TANNER Page 5

  When she reached the top of the stairs and looked at the door, she could already feel the buzz from inside drifting out to meet her. The music was heavy and she could hear the cheering of men. It reeked of booze and sex, and it made her heart race and her pussy throb. She had never felt excitement like it, but it was because she was so nervous that it made everything all the more enticing.

  She stepped forward and pushed the door open. Inside, the darkness reached out and pulled her in, enveloping her and bringing her into its bosom. She glided through the doorway as if she had done it a thousand times, and she focused quickly to find the bar, which luckily, was right ahead. The smoke and the other bodies in there made singling out one particular face hard, so she kept her head down and walked forward with purpose.

  You need a drink, she said to herself. A stiff drink.

  She meandered her way around the girls that were dancing and flirting with bikers and truckers, and when she finally rested her palms down on the countertop she felt as if she had just excelled at some crazy kind of obstacle course.

  She had made it.

  She was there!

  “What can I get you?” the girl behind the bar drawled as she sidled up and looked down at her with big, brown eyes.

  “Vodka,” Jo said. “Straight up.”

  The girl smiled knowingly and nodded her head before she turned and reached for a glass which she filled almost to the brim from a huge bottle of Absolut.

  At least she was going to get something decent, she thought as she handed over her money and raised the glass to her lips.

  Jo had never been a big drinker, but something about the way she was there alone was potentially putting herself in danger and was about to track down a man she had a huge crush on made it a necessity. She sipped it quickly and gagged slightly as it oozed down her throat, warming her insides, right down to the pit of her stomach. Instantly, her senses were smudged and her nerves began to subside. The heat inside of her transferred right out of her eyes and made her smile. She was already feeling a million times better.

  She sipped again and this time, it went down easier. She drank it hungrily and rested it down on the bar, almost empty.

  “Another?” the bar girl asked her, impressed.

  “I think I better take a water,” she whispered.

  The girl laughed and nodded, passing her a glass of water, which she poured from a jug.

  Jo sipped it slowly to balance out the vodka and then turned slowly on her heel and looked around the room. It was so dark in there it wasn’t easy to make out anyone in particular, but it wasn’t long before she zoned in on the large group of leather-clad men in the corner, drunk as skunks, covered in tattoos, and oozing authority like nothing she had ever seen before in her life.

  That must be them, she thought as she quickly averted her eyes and looked down at the ground. She reached into her purse and pulled out her cell phone before she typed a quick text to Kirsten.

  J: I’m here okay, no need to panic just yet! ;) x

  She pressed send and slipped the phone back into her bag, just in time before a big, heavy set of hands slammed down on her shoulders.

  Her heart began to pound in her chest as she spun around and came face to face with him, the man of her dreams.

  Tanner.

  He had come for her.

  6.

  He gave her a wry smile, his eyes alight and his body folding up close to hers.

  “You made it,” he breathed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

  He had been drinking for a while, that she could tell, but it didn’t bother her. He was enjoying himself and she liked to see this fun edge to him, he was being playful and it was endearing.

  “I did,” she said. “I wasn’t sure if I could hack it over this side of town, but it turns out, it’s pretty fun.”

  “This place is the best in town,” he winked. “And no, I’m not biased.”

  “Hmm, not sure if I can agree with that,” she said as she looked around. “I don’t know a whole lot about you, but so far, what I do know is that you’re a biker… And this is most certainly a biker bar.”

  Tanner grinned and held up his hands.

  “You got me,” he said with a wink.

  Jo couldn’t help but smile back like a giddy schoolgirl. He was so goddam hot and the way he was looking at her was making her quake.

  “Let me get you a drink,” he said as he slipped his hand into hers and pulled her back toward the bar.

  All around her, bodies radiated heat, sweat and the scent of sex. It was as if she had walked straight into a den of inequity and was experiencing an assault on all of her senses at once. But it was incredible. After never knowing what it was that her heart and soul truly yearned for, she believed she was finally on the right track to discovering. And she certainly liked this.

  Tanner passed her a vodka and leaned back against the bar, taking her all in.

  “You know, when I caught sight of you last night driving out there in the desert, I knew I had to get to know you,” he said. “But I thought I’d missed my chance, riding on by. And then as luck would have it, there you were today, standing there in the motel parking lot with your broken down car.”

  “Well, I never thought that I would say this, but I’m so glad the car did break down,” she smiled. “I like it here in this little town.”

  “There’s so much you don’t know,” he said as he took a step closer. “But this place, well, it is a great town to live in.”

  He sipped his whiskey and reached into his pocket for a packet of cigarettes. He sparked one up and clamped the end between his teeth and the smoke trailed up between them.

  “Where do you come from, Jo?” he asked her sincerely. “I want to know the works…”

  “That’s a hell of a lot of story to get through,” she said. “But I guess I’m from a small town not too different to this one, I left looking for something else. That’s the short version, anyways.”

  He smiled at her and took another sip of his drink.

  “Well, aren’t you a delightful mystery.” His eyes sparkled. “I like that.”

  Jo felt herself blushing. The way he was looking at her was as if he was undressing her with his eyes. And it was turning her on.

