Forbidden Protector Read online

my orgasm ripped out of me.

  But Chance wasn’t even near finished.

  No, even through the haze of the after-release for me, our bodies flowed together. His cock rammed me into higher peaks of pleasure than I ever thought possible.

  My voice was shrill and my limbs all shook. And as he filled me so perfectly, as he growled, “That’s it, Blue Eyes. Come for me”, I came again.

  Pure, blinding sensation shot through me as I shook again, my pleasure boiling over to the point I was keening nonsensical words. Chance pumped twice more before going rigid above me, gripped by his own orgasm as he pumped me full of his seed. And then I was in his arms, both of us breathing together. As pleasure ebbed away, cold inescapable realization took its place.

  18

  Chance

  Talk about the fuck of the century.

  My cock was getting hard again just thinking about how Connie’s body had reacted so naturally to mine. How easily we’d lost ourselves in the moment.

  Already, though, she was extricating herself. “I should get back.”

  I forced myself up, too. “Right.”

  No point in further trying my luck with Hayes not finding out. Fuck, it had been dumb. All it would take was for him to go looking for one of us, notice he couldn’t find both of us, and put two and two together.

  Fuck it, she had still been worth every bit of the risk.

  “I’ll see you.”

  My head whipped to see Connie at the door already. She wasn’t fucking around.

  I went over to her, leaned in for a kiss, but she turned her cheek.

  “I need to go get Annie and get ready for dinner,” she said when she was already through the door.

  In my boxers, there was no following her. I let the door shut behind her and stood there for a few seconds.

  I wasn’t such an idiot to not notice that Connie had definitely wanted out fast.

  Like she regretted what we’d done almost immediately.

  I tried to tell myself it was for the best; that I’d just needed to get her out of my system.

  But what we’d just done hadn’t gotten Connie out of my system at all. No, it had set her in way deeper.

  I stalked over to the bathroom and got in the shower. I turned the water to the hottest temperature, to make it too hot for anything else to invade my brain.

  After, I threw myself back on the bed, enjoying the cool air on my flushed skin.

  I wished that I’d thought to bring a radio and music with me. Not that it would make a dent on the image replaying in my head.

  Connie’s face when I’d first entered her. Pure bliss, submission.

  She’d loved every bit of it; had been as much of a wildcat in bed as I’d expected.

  I got up and started pacing some more.

  Yeah, it was amazing sex, but that was all it was; all it could be.

  I’d seen what happened last time my heart got involved.

  19

  Connie

  Hayes was singing my praises for not running around in a blind panic during the earlier chaos.

  I rolled my eyes at his over-the-top description of my “cool head.” Oh, if he only knew.

  “All I did was sit in my room with my kid and try to keep calm,” I countered. Hayes smiled like I’d just won the Lotto. “And that made all the difference. That and my boy here.” He patted Chance, who he had sitting next to him and two spots away from me.

  I looked away. There, the spotlight had moved.

  Now, all I had to do was eat my goddamn hash browns and not chuck a plate at the wall in frustration.

  As soon as I was finished eating, I beat it out of there. Luckily, Annie and Mom had started eating before me, so were already finished.

  Back in our room, instead of racing to the TV how I expected, Annie turned my way. “Mommy, what’s wrong?”

  Sorry hun, Mommy slept with a man she shouldn’t have and feels terrible about it.

  “I think Mommy just needs to…” My head swam. Were there right words to say when lying to your child?

  “Needs to see her friends,” Mom chimed in, squeezing my shoulder.

  “Ok!” Annie said, finally bounding over to the TV.

  Thank God.

  “I mean it,” Mom said firmly. “You don’t look good, Connie. Go chat with Val. I saw her come in as we were leaving.”

  “Ok,” I said.

  I felt a bit guilty for ditching mom-duty for the second time, but it was better than me sticking around and being a downer, overthinking my poor decision to sleep with Chance.

  So, I beat it out of there before Mom could figure anything else out from my glum demeanor. She’d always been able to read me well – too well.

