Tease: A Kings of Korruption MC Novel (26 page)

“I fuckin’ love you, Laynie Lawson.”

My belly dips and my breath catches before it even leaves my chest.
 
“You do?”

He leans in and kisses me again, nipping at my lower lip.
 
“Fuck yeah.”

Joy washes over me as I revel in the feeling of his words warming me from the inside out.
 
“I love you too, Travis.
 
So much.
 
I wanted to tell you before, but I was afraid I’d scare you away.”

Positioning his lips above mine, he whispers, “Not gonna happen.”

Hearing a familiar bark, I turn just in time to pet Dexter as he reaches me.
 
Travis takes me by the hand, leading me to the group of carefree bikers and their families, introducing me to those I haven’t met yet.

The afternoon is filled with laughter and beer and making new friends.
 
I also get the not-so-great pleasure of meeting Tiny.
 
The guy is a complete dick, and I instantly dislike him.
 
I can tell from the way Travis stands in front of me that he can’t stand him either.
 
When Gunner calls Travis away, he leaves me sitting in the shade with Dexter and Tiny not so far away.

“Nice dog you got there, Leanne.”

I smirk.
 
“It’s Laynie.
 
And thank you.”
 

I hear the crunch of grass beneath his feet as he takes a step closer.
 
“Mind if I pet him?”

Before I get a chance to answer, Dexter presses close to my leg, and his growl rumbles through his whole body.
 
Shocked, I place my hand on his head.
 
“That might not be a good idea.”

“Ah, it’ll be fine.
 
Come here, mutt.
 
I won’t hurt ya.”

Dexter’s growl gets louder and his body trembles against my leg.
 
Suddenly, he lets out a vicious bark followed by Tiny’s loud yelp of surprise.
 
“Stupid fuckin’ dog.
 
I’ll kick you right in the fuckin’ head!”

He comes closer again.
 
Squaring my shoulders, I open my mouth to tell him just where he can go fuck himself, when Reaper brushes past me.
 
“You fuckin’ come anywhere near this dog, or Laynie, again I’ll rip your tiny fuckin’ dick off and feed it to Dexter here as a fuckin’ snack.”

Smirking, I wait for him to argue and am surprised when he just tosses out a hate-filled, “Fuck you,” before walking away.

The rest of the afternoon, I swim with Charlie and lounge on the sand where we laugh hysterically as I describe my encounter with Lucy the other day.
 
“Man, I wish I could have been there to see the look on her face!” she squeals between bouts of laughter.

“She said I broke her nose,” I giggle.
 
“My hand hurt like a son-of-a-bitch afterward, though.

She laughs.
 
“I bet.
 
I could never hit someone.”

I point at her, growing serious.
 
“That’s why she got to you last time.
 
You need to set that bitch straight.
 
From what you told me, you did absolutely nothing, and that’s not OK.
 
Us ladies, we need to stick together, not make things more difficult.”

She sighs.
 
“I know.
 
I just hate confrontation.
 
Besides, you haven’t seen her – Lucy’s tough.
 
She’d kick my ass.”

“You’re right.
 
I can’t see her.”
 
I smirk.
 
“And I still kicked her ass.”

Giggling like a pair of old friends, we lie in the sun and enjoy what’s left of the afternoon.
 
After a while, I realize that I haven’t seen my dog or Travis in a long time.
 
Sitting up, I listen closely for the sounds of Dexter’s tags.
 
“Do you see Dex?”

I hear her move beside me.
 
“Yeah.
 
He’s over there, sitting in the shade with Reaper, of all people.”

I lie back and smile.
 
“Yeah.
 
Turns out Reaper’s a bit of a dog-lover.”

“Really?”
 
Her voice is laced with disbelief.

I nod, not willing to say anymore and tell a story that isn’t mine to tell.

“Huh,” she says.
 
“Who knew?”

As afternoon meets evening and our skin starts to cool, we rush off to the trees and scramble back into our clothes.
 
Stepping out from our makeshift changing room, Charlie leads me back to the group.
 
“Hey, Mouse.
 
Jase.
 
Have you guys seen Ryker?”

“Or Travis?” I add.

“Yeah.
 
They’re over by the bikes talkin’ to Gunner,” Jase replies.

“Great.
 
Thanks.
 
I’ll go grab them.
 
You coming, Laynie?”

I shake my head.
 
“Nah.
 
I’ll stay here and wait.
 
Travis’ll be along soon.”

“All right.
 
Suit yourself.”

I hear her footsteps as she crunches across the ground and turn to Mouse and Jase.
 
“So, what are we talking about?”

“Tits,” Jase answers.

“
Jase
was talkin’ about tits.
 
