Rise to Power (Motorcycle Club Romance) (Dead Men Motorcycle Club) Page 2

  “Oh, his majesty and the queen bee?” I asked mockingly. “Yeah, I’m glad they’re gone. North Cali has handled its own shit for a long time and we don’t need them snooping around and trying to change the way we do things.”

  “Damn right,” he said. “Jarhead is all riled up by something Cash said to him about doing a good job. Everybody knows he was just being polite, but he’s got it into his head that San Viero is practically fighting alongside us, even if we never see anyone from down south here again.

  “Yeah, well,” I said, “Things change. They always do.”

  “We’ll see,” he said. “Listen, you two want to come out for some late dinner?”

  I could tell that Marty was about to accept on our behalf, but I intercepted him.

  “Sorry,” I told him, “We were just talking about heading home. Got a lot of shit to take care of tomorrow.”

  “Yeah, alright,” he said, turning to Marty for a quick handshake. “I’ll catch you tomorrow, bro. Ten o’clock, alright?”

  He got up from the table and headed back towards where Gina was standing. I watched him go in silence, waiting until I was sure he couldn’t hear a thing before returning to our conversation.

  “What’s at ten?” I asked.

  “Jarhead wants me and Rik to head over to that warehouse near the quarry. Says there’s still a stash of the old guns there that we can use tomorrow night,” he explained.

  “Perfect,” I said, watching his expression of confusion appear just as I knew it would. “You know why Mako can take out the Dead Men whenever they want?”

  “Because they’ve got the firepower,” he said.

  “Exactly. And that’s the same way you’re going to start taking over around here. When you get that firepower tomorrow, you’re never letting go.”

  I stood up from the table and he followed suit. He was tall and strong – two things that kept me with him no matter how often he embarrassed me with stupid questions or juvenile behavior. He stared at me like he was waiting for a sign as to what he should do next. I started walking towards his bike and he followed close on my heels.

  I smiled to myself, hoping that nobody would notice my rare grin. Things were going to change around here, alright. The first step was following behind me with those big brown eyes. It was time to turn this puppy dog into a killer.

  CHAPTER 3

  MARTY AND I SHARED a small apartment in a part of town where there isn’t much choice in the matter. I’ve never been under the impression that we’d have a luxurious lifestyle, but sometimes it gets to me. I love feeling that a man can provide for me, and a one bedroom hole in the wall just doesn’t always cut it. When we went home that night, I knew it was time to start turning things around. I took one look at that apartment and realized that the only way out was to make Marty into the man of my dreams.

  Marty headed for the kitchen as soon as we got in the door. I cut him off quickly, wanting to make sure we avoided the standard practice of drinking too much and falling asleep. If I was going to turn things around, there was no reason to delay.

  “Hang on,” I called to him, and he poked his head out of the kitchen a moment later. “Come in here.”

  He gave a short longing look at the refrigerator before joining me on the couch in the living room. I just had to keep reminding myself that the whole point of this was to turn him into the kind of man who wouldn’t need to be led around like this.

  “Alright,” I told him, “If we’re going to do this, you have to understand what it means. No matter how well it goes, Jarhead’s going to see nothing but betrayal. He’s an egomaniac to the core, and he’d never give up the club willingly.”

  “You’re right about that,” he agreed. “I kind of figured he’d be in charge until he died.”

  “The way things are going, he’d only be in charge until everybody else died,” I retorted. “We’re going to show them a better way. Even though we’re doing this the nice way, we’re still going to need those weapons.”

  “I’m not sure how you expect that to happen,” he said, rubbing his chin. “Rik’s going to be with me the whole way. After we pick up the weapons, we’re supposed to bring them right back to the clubhouse.”

  “Then Rik is our first target,” I told him. “You’re just going to have to convince him of our cause. I know he and Jarhead have been friends a long time, but that doesn’t mean he won’t see reason.”

