I giggled, feeling all silly and happy.

"See you soon, babe," I said, hanging up the phone. I started grabbing things quickly and throwing them into my backpack. Then I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and nearly screamed. My hair was all lank and flattened, I'd already washed off my makeup, and even my teeth felt grimy.

Like something out of a horror movie.

I darted across the hallway to the bathroom and brushed my teeth, then sprayed some dry shampoo into my hair and slapped on some lip gloss. Full makeup wasn't really an option at this point, but it was better than nothing. I dashed off a quick note for Cookie and crept quietly out of my room to the kitchen, where I propped it up on the table. I figured I'd email her, too, that should cover things well enough. Then I walked out into the living room to find one of the prospects, Gordie, on the couch watching TV.

p.i.s.ser. I'd been hoping he'd be asleep.

"What's up?" he asked, taking in my backpack and shoes.

"I'm going out," I told him brightly. Nothing to see here. "Don't worry about it."

He stood up immediately, fully alert.

"I have orders to keep all of you safe in the house."

"You don't get to make that decision," I told him, sounding far more confident than I felt. "I appreciate the concern, but I'm not a prisoner."

"I'm calling Deke."

"Fine, call him," I said, moving toward the door. Unfortunately, he was bigger than me and he blocked it. "Are we really going to do this? Like, are you actually planning to hold me prisoner in this living room?"

"If I have to," he told me, his voice grim. "Deke can decide."

Double p.i.s.ser.

I whipped out my phone and called Hunter.

"I have a situation," I told him. "They aren't gonna let me leave. Maybe we should just do this tomorrow ..."

Hunter growled through the phone.

"I'll be there in a minute," he said, "Wait! What do you mean?"

"I'm coming to get you. How many guys are in the house?"

"Just one," I said frantically. "But seriously, this could get ugly. Why don't I-"

There was a pounding on the door.

I locked eyes with Gordie.

"That's Hunter, and I don't think he's going away," I told him quietly. "Is this really worth a fight? Just let me head out, okay? You don't have a right to keep me away from him."

"Not my call to make," he said, shaking his head. "Deke's on his way. You sit tight and he'll decide how to handle this."

Hunter pounded the door again. s.h.i.t. I texted him.

ME: Deke is coming so I think you should just go home. We don't want a fight over this. Not now, when everyone is so touchy HUNTER: No f.u.c.king way. You're my old lady and you're coming home with me. They have a problem with it, I'll call in my brothers to help me I froze. That didn't sound good. Not at all.

ME: What about the truce? Wasn't that our first priority?

HUNTER: I've already claimed you in front of my club, you're my property now. If the Reapers won't let my old lady come with me, that's an act of war I read the words and felt sick. Had he lost his mind? Yes, I decided. He had. Apparently he was so tired and worn out he'd forgotten what really mattered here.

Keeping the peace for all our sakes.

ME: It's just one night babe. We'll get it sorted out tomorrow. You have too much to lose here HUNTER: No f.u.c.king way. I back down now it shows weakness. I'm not the one being unreasonable here Em. I just want to pick up my girl friend More pounding on the door. Gordie looked nervous, but he stood his ground, blocking me.

"Open up!" Hunter shouted outside.

ME: Is this really about us, or about you making some kind of point with Deke?

HUNTER: It started out about us. But him saying I can't see my woman? Thats a problem. Deke is pulling up now. We'll figure it out Sure enough, I heard a truck engine. Cookie wandered out into the living room wearing a man's bathrobe, rubbing her eyes.

"What's going on?" she asked, sleepily. "I have to be up at four. This better be important."

"I think we're having a contest to see who has the biggest d.i.c.k," I muttered, frustrated. "Hunter came to pick me up, but Gordie won't let me out and now Deke's here. I'm just waiting for them to start whipping out their rulers."

"Ridiculous," Cookie said. "Come with me."

I raised a brow.

"Kind of in the middle of something," I muttered. I heard Deke's voice out front, yelling at Hunter. s.h.i.t. If we didn't shut this down, someone was going to get seriously hurt.

"Come. With. Me." Cookie said, her voice harsher than I'd ever heard it. d.a.m.n. She looked almost scarier than Deke.

