Page 26 of Rodeo (Marked Skulls MC 2)
“I don’t know anymore. It could mean anything, but the one thing I know is that it wasn’t going to be a quick job in the first place,” she said and licked her lips nervously.
“Can we call Lewis or any of the others?” I asked and Lila sighed loudly.
“If I call my dad, he’ll not be honest with me. Whatever’s happening, he’ll tell me that it’s fine and to not worry. He’s fiercely protective of me,” she replied and I clasped my hands together, twiddling my thumbs.
I could feel the nervousness in my gut, like a bellyache. Every cell in my body felt pinched. I wished I could just call Rodeo and tell him to come back. My courage was crumbling too. I didn’t care what happened to my father’s killer, I just wanted Rodeo to be safe and come back to me.
“How many of them have gone to the bar?” I asked Lila. I’d overheard some discussion between Rodeo and Girth earlier about how they were planning on staking out some bar where the Hell’s Drifters hung out.
Lila looked at me with wide nervous eyes.
“Three of them,” she replied and my heart sank right to my stomach.
“Three of them? The whole Hell’s Drifters Club could be in there at this time. How are they going to get away with getting the killer without them being caught?” I stood up from my couch with a jerk.
Lila came towards me, she could sense how deeply flustered I was by the news.
“Jordan, calm down, they didn’t have any other choice. We are a small MC. It had to be done this way,” she said softly and I shook my head. I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. I hadn’t realized that the chances of the boys coming out alive from this was this low.
“This is all my fault! I shouldn’t have said anything to Rodeo. I’ve sent them to their deaths!” I cried, while hot tears pricked the backs of my eyelids.
“Jordan, come on, it’ll be fine. You have to trust them. You couldn’t have stopped them from going. This is what they do. This is their lives!” Lila was rubbing my arms but I couldn’t calm down. I couldn’t get the thought out of my head that I might never see Rodeo again.
The fevered rap on my front door snapped Lila and me away from each other.
“Stay where you are,” she commanded me and strode towards the front door to look through the peephole.
“Oh my God!” she shrieked, as she started getting the locks open on the door. I’d heard the horror in her voice. I didn’t want to know what was on the other side.
***
Rodeo, Abe, Girth and Marcus stormed into my apartment and Lila locked the door behind them. All of them, except Marcus was bleeding from gunshot wounds. Lila squealed and wrapped herself around Girth.
I rushed towards Rodeo, who had stretched an arm out towards me and I fell into him. I was just glad to see him alive, nothing else mattered.
“Rodeo, you’re bleeding! You’re bleeding everywhere!” I cried, wrapping my arms around his neck.
“I’m fine,” he said and I felt his body jerk. I’d hugged him too tightly. When I tried to pull myself away from him, he pressed my cheeks together with his hands and looked deep into my eyes.
“I got him. I killed him for you, Jordan,” he grunted and I covered his hands with mine. I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore, they were gushing down my cheeks. I was sobbing like a baby.
Was I happy that Rodeo had killed him? I might have been but all I could feel right then was relief. I was just relieved that Rodeo was fine, that he was alive.
“Rodeo, you’ve been shot! I can’t believe you’ve been shot!” I cried as he held me like that. His eyes flitted over my face, there was a weak grin tugging his lips now.
“It’s just a few scratches. Don’t you worry about me,” he said and stroked my hair. I shook my head. This was too much for me. I’d just seen my father being shot to death, and now Rodeo!
“Come here!” he grunted and wrapping one arm around my waist, he pulled me close to himself. I fell on his chest and he pressed his lips to mine. He was leaning me backwards as he kissed me and I sunk into him, holding him by his face. The scratch of his rough beard on my mouth was comforting. I was dying to feel his arms around me and now he was finally here.
“Jordan, where’s your first-aid kit?” Lila’s high-pitched nervous voice snapped us out of the moment. She was standing beside us, and when I looked at her, I saw her dress covered in Girth’s blood.
