Colt dropped his hands from my face but made no move to step away. “And I—ah—came up here to apologize.”
“Why?”
“Because I was an ass.” He ran a hand across his stubbled jaw. “I haven’t lived with a woman since Joni. I’m not used to having someone in my space, not used to having someone ask me a bunch of questions.”
I looked down at the ground so he wouldn’t see the emotion that was still lurking just below the surface. “I’m sorry too.”
“What do you have to be sorry about?” he asked, his tone turning gruff.
“It was presumptuous of me. Just because you told me things about your past doesn’t make us friends. It doesn’t make us—well, anything more than what we are.”
“And what are we?” His voice was whisper soft now and I couldn’t stop the shiver that raced down my spine.
“Two people who can’t stand one another.”
His low chuckle caressed my skin. It took all of my courage to look up and meet his gaze.
“I think that would make us both liars, don’t you think?” His mouth slammed onto mine, holding me prisoner. His tongue was demanding and needy and it stroked against mine with insistent yearning.
He lifted me up and pushed me against the wall. I tried to open my legs, wanting to cradle his hardness, but the towel got in the way. He tore his mouth from mine, but only so that he could draw in a ragged breath, and then his lips were on my neck, biting and nipping.
My core throbbed and I was ready to lose the towel and beg Colt to take away the ache between my legs, to fill me up so I didn’t feel lonely.
I ran my fingers through the hair at his nape, marveling at the silky feel of it.
“Colt,” I whispered.
“God damn, Mia.” He pulled back. “Shit, did I hurt you? Your wrist.”
Shaking my head, I licked my lips, wanting to get his shirt off him so I could trace his ink with my tongue. I’d start at his knuckles and work my way across the entire canvas of his body. I wanted to spend hours drawing the lines and patterns, getting to know what made him tick, what made him lose control.
His eyes were glazed with desire and I was sure mine looked the same.
“I don’t pity you. You get that, right?”
“Hard to get that straight when you make me feel like a charity case,” I told him.
“Christ, I’ve wanted you since the moment I walked into Dive Bar and you sauntered your ass up to me, wearing those jeans that left nothing to the imagination.” He grinned. “It took all of my willpower not to lift you over my shoulder and cart you out of there.”
I could picture Colt doing just that and I found I really enjoyed the fantasy. To be handled by a man like Colt. To be treated like a woman—and to be the one who bore the brunt of his pleasure…
Colt’s lips came back to capture mine, but gentler, as if he had all the time in the world to seduce me. But I didn’t want slow; I didn’t want a chance to think. I wanted a moment to forget about all my worries and enjoy nothing but my time with him.
I knew I was acting desperate, but I didn’t care. I hadn’t known Colt long at all, but I wanted him anyway. It had been a while since I’d felt my body tighten and release from the pleasure that came from a partner.
Colt made a noise in the back of his throat—I wasn’t sure what it meant exactly, but I didn’t care because he continued to kiss me with blatant intent.
And then I heard the ringing of his phone.
With obvious reluctance, he released me and I slowly slid down until my feet were on the ground. He reached into his jeans and pulled out his cell. “Yeah?” Colt’s hand rested on the curve of my shoulder before pulling me to his side. His fingers dipped down across my shoulder blades, raising goosebumps along my skin.
“Okay,” Colt said. “We’ll be there in about half an hour.” He hung up and shoved his phone back in his pocket.
“Half an hour?” I asked, looking up at him with amusement. “That doesn’t give us a lot of time.”
He let out a low chuckle. “You have about five minutes to get dressed and then we’ve got to get to the clubhouse.”
I didn’t want to go to the clubhouse. I wanted to finish what Colt and I had started in the hallway.
“What’s at the clubhouse?” I asked.
“Your friend.”
I frowned. “Shelly?”
He nodded.
“Why is she there?”
“I had Zip talk to her and tell her you were okay, that you were with us. She seems to think we kidnapped you.”
“What!”
“She showed up at the clubhouse threatening to call the cops if she didn’t get to see you with her own two eyes.” His lips curled in amusement. “Time’s a tickin’, darlin’. Get dressed so you can call off your friend.”
Shelly jumped off the bed in one of the clubhouse bedrooms and immediately came to me. She placed a hand on my shoulder and then another on my chin to turn my face so she could see the scratch on my cheek. And then she saw the cast on my wrist. “Oh my God! What the hell happened to you?”
“Long story,” I evaded. I waved away her hand, hating the fuss she was making.
Colt hovered in the doorway, refusing to leave.
“Can we have a minute? Alone?”
“No,” he said.
“We need a minute.” I paused. “Please?”
Colt’s dark brown eyes surveyed me and then went to Shelly. Finally, he nodded and then left the room, closing the door behind him.
As soon as he was gone, Shelly dragged me over to the bed and forced me to sit down.
“Whose room is this?” I asked.
“I dunno. Some guy named Boxer. They took my phone,” Shelly said with a scowl. “I haven’t been able to call Mark. You were supposed to be on your way to Coeur d’Alene. Now you’re wearing a cast, your cheek is scratched, and you’ve taken up with bikers.”
“I haven’t taken up with bikers,” I muttered.
“Liar. I’ve known you since we were kids. I can tell when you’re lying.” She glanced at the door. “Don’t you remember what I said? This is exactly what not to do.”
I kept silent, knowing the last thing I needed was Shelly freaking out on me when she found out I was staying with Colt and that I was close to jumping into his bed.
“Mia? What’s going on?” she asked. “You have to tell me.”
“I don’t want you getting mixed up in all of this.”
“Mixed up in what? Richie’s crap?”
“Yeah, Richie’s crap.”
“I texted the entire staff and we didn’t show up for our shifts. I drove by Dive Bar and it was closed. I start working at a nail salon next week, answering phones and making appointments.”
“Good. That’s good.” I breathed a sigh of relief. “I had plans to leave town. I swear I did.” I proceeded to tell her about the motorcycles in my neighborhood and then my middle of the night flight to safety.
“You slept on the steps until they woke you up?” she marveled. “Wow.”
I nodded. “They’ve been really—ah—nice to me.”