KNOW ME (DEFIANT Motorcycle Club)(27)

“I know,” he sighed and cradled me in his arms.
We listened in silence for a long time to the noise of the storm. When I fell asleep it

still hadn’t subsided.
***
This time I woke up before he did.  The sun was rising over the sodden landscape.  It

would dry out quickly.  At some point during the night the power had returned and I

flicked off the bedside lamp.
Orion’s face was young and untroubled in sleep.  None of the ferocity which hardened

him during his waking hours was present as he breathed evenly through his dreams.  I

ran my fingertips over his jaw and then across his bare shoulder, skating over the

angry tattoos which wound up and down his arms.
The deep blue of his eyes often startled me.  And as he opened them I felt that same

faint sensation that he saw everything about me whether I wanted him to or not.
“Hi,” I whispered, moving my hands across his chest.
A shadow passed over his face and I would swear he was almost sad.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
He shook his head, rising.  “Just taking you in, that’s all.”
I moved my touch lower.  “I’d like to take you in.”
Orion laughed and reached for a cigarette.  “Give an old man a break.”
“I’m sure he doesn’t need one,” I said, proving it when I ran my tongue along his

dick.
Orion threw his head back with a groan.  “Damn, you don’t know what you do to me.” 

He breathed heavily and blew smoke at the ceiling as I toyed with him.  “Happy

Birthday, Kira,” he said softly before flipping me over on the bed and sinking into me

from behind.
Afterwards I wrapped myself in a sheet and pulled him with me to the shower.  Orion was

as ardent as ever with every touch, every kiss.  But still, something seemed a little

off.  The way he moved was strangely intent, as if he couldn’t get enough of me.  Or,

I feared, was trying to get his fill while he still could.
Breakfast over toast and coffee was quiet and sober.  I watched him, trying to read his

mood.  I still hadn’t asked him what had taken him away for three days. Because I

doubted he would tell me.  And because I wasn’t sure I wanted to know anyway.
As I filled the sink with hot soapy water to wash the breakfast dishes, Teague wandered

in.  Out of the corner of my eye I saw him hand Orion a thick envelope.  Orion talked

to him in a voice too low for me to hear over the sink.  But Teague nodded tiredly,

touched Orion on the shoulder and stared at me for moment with his hands in his

pockets.
“There’s still some coffee,” I offered in an attempt at friendliness.
He shook his head.  “No.”
Teague lingered for another moment but after a long look from Orion he nodded and left

without saying anything else.
Orion stood at the sink, his hands in fists as he looked out to the yard at the rapidly

disappearing puddles.  I wrapped my arms around him, kissing his broad back and letting

my hands travel to the front of his pants.
“I remember the last time you stood here,” I purred, stroking him.
“I do too,” he said quietly and then took my hands away, turning around and facing

me.  “We need to go for a walk.”
“A walk?” I didn’t like the sound of it.  He was too tense.  Something was wrong. 

But I only shrugged and pulled my tennis shoes on, waiting for him by the door.
He wore only a simple t-shirt and jeans and at first glance might have been taken for

just an ordinary man.  But as he took my hand and shouldered me out the door I gazed up

at him and realized what an impossible thought that was.  Orion Jackson would never be

just an ordinary man.
The sun was piercing as it made its way up the clear blue sky and reflected on the

pools of water which remained from the storm.  The wash still held a comfortable amount

of water but would evaporate after a few dry days.
Orion held my hand in a sweet way as he led me past the bar and beyond the trailers, to

an empty square of land which rustled with the movement of ground squirrels and geckos.

As we passed the bar I had squinted at the car sitting in front of it.  The Corolla

had been painted and the plates had been changed from California to Arizona but I was

sure it was the same car I’d arrived in.
When he stopped he dropped my hand and slowly withdrew the fat manila envelope he’d

wedged beneath his arm.  Nearby a pair of birds, disturbed by our proximity, chattered

in the sparse brush.  I ran my hands over my shorts, feeling inexplicably nervous.
“Ruger is dead,” Orion finally said.
My heart stopped.  “What?  How do you know?”
He looked at me with those piercing blue eyes and cocked his head.  “How the hell do

you think I know?”
I tried to process this news.  “So that’s where you went?”
“That’s where I went.”
My heart was pounding. “How?” I whispered.
Orion seemed to be considering how much information he ought to reveal.  “I told you

he was holed up in Colorado with some boys he took for friends.  Well, some green