WYLDER Read online

  It may not be fair, but hell, she said it. I take. I don’t ask or hope for things to go my way. So, yeah, things are actually going great even if she did try to barricade the door last night and pretended to be asleep when I came back up.

  I was planning another kiss, some fondling, and then a hot night of unstoppable, toe-curling sex. That’s okay though because I did sleep beside her, and I really liked it.

  She’ll stay in the attic though. I like knowing she’s there waiting for me.

  “Good. Like I said, she made this shit with Bright possible, so at least we can use her if need be. And she’s staring to soften towards me.”

  While I harden, I think ruefully, feeling my cock go nuts at the memory of her soft ass cradled against my crotch all night. I am dying to see that juicy ass of hers after I tie her facedown to the bed.

  I’ve plotted my course perfectly, and the first thing I want to do, even before I taste her sex, is spend some time on that round ass.

  “It’s not fair though, is it?” he asks quietly, reminding me how he feels about what I made Danny do.

  Wolf isn’t one of those grey area type guys. He’s very black and white on most issues, and when I talked to him about Danny and her family, he was not happy at all.

  He understands why I am doing it, but from his perspective, I’m messing up a relationship as he sees it because Wolf fully expects me to do the whole love and marriage thing with Danny to make up for everything.

  To him, a man takes care of his woman, end of story, even if the woman doesn’t agree with the way things are. Hence Lori and the basement cell. He’s got convoluted logic for someone who sees in black and white, but I get his thinking, and I do agree. I just don’t have the luxury to feel that way.

  “No, but then again, man, what the fuck is fair about this whole thing? If life was fair, we’d have Sparrow, and Mom and Pop wouldn’t be reminded of what we lost every day. If life was fair, I’d have become an accountant and bought a house out in the fucking burbs and married some mousey chick with big hips and wicked ironing skills.”

  Wolf chuckles because we both know that is not true. I may have wanted those things once a long time ago, but even I have to admit that it would have killed me with boredom, quick.

  I need the adrenalin, the thrill that my current position of power gives, and I absolutely love going toe to toe with guys who are criminally insane and dangerous. That’s just the way I roll.

  “Sure. But things are what they are. What’s next for now?”

  “Now I’m taking Danny to Hawaii for a week before I have to come back here and deal with Ariston and the Irish. You and the boys keep things going on this end and update me daily, and it should all be good.”

  God, I need a break. Just a few days spent with Danny girl in a bikini, or no bikini. I’m not picky, I think with a grin. Some sun, relaxation, and seven nights of nothing but sex.

  After that, it’s time to pony up and play ball, and when that happens, I want her glued to my side and ready to do what needs doing.

  “Can I come with?” he asks pleadingly.

  “No.”

  “Oh, come on. Have a heart.”

  “Nuhuh. You stay with your woman and do something about her attitude, for fuck’s sake. Mom may be all forgiving at the moment, but with her crazy old ass, you never know when she’ll turn and help Lori.”

  The warning is clear there, and he gets it. I wasn’t lying to Danny when I told her if it comes to choosing her freedom over my family, I’d choose them and kill her.

  I don’t want to, and it would hurt, a lot, but my family is everything I have, and when I started this thing on a gamble, I swore I wouldn’t lose another loved one.

  So, yeah, she’s going to play or die, and I won’t hesitate to do the same to Lori if the need arises.

  “Fuck. Yeah, okay, just don’t get that cold look in your eye, man. It’s scaring me.”

  “It should, Wolf, because you know I won’t think twice. She gets loose and they find out you’re soft for her, they’ll come after us all.”

  “I know.”

  He leaves after sharing a silent drink, and I do not envy the man his life at the moment. Danny may have told me outright how much she wants to hate me, and it may not have sat right, but Lori really does feel that way about Wolf, and I know, the first chance she gets, she’s running. I just pray Wolf can hold her until we’re in the clear.

  The next call I make puts things in motion for my unplanned vacation, and I’m feeling good when I hang up and sit back, planning the next few days with the precision I use on everything.

