Chaos Bound (Sinner's Tribe Motorcycle Club #4)(40)
Naiya sighed. Her attempt to lighten Holt’s mood had fallen flat. Something had broken between them at the boat launch—the stirrings of intimacy and trust she’d felt at the cabin were gone. And she’d made it worse with her fake story about the message that would go to Jagger if she died. But when she’d looked into Holt’s eyes and saw nothing there but cold, steely determination, she had to find some way to shift the power balance. Maybe Holt hadn’t really intended to use her against Viper. Maybe she’d let fear cloud her vision. But what was she now? A prisoner? Would Holt really stop her if she walked away?
“How do you know about this cache? I thought bikers kept their weapons in heavily fortified facilities. At least Viper always did.” She pulled another weapon from the box, smaller, but with a wider handle. Naiya had never held a gun. Although there had been plenty of weapons lying around her mother’s apartment, she had no interest in touching them, and even less interest in taking up any of the Jacks on their offers to teach her how to shoot.
“Mad Dog Sanchez, VP of the Devil’s Brethren, stole the guns from another club and hid them in his sister’s house. Long story short, he’s dead. His sister went into witness protection. Jagger sent me to have a chat with her before she left to make sure she understood we’d find her if she said anything or did anything that hurt Cade’s old lady, Dawn or her kids. Dawn was Mad Dog’s old lady. Cade is the Sinner Treasurer. Mad Dog’s sister told me where Mad Dog had hidden the guns as a show of good faith. I told Jagger. He said to keep it quiet. The fewer people knew about them, the better.”
“Sounds like a soap opera. I’m not even going to pretend I followed all that.”
“Once you’re in the life, it’s in your blood. The brothers are your family.” His voice tightened. “You try to leave and you get sucked back in.”
Naiya aimed the gun at the window, her gaze focused on the woods beyond. Evening light filtered between the branches, bathing the forest in an orange glow. “You’re trying to leave. Why do you think you won’t get sucked back in?”
“’Cause there won’t be anybody left.”
Holt came up behind her and covered her hands with his to reposition the weapon, but the warmth of his body couldn’t melt the chill in her blood. Was he really going to kill his brothers? What about their old ladies and kids? Who was this man she was travelling with, and how deep did his hatred go?
His hands lingered on hers, and or a long moment Naiya couldn’t move. She couldn’t believe he would hurt her. From what she’d seen of Holt, he didn’t seem the type. In fact, he didn’t seem the type to engage in the mass slaughter he kept talking about. Although he had suffered in that dungeon, at heart he was protective and caring. Revenge had been his crutch, and he couldn’t see that he didn’t need it any more.
“Holt?” She looked over her shoulder. He’d been distant since they’d stolen Leo’s bike and headed into the mountains. And after they’d filled up at the gas station, he hadn’t spoken at all. In fact, he threw out his pizza and hurried her out of the gas station only moments after calling her in, his face taut with what she could only describe as anguish.
“You’ll need to learn how to shoot.” His lips were only inches from hers, his breath warm and sweet. If she leaned up only the tiniest bit she could have a little taste.
“Okay.” She drew in a ragged breath, her body heating at the memory of his kiss back in the cabin, the slow glide of his hands on her body, the unfamiliar rush of desire through her veins.
“I won’t always be around.” A tremor ran through his body, and he clenched his jaw. “Even after Viper’s gone, it’s a good skill to have. Fighting, too. If you’re walking around at night, you need to know how to defend yourself.” His body tensed, his fingers threading through hers, forcing her to tighten her grip on the gun. His strength and dominance both aroused and frightened her, and her pulse throbbed between her thighs.
“I took a self-defense class at college,” she offered.
“What would you do if someone came up behind you like this?” He stepped closer, plastered his chest against her back, the bulge in his jeans pressed tight against her ass, his lips brushing her nape.
Arousal surged through her, a potent combination of fear and desire that pushed everything from her mind except for the heat of Holt’s body and the ache deep in her core.
“Drop the gun.” He released her hands and she let the unloaded weapon fall to the floor.
“Tell me, Naiya.” He circled her waist with one arm, held her so tight she could barely draw in a breath, his voice hard and low. “What would you do?”
She struggled for the memory, the training that had been drilled into her head when she and Ally had taken Doug’s self-defense class together. “I’m … supposed to step back.”
With his free hand he gripped her jaw, pulled her head against his shoulder, the gesture at once intimate and threatening. Arousal gave way to fear and she bit back a whimper.
“Let me go.”
He tightened his grip, holding her immobile. “I trusted you.”
“And I trusted you.” Anger surged through her, sending strength to her limbs. She lifted her knee and bashed her foot down on his instep, then elbowed him in the ribs where he’d suffered the worst of the bruises. She spun to face him as he doubled over in pain.