Page 5 of Trident: Mayhem Makers

Trident filled the doorway, looking way larger than he had when he’d been sitting at the bar. And the look on his face was nothing like the one he’d given me then either. Gone was the jokester I’d been bantering with, or even the hard-ass biker who’d been arguing with his club brother, and in its place was a stone-faced soldier. He ducked down and scooped up my phone from where I’d dropped it and slipped it into his pocket faster than I could voice a protest. He lunged toward me, and instinctively I lifted a palm while I backed away until I hit the wall and couldn’t go any further. He kept coming until my palm was against his chest, over his name patch. He slapped one hand against the wall beside my head, while the other he wrapped around the front of my throat, squeezing enough that I gasped in a breath, but not enough to have me full on panicking. Yet.

“Trying to run from me ain’t ever gonna be a good idea, girlie. Never do that again. Especially when you got danger nipping at your heels. We need to get you somewhere safer than here. You got a place we can go to? Away from the clubhouse.”

Of course, I did. He couldn’t possibly think I actually lived here, a single woman not part of the club. With the hand not wedged between us, I reached up and tried to pry his fingers away from my throat, but he frustratingly didn’t budge. Just raised his eyebrow as he watched me struggle.

Glaring his way, I growled out my words. “Yeah, I do, but again with that wholeI don’t know you well enoughthing I mentioned earlier.”

Jerking his hand away from my neck, he jabbed a finger toward the main bar. “That man who was checking you out like you were a juicy steak? He’s currently high as a fucking kite and your brother’s woman made a helluva fool outta him and some of my other brothers a while back. Animal’s been pretty vocal about wanting revenge ever since, but old ladies are off limits. Especially pregnant ones. You however, ain’t wearing a patch.He seems to think that makes it open season on you. That leaves you with limited options. You can call your big bro, which I’m guessing you were about to do, and we can sit back and watch him and Animal go at it. Not sure who’ll win, to be honest. Your brother has a rep that once he loses his cool, he’s near unstoppable. Issue is, Animal has the same damn rep. And he’s got poison in his veins to hype him up. You want Taz hurt? Be responsible for a rift between the clubs that’ll fuck us all over? Or you wanna help me help you and tell me somewhere I can fuckin’ take you so I can keep you safe tonight?”

The blood had drained from my head while he’d spoken, as I’d imagined what he’d described playing out. It could absolutely play out that way. I cleared my throat as I tried to get my spinning thoughts to make sense. He’d spoken the truth, I didn’t doubt that. One unpatched woman was not worth all that chaos he’d just described, and while Taz was strong and had been in the USMC, he had slacked off since Zara got pregnant again. She’d struggled with morning sickness, so Taz had stepped up to do more around the house and with Lolly, their eldest daughter. That had meant less time for workouts and training sessions. There was no way he was in peak condition. He certainly didn’t have the added fuel of drugs in his system.

“I don’t want to stir up trouble for anyone, but I also don’t want to risk leading any member of your club to where I live if so many of them want to see me hurt.”

I might live above Athena Security, which meant my place had a state-of-the-art system on it, but that wouldn’t stop a bunch of bikers from breaking in. They’d be able to do a lot of damage before anyone could make it to me if they came during the night.

Pain and anger flashed in his eyes as though I’d struck him. “Have I given you even theslightesthint that I would ever harmyou? I’m currently breaking one of my club’s top rules for you, for fuck’s sake. “Brothers First, Brothers Forever”.”

I shook my head. “Don’t start lying to me now. You just told me you’re basically preventing an inter-club war by guarding me. That’s your top reason for being here. As you also pointed out, I’m nothing. An unpatched female at a club party.”

A dark, low chuckle that held no humor echoed around me. The deep rumble of it vibrated from his chest through to my hand that was still pressed up against his solid left pec, which sent completely inappropriate spikes of arousal through me.

“You that oblivious, babe?” He shook his head before muttering, “Thinks she’s nothing.”

Moving quickly, he had both of my wrists in one of his hands and pinned to the wall above my head. Then he pressed his front flush against mine, the heat rolling off him nearly scolding me as he ground against me, the thick, hard length of him obvious as he rubbed it over my belly. “Let me be crystal fucking clear. I want you, Jacie. Ain’t just doing this for my club. You’ve caught my interest, babe. Never gonna lie about that. And you’re lying to yourself if you think Taz and his club wouldn’t do everything they could to protect you. That’s where it’ll get messy. While the Charons won’t care you’re not patched, Animal does. He’ll use that to convince our president to back him to suffer no retaliation for what he’ll do to you.”