  Danny

  I roll over on the bed, after falling asleep after a night of tossing and turning, and groan when the sticky heat and sweat cling to my body. Sitting up, I push my limp hair out of my eyes and stare blearily at the bedspread I kicked off, so freaking cranky I’m hoping it’s a precursor to my period.

  Wishful thinking that, because I just got it the week before I was taken and most months I skip a cycle because God knows I would die outright if I had it every single month. Shit’s just nasty.

  Lip curling at my thoughts, I make my way into the bathroom and drop my shorts and tank top, moaning when the tepid water hits my skin and cools it a little.

  The air-conditioning in the house is great, but whoever planned the attic room did not do a great job, and I’d like to tell him so. I left all the windows open last night, and not even a breeze blew in to downplay the heat.

  I am grumpy, unhappy with life, and so darn twitchy and nervous I can hardly think straight. All I remember is that kiss, the words that tumbled out of his mouth, and the need that hit me when I saw it all unfold in my head.

  It’s sick and scary, but I am so in lust with a bad man who is more likely to cap my ass than anything else. I should be ashamed of myself for even contemplating sex with Wylder, and yet it’s all I thought about as I lay awake last night and pretended to sleep when he crept into my bed.

  It took hours for me to relax, and by then, the sun was rising and not long after he rose and left me alone. I only fell asleep when I couldn’t keep my eyes open another second, and then I dreamed of his lips on mine, all over me, doing things that not even Flynn would attempt.

  And I want it so bad. With Wylder. Just thinking of all that ruthlessness and cold calculation packed into a body that makes me pant…

  I should not be turned on by the thought of him inside me, but I am, and I feel awful about it. Not to mention that I think I may actually like him. I thought about him all day in that gazebo, and all I could come back to was that he’s a bad guy with a heart.

  Weird but true. Wylder really doesn’t want my family hurt, and I not only appreciate that but also am so grateful I think I’d do anything to repay him. I’m still angry about having to lie to everyone, but in that anger is a kernel of relief that he’s helping me keep everyone safe.

  Besides, it all works out better this way, at least that is what I keep telling myself. Daddy’s due home soon, and when he arrives, he’ll come looking for me. Wylder sent one of his brothers to my place to clean it up after he dragged me into this mess so that nothing is out of place and as far as anyone else knows I am engaged and happily in love.

  Daddy won’t come looking, guns blazing, and if I am not happy about my circumstances, I am at least thankful that he won’t be hurt or killed trying to save me.

  It’s the small things I keep telling myself, and as long as I choose to see the silver lining, I think I’ll be okay.

  I have to be because I am so confused, and I think…I mean, it’s entirely possible that I could be falling for Bear Wylder. He’s scary, but he’s also funny and sweet, and he’s willing to help me and keep me safe if I play along with whatever he has planned.

  As long as I play along.

  I’ve never played along with shit in my life. Not once. I don’t make friends, I don’t hang out at clubs every Friday, and I sure as hell do not go crazy for a man. Any man.


  Wylder though…

  “You’re gonna drown in there if you fall asleep.”

  I screech and fall on my butt when I turn, my foot slipping out from under me with a force that has me flailing wildly before I collapse in an undignified heap.

  I almost die as I snap my legs shut after a dazed minute of the ass staring at my parts.

  “Get out.”

  “No can do, baby. I’ve been waiting for you to get up all freaking morning, and I’m just about done on patience. Nice bush, by the way, but you’re getting a wax in a few minutes, so say goodbye to it.”

  I struggle up and grab a towel, blushing like heck because, okay, I know I’ve let my stuff grow unchecked and it’s gross, but come on. Why go through all that trouble of shaving and maintaining something only I ever see?

  “Whoa, I am not having some stranger wax my junk, not happening.”

  “Yes, you are. We’re going away for a few days, and you can’t wear a bikini with what you’ve got going, woman.”

