Tempting Trouble (Highway Reapers Motorcycle Club Book 1) Read online

  “I have no desire to go back to prison, that’s for sure, but if you won’t get into trouble for doing what you’re doing, then I couldn’t get in trouble for watching you do it.”

  He kissed her on her lips softly and it felt like a thank you before he got up and got the materials to get them both cleaned up.

  What had she gotten herself into? She wasn’t sure if she should thank Bruce for getting the ball rolling so she could meet Tyson or curse him because she felt like bringing this man into her circle was going to be a life altering event. She couldn’t work up the nerve to be upset about it though. Falling for a criminal or a gambler wasn’t in her plan, but as she found out yesterday her plans had a way of changing on her within moment, and like her mother used to say “In for a penny, in for a pound.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  “Did you find him?” The deep voice was like gravel against baby soft feet. A disturbing, painful reminder of something you left vulnerable.

  Ella had answered her phone without looking at the caller ID and then had a loud and anxious sounding Bruce in her ear. The bad part was she was in bed with the mark and didn’t want Tyson to hear what was going on. She was always trying to do the right thing and tell the absolute truth but today, she didn’t know what the right thing to do was.

  “What?” Ella said trying to stall for time as she got out of the bed, making sure that Tyson was still asleep and walking out to the living room.

  “You heard me, Ella. Have you made contact with Tyson yet?” Bruce didn’t sound like he was in the mood to play or be gentle. Something must have happened that made him a bit anxious about this deal.

  “I’m working on it,” she mumbled and felt disgust for herself and this situation. The plan was to get out of prison and lead an honest lif; that’s the promise she’d made night after night as she sat in that cell wanting freedom and thinking back to all the things she’d done before getting in there. It hadn’t mattered that she wasn’t guilty of the crime that had her locked up. Possession with intent to distribute an illegal narcotic was her charge when it should have just been a small charge because she had scored less than fifty dollars’ worth. The rest was planted on her when the police got closer, and the dealer didn’t want to have his third charge and be locked up for life.

  “The deadline is midnight tonight,” Bruce sounded firm, but she needed a little more time than that.

  “Can I get a small extension? Who knows, maybe the guy is trying to contact you because he has the money.” Ella wanted to see what the flavor of Bruce’s mood was for a peaceful agreement with the money on Tyson’s behalf.

  The grim chuckle on the other side of the line didn’t bode well. “I doubt Ty could come up with that kind of money, but who knows. Then I guess we could just break a couple of things for being late and running from us.”

  “You’d still hurt him even if he got the money to you?” Ella couldn’t believe that. She knew it wasn’t smart to get involved with them, but she’d known Bruce a long time, and she’d always thought he was a fair man.

  “This isn’t a high school reputation we’re talking about here. There is a point to be made. You don’t borrow money from the Reapers and then skip out when you can’t pay. Even if the loan is made good, we’ve been embarrassed by one of our own and that infraction has to be settled.”

  Ella wasn’t sure what to say about that, but it made getting the money more important, because at least he wasn’t saying there would be death, although she’d seen the way people looked after the Reapers got to them.

  “You are pretty quiet, Ella. Are you sure you don’t know where he is?”

  “I have fifty thousand reasons to tell you what you want to know, Bruce. I haven’t forgotten that.” Ella was trying to make this as close to the truth as possible, and the money did stay heavily on her mind.

  “Good. If you can’t get him to us by the time specified, you need to get us our money back with interest.”

  “What money?” she asked and tried to remember to keep her voice down.

  “The five thousand I gave you yesterday. If you can’t get him to us, then you owe us seven thousand, five hundred dollars. We will collect that at the deadline.” Bruce was so matter of fact about that little tidbit that she was stunned for a few minutes.

  “I didn’t know that was a loan. How would I have the time to make that kind of money in 48 hours when I’m looking for your guy?” She knew she shouldn’t have fucked around with these dick heads. They had shown how crafty they could be when they allowed her to go down for drugs that weren’t hers, but she’d seen the money and got sucked into more Highway Reaper bullshit.

  “Call it incentive to bring our guy in. He can be very charming with the ladies, I’ve heard, so I don’t want you listening to his sob story shit and rethink handing him over. If we find out something like that happened, it will be your ass handed to the Reapers.”

  “This wasn’t discussed when you gave me the money or offered this deal. I didn’t know that I was going to be in danger if I couldn’t complete the mission. I’ve only spent a few dollars of it, but I can get it back to you today. I don’t want to be a part of this.”

  “You want to renege on the whole deal? That’s not an option. When you left the building with the cash is when the clock started ticking on the loan you made and the deal that needs to be completed.”

  The fucking fine print. She hadn’t even considered this or anything like this was going to happen. The worst thing she thought would go down was she’d have to give the money back if she didn’t complete the mission, but it was so much more than that. There had been a noose created that she wasn’t aware had been slipped around her neck, and it was tightening… fast.