  “How do I convince Rik to betray his best friend?” he asked. “I mean, I hardly know the guy.”

  “You’re going to have to step up and be a man is how, Martin,” I told him. Using his full name somehow felt strange but good. Part of me felt like I was behaving like his mother. Another part of me loved the serious image that the name conjured in my mind, though.

  He lowered his eyes, seemingly ashamed. That was no good. I needed him fired up, not depressed about his personality defects. I had to snap him out of it quick.

  I pushed myself closer to him on the sofa. “Martin,” I told him, “you can do this. You’re strong – stronger than any man I’ve ever known. You just need to show Rik that you can be the man you are inside. I want to see that man, too.”

  I put my hand on this thigh and felt his muscular leg through his worn and beaten jeans. If there was one area that Martin wouldn’t need to work on, it was his physique. Maybe he just typified the “big and dumb” archetype, but it didn’t matter to me. He was built like a brick house and I loved every piece of him. Part of what had been so hard on me was watching that powerful, masculine man wilt away under the orders of that dangerous maniac who called himself our leader. When I met him, Martin was capable and confident. With my help, I knew he could find himself once more.

  I ran my hand up his pant leg, feeling an immediate tightening of the fabric as his body reacted to my presence. I saw the first spark of that old fire in his eyes at that moment. He slowly removed his jacket, his eyes locked on mine as my hand inched its way further up his inseam. He laid the leather jacket with the patch of the Dead Men aside carefully before reaching out for me. Where his hands touched my arms, I could feel that old strength I loved so dearly. The man was awakening inside of him.

  We moved together and my lips parted as we touched, instantly locked in a kiss that felt better than it had in years. His body was warm beneath my touch, excited and thickened in all the right places. I let my hands explore him, reconnecting with muscles that I’d taken for granted for so long. He was more than just a piece of meat, but at that moment I wanted to treat him like one. More than that, I wanted him to treat me the same. I wanted him to take me as only a true man can take a woman.

  The surge of energy crept into his limbs and he pressed me down against the armrest of the couch. It was an awkward position, but it didn’t matter. His desire and his renewed vigor were all I needed to get in the mood. His body pressed against mine and I took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of him. He was smoke and rubber and danger. He was the smell of freedom and power. Beneath him, I felt small, but never unimportant. The way he focused his attention on me, I was the center of the world. Every kiss and every caress was carefully designed just for me. Our bodies fit together like a perfect work of craftsmanship – a work of art.

  The pressure and the excitement were too much for me, and I knew I had to have him right away. I reached down and hiked my skirt up. I hadn’t even gotten my shoes off, but it didn’t matter. I kicked my leg up on the back of the sofa and breathed heavily, waiting for him to take me. I could feel the warmth spreading through my body, making my limbs shiver with anticipation.

  Martin didn’t miss a beat. He kneeled back on the sofa and his hands went to his belt buckle. I watched in rapt fascination as he tossed his belt aside and started in on his pants. When he pulled them down to his knees and his manhood appeared between us, it hung there the way a baseball bat seems to float in midair in the moment before contact. His hands went to my knees and he spread my legs apart. I reached down and pulled my pantie
s aside, giving him unrestricted access to me. Even at his best, Martin had never taken me like this. He was a wonderful lover, but it had always been about tenderness and care. This was something else entirely.

  “Take me, Martin,” I begged him. “Make me your woman again.”

  He pushed himself forward and I gasped at the point of impact. My body reacted immediately, heaving itself uncontrollably forward against him. I raised my hands above my head and gripped tightly to the side of the couch. Without delay, he began working into a steady rhythm as his body pushed against mine. Every time he entered me, I shuddered with pleasure, begging him for more. Every time I pushed back against him, I could feel his solid muscles tensing against mine, barely able to contain the raw power and lust that had been building in them for so long.

  He grunted with his thrusts. Staring directly into my eyes – which were wide with pleasure and nearly insensible with lust – he growled softly at me. It was a low, animal thing that I knew had come from a part of him I had been trying to unlock.