  I’m almost certain I’m flaming red all over, and my freaking legs are like spaghetti when I try to shift by him without touching. I’m embarrassed as heck about all those dreams I had of him and me and his mouth and—

  And stop thinking about it, I yell, flushing more when I meet his eyes and he gives me a knowing grin.

  “Bikini?”

  I latch onto his words and frown, my fear of the unknown spiking hard when it occurs to me that I’ve been letting my guard down more and more around him and that may just be what he wants before he chops me into pieces and feeds me to the gators.

  Geez, really. Let’s be positive, because you’re giving me the willies.

  “We’re going to Hawaii for a few days to relax and unwind, and you are wearing a bikini if I have to glue the thing to you. So, you need a wax. I can’t eat you out with all that hair in my way.”

  Instantly I see a vivid image of him spreading me open, his mouth going for my folds, and I have to clench my thighs together when my clit throbs.

  “I can shave.”

  “No. It would just itch when it grows back quickly, and I don’t want stubble burn.”

  That does it for me. I’m horny for a guy who scares me, as terrible as that sounds, I am scared and confused and sad because I’ve lost my family and my life, and he thinks I am just going to stand here and let him treat me like some sex object.

  I snap, and man does it feel good. Temporarily.

  “I’m not just a freaking body that you can take as you please! This is my body, mine, and if I say I don’t want to wax my vagina, I fucking mean it!”

  The yell echoes around us, and I go pale and still when he silently looks at me before grabbing me and pinning me to the door. He doesn’t hurt me at all, but the power he possesses is unmistakable, and I realize belatedly that while I’ve been getting comfortable and he’s been lulling me, I should never play with this man.

  He’s volatile and dangerous and not at all what I want him to be.

  “I’m gonna make things clear for you, Danny, so you don’t make this mistake again. I have been patient with you. I have been kind and considerate even when it goes against my nature, but you need to remember that I own you.”

  I want to refute that instantly but stop when his cold eyes fuse with mine. He looks so deadly and unfeeling I feel everything inside me quiver.

  “Your body is mine because I saved it. You may not want me, you may not feel anything for me, but to me you are mine, and that is just the way it has to be. If you can’t deal with that, with letting go and accepting your lot, then tell me now and I will personally deliver you back to Noni. He’ll know what to do with you.”

  Terror has me shaking all over, and I cower back against the door, not willing to cry but so close I know he must see it. For just a second, I let myself go soft, and he’s telling me in his very forceful way that softness will get me killed.

  “I won’t…I won’t do it again,” I promise.

  He nods, and I gasp on a sob when he leans in to take my lips, kissing me tenderly, so at odds with the threat he just made I can’t hold back a whimper.

  Not fear of him. It’s strange. I don’t fear Wylder, just what he’ll let others do to me.

  “Ssshh. It’s okay, Danny. Don’t cry. I won’t let anyone hurt you,” he murmurs against my lips before hugging me tightly.

  I have nothing to say to that. I just keep breathing in gasps of air, trying not to cry because nothing is going to change, and it’s terrifying. Wylder will protect me. I know that to be true, but the minute I pose a problem, he’ll throw me to the wolves and walk away without a backward glance.

  “I’m scared. I don’t know how to be this person you want.”

  “I know, baby, I know, but you have to believe me when I say it’s the only way.”

  Chapter Seven

  Danny

  The sand squishing between my toes is a good feeling as I stand at the shoreline and watch the sun rise, setting the ocean ablaze in a way that reminds me of the faith I hardly ever practice anymore.

  When I was a little girl, my mom had all these Christian songs on tape that she played and sang along to while she baked cookies, and she’d read me Bible stories and teach me the Christian way, as she would call it.

  I was little, just learning to be a person myself, but some of it stuck, even after she died, because no matter what, I always remember her telling me that God has a plan for every soul he created.

  I haven’t thought about that in a while, but as I watch the sun and feel the early morning breeze stroke over me, I hope to hell that it’s true and that God’s plan for me does not include torture and mutilation.

