Pride and Pregnancy (A Devil's Dragons Motorcycle Club Romance) (4 page)

M
y immediate impulse
was to lose my shit right then and there. This wasn’t just about money or her fucking private investigations company, she was carrying our child! She couldn’t just walk her pregnant ass into the Devil’s west coast headquarters asking questions about the dock and expect to walk back out of there in one piece.

Lucky for her sake, I was too tired to deal with that little slice of bullshit right now, so I laughed and wandered back to bed. I must have fallen asleep the second my face smashed against the pillow, because the next thing I knew, daylight was pouring in.

Groggily, I rolled over. Sarah wasn’t in bed, and I was wondering if I’d just dreamed that she had come back into my life until I saw some of her clothes were still laying discarded along the floor nearby.

I sat up, folding my fingers behind my head and losing myself in thought.

Talon… She wants to talk to motherfucking Talon.

I shuddered. Few men struck any kind of fear into my heart. Hell, even the slimy sex trade motherfuckers down south didn’t scare me… they just pissed me right off.

Talon was a different beast altogether…

I knew Sarah would come back sooner or later… But this wasn’t exactly how I imagined it happening. She tells me I’m going to be a father, then hangs that shit over my head and asks me to go on a suicide mission?

Well… it looks like this is happening with
or without
me,
I thought to myself as I climbed out of bed. I threw on a shirt and strolled out to find my woman, wherever she was.

The couch.

She comes here, tells me I’m going to be a daddy, fucks me senseless, begs me for help, and then she sleeps on the couch?

There was no point in getting the day off on the wrong foot, so I walked into the kitchen, turned on the stovetop, and started cracking eggs. I slapped some bacon and sausages into a pan of hot grease and whipped up French toast. While I cooked, my mind started drifting towards my unborn son.

From the moment Sarah told me that she was pregnant, I knew she was giving me an heir to my empire. If I could hold the Outlaws together, my son would inherit the mantle. He could be born the Prince of the Outlaws.

I
really
liked the sound of that.

Prince of the Outlaws.
I ran that over in my mind again, imagining my child at eight, maybe nine years old. No fiddling around with iPhones or zonked out in front of Call of Duty.

My heir was going to challenge his old man in the
badass
department. I was learning rifles and hunting at twelve. When I inherited the bike at sixteen, I took to it
fast
.

I expected to offer my son all of these opportunities and more. I’d teach him to think critically, make the difficult choices, respect life and the club, and most of all… to always protect the things that he held precious.

I would give the kid the shirt off of my fucking back and
then
some.

Willingly.

With these convictions in mind, I prodded Sarah on the shoulder with her plate at the ready.

“Mmm?” She lifted her face, eyes half-lidded. Even if she was dancing on my nerve, it was hard to not fall hopelessly in love with that sleepy face all over again.

“Breakfast, beautiful,” I enlightened her. As she sat up, I handed her the plate with my thumb over the cutlery, a glass of O.J. at the ready.

“You didn’t have to do all this,” she replied sheepishly as she took a few bites.

“Wanted to,” I replied, strolling back to prepare my own plate. “It’s gonna be a long day… better get our strength now, before the shit starts to hit the fan.”

Sarah let my assessment slide, eating her food in silence. The last thing I wanted was this kind of tension between us, but I could sense that pushing the issue now was a bad idea.

Life was simpler when we were dumb, love-struck teens. Sarah and Hunter against the world... Luckily,
the world
was pretty small back then…

I caught Sarah’s eye, and something seemed to pass between us. An understanding, perhaps – the tension in the room slowly softened, and we started to cast each other small smiles as we ate.

It was certainly a start.

When we were done, I took her plate with mine and slipped them into the sink. I rinsed off the juices and let them soak for a while as I strolled back into the living room.

“I’m glad you came back...”

Sarah had already stepped into the other room, changing into some fresh clothes. She’d brought a small suitcase from Phoenix when she arrived, locked away in the trunk of her conspicuous Crown Vic outside.

I really needed to convince her to spring for something that screamed something a little subtler than “law enforcement.”

It was a few minutes before she stepped back out, looking quite the professional. The desert was too hot for a trenchcoat, so she dressed in a slimming blouse, slender black leggings, and a pair of casual but fashionable boots.

“How do I look?”

I let a grin cross my face. “In all honesty, like someone I’d rip out of those clothes and fuck
hard
on the kitchen table.”

Sarah stepped forward, slipping a finger beneath my chin seductively. “We’ll have plenty of time for that… but we’ve gotta get ready to meet our new friend.”