I only managed to hear about half of what he said, because with him grinding his pelvis against mine, my blood had gone from ice to lava within a few heartbeats. I knew it was mostly my adrenaline needing somewhere to go, but I couldn’t seem to stop myself. Struggling to suck in breaths, I arched my back, pressing my breasts more firmly into his chest, and tried to tug my hands free. With a curse, he dropped my wrists, and I wrapped my arms around his neck, scraping my nails through the buzzed hair above his nape while I tilted my hips up against his, earningmyself a groan from him before he shoved both of his hands into my hair, gripping tight fists full to tug my head back, then his lips crashed down over mine, and time stopped.

All my nerve endings came alive as he kissed me. His tongue licked over my lower lip, demanding entry, and with a moan, I opened up under him. With a growl, he deepened the kiss, thrusting his tongue in and out in such a way that sent a rush of heat flooding my knickers. When I lowered my hands from his neck, he moved away enough to give me space to explore. Slipping under his cut to his bare skin, I mapped out his hard, smooth pecs with my fingertips. When I brushed over his tight little nipples, I paused to tweak them, earning me a sexy growl before he bit down on my lower lip, tugging it before ending our kiss.

Panting for breath, I looked up to take in his flushed face.

“Fuck me, we shouldn’t be doing this but hell if I can resist you.”

Before I could do more than blink, I found myself slung over his shoulder as he marched out into the hallway. I tried to wriggle around to ease the pressure of his shoulder against my stomach, but he simply wrapped a strong arm over my thighs, trapping me to him, without missing a step. Bracing my hands on his waist, I pushed my head up so I could see my surroundings. As he strode through the main room, I scanned the area, grateful it was still empty. Guess the prospect who’d been at the bar had decided against returning to his post at all. But more importantly, there were no SCMC members to report back to Animal or follow us. When he started up the stairs, I stiffened, realizing he must be planning on taking me up to one of the bedrooms. Another totally inappropriate wave of heat flashed between my thighs, and I clenched them together in a vain attempt to ease the ache.

At least the bedrooms all had solid locks on them. And if he kissed me again like he had in the office, I might be able to forget about how big of a bastard he could be and get lucky on my birthday, after all.

A shudder ran through me when he pressed his nose against my butt and inhaled.

“Fuck, you smell good. You want me too, dontcha? You’re burning so high for me, I can feel the heat through the leather of my cut.”

Not bothering to even attempt to deny his claim, I let my head fall down, releasing the strain on my neck, squeezing my eyes closed when he began to rub his thumb firmly over the seam of my jeans that ran between my thighs with each step. After a few minutes, I was nearly mindless with arousal, and couldn’t help but thrust against his shoulder, desperate for more friction for what I needed to go over the edge.

Slipping my palms into his rear pockets, I squeezed his firm ass, wishing we were naked.

“Dammit, woman. Give me a fuckin’ minute, and I’ll get you taken care of.”

He sped up until he was nearly jogging by the time he reached the upper-level hallway, proving he’d stayed here before, not slowing until he got to a door that was open. Storming in, he kicked the door shut then set me on my feet beside it.

“Stay put for a sec.”

He flipped the lock on the door, but that clearly wasn’t enough for him because he snatched the wooden chair from the desk and wedged it under the handle, testing it wouldn’t budge before he turned to scan the room with his serious soldier expression from earlier firmly in place. Goose bumps rose on my arms. Frowning, I rubbed my palms over them as the arousal that had been sizzling in my veins a moment ago cooled.

Watching him prowl around the small room, I wondered what the hell he was doing. Well, I mean it was obvious he was searching for any threats, but why? Aside from the Athena Security office, the Charon MC clubhouse was about the safest place in Bridgewater. With sure, fast movements, he moved around, opening and closing every cupboard and drawer before he disappeared into the bathroom. When he returned moments later, his gaze zeroed in on me, and with a head tilt, he cocked that eyebrow of his at me again.

“Situational awareness, babe. Always know exactly what’s around you. Where the exits are. No matter how distracted you are. Never know when things will go FUBAR.”

Bloody military types and their love of acronyms.

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