“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. “God, Em. You have no idea. No f**king idea at all . . .”

Shit. What the hell had happened?

I slid my hands lower and caught his fly, pulling apart the button and sliding down the zipper. His 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**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**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**k was fully erect now. I kept playing with his nipple, working his 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 sex 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 dick 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 cock. 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 shit 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 passing out, babe. Can we go to sleep? I need you all soft and sweet and wrapped around me.”

“Sure,” I murmured. I pulled away, then considered the mess we’d just made. “Um . . .”

“I’ll clean it up,” he said quickly. “Just get ready for bed. I want to hold you—remember that night out behind the bunkhouse at your dad’s place? Aside from the part where you nearly killed me, that was one of the best nights of my life.”

“You also held me the night you kidnapped me,” I said, my voice dry. He shrugged.

“That was pretty good, too,” he admitted. “At least for me. But I figured you might have a different perspective . . .”

“You’ll make it up to me,” I told him, and I had no doubt of it. But not tonight.

My beautiful man needed rest, and he’d damned well get it.

HUNTER

I woke up to an empty bed.

Em had been so cute last night . . . First she jerked me off like a pro, and then she’d come to bed wearing one of my T-shirts, which I’d confiscated. Guess she didn’t have time to find any of those pretty presents I’d “given” her. Not that it mattered—I didn’t want anything between her skin and mine anyway. I slept surrounded by her warmth and smell and her hair all over my face, which should’ve been annoying but in reality kicked ass.

Her face wasn’t waiting for me when I closed my eyes, though. Nope, I saw the faces of my brothers right before I’d shot them. One of them had cried, begging for his life. The other sneered and flipped me off.

Two of our own, selling us out to the cartel.

It wasn’t the first time I’d killed for the club—but I’d never had to put down a brother like a dog before. I’d known there was dissension in the ranks and fully realized that there were men who’d do anything to keep us from making peace with the Reapers. I even understood their perspective, to a degree. We’d been in a cold war with the other club for close to twenty years. That made for a lot of bad blood.

But they’d gone beyond betrayal—this was treason.

Good men died because of what they’d done.

On the long drive up from Redding, I focused on Em. How much I wanted to hold her and smell her and absolutely not think of anything but her gorgeous body and the flash of her ice-blue eyes.

Then Deke and his pet prospect got in the way and I’d lost it.

Fuck.

I couldn’t believe how stupid I’d been. I hated to admit it, but Em had been right. What the hell was I thinking, risking the peace for one night? With any luck we’d have years together, something that definitely wouldn’t be happening if I started a new war with her dad’s club.

So f**king stupid . . . but at least one of us had kept her shit together. A reluctant smile crossed my face, because Em had saved my ass yet again. I heard the shower running in the bathroom, and I realized she must be in there, all slippery and wet. Ten seconds later I was on my feet, sliding back the curtain and stepping in behind her.

“Hey, baby,” I whispered in her ear. “I forgot to give you something last night.”

She gave a sexy little squeak as I slid my hands around her body, grasping her breast and reaching for her clit at the same time. Then she leaned into me and for the first time I got to explore her body without rushing.

Beautiful.

Of course, I knew every curve she had. I’d studied her pictures a thousand times, memorizing every inch of her skin and fantasizing about what I’d do to her, given the chance. The reality was better than my dreams. Way better. She was soft, but I felt the strong muscles underneath her curves. I knew she’d have endurance, and despite what she’d said to me that night in Coeur d’Alene, she’d already proven herself one hell of an old lady.

She said she didn’t want to follow orders.

Fine by me—I didn’t need to control her . . . I just wanted to sit back and watch her, try to figure out what made her tick and hold on for the ride. I knew she’d support me, but I also knew she’d protect me from myself. She’d already protected our clubs. Last night she’d done a better job than I had. I promised myself that I’d never pull that kind of bullshit on her again.

Hell, I should be following her lead, because she’d been smarter than me and Deke put together. Now that I’d cooled off, I could see the humor in the situation. Somehow she’d managed to bypass all of us, not exactly defusing the situation, but definitely ending it without violence.