I
was listenin’,” Mouse hurries to explain.

“OK,” I laugh.
 
“What about tits?”

“Not just
any
tits,” Jase replies.
 
“There’s a bitch over there, has the biggest fuckin’ tits I’ve ever seen in real life.”

I raise my eyebrows.
 
“Exciting.”

Jase laughs.
 
“So exciting, I think I may just go over there and introduce myself.”
 
I feel the breeze of him walking past me.
 
“If you ladies will excuse me.”

“Yeah.
 
Fuck you too, Jase,” Mouse calls after him.
 

Laughing, I turn back to him.
 
“So how did Sarah’s appointment go?”

“It was fuckin’ amazing.”
 
The excitement in his voice warms my heart.
 
“It was her twenty-week ultrasound.
 
Seeing my baby up on that screen was the most beautiful moment of my life.”

I smile.
 
“So far.”

He chuckles.
 
“Until she gets here, anyways.”

“She?”

“Yep.
 
We found out we’re having a baby girl!”

I reach for him, clasping his hand in mine.
 
“Oh, Mouse.
 
That’s incredible news!
 
I’m so happy for you both.”

“Thank you, Laynie.”
 
He squeezes my hand.
 
“Sarah had to work today so she couldn’t come, but I’ll tell her you said that.”

I smile brightly up at him.
 
“So, have you guys thought of any names?
 
I hear Laynie is a beautiful name.”

He laughs deep in his throat and releases my hand.
 
“Actually, we haven’t agreed on one yet.
 
She likes Vivian, and I like Amelia.”

I wrinkle my nose.
 
“I’m not a big fan of Vivian, but I love the name Amelia.
 
You could call her Millie!”

“I like tha –“

Suddenly the air fills with the sounds of racing motorcycles and loud pops. “Shit!
 
Laynie, get dow –“
 
Mouse’s words are cut off by the sound of a thump as he plows into my front, knocking me to the ground and landing on top of me, causing the wind to rush out of my lungs.
 
Terrified, I lie still, trying to figure out what the hell is going on.
 
The pops continue, coming from two different directions.

“What’s going on?” I cry out, but Mouse doesn’t answer.

Realizing that the pops are gunshots, I panic.
 
My muscles strain as I push at Mouse, screaming for him to get off me.
 
“Mouse!
 
Move.
 
Dexter!”

Unable to breathe, I burst into tears.
 
“Mouse!
 
Move!”
 
I place my hands under him and push on his shoulders.
 
When that fails, I pull my hands away and feel the wetness on them.
 
Lifting it to my nose, my heart constricts when I smell the metallic scent of blood.

“Mouse?” I whisper, my voice trembling as my body begins to shake uncontrollably.
 
“Mouse!”
 
I shake him, hoping to get a reaction.

Lifting my hand, I run it along his back, feeling for the source of the wetness.
 
When I get to his head, the blood is thicker.
 
My lungs wheeze and tears are pouring from my eyes.
 
When my hand touches the higher part of his head and feel nothing but gore where his crown should be, my heart shatters into a million tiny little pieces.

“Nooo!” I shriek.
 
“Help us!
 
Somebody help us!
 
Please!”

The pops continue and I feel the moisture of his blood leaking into my own hair where it spreads on the ground beneath us.
 
Wrapping my arms around him, I cry helplessly, my breaths shallow and fast.
 
I cry for the man I’ve come to love like a little brother.
 
I cry for the woman whose heart is going to be broken by the loss of this sweet man.
 
And most of all, I cry for the poor unborn baby girl who is going to grow up without her daddy there to rock her to sleep and kiss her goodnight.

Charlotte had just gotten to us when the shit hit the fan.
 
Every single member of the Devil’s Rejects descends on us before we even have a chance to fucking react.
 
There have to be at least thirty of the fuckers.
 
They unleash a hail of gunfire on us as we scramble to take cover.
 
Gunner, Ryker, Charlotte, and I duck behind the only cover available – our motorcycles.
 
Pulling out my gun, I return fire.
 
I hear shots coming from Ryker and Gunner and pray that the rest of our brothers have brought their guns as well.

Peering over the top of my ride, I scan the picnic area for Laynie.
 
My heart races to the point of exploding when I don’t see her.
 
People are scattered throughout the grounds, hiding behind trees and overturned picnic tables, but I don’t see Laynie.

That’s when I see Dexter.
 
He’s crawling along the ground on his belly.
 
I follow the course he’s heading down with my eyes and my gut drops right out from under me.
 
Seeing the prone form of Mouse lying on top of Laynie takes my breath away.
 
Are they OK?

“Nooo!
 
Somebody help us!
 
Please!”