  Wylder has been okay since the morning when he went all ruthless gangster on me. I was a little freaked out, of course I was, but I got through the waxing an hour later, clutching his hand, not even caring that he was looking at my vagina.

  His support at that moment when I was sure I wanted to die from pain was something I couldn’t have done without. He was so kind and sweet when he ordered the woman to put something on me for the pain, and that in itself helped me relax and not shy away from him every time he touched me.

  Little touches all throughout the day as he walked the garden with me, ate lunch, and took me into the entertainment room where we watched Thelma and Louise.

  I hardly paid attention, but he laughed the whole time, saying those women reminded him of me and Lori. His mood change was weird, but he remained genial all day, and I hardly flinched when he crawled into bed with me, naked as a jay bird, and told me to sleep.

  I did. I think it was like a crash, you know, after an adrenalin rush, but I slept all night and woke at three in the morning when he shook me awake, feeling better than I had in days. We flew out not long after that, and I told myself to enjoy it.

  Who wouldn’t, right? I’ve never been to Hawaii, and as a vacation destination, I have got to say that it rocks. It’s hot and sultry, and the ocean is so clear where we’re renting a private house that I swam in it for the first time yesterday, my natural fear of the ocean diminished by the absolute beauty and tranquility.

  We spent the day snorkeling, eating, and talking. It was a perfect day, and if I don’t remind myself often that he’s crazy, I’d be totally in love with the man.

  It’s galling, but Bear Wylder is the exact man I would have chosen if we weren’t in this weird place. He is thoughtful, doing stuff like pulling out my chair for me, and last night…last night he was hard when I walked out of the bathroom in one of the skimpy nightgowns he made me pack.

  But he didn’t once touch me. No, he said I still needed another night to heal before he came near me. That respect for me, for my well-being, slammed a nail in the coffin of my sensibility, and I think I totally had a mini O for him.

  I want him. There, I said it, and you know what, I don’t care how messed up that is. I want Wylder with a ferocity that is chilling because wanting him this much is a step too close to feelings,
and I know it.

  But none of that seems to matter, I think desolately, walking in to my ankles to enjoy the soft tickle of the surf against my skin. I don’t care that I am, for all intents, a prisoner. I just don’t care.

  Wylder is right. I have to accept what is, not think about what can never be, and for now, I am ready to go into the unknown and take what I want. I want him. I want to live, and if being what he needs me to be is what it takes, for whatever reason he keeps insisting he has, I will do it.

  Arms surround my waist, and I relax when I smell him, melting into his naked chest with a sigh.

  “You’re so sexy I don’t think I can stand another minute of looking at you without touching,” he murmurs, his mouth opening over the pulse at my throat.

  I should resist, but it feels so good when he licks at my skin. So, I don’t. I moan and tilt my head, giving a harsh pant when his hands come up to cup my breasts and squeeze through the soft silk.

  My nipples go to hard points, and I tighten my sex, aching as desire pours over me. His mouth is still sucking at my neck, one hand still playing with my nipple. One skates down, and I gasp when he flicks the hem up, shoves my panties down, and thrusts a finger into me. Deep.

  “When I saw you that first day, I got hard. The others laughed at me because I told them it was your hair that caught my eye, but the truth is much baser. I saw your ass and I wanted it.”

  I moan, pushing my ass closer to him, wiggling against his steely erection, and huff when he starts to thrust his finger in and out of me, bringing forth moisture with a satisfied grunt.

  “I jerked off last night right next to you while you slept. I couldn’t help myself. Your nightgown rode up, your legs were spread, and I could see you through your panties. I got so hard it hurt not to take you. I came so hard I almost passed out.”

  The words turn me on even more, and I pull at his hair and turn my head to capture his mouth with mine, kissing him with no finesse, just heat and a passion inspired by his words.

  I’m on fire between my legs, desperate for him to get me off and so close to orgasm I yell a protest into his mouth when he stops and pulls his hand out.