  “You won’t be my woman,” he said, “you’ll be my queen.” He thrust himself roughly into me again and again until the warmth that had been growing inside me erupted across my body. I tore at the sofa with my nails, grinding myself against his tightly muscled body and thinking only of him. I gasped for relief as I shuddered beneath the weight of my incredible climax. With every moment it seemed to grow more powerful until I was lost in a wave of euphoria.

  Atop me, I felt Martin losing control himself. His thrusts became frantic and the two of us entered into a chaotic embrace of undeniable passion. He slammed against me with so much force that I could do nothing but hold on and hope I wasn’t too bruised in the morning. He roared with pleasure as he finished, dragging every last moment of pure pleasure out of me as he did so. My mind was on fire with my desire for him – a feeling that I’d been desperate to reclaim.

  He collapsed atop me for a moment and I held him close. We kissed again, and it was a different sort of thing all together. Gone was the pure animal lust that had pushed us together that night. In its place was a deep commitment to each other that couldn’t be broken. With me by his side, Martin could do anything. We just had to get this right.

  CHAPTER 4

  THE NEXT DAY, MARTIN and I woke up still tangled in each other’s arms on the couch. My back was hurting from the odd posture, but it was a good kind of hurt that reminded me of what we’d done the night before. For a few moments before he opened his eyes, I listened to him breathing atop me and even that felt more powerful and more enticing than it ever had before. Something was changing in him – something wonderful. I gave myself a lot of credit for promoting this change in him, but I knew he wanted it too. Deep down, every man wants to step up and be a leader. Every man wants to be a king for his queen.

  We worked our way off the couch, but not after a long kiss that told me he hadn’t forgotten about the night before. Even the way he looked at me now was different. He was seeing me with the eyes of a man rather than just “a guy”. There’s a fine line between the two, but when you see the difference it’s unmistakable. Martin was becoming what both of us had always dreamed, but the real test would come soon enough.

  “You’re meeting Rik at 10, right?” I asked him, glancing at the clock. It was already a quarter past nine in the morning.

  “Yeah, down at the Botham warehouse – or what’s left of it.”

  “You’d better get going, that’s clear across town.”

  I could see him looking longingly at the bathroom, but there wasn’t time for a shower. I had to motivate him or little stumbling blocks like this could spell the end of this experiment before it had even truly begun.

  “Tell you what,” I told him, “You go take care of Rik and when you get back, I’ll have a special surprise waiting for you.”

  He grinned at me, knowing full well that my “special surprises” were never disappointing. I didn’t have the faintest idea of what I was going to do for him, but I knew how to turn his gears all the same.

  He leapt off the couch and searched nearby for his jacket. I couldn’t help but stare as he put it on. People always say there’s something about a man in uniform, and it’s true. What most of them don’t know is that the outlaws have uniforms, too. Seeing a man put on that leather is enough to get the right kind of woman heated up for hours. I am definitely the right kind of woman. If it hadn’t been for the ticking clock, I would have demanded that the jacket stay on while he took me again on the kitchen counter. I put that thought in the back of my mind for safe keeping.

  We shared another short kiss before he grabbed his keys and was out the door. It was good to see him energized and motivated about our plan. Maybe he’d listened to my reasons and found them sensible. Maybe he was just fed up with fetching and carrying for the rest of the Dead Men. Whatever the reasons behind his newfound vitality, I was happy to see it.

  I listened close for the roar of his bike starting up outside our apartment. I didn’t move a muscle until I heard it. That incredible machine coming to life outside was almost as much of a turn on as seeing the jacket had been. I felt like I was 19 again – just another young girl looking to find a tough guy with a bike to ride on. I smiled at my own renewed sense of youthful pleasure and hopped off towards the bathroom. Martin would have to wait for his shower, but that didn’t mean I had to do the same.

