“E.”

“Bro. Some chick came in with two guys with guns. They have Nita up in the office.”

“The fuck? They say what they want?”

“She’ll only talk to you. Had to tell everybody there was an electrical problem and shut it down. Comped all their bills.”

Fuck this shit. No one fucks with my family or my money.

“Crow, Razor, gimme your guns.”

They hand them over and I pass one to E. I stick it into the side of my jeans, making it obvious. E does the same. We head up to the office and I knock on the door.

“It’s Gage.”

The door cracks open and a huge, black guy points a Beretta in my face. E and I raise our hands and he slowly backs up, letting us in. Cassidy Martin. Stupid bitch. She’s standing there with a silly grin. Another giant of a man stands next to her, pointing a gun at Aunt Nita, who’s tied to a chair looking scared as hell.

“Toss the guns.”

I drop Crow’s gun, E drops Razor’s, and we kick them away. Idiots don’t even pat us down.

“You okay, Nita?” She nods and I turn to Martin. “What’s this about, Cassidy?”

She jerks her head toward the bathroom.

“Let’s talk.”

I take a cautious look back at my aunt and then walk to the bathroom. Cassidy follows and closes the door behind her. I turn to her, raising a curious brow.

“Hi,” she says, nervously tucking her hair behind her ear.

“Hi? You’ve got two guns trained on my aunt and you greet me with hi?”

“I was never going to hurt her. I just…why do you have to make me resort to drastic measures to get your attention?”

The bitch is a fucking psycho. At first she was an annoyance, but now she’s pissing me the fuck off.

“That’s what this is about? You want some dick?”

“Yes, I mean no. I want you. I can’t stop thinking about you, Gage.”

“Really? ‘Cause I haven’t thought about you once. Can’t even remember what your pussy felt like.”

And that’s the truth. I remember fucking her in her office, but that’s about it. She was hot – long, red hair, green eyes, and curves – the way I like my women. And she was throwing herself at me, so I caught her. But that was it. Pussy was forgettable.

She moves closer, her eyes dropping to my crotch.

“Maybe I should remind you then.”

“No, thanks.”

She freezes and stares at me in shock. “Wh…why? I don’t understand.”

“Look –”

I’m about to break it down for her when I hear Nita scream. I push past Cassidy and fling the door open. One of her goons is standing before Nita, who’s now crying and sporting a busted lip. I see red. All fucking shades of red. But mostly the deep, dark shade of blood.

“You put your hands on my aunt?”

“Bitch has a big fucking –”

I put a bullet between his eyes before he can finish the sentence. E reacts quickly, capping the next fucker before I can. Cassidy screams. I grab her neck and force her against the wall. Her eyes are wide in fear, tears beginning to form. She’s lucky she’s a woman.

“Listen, bitch. This ends now. I don’t want to hear from you or about you. Don’t call the club and harass Nita. Do not try to contact me for any fucking reason. If I even hear a whisper of your name, you end up like those two. Got it?”

She nods vigorously, the tears streaming down her cheeks.

“You mention anything about what happened tonight to anybody but God, you’re dead.”

“I won’t! I promise!”

I release her and she runs through the door, smashing into Crow. He grabs her and I nod to him so he knows it’s okay to let her go. E has untied Nita and she rushes over, throwing her arms around me. And then she smacks me.

“The fuck was that for?”

“I told you to keep it in your pants.”

She leaves the office in a huff and I shake my head. Maybe she’s right. It’s my dick that got us into this situation.

“Clean this shit up.” I tell the guys.

As I drive away from the club, I find myself wishing I’d left Raven in my bed. I’d be heading back to her now instead of an empty house. Fuck it. I’ll just head to the clubhouse and crash for a few hours.

I check my phone and see her message.

R: I’m home. Getting into bed. Wish I was still in yours…

Fuck me.

G: Are you still awake?

After a few minutes and no reply, I figure she’s asleep. But then my phone buzzes.

R: Sorry. My hands were a little busy ;)

Holy fuck. Is she…? Does that mean what I think it means? I dial her number and she answers with a moan.

“Jesus Christ, Raven. Are you touching yourself?”

“Mm hmm.”

A soft whimper goes straight to my dick and I’m instantly hard. Her moaning continues, and I have to prop the phone between my ear and shoulder so I can adjust myself. “I shouldn’t have told you to do that.”

She gasps and a vivid image of her pops into my mind. She’s lying in bed, legs drawn up, fingers in her wet, tight pussy. Fuck me.

“Why?”

“Because it should be me. My hands should be the only ones to make you come.”

“I was thinking about you.”

Fuck. Her breathing changes; it’s heavier, coming in short puffs. A series of breathless whimpers has me releasing my dick. I felt like it was going to break in two the way it was straining against my jeans. I grab it, squeezing the base as I listen to her pleasuring herself.

“Oh, God,” she whispers. “I’m…I’m going to…”

“Come on, doll. Let me hear you.”

“Oh, my God. Gage!”

I never knew I could want someone so much that I physically ached. My dick, my balls, my head, my whole fucking body is thrumming with pain. No other woman, no pain meds can help me. Just her. She’s like fucking Ibuprofen. No, stronger than that. More like Hydromorphone.

She giggles and lets out a satisfied sigh while I’m left with a stiff dick and nowhere to put it.

“Oh, wow.”

“It was that good, huh?”

“It was wonderful.” She sighs with what I’m sure is utter contentment.

“And what about me?”

“What about you?”

“You’ve left me with quite an obvious problem.”

“One that’s easily solved.”

“We can’t.” Now it’s my turn to sigh.

“You know, I did some research earlier and found out an interesting bit of information. Not sure if you’re aware of it.”

“What’s that?”

“The age of consent in Georgia is sixteen. We don’t need to wait.”

Fuck. When did that happen? If I turn around now, I can be at her place in fifteen minutes tops. The tires screech as I make a U-turn but I don’t get far before I stop on the side of the road. Fuck! I slam my palm on the steering wheel. When the fuck did I grow a conscience?

“I can’t, Raven. It just doesn’t feel right.”

“Well, it doesn’t have to be me.”

“What are you saying?”

She takes a deep breath as if preparing herself to say what she wants to.

“There are plenty of women who can help you out.”

“And you’d be fine with that?”

“You’re the one who doesn’t want a relationship. Are you saying you’re going to be a monk for the next couple of weeks?”

“I’m trying, Raven.”

“Yeah, well...let’s see how long you last.”

I can do it. It’s not like I’m some horny teenager who can’t keep it in his pants. I can wait. I will wait because I know she’ll be worth it.

“I have work tomorrow. I’m gonna go to bed.”

“Okay, doll. Good night.”

“G’night.”

I contemplate her words all the way to the clubhouse. She actually expects me to fuck around and she’s not being a bitch about it. It’s crazy, considering what I just went through with Cassidy, and all the jealous bitches I’ve had to deal with in my lifetime. Is Raven just trying to play hard or could she be the exception to every rule? So far, she hasn’t conformed to any conceptions I have of women. She hasn’t even come close.

I’m only semi-hard by the time I drive through the gates, so I’m able to tuck my dick back in my jeans. Inside, the party’s winding down. I navigate through passed-out bodies and make my way to the bar where Motor and Lonnie are sitting. Booker hands me a beer as I sit on the stool next to Motor.