Trouble: Crooked Souls MC (6 page)

If a person was going to be as determined to get themselves into trouble as she was, the least she could do would be to leave her address unlisted. It was like she was asking for it.

And she was about to get it from me. I took off as fast as I could for her house.

Kat

As soon as I got home, I went straight upstairs to a hot shower. I had to get the feel of that man’s hands off my body. It felt like my clothes carried his stench, though that was probably my imagination. The mix of smoke, booze and sweat were stuck in my head. I smelled him all over me, and washed my hair twice to get rid of him.

Once I’d finished scrubbing my skin as hard as I could without taking it off, I wiped the steam off the bathroom mirror with a towel. Who was that haunted girl? The one with the dark circles under her eyes, who looked so jumpy and full of dread? That couldn’t be me. I looked as though I’d aged ten years in two days.

What the hell was I doing? I stared at my reflection, questioning everything that had happened. If I wasn’t careful, I’d end up in trouble just like Sabrina was. And what help would I be to her then? Getting myself killed wouldn’t bring her home. I had to be more careful.

As terrified as I was, I could see that quitting wasn’t an option. I’d told that man—whoever he was—that I would leave the club alone. At the time, I would have told him anything he wanted to hear. I might even have believed it at the moment, when I was terrified. Now that the moment was over, and I was thinking more clearly, it was obvious I was closer than ever to finding out what happened to my sister. Why else would I have a knife held to my throat? The guy had threatened to
kill
me. He was scared.

But so was I. I knew I couldn’t cross him again, because next time he’d go through with killing me, or at least seriously hurting me. I would be easier if I knew who he was. Maybe I could ask Gabriel. If I described him, he might know who threatened me. That would mean admitting I’d been to the bar, though, when he specifically told me to stay away. That idea was out. Besides, since when was I considering Gabriel my protector? What a joke. He was easily the most dangerous out of all of them.

I watched as my eyes filled with tears. I wouldn’t give up. I couldn’t. Sabrina needed me. Why couldn’t she have listened to me when I begged her to be smart and stay away from the club?

I thought about all the little firsts she’d experienced, the ones I’d been lucky enough to witness. Her first steps. Her first words. I taught her to ride a bike. I remembered the way my heart was in my throat when I first let go of her. She’d gotten all the way to the end of the block before she realized she was alone. Then, of course, she fell. I remembered bandaging her knee later on.

Her first day of school. I walked her there, since Mom was at work. I was late for school, but by then the teachers didn’t seem to pay attention. They all knew the score. I was raising a kid.

The first boyfriend. Oh, that had almost killed me. She was only twelve, and it was all innocent enough, even though I knew twelve-year-olds could be pretty sexually savvy, even more than they were when I was that age. I’d read up on the trends for kids her age, like the color-coded sex bracelets—she wasn’t allowed to have them, not even the innocent ones—and the cringe-worthy trend of getting drunk by soaking tampons in booze so the smell didn’t show on the breath. It was a real eye-opener, but I’d done my best to keep her on the straight and narrow by staying ahead of things like that.

Then came the first heartbreak. That was just the worst. I was still young enough for my own memories of heartbreak to be fresh. I remembered struggling not to cry right along with her.

Somebody was trying to take her away from me. I couldn’t step aside and let them get away with it, even if it put me in danger.

I was startled by the sound of the doorbell, jumping and shrieking a little. My heart took off at a gallop. He’d followed me here. I should have known he wasn’t going to let me go so easily. He’d only waited for me to relax so that I wouldn’t be on my guard. Now he was going to attack me where nobody could disturb us this time.

I looked around for a weapon, but I was in the bathroom, so there wasn’t much to choose from. My eyes fell on a curling iron, the hair dryer. Hairspray? Would it work like mace?

I picked up my phone instead, creeping down the stairs with it. The doorbell sounded again, then again. Whoever was there was in a hurry.

“I’m calling 9-1-1!” I shouted, digging my nails into the palm of my free hand to keep my voice from sounding scared. I dialed the number, my thumb poised over the “Call” button. “I mean it! I’m doing it right now so you’d better leave!”

“Kat, it’s me. Open the door.” Gabriel. I breathed a sigh of relief, then thought twice. Was he any better than the alternative? I didn’t know if I could trust him any more than the rest of the club. I had to give this some thought. Maybe he’d found out I’d been there earlier, and he came here to punish me. He sounded pretty angry. I’d gone too far this time.

Then I remembered how he’d kissed me. He couldn’t want to hurt me, not if he kissed me the way he had. If he wanted to, he could have hurt me in my car, or taken me to his house to do it. He was here because he wanted me to be safe. I had to believe that.