  The hot water kicked to life as I tossed my remaining clothes into the hamper. I needed that shower more than anything at that moment. A day of riding and barbecuing – not to mention a sweaty lovemaking session before bed –had left me desperate for a fresh start to the day. I stepped into the rushing water and sighed with relaxation as soon as it hit me.

  I examined myself as I cleaned, as I suppose all women do. I thought about how I’d looked just a few years ago when I first found the Dead Men. I was barely out of high school and I had the body to match my age. Hard living and hard riding had taken their toll, but I knew I still had it where it counted. Maybe there were a few more pounds here and there, but that didn’t matter. Everyone gets older – some people just don’t let themselves slow down because of it.

  I washed my hair carefully, thinking about the way Martin used to pull on it when I begged him to. I’ve always had this thick, long mane of hair that men seemed to love. Martin was no exception. When I told him to pull it while he took me from behind, he revved up like his bike and I couldn’t calm him down for all the money in the world. I had to smile at the thought of that.

  My relationship with Martin wasn’t about dominance. We each got our way plenty. It was about both of us working for each other. Somehow over the past year we’d started to forget that. We’d slipped into a new kind of relationship where we were only looking out for ourselves. Without anybody to watch our backs, it’s no wonder that we’d lost what little respect we ever had within the club. Things were going to change though.

  I had complete confidence in Martin’s ability to convince Rik to give up the weapons. Rik and Jarhead might have been old friends, but he was never shy about expressing his disagreement when the club took a wrong turn. I just had to hope that he could see the imminent danger that was ready to fall on all of us. If something didn’t change soon, the Mako were going to storm in and take out everyone wearing a Dead Men cut. I suppose I should have felt better that the chance of me getting taken out with them were slim, but it amounted to the same thing. Everything I had and everything I was had become tied up in that club. Without the Dead Men, I would have been walking alone – a target for every low-life drifter and shady dealer between here and Sacramento.

  No, my only hope was to stay with the club and make sure they did what was in all of our best interests. If they couldn’t see what those interests were in the way Martin and I had, then we might have no choice but to cut and run. That had its own dangers, of course. If we got out at the right time, nobody would blame us. If we left too early, though, Jarhead would call down a hit on us faster tha
n you can say “treason.” The same was probably true if he discovered what was happening to those guns. We were walking a dangerous path, but the rewards were too good to pass up.

  I stepped out of the shower feeling clean and refreshed. I felt like a new woman – and I took a long moment to admire myself in the mirror with that feeling held in the front of my mind. I bared my teeth in a wide grin for the mirror, practically laughing to myself in fearsome joy as I did so. I was a fearsome predator that day – sleek and sexy and deadly. My prey didn’t even know they were being hunted and I aimed to keep it that way.

  I went into the bedroom – unoccupied the previous night – and searched for a clean set of clothes. Laundry had to be done, but with everything that was happening I couldn’t bring myself to do something so banal as that. Cleaning could wait for another day. I managed to find a shirt and a pair of pants that were serviceable enough and a clean set of underwear too. I stepped into the kitchen to start making some coffee, hoping that I would be able to distract myself enough to not get nervous about what was happening.

  I went over the plan in my head while I waited for the coffee. Martin only knew the first step, and I thought that was for the best. The last thing I needed was him screwing something up by telling the wrong thing to the wrong person. Rik was going to know a lot about what we were planning already – and he’d probably get the rest of it figured out in no time – but until all our cards were on the table, there was no sense in taking stupid chances.

  Once we had the guns – and I just hoped that Rik and Martin would be clever enough between the two of them to think of a good hiding place – things would start to fall into place quickly. Jarhead would demand to know where the guns were, and they’d have to lie and say they were gone already. Without a proper armament for any more of his hit-and-run tactics, Jarhead would get desperate. He’d send everyone out to scour for weapons and I was sure they’d come up empty. The whole reason the club was in this mess was that the Mako guys had already taken control of the gun trade.