Smoke and Steel (Wild West MC #2)(114)

“Say what?” I snapped at the paper.

“What?” Core rumbled.

I kept reading.

…I know your pride might make that hard to do, which is why you haven’t reached out.

But I care about you, I love you, I miss you, and I’ll forgive you.

You were with another guy, it was serious. I hear it’s even more serious now. That you’d be with someone new and break Bryan and I up out of spite isn’t…

I didn’t finish it.

I looked to Core. “She’s on about me breaking her and Bryan up out of spite and wants an apology.”

My wise Core translated: “In other words, so she can live with the shit she pulled, she’s twisted how things actually went to a version that makes her the victim.”

“In other words, yes.”

It was an awful thing to realize about a person, especially one you cared about, but it seemed Bree had a penchant for finding ways to be the victim.

There were red flags with Christos, of course.

And if I dug deeper into our history, examining her bad breakups with guys that were always filled with drama, I would see it wasn’t the growing pains of a young woman finding her way in relationships.

It was Bree.

“Official,” Core stated. “We’re putting that jewelry to better use. We know people who struggle to get shit they need, like food and money to pay rent. Turn that jewelry into cash, we can do some good with it.”

Bree had never contacted Kyra to look at the pieces Core nabbed for her. Since they held meaning, I’d set them aside because, regardless how she’d behaved, I believed she should have them back.

Now, Core wasn’t asking for my support of his plan.

Even so, I said, “Agreed.”

Without hesitation, he took the letter I was holding, along with the card still in my hand, and being his usual thorough, he nabbed the envelope I’d tossed on the desk.

He walked them to and through the French doors, Nanook following, maybe because he was curious what Dad was doing out in the cold, probably because it had snowed and Denver showed signs of being Nanook’s natural habitat.

I was right. Nanook ran straight into the yard and started frolicking.

Core, though, went right to the grill, opened it, pulled his lighter out of his pocket, and lit Bree’s version of Christmas cheer on fire, every vestige of it.

He dropped it on the grill and stared at it until it flamed out.

He then closed the grill and came inside, whistling for Nanook to come with him.

Nanook quit frolicking and trailed snow into the house on his paws and fur.

Core closed the door behind them and looked at me.

“You hungry?” he asked.

I wanted to laugh.

I didn’t.

I said, “I love you.”

“Love you too,” he replied. “Now, you hungry? ’Cause I could eat.”

And there was Core taking care of me again because that was precisely as much headspace as Bree deserved.

“Yeah, I’m hungry, honey.”

“Cool,” he muttered, starting to get to work. “We’re having lasagna.”

“Awesome,” I replied because he gave good lasagna.

Then again, he gave good everything.

I started to move to take my boots off and put them away when Core reminded me, “Empty bedroom is still off limits.”

So I was smiling as I walked to our closet, because the empty bedroom had been off limits for a week. He was hiding my presents in there, I knew, because he’d gone so far as to lock it (I’d tested it, not to spoil his surprise, just to see how far he’d go to keep his secret).

I had no idea what he might get me as a present.

But if he wanted to go all out for it to be a surprise, I wasn’t about to kill my man’s joy.





I was knees to the bed, ass in his hands, face in the covers, moaning and taking Core’s cock.

He suddenly smacked my outer thigh, wrapped an arm around my ribs and pulled me up.

I was close to coming, the smack nearly sent me over the edge, being yanked up to sit on his dick edged me even closer, but then he pulled me off that big dick.

“Wait!” I cried.

He fell to his ass, back to the headboard, and positioned me facing and straddling him.

Okay then.

I took hold of his cock and impaled myself.

I bounced.

He slid his hand along my neck and fisted it in my hair.

I watched the dark heat in his eyes intensify as he watched me fuck him, and I bounced harder.

He took a handful of my breast and tweaked the nipple.

I bounced even harder.

He pulled me down to him and kissed me, deep and wet.

I whimpered into his mouth.

“Pop,” he whispered against my lips.

I came.

He moved to his knees, deposited me on my back, then angled in a power position with his hands in the bed beside me, arms straight. He watched me as he fucked me through my orgasm, then I watched him as he fucked me to his.

He then collapsed on me, and I smoothed his neck, his hair, his shoulders, down his back, and what I could reach of his ass.

He rolled so we were on our sides, tangled in each other.

He kissed me sweet, broke the kiss and whispered even sweeter, “Merry Christmas.”