Old Ghosts: Gypsy Riders MC (14 page)

I wondered if there was something I could have done to change things.  If I could have changed my behavior, if I had gone along with everything Todd wanted a little faster, just to keep things running smoothly, if I could’ve somehow avoided such a violent ending.

But I kept coming up with the same answer.  In his eyes, I could never do anything right.  

“Daisy,” he’d snarl, yelling from the kitchen.  “Where the fuck is my breakfast?”

“I’m coming,” I’d yell back, trying to wake myself up. He would keep me up all night, getting up and down, mumbling to himself and pacing in the hallway, reading the bible.  I’d end up oversleeping past the time he thought it was appropriate for me to sleep, and if I didn’t have his breakfast made before he got out of the shower in the morning, he’d turn into a madman.

“You lazy bitch, what the fuck is wrong with you?” He’d say, his hand already raised in a fist before I even got to the kitchen door.  I’d cringe, and duck past him, try to pretend it wasn’t happening, he wasn’t saying those things, he just had a lot on his mind.

Because it didn’t all start that way.  At first, it was all fucking flowers and sunshine.  Literally.  

We met under a blazing hot Texas sun, at the county fair.  We stood next to each other as a country band played on a makeshift stage in the parking lot of Main Street.

He smiled.  I smiled.  It was easy.  Just like everything always is at first.

Our first date, he showed up with a bouquet of sunflowers and we went four-wheeling on his parent’s Christmas tree farm, and cooked steaks on the grill afterwards.  We sat under the big, star-filled sky, a fire crackling and beers in our hands.  We poured our hearts and souls out.  

But, the more I got to know him, the more I saw how he was influenced by very traditional views, especially when it came to women.  He wanted to control everything I did, and he wanted me barefoot and pregnant, making him a sandwich in the kitchen.  But he showed me slowly, almost so slowly I didn’t see it coming.  Until it was too late. I was in deep, and it took a lot of digging to get myself out.

I had spent countless nights, before the night he hit me, planning how I was going to extract myself from his grip.  When he finally did, it was the proverbial straw.

I refrained from calling Mike last night, as much as I wanted to.  I wanted to tell him Todd had found me, I wanted to ask him to come over and spend the night with me.  But I couldn’t bring myself to do it.  

Todd was my mess to deal with.  Mike had Rosie to take care of, and I didn’t want to do anything to get in the way of that.  And so far, I hadn’t seen Todd.  Maybe that wasn’t him in the grocery store.  Maybe he just sent the message to screw with my head.

Maybe it was working.

The hours passed slowly at school, and I was plagued with the constant distraction of fear.  By the end of the day, I was beginning to get angry.  Luckily, I was great at putting on a happy face, and not letting my students see it.  But when I arrived back home with Rosie for tutoring, I was grateful to finally lock the door and shut out the world. 

At five minute to four, my cell phone rang and I jumped.  When I saw it was Mike calling, I smiled.

“Hey there,” I answered.

“Hey beautiful.  How’s your day been?” he asked, his voice low and sultry in my ear.

“It’s been wonderful,” I lied.

“Good. I’ve been held up, and I was wondering if you might be able to watch Rosie for a few more hours tonight? If not, I can send Reaper over to pick her up.  I don’t want to impose.”

“I would be happy to.  Is everything okay?”  He sounded just as stressed out as I felt.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.  Just some club shit I gotta take care of,” he replied.  “Thank you so much.”

“You’re welcome, Mike.  It’s my pleasure.  I’ll feed Rosie dinner, and you just show up whenever you’re done.”

“Daisy, you know what?” he asked, and I could hear his smile in his voice.

“What?”

“You’re fucking awesome. Are you always like this?” he said.

“Yeah, I am,”  I said, teasingly.  “But, don’t worry.  You can make it up to me.

His laughter shot right through me.

“Oh, don’t worry, baby, I’ll make it up to you again and again and again!  See you real soon.  Give Rosie a kiss for me,” he said, before the line went dead.

****

By the time Mike showed up, it was nine o’clock, and Rosie had passed out on my couch watching cartoons after dinner.  I heard a car pull up, and looked out the window to see him getting out of a black truck.  I opened the front door before he could knock.

“Shh!”  I said as he climbed the stairs in front of me.  “She’s sleeping.”

“Oh, yeah?” he said, taking me into his arms in the hallway in front of my front door.  “Does that mean I can do this?”

His head bent and he kissed me, his lips hot against mine.  I wrapped my arms around him, sliding my hands under his leather, pulling him into me, his delicious warmth enveloping me as I kissed him back.  We stood there for a long moment, our lips melting together.

“I’ve missed you,” he murmured as he pulled away. “I’ve been dying to do that for days.”

“I’ve missed you, too,” I said, holding onto him.  I wanted him as close I could get him.  “Do you want to come in?”

“In a minute,” he replied, his head dipping back down to capture my lips with his again.

My body came alive at his touch.  His fingers dug into my hair, his strong hand cradling my head as his lips pressed against me.  His tongue gently parted my lips, sliding in and finding mine as he kissed me passionately.  I felt his hardness growing between his legs as he pushed me against the door behind us.  

He pulled away slightly, his voice thick with passion as he whispered.

“Now, I want to go in,” he said.  “Where’s Rosie?”

“She’s sound asleep on the couch.”

“Do you think we could sneak past her on the way to your bedroom?” he asked, his eyes twinkling in the darkness.

