Page 95 of Ivory's Ruin Romance

“You were perfect,” Adrian whispered as he withdrew and gave her one last chaste kiss. “Did I hurt you?”

She shook her head as he rubbed the marks from her wrist and used his boxers to gently wipe her fingers. “No, I’m okay, just a little out of breath.” When he finished, she combed through her hair in an attempt to cover their obvious activities. Then she cleared her throat. “Um, what you said about when we go inside…”

She wasn’t sure if he’d remember from the heat of the moment, but as he refastened his belt, he let out a cocky hum. “Ah, yes.” His shoulders squared, and he stood a little straighter, tucking the gun back under his jacket. A smirk lifted one side of his mouth. “Do you want to be a good girl for me, Iv?”

She bit her lip. Despite everything that happened, her body grew light and warm again at his question. He wouldn’t punish her for backing out or using her safe word if she felt uncomfortable, but she also knew he wouldn’t do anything to put either of them at risk.

He smoothed his hands down her dress, making a show of arranging it before slipping underneath and verifying the mess he’d left was still there.

No doubt remained about what she wanted. “Yes, sir. I want to be a good girl for you.”

Another pleased hum. His hands skated over her sex in approval.

“Then let’s go.”

With a sure grip, he led them back inside the club.

The backroom looked the same as they’d left it, dingy but clean and far less crowded than the dancefloor, where the boom of bass vibrated through the wall. Riley had abandoned both the ice pack and her chair to stand next to Raptor, both engaged in conversation with a man who could be no less than a giant.

Raptor had been intimidating enough, but Cortez made him look like a pretty boy in comparison. Coarse black hair and a burly beard framed his weathered face, crinkled like the leather hanging from his shoulders. His features were marred by a crooked nose and slanted teeth that flashed as he laughed at something Raptor said. Both men wore the same vest over their clothes, the symbol of Royal Flush sewn into the backs—a skeletal hand holding an ignited jack of spades.

Cortez looked over Raptor’s shoulder and made eye contact with Adrian. “Ah, so you’re here after all. Was worried I scared you off.”

“You’ve never scared me,” Adrian joked and stepped forward to exchange a clap on the back. The top of his head barely reached Cortez’s chin. “Not that I planned to be here, either.” He returned to Ivory’s side and drew her against him. “Ivory, this is President Cortez. Taught Raptor and me almost everything we know about bikes.”

Cortez laughed again as she offered a simple, “Nice to meet you.”

“Such a polite little thing,” he rumbled. “Don’t let the title fool ya. I’m just as much a pendejo as the rest of ‘em.” He turned back to Adrian with a wink. “Now I know why I haven’t seen ya around. I’m sure she’s better company than me.”

“I plead the fifth.” Adrian deadpanned and wrapped a firm arm around Ivory. “How’s business?”

“Not as bad as it has been,” Cortez replied. “Never as good as it could be. You lookin’ for work?”

“Not in your area of expertise,” Adrian shot back, but Cortez didn’t seem bothered. “Besides, classes keep me busy enough. Trying to finish this shit before I’m tempted to take a break.”

“Good for you.” Cortez gave a sober nod.

“The Club’s gotten three new members and five new prospects in the past year,” Raptor added. “We’ve got plenty of manpower. I feel more like a manager than a VP these days.”

“So that’s why you went and stirred up shit?” Cortez arched an eyebrow at him. “Cause I’m not working you hard enough?” A spark of silent communication passed between them before Cortez turned to Riley. “Speaking of manpower, congrats again. You hoping for a boy or girl?”

“A boy,” Riley replied, her smile exhausted but bright. “If we get a girl, and she takes after either of us, I’m not sure we’ll be able to reel her in.”

They all broke out in a laugh.

Adrian’s shoulders shook with an ease he rarely wore around others. Seeing them like this felt almost nostalgic, like she was watching an old family video. These people couldn’t be as bad as Adrian said they were. Sure, they might be involved in things her parents would balk at, but when Jace had attacked her, there were no men with loud bikes and scary weapons who she could call for backup.

“Again, I feel bad I had to find out like this,” Cortez continued, and a solemn tone descended on the room. “I’m sure you were planning to announce the news under different circumstances.”

Riley huffed. “It’s not like I could celebrate with you guys, anyway. Can’t have any drinks for eight more months.” She waved a dismissive hand. “But while you’re here, tell the boys to have a beer or two and slip some bills in the tip jar while they’re at it.”

The crows' feet around Cortez’s eyes wrinkled. “I’m sure some of ‘em have already taken you up on that. They won’t pass on a night out, especially when I tell ‘em it changed from protection duty to a party.” Then he frowned, accentuating the other lines carved into his face. “But on a serious note, what Jun did was out of line, no questions asked. I’m glad you came out of it all right. Though I can’t say I’m surprised our girl gave ‘em such a hard time.”

“Jun picked the wrong one of us to fuck with, that’s for sure.” Riley's smile grew into a wicked smirk. “Had better chances going up against Raptor.” She glanced up at her husband, but instead of offering a rebuttal, Raptor snorted and crossed his arms.

Ivory severely doubted that Jun’s chances would’ve been good with either of them.

“Givin’ him a lump on the head was right,” Cortez said. “That’ll show his hand in the matter when I speak to their Lingxiu. However,” —he cleared his throat and looked at Raptor— “punishment should be handled by Red Dragon, according to their rules and bylaws. I understand you have a personal stake in this, as well as you, Adrian, but I can’t start up rivalry when the incident happened between a few individuals.”

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