Ultimate mc romance coll.., p.158
Ultimate MC (Romance Collection), page 158
With another smile, he started licking and sucking my clit, causing me to moan and writhe even more. I grabbed my pillow and held it over my face; I had to do something before I burst from the electricity that was running through the core of my being.
I didn’t know for sure how long Zach pleasured me with his tongue, but he soon started kissing his way back up to my neck, taking his rock hard cock in his hand before pressing the head of it to the lips of my tight slit. He only teased me for a moment before pushing himself inside, needing to be in me as much as I needed him to be.
He thrust into me before drawing back out again, going in as far as he could before nearly pulling all the way out. Again and again he filled me, pushing long and hard. He was going faster and harder than the first time we’d had sex, sending me to the brink of orgasm within moments of entering me. I dragged my hands down his back, pressing as hard as I dared with my nails. I arched my back to take him further inside me – I had to have him deeper, further, harder.
He continued to thrust into me, causing my moans to grow until I was nearly crying out with pleasure. I was so close to cumming, I felt like I would explode from the tension that was inside me. Zach took my hands, pinning them to the bed above my head as he looked into my eyes.
He smiled as my breathing grew shallow and fast. He knew just what he was doing as he pounded me harder. I spread my legs as far apart as I could, crying out as loudly as I dared as I let the orgasm wash through me. I knew I was hot, but seeing me cum was more than Zach could handle himself. He thrust into me twice more, then I felt his cock empty inside me.
Zach moaned, letting himself drop onto me as his own orgasm washed over him. We were both out of breath, and I still felt shaky and almost weak. There was something about the way Zach took me that left me begging him for more. Even now, satisfied and finally released from the orgasm I’d been desperate to have, I couldn’t get close enough to him.
He rolled off me and lay on the bed, allowing me to crawl up and lay my head on his chest. I liked having a few minutes just to spend with him. To talk, or to just be. I desperately wanted to know what was going on in that beautiful head of his, but for now, I just traced some of the tattoos he had on his chest.
There were so many. I had thought about asking about them the first time we’d fucked, but he’d left so quickly, I didn’t have the chance. Now, I wanted to know. I could figure out the tat of the folded flag on his bicep, but the others were confusing.
“What does this mean?” I asked, tracing a flower over the top of his shoulder.
“It’s for my mom. She died when I was really young, and I wanted to get something to honor her,” he said.
“What about this one?” I asked, pointing to an American flag. It was different from the flag that was on his bicep. I felt it was safe to bring it up without the conversation turning to the MC.
“It’s for my fallen brothers. The ones who never got to come home. A lot of my tattoos have to do with the military in some way, whether for my brothers who died in the field, my brothers who weren’t lucky enough to come home with all their limbs, or just in honor of the Navy.
“And the dog tags?” I asked. I hadn’t noticed them before, but they were on the center of his chest with a tattooed chain reaching up toward his neck. The tattoo stopped before it reached the neckline of any of the shirts he wore, so it would vanish entirely when he was clothed.
But now, I was curious about them. The tags were very well done, almost convincing enough to be real tags just resting on the center of his chest.
“I figured I may as well have those, just in case. I mean, there are times when your real tags were ripped off you in the field, and with the life that I live here, I’m sure if something were to happen someone would want to be able to identify me,” Zach said with a shrug.
“That’s smart,” I said quietly. I didn’t like the idea of someone having to identify his body based on the tattoo on his chest, but he did have a point. We didn’t exactly live the kinds of lives that promoted longevity.
“What about this one?” I asked. It was a red rose, different from the flower he had for his mother, and it was positioned right over his heart.
“Don’t worry about that one,” he said bluntly.
“Come on, I want to know!” I replied playfully.
“Leave it,” he replied, this time his tone sharp. The smile faded from my face and I laid my head back down on his chest. I let my hand rest on his other pec, and though I wasn’t sure if he felt bad for snapping at me, he put his arm around my shoulders and massaged my hand with his own. But, he didn’t say anything else about the tattoo.
I was curious. I really wanted to know what it was there for. But, the dark look that had come into his eyes when he told me he didn’t want to talk about it startled me. I’d never seen such a fierce look on his face before, and I didn’t want to press the matter.
He had secrets, that was for damn sure, and he didn’t have to share them with me.
But I knew that tattoo would continue to haunt me until I knew its secret.
Chapter 11
Zach
“You hit like a girl,” Nathan said with a laugh. “Come on, letting a one-armed guy beat you is humiliating, don’t you think?”
“You ever think I let you win because I want you to feel better about yourself?” I shot back. Nathan gave me a look, but clearly tried to brush off my jab with a laugh.
“Keep telling yourself that, tough guy. I think you’re getting worse with time, not better, and I’m not going to take it easy on you just because you can’t hit straight,” he said.
I shook my head as I lined up another ball on the tee and took a swing. I hit it dead center, sending it out into the woods with some real force. We both heard it hit a tree, and Nathan laughed.
“That’s a little better, but I think you’re just trying to prove a point now, and it’s not working,” he smirked.
