Outlaw (23 page)

He turned his head back to her. They stood in
silence for a split-second, his eyes flashing with anger, and hers shining with
tears. Then he bent his head so that they were eye to eye. “Did you really just
say that to me?”

She glared up at him. “You are a bastard.” She
reached up to shove him backwards again, but this time he caught her wrists.

“Goddamn it!” he hissed through his teeth. Then
suddenly, he reached up, and tangled his hands in her hair, pulling her head
back. “You’ve got a smart mouth on you, babe. I told you once before I didn’t
take lip from anyone, and that includes you.” He reached around her, and the flat
of his palm came down, and popped her on the ass.

She sucked in her breath, felt the sting, and then
his hand was there, rubbing over the spot tenderly. A sexual jolt shot through
her.

“Did you come on to him?”

Finally, she thought, what really had him upset came
to the surface. “No. Cole, I swear I didn’t-”

“I saw you smile up at him. He had his hands all
over you,” he interrupted darkly. “Mack said he saw you come on to Wolfman.”

She shook her head. “No, Cole. That’s not-”

He popped her on the ass again. “The truth, Angel.”

“It is the truth,” she pleaded.

He was too far gone to stop. “Did you think I’d let
him touch you? Let any other man touch what’s mine?” Too late he realized what
he’d said, what he’d admitted. He looked down at her mouth, and was lost. He
pushed her forcefully up against the wall, and kissed her roughly.

She heard things fall from the shelves, felt the
cold, roughness of the paneling against her back and bottom. She didn’t care.
She wanted him, wanted this. She didn’t care if he took her right here on the
floor. Need swelled in her. She reached for his belt.

Fuck, what was she doing to him? He had to get out
of here. She didn’t deserve to be mauled, and the mood he was now in, he didn’t
trust himself with her.

The suddenness with which he released her, had her
stumbling back, her arms grabbing at the wall to hold herself up.

His eyes ran over her, taking in her lips, swollen
from his kisses, her breasts heaving as she gasped for air. He saw the hurt
look on her face.

“Cole?”

“I’m sorry, Angel.” Then he noticed that the blood
that was still trickling from the corner of his mouth had gotten on her face.
He reached up to gently brush the blood from her lips with his thumb, and
realized just how much she didn’t belong here. This was no place for her. He
shook his head. “I should never have brought you here.” He backed up a step.
“You deserve better than this. Better than me. I can’t do this, Angel.” He
backed up another step. “I’ve got to go.”

“Go? Go where?”

He turned to leave.

“Cole, wait…”

The door opened.

“Please, don’t go,” she pleaded.

He walked out, slamming the door behind him.

Chapter Eleven

It was past two a.m., when he finally came back.

She was asleep.

He undressed, and stood over her, looking down at
her. If he’d had a shred of decency, he would have left her alone. He’d known
the minute he first saw those eyes of hers, he was in over his head. How I’ll
ever get out of this, I don’t know. And at that moment, he didn’t want to.
Couldn’t have if he tried. He was in deep, as deep as he’d ever been, and he
couldn’t fight it anymore.

His fist closed over the bed sheet, and he slowly
pulled it from her, watching as it slid over her body. Exposing her naked body
inch by inch. Pulling until she was completely exposed. He tossed the sheet to
the floor. His eyes ran over her body.

He climbed in the bed, and leaned over her prone,
sleeping body, leaning on his elbows on either side of her waist. Even in the
dim moonlight, he could see the tracks of tears on her face. Proof that she’d
cried herself to sleep.

The muscles in his arms and shoulders rippled as he
leaned his head down, and kissed her throat, her collarbone. God, but he needed
her. He left a trail of kisses along her chest.

Angel moaned in her sleep.

He dipped his head to her breast, and touched her
nipple with his tongue. He pulled it into his mouth, gently sucking. She arched
her back, coming awake, and pushed against his shoulders, not realizing where
she was.

He raised his head, and looked down at her. “Shh.
Shh, baby. It’s okay,” he soothed her. His mouth returned to what it had been
doing.

She thrashed, trying to pull away.

He tightened his arms around her, his strong biceps
locking around her ribs. “Don’t fight me, Angel. Come on, baby. Relax for me.
That’s it.”

“Cole.” She pushed at his shoulders, the heat
spreading from his mouth all through her. It wasn’t fair. He could have her
melting at his mere touch. He wanted her physically, but emotionally he
wouldn’t let her get close. “Cole, no,” she whispered breathlessly.

“You’re mine, Angel. Don’t deny me. You don’t ever
deny your man, understand?” He slid down to her navel, his mouth soft, his
tongue delving.

Her breath caught in her throat, and she turned her
head from side to side. “You said I don’t belong here. You pushed me away. Why
do you keep pulling me back? Why must you do this to me? It’s not fair.”

“You want me. Say it.”

“No. I don’t,” she whispered.

“Liar,” he accused softly, and nipped at her with
his teeth. If he had any conscience left, he would have left her alone. But,
God forgive him, he couldn’t leave her alone. She was fast becoming an
addiction to him, his drug of choice. The cravings he felt for her were just as
strong.

“Cole. Please, no-“

“Don’t fight it, sweetheart,” Cole growled low in
his throat. He slid up to her face, his hands running through her hair, pulling
her head back. He kissed his way up her throat, and over to her ear. He
whispered, “Please, baby. I need you. Open your legs for me, Angel.”

Hesitantly, she obeyed his command, relaxing beneath
him.

He had her anchored to the bed, holding her as she
opened to him, and he slid his hips into the cradle of her thighs. Cole groaned
at her surrender, and his mouth closed over hers.

She answered his heat with a fire all her own.

