For the Love of Dixie (Kings of Chaos 3)

I resist the urge to cover my chest. I’m wearing a small pair of boxers, and a black tank top, which suddenly feels downright indecent.

“What’s wrong?” he asks, leaning in to wrap my hair around one of his fingers.

“Nothing. I…just. We’ve never been entirely alone before,” I say.

“Hey, you know I’d never hurt you or force you to do anything you don’t want, right?”

“Yeah, I know,” I whisper, glancing down to my lap.

“Look at me, Dixie Rose. If all I wanted was a piece of ass, I could get it. We both know that. This is about me and you.”

I take a deep breath and nod. It’s hard to believe he’s interested.

He’s a year older, sexy, smart, and a shoe-in to prospect for Kings of Chaos. He has his pick of the ladies.

“What are you doing here with me?” I ask.

“Are you kidding me?” he counters. His eyes go wide, and he closes the distance between him and the bed. “You’re gorgeous for one. That’s not all, but I don’t think people tell you enough. So I will. Hell, I better be the only one telling you.” A fire rises in his blue-green eyes.

My stomach flutters.

He runs his thumb over my lips. “You have those full lips.” He tugs my hair gently. “And this soft, curly hair. Shit, I can’t tell you how long I dreamt about discovering if it was as soft as it looks. You’re sexy as hell without trying, and you’re a good girl. All these sluts are used up and old before their time.” He shakes his head. “I don’t want that.”

“So you want…what? A kid?”

“No, I want a good girl.” He caresses the shell of my ear. “My good girl, tailor made for me. I don’t want you to know anything because I want to show you. I want to be your teacher, the person you trust most.”

“I-I’m not eighteen.”

“Yet. I’m not in a rush. I’m a man patient enough to wait.” He pulls back.

In that moment, I understand he’s no boy, despite his age. The club grows you up fast, and his father was one of the most hardcore motherfuckers out there. I’m sure it rubbed off on him.

“What I need to know is if you’re all in with me, or not. You all in, Dixie Rose?”

I hesitate knowing somehow, this will change everything.

He waits for my response, watching me with those electric blue eyes.

I swear they can peer right into my soul.

“Give me a chance, girl.”

“Okay.”

He grins. “I promise, I’ll make it worth your while.” He winds his fingers in my hair, pulls me to him, and presses a kiss to my lips that makes me forget every reason I had for saying no. It’s the first move he’s made toward me. This is officially happening.

~~

Present.

The lying bastard hadn’t made it all worth it though. He’d possessed me body and soul. Made me burn for him and live to serve him. There was nothing I wouldn’t have done for him. For my trouble, he bailed on me when I needed him most. My vision wavers. Pissed, I dash the droplets away. After all this time, I continue to allow him to hurt me. It was two years out of my life. I wasn’t even a woman yet. Why can’t I just let it go? Because it was everything, and you know it, an honest voice whispers inside my mind. I cut the engine, climb from the car, and slowly make my way up the walk, seeing the ghosts of my past at every step.

Chapter 2

Dixie Rose

I wake up feeling like I’ve been on a late night bender. My eyes are puffy, my head is pounding, and my body aches. I swing my legs around the bed and slide out. The knock on the door comes again, and I realize what woke me. I rub my eyes and shuffle to the front door. Peering out the peephole, I spot Blue.