“Keep telling yourself that,” I said again.
He took a swig of his beer. I didn’t judge. It might only be ten am on a Sunday morning, but he was an adult, and if he wanted to drink a beer for breakfast, that was up to him. I was pretty sure there was something going on with him that he wasn’t telling me, but it wasn’t my job to be his therapist.
If he wanted to talk about something, he knew he could come to me at any time. I wasn’t going to hound him about it. I hated it when people did that to me. Hell, I figured going over to hit some golf balls with him on a Sunday morning might well be all the therapy the kid needed.
It was rare for him to ask me to hang out, but there were times when going over to his mom’s house to hit a few balls out into the woods was damn good therapy for both of us. I knew it helped me with the aggression I felt toward life. I could swing the club awfully hard and nail that ball, sending it out into the woods and feel better about what I had to deal with in life.
Sure, it wasn’t quite the same situation for him. He was dealing with one arm, after all. It might be his right arm that he still had, but it was hard hitting a golf ball with just a single arm. I was surprised how well he could manage the feat himself, but I was always careful about giving him compliments on it.
Nathan took those to be nothing more than comments of pity in disguise. He would rather I tease him about not being able to hit straight than hear me tell him how good he was doing. And, I was happy to do it. I hoped he was getting through his therapy alright, but I didn’t feel comfortable giving him those kinds of compliments.
We were ex-SEALS, after all. We had been taught to be tough as nails and not show anything that could be interpreted as anything but strength. I knew Nathan understood me, and I understood him. I tried to, anyway.
“So I hear we’ve changed up our turf,” Nathan commented. “Something about that meeting you had with Marcus?”
“Yeah, Dad pulled back the line, gave The Enemies a section of the town, and made the rest neutral,” I said with a shrug. “Not sure why he went that route, but I guess if that’s what he wanted to do.”
“Are you going to do anything about it when you take over?” Nathan asked.
“Hopefully, that’s not going to happen, and if it does, hopefully it’s not something I’m going to have to worry about,” I said dryly. I was open with those that I trusted about my feelings on becoming the next leader of the MC. I didn’t want to do it.
There were so many things I’d want to change about the club, I didn’t think it would go over well if I were to take over. Then again, it might be just what the club needed. Either way, I didn’t want to think about it. It was one of those things I’d deal with when the time came.
If the time came.
I was tempted at times to ask him his advice on my situation with Vanessa. Though I was doing my best to focus on the golf and just getting the aggression out of my system, my mind kept drifting back to her. I’d stayed with her most of the night, leaving before it was light out to head back home.
I slept in most of Saturday, and she and I had only texted a short while in the afternoon. I couldn’t deny that she had shut down after asking about the tattoo, and I wasn’t sure if it was because of the fact I snapped at her or because I wouldn’t tell her what that tattoo meant.
But, I had to do what was right for me, and I wasn’t ready to tell her about Fatima and Yara.
I’d already told her more than I’d told anyone else in my life, including my therapist. There were some things I didn’t tell anyone, and the story of what had happened with those two was one of them. Even now, it was much too raw for me to even hope to get into the details, and I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be able to talk about it.
Not even Nathan was aware of them. He didn’t ever ask me about my extensive tattoos, but even if he did, I wouldn’t tell him about them any more than I’d tell Vanessa. It was something she’d have to learn to deal with, to respect.
“And that’s the end of that,” Nathan said as he kicked over the bucket we’d been fishing balls out of. We both knew we’d have to head out into the woods and retrieve the ones we hit eventually. It was the one rule his mother had for us hitting them randomly out there.
But for now, neither of us really wanted to deal with it. The sun was getting high in the sky, and it was getting warmer. That would be the sort of thing we could do when it cooled down again later in the afternoon.
“Need a beer?” Nathan asked. He grabbed the bucket and headed for the porch, his club slung over his back. I followed and grabbed a beer out of the cooler he kept by the door. Hell, if he was having a beer this early, I may as well join. There wasn’t any sense to pretending to be a saint when we both knew I was happy to take it.
I cracked it open and sat on the porch, ready to just shoot the shit with him. I had to admit, it was nice just to sit down and chill out for a few hours. I didn’t have to do anything with the diner until morning, and without any other obligations hanging over my head, I could just spend the afternoon on the porch with him and not worry about the time.
“My mom said there are burgers in the fridge if we get hungry. I guess she had a barbecue with her boyfriend the other day and they didn’t use all the patties,” Nathan said.
“Does she want to join us?” I didn’t mind his mom, but she was always so elusive when I was around. Nathan didn’t live with her, but he did spend a lot of time there since his dad passed. His mother didn’t stay in any relationship very long, and Nathan often felt it was his job to make sure things around the house were taken care of.
“Nah, I think she’s out with friends or something. I saw her leave when I was getting the beer out of the fridge and I haven’t heard her get back,” Nathan said with a shrug. “She likes to get brunch on Sundays.”
“Probably at the diner,” I said with a grin. “Thank God, I managed to get out of working weekends.”
