Thoughts slipped from my head as I let the pleasure and joy of Dryerson’s touch take me away, following him on this ride.
Dryerson’s lips were so soft yet demanding. The taste of him exploded, my eyes closed, and I was lost. Totally lost in him. My fingers threaded through his long blond hair. It was so thick, and I gripped it hard, not letting him move from me.
In that moment, I thought I’d die if he left my lips. It was how bad I wanted him. How much I wanted to be right where I was. This man could take me to a place where nothing else mattered, and it was only him and me. No worries. No thoughts, just us. A place I loved living, but didn’t deserve to.
With one of his hands on my neck, his other rubbed up and down my back in this soothing motion, making me want to melt in a puddle on the floor.
He had this intense effect on me, which was why I didn’t want to be alone with him—he could undo me. He was undoing me. From a kiss.
Katie! An inner voice started screaming in my head. I ignored it, but it didn’t stop putting everything in focus.
I was kissing Dryerson in a room, with a bed.
Using my fingers, I gripped his hair and pulled him back away from my lips, which was very difficult, but some part of my brain had kicked in.
We were both breathing hard.
“Katie, don’t pull away,” he said low.
Tears formed in my eyes, and I placed my forehead on his chest, listening to our breaths evening out. I wouldn’t cry. No, I couldn’t cry.
I inhaled him.
Inside my heart squeezed and began to crack into little bits, falling off one at a time. He was a reminder of what I couldn’t have, and it hurt.
“We can’t do this,” I whispered into his chest.
“Yeah, babe. We can and we are.” His hand came to my chin, and he lifted until our eyes connected. I knew there were tears still in my eyes; there was no way to hide it.
“You don’t get it,” I said, shaking my head.
“Then fuckin’ talk to me. Tell me what’s goin’ on in that head of yours, and stop ignoring me.”
I wanted to tell him. Talk to him. Maybe figure something out, but the problem was I really didn’t know how to, nor did I know exactly what my problem was. I was wrapped in a big ball of confusion and guilt. Those two were not a good combination.
It was something I had to work out on my own, though. Right? I just wanted to scream at the top of my lungs in hopes of expelling every thought, problem, and situation I’d ever been in.
“I can’t do this right now, Dry. I’m sorry,” I whispered, not lifting my head to meet his eyes. Something told me I didn’t want to see whatever was floating around in them. It would only make pulling away from him worse.
A knock came to the door, and it was very low, so I knew it had to be the birthday girl. She’d just earned herself a Branch costume in the future.
My head came up as I heard, “Annee Kadee!!! Comes out!” screamed though the door. I let out a little chuckle as Dryerson sighed heavily.
Lifting my head, I met his eyes, and I was right. I didn’t want to see what was swirling in them. Not taking another second to get lost in his beautiful blue orbs, I reached for the handle and maneuvered so I could open the door.
Remy, or should I say Poppy, stood there with her hands on her hips and a curious look on her face as she took in Dryerson and me.
“Was youz kissn’?”
Dryerson burst out laughing as I felt like rolling my eyes. Instead of answering, I bent down to eye level, and asked, “What’s up, bug?”
“I needs help takin’ my pesents to my oom.”
She was something else. “Of course. I’ll help. Let’s go.”
“We’re not done here,” Dryerson commented as I started to walk through the door holding Remy’s hand.
“We never are,” I whispered so softly I didn’t think he heard me, but after a few steps down the hallway he murmured, “Yeah, we never will be.”
4
DRYERSON
“Damn, man. Thought you had more game than that,” Micah chided me as I stepped out of the room. I should’ve punched him for the interruption.
“And you couldn’t help your kid carry shit to her room?” Remy was holding Katie’s hand, going down the hallway ahead of us.
One word: adorable. Loved seeing those two together.
Micah chuckled, slapping me on the shoulder and giving me a solid shake. “That was actually Remy. I didn’t have shit to do with the interruption. But it’s funny as fuck.”
“Real fuckin’ funny,” I grumbled, my easy mood slipping. Katie had been avoiding me for months now, and this was the first time we were in the same place where I could get to her. I had to make my move. No way in fuck I’d let it slip.
Thing was I loved Remy, and anything she wanted she got. Even if it was taking Katie from me at an intense time.
“Come on. Cruz wants to talk with us out back.”
Prospect. That was my official title in the Ravage Motorcycle Club. Pretty much the bitch of the group, cleaning and doing all the shit the guys didn’t want to do. But I didn’t care about that. What I cared about was how they took my brother Micah’s back.
They were there for him. They were his family. They welcomed him into the fold. They welcomed me into the fold.
Being in the Marines, I strived for order and unity. I loved having structure but still being free to do whatever in the fuck I wanted. Going back to the small town I grew up in wasn’t an option for me. The Ravage MC gave me that structure and unity in more ways than one. The sense of belonging, and just like the Marines a brotherhood of men who stood up for me.
Seeing the same for Micah, it made me want to become a member of the Ravage MC too. I needed that connection, and by prospecting I’d found it.
“You know what’s goin’ on?” I asked him as we made our way through the craziness that was my niece’s Trolls. True, she wasn’t biologically mine, but I claimed her. The Trolls, on the other hand, were insane.
One time I babysat Remy, and she dressed me up like a Troll. I forgot the damn name, but I do remember her putting her makeup on me, that I later found out was her mother’s … oops. She teased my hair so it stood straight up. How a child that age knew how to tease hair, I had no idea, but she did. Getting it tamed back down, that was a whole adventure in itself.
There were actually pictures around here somewhere that Micah had taken when he got home. Both he and Ensley laughed their asses off, until Ensley found out it was her makeup. Remy and her mom had a little chat, but like always the little one kept on smiling.
I had to use a shit ton of conditioner to get all the rats out of my hair, but as long as Remy was happy, it was all that mattered.
“Fuck if I know,” he answered as we stepped through the sliding glass doors and into the backyard. I pulled the door shut behind us.
All the men were here standing around talking. Most had a bottle of beer in their hands. Many were lighthearted, giving each other shtick.
“Good,” Cruz said, commanding everyone’s attention. He had that way about him. One word and we all listened. I had no doubt it was the same way when he was an active Marine. It also gave he and I a different kind of brotherhood together. Once a Marine always a Marine.