“Yeah, I know,” I feigned dejection, grabbing my leather jacket from the hook near the door. “We both slept in, and it’s already lunchtime… better tell the boys what’s going down.”

“Does that mean we’re going to California?”

I grabbed my keys from the countertop and flashed her a confident grin. “It means we’re going to find a shipping container.”

W
hen I walked in
, most of my Dragons were sitting around and sipping beers, playing darts, shooting the shit, or playing pool.

Mostly, it was a combination.

Sarah walked up to the countertop and ordered a diet coke from my spunky redheaded bartender, Elmira. This time, there wasn’t some smart-ass retort. I thought maybe the two of them were going to start getting along, until I spotted Elmira giving Sarah dagger-eyes the second she turned her back.

I gave her a quick shake of my head and she finished pouring the glass of soda, quickly pushing it across the bar.

“Status report, boys,” I spoke up as I noticed Sarah pull out her phone and start to make a call. “Where are we?”

“Same as usual, boss,” Victor answered. “Everything’s caught up and good to go. Weapons are cleaned, bulletproof vests are wiped down. We’re ready to ride...”

“Good,” I replied. “That’s what I like to hear.”

My men were a solid bunch, loyal as anyone could ever be. They were also some of the roughest bikers I could ever ask for, and the combination meant that they fiercely followed me into battle, no matter where I went.

They made me proud.

“I’m calling a meeting…” I glanced around, scanning for the face of my second-in-command. “Where’s Grizz?”

Another one of my men, Skid, called out from the pool tables. “He’s gone to go get his cast off. Said he was tired of not being able to ride a fuckin’ bike.”

I couldn’t help but smile, although thinking of my tactical sharpshooter taking a bullet during our last big assault still bothered me. A few inches to the right and I’d have been burying the best friend I ever had...

“You let me know the second he waltzes back through that door,” I pointed for the front of the bar. “Soon as he does, I want each and every one of you in the war room.”

While it was rare before to find more than a handful of bikers on the premises at time, things had changed. These days you’d find most of the men partying it up here at the clubhouse day and night.

It was an…
unfortunate
turn of events.

Our armed protection contracts out here in El Paso had been running dry. After the shit went down in Juarez, the whole area had went quiet. Big and small, fear of a deadly club of vigilante bikers had sent the criminals scattering to the winds. That was great news for the people in El Paso, but it wasn’t so great for our livelihoods.

You can’t sell protection to people who don’t need it…

Contracts were fewer and farther between and that meant it was getting about time to pull up roots and follow the money. That’s how we’d survived ever since leaving Phoenix. A new city every year or two, padding our pockets along the way.

I needed to give my Dragons more than that. They deserved something more permanent. We couldn’t wander the desert forever… I’d already started deliberating with Grizz on some possible locations for a permanent base of operations, and knowing I had a kid on the way was only making the gears in my mind turn faster.

I couldn’t drag my kid all over the desert. The heir to my kingdom needed consistency, solidity, and a strong foundation.

Shaking my thoughts aside, I pushed open the door to my war room – a space set aside for higher club management and planning our next moves. The single large round table in the center was covered with maps and notes, with important information pinned up on the walls.

It was small, but it did the trick. Having an entire room dedicated to my work streamlined things for guiding my boys and managing the club duties. While we were busy with club operations, I spent a lot of time in this chamber.

Sarah must have finally hung up the phone, because it wasn’t long before she followed me in, locking the door behind her.

“I’d almost forgotten what this place looked like,” Sarah commented wistfully as she gazed around the familiar pages on the walls and the tabletop. “Some things never change.”

“Some things change for the better,” I grinned.

She gave a quick smile, “I just got off the phone with the detective… She says the client is doubling the reward for that cargo container… One million dollars paid on delivery... Cash…”

“And what exactly are you going to do with that kind of money, Sarah? You can’t exactly deposit it into the bank. You don’t even know where it’s coming from.”

“I was hoping you’d help me with the
accounting
side of things…” she replied.

“So, what? Now I’m your big bad accountant?” I asked, laughing.

“No… I don’t fuck my accountant,” she replied, moving toward me and sinking to her knees. I let out a load moan as she worked my belt quickly. This woman was going to fucking kill me.

A knock at the door interrupted us just as her tender lips had wrapped themselves around my cock, but that didn’t slow her down. Sarah’s mouth slipped down the shaft, her tongue rolling softly against my rock hard flesh.

“There’s someone here to see you, boss,” Ricochet shouted through the door.

“Tell them they’re going to have to wait,” I shouted back, my hand wrapping through Sarah’s hair as I slipped deep into her throat.