I opened the door. I wanted to know how he found me—was it really that easy? Could my friend with the knife find me, too?

Before I could say a word, he pushed his way into the house and shut the door. There went my heart again, faster than ever. He was enraged, his face bright red. I shrank against the wall, instantly regretting letting him in but knowing he could easily have broken the door down if he felt like it. He leaned in, one hand on either side of my head.

“What the fuck were you doing at the bar?” He was close to me, nearly screaming in my face. “Didn’t I warn you? Do you think this is some kind of game?”

“No! I don’t!” I nearly peed myself, I was so terrified. I was shaking, flinching away from his fury. Just like the guy at the bar, he meant business.

“Then why can’t you listen? Why do you keep coming back for more when I’ve done everything I could to warn you?” He punched the wall, nowhere near my head, but it was still enough to make me scream softly, almost curling up in a ball. I felt the wall shake behind me.

“Because I have to find Sabrina.” I was whimpering, my hands over my face. Like a wounded animal. The defiant part of me, the one that kept getting me into trouble, screamed at me to stop acting so whipped. I was too scared to listen. I was afraid he’d hit me next if I didn’t stay still and quiet.

“But don’t you get it? You’re gonna get yourself killed! This isn’t a fucking game, Kat!” He was roaring, and when I dared to sneak a glance at him I saw how the way his eyes were glaring at me. There were beads of sweat on his forehead. I’d heard about his temper, hadn’t I?

He moved away, pushing off the wall where he had me trapped. I watched as he paced the room, reminding me of a jungle cat. He was just as dangerous as one, for sure. I was too afraid to speak, or to even move a muscle. I was afraid of what might happen if I did. The slightest thing might set him off.

A vision flashed in front of me. My mom, in the corner, on the floor. One of her “boyfriends” standing over her, screaming at her. I took Sabrina and ran up to my room with her, locking the door. We had huddled together on my bed for a long time. I still didn’t know how that situation played out for Mom. I’d been singing to Sabrina, the radio turned up, my voice drowning out what was happening downstairs.

Now I thought about my sister. Had that been her, just before she vanished? Curled up in a corner on the floor, with some thug screaming down at her?

“How can I get through to you?” he growled, glancing at me. “How can I make you understand the shit you’re stirring up? What will it take for you to see how serious this is? What do I have to do?”

“Why won’t you help me?” I asked, still whimpering. “Why are you just telling me to stop when I told you already what it means to me that I find my sister? I don’t understand.”

“You’re right. You don’t understand. That’s why it’s best for you to go away and stay away.”

“I can’t!” I was crying, desperate. Why didn’t anyone want to listen to me?

“Then you’re gonna get yourself killed, girl. That’s all there is to it.”

“Then I get killed! But I don’t have a choice!” I had to make him see. He seemed like a reasonable enough person—maybe even more intelligent than the ones he rode with.

“You’re wrong! You have a choice. Make the right choice before it’s too late.”

“I don’t get it. You’re supposed to be the leader. Why can’t you tell your guys to lay off, or tell them to cooperate with me?”

“It doesn’t work that way!” He roared again. The defiant voice in my head told me he sounded scared. But I was still too scared, myself, to pay attention.

“I told you,” I said, trying to take another route, “that this is just me. You know? I’m the only one who cares. The police don’t anymore, thanks to your pack of criminal deadbeats. They let you do whatever the fuck you want, even if it means killing a girl. What do they care? As long as you’re not bothering them. Right?” He wouldn’t answer. I knew I was right.

Then my fear started to turn to anger. He wasn’t the only one with a temper.

“Why is it okay for you guys to threaten me like this? Why can’t you assholes control yourselves? Huh?” I walked over to him, getting in his face just like he’d done to me, except I was a foot shorter than he was.

“You have no idea,” he said. “None.”

“I do! I understand you’re a bunch of criminals who don’t give a shit about good people like Sabrina and me!”

“That’s life,” he said.

“But it’s not okay! Instead of you assholes not being fucking criminals who threaten and hurt people, I’m the one who’s supposed just to roll over and forget my sister ever existed!
That’s not going to happen!
” I was screaming, not caring who heard. Maybe one of the neighbors would call the cops. Good. Let them find this creep here. I’d tell them how he’d threatened me. Once they knew it was all because I was poking a stick in the club’s hornet’s nest, maybe they would do something to find Sabrina.

“Just. Stay. Out. Of our business.” He was completely calm, flat. Was I dreaming? Or hallucinating? How could he not care?