  I shuddered to think what she’d say, what look she’d give me if she found out what I’d been doing when I was supposed to just be getting a coffee and ‘resting’. As far as Mom was concerned, the best place to meet someone was church or through your parents (I’d endured two of her well-meaning but boring squares before swearing off being set up). Anything else was practically scandalous.

  Back in the common area, it still smelled like hash browns, though none were to be seen. Everyone who wasn’t wolfing down the last of the food was in panic aftermath, loudly talking over each other, or straight up making out in front of everyone in celebration of still being alive.

  Black Sabbath was pounding away, driving the headache I didn’t even realize I had deeper into my skull

  Val was plopped by the campfire with a steaming mug of something hot.

  “You good?” she asked when she saw me. “You left dinner pretty quickly.”

  “Was going to ask you the same thing,” I said. “Passing out from marshmallow overdose?”

  Val had a way of curling her cherub lips so she looked both rueful and indignant at the same time. “What can I say? Marshmallows are my stress food. Plus, I’d rather be in a marshmallow coma than awake if the Kings did bust in here.”

  I shuddered. I didn’t even want to think about that.

  “Seriously though, you don’t look so well,” Val said.

  I chuckled, although her words were worming their way through the false exterior I’d put on for the past hour. “Well, golly, Valerie, I don’t know what to tell ya to that.”

  Sipping her drink, rising and fluttering her eyelashes in dubious disbelief all at the same time, Val got up. “C’mon. Let’s go somewhere more private and you can tell me all about it.”

  “Fine.” I followed her, shaking my head. “Although there’s nothing to tell.”

  Still, it would be a relief getting away from too many other people. Pretending that things were normal was exhausting.

  Navigating our way through the crowd, we made our way to the far side of the common area, away from prying eyes and ears. “Ah, finally,” Val said, sinking down on one of the peeling-leathered armchairs that were huddled in a circle for confidential talks such as these.

  I slunk down on the armchair beside hers, and her gaze went my way expectantly. “Alright, spill.”

  “There’s nothing to spill. I’m just worried about the situation, like everyone else.”

  Val sighed long and loud. “C’mon Con, I’ve known you what, twenty years?”

  “You’re point?”

  “My point is that my bullshit meter is pretty damn accurate when it comes to you.” “Fine.” I might as well tell her. She’d badger me until I did anyway. “I slept with Chance.”

  “You WHAT?” Val spat out her drink.

  She grinned as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “How was it? How was he? When? Does he have a huge cock? He looks like he’s got a huge cock.”

  I scrunched my nose. “You want my social security number too?”

  Val’s smile was all-knowing. “That good, was it?”

  “Doesn’t matter.”

  “You crazy?”

  “Maybe.” I reached for her drink and took a sip. “I shouldn’t have done it, that’s for sure.”r />
  “Come on, Mother Teresa, can’t a CFL have fun every now and again?”

  “You sound like a 60’s sitcom star, you do know that, right?”

  Val’s smile wouldn’t budge. “Don’t get mad at me because you clearly liked having your hoo-ha serviced.”

  I shook my head and waved her off. “I mean it. I’ve got a kid, Val. And a house. And a big dream that isn’t going to get accomplished by itself. I can’t afford to go screwing a hot guy every time I feel like it.”

  “You also can’t afford to become a sexually-repressed cat lady,” Val pointed out.

  I snorted. “Because sexual repression is equated with cat owning. And anyway, that would still be better. At least I wouldn’t be distracted thinking about stupid stuff.”

  Val bobbed up and down in her seat, jiggling her drink. “Like if you’ll do it again?”

  “Like what’s wrong with me that I did it at all?”

  “Whoa there, Eeyore, no need to beat yourself up. Everyone needs to have some fun now and again. With the crazy things life brings – I mean, look at today – you might as well make the most of it while you can.”

  Although I’d never admit it out loud, Val kind of had a point.

  Today, if things had gotten bad enough, we all could’ve ended up with Devil Kings’ bullets in our heads. Then, it would’ve made no difference whether I slept with Chance or not.