I pulled away from Rodeo and looked down to see my white t-shirt stained with Rodeo’s blood too.
“Sit down!” I roared at Rodeo, and pushed him down on the floor by the shoulders.
“Come with me. I don’t know what we’ll need,” I said to Lila and she followed me as I ran towards my bathroom. We exchanged looks as I pushed open the door and we couldn’t help but smile at each other. It was a smile of relief.
“I told you!” she said and bit down on her lip as I started rummaging through the medicine cabinet.
***
Marcus had gone out and brought us back more first-aid supplies for the wounds. Girth, Abe and Rodeo were all shirtless and sitting in a row on the couch in my living room, having their wounds tended to.
Honestly, I didn’t know what I was doing. I was just following Lila’s instructions. According to her, none of their wounds were serious and they had all been very lucky. Abe was the one with the most serious wound, and Lila was in the process of bandaging his shoulder and left arm and putting it in a cast.
Girth had a wound in his leg and on his back, both of which would just need a few days to heal. Rodeo’s wounds on his arm and his abdomen would need the same. They were all bandaged up and looking like they had just returned from battle. Which they had.
I stood back from the couch to look at our handiwork. For the first time, these men were the ones who looked weaker than us. They were in our hands, under our care, and I tried to stifle a smile.
Rodeo caught me grinning and he arched his eyebrows at me. I could feel my cheeks flushing as he looked at me. Despite the fact that he was bandaged up, and probably in pain from the bullets that had grazed his body, he was eyeing me up and down like he was undressing me with his eyes.
I stuck my chin up and parted my lips slightly. I liked being watched by him. I wanted him just as much as he wanted me.
“All done!” Lila said and stood up from the floor. The three of them exchanged looks and then looked at us. Marcus was leaning against a wall, grinning at his friends.
“I suppose there’s no point in asking if you guys are going to take painkillers or medication?” Lila asked, placing her hands on her hips.
“Medication dulls the senses. Pain will make us feel alive,” Abe replied and she rolled her eyes and looked at me with her eyebrows raised. I laughed and stepped over to Rodeo. I reached for his face and sunk my fingers into his rough beard.
“Thank you,” I said to him and looked at the others and thanked them too.
Rodeo wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me down to his lap. He kissed me lightly on my cheek and it was now that the thought struck me—he had kissed me in front of his friends, I was sitting on his lap now; in front of his friends! Did this mean something?
“We should probably give you two some alone time, besides, I seriously need to get changed out of these clothes!” Lila exclaimed and she and Girth were holding hands as they started walking towards the door. Abe and Marcus followed them and we exchanged quick goodbyes.
Finally, Rodeo and I were alone again. A rush of emotions washed over me, and I didn’t even know where to begin—how to explain to him how I was feeling.
***
I was still sitting on Rodeo’s lap when the door shut behind the rest of the gang. I was sitting sideways, with my arms wrapped around his neck and we were looking into each other’s eyes. His were blue and deep, but today they weren’t stormy. He looked relaxed. He had finally achieved what he’d set out to do.
“I’m glad you’re safe, Rodeo,” I whispered, feeling shy to admit how I was feeling. He was brea
thing deep, blowing hot air from his nostrils on my face that shook the locks of hair falling on my cheeks. His eyes searched mine, and he smiled.
“I don’t think I’ve had anyone say that to me before,” he replied, and his grip around my waist became tighter. I wasn’t sure what that was supposed to mean. Was he weirded out by that statement?
When Rodeo leaned in to kiss me again, my hopes were up. The kiss was soft but lasted long, our lips moved slowly to a rhythm and he didn’t push his tongue into my mouth this time. The kiss was less sexual and more romantic. I didn’t think he was capable of romance.
When we parted I was breathing hard.
“Jordan, I want you to know that this isn’t about Fred,” Rodeo said, in a deep guttural voice. I could feel his cock hardening and throbbing in his pants. My pussy was already wet and rubbing against his tenting jeans. I had to push down my ebbing desire for him so we could have this conversation.