  “What’s with the girls?” she asked looking around, trying to regain her composure.

  Tanner curled up his lip and snarled.

  “These women drive us all nuts,” he said. “They seem to think we’d find this attractive… Laying it all out there for the taking. They’re just wannabes, no one will ever pick one of them up.”

  Jo felt a pang of guilt. Even though she couldn’t sympathize with them for acting so desperate and easy, she didn’t like the thought of a fellow sister demeaning herself like that.

  “Come and sit with us,” Tanner said. “We’re celebrating.”

  He slipped his hand into Jo’s again and pulled her through the crowds. He was so strong and in control it made her nipples harden and her pussy throb. He was so tall and broad, so muscular, so much of a man. He knew what he wanted and it was her. And he wasn’t, in any way, afraid to take it.

  They approached the crowd of men in the corner and Jo instantly recognized Steel from earlier in the day. He raised his glass and tipped his head in greeting and motioned to some of the other men to clear a space for Jo to sit. Tanner sat down on a chair and brushed away the offer of another seat, he pulled Jo onto his lap and grinned.

  “We don’t want any of them getting any other ideas,” he whispered into her ear and squeezed her thigh.

  She felt a gush in her panties.

  Oh. My. God.

  She gasped and bit her lip. Feeling his hot breath on her neck and feeling his hands all over her was sending her into a frenzy.

  She relaxed back into the warm curve of his lap and let him wrap an arm around her waist and hold her tight. It was as if she had been claimed right then and there for all to see, and she absolutely loved it.

&n
bsp; “Who’s this then?” one of the larger men in the group said, looking at Jo.

  Tanner leaned forward and squeezed her slightly again.

  “This is Jo,” Tanner said. “And Jo’s in town for a few days.”

  She felt herself blushing.

  “You’re the girl who was driving out in the desert last night,” another one of the men said. “I remember you.”

  All of them started to nod their heads in recognition and Tanner smiled.

  “That’s where she caught my eye,” he said. “And now, here we are.”

  Jo felt her heart skip a beat.

  The group of men all started to chat amongst themselves again and Jo turned her head to the side to whisper to Tanner.

  “So who are all of these guys?” she asked.

  Tanner held her close and whispered in her ear.

  “That there right opposite you is King,” he nodded. “He’s right up high in our charter, one of the best, baddest, most dangerous. When the leader of our gang steps down or passes away, it’ll be King who fills his shoes.”

  Jo looked at King and took him all in. He was tall and broad too, and incredibly regal looking. It was no wonder he had earned his moniker. He could have ruled the world with the way he presided over the group of outlaws.

  “Next to him is Bull,” Tanner continued. “They’re pretty tight, brothers in arms, like we all are, but they’ve always had a special bond.”

  Bull was the biggest of them all. He was so big and menacing looking it made Jo’s heart race a little faster.

  “And we have Lynx,” Tanner whispered. “He’s all kinds of crazy but I love that mother-fucker to death.”

  Jo smirked and looked deep into his eyes as their heads were turned to face one another.

  In that moment, the spark between them was so electric she wanted to lean forward and kiss him, she wanted to taste him, to experience him. But her shyness took over and she found herself looking down at the floor and brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ears.

  “And then we have Hawk, Stag, Stick, and Ax,” he breathed deeply into her neck. “All of us are Forsaken Riders.”

  Jo bit her lip.

  “A Forsaken Rider?” she asked, playing dumb.

  “That’s our motorcycle club, that’s what we all stand and live for. The Forsaken is our life.”

  Jo felt her skin tingle. He was so passionate about it, it made her want to know more.

  “How did you get into this?” she asked quietly. She didn’t want the others to hear their conversation and she could tell that Tanner didn’t want them to either.

  “Come on,” he whispered as he helped her off his lap and down to her feet. He stood up tall and took hold of her hand and began to lead her away. Right past the bar and into a quiet corner where there were no wandering eyes and no one to listen. Here, they could truly be themselves.

  “They’re like brothers to me,” Tanner said as he sat down. “We’ve all grown up together. Some of us have always been here in Slate Springs, others found their way here one way or another. But we all have chosen to make this our way of life.”

  “It’s sounds so serious,” she gasped.

  “Because it is,” Tanner said sternly. “This isn’t a game, Jo. This is life and death. This is the difference between today and tomorrow. What we do here in this town is bigger than anyone could ever truly imagine.”

  “Why are you telling me all of this?” she asked, suddenly concerned.

  “Because,” Tanner said as he pulled her closer to him and looked at her deeply in the eyes. “Because the second I saw you, I knew I had to make you mine.”

  Her skin prickled with desire and a wave of lust and want rolled through her. No one had ever said anything like that to her before and not only was it turning her on, but it was thawing her heart.

  “Tanner…” she whispered.

  He reached up and took hold of the side of her face in his big, rough hand.

  “I know you feel it too,” he said. “I can see it in your eyes.”

  Jo found herself nodding and biting her lip.

  Tanner traced his thumb over her teeth and the way they nipped the juicy plump flesh beneath.

  “That’s just how you smiled at me last night,” he grinned. “And I got so fucking hard for you.”