He bit her lower lip gently, and need swirled
through him as her hands slid over his back. He couldn’t deny he wanted her. He
wouldn’t deny it anymore. And he couldn’t deny the possessive feelings that had
taken hold of him. She was his. His angel. A confusing mix of fire and ice, claws
one minute, purring the next. “You’re mine, Angel. Say it,” he demanded softly.

She shook her head from side to side.

His mouth moved to her ear, and he whispered, “Say
it.”

She couldn’t deny it, anymore than she could deny
her need to breathe. Whatever this was between them, it was powerful. “Yes,
Cole. I’m yours.”

He growled low in his throat as he entered her.

Angel caught her breath, and then wrapped her legs
around him, and hung on as he took her to heaven.

*****

Angel awoke alone. She looked over at the clock
radio. Seven A.M. She waited for a while, thinking he would come back. At nine,
she got out of bed, and got dressed. She was combing her hair when there was a
knock at the door. She opened it, and found Crystal standing there.

“Morning,” Crystal said.

“Morning,” Angel replied.

“Mack wanted me to tell you that he wants to speak
with you.”

What could he want to talk to her about, she
wondered. “Crystal, do you know where Cole is?”

She shrugged. “He left a while ago.” Then she turned
to go.

Angel followed Crystal out. They walked back down to
the main room. She followed her over to the bar. She could smell the aroma of
just brewed coffee, and her eyes located the coffee maker on the counter
against the wall.

“The coffee’s fresh. I just made it,” Crystal
informed her, as she handed Angel a clean mug.

“Thanks.” Angel took it, and poured herself a cup.

“Mack’s waiting for you in there.” She nodded toward
a room off to the side.

Angel looked back at Crystal. “Do you know what he
wants to talk to be about?”

Crystal shook her head. “I wouldn’t keep him
waiting.”

Angel turned, and carried her coffee with her. The
door was open. She peeked inside. He was sitting at the far end of a long
wooden table. It looked like a boardroom. It looked a lot like the room at the
Dead Souls clubhouse, where she had first met Cole.

Mack looked up, and saw her standing there. “Come on
in, darlin’.” He indicated the chair next to him.

She sat down, and set her coffee mug on the table.
“You wanted to talk to me?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Just wanted to say thanks again
for that help you gave us.”

She smiled timidly. “You’re welcome. I didn’t want
to see Cole get in any trouble.”

“Right.” He drank from the coffee mug he was
holding. “So, you got feelings for Cole?”

She wasn’t ready for the direct question. “Why are
you asking?”

He shrugged. “Just wondering. You two have been
pretty tight since you met.”

“I guess so.” He was making her nervous. She looked
down at the table, and played with the handle of her coffee mug.

He watched her body language. “How old are you,
Angel?”

She looked at him, and frowned. “Why are you asking
me all these questions?”

“How old?” he pressed her.

She stared him in the eye, determined not to let him
see how much he rattled her. She felt out of her element. “Twenty-one.”

He nodded. “Wow, twenty-one. You have your whole
life ahead of you, don’t you?”

“I suppose.”

“I can’t see you getting mixed up with this kind of
life. It really doesn’t suit you.”

“How would you know what suits me? You don’t know me
at all,” she insisted, staring into her mug.

“I know you. Your kind.”

She turned to look at him. “My kind?”

“You think he’s broken, and you’re gonna be the one
to fix him. It’s what all you little girls think.”

Angel watched as he put a cigar in his mouth, lit a
match, and puffed on the cigar to get it lit. Then he looked over at her. “You
can’t change him, darlin’. So don’t go tryin’ to save his soul. This club? It’s
in his blood. It’s who he is. You’re no good for him, Angel. When you’re around
he’s distracted, he makes mistakes. Mistakes that can get him killed. Is that
what you want?”

“No. Of course not.”

Mack puffed on his cigar, looking at her.

“Where is Cole?” she asked, looking back at the
door.

Mack leaned back in his chair. “He had some business
concerns to take care of. He won’t be back for a few days.”

“A few days?” She stared at him, confused. Why
didn’t he say anything to her? He didn’t even say goodbye. She looked down at
the table, trying to understand.

“Yeah. He wanted me to make sure you got a cab home.”

Angel stared at Mack. None of this made sense. Cole
wouldn’t just brush her off like this, would he? “Did he…did he say anything
else?”

Mack shrugged, tapping his cigar in the ashtray on
the table. “He said to be sure to tell you he had a good time.” He saw the hurt
in her eyes. He waved the hand with the cigar. “Cole’s not very good at saying
goodbye.”

“That’s funny. He told me he was.” She got up, and
shoved her chair back, and walked out of the room.

Mack hollered after her. “I’ll call that cab for you.”

She walked straight over to Crystal.

Crystal turned to her, and saw the look on her face.
“You okay?”

“Do you know where Cole went?”

Just as she was about to answer her, Crystal looked
past Angel, and saw Mack standing in the doorway. “Oregon, I think,” she told
the lie, like she’d been told to do, and turned away.

Angel looked behind her, and saw Mack. She turned,
and ran up the stairs back to Cole’s room, and closed the door. She couldn’t
understand. Why would he do this? Maybe she was wrong about him. Maybe she was
wrong about everything. She looked around the room, realizing she didn’t have
any belongings to pack. Everything she had was borrowed.

Her eyes landed on the desk. Suddenly she moved
toward it, and rummaged through it. She found a pen and an old envelope. She
wrote him a note, leaving him a couple of phone numbers if he wanted to contact
her. She told him she hoped he would call her. She said she didn’t understand
why he left without saying goodbye, at least.

Sitting on the bed, she looked around the room,
committing it to memory. She had a feeling she would never be back here again.
She sat there a long time.