them, and they looked dismally back at her. Crow's insulting words came back to haunt her.

Those ratty, dark, depressing T-shirts.

Melissa slammed the drawer shut and reached under the bed for the box of clothes she had put away. The ones that she had lost interest in wearing. The fitted jeans, the pretty shirts in soft pastels, the lacy tanks, the deep scoop-necked sweaters in beautiful jewel tones.

She quickly rifled through them and discarded one after another as memories threatened to creep up and rob her of the pleasure of this day. She held up a cute pink sweater that had once been a favorite. The last time she had worn it, she had renewed at the DMV. Not too soon after that her husband had been killed. She put it aside and opted for a soft cotton sweater in a shade of purple so dark it almost looked black.

The neckline was low enough just to show a hint of cleavage, and thin strands of silver and tiny specks of gold glimmered throughout the fabric. The new-at-the-time jeans didn’t fit as snugly anymore, but they had pretty stitching around the hem. Melissa cut off the tags and pulled them on.

Her hair was still damp, and she towel-dried it briskly again. It fell in soft ringlets over her like a crazy halo. If she left it loose, it would be a mass of tangles after the ride, so she pulled it to the side and braided it.

Then Melissa rummaged through another cardboard box and exchanged her flip flops for a pair of short leather biker boots that she had almost forgotten she had. Her dad had bought them for her one Christmas. Jesse had been home for the holidays that year and had looked on disapprovingly, but she had worn them regardless. Not on a bike maybe, but she had worn them.

When she was all dressed, Melissa stood in front of the mirror only to see that her eyes were still slightly red from the crying jag. Maybe just a sweep of mascara and a touch of eyeliner would help.

Yeah. That looked better. Applying just a little tinted lip gloss would keep her lips from chapping in the wind, wouldn't it? Then because her ears stood out with her hair pulled back and braided Melissa decided to add a pair of small hoops. She took one long last look at herself in the mirror and smiled slightly at her reflection. It had been a long time since she had looked at herself with a critical eye, and she was surprised to find that she liked what she saw. She was almost out the door before she remembered to slip the long chain back over her neck. The ring felt cold against her shower-warmed skin and Melissa shivered at the contact for a moment before she headed out towards the sun.

At the kitchen counter Crow scribbled something on a piece of paper. The clicking of the heels of Melissa's boots caused him to glance up. Crow's eyes flickered over her and lingered on the soft shine in her hair. The metallic threads in her sweater shimmered as she walked towards him and he had to stop himself from pulling her into his arms. “Got to go next door and grab a couple of things, then we’re good to go. Jett coming home at three-thirty?” he asked.

Melissa hesitated just a fraction before she answered.

“No. He has a play date with a classmate after school and will be staying there for supper. They’re going to bring him home about seven.”

Crow bit back a wolfish grin.

Perfect.

“You ready?”

He put a casual hand on the small of Melissa's back and led her across the driveway to his house. Crow felt her tense through the soft sweater, but after a moment she began to relax and accept the familiarity. When he pressed a little harder to guide her around a small puddle, Crow felt Melissa move in the direction he steered her in, and smiled inwardly. As they crossed the threshold into his house, he wondered what she would think of the changes he had made. Then Crow realized that Melissa had never been inside and he found that he liked the idea that the only version of the house she would see was this one.

And
this
house was all his.

“Watch your step,” he grabbed her hand and pulled her just a little too hard over the pile of lumber sitting in the middle of the floor. Melissa stumbled hard against him and his hands fell on the sides of her soft breasts before she righted herself. She blushed furiously. “You did that on purpose.”

“Of course I did. You looked like you were going to fall and I caught you. You’re welcome.” Crow gave her a lazy, dangerous smile.

“And you couldn’t do that without copping a feel? You just cannot stop yourself even for one day from …oh, never mind!”

She huffed and turned to go.

Crow reached for her, but pulled her back more gently this time. When he felt a shiver go through her, he knew. There was no getting around it. Whether she wanted it to happen or not, Melissa definitely got off when Crow touched her.

But he knew she was not ready to admit that to herself…yet.

Disappointment showed sharply in Melissa’s face when she looked at him. Before she closed up again.

Shit.

It was obvious to Crow that Melissa had been looking forward to the day ahead. And she had made an effort. The hair and the makeup and the new outfit did not escape his notice. His dick was leading him on that same merry chase. Again. And now the hard-won truce between them was almost broken.

