DARK FALL(9)

Kaity felt something grab her wrist and she jumped. It was Erik.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Passing through,” Kaity said. “My car started acting funny so I stopped. Okay?”

“I don’t buy that for a second.”

“The car is broken,” Kaity said. “What am I supposed to do?”

Erik curled his lip. “You’re going to sit on the trunk of the car with Blaine. He’s going to talk about how big his cock is and how bad he wants to fuck you. But he’s all talk. He won’t make a move because I said so. Got it?”

“No, I don’t got it,” Kaity said.

She had no idea why she was being so fierce with a strong man with a gun. This was stupid.

“If you don’t listen to me, you’ll end up dead. Is that a little more clear?”

“Yeah,” Kaity said.

“Good.” Erik pushed away from Kaity and grabbed Blaine by his shoulder. “Don’t fuck around.”

“You know me,” Blaine said. “I’ll keep her warm for you.”

“She’s not for me,” Erik said. He looked back at Kaity. “She’s just in the way right now.”

Erik walked away and Kaity felt cold and numb. She didn’t want Erik to walk away, but she had no idea why. Blaine hooked his thumbs into the pockets of his jeans and stared at her.

“What in the good hell are you doing here?” Blaine asked.

“Trying to enjoy my freedom,” Kaity whispered.

“Well… you’ve definitely come to the right place,” Blaine said. “But good luck earning Erik’s trust.”

Kaity stared at Erik. He put an arm around Willy and then pushed him toward the garage.

“Hop up, beautiful,” Blaine said as he jumped on the trunk of the car.

Kaity climbed up on the trunk of her car and started to shake. She had been trying to escape hell. Now she found a new version of it.





four.



Erik wasn’t sure when the last time he actually slept was. Last night the booze kept flowing, the ladies were willing, and for whatever reason, Erik couldn’t miss a shot in a game of pool. He cleared out the clubhouse, beating everyone there, made three hundred dollars, and took two women to his bed. When he woke that morning, the two women were sleeping on top of each other, still naked, and Erik sat up and reveled at the amazing sight.

That’s when Nate came to the door and said Miller wanted an emergency meeting. Erik should have taken a few minutes to himself and enjoyed the two women before leaving, but the urge disappeared. He climbed from the bed, dressed, and slapped the top woman on the ass, waking her. He told the two women to get the fuck out.

In the meeting, Miller and Gaige were tense and pissed off. They had received confirmation that the car Shay had purchased with the bomb in it came from an auction company twenty miles north. They were also informed that two scumbag cousins that ran a back alley auto garage had been there the same day. That meant they could have - and should have - seen something at the auction. Someone suspicious. Someone fucking around with Shay’s car. Something that would point the club in the right direction to resolve this problem.

Erik and Blaine were the ones who wanted to go. Miller was reluctant to send Erik out without himself or Gaige, but they were already tied up for the morning. As club rules went, Erik had to ride with at least one other member, for backup. Seeing as Erik wanted to be alone, he knew he could handle Blaine because that meant mostly just ignoring the guy.

The last thing Erik expected to see was a woman in the parking lot of the shitty auto garage. The second Erik saw the woman’s face, he saw fear. And when she looked back, she didn’t look away.

Is she fucking blind?

That was the first thought that went through Erik’s mind.

Didn’t this woman see the scars on his face? Didn’t it bother her? Why the fuck did she keep staring without a look of disgust on her face?

It really bothered Erik.

Of course the woman wouldn’t open the door to her car. Erik couldn’t blame her. She was surrounded by two bikers and two greasy mechanics. But Erik wasn’t in the business of harming women. He was in the business of getting answers as to who tried to kill him.

He didn't need to, but it felt damn good busting out the back window to the car. And it felt even better watching the woman climb out of the car, still staring at him. Erik couldn’t figure out what the hell it meant, but the woman was very good looking. Beautiful, in fact.

And that pissed Erik off, too.

He wasn’t there to flirt with anyone, yet he made damn sure that Blaine wasn’t going to make a move on her. Erik took his frustrations out on Willy as he threw the mechanic into the side of the building. Willy stumbled back and Erik grabbed him again and threw him one more time. When Willy fell back, he waved his hands.