Dauntless (Sons of Templar MC 5)

Lucky’s face hardened. “You’re right. I do want to conquer you.” His voice dripped with erotic promise. “But I don’t suspect it will be easy. Suspect it’ll be worth it, and I sure as fuck won’t want to cast you aside after the fact.”

I straightened, trying to ignore the way my entire body responded to the pure sex in his voice. I’d just been beaten up by my very ex loser boyfriend, and now I was getting turned on by the biker who’d been borderline stalking me for two weeks? I was so fucked-up.

I met his eyes and hoped my bitch stare was firmly in place. “Whatever. Dreams are free. Which is all you’ll ever get in regards to me. You’re not getting what you want, for once. Try not to cry into your pillow tonight. Or do. I don’t care either way. Just leave me alone,” I ordered, my voice cold. It may have been an order outwardly, but it was also a plea. A prayer.

Lucky rounded the bed and stalked towards me. I backed up but had nowhere to go once my hip hit my dresser. He boxed me in. “You think I’m leavin’ you alone?” he asked, his voice little more than a whisper. He brought his hand up to my bruised cheek. I held his eyes and refused to flinch away. “After that fucker did this to you?”

I jutted my chin out. “I can take care of myself.”

Lucky nodded. “Yeah, I reckon you can. Reckon that’s been your life. Looking out for yourself. Fighting to protect yourself. Can see it behind your emerald eyes. The glint of a warrior who’s seen too fuckin’ much. Fought against too much.” He paused. “You don’t know what it’s like to have someone step up and do that for you. It’s a fuckin’ shame. But I’m also happy to be the first man to do that.”

His words hypnotized me, gave me a glimpse at a life I might be able to have in a parallel universe. One similar to what Lily had with Asher. What normal people had.

Normal. Normal was clean.

Clean I was not.

The window to the world shuttered.

I wasn’t normal. Wasn’t innocent or unpolluted like Lily. I would never have that life.

Lucky’s mouth was inches from mine. It took all my strength not to cross that small gap and just get a taste of what that life could be like. But even I wasn’t that much of a masochist. Instead of pressing my lips to his, I placed both of my hands on his hard chest and pushed. My strength was laughable and I never would’ve been able to do something like that if Lucky decided to exert his considerable strength over me, but he didn’t. As soon as he realized my intention, he stepped back, though he frowned as he did.

“You’re not going to be the first man to ‘protect me’ from the big bad world.” I used air quotes to go with the sarcasm in my tone. “This isn’t the macho hot biker show where you have all-consuming powers to shield some whimpering female from the horrors of reality,” I said, eyeing him. I put my finger to my chest. “This female is already well acquainted with those horrors. They’re the fucking backdrop of my childhood. Demons are my goddamn lullaby. So thanks for the offer, but there’s nothing left for you to protect me from. I’ve already lived through it all.”

Seeing Lucky’s face so blank and harsh, devoid of the humor that I’d come to understand was his nature, was more than a little unnerving. The fury of earlier today was downright eerie, and more than a little hot. But this, the way his body turned to granite at my little speech, it was something else. Like he was physically feeling the meaning behind my words.

The reaction was confusing. Impossible. We barely knew each other. He couldn’t look at me like he knew every secret I clutched to my chest.

His eyes held me captive, paralyzing me even though all I wanted to do was leave this room, escape his shrewd gaze and the electricity between us. Escape my own feelings for him. I wanted to run and find a fix to take it all away. But his draw was even more hypnotizing than the needle.

“Yeah, you do need protectin’, firefly,” he said quietly. His gaze flickered on my body. “The ones with the hardest exteriors always got the sweetest softness on the inside.” He stepped forward, not enough to get our bodies close but so I could smell him, feel his presence envelop me. “I’m gonna find it. Taste it. And own it.”

I swallowed the stupid fucking butterflies crawling from my belly to my throat at his words. “Who speaks like that?” I snapped. “Seriously? Give me a list of people who thinks that’s acceptable conversation to share with someone you’ve only met a few times.”