“Dani—”
He turned on his heel and walked out, teetering dangerously close to the edge. One more excuse and he’d snap.
Shit had never been the same after that. He’d treated them with a thinly veiled disgust and aloof politeness only used for his parents. If it had been up to him he wouldn’t see them at all. Then his folks had passed five years later and he’d walked away after leaving the service and never looked back. Until he’d found Mayhem he’d been a piece of driftwood going from place to place. Then he’d met Moose one night in a bar and shit had come together. He’d prospected, earned his cut and found an identity that suited him. He’d seen and done too much to get out and pretend to be normal. Everyone else’s black-and-white moral compass didn’t suit when he knew how much gray actually existed.
He tapped the phone, wishing he could forgive Joel. He’d missed him over the years. But how did one get over something like that and trust again? It was a question he still had no answer to.
Chapter Five
Juliette wrapped her arms around Shooter’s waist and held on tight. There was an electricity in the air that spoke volumes. The time for courting had come and gone. He couldn’t keep his hands off her. Every caress of her hand, side and knee had ramped up the sexual tension simmering between them. He’d ambushed her after work and taken her to dinner. There was no mystery why he’d taken her to his apartment for the first time. The wind tousled her hair, chilled her barely covered skin and forced her as close to Shooter as she could get.
The man must be a hypnotist. One look into his eyes and she’d been a goner. The heat between them was undeniable. But it was the sweetness hidden beneath those layers of gruff bluntness that had her falling for him. He’d been hurt before, badly. She recognized the pain because she housed it too—like attracted like.
They came to a stop outside an apartment complex on the south side of town.
“It’s not much, but it’s clean and safe.” He shrugged. “I spend most of my time at the club.”
Swinging his leg off with the grace of a dancer, he stood. Holding his hand out, he helped her stand on her heels.
“Doing okay?” He peered at her from beneath ridiculously long lashes.
“Y-yeah. I wasn’t dressed for riding tonight.”
“No.” His heated gaze raked over her painstakingly slowly. Still not used to being the center of his piercing gaze, she fidgeted.
“Are you embarrassed?”
“No.” She looked away as her cheeks heated.
“You are.” His teeth were a slash of white in the darkness. “I’m going to devour you whole, Juliette.”
Please do.
He chuckled. “You finally loosening up on me?”
“Oh my god, I said that out loud.” She’d never wanted to make a cartoon exit so bad in her life. A black hole opening and engulfing her would be welcomed.
“You did and I like it. Don’t hide yourself from me.” He cupped her chin. “Ever. I live unencumbered by rules. When you’re with me I expect you to do the same. You know that by now.”
Completely under his spell, she nodded her head.
“Fuck, what are you doing to me, Juliette?” He pulled her hips flush against his. The thick bulge in his pants pressed into her, dropping her belly down into her shoes the way a deep hill would. “Now all I can picture is you in a pencil skirt with a strand of pearls between your breasts. Those long legs spread wide on the checkout counter while I take you hard and fast.” The heated words he whispered tickled her ear and tangled up her insides. She squirmed against him, moaning at the friction it caused.
“That’s it, baby. Feel what you do to me.” His silken voice and the whirlwind events of their courtship seduced her and robbed her of her modesty. Shameless, she ground her hips into him, whimpering as tendrils of pleasure unfurled in her pussy. Wetness formed between her legs, soaking her panties and the tops of her thighs.
“That’s it. Do you like the way my cock feels?”
“Yes.”
“It’s only going to get better from here.” He gripped her hips, lifting her up, and she wound her legs around his waist out of instinct. Stunned by her actions, she st
udied him with hazy vision.
“We need to get inside before I take you on my bike.”
“You can do that?” She whispered. Visions of their limbs entwined while she rode him made her moan.
“We will do that, Juliette. You and I are going to do a lot of things together.”