Wounded (Dogs of War MC Book One) (18 page)

He left Tinker and went in search of Donny-O, wanting to talk over a plan to find the missing president and his compatriots. He found him in the kitchen eating a big plate of fettuccine alfredo, with Demon.

“Donny, can I talk to you outside for a minute?”

“Is it about Big Dog, Trainz, and BillCo?”

Red looked between Donny-O and Demon. He really didn’t want to get Demon involved in any of this, he wanted the Loner to leave as soon as possible.

“Look, you might as well go ahead and say whatever it is in front of Demon. It doesn’t matter if they’re out on the run or hurt somewhere, we’re going to need his help to track them,” Donny-O said around a big mouthful of food.

Demon kept his eyes on his plate, not interfering in the conversation either way. That wasn’t normal. “How much did you tell him already?”

The big man looked down at his half eaten pasta, “Well what did you want me to do? We
need
him.”

“I don’t need shit from him, or you obviously. Guess I’ll be doing this on my own,” Red turned to leave before Demon’s voice stopped him.

“Look, I could really give a shit either way. And I know we’ve had our differences in the past but this is Club business and I’m still a member, even if I am a Loner. This is still my family.”

He had a lot of nerve bringing up family. “So what, you just want to ride in here and save the day, earn a few new bones, and ride out again, without a backwards glance? Fuck that man. We don’t need  you and if it were up to me you wouldn’t be wearing that patch right now.”

Demon got up, took his plate, sat it in the sink, and walked towards the door, pausing when he was face to face with Red, “Fine by me
brother,
but remember, when you’re lying there dying, thinking about how your little girl won’t have her Daddy anymore, I offered to help, and you turned it down.”

Red heard the words and they sank like a blade into his chest. He had to put his daughter above everything else, above his hatred, above his pride, above his desire to lash out at the man standing in front of him. Demon was the best tracker and he was absolutely ruthless in battle. There wasn’t another man in the Club who was more dangerous and he was offering his help. He grabbed Demon’s arm before he could walk out the door, “Fine, stay and help. For Morgan.”

Demon shook Red off his arm, “Who did you think I was doing it for?” the words trailing behind him as he left Red standing there.

Red ran his hands through his hair and let out a frustrated sigh. He hoped he wasn’t going to regret this.

“Get a plate of this stuff, it’s delicious. Your girl can really cook man.” Red shot a disgusted look at Donny-O before leaving the kitchen himself. He was already regretting it.

“Sidney! Sidney!” Morgan screamed from the living room, “Is daddy coming home soon?”

“Yes, he should be here any minute.” Sidney said as she put the butter in the microwave and waited watched it melt. They were having homemade macaroni and cheese for dinner with canned string beans. She’d looked up the recipe for the mac and cheese on allrecipies.com and they’d already had it twice but Morgan loved it, and Sidney wasn’t going to complain if someone enjoyed eating something she’d made. She actually found the chore of fixing a meal soothing, making her feel useful and housewifely.

The previous week had been an experience for her. She’d taken off from work, something she hated to do but she couldn’t see dragging a five year old around with her as she collected stool samples and gave shots for nine hours a day. Every day had been a new adventure for her, and every day she’d been worn out by the time that Morgan finally closed her eyes at night.

But that didn’t stop the nights from being spectacular. Red had been staying over all week. Just the thought of having him in her bed the entire time made the muscles low in her pelvis clench. It had been an education.

The first night he’d been there she’d wondered how they were going to handle the sleeping arrangements. She had a spare bedroom for Morgan to sleep in but she didn’t know if he wanted to sleep on the couch or with her. The question had soon been answered when he came out of Morgan’s bedroom, putting her to sleep with the sound of his voice reading a children’s book he’d somehow managed to scrounge up for her.

“She asleep?” Sidney had asked as he sat down on the couch beside her?

“Knocked out. It’s been a long day. For all of us.”

Sidney let out a large yawn, covering her mouth with her hand, “I’m sorry, just mentioning being tired must have triggered it.”

“Now, you’re not too tired are you?” he leaned in and brushed her hair behind her ear, his hand flowing down to grasp the back of her neck, pulling her close.

She inhaled his scent, he’d just taken a shower before they’d eaten supper, and the clean male smell of him moved something inside her. He lowered his head to her neck, the scratchy hair of his beard teasing along with his kisses. The tiredness seemed to lift from her and she was suddenly very much awake.

“Well I guess I’m not
too
tired,” she breathed heavily, her hand running up the muscles in his back, enjoying the feel of him even through his clothes.

“Good,” he scooped her up and she let out a yelp, “because I need you tonight.”

The words warmed her body and soul, she needed him too.

He laid her on the bed, tugging her clothes away until she was naked before him.

“I just can’t get over how beautiful you are,” he whispered in her ear as he lie down beside her and let his fingers play over her exposed flesh.

“Not half as beautiful as you, I want to see you too.”

He obliged, until he was down to nothing but his boxers. She could see he was already ready for her and she eyed him hungrily. “Don’t tease, take it all off.”

His grin, seductive and teasing, sent shivers through her and he hooked his thumbs under the elastic of his waistband and tugged them down, his erection springing free. She pressed her thighs together as the muscles inside her spasmed. She wanted him inside her badly, but first she wanted to do something for him.

