THE OUTLAW’S BRIDE Page 54

  He looked at Fiona. After listening to her snap at him all night long, she was so peaceful now as she slept in his arms, but Ace needed to return to the gang and give them instructions to set up surveillance on Alexei.

  He moved slightly, trying to pull his arm out from under her, but she only held onto him tighter.

  “Ace…” Fiona sleepily whispered. “Stay, please.”

  Ace doubted Fiona even knew she was talking, let alone what she was saying, but for once in his life, Ace did as he was told. He carefully sat up, making sure not to wake Fiona as he stripped off his shirt.

  Lying back down, Ace gathered Fiona in his arms once more, smiling as he drifted off to join her in dreamland.

  Chapter 5

  Ace awoke suddenly. He looked around wildly, searching for whatever had woken him so abruptly. He didn’t recognize where he was, but then that wasn’t uncommon for him. The beginnings of morning light filtered through the curtains, softly illuminating the room. Ace looked down next to him and saw a mass of brown hair that seemed to have exploded during the night.

  Last night! Ace remembered frantically.

  Memories came flooding back to him: Fiona and her friend walking into The Crabtree; realizing Fiona was about as far from a biker babe as you could get; kissing her in the back office, feeling her kiss him back; feeling her wrap her arms tight around him as she rode on the back of his Harley; lapping at her sweet pussy from behind as he gripped her perfect ass.

  Ace felt his cock begin to stir once again as he remembered eating Fiona out. Never had he known a woman could taste so good. He thought he could have her breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and still be hungry for dessert.

  He started to slowly inch his way down the bed, thinking he could wake Fiona up by having some breakfast in bed. Ace gently slid the sheet down her naked body, growing harder by the second.

  Fiona shifted, murmuring in her sleep. Ace froze; after an entire night of eating the girl out, that was how he wanted to start his day?

  Ace was not what Katie, or any of the other women he’d been with, would call a generous lover. Of course he was always willing to help get a lady going, but even Ace would agree: he was never overly concerned with who finished first, as long as he got to finish.

  So, spending that much time face-first in a vagina was more than a little odd for him.

  Why did I do that last night? Ace wondered, staring at the beige carpet on Fiona’s floor. She’s supposed to fuck me for help with Alexei, not use me as her personal vibrator! She manipulated me! Deep down, he knew that wasn’t true. He had been the one to initiate things with her. He had been the one to set her up on the counter; hell, he had practically thrown himself to his knees to get to her. If the gang had seen him, they would have said he was whipped, which he was most certainly not.

  Ace stood up angrily, not caring if he woke Fiona. He hurriedly put on his pants, quickly followed by his socks and shoes. He grabbed his shirt, throwing it on as he walked into the living room.

  Ace refused to look at the kitchen, secretly afraid that if he saw the countertop it would cause him to run back into Fiona’s bedroom and dive beneath the covers head first. He stormed to the door and ripped it open, slamming it behind him. A moment later, he had started his bike and was roaring down the street, headed for downtown, letting the wind blow his thoughts away.

  He killed the engine as he pulled up; everyone in The Hell Brothers was a heavy sleeper, usually passing out versus actually going to sleep, but Ace wanted to be especially careful of waking a certain someone.

  The Hell Brothers—most of them, anyway—lived in a large, decrepit house that had about a million things on its to do list. Katie slept in Ace’s bed more nights than not, but he doubted he would find her there now. Worse, he was surprised to find he wasn’t all that upset about it.

  He had been rocking at least a quarter-staff for the last twelve hours, yet he had zero desire to go upstairs and find Katie and convince her to help him take care of it. He considered jerking off, but that felt incredibly juvenile. Plus, Ace had a strong suspicion that even if he did handle it himself, it was the sort of hard-on that could only be solved by burying it into the hot, sweet pussy of a fiery woman.

  He had complicated things for himself by leaving so abruptly, he realized. Fiona was most likely going to be more than a little upset that he had bailed on her. She had worried that he was going to fuck her and leave, and that was pretty much exactly what he had done. He cursed at himself. Fucking idiot! The whole point was to get Fiona to give herself up willingly to him; that was the only way this thing with Alexei was worth it. He seriously doubted she would be so willing when she woke up alone this morning.

  Ace adjusted the front of his pants and walked into the house. He went up the stairs, cringing at every squeak the wooden floorboards made. Taking a peek through the door crack, Ace saw his bed was empty. Good. He hurriedly kicked off his shoes and climbed into bed, sighing with relief. He needed sleep. Sleep would make things clearer. Ace was just a little confused right now, but a good night’s rest would put him right back on top, where he belonged. He was sure of it.

  Ace rolled onto his side, punching his pillow to flatten it out. This made his elbow uncomfortably dig into the bed, so he flipped onto his stomach. This wasn’t good either—now he felt like his airflow was restricted. He lay on his back again; it was how he usually slept. But no matter what he tried, he could not remember how he positioned his hands. Everything seemed awkward and wrong. He tiredly wondered if someone had stuck a green bean under his pillow, or whatever that old fairy tale was.

