Chapter 1: Losing your heart
Lance Mann was never one for many words or much softness, but this time was different.
He snuck into Ellie’s room and woke her with a heated kiss. She might have been fast asleep, but the feel of his lips against hers instantly woke her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down onto the bed. Her excitement at his presence was barely contained.
He pushed up against her hip, letting her know just how ready he was for her. And before she could respond, he had her turned on her side.
“Fuck,” she breathed as he pushed into her from behind.
“Yeah, baby. Feel how bad I want you.”
His words were enough to make her heart skip a beat. They were the words she always wanted to hear from him. And now that he said them, she was instantly on a high like no other.
She pushed back, taking his sheer length all the way in. He groaned at the sensation and lightly bit down on her shoulder, showing his appreciation.
“This is why I love fucking you so much,” he said through gritted teeth and slammed into her. “You always know exactly what I want.”
“If I didn’t figure it out in the last three years…” she whispered as breathing became nearly impossible. “Hmmm fuck!”
“You like that, don’t you?”
“I love having you inside of me.”
His arm snaked around her body, and he pulled her leg up. Her back arched as his hot fingers ran over her clit and she grabbed onto the sheets for support.
His breathing caressed her neck in hot pants, fueling her desire. She wrapped her arm around his neck and pulled him in for another kiss.
He swallowed every one of her ecstasy-filled moans and they urged him to move faster, harder. Each thrust. Each flick of his wrist brought her closer to the edge.
She missed this. It wasn’t every day they got together, but when they did, it was all-consuming. He knew her body better than she did, and the orgasms he gave her were mind-blowing.
“Lance,” she moaned as she teetered on the edge of her climax.
“Come for me, baby. Oh God, yes!”
His words were just enough to give her the final push she needed. Reading her as only he could, he claimed her lips to stop her from calling out his name.
She dug her fingers into his hip as wave after wave of her orgasm ripped through her. Sending her to heights only he could ever make her reach.
Her inner walls clenched around his shaft, holding him in place as she moved against him. Drawing her orgasm out.
She only stopped when she was utterly spent. Her iron grip on his hip released. Her hand slipped away as she tried to catch the breath she so desperately needed.
He kissed a path down her neck and whispered, “Can anyone else make you feel like this?”
“You know… that I’ll… never betray… you like that.” Words were hard to come by in her attempt to take in more oxygen.
He groaned and thrust into her. “That’s my girl.”
“I’ll always be your girl.”
His cock pulsed inside of her as his fingers dug into the delicate skin of her breasts. He took a sharp breath as she pushed back again. He never allowed her to express herself so freely before, and she loved it.
But she should have known that it wouldn’t last. He nipped the skin of her neck and pulled out of her. She turned around in exasperation, but the hunger in his eyes made her swallow her words.
“You’re far too self-willed this evening,” he said as he captured her wrists.
With a firm hold on her hip, he pulled her down to where he wanted her to be. He pinned her arms above her head and captured her lips in another hot kiss.
She wrapped her legs around his waist and, with one swift thrust; he was buried within her again.
This time, he didn’t give her a chance to adjust. He slammed into her like his life depended on it, and before she could even register it, she was on the edge again.
Her fists clenched. Her grip on his waist tightened. Her body quivered with the need for another release.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” she called out.
He covered her mouth so she wouldn’t wake everyone else, but her climax was too powerful for her not to act. She struggled in his grip as the need to touch him overwhelmed her, but he didn’t let her go.
She squeezed her eyes shut and bright spots burst through the darkness. As her climax roared through her she was transported to another world. And in the heat of it all, she unwittingly bit down on his hand.
“Fuck!” he bellowed as he erupted deep within her.
His grip on her loosened, and he collapsed onto her chest. She tried to wrap her arms around him, but he grabbed her wrist. He kissed her palm and rolled off of her.
Ellie straightened her nightgown and pulled the blanket over herself as her usual post-orgasm clash of emotions began to set in.
Lance had a way of making her feel like she was in heaven. But he also had a way of bursting that little bubble with nothing more than a jerk.
Ellie was drifting off when she felt the covers pull back and turned to see Lance getting up.
“Where are you going?” she mumbled, her voice still heavy with sleep.
“Nowhere. Go back to sleep.”
But she didn’t. She followed behind him to hear what he was up to. She stood just behind the crack of her bedroom door, and held her breath.
He was on the phone with someone. Whispering in the dark.
