Page 8 of Blaze

Once we were both settled, she started to speak again, but the roar of the engine drowned her out.

It wasn’t a long ride to the compound, but it was enough for me to recognize that Courtney’s body fit perfectly into the groove of mine, like she was made just for me.

And it was more than enough time for me to know that she was mine.

I lifted my chin at Ink, a recent patch who was operating the guard shack. He’d seen me coming and had the gate open.

His eyes drifted to my passenger, and his brow rose. I ignored him and rode through, only stopping once I’d pulled my bike into the garage.

“Where are we?” She moved as if to get off, but I grabbed her waist and held her still.

I needed a fucking minute after having her perfect ass snuggled up against me.

“We’ll talk inside,” I rasped.

“But—”

Growling in frustration, I hopped off the bike and scooped her into my arms. She wiggled and twisted, muttering under her breath.

“Stop squirming and be quiet,” I snapped, squeezing her closer to my body.

Courtney stilled and huffed, “Will you?—”

“Not. Another. Word.”

I stormed into the clubhouse and through the lounge where King, his old lady—Stella—and a few of my brothers were hanging out.

“What the fuck?” King grunted.

“Gonna need to schedule a construction crew to head out to the warehouse on the south side of town,” I muttered without missing a step as I headed toward the stairs to the second floor where my living quarters were located. “The sprinkler system I had us put in did its job”—once it was turned on, I thought darkly—“but the place is gonna need a fuck of a lot of work.”

Courtney writhed in my hold again, causing me to hold her even tighter so she could barely move. “I’m?—”

“I already told you, not another word,” I growled before looking at King. “Tell Ace that I’m good for the cost,” I grunted, referring to our treasurer. “Whatever it is. Don’t want this run through insurance.” If we reported this shit, they would involve the police. Courtney was mine, so I’d handle the situation and make sure she didn’t end up in jail.

“Will do, man,” King called out as I stomped up the steps.

At the top of the stairs, I turned right and stalked down to the end.

King lived in a house the previous president had built onto the back of the clubhouse. But my quarters were closer to the rooms occupied by the other patches who lived on-site.

However, mine were different from most of the others.

A lot of them were similar to a dorm room, even using shared bathrooms. Some had a private bath and others a small kitchenette.

As the VP, my “room” was a one-bedroom apartment.

I unlocked the door and went inside, slamming it behind me. After securing the lock, I marched to the bedroom andunceremoniously dumped Courtney onto my king-sized bed. Now, it was time to get some answers.

5

COURTNEY

Ihad hopped straight from the frying pan into the hellfire. Instead of needing to worry about those guys who had visited my apartment with Jason yesterday, I now had to be concerned about the fact that I’d been caught by a member of the Hounds of Hellfire while breaking in—and setting fire to—their warehouse. And not just anyone, but their vice president, based on the patch on the front of his leather vest.

The name above it was particularly appropriate, considering he had just saved me from a burning building. And his gray eyes burned as he stared down at me, his hands planted on his narrow hips. The position was intimidating, and he wasn’t the kind of guy who needed any advantages in that arena. Or any other one from what I could see.

Between the eight extra inches he had on me, the muscles, the hint of black ink I caught on his forearm, and his super-short brown hair…he was tall, dark, and dangerous personified. And the first man who’d ever brought my libido roaring to life.

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