“You’re… going to want to come see this.”

“We’re busy,” I insisted, “Whatever it is, it can wait.”

Sarah was picking up speed now, her hand wrapped around the base of my cock and slipping up and down its length while her lips wrapped the tip, tongue rolling lovingly below the ridge of the head, driving me fucking insane. Ricochet seemed to take the hint, going silent as I let Sarah drive me closer and closer to the explosion I knew was coming. She took her time, minutes stretching out forever as pleasure overwhelmed my senses.

“Are you sure? Because your–” Ricochet’s voice again came filtering through the door, interrupting us yet again. Sarah let out a stifled laugh, causing a vibration to run along the length of my desperate shaft. Pleasure was rolling through me and making it difficult to stand. My knees were weak, and the hottest fucking woman I’d ever met was worshipping me like some kind of God. She was going to make me cum, and I knew she loved the fucking power she held over me.

“I’m fucking sure,” I replied, gasping as Sarah brought me right to the peak of the mountain. There was no turning back now. Her mouth worked faster and faster, not even trying to stay quiet as she took my cock all the way to its base.

“God Sarah… Fuck…” I gasped, my whole body shivering as pleasure exploded within me. Each pulse of my orgasm sent my seed pouring into her willing mouth, and she held me there deep, drinking of my essence as if her very life depended upon it.

Ricochet’s voice was a bit more distant as the last throes of my orgasm rolled over me.

“Tell his sister she’ll have to wait outside.”

W
ithin an instant
, Hunter had tucked his cock back into his pants and left the room. I followed after him just as surprised and confused as he was… And maybe a little sad that this couldn’t have waited just a bit longer. My hormones had been going crazy, and my sex drive was through the roof. Giving Hunter a little unexpected blowjob was fun, but I was desperate to have him inside me again… I wanted him to fuck me again so hard…

I passed through the main area of the bar, between the bikers who rose from their chairs to see what the commotion was.

“Hannah…” Hunter spoke in amazement.

His sister was a bit shorter than him, but unmistakably kin. She stood in the doorway in a black leather jacket, matching jeans, and a pair of dark boots. Blowing her hair out of her face, she held onto a motorcycle helmet in one hand.

She looked badass.

“Hey, little brother. Long time no see,” Hannah replied calmly as she glanced over his shoulder. “And I’m guessing you’re Sarah, huh?”

“That’s right,” I nodded. “I’ve heard so much about you,” I added, extending my hand. “Nice to finally have a face to put to the name.”

“Hell yeah, same here,” Hannah chuckled as she took my hand. “I’ve heard a little about you, too..”

“Is that so?” I turned to him with a grin.

“Hannah… what are you doing here?”

“Haven’t seen your sister in eight years, and
that’s
how you greet her?” She mocked him, hands on her hips. “Not a ‘Hey, looking great, Hannah!’ or a ‘You must be tired after a long ride, Hannah!’ I see how it is…”

Hunter shook his head, trying to clear it. Meanwhile, most of the bikers had sat back down, although they all curiously watched us interacting. “No, no, that’s not… I’m just surprised. Especially since I just got a letter from you last night from the Couriers…”

“Yeah, about that,” she replied, stepping forward to place her helmet down on an empty bar top. “I got a letter from you a few days ago, but it didn’t have our code in it. Sounded fishy. Asked me to meet you at our
old spot
… so I high-tailed it here to find out what the hell was going on.”

“I didn’t write you a letter,” he replied calmly, crossing his arms.

“Figured that much,” Hannah smiled. “You were always so careful. Didn’t seem like you’d forget our basic code…” She ran her fingers through her hair. “But that begs the question of
who
…”

One of the Devil’s Dragons finally spoke up with a big grin on his face. “So… are you going to introduce us, or what?”

Hunter realized his error.

“Right… Dragons, some of you might remember her from the first raid on
Viboras Verde
…. I’d like to introduce you to my older sister, Hannah.”

The entire club raised their glasses and beers, and Hannah performed a mock curtsey. “Really, really, you’re all too kind…”

“Anything I can get you?” Hunter asked, casting a meaningful look over at Elmira. Interestingly (or perhaps maybe not), the bartender had her eyes glued to Hunter’s sister, and she was
obviously
quite pleased with this caliber of guest.

I guess it was more her kind of patron.

“So, is this an
actual
bar, or is it all just for show? I’ve had a hell of a day, and I could use a bit of Jameson…”

Hunter gave the hotheaded bartender another meaningful look, and she started pouring the drink. “Finally,” I heard her mutter under her breath, “the
right
kind of people show up in this godforsaken place…”

“Well, nice to see that
she’s
warming up…” I muttered, smiling to Hannah. “Great to finally meet you. I’ll be right back.”