So what if Deke was pissed? So far as I could tell, the man was permanently pissed. He hated the Jacks and had threatened to kill me more than once, so I wasn’t exactly crying over his hurt feelings. As for Em, she was under my protection now, so it didn’t really matter how frustrated he got. He’d be dealing with me from now on.

Em squirmed in my arms, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I reached down and slipped my fingers into her hot warmth, and she squeaked in my arms. Why the f**k was I thinking about Deke when I had a naked woman in my arms?

I swiveled Em in my arms, finding her mouth and sucking her lower lip into mine. Then I lifted her, carrying her out of the tub and setting her on the bathroom counter. My hand slipped between us, dipping into that sweet pu**y of hers.

So f**king hot and tight . . .

Em gasped against my mouth, giving me the opportunity to slip my tongue inside. Down below, I had two fingers up inside her now. She clenched around me, bringing back some mighty fine memories of her wrapped around my c**k the other night, when we visited my very favorite alley in the history of time.

She reached down and grabbed my dick, squeezing it hard like I’d taught her the night before.

Very nice.

Then she tried to guide me into her.

“Condom,” I managed to get out. “They’re out in the room.”

“Let’s go find them,” Em whispered, her blue eyes bright and hungry. Like I’d argue with that? She hopped down and tried to push past me, but I caught her, jerking her into my body for a long, hard kiss that left both of us gasping.

“Holy crap,” she muttered as I let her lips go. “How do you do that? Seriously, that was like a movie kiss or something.”

“Chemistry,” I told her. “Technique doesn’t even start to explain something this good.”

She gave me a wicked smile.

“Ooohh, I love chemistry. How ’bout you be the science teacher, and I’ll be the dirty girl who needs detention?”

EM

I tripped out of the bathroom, giggling as Hunter lunged after me. He caught me, lifting me high and throwing me down on the bed. Before I could catch my breath, he had me over his lap, one hand in the center of my back, the other sliding down between the cheeks of my ass.

I screamed, wiggling wildly.

“You said you needed detention,” he told me, his voice stern. “I’m just trying to be a good teacher.”

With this his fingers slid into me, deep. I stiffened at the invasion, then relaxed and sighed as he found my G-spot.

“That good?” he asked, rubbing my back up and down.

“Sure,” I muttered, letting my head fall forward on the bed. It felt more than fine, actually. His fingers kept working me, and then his second hand lifted and smacked my ass abruptly.

I squealed and tried to sit up, but he held me down tight. His thumb had found my clit, and now he worked me inside and out. I felt tension spiraling up, and I squirmed awkwardly. I wanted him inside me, damn it. Hunter had other ideas. His clever fingers kept going, pushing me closer to an orgasm.

Holy hell, that was nice.

“You like that?”

“Yeah,” I whimpered, twisting on his lap. “Like” wasn’t really the right word. I wanted him to go faster, harder. Instead he slowed down, teasing me with a low, satisfied laugh.

“Please,” I muttered, closing my eyes. “I need . . .”

Hunter smacked my ass again. I was so close now, something he must’ve sensed because he sped up again. My orgasm hovered, taunting me. I felt myself reaching for it, my legs stiffening. Hunter’s c**k was rock hard beneath me, and I realized with a thrill that after I came, I had another whole ride ahead of me.

That pushed me over the edge.

When I came, it hit so hard I clawed the bed, completely focused on the sensations taking over my body. Holy shit, that was incredible. I drifted through the aftershocks as he lifted me, laying me down on my stomach across the bed. I stretched out my arms, enjoying the feel of cool sheets beneath me as he stretched over me.

Hunter kissed his way slowly down my back, fingers trailing along the lines of my body until they reached my rear. My flesh knew the touch of his hands now, and when he slid his fingers back in, I sighed happily. Then his thumb edged up, lightly touching my ass**le, and I stiffened.

“Trust me, babe?”

I considered the question. I trusted him not to hurt me, but this? I wasn’t sure I was ready for this.

“It’s okay,” he murmured, kissing the small of my back. “Christ, I’ll never run out of ways I want to f**k you, believe me. If you don’t like one, we’ll move on.”

I sighed, then rolled over. Hunter nudged my knees apart, settling himself over my body as he smoothed a condom down over the length of his erection. I watched, mesmerized that something so large could fit inside me.