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I didn’t think before I acted, just lashing out. I shoved him. Granted, it was a lot like shoving a brick wall for all the effect I had. He stayed completely still, but it made me feel better so I did it again, then shouted, “How can you be so calm about this? Somebody in your club has to do with this! I know it! I know you do, too! How can you not care?” I pushed again and again against him as I vented, the words pouring out of my mouth. All of my rage and fear and heartbreak came out, and I pushed him over and over because I needed to hit something and he was the closest person to me. I needed him to react somehow.

But he didn’t. He stood still, looking at the wall. I might as well have been screaming at myself.

I looked around the room, my eyes finding a framed photo of Sabrina and me on one of the end tables. It was one of my favorites. She had just graduated high school a few minutes before the shot was snapped, and was wearing her cap and gown and the honors stole around her neck. I’d worked my ass off to keep her in school and make sure she had the little things she needed. She’d been babysitting for years, but I wanted that money to go toward school and a car. I made sure she had money for fun with friends, shopping, a prom dress. All those things that made school more than just a place to go every day.

“See this?” I held the framed photo up to Gabriel’s face. “This is my sister. And that’s me, next to her. I don’t know who you think you knew, but this? This is her. The real Sabrina. She’s the girl I put through school, even when it meant I couldn’t have a social life because I was working so hard. She’s the person I’ve spent my whole fucking life trying to set a good example for. She’s the only person I have in the world and somebody from your club took her from me. I know it.”

He wouldn’t look at the picture, turning his eyes away.

“Why won’t you look? Huh?” I kept following his eyes, holding the picture in front of him no matter where he looked. “Is it because you know? You know what happened to her?” I looked at the photo. We had both been smiling so wide. It was one of the best days of my life.

“My Sabrina…” I burst into tears all over again. Just when I was sure there were no more tears inside me, that they had all dried up, they always started all over again. I held the frame to my chest, crying over it. I wished I was holding her, not just her picture. The further I went with trying to find her, the less likely it seemed that would ever happen.

It had always been Sabrina and me. Just like I was the only one who could raise her, I was the only one who could bring her home. Nobody else cared.

Gabriel

I let her get it out of her system. She had pushed and shoved, punched me, screamed. I knew she was exhausting herself, but I didn’t feel a thing. She was like a little girl, so small and weak.

It wasn’t that I liked seeing her this way. I wasn’t getting a sick pleasure from it the way I got the feeling she thought I was. It’s just that there was nothing I could do. I felt for her. But I wasn’t kidding when I said she had no idea how deep this went.

Now she was holding the picture of her and Sabrina against her chest, crying over it. This was even worse than her anger. The anger I could deal with. This? I was never any good at watching a woman cry.

“Calm down,” I said, putting my arms around her. It was awkward, but I did what I could. “Don’t cry.”

“I can’t help it.” She was sobbing. Her whole body was shaking. For such a tiny person she could cry awfully hard.

“Please. I’m not gonna hurt you. I’m trying to help you. You don’t have to cry like this,” I said.

“I do, though!” She pulled away from me to look up into my face. She practically had to tilt her head all the way back on her neck to do it. “I was so scared earlier. I still am.”

So she was gonna tell me what happened at the bar. “What did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything!” She was trying to catch her breath, so I gave her a chance.

I looked around the room for tissues and steered her to them. She sat down, blowing her nose, wiping her eyes. She looked so hurt and scared. I stood over her, noticing again how different we were. But for all her littleness, she had a lot of strength inside her. That sort of true strength wasn’t something I saw all the time.

I sat down next to her once she was a little quieter. “What happened tonight?”

She sniffled. “So I went to the bar, which you know.”

“Yeah.” I was still pretty pissed over that.

“And when I was there…there was a guy who I hadn’t seen before. I mean, not like I’d be able to pick any of you out of a lineup if I tried.” She shot a look at me, her eyes were wide. Like she’d said something she knew she shouldn’t.

I waved my hand. “Whatever. I know what you meant.”

She nodded. “So this guy was watching me, and he waited outside and pulled me around to the side of the building. He pushed me up against the wall…” She started crying again, and covered her face with her hands.

“What did he do to you?” I tried not to sound too angry, because I didn’t want her to think it was her I was mad at. She was already upset enough.

One of her hands moved down to her throat. “A knife. Against my throat.”

“Are you fucking serious?” This was news to me. My blood pressure went through the roof. Who would go that far? Just about any of them, really. If they felt threatened enough. They didn’t care if the person they were holding a knife to was a man or a woman. I had never felt that way.

She nodded. “I was so scared. He said he’d kill me.”