"Okay," I said, eyes darting toward Gordie. I followed her back to her bedroom, where Silvie lay sound asleep with her favorite stuffed animal tucked in next to her. Cookie made a "ta-dah!" kind of gesture, showing me the French doors next to her bed.

"You can go out there and sneak around the front," she said. "Just bypa.s.s them entirely."

I gaped at her and she shrugged.

"Why didn't I think of that?"

"Because hormones impair thinking," she said, rolling her eyes. "Go on. Get outside before they start shooting or something."

"Why are you helping me?"

"Because I'm sick of this s.h.i.t," she said, her voice blunt. "The Reapers don't own either of us. Deke has no right to keep you here and neither does your dad. Make your own decisions, Em. I miss Bagger every day of my life and I wish I'd spent more time with him. We just never know when it's all going to end, and life is too short to sit around waiting for a man. I still think it's a mistake to hook up with Hunter, but it's your mistake to make."

"Thank you," I whispered, giving her a quick hug. "I'll call you tomorrow."

"Good," she said. Then an evil smile crossed her face. "I know it's wrong of me, but I'm really looking forward to Deke losing for once. About time someone stands up to him."

I stifled a giggle as she turned off the alarm and opened the door. Then I ran quickly across the wet gra.s.s, feeling the cold seep into my pink Chucks. I crept carefully around the house to find Hunter and Deke in a standoff on the sidewalk.

Gordie watched from the porch, mesmerized.

"You can leave on your own or we'll make you, but you aren't taking Em with you," Deke was saying. "Not gonna happen."

Hunter bristled.

"She's my old lady now. She belongs with me."

G.o.d, it would be so much faster if they just did a side-by-side p.e.n.i.s comparison. I ran my eyes over Hunter, torn between wanting to lick his entire body and punch him in the face. Instead of doing either, I walked quietly to my car. I needed to time things perfectly. I took a deep breath and counted to three before opening the door, hopping into my seat, and sliding the key into the ignition, all in one smooth move. The car started right up (thank G.o.d!) and I slammed it into reverse, backing out into the street with a jolt.

Both men turned to stare at me, the surprise on their faces priceless.

I rolled down my window, foot poised on the accelerator.

"I'm leaving," I yelled at them. "Hunter, call me if you'd rather sleep with me than fight with Deke."

With that, I slammed my foot down and took off into the night.

d.a.m.n, that felt good.

"I'll strangle you if you ever pull something like that again," Hunter said, pacing back and forth across the hotel room we'd gotten. Under the circ.u.mstances, neutral ground seemed like a good idea.

Someone was grumpy.

"You could've gotten shot. I could've shot you. What were you thinking, sneaking around outside a house under guard?"

I leaned against the bathroom door frame, my arms crossed, and sighed heavily. This reunion had been nowhere near as fun as I'd pictured it. Sweet baby Jesus, but the man could pout.

"Maybe if everyone wasn't so trigger happy, this wouldn't be such an issue," I said, my voice tart. "Don't give me this s.h.i.t, Hunter. You caused a big scene because you weren't willing to wait a few hours to get things sorted out. Someone could've gotten hurt. Silvie could've gotten hurt. Don't we have enough to worry about from the cartel? I thought you wanted peace?"

He stopped pacing to snarl at me.

"G.o.dd.a.m.n, Em-whose side are you on? I've been going hard for four f.u.c.king days. I drove for six hours to get here and claim my woman, and I wasn't going to let some p.i.s.sant Reaper prospect keep her from me. You're mine now. I don't f.u.c.king share."

I took a deep breath, poised to rip him a new a.s.shole. Then it struck me-something was really wrong here. Hunter was usually so cool, always calculating. This was nothing like him, something else was going on here.

"You're overreacting," I said slowly and deliberately. "I hear what you're saying, but it's not making sense. This isn't like you. What happened?"

His face twisted, and he turned away from me, running a hand through his hair.

"Bad s.h.i.t, Em," he said finally. "I saw some bad s.h.i.t today. Did some bad s.h.i.t. I just needed to be near you, around someone clean and whole. He wouldn't let me have you."