  “Wow, Bruce, I thought you were doing me a favor trying to make up for the shitty behavior I’ve experienced from The Reapers, but you and your whole group are just users. You weren’t offering me help; you wanted another customer.”

  “Don’t get your panties all in a twist. This is business, and we really want Tyson so if we feel like we need to offer more encouragement for you to do what we need you to do then we do. No hard feelings.” Bruce had returned to the calm sounding rational person that had gotten her to take the money and this deal and it hit her that his attitude was a front. She didn’t know which side was the real side but she would bet that it wasn’t this nice sounding one.

  This was probably one of the worst eye opening experiences she’d ever had. She’d walked into this trap with her eyes open, and she didn’t know how she was going to get out of it. On the one hand, she wanted to save Tyson, but on the other she wanted to save herself, and she didn’t know if there was going to be a way to do both.

  “I asked for a small extension before this conversation got all out of hand.” Ella was having a hard time not showing her revulsion of having to deal with this whole situation, but she could try to make nice for a little while longer.

  “That’s the thing. We don’t have much more time. This has been going on long enough.”

  She didn’t say anything because she wasn’t going to beg this hooligan for anything especially in light of the fact that she may have to be the next one on the run from these fools. Ella hadn’t been able to get a job to save her life; now she had more of a reason to need a job, but her chances of getting one were the same.

  A deep exhalation of breath on the other end of the line was the only noise on the phone because she wasn’t going to say anything else. “I can give you until midnight tonight, but that’s all.”

  “Thanks,” Ella muttered because she didn’t really feel that thankful. That was only twelve additional hours, but she knew that today was the horse race, so it was do or die anyway. She’d gotten to spend the whole day yesterday learning and liking more about Tyson with every passing minute. There had been nothing to do but wait, and she was a bit nervous to be seen out with him, because she was supposed to call in his whereabouts upon meeting him. The plan had been to meet him, call the
m, and keep him occupied until they got there to pick him up. It had seemed so easy when they described it, or maybe it was the money colored glasses she’d been looking through.

  “You’re welcome, sweetheart.”

  “Don’t call me sweetheart. You’d have me beat up just like all the rest with this ridiculous debt you’ve placed on my head.”

  “We wouldn’t beat you up, Ella, but we’d find other ways to make you pay it back to us.”

  That dirty fucker had nerve; she’d give him that, and she considered buying a gun from somewhere to protect herself. It would have to be a gun from the street because no one would sell a gun to a convicted felon. That would be another crime she’d have hanging over her head. She was just adding it all up in her mind, and anyway she looked at it she had a big fat zero.

  “Good to know, Bruce,” she said not knowing what to say to the knowledge that she’d possibly be sexually assaulted if she didn’t do what they said. “Well, I’d better be going if I’m going to make any progress. I don’t have much time left.”

  “Alright then. You have the phone number when you have him in your sights. I’ll have the phone by my side all day.”

  She hung up because she didn’t want to complete the niceties that would be appropriate for regular people. These monsters she was dealing with weren’t anything but bullies with a bit of cash and drugs. Hoping that she didn’t disturb Tyson with all her whispering and dirty deal talk, she walked back into the room silently only to find the man who filled her mind sitting on the edge of the bed.

  “Who was that?” he asked when she sat down next to him.

  “Just some business I recently got into.” That was the truth and she was pleased with herself for trying to keep some of the things she had promised to herself.

  “Sounded intense. I couldn’t hear what you were saying but to my ears it sounded like something escalating. I hope you don’t get involved with any motorcycle clubs; they can drag you in to their shit faster than you can blink, and you’ll find yourself so entangled in their strings, it’ll feel like rope.

  “Words to live by, and I know if anyone knows you do.”

  Tyson nodded at her and stood up. “It’s time to get ready anyway.”

  “Did you want to shower with me or by yourself? The first way would be more fun, but the second way would be more practical and would get us out of here on time.” The sly look on Tyson’s face was one she didn’t want to miss, but she couldn’t imagine that he’d be smiling if he knew she was planning on selling him out for money in her pocket or the fact that she had planned to do it in the first place. Would he think she came to his house and slept with him knowing what she had to do the whole time?

  “This is a big day, and we both should be pretty sharp so I suggest you go first while I make a little breakfast, and then I’ll go after you.” She thought she sounded logical, but really she was a shaky, quivering mess on the inside.

  He walked back and pulled her into his arms. “Whatever it is that’s bothering you, I hope it goes away. I don’t want to ask you more about it because it seemed like you just shut down when I asked, but if you need assistance let me know.”