“Fuck, Kat! Do you understand now? You’re in serious trouble. You have to stay away.” I was surer than ever that she was on very thin ice. I wouldn’t hurt her, but I couldn’t guarantee none of my guys would. Some of them were really bad news when another person pushed them too far. Like animals when they’re cornered. I’d seen gentle dogs go insane and violent when they were cornered. And these men weren’t gentle to begin with.

“How?” She was crying just as hard as before. “I’m so scared, but I can’t! I love my sister too much! I’m so afraid she’s still alive and scared and needing me! How can I just forget about her?”

“You won’t help her by getting yourself killed.”

She looked at me, a funny look on her face. “I know. I was thinking the same thing.”

“See? I’m not wrong. You know I’m not.”

“I thought you were him when you came to the door!” She covered her face again. I wished she would stop. I couldn’t handle listening to her crying.

I put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to me. “You’re okay right now. I’m here. I won’t hurt you.” That still wasn’t enough to make her feel better. She was still shaking and crying, totally terrified. I wished I had whoever had scared her like that in front of me so I could rip his head off. I was starting to feel protective of her.

I didn’t know how else to stop her, so I took her chin in my hand and pulled her face to mine.

She didn’t try to fight it. Instead, she melted into me. Just like before, she sparked to a flame so fast. She was into it, moving against me, her tongue getting tangled with mine. Her arms wrapped around my neck and she sighed when my hands ran up and down her sides.

I leaned over her, lowering her onto the sofa. She was only wearing a robe, nothing underneath. I slid my hand underneath, just over one of her breasts. It felt as firm and smooth as I remembered. Now I could play with it more easily. She sighed, closing her eyes and breathing heavily.

“You like that?” I whispered in her ear, swiping my tongue over her earlobe. “Does that feel good?”

“Mmm-hmm…” she moaned, gripping my shoulders with her fingers. I pinched her nipple and she arched her back, gasping. Then I opened the top of the top a little until one of her milky tits was uncovered. It was perfect. I had to taste her. When my mouth touched her, she arched her back again. This time, she moaned deeply. Like it had been forever. So I did the same on the other side, getting the same reaction.

I was overtaken by need I’d never felt before. I needed to give her every bit of pleasure she could handle. She needed it. Since when did I care so much, I wondered as I licked my way down her torso and listened to the way she panted and moaned, begging for more. Usually, it was all about my pleasure. Yeah, I wanted to make the girl come at least once, maybe twice, but that was more about my pride. It felt good knowing I could do that to her.

But this was different. I wanted her to feel as good as she could, because she needed something in her life that felt good for a little while.

I untied the robe, opening it all the way. Her body was so tight, smooth and perfect. I kissed a trail down to her mound, making her moan and writhe on the sofa.

“Gabriel…” She tried to close her legs, but my tongue wore her down. I lapped at her lips, and her legs opened again. She wanted this as much as I wanted to give it to her. Her smell was all around me, driving me on. I had to taste her.

When my tongue slid between her lips, the sound that came out of her mouth almost scared me. She nearly screamed, her hips shooting up off the cushions.

“Yes!” She held onto the back of my head, pulling me closer while she pushed her hips up into my face. I knew it wouldn’t take long to set her on fire. I focused on her bud, concentrating all the movement of my tongue there.

When I slid two fingers into her wetness, pumping in and out, she screamed again. She was straining against me, struggling, wanting to come. I slammed my hand against her, moving my tongue faster on her clit. She went crazy, humping my face until I felt her muscles twitching and I knew she was hitting her climax.

She screamed again and again, trembling all over. She squeezed my head between her thighs, but I still heard the way she cried my name. I was so hard I thought the zipper on my jeans would break, but I want to focus on her a little longer.

My fingers were still inside her, and now I curled them toward her belly button. I watched her face, seeing the way her eyes flew open wide.

“Oh…what are you…oh!” She didn’t know what to think about what I was doing. I kept massaging that rough patch, licking her again. She was screaming again soon, bucking against me, thrashing around. Then she came again, screaming hoarsely. Her entire body shuddered while she moaned and panted for breath.

I didn’t give her time to recover or think twice. I stood, straining against my zipper, and picked her up in my arms. She was so light, it was like carrying a feather.

“What are you doing?” she asked, her voice weak and raspy.

I didn’t answer. I had to make her mine, now.

There was only one open bedroom door, which I guessed was hers. I placed her on the bed, taking off my clothes without saying a word. She was still trying to catch her breath, moaning, gasping.