  He lay there, tossing and turning, waiting for the sleep that never came. He listened as the house began to slowly wake and move around him.

  Ace heard Smalls in the room next door get up, heading to spend his habitual twenty minutes in the bathroom before going downstairs to make a giant pan of hash browns and sausage. It was first come, first served, and Ace was always served first, but this morning he had no appetite.

  There was a loud knock on the door.

  “Go away!” Ace called as he stared at the ceiling, his hands behind his head.

  The door opened anyway, and Ace mentally cursed never having gotten around to putting a lock on it.

  “Where the fuck have you been all night?” Katie stood at the foot of his bed, one hand on her hip.

  Ace audibly groaned. “Can we not do this?” he begged her. “I got no sleep.”

  “Gee, I wonder fuckin’ why,” she said with a mocking innocence. “Could it be because you spent the whole night dick-deep in some cager?” A biker term for a person who drove a car.

  “You know, you sound like a real bitch when you’re jealous, Katie,” Ace said, not bothering to ask her how she knew Fiona and Melanie had been lying. He sat up on his elbows to glare at her. This was an old fight of theirs, and an exhausting one, in Ace’s opinion. It was getting worse and worse every time, and Ace was starting to have trouble justifying them.

  Is what I have with Katie worth tiring myself out over and over again over a situation that will never be resolved? It obviously wasn’t worth enough to him that he was willing to give up other women, or he would have by now. Think of the gang, he reminded himself.

  Whatever he decided about Katie, today wasn’t a good day for fighting. Today, he had to tell The Hell Brothers that they would be going after Alexei. It wasn’t something he was looking forward to.

  Figuring he might as well get the worst of it over with, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood up to face Katie. “I’ve decided we’re going after Alexei,” he told her as he pulled on his jeans.

  She went still, her beautiful face rigid with shock. Ace knew the shock would soon wear off and become anger.

  “You’re doing what?” she cried disbelievingly.

  There it is, Ace thought, amused. He carefully constructed a confused look on his face. “What?” he asked innocently. “I’m just doing what you suggested. Last night at The Cr
abtree you said we needed to do something about Alexei. I decided you’re right.”

  Katie stared at him. “I said we needed a plan! I didn’t say we get ourselves killed!” she hissed.

  “I got a plan,” Ace said distractedly, searching for a semi-clean shirt in the various piles of clothing on the floor. Finding one, he pulled it over his head. “We go after Alexei.”

  “That’s not a plan, Ace! What’s going on?” she accused, suddenly suspicious. “Last night you were preaching safety and precaution, and now you’re talking about…” Katie stopped abruptly. “Does this have something to do with that girl? What were you two talking about the back office? If you were talking, that is,” she added derisively.

  Ace gave Katie a hard look. “Did you forget what fucking patch you were wearing?” he asked viciously.

  Striding over to her, Ace grabbed Katie by the elbows, pushing her back until she was pressed up against the wall. He turned her around roughly, ripping her leather vest off one arm at a time. Ignoring her protests, he spun her back to face him, shoving the vest in her face.

  Katie shoved her hair out of her eyes to see The Hell Brothers patch staring right at her. Ace’s finger was meaningfully pointed at the empty space near the top. Wrenching his own vest from the back of the door, Ace showed Katie his patch.

  “Right fucking there, Katie,” Ace said, pointing at the word Leader stamped across it. “I’m the leader, not you. That means I make the decisions, and I don’t have to tell you jack shit why, got it?” Ace crept close, his thrice broken nose inches away from Katie’s proud, straight one. “You let me know next time you need a reminder,” he threatened.

  Thinking that was that, Ace stormed his way down the stairs, hoping he would be able to still get some sausage. He realized he was starving. So focused on the food was he, that he never noticed Lucky stealthily creeping out of Riley’s room.

  Ace walked into the kitchen. All of the pots and pans were empty, and everyone at the table looked well-fed. He pouted, thinking of the missed food, and his stomach grumbled.

  Someone tapped Ace on the shoulder and he turned around. It was Smalls, holding a plate full of sausage, hash browns, and scrambled eggs. Ace couldn’t help it; he hugged Smalls, his arms barely fitting around the large man’s middle.

  “Easy there, boss,” Smalls laughed, patting Ace on the back with a meaty paw. “I made sure to keep some on the side for ya.”

  Ace sat down, shoveling the food in his mouth. A shadow fell over him and he looked up. It was Katie.

  “Can I eat first?” he asked her, irritated.

  “Absolutely,” Katie said, patting him on the back. Ace eyed her, dubious, but went back to eating.

  “Hey, everyone,” Katie called loudly. Ace swore, throwing down his fork. “Ace’s busy eating, but he wanted me to tell you all that we’re going to be attacking Alexei and the Russian mob. With no plan!” she added brightly.

  Immediately, the kitchen broke out into anarchy.

  Diego whooped loudly. “Dios mio, finally!” he cried.

  “Is that a good idea?” Smalls asked fretfully. “Alexei and his men outnumber us almost two to one.”

