“Hey,” he says, his voice rough. “What the fuck?”
I don’t look back, I just lean down and grip my purse. “I get it,” I say. ‘If you want me to leave, Spike, just say so. I didn’t expect anything more from you.”
Silence.
I slowly turn to see him staring at me, arms crossed, body rigid. “That all you fuckin’ think of me, huh? You think I’m just goin’ to fuck you and get rid of you?”
Wait. What?
“Aren’t you?” I say, my voice small.
“Nah, I fuckin’ wasn’t. I was savin’ your sweet ass, because if I shoved my cock inside you once more, you’d tear in fuckin’ two. Don’t mean I don’t wanna fuck you again, ‘cause it’s all I can fuckin’ think about. As usual though, you fuckin’ decide you know me better than I know myself and jump to conclusions before I get a chance to speak.”
Shit.
“I...”
“Get your fuckin’ ass over here.”
“But...”
His eyes grow heated. “Don’t fuckin’ argue, Ciara. Get in front of me. Now.”
“I didn’t mean to...”
“Ciara,” he growls. “Here. Now.”
Slowly, I begin walking toward him. I stop in front of his large, powerful form and peer up at him through a curtain of hair that has fallen over my eyes. He tangles his fingers in that hair, and moves it aside so our eyes are connected.
“You’ve had a lot to fuckin’ say to me over the past few weeks, and you’ve hardly let me get a fuckin’ word in. I’m goin’ to get my word in now. The past was fucked up, but the good thing about the past is that’s just what it is...it’s over, it’s finished.
“I made a lot of fuckin’ mistakes. One of those was never tellin’ you how I felt. You’re a stubborn, bull-headed woman and you can’t seem to take no for an answer, and it drives me fuckin’ bat shit crazy - but I can’t get enough of you. I don’t want to turn you away, even though I know it’s the best fuckin’ thing for you. Ain’t my place to choose who you fuckin’ love, and it sure as shit ain’t my place to decide how you see me.
“I can’t give you sweet things, and I can’t promise you nothin’. I’ve got a dangerous life, and until that life is sorted, I ain’t takin’ you as my Old Lady. I am gonna take you though, every fuckin’ night and day, ‘cause you belong in my bed.
“Now, you get a choice here. You can turn and walk out that door and let me go for good, or you can hang onto me, knowin’ that right now I can’t give you everything you want, but knowin’ that one day, that might change.”
Oh god. Those words, they’re what I’ve needed for so long. They’re everything I’ve been waiting for. I know Spike can’t promise me things, and I know right now I can’t be a great deal more than a good time, but fuck, I’m his good time and that’s fine by me. I throw myself at him, slamming into his body and sending us both stumbling backwards. With a grunt, he wraps his arms around me and pulls me close, crushing our bodies together until I can hardly breathe, but oh, I don’t care. I reach up, gripping his face and bringing his lips down over mine. He kisses me with need. With want. With desperation. With everything we want to say, but can’t.
“That a fuckin’ yes?” he growls, wrenching his lips from mine.
“It’s a fuckin’ yes.”
He chuckles, and leans down close again. “You little fuckin’ ripper.”
Damn.
Just damn.
CHAPTER 10
PRESENT - SPIKE
“You fuckin’ sure about this?” Cade asks, dropping a cigarette and crushing it out with his boot.
I glare at him. This fucker doesn’t get a say in what I do right now. He don’t get a fuckin’ say in my life at all. He’s here, because I need him. He owes me and he knows it.
I hate havin’ to use him, but I don’t get much of a choice. He’s the only one I have right now who can back me up if my boys get in the shit. We’ve got an unspoken agreement, and our clubs don’t have any problems with each other. Yet.
I light another cigarette. Fuck, I need to stop smoking. Honest to fuckin’ god, it’ll be this that kills me, I’m almost sure of it.
Cade narrows his eyes at me, I know what he’s thinking, but he’s not going to argue too heavily about it. He wouldn’t fuckin’ dare.
“I know what I’m doin’,” I growl at him. “Now you’re either with me, or you ain’t, but I will be fuckin’ doin’ this.”
“I have no fuckin’ doubt about that, Spike, but you need to be thinkin’ this through.”
“Fuckin’ have,” I snarl. “And it’s the best option.”
“This goes wrong again...”
“It won’t,” I bellow, storming toward him and gripping his shirt in my fists. I jerk him so hard his jaw snaps together. “You need to shut your fuckin’ mouth and decide if you’re on my side or not. If you are, then you do as I say; if you’re not, then fuck off.”
He grips my wrists, clenching them in his hands. I grind my teeth but don’t let go. “Get your fuckin’ hands off me,” he snaps. “And if you ever fuckin’ touch me again, I’ll bury you.”
I drop my hands and he shoves me, hard. I’m about to lunge back at him, when Granger comes out of the warehouse and gives me a stiff shake of the head. Fuck. I take a step back, giving Cade a look that tells him I won’t be takin’ his fuckin’ shit. He returns that look with fire in his eyes.