Once my clothes were gone, I stretched out next to Kat on the bed. I ran my hands all over her, touching every inch of her skin. She was super sensitive, still coming down from her orgasms. Her head turned from side to side, her eyes closed.

“So good…so good…” she kept whispering. “Gabriel…yes…”

I swelled up against her hip, every word driving me crazy. I loved watching her, listening to the way she was coming undone.

I was on my side, Kat on her back. I lifted the leg closer to me, throwing it over my hip. Then I crossed my top leg over hers, giving my throbbing dick access to her. She opened her eyes when she felt me so close to entering her.

“Okay?” I whispered.

She nodded, taking the back of my neck in her hand and pulling me in for a kiss as I slid inside. She moaned into my mouth, desperate, when she felt me push into her. I covered her mouth with mine, slowly building my rhythm while we kissed. She bit my lip, grunting. I felt the way she tightened her leg, pulling me closer to her. She loved this—all that good girl stuff was a cover-up for the animal inside her.

I needed to go deeper, to have more control. I slid out, picking her up and putting her on her hands and knees. “Mmm, yeah,” she moaned, pushing her hips back into me. I slid back into her, taking her by the hips to pump myself into her.

I slapped her ass, and she squealed. “Yeah…do it again.” I did, on the other side, then slammed myself deep inside her.

“Gabriel…” she moaned, arching her back. Her blonde hair swung from side to side. Watching her was almost as good as fucking her.

What was I doing? Was it wrong? I didn’t care. All that mattered was what was happening right now, in this bed. She moaned loudly, breaking through all my thoughts with the reminder that she was in ecstasy. I pushed harder, really grinding myself in, holding onto her hair as I rode her.

She moved her hips in slow, sexy circles. Writhing in pleasure. Totally in the moment. It was hot, sensual, better than anything I’d ever felt. The sensation was there, her tight pussy holding onto me, so hot and wet. But the sensuality was different. It wasn’t the same as fucking some random girl, zipping up my pants and going. This was a full-body experience. I closed my eyes, her moans carrying me away.

We were riding each other, taking pleasure from each other’s bodies. I wasn’t using her the way I used other women. I was giving and getting. I wanted to make her scream.

I reached forward, taking her by the shoulder, and pulled her up to me. Now she was almost sitting on my lap. She started bouncing, grinding down onto me. I loved it, and let her go to work for a few minutes while I watched her. Then I took a handful of her hair, pulling her head to the side. She yelped, but the increased pace of her thrusting told me she loved it. I sucked on her neck, her shoulder. I bit her earlobe, making her gasp, then moan. She loved a little bit of pain, a little bit of rough to go with the sweet.

Keeping that in mind, I reached down to hold her tits in my hands. She covered my hands with her own, squeezing, wanting me to be rougher. I squeezed harder, making her moan my name. Her head dropped back onto my shoulder. She never stopped that slow, steady bouncing on me.

“Feels so good…” she whispered hoarsely, crying out a little when I pinched her nipples between my fingers. “Yes! Gabriel!” So she did like it that way.

I kept working on one of her tits with one hand, while I moved down to her mound with the other. She was so hot, so wet. I rubbed the outside at first, teasing her. She slowed down her bouncing, focusing on what I was doing. Now she was rocking, a slow and sexy movement against me. I felt every inch of her around me.

I slipped my finger between her lips, finding her button. She gasped, then moved faster. I was barely touching her, just rubbing the very tip of my finger over so fast my hand was a blur. She started moaning louder, then louder again. I felt her tighten around me, heard her scream. Felt her shudder, flinging her head back onto my shoulder. I kept touching her, kept thrusting upward, kept playing with her tits. I knew if I kept the stimulation going, she would come again and again.

As soon as she came down from that high, I slid out of her. Now I got on my back, picking her up and lowering her over me. I could do almost anything to her, she was so light compared to my thick build. That feeling of power was a high I couldn’t ignore.

I skewered her again, and she almost screamed. Now I took her hips in my hands and slammed her onto me, faster and faster, almost brutally. I wanted to take her hard, make her beg me to stop because she couldn’t stand the pleasure anymore. Her tits bounced so hard and fast she had to hold them still, which was even hotter.

“Yeah…play with them…” I ordered between grunts as I fucked her. I watched her play with her nipples, her eyes closed, her mouth open. There was a constant flow of moaning coming out of her mouth by that time, getting louder the faster I pumped her up and down. Her voice got higher until she was almost squeaking by the time she came again with a loud scream.

“
Fuck!
” She was totally lost, in some blissed-out place. I moved her more slowly while she got over it. She fell on top of me, and I let her stay there while I continued rocking her up and down on my cock.