When I'm With You (Little Hollow Series, #2)(62)

When I was eighteen, him twenty-one, I broke his heart, but he never once held it against me.

I hate this stuffy clubhouse, I can’t wait to go home. They’ve thrown me a party here to celebrate my eighteenth birthday today, I don’t know why my dad bothered, he never has before. Your eighteenth, in Club terms, is a big deal though.

For boys, they decide whether they want to patch in or not and for the girls, well, we get to choose to live on our own without the club or be a club Broad or an Old Lady.

‘Such an enticing list of options’ I think sarcastically to myself.

Hunter hasn’t stopped eyeing me up all day and it’s giving me butterflies everytime I catch him looking. He hasn’t gave me my present yet, but he said he’s waiting for the right moment. I take a deep breath and look around at everyone enjoying themselves in the common area.

Only on special occasions are kids allowed at the clubhouse, so there’s several running around with the older ones in charge of keeping a handle on them. I’m not even listening as Libby and Daisy chat about nothing I’m interested in, they’re such airheads. I excuse myself and decide to take a walk outside for some fresh air.

The lingering smell of smoke and engine oil permeates the air and I take in a lungful. I may not like the club, but I’ve always loved bikes. They represent freedom to me, something I feel like I’ve never had... until today.

I turn at the sound of the door opening and smile at Hunters chiseled face as he walks toward me.

“What you doin’ out here all alone?” He drawls.

“Just catching my breath, it’s pretty crowded in there.”

He nods his agreement and walks on over to a picnic bench, sitting on the table, feet on the actual seat part.

“Tables are for glasses, not asses,” I state.

He throws his head back and laughs. His beautiful warm brown eyes twinkle with humor and I admire how masculine and rugged he is. His strong nose and jawline, his windswept brown hair and even his slightly longer stubble now he’s decided to grow it out. It all screams familiar to me, safety, freedom, him.

He motions for me to move over to him and when I’m standing between his legs, he rakes his eyes over my body, purposely making sure I see him do it, before looking me dead in the eyes.

“There’s nothing more I’ve wanted to do all day than take you in my arms and kiss the shit out of you.”

I giggle and hit at his chest. “Yeah, okay, caveman.”

I brush it off as a joke, but inside my heart is beating a thousand times a minute.

He pushes my hair behind my ear and his fingers brush over my cheek, the movement slow and tantalizing. “And not just today, everyday that we’ve ever known each other.”

“So why haven’t you?” I ask, realizing he’s being serious.

“You’re a biker princess,” he winks. “Nobody’s allowed to touch you until you’re eighteen. Well, happy birthday, princess.”

He lips crush mine with primal need and it takes my lips a minute to catch up to my brain before I’m kissing him back with the same ferocity. It’s not gentle, it’s full of need, want, and passion.

One hand grips the back of my neck and the other travels down my body, running the length of my curves. His tongue seeks entry and I meet it with a swipe of my own, eliciting a low groan in the back of his throat as it caresses his tongue piercing. He pulls away slightly and we catch our breath.

“You’re mine, Steely. You always have been.” I tense at his words. “My Old Lady. I want everybody to know you’re mine.”

That’s when I notice the black box sitting next to him on the table. He picks it up and opens it, taking out a new leather cut with ‘property of Bear’ on the back.

I take a step back away from him. “Hunter, I…” The words I want to say get caught in my throat.

But I don’t have to say anymore, he can read everything I want to say from the expression on my face. He throws the cut back into the box and jumps off the bench, moving toward me.

“What? I thought you’d be happy, I thought you felt the same way.”

I sigh and look up into his confused eyes. “I was never going to choose the club tonight.”

His eyes widen. “What we have is more than just the club, you know that.”

His hands thread through his hair and I place a hand on his chest. “This is my choice, Hunter. You know how I feel about the club.”

“And I know how you feel about me. Was I stupid to think that’d be enough? You know I have to make you my Old Lady to be with you.” He searches my eyes. “Don’t do this, Steely. I’ve waited years to make you mine.”

I can see his temper starting to flare up. “If you know how I feel about you then you wouldn’t be putting this on me. I made my decision about the club a long time ago.”

He turns and throws his fists down on the bench. “Fuck! I wasn’t expecting you to turn me down.”

I run my hands across his back. “I’m not turning you down, Hunter. I’m turning the club down. There’s a difference.”

He walks to the clubhouse door and leans his hands against it. “There’s no difference,” he turns and faces me. “The club and me go hand in hand. You ditch the club, you’re saying no to me.”