  Jo felt a rush of euphoria roll through her. No one had ever been so honest with her. So brazen and so erotic. But it felt right. It didn’t faze her, she liked it. She wanted him to say it, she wanted him to tell her, and show her. She wanted him to show her everything.

  “Wow,” she gasped as she stared deep into his eyes. “I don’t know how to respond.”

  Tanner smiled wryly at her and wrapped her hand up in his.

  “It’s not every day a girl like you walks into a town like this. You stopped me in my tracks,” he said honestly. “And I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind since.”

  He didn’t take his eyes off hers and she wanted to confess that she had been exactly the same. All she had done since they had passed each other in the desert late at night was think about the mysterious bikers, who they were, and what they were doing. And then, when she had finally seen Tanner that morning, he had lit something in her that she was finding impossible to extinguish. He didn’t just intrigue her, his soul seemed to speak to hers in a way no one else’s ever had. It was as if they had known each other before, as if they had already lived a lifetime together and were just reacquainting. It wasn’t as if they had only known each other twenty-four hours. It was as if they had been friends for life.

  Special friends.

  Because no friendship had this amount of sexual chemistry. It was so hot and overpowering it felt as if the room was about to explode.

  Tanner stroked her face and looked deep into her eyes. She knew, in that moment, that whatever transpired between them, it was going to be important. It was going to change the course of her life from here on in.

  He leaned in and kissed her gently on the lips. As their skin touched, a spark seemed to light and both of their movements rapidly became hungry. He opened her mouth with his, slipped his tongue inside, kissed her so passionately that it took her breath away and made her knees weak. It was the most incredible kiss of her entire life. No one had ever kissed her in that way before, and no one had ever made her body feel the way he was making hers feel without even really touching her. Every part of her was responding to him in the most delicious of ways.

  “I’ve been wanting to do that since last night,” he whispered as their lips parted and his skimmed against hers.

  “Me too,” she gasped. “When I saw you in the parking lot earlier, I can’t explain what happened, but it was as if a lightning bolt had struck me and finally woke me up.”

  Tanner smiled and kissed her again.

  “I like that very much,” he whispered as he held onto her neck.

  Behind them, a loud bang and crash rang out around the room and the squeals of the girls that had been draping themselves around the place pierced through the thunderous roars of the men arguing in the background.

  Tanner quickly jumped to his feet, holding onto Jo as he pulled her with him. Her heart rapidly thumped in her chest and she looked up at him, startled.

  What the hell was happening?

  She saw the big mix of muscle and tattoos wrestling their way around the room, tipping up tables and smashing glasses in their wake. One of The Forsaken was fighting with a trucker.

  “King,” Tanner said as he stepped forward instinctively, but then he looked back at Jo and faltered. He couldn’t jump in at a moment like this. He had to protect her.

  He wrapped his arm around her tightly and led her quickly toward the back of the room.

  “There’s an exit this way,” he said as he pulled her out of the main body of the bar and into a back corridor. Behind them the banging and crashing got even louder and the girls’ screams filtered out onto the street. Whatever was happening, didn’t sound good and it was
unnerving.

  “What happened?” Jo panted as Tanner pulled her out of the back door and into the warm night air.

  Behind The Bleeding Bullet was a dank and trash filled alleyway swarming with grime and the feeling of danger.

  “King and one of the truckers,” Tanner said with concern. “Looked like they were going for it good.”

  He rubbed his chin and breathed in deeply through his nose.

  “I had to get you out of there,” he said. “Things can get pretty crazy when a fight breaks out.”

  Jo felt her eyes widen and her heart pounded on.

  “But what about King?” she asked.

  She could tell he wanted to be in there alongside his brothers, kicking ass and standing up for what was theirs. He looked torn.

  “I need to get you home safe,” Tanner said as he wrapped his fingers up in hers. “I can’t invite you down here and then let you get hurt, now, can I?” he smiled.

  From inside, they could still hear the smashing and the cheering coming from a group of men.

  “Sounds like it’s probably all over anyway,” Tanner laughed. “King never loses.”

  Jo felt the tension ease from her shoulders and she walked with him, trying not to let it play on her mind what had just happened. Tanner had been genuinely worried and concerned. She couldn’t help but wonder how often this sort of thing happened around him, and if she stayed in Slate Springs and became a part of his life, whether this would become the norm for her too.

  They walked quickly around the side of the building and Jo felt a twinge of excitement as she saw the long line of motorcycles all parked and waiting for their riders to return. They shone silver and gunmetal underneath the moonlight and were so big and monstrous they made her want to reach out and touch them.

  “Have you ever been on the back of a bike before?” Tanner asked with a smirk.

  “Umm, no… I haven’t,” she stammered as she looked up at him with her mouth agape.

  “Well, now is a good a time as any to try,” he said as he grabbed her by the waist, lifted her up and placed her down on the huge seat of one of the Harleys. He climbed on in front of her and pulled her arms around him. She could feel his rock hard muscles underneath and he was pressed right up against her, right up between her legs. The feeling of having him there, such a strong man, made her even more aroused. She felt her skin begin to prickle with heat and her head began to spin.