“Not much, just having a little fun at home and you?” he purred in his deep voice that always made her swoon. “Don’t worry, babe. I’m not with anyone important. That role is reserved for you.”
Ellie could actually feel the air being knocked out of her lungs. She pushed away from the wall and stumbled back to his bedroom.
“Damn, pretty boys always have some kind of trick up their sleeves,” she mumbled as she buried her face in the sheets.
“What was that?” She froze at the sound of his voice. “Are you talking about this surprise?”
She shot up and saw him waving a big box in the air. He gave her a sexy smile as he walked up to her, and a faint blush spread across her milky cheeks.
As he took a seat, he pushed the box onto her lap. She opened it to find a bright red ball gown inside. She got up and held it against her body.
He ran his fingers down the fabric and said, “I was really hoping you would wear this to my birthday party tomorrow night.”
***
When Ellie steps into The Flying Keaton Motorcycle Club her breath catches in her throat at the sight of Lance.
Even though the Club House is filled with members who have come for the party… In Ellie’s eyes, only the two of them exist.
He’s wearing his signature FKMC leather jacket. Tight leather pants cling to his muscular thighs.
His ash-blonde hair in its usual messy style and his denim-blue eyes glistening with excitement. Her heart skips a beat.
What will he say about her in the dress he chose? The bright red, sleeveless ball gown with a slit that goes past her hip isn’t really her style. But hopefully, Lance will love the way it hugs her figure.
She starts toward him. It’s like her body is being pulled in his direction by some unknown force.
But Valerie bursts her bubble, shouldering her out of the way to reach him first.
“Happy birthday, my love,” she gushes, giving him a sloppy kiss.
Her long strawberry blonde hair cascades over her shoulders. And with her gorgeous figure-hugging white dress, she looks like a fairytale princess.
“My night’s complete now that you’re here,” Lance says and nuzzles Valerie’s neck.
Then he does something that makes Ellie’s stomach churn. He shrugs out of his MC leather jacket and drapes it over Valerie’s shoulders.
The jacket with Flying Keaton’s insignia emblazoned on the back is like a rite of passage for members. It’s how you’re welcomed into the MC, usually after passing a series of tests. Winning races, proving loyalty, showing that you’re worthy of the family name.
According to Ellie, Valerie didn’t tick any of those boxes. Why the hell was she wearing Lance’s jacket? Ellie downs a shot of tequila and immediately reaches for another.
“Happy birthday to you!” the club members start singing.
Ellie downs the second tequila and turns to face Lance.
“Happy birthday to you!” she sings along, holding a new shot glass up in the air.
Getting drunk fast is the only way she’s going to make it through the night and that’s exactly what she plans on doing.
“Tonight is a very special night for me and Lance,” Valerie says. “It’s not only his birthday but-” For whatever reason, she gets really shy and giggles something in his ear.
“Say it,” he nudges gently and gives her a peck on the cheek.
They’re playing the adorable couple in love and it’s all Ellie can do to keep from barfing on Pope’s biker boots beside her.
“Okay, okay,” Valerie says, then, “We’re engaged!” She thrusts out her left hand, holding it high enough so everyone can get a good look at the ring on her finger.
The clubhouse erupts in deafening cheers as Lance’s MC family descend on him with back-slaps and hand-shakes of congratulations.
But Ellie isn’t feeling it. Not after recognizing that ring.
She pushes through to the front of the crowd. “Where’d you get that?”
Both Valerie and Lance look at her, stunned. A hush comes over them all.
“I asked you a question!” Ellie snaps. “Where’d you get that ring?”
“Ellie, back off,” Lance says, wrapping a protective arm around Valerie.
“That’s Nina’s ring. Your girlfriend stole my ring!”
“She didn’t steal anything!” he says, squaring off with Ellie.
Valerie doesn’t have a word to offer but scowls at Ellie for ruining her moment.
“Lance, your mother gave that to me,” Ellie says, trying to keep calm. “It’s mine! You have no right to-”
“That’s enough!” Mason shouts as he steps in. “Do I have to remind you that it was your father who killed our mother? Nina would still be here if it wasn’t for him!”
A wave of gasps echoes through the crowd as they realize who Ellie really is. Her cheeks turn bright red as she sees the scathing looks every one of them is giving her.
“You’re so pathetic you couldn’t even buy your own outfit. You had to wear one of the dresses I got bored with,” Valerie sneers, as she tugs on the fabric of Ellie’s dress.
Ellie’s face pales at Valerie’s words and she looks over at Lance. “So that’s how it is? Hand-me-downs for the Club’s Cinderella?”