“Lucky. I wish I didn’t have to work Friday nights,” Nathan replied. “But no one else wanted the shift, and they pay better if you are willing to work the shittier hours.”
“Makes sense,” I said with a shrug. “But you should get out of that job and do something you really want to do.”
“Like what?” Nathan asked. “I’ve only got one arm, man.”
“That doesn’t mean that you’re doomed to work at a gas station your entire life,” I said. “Decide what you want to do and do it.”
“I want to be the leader of the Folded Flags,” Nathan said with a smirk.
“You can have the job when my dad gives it up then,” I said with a yawn. “I wouldn’t want to be the one to tell him that you’re gunning for the position, though.”
“He’d probably chop off my other arm,” Nathan joked grimly. I laughed, but I had to agree. That was something I could see my dad do, that was for sure.
“You know what? Let’s give Adam a call,” Nathan said. Adam was another mutual friend of ours. Unlike Aaron, Adam had been a friend of both Nathan and myself when we were in the service. Aaron and I had gotten close, but Adam was the one who had been friends with everyone.
“Alright,” I said. “I can’t imagine he’s doing anything with himself on a Sunday.”
He was another member of the Folded Flags, and I was happy to spend the rest of the day with him and Nathan. Nathan shot him a text, and within the hour, the man was on the porch with us, a beer in his hand.
“Think we can get through this entire thing?” he asked with a grin as he pulled the case of beer he’d brought out onto the porch. “It’s early enough.”
“Don’t tempt me,” Nathan said with a grin. “I’ve got to work at some point tonight.”
“You’ve got plenty of time,” I said with a laugh. “I’ve got to work first thing in the morning, so I already know I’m going to hate the fact that I’m day drinking.”
“You’re not that old,” Nathan said. “But then, like I just said, I know I’m going to hate myself, too.”
“I don’t have to work today or tomorrow,” Adam bragged. “So if you two sissies want to sit back and watch, that’s fine with me.”
He cracked open another beer and tipped it back, and both Nathan and I followed suit. I didn’t care if I was partially hungover the next day. I had learned to live in the moment. The day passed quickly, and we did end up grilling the burgers later in the afternoon.
We talked long into the evening, sipping on our beers and enjoying the drama-free company of being together. I didn’t even realize I was drifting off to sleep until I woke up to the sun shining on my face. There were several missed calls on my phone from my father, and Nathan was still passed out on the porch behind me.
Adam was gone, and I smiled, shaking my head. Of course, the one who didn’t have to work was the one who was up in time to actually make it to a job if he needed to. There was no point to waking Nathan. It was late enough in the morning he would have been too late for his shift, anyway. The gas station would just have to get over it.
I shot my dad a text as I dragged myself to my feet and headed around the side of the house toward my bike. I’d have to head straight to work, which was fine with me, but I already wasn’t looking forward to the lecture I was bound to get from my father when I got there.
One of the customers must have gotten a hold of him when I didn’t show up to open the place that morning. Enough people had his number it wouldn’t have been impossible for someone to tell him the diner was still closed and I was nowhere to be found.
Sure, it might be irresponsible of me, but there was a part of me that didn’t really care. Opening the diner late every now and then wasn’t going to be the end of the world. Or even the end of the business, for that matter.
He really needed to calm down – that was the one thing I wanted from him. Lay off and calm down.
I could manage my own life.
Chapter 12
Vanessa
“I understand that, and I’ll make sure that it’s done in time for you to approve whether you want it as is or need something changed before the wedding. Yes, I understand that. Yes, okay. Thank you, goodbye,” I hung up the phone with a sigh.
For as much as I loved my job, there were also times when it was hard dealing with the brides and their upcoming weddings. They wanted everything to be perfect – just as they had pictured it when they were a little girl – but they were also prone to changing their mind five or six times before the actual wedding took place.
While I didn’t mind changing up an arrangement to suit the new taste of a bride, the fact of the matter was that I didn’t always have time to make the last minute changes before the wedding date. This was especially true when I was trying to work around baby showers and funerals, as well.
But my boss insisted that we be as accommodating as possible, and unless there was truly no way for me to be able to fill an order, then I was supposed to take it and promise that I’d do my best. I always did my best, but days like today made me feel as though it didn’t matter what I attempted to do for these women, it wasn’t ever going to be good enough.
I sighed as I sat down on one of the benches outside, finally able to take a break. I’d have to talk to my boss when he got back from his lunch and tell him that our current bride had changed the color scheme of her roses. It shouldn’t be an issue…if he had the flowers in the greenhouse to replace the ones that she had already selected.
Of course, she hadn’t been thrilled with the extra fee, but I had no control over that. We were running a business, and if we were going to stay on top of our own expenses, we couldn’t be giving away flowers for free.
It had been such a hectic morning, I didn’t notice my father lingering about the shop until he suddenly appeared next to the bench. I had an orange in my hand – the only thing I was planning on eating for lunch, and I didn’t really want to try to eat it in front of him.