  Ace glared at Katie. “Was that really fucking necessary?”

  “Yes, Ace!” she exclaimed. “It’s necessary for your gang to know what’s going on! Especially if you’re counting on them to have your back!”

  He let out a half groan, half growl, and stood. “All right!” Ace roared over the din, standing on his chair to silence the crowd. A dozen pairs of eyes turned to stare at him. “Yes,” Ace said with conviction. “Last night I decided enough is enough! It’s time for Alexei and his mob to go back to Mother Russia.” He looked around, making sure to look each and every one of them in the eye. “They think this is their territory, and I think it’s time to show them otherwise.”

  Katie scoffed loudly, but no one heard her. They were too busy listening to Ace.

  “Some of you are scared. You’re worried Alexei is too strong for us.” He glanced at Katie, who scowled at him in return. “I’m here to tell you that when it came down to it, going after Alexei was an easy decision to make. That’s how much faith I have in us, in The Hell Brothers,” Ace continued, his voice rising in both pitch and volume. He punched his palm with his fist, emphasizing his words. The members began to excitedly press closer to him. “We, who were born in hellfire! We walk through life with the Devil on our right, and Death on our left! We are The Hell Brothers, and we will burn all those who stand in our way!” Ace was shouting with all his might; the crowd had worked itself into a frenzy.

  Despite the fact that it was ten in the morning, bottles of whiskey and cans of beer immediately began to get passed around, everyone cheering to Alexei’s imminent end, and the inevitable rise of The Hell Brothers.

  Ace hopped off of the chair, shaking hands and clapping backs with his members, promising to celebrate with them soon. He tried to slip out, but Katie caught him at the front door.

  “I couldn’t help but notice you didn’t mention any sort of plan, or the fact that the reason you changed your mind about Alexei is because of a cager,” she said matter-of-factly.

  “Why don’t you go tell them,” Ace said, shrugging on his leather jacket. “You seem to enjoy talking about shit you don’t understand.” He was rapidly losing patience with Katie and her jealous attacks on him. How did she expect a man like him to be faithful to one woman?

  His father hadn’t been; in fact, the first time his father had ever beaten his mother was because his mother just wouldn’t leave his father alone about the other women he was seeing. Ace knew he wasn’t a good man, but Katie was lucky he was a better one than his father had been—barely. Ace didn’t presume to think murderers ranked much higher than woman beaters in the eyes of God.

  “If I don’t understand something, then why don’t you fucking explain it to me,” Katie shot back.” Katie could not for the life of her grasp why leaders always thought they were protecting people by keeping them in the dark. No matter what Ace had said in the kitchen, she didn’t think he had very much faith in them at all if he couldn’t tell them what was going on.

  “Look, Katie. I don’t have time for this right now,” Ace said, pulling on his boots. “I’ll be back later.”

  “Oh, you don’t have time to hash out a real plan with us, but you have time to spend all night with some civilian?” Katie asked bitingly.

  “Enough!” Ace bellowed. The party in the kitchen died down for a second, startled by the outburst, but then immediately resumed. “Not that you deserve to fucking know, but I’m going to get some intel on Alexei. We can’t make a plan without any information.” He threw open the door, pausing to look back at Katie, who stood with her arms folded and her eyes pointed at the floor. Ace sighed, the anger rushing out of him. “I know you’re just trying to help, Katie. But you are so far up my ass, I can’t even sit down to ride my bike. I’ll be back later and we can talk plans then.”

  Katie stepped forward, and Ace unconsciously pulled away from her. He knew she wanted a kiss, but he was feeling less than affectionate right now.

  “I’ll be back later,” he repeated as he hurried out the door, slamming it firmly shut behind him.

  ***

  As the morning came and went, the bright afternoon sun slowly began to make its way across the sky, filtering through the tiny crack in Fiona’s pale blue curtains, beaming straight through her eyelids.

  Fiona stirred, the shining light disrupting her sleep. She opened her eyes and immediately regretted it. It felt like her corneas had been burned away with a hot poker. Her head throbbed, and she groaned aloud.

  “Uhhh….” Arduously pushing herself into a sitting position, Fiona took stock of her surroundings.

  She was in a dark room. Fiona pushed her hair out of her face. The whole place instantly brightened and took shape. She was in her bedroom.

  Breathing a sigh of relief, she carefully stood up, one hand to her aching head. She
didn’t think she drank that much last night, but apparently the Hawg Ear was so named because your tongue felt like one the next morning.

  “Ace?” Fiona called, wincing at the volume of her own voice.

  She reached behind her to grab the top sheet, wrapping it around her naked body as she shuffled over to the bathroom door. Fiona knocked gently, but the door wasn’t shut and swung open—no one was inside.

  He’s probably in the kitchen, Fiona figured.

  After a night like that, who wouldn’t be hungry? She was ravenous, which meant Ace was to the point of starvation. Unfortunately, if he was trying to scrounge up something to eat, he was going to find himself shit out of luck. Fiona’s fridge was practically empty.