“Okay, you’re right. I promise to cut out the
copping a feel
shit.” He winked at her.

Melissa looked uncertain and shook her head at him. She turned to leave, but just then the sun broke through a cloud, creating a kaleidoscope of color on the wall in front of her.

“Oh! Look at that. Where is it coming from?” Awe filled her voice.

“The sun is catching off the leaded glass. I put in some new panes, so when the light hits it at the right angle it does that.” Crow’s voice filled with pride

“You thought of that? It’s such a beautiful effect. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. I used to wonder what it looked like in here—peeking through the windows doesn’t show you much.”

“Come here. I drew up some new blueprints,” he said to take advantage of her momentary distraction.

“You know how to do that?” Melissa hesitated, but moved towards him.

“Yeah. Turns out I'm not just a pretty face,” Crow grinned. He got busy unrolling the blueprints.

“Wow. Impressive! I mean they look complicated, intricate, but I don’t really know what I’m looking at,” she said with honesty.

Crow's broad hand moved over the blueprint and smoothed out the wrinkles. He explained his vision for the house and how the walls he had taken down would give it more natural light and lots of open space. As Melissa listened carefully and asked thoughtful questions, for a while all the tension between them disappeared and they became just two people talking.

“So what do you think?” Crow asked finally.

Melissa hesitated and leaned forward one more time to peruse the plans, then stepped back and looked around.

“I like it. I especially love the openness of it—how one area leads into another,” she said. Then Melissa took a step back and surprised Crow by giving one more observation. “I like that there are no dark corners. No walls separating one life from another.”

Crow turned to look at Melissa then. She was so goddamn pretty standing there. The rays of filtered sunlight set fire to the honey-colored streaks in her hair and her eyes lit up with traces of amber and gold.

She smelled damn good too.

They had been shoulder to shoulder for the past twenty minutes and in that time he had found it harder and harder to focus. He felt that familiar tightening in his crotch and thanked God that the table hid his reaction to her from view.

Because so far… so fucking good.

Crow grabbed the keys to the Harley and two helmets. When they got to the bike, Crow began to give Melissa some rudimentary rules on passenger safety. He almost choked on his own spit when she put up her hand in a halt motion, reached for the helmet and said, “I got this.”

And she did.

Crow took it easy on the road, but found himself surprised by the way Melissa instinctively seemed to shift and lean in. When she put her arms around him and pressed herself against his back, she hung on just tight enough. Not the frantic tight clutch of a new rider and not the flirtatious
I got my tits plastered across your back
grip either. Her being behind him felt comfortable and right. Because he could never ever leave well enough alone where she was concerned, he took some unnecessarily sharp corners just to rattle her a little. When Melissa loosened her grip on Crow's waist just long enough to give him a small punch to the gut, he smiled inwardly.

The girl had some balls.

Not much surprised Crow about people anymore, yet Melissa seemed to be revealing a little more of herself with every small encounter. Every so often the wind would send the scent of something subtle and flowery his way and when it did he rode just a little harder causing his passenger to tighten her arms around him. It was a perfect day for riding and eventually he felt Melissa's body take in a deep breath and relax behind him. When he caught her face in his mirror, there was a shine in her eyes that he hadn't remembered seeing before.

He had put that look on her face.

With great reluctance, Crow pulled into the parking lot. Last thing he felt like doing was being cooped up for even a minute on a day like today picking materials. When he turned to Melissa and saw the windblown hair, the light in her eyes and the pink in her cheeks, he decided that this was going to be one quick damn shopping trip.

“Crow? That was really fun. Thanks.” Melissa’s voice broke into his thoughts.

“You’ve ridden before.” Crow observed.

“Yeah. My dad and grandpa have bikes. My dad's a Harley guy. But my grandpa is a die-hard Indian man. Family legend has it that my great-great grandpa placed in the Isle of Man competition in 1911 with the bike my grandpa has crated up in his barn. My dad says it's all bullshit, but my grandpa swears it's true.”

“How about you?” he asked.

“Me?” Melissa unhooked the helmet strap.

“Harley or Indian?”

She lifted the helmet off her head, shook out her hair and handed it to him.

“I don’t know. I never really thought about it. Being from Massachusetts, I have an allegiance to the whole Indian thing. Hard to argue with a ride like this, though.” Melissa ran her hand over the sleek leather seat of Crow’s bike.

