In the Arms of the Beast (Kings of Hell MC 5)

Rev groaned. “He’s literally the devil. What more do you want?”

Laurent had no patience to argue with someone so ignorant, so he was glad to hear the roar of many engines. His heart leapt when he spotted Beast’s familiar shape at the front of the formation. Wide in the shoulders and seated on the huge motorcycle, he was a beacon pulling Laurent to the window.

Each heartbeat brought them closer, and when Beast parked the bike in front of the bar, followed by the remaining club members, it took all of Laurent’s willpower to keep himself from climbing over Rev’s lap like an excitable animal.

But as the herd of men on steel mounts arrived, the commotion inside the bar was impossible to miss. Laurent ignored the hushed comments about their kind and didn’t mind it in the slightest when some of the patrons gathered their things, hurriedly preparing to leave the establishment.

Good riddance. This was Beast’s night, and he didn’t need to see disapproval in the eyes of people who didn’t even know what powers the man they so despised was up against every day.

When Beast stepped away from his bike and removed the helmet, Laurent stood still, admiring his husband for a few moments longer. Even love couldn’t blind Laurent to the fact that Beast’s face was scarred to the point where no one would consider him classically ‘handsome’. Yet when he was around, Laurent barely noticed anyone else. Beast’s presence sent ripples wherever he went, and Laurent couldn’t help but smile at the thought of being married to a man so strong, so confident, and so powerful.

A hot flash pierced Laurent and trailed all the way to his toes when Beast’s blue eyes met his. The red neon above the entrance shed a colorful glow on his powerful figure, but his face, scarred as it was, softened with tenderness. Beast hadn’t expected Laurent’s presence, but he’d appreciate it nevertheless. Laurent might not be competent at using guns or fighting, but he would support Beast as best as he could on the difficult path his man needed to walk.

When Gray started talking to Beast outside, taking away his attention, Laurent refused to wait any longer. He put his notebook away and went straight for the door, itching to put his arms around his man. He doubted thinking of Beast in such a way would ever grow old. His. Man. A concept unthinkable in year 1805, the time Laurent had left behind.

“How did it go?” he asked when Beast had finished the hurried conversation.

Beast didn’t answer at first, instead sweeping Laurent to his chest until Laurent’s feet left the asphalt. Relief was like warm water splashing down Laurent’s back, and he circled the thick, warm neck with his arms, bumping their foreheads as tenderness took root in his heart.

“We have it,” Beast whispered into Laurent’s ear.

Laurent kissed Beast with a smile, itching to see the jewel. “But are you not injured?” he asked when he spotted dried red dots on Beast’s vest.

Beast shook his head and gave Laurent another peck on the lips. If the blood wasn’t Beast’s, Laurent didn’t need to know who it belonged to.

“Naughty boy. I remember telling you to stay home,” Beast said, but there was no anger in his voice, just teasing.

Laurent ran his fingers over the uneven skin on Beast’s nape where Baal’s sigil had been burned when Beast had sold himself into servitude to keep Laurent with him. It was all the proof of love Laurent would ever require. “I needed to be at least this close.”

Outside, Gray was talking on the phone, visibly agitated, and Laurent nodded toward him before glancing at Beast. “Is everything fine with them?”

Beast put Laurent down and led the way farther inside. The bikers had already turned the bar into their private party, changing the music to the noisy kind they played at the clubhouse, and filling several booths that had previously been empty.

“We have the Pigeon Heart,” Beast said and patted his leather jacket, indicating where the precious stone was, “but Shadow needs a ruby of his own if he’s to survive. They’re fishing for information where to find one large enough to sustain him.”

Laurent squeezed Beast’s hand. Now that his partner was safe, there was room in his heart to feel for others. “Can Magpie really not spare one? He must be bathing in them after so many years of collecting the gems.”

Beast scowled before lowering his voice further. “Magpie never does anything that doesn’t benefit him. No matter how many expensive shoes he buys or how many people he fucks, he’ll never have the conscience of a human.”

He exhaled and rubbed his eyes, which darkened with tiredness, reminding Laurent that Beast’s night had been tough and brutal.

Laurent was confused when their friends erupted into whistles, applause and yelling. He understood what happened as soon as he saw Gray’s and Shadow’s lips meeting .