  But still, I hated that I’d gone back on what I’d decided for myself. If I did that enough, then everything I’d worked so hard for would fall apart.

  “Alrighty, time for more espresso.” Val was up on her feet, gesturing me to follow. “Since you spilled the beans, we don’t need to be here anymore anyway.”

  “You don’t have any deep dark secret to spill?” I teased as we started navigating our way back.

  “Only that I think you should screw Chance again.”

  “Val!”

  “What, you asked!”

  “Seriously Val, you can’t say anything to anyone about this. Hayes would kill both of us.”

  “Yeah, yeah, fine, fine.”

  Back by the coffee machine, my whole body stiffened.

  How had I not noticed until the last minute that he was walking by?

  Our eyes met and he looked away quickly.

  I exhaled. There. He got the picture.

  We could stay away from each other from now on.

  “What the hell was that?” Val hissed.

  “Nothing,” I hissed back.

  Craning my neck around, I found Hayes nowhere in sight and no one else who’d noticed, but still.

  “Connieeee…”

  “Ugh,” I whispered. “I might have practically run out of there after me and Chance… you know.”

  “Connie!”

  “I know, ok! Now drop it, seriously.”

  Val’s lips were folded together in a look of no uncertain disproval.

  “You,” she declared, “Are a fool.”

  20

  Connie

  “Mommy?”

  Hearing Annie’s tentative voice zapped me out of my morning stupor. I’d gotten a grand total of four hours of sleep the night before, probably less. I didn’t know.

  When my mind hadn’t been juggling various fears and worries about the Devil Kings’ next move (they weren’t the let-it-go-and-cash-in-our-chips kind), it was alternating memories of how good the sex with Chance was, mixed with less pleasant memories about his face when I’d left and we’d run into each other after.

  But I had a daughter to take care of. Always, that would be the most important.

  “Yes, pumpkin?” I said.

  Annie held up Jamjam, whose taupe fur looked even scuffed and greyer than I remembered. I made a mental note to throw him in the wash and tell Annie about his ‘quick vacation’, as soon as we got back.

  “Jamjam’s bored. Jamjam wants to go outside.”

  “Ah, I see.” I looked away, resisting the urge to sigh out loud.

  Annie was a five-year-old. Five-year-olds shouldn’t be cooped up inside any more than absolutely necessary.

  “I’ll think about it,” I told Annie. “First I need to ask Uncle Hayes to make sure it’s ok.”

  “Ask me if what’s ok?” Hayes said, grinning as he plopped down at the rickety table beside us.

  “Uncle Hayes!” Annie leaned over to give him a side hug. Then she raised Jamjam. “Jamjam wants to go outside.”

  Hayes made a squinty, chin-rubbing show of thinking about it before giving a measured sigh. “Well, then I suppose we should let Jamjam go outside sometime soon.” He tossed me a wink. “Don’t you think?”

  “Definitely,” I said. “But…”

  “And you can go too,” Hayes told Annie, answering my next question. “As long as you promise to stick with the adults that go with you.”

  “I promise!” Annie trilled.

  He nodded my way. “It’s like I said – shouldn’t be too much trouble to have a bunch of the kids and anyone else who wants to go step out for a bit. There’s a fenced field behind the compound. I’ve got guys up on the hill behind us, so they’ll be able to see anyone coming for miles.”

  “Alright,” I said.

  As much as I wanted to hold Annie to me and keep her safe until the entire Devil Kings threat passed, I also knew that that wasn’t realistic. An entire band of violence-hungry motorcycle criminals wanting to take over your turf and wipe you off the face of the earth didn’t typically just go away by itself. It was going to take time, and most likely, more bloodshed, before the whole thing was behind us.

  As the smile faded from Hayes’ face, I noticed just how exhausted he looked. He had dark rings under his eyes, his left eye red and half-lidded with sleep.

  “That all?” I asked quietly.