Crow smiled slightly and led them inside.

The warehouse was a huge place. It actually consisted of two large separate sections. Home improvement and furnishings. He guided her to the paint section and Melissa seemed surprised when Crow had her pick out some new paint for the living room and bedrooms and flooring for the kitchen. Once given the chance to voice them, Melissa had some pretty strong opinions about colors and wood grain and quality vs. cost.

And… everything else.

Crow found again that he enjoyed himself. He liked the animated way Melissa used her hands when trying to make a point and the way she tilted her head when something caught her attention. He liked drawing her out. He almost lost it when she looked at the receipt before they left the counter and told the clerk that he forgot to waive the delivery fee as advertised.

Melissa was still lecturing Crow about being more careful to check his receipt when he steered her to the furniture section of the store.

“What are we doing here?” Melissa asked him.

“I need some stuff in the house. Mattress, table, place to sit. You know shit like that.” Crow answered without looking up from the pamphlet he had in his hand.

Melissa hesitated. Helping pick out a couple of gallons of a paint and wood grain was one thing. But helping him choose furnishings was another matter. It seemed too intimate.

“Okay. Where would you like to start?” Melissa asked, quelling her concern for the moment.

“Where I always like to start…in the bedroom.” Crow’s eyes twinkled a challenge.

“Really? The bedroom huh? I took you as more of a kitchen floor or dining room table kind of guy.
”

“Wise ass,” Crow muttered and led her off towards the bedding section.

Melissa hid a grin and went along with him willingly. In the last few hours, to her surprise, she had discovered that she really liked being around him. Melissa got the severe badass biker vibe that Crow had going on, but sometimes he couldn’t hide the slight look of shock that crossed his face when she messed with him. She found that she got a perverse sense of enjoyment out of that particular look.

Now Melissa had to double her steps to keep up with Crow's long strides until they got to the bedding section. Then she put her hands on her hips and looked at the vast array of mattress choices lining the showroom.

“King, queen or full?” She adopted a businesslike tone.

“King.”

“Firm or soft?” She reached down and bounced her hand into the mattress.

“Guess.” Crow lifted a brow at her.

Melissa let her eyes trail slowly over him stopping pointedly at his crotch.

“Soft.” she answered with dancing eyes.

“Guess again,” Crow growled.

Melissa let out a small laugh as he huffed and pulled her along with him.

Together they navigated the bedroom section, but Melissa held back and would voice no opinion on Crow's choice of furnishings. He didn't press her about it, though, and when the sales person came over he asked no questions just pointed and grunted at what he wanted. He chose a high-end king size mattress, a dark hardwood platform bed and a heavy triple dresser to match.

Crow moved purposefully over to the kitchen furniture. Instead of chairs he chose two long benches to go with a table. When he added a leather couch to the order, Melissa felt sure that the older woman who was writing up the bill and mentally calculating her commission almost had an orgasm on the spot.

Then Crow surprised Melissa by heading off towards the children’s furnishing section.

He stood in the archway looking around. It never occurred to her that Crow and his ex might have a child together. Melissa realized then that she really knew nothing much about him. She had never taken the time to consider his marriage to Jaci.

“You have children?” Melissa blushed at the way her voice had cracked over the word
children
.

Crow didn’t answer right away. Melissa felt the heat rise to her face and redden her ears.

“Why do you sound so surprised?” He didn't look at her, but continued to peruse the room.

Melissa was taken aback. What could she say? That the man he was and the woman she had met in Patrick Murphy’s office looked about as far as you could get from a match made in heaven? Should she also add that the thought of Crow and Jaci making a baby together made her feel sick for reasons that she really didn’t want to explore? And then there was the whole opposites-attract thing.

Jaci hadn’t even wanted to shake Melissa’s middle-class hand, yet she had married a member of the Hells Saints MC. How could that make for a healthy home environment to raise a child in? Jaci and Crow were both beautiful, though. There was that. Beautiful, compelling and alluring in a way Melissa could never hope to be…

Crow cleared his throat.

“Do I sound surprised? I guess I just don’t…” Her voice trailed off.

“Don’t what? Think I’m the father type?” Crow finished for her with a hint of anger in his voice.

“No,” Melissa said.

“No?” Crow snorted and his eyes darkened.

“I mean no, that’s not it. That’s not what I was thinking. I was going to say that I don’t remember you mentioning children.”