  Tyson sounded so sincere, she was almost in tears. She was turning into a basket case, and if her ability to look at this rationally was going to be tarnished, she was purely fucked. Admittedly the hug and forehead kiss was nice, but was it worth all the trouble it was going to make in her life? She wasn’t sure, and that was the real reason she needed him to take a shower by himself. Ella needed time to think, and she did that best alone.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  She looked too cute to be here around the desperate and needy people who looked at the horse track like it was the cure for all disease. Tyson wanted to bring her because of the way she seemed to be in his corner. He’d been thinking he enjoyed his life. He had no one to look after. He was free as a bird, and being with Ella for just this short while had made him see how good it was to have someone care about your plight. And she rode the back on his hog like a fucking champion.

  “How’re you doing?” he asked her because she’d been jumpy since she got that call this morning. She didn’t seem like a woman who’d play a man, and the conversation didn’t sound like one she was having with an ex-lover, but it definitely sounded like an argument of some sort.

  “I’m good. Why?” Ella was trying to be into this, but she was definitely preoccupied.

  “Because ever since you got the phone call that woke us up, you’ve been very tense.”

  “I just want tonight to go well. You’ll get your money and can pay it back and then walk away clean. That’s what you’d have done when the shoe was on the other foot, right? Let the guy who paid you the money go?” She looked so expectantly up at him, he didn’t have the heart to tell her that some bruises would be in his future regardless of the outcome of this race. He was trying to get the money back so they would let him keep his life. She was so honest and true that he hated to lie to her, so he didn’t.

  He pulled her to his arms and just held her. Fucking was one thing, and he’d done that with numerous women on various occasions, but there was something about this one that made him want to take her with him. How he was going to ditch her until he was healed up he didn’t know and even thought about keeping her at his house while he did his business, and she would be there while he recovered. It would be a rough fight because he wasn’t going to stand there and make it easy for them. If they wanted a fight, they’d get one. She lifted her head from where he had tucked it against him and looked so closely in his eyes he felt she could read his thoughts.

  “How long is it before the race?” she asked as she looked around.

  “We’ve got about forty five minutes. Why?”

  “There is something I haven’t gotten a chance to do, and I don’t want another moment to go by without doing it.” She looked excited, and he hadn’t seen her look upbeat all day. He wanted more than anything get her what she needed.

  “What do you need me to do?”

  “Find us a private spot.” With the flirty, sexy look she had on her face, he was going to move mountains to find a place of seclusion. He grabbed her hand and led her to the lounge where all the VIP – or rather people who spent a hell of a lot of money at this gaming hell – were.

  He ushered her inside the small room attached to the lounge that could have been used to make private phone calls or some other reason because there wasn’t much in there.

  “What did my sexy little good luck charm want—” Tyson was just about to get her to tell him her plan when he turned from locking the door, but she was already on her knees and waiting for him and had her hand on his belt before he could finish the sentence.

  “We’ve been together for almost two days, and I haven’t properly introduced myself to your cock, and that’s such a shame because he’s given me such great pleasure.” She had his cock in her hand, and her deft fingers and the raunchiness of being in this little room with the possibility of getting caught at any second had pre cum oozing from the tip of his swollen dick.

  “I’m glad you wanted to take this opportunity to meet him, but I think he knows you very well.”

  “Should I not give him a little kiss?” She looked up at him like she was trying to make a decision about what to do but rubbed her closed lips up and down the shaft stopping only to tickle the sensitive spot on the underside of his cock right under the head.

  “I would never stop you from giving him a full, open mouthed, deep throat kiss. Open up and take me, baby.” He loved that she wanted to play, but with her on her knees and his cock bobbing like it hoped to gain her attention, he didn’t want to wait.

  She continued to rub along his shaft until he placed his hands on her ears and brought her to a place where she could receive the cock that he was going to feed her.

  “I’m ready for your kiss.” He held on to her head and felt the growing desire fill his balls when she opened up her mouth and waited fo
r his next move. Now that she had her mouth open, he didn’t want to do this quickly, but he wanted to savor this moment and this feeling. She raised one of her eyebrows cockily as she waited for her treat, but he chose to paint her lips with the moistness rubbing his swollen helmet shaped head across her lips again and again.

  She placed her hands on his ass and pulled him to her, and he allowed her the first taste of him. Ella moaned like she hadn’t had a meal in a long time, and this was one of the best she’d ever had. The sound seemed to travel up his cock and settle deep in his belly. Her flexing and relaxing fingers let him know she wanted more, so he gave her what he could.

  “Don’t be gentle, Tyson. I want all you have.” She tried harder to make him enter her mouth; that’s what she wanted.

  He didn’t know why she’d said that. It was as if those words released the beast, because he wanted to be deeper in her mouth as he felt her soft tongue and warm throat receive him. His hips pumped softly, and even the noise of the slippery wetness he was sliding into increased his arousal. He tipped his head back so he could decrease some of the stimulation, because the audio of the sucking and her demanding more coupled with the visual of Ella’s sweet lips riding up and down on his cock leaving a glistening trail was too much. He felt like he was going to drown her with the amount of spunk preparing to exit his body, and he didn’t want his honest little angel hurt.