Well, f.u.c.k. Now he looked all broken, and seeing this big, strong man so close to the edge made my insides twist. I still wanted to kick him, but I wanted to make him feel better even more. Hunter turned away, so I walked up behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist, pulling him back into me. My cheek rubbed against the red devil on the back of his cut, reminding me that I'd left my club behind for this man.

"You have me," I said into his back, letting go of my anger. I started running my hands up and down his stomach. I loved the feel of his hard muscles, but this was about more than sensation. He needed to realize how much I wanted him, how special he was to me. I tugged his shirt slowly out of his pants, trailing my fingers along his bare skin. Those amazing muscles of his tightened and he groaned.

"You don't have to tell me about it," I whispered, knowing he couldn't. "Just relax, okay? Let's just finish fighting tomorrow."

"Do we really have to fight?" he asked, sounding exhausted. "G.o.d, Em. You have no idea. No f.u.c.king idea at all ..."

s.h.i.t. What the h.e.l.l had happened?

I slid my hands lower and caught his fly, pulling apart the b.u.t.ton and sliding down the zipper. His c.o.c.k was still soft, something I'd never felt from him before, but instead of being disappointed I was curious.

I wanted to explore. Seeing as he clearly had something he needed to forget, now was the perfect time to satisfy my curiosity and distract him in the process. I rubbed his length gently through the soft fabric of his boxer briefs with one hand, using the other to lower his pants. He sighed, and I felt him stir to life. I continued my exploration, finding the head as it slowly hardened, running my fingers around the ridge ringing it.

"That's really good, babe."

"Then I must be doing it right," I murmured, wishing I were tall enough to kiss the back of his neck. "Let me make you feel good again, Liam. I want you to feel clean."

He reached down and caught my hand in his, pulling it away long enough to shove down his briefs. Then he was putting my hand around his c.o.c.k again, wrapping the fingers around his erection and using me to squeeze himself tighter than I would've dared on my own.

I moved my hand up and down, his length growing harder with every stroke. Then I slid my other hand up and under his shirt, savoring the ridges of his abdominals once more before finding his chest. His nipple.

I pinched it and Hunter inhaled sharply.

"Good?" I asked, the question a whisper.

"Very," he said. "Very f.u.c.king good."

"Just relax and enjoy. Let me help you."

He sighed heavily. Something had obviously gone terribly wrong, something I might never know the details of. But whatever it was, when he needed peace, he'd come to me.

I liked that idea very much.

Hunter's c.o.c.k was fully erect now. I kept playing with his nipple, working his c.o.c.k slow and fast alternately, exploring what seemed to give him the most pleasure.

After a few minutes he gasped, his hand catching mine again, jerking it up and down. Now it seemed almost as if he was using my touch to punish himself. I couldn't imagine something so rough could be anything but painful, but the groans coming from his mouth weren't unhappy.

"Christ," he muttered, reaching around with his free arm to grab me, pulling me hard into his body. The embroidery of his patches rubbed against my cheek. Would I ever have s.e.x with him fully naked?

Not at this rate.

His hips started pulsing forward involuntarily, and his hand around my back tightened. My arm was growing tired but I didn't care. I didn't really care about anything-all I wanted was to bring him some kind of relief.

Well, that's a lie.

I very much wanted his d.i.c.k in my body, but this was clearly working for him. He needed my touch more than I needed his, at least for the moment. Hunter gave a long, low groan and then I felt it hit. He came in a series of pulses that seemed to run along the bottom of his c.o.c.k. I slowed my hand, thinking I should stop, but he grasped me and kept moving.

All righty then.

I kept stroking him for another minute as his body shuddered and then relaxed against mine. Finally his hand dropped away and I let him go, wrapping both arms around his waist.

"You know, I'd planned for something a little more mutual," he said slowly. "Sorry. Just a s.h.i.t night. I'll get you off-"

"Don't worry about that right now," I said, still hugging him. "You're tired and I want you to rest. You'll need your strength for later, I think. Right?"

He gave a little laugh, turning around to face me, raising a hand to catch my hair in that way he seemed to like so much. His lips took mine, slow and sweet. Then he pulled away, rubbing his nose gently against mine.

"I hate to say it, but I'm about a minute away from pa.s.sing out, babe. Can we go to sleep? I need you all soft and sweet and wrapped around me."