  Hayes snuck a glance at Annie. “Uh…”

  “Hey, mind if I steal Annie for a bit?” a new voice asked. “We’re going to check out the play area before the big outdoor field trip.”

  It was Coco, a skinny mom with sleek dark hair and navy iris tattoo sleeves that I’d always admired. Her daughter, Bridget, and Annie had become fast friends here, even though the last time they’d seen each other before that they’d been three.

  “Sure, sounds good to me,” I said.

  Annie was already on her feet. “Yay!”

  “Hayes, there you are.” Mom sat down, her face vaguely disapproving yet tender as she waved goodbye to Annie.

  Hayes spread his arms. “Here I am. Anyway, I do have some news.”

  “Oh?”

  Somehow, he looked even more exhausted just then. “Yep. There’s bad news, bad news, and not completely bad news.”

  “Lovely,” I said.

  “Bad news first.” Mom bobbed her head with decision. “Might as well get it over with.”

  “Right.” Hayes nodded too. “So over at the hospital, Hunter is in critical condition. Docs don’t know if he’ll make it.”

  “Shit, poor Hunter.” Something tightened in me. I’d always known the Kings were dangerous, but just outright killing one of our guys?

  “Yeah, well.” Hayes was nodding like he couldn’t stop. “It is really shitty, Hunter is a good guy, a fighter, and he… anyway. Other bad news is that I’ve gotten word of what the Devil Kings’ plans are. They-”

  “How?” Mom interrupted.

  Hayes glared at her. “What does it matter how? What matters is that I know and that it’s serious.”

  Mom crossed her pink and blue plaid arms across her chest. “It matters if they could be lying to you to trick you.”

  “They aren’t, Mom, trust me.” Hayes sighed, and raised in hazel eyes to the ceiling in a ‘help me Lord’ expression. “Anyway. Word is that since we didn’t rush out to retaliate how they expected, their plan is to take out the Twisted Souls’ leadership one by one.”

  “All this just to take over some extra territory?” I said. “Not even prime territory at that?”

  “Hey now, don’t tal
k down Pembrooke,” Hayes said. “We have a Class-A Dairy Queen.”

  I rolled my eyes as he continued, “Hunter also admitted a few days back that he might have egged them on, by threatening their president during an argument.”

  Hunter and his big mouth.

  “Taking out the Twisted Souls leadership.” Mom was white by now. “But that means…”

  Hayes put his hands up, clearly anticipating what she’d say next. “Don’t worry about me, me and the boys have it all figured out.” He stabbed his thumb behind him, where Big Bonzo was sitting, wiggling what looked like a sea monkeys aquarium. “Bonzo’s sticking by me at all times, and we have twice the number of guards on each door. Only way the Kings will get in here is in a body bag.”

  Mom was shaking her head already. “This place has more entrances than chairs, and everyone has to sleep sometime. Plus, your guys don’t always do their due diligence.”

  “In your world, doing ‘due diligence’ involves using military formations and sleeping with one eye open,” Hayes pointed out.

  “I mean it,” Mom argued. “I think you should go to an even safer location. Maybe contact the police.”

  “What?” Hayes sputtered. “No, no way. If the cops get involved all this shit could go sideways. Plus, half the cops hate us, they’d probably rather sit back and watch us all kill one another.”

  “Don’t talk like that,” Mom insisted. “You need more protection.”

  “I have this.” Hayes pulled up his shirt to reveal a Twisted Souls emblazoned bulletproof vest.

  “Seriously?” I said.

  “Got it custom made.” Hayes smirked – that really had shut Mom up. “But still, we should get Dad here.”

  “He should’ve come in the first place.” Mom already had her phone out. “It was stupid sticking around, and for what? Keeping up appearances, and for who? It’s not as though we had any Devil Kings as our neighbors.”

  “I’ve always been suspicious of Mrs. Harris and her fifteen rabbits,” Hayes said sagely. I laughed.

  Mom let out a long sigh. “Your father is saying he will be fine. He is saying he knows Tae Kwan Doe.”