“Sounds good,” Hannah smiled.

Elmira set Hannah’s glass down, casting me a filthy look. I casually ignored it as I started to move towards the back of the bar, angling for the bathroom.

All of a sudden, nausea overcame me.

I slumped against the countertop, clutching my stomach with labored breaths. Everything started to spin…

A pair of strong hands grabbed me under my arms, keeping me from hitting the hardwood floor. Hunter lifted me to my feet and carried me towards a sofa in the corner, waving away his bikers as he carefully set me down.

“You alright?” Hannah popped into view, studying my face. She turned her face and called out to the bar: “I need a glass of water, wet rags, and a fan!”

“It’s okay,” I mumbled, realizing how distant my voice sounded. “I’m just…”

“What’s wrong with her?” Hannah asked Hunter, who was stepping back into view with the requested items. His face was etched with concern as he studied me, handing her the water and starting to fan me off.

“Dunno… only thing I can think of is that she’s pregnant.”

“What?” His sister glanced up. “Congratulations!” She punched Hunter in the side, dropping to a kneeling position in front of me. “How far along is she?”

“I think around six, seven weeks.”

Things started fading out, but I became gradually aware that she was trying to force me to drink a glass of water. Lifting the lip to my mouth, she guided me to take a sip, and I downed half the glass and handed it back.

Hannah was checking my brow and noted that I was sweaty, so she wiped my face clean and laid a cold rag on my forehead.

“Thank you,” I murmured.

“Not a problem, dear,” she replied sympathetically. “Have you been having bad morning sickness yet?”

“Every once in a while, yeah. But it’s been pretty manageable so far.”

“Well, get used to the idea that it’s gonna get worse,” she responded tenderly. “A little fainting spell like that is a sign of harder symptoms to come. You’re going to want to take it a bit easier going forward.”

I could see Hunter hanging just back enough to give her space, although he looked confused and concerned. “Is she going to be alright?”

“Oh yeah, Sarah’s gonna be fine. But you’ll need to take better care of her, Hunter.” Hannah glanced up at him. “The morning sickness and hormone changes are going to take their toll pretty soon.”

He glanced my way in mock irritation. “That would be a bit easier if she were around… she only arrived last night.”

“Is that so?” Hannah replied quickly, glancing between both of us. “I knew you wandered off for a while, but why show up now?”

“I could say the same to you,” I replied. “I’m following up a lead on a private investigation…”

“You need to check with a specialist,” Hannah said, apparently satisfied with my answer. “Don’t make the mistakes I did. Nip this thing in the bud and keep that baby healthy, or you’ll have more fainting spells like that. Unless you have already…?”

“It’s
fine
,” I mumbled, pulling myself up and dusting off. “This is the first and only one. I’ve already seen a doctor and I’m perfectly healthy. I just need to remember to keep on my prenatal vitamins, and I’ll be totally okay.”

“You’ve already seen a doctor?” Hunter asked, crossing his arms. “Without me?”

“Oh,” I muttered quickly.
Shit.
“Yeah, it was just a quick check-up. It wasn’t anything terribly important. I went two weeks ago when I realized that I was carrying.”

Hunter shook his head and muttered something under his breath, walking away from the group and towards his Dragons.

Although they surrounded us, they were clearly trying to not eavesdrop on the commotion… or at least, they were
pretending
to, given that some of them looked away every time I glanced up.

“Give me a second to calm him down,” Hannah whispered into my ear.

“So,” Hannah began, crossing over through the crowd of seated, casually observing bikers, “this is the lair of the Devil’s Dragons, huh?”

A number of them cheered lightly and lifted their beers.

“I never got the chance to thank those of you who were there that day, who saved me…”

She was pleased with the whooping and cheering responses, and turned to both of us with her hands on her hips. “Well… you said that you’re a private investigator, and you’re working on a case, right?”

Hannah started thinking aloud.

“Listen, little brother, I hate to kind of crash things, but this weirdness involving the letters makes me want to stick kind of close. Do you have any hard feelings with me kicking back here for a little while? I can get out of your hair again whenever you need me to…”

“Stay as long as you like,” Hunter said.

“We’d love to have you here,” I smiled as warmly as possible. “Besides… You seem to know a thing or two about pregnancy.”

“A miscarriage will do that for you,” Hannah shrugged.

“Oh god! I–I’m so sorry!”

“It’s okay,” she replied sadly. “Anyway… What’s this investigation all about?”