I Have to Have Her

“You know him?”

“I do.”

“Oh.”

“There’s no oh about it. He’s a dangerous person.”

“Like you?”

He stared at her. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay away. I’m getting one of my men to drive you back to our apartment.”

“What about Rhianna?”

“She’s being taken care of.”

Getting to her feet, she saw Gabriel put her panties in his pocket. There was something oddly erotic about him keeping her underwear.

“Why do we have more than twenty-six days?” she asked.

He sat behind his desk. He looked every part the king he claimed himself to be. She had no doubt about the power he wielded.

“I’m familiar with the female anatomy, Claire. You’ll be having a menstrual cycle soon, and well, however long that lasts is the number of additional days you’ll be mine.”

This was one of those moments where she wished she hadn’t asked.Chapter SixGabriel arrived at the private location in the middle of nowhere. No houses, no cars, no street lamps. Just the glow of the car lights and the single bike waiting for him.

As he climbed out of his car, the glare of the lights made it impossible for him to see the man who currently leaned on the seat of his bike, smoking a cigarette.

“Good of you to come, Gabriel.”

“What the fuck do you want, Lucas?” He’d been given the note not long after he’d sent Claire home to their apartment. He intended to join her but first, he needed to deal with this business.

Lucas was the president of one of the deadliest MCs he’d ever known. So far, he hadn’t encroached on his territory and even tonight, he’d been respectful by not wearing his leather cut or bringing any more men.

“Let’s say I want to make a deal with you. I know you’ve got another offer elsewhere for transporting drugs through your turf,” Lucas said.

“If you know so much, then you’re aware I’ve declined any such access.” He avoided deals with MCs at all costs. They were way too volatile. They had their own set of rules and changed them with the whims of the clubs and any new president who killed their way to the top. He wasn’t interested in dealing with that kind of shit. He avoided them like the fucking plague.

Lucas’s presence in his club wasn’t a good thing.

“I want to know the route they wanted.”

“Not happening. I don’t talk shop with the likes of you.”

Lucas smiled. “That woman tonight was a fine piece of ass.”

Gabriel tensed up.

“I know all about you, Locke. You’ve got a sister who you guard, and a lot of different pies all lined up. Women are like ice cream, you have a taste and move on. You’ve never been seen with the same woman twice and you certainly don’t stake a claim.”

“You need to leave my city before you overstay your welcome.”

“In case you forgot, I didn’t ask for an invitation, and by your own rules, I’m not marked.” Lucas held his hands out and spun in a circle. “I don’t want to mess in your shit, and I’m quite happy to help you, Gabriel. Sooner or later, you’re going to realize your power is only strong enough when you’ve got men to back it up. I want nothing from you but the route. If I saw the way you were with that woman today, Claire, others are always watching. The problem with being a king is someone’s always waiting to watch you fall.” Lucas got back on his bike.

The warning was clear. He was being watched but also, there was a brewing war between two MCs, and Lucas had been the first one to make his move.

Climbing back into his car, he gave his man the order to take him back to his apartment where Claire would be waiting.

He wasn’t sure if he wanted to give the details of the route to Lucas. He didn’t like being given ultimatums. This city belonged to him, and he had no interest in coming between two MCs. However, if one was on the left and the other was on the right, he was in the middle just waiting to become the war ground.

The apartment was quiet when he entered. He and Claire had yet to use this place at all. So far, he’d taken her at the private club, in his office, or in his other apartment where his sister lived. Their arrangement was still a secret from his sister and he intended to keep it that way.

Removing his shoes and jacket, he glanced into the living room and found Claire curled up on the sofa. She wore one of the negligees he’d purchased for her. The bedroom had a wardrobe where he’d organized clothes in her size.

He stepped into the room and moved toward the coffee table. An old mug sat there with what looked like some remnants of hot chocolate. Reaching out, he stroked the curls back from her face. She let out a whimper but didn’t pull away.