I smiled, knowing exactly what he had in mind, and more than willing to accommodate him.

“Why, yes, I think we can,” I whispered, as I grabbed his hand and pulled him through the door after quietly opening it.

We tiptoed through the apartment, past a snoring Rosie, and as soon as we made it to my bedroom and closed and locked the door, he had me up against the wall again.  This time, our mission was silence and quickness and he took complete control of the situation.  He removed his clothes quickly, and I watched, overcome with intense yearning to touch every inch of his skin as it came into view. His sculpted muscles danced under his smooth, tattooed skin, as he pulled my dress over my head in a flash.  

He pulled me away from the door and pushed me gently onto the bed, and within seconds, he was on me, kissing me, caressing every inch of my skin with his warm hands.  His fingers trailed down between my legs, and with precise skillfulness, his fingers slid into me while his thumb rubbed my clit until my juices were flowing over his hand, and I was trembling beneath him while he kissed my moaning mouth, muffling the uncontrollable sounds threatening to escape as I shuddered against him.

He raised himself over me and entered me swiftly, deliciously filling me up, his thrusts forceful and rhythmic as our bodies rose and fell in a silent, hungry dance for release.  As he sunk himself deeper into me, it fueled my need instead of quenching it. The more I received from him, the more I wanted.  I couldn’t get enough of him, and I opened my thighs wider, wrapping my legs around him, urging him to fuck me harder and deeper as he hammered into me.  

His breath quickened and as I felt him swell inside me, I cried out in pleasure.  Quickly, he placed his lips on mine, kissing me deeply and silencing me as I shook beneath him, my pussy quivering and spasming around him blissfully as we came together, the moonlight streaming through my open window and covering our sweaty, tangled limbs.

****

An hour later I awoke to the sound of snoring. I had fallen asleep with my head on his chest, my legs wrapped around his and my body snuggled against his side.  I sighed and closed my eyes again, listening to him breathe, feeling his chest rise and fall below me.  

He was so alive.  So vibrant.  So
good
. 

I wanted to lie there next to him forever, just listening to his steady breathing.  I wanted to lie under him every night and witness the intensity that crossed his face when he was inside me, his mind and body filled with one shared purpose.  I wanted to be the one who had the pleasure of seeing the light in his eyes after he kissed me.  

No man had ever looked at me like that.  No man had ever kissed me like he did, and nobody had ever come close to making my body sing the way he did.  

I laid there in the darkness wrapped in his arms, and I knew that I wouldn’t fight it.  I had wrestled with myself up till now, even if my actions didn’t show it.  But I knew there was no resisting him.  How could I ever say no to him?

He stirred and tightened his arm around me.  Moaning, he came alive again, turning his head to kiss me again and pulling me on top of him.  I laid on top of his hard body, his hands running over the curve of my hips and reaching up to cradle my breasts.  As he pinched my nipples, I arched my back.  His cock pressed up into me, already hard and ready again.  I dipped my hips slightly, pulling his cock into me and moaning as he slid into me.  I rocked against him, his massive thickness filling me deliciously as I raised my hips up and down, riding him slowly as I looked down at him below me.

He was a masterpiece of masculinity.  I felt my pussy tighten around him as I ran my hands over his broad, hairy chest, pumping him in and out of me over and over again, my juices covering him as I stared into his lust filled eyes.  His hands gripped my hips tightly, and he began pushing up against me,  fucking into me faster and faster until I felt his seed wash over the trembling walls of my pussy.  I collapsed onto him, our lips smashing together once again, our tongues colliding as his cock twitched, still buried deep inside of me.

When we finally peeled ourselves away from each other, the moon was full and bright in the sky outside.

“I guess I should take Rosie home now,” Mike whispered in the darkness.

“That’s probably a good idea, before she wakes up and finds us completely naked and wrapped around each other,” I whispered back.

“Daisy,” he said, pausing.

“Yeah?” I asked, pushing my breasts against his chest.

“Thank you.”  

“For what?” I asked.  “I think I should be thanking you.”

“No, I don’t think you understand.  You’re waking me up.  I haven’t felt anything in so long, and for once, it feels good.  Being with you feels good.  Being with you makes me feel alive, baby.”  He kissed my forehead and I smiled.

“You’re welcome,” I said.  I wanted to say so much more.  I wanted to tell him that it was him that made me feel alive.  I wanted to tell him that for the first time in years, I felt safe.  I wanted to tell him I loved him.  

But I didn’t.  I didn’t say any of that, because I knew it was all too soon, and we still had plenty of time.

****

I watched from my balcony as Mike loaded the still sleeping Rosie into the front of his truck.  My eyes were glowing and every nerve ending on my skin was electric from making love to him.  He said I was waking him up, but I felt like I was also waking up from a deep sleep, each body part slowing coming to life, remembering its purpose, remembering its ability to experience pleasure.

My brain was going through a similar experience.  My heart, though?  It was dancing in my chest, threatening to explode from the fullness I felt there.  

I ran my fingers through my hair, and walked back into my apartment.  Sliding the patio door closed, I checked the locks on it twice and pulled the blinds shut.  I walked over to the front door, locking the double locks there and turning on the light outside of my front door.  

Just as I was heading back to bed, my cell phone beeped.  Thinking I had received a text from Mike, I eagerly scooped it off the nightstand and looked at it.

My heart sank when I saw it.

“Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.  
Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.