He tried to lean down but she put a hand up to stop him, “Stay where you are,” she instructed him. She sat up and scooted down to the edge of the bed, and with a shy smile up at him she grabbed the base of his shaft as she took him in her mouth. His head fell back and he groaned, just the reaction she was hoping for.

She cleared her mind and focused on nothing but him, letting her passion dictate her actions, her tongue played across the ridge of his head, she trailed kisses up and down the length of him, all the while her hand worked in concord, teasing him before she gave him the main course. Looking up at him, he watched her hungrily, his eyes intent on the action taking place, one hand resting on the top of her head, one on her shoulder. The need she could see in him was answered by her own surging desire. Their gazes locked and she took as much as she could of him into her mouth, working back and forth, she felt him restraining, trying not to thrust. He wanted it faster, but she was in charge and she’d take it as slow as she wanted. She slowed down even more and a growl ripped from the back of his throat.

Without warning he grabbed her arms and pushed her back on the bed, her body bouncing slightly with the force. Red spread her legs wide and sank into her. Her body arched in response, she’d been wet and ready, and his hardness pounding inside of her was what she’d been waiting for.

She felt herself tensing, her nipples rubbing against his chest, his mouth devouring hers as he pumped into her. She bucked wildly under him, wanting to feel him cum inside her, wanting him to feel her come undone around him.

He broke their kiss, his hand grasping her hair, pulling but not hurting. The look in his eyes was wild, he was lost in the same world she was. Her mouth opened but no sound escaped, she was exploding from within, her body hugged him to her and she felt him shudder with one last pump, losing himself inside her.

The both were breathing heavy and Sidney felt slightly dazed, the room was spinning slightly, she put a hand up to her forehead and wiped the sweaty hair out of her face.

“That was… intense,” she said.

“That was amazing,” he rolled over onto his side, propping his head up on his elbow. “When you came, the look on your face… “

Sidney blushed, maybe she’d looked silly, “Don’t tease, that’s not nice.”

“I’m not teasing, I’m saying that I’ve never seen anything like it before. It pushed me over the edge.” He rolled on his back, “If I were an artist I’d paint it and call it ‘Woman Released’ and sell it for forty million dollars.”

She laughed, “I probably looked like I was having a stroke.”

“You looked gorgeous and sexy, and… satisfied,” he grinned.

The pillow hit him square in the face, “You look pretty satisfied yourself right now.”

“Oh, believe me, I am,” he took the pillow and propped it behind his head. “In fact, I’m going to fall asleep right here.”

“We’re sideways,” she pointed out.

“Does it really matter? This bed is as big wide as it is long. Why do you need such a big bed anyway.”

“I have a tendency of picking up stray wolves and letting them sleep with me.”

“Well, that’s going to have to stop right now,” his finger brushed her nose, “I’m the only wolf allowed in this bed.”

Sidney didn’t know what to say. Was he saying he wanted this to be a permanent thing? She hadn’t thought that far ahead. She wasn’t sure about anything. How could she be, not only had she practically just met him, the proverbial shit had been hitting the fan the entire time they’d known each other.

The panic must have been plain, “If you want me to be,” he said softly.

“I want you Red, you’ve got to know that. But I hardly even know you, not as a human. I know you like your belly rubbed and to eat the rest of my peanut butter sandwiches while I’m watching four hours of
House of Cards
. But I don’t know
you
.”

“Do you want to?”

She didn’t even hesitate, “Yes, I want to, but I need to you know right now that I have reservations.”

“About the way I live.”

“Yes, I mean since I’ve known you, I’ve been kidnapped, I’ve killed someone, I’ve witnessed a fight to the death, and a rescue mission. That’s a lot to take in.”

Red placed his hand on the side of her face, “Listen, I’m going to be completely honest with you. This is my life, it’s not always this… dangerous, but there’s always something going on. I can’t promise you that shit will never happen but I can promise you that I will always protect you the best that I can.” His golden eyes looked deeply into hers, searching for answers to a question she couldn’t answer quite yet. “I want you,” he continued, “I want  you more than any woman I’ve ever known before. Not just your body, you, all of you.”

She wanted to answer, she wanted to scream ‘YES, I WANT YOU TOO’ but something was holding her back.

“You don’t have to say anything yet, just say you’ll give me a chance,” his heart was in his eyes.

That was something she could do, she wanted to do, “Of course I will, we wouldn’t be here if I felt otherwise.”

“Good, that’s settled then. Nightie night,” he made a show of closing his eyes and rolling over. Trying to lighten the mood she supposed, but she still had some things she needed to talk about.

“Red, there’s something I’ve got to ask you first.”

“Okay,” he rolled back over to her, wary now.

“Morgan’s mother. Where is she?” The look of pain that immediately shot across his face made her want to snatch the words back.

“Sidney, I promise, I’ll tell you about her, but not tonight. Too much has happened and I just… Just not tonight, ok?”

She nodded, she hadn’t intended to cause him pain, not after all he’d been through in the past few weeks. Sidney held close to him and there that’s how she woke up the next morning, cuddled up with a man she barely knew, sleeping sideways on the bed.

Each night had gotten a little more comfortable, a little more normal. They’d tuck Morgan in and make love until they were too exhausted to keep their eyes open any longer. Each time she’d opened her eyes in the morning, she looked at his scruffy face, softer in sleep and wondered that a man like him would ever be interested in a woman like her. But he was, and despite her reservations she’d fallen a little more in love with him each day he’d been there.