Valerie gets right in Ellie’s face and says, “The first thing I’m going to do when I become co-owner of the club is kick your ass to the curb where it belongs.”
Ellie looks at Lance. She doesn’t know why she’s expecting him to stick up for her. To say something. Anything.
Maybe it’s because of all the nights he’s snuck into her room for a quick fuck. Or all the times he’s told her how much he loves being with her. How many times he’d crawl between her sheets after a date with Valerie…
But he says nothing. He can barely look at her.
Ellie nods stiffly. “Sure, I get the message,” she says. “Loud and clear.”
She turns to make her way out of the club house.
“Ellie!” Lance calls after her.
But she doesn’t look back. She doesn’t want anything to do with any of them.
***
In a fit of rage and despair, Ellie slams the door behind her. She’s about to make her way up to her room when something shiny catches her eye. A set of keys on the end table. Just sitting there, glinting in the moonlight.
She instantly recognizes them.
“Well, well, well. It looks like I’ll have some fun tonight after all,” she says and grabs the keys to Lance’s brand new Ninja.[a]
Ellie is elated as she speeds down the road. When nothing else manages to calm her down or clear her head, the open road always works.
The wind rushes through her black locks, pushing them back. The trail of her long dress flaps into the side of the bike with the force of the air that’s rushing over her.
Adrenaline and fury clash within her chest, urging her to increase her speed. She pulls down on the throttle and before she realizes it, she’s flying down the road at 200 mph.
Suddenly, there’s another bike on the road ahead, and she swerves to avoid a collision. She slows down a little and the Yamaha R1 manages to catch up.
The night is inky black, which makes her company even harder to spot in his all-black leathers and helmet with a matte finish.
Definitely not one of FKMC.
He gives her the cursory nod that only means one thing in this world: race.
Her heart begins to pound and her grip tightens. She revs once, twice, and then with an ear-shattering burst from her exhaust, pulls ahead.
Her needle steadily creeps up the dial and with every tick, fine droplets of sweat form on her brow. God, she lives for this shit. The freedom of it all. The serenity of the open road…
Engine screaming, she pulls ahead of the other biker. Who is this guy? And why would he challenge her on FK’s turf?
Lost in her thoughts, the first bend surprises her. Ellie slows down suddenly, which gives him the perfect opportunity to overtake. He screeches around the bend at full speed.
“Idiot,” she mutters under her breath.
And her word is barely out of her mouth when she sees him careening off to the side. A victim of over-steering thanks to his mistake.
Her engine roars as she encourages the bike to go faster and she takes the lead once more. Adrenaline is coursing through her veins. She knows every curve of this mountain road like the back of her hand.
Two more bends and then a hairpin to the left. As long as she pulls out of that last turn with enough power, the win is hers.
Her opponent closes in as she brakes into the first of the last three turns. He should know better–ease in and power out. Come into it too fast and-
She notices his wobble at the same second she opens the gas and leaves him in her dust. The squeal of his brakes echoes through the surrounding hills.
This time she can’t stifle the laugh bubbling out of her chest. Twice in a row. Maybe he’ll get it on the last one.
Ellie checks her rearview to find a pinprick of a headlight gaining on her once again. She gives the Ninja more. It can easily coast to top speed in mere seconds.
She glides through the last curve like a hot knife through butter, her opponent coming up close behind. They’re like synchronized birds in flight the way they go floating through the hairpin bend.
Just the final stretch to the finish. The R1 is gaining, but she knows the win is hers. She won it at the first bend.
To add insult to injury, Ellie lifts the Ninja into a wheelie before skidding to a blustering stop.
Out of breath, she tugs her helmet from her head and waits for the mystery racer to do the same.
“Hey, small-town girl. What’s the rush? Your bad boy fucking around again?” Aron asks as he gets off his bike and approaches her.
“’Sup city boy? What makes you think this joyride has anything to do with Lance?”
He takes off his jacket and pulls it over her shoulders as he says, “I keep tabs on the things that interest me.”
Ellie looks down in confusion and realizes that her breasts are about to pop out of her dress. A blush spreads across her cheeks and she turns around as she frantically tries to pull her dress back up.
“I didn’t know you were into Lance,” Ellie mumbles as she turns to face him once more. “But then again, it kind of makes sense considering the way you dress and treat women.”
“What makes you think I have any interest in Lance?”
She scoffs. “Who doesn’t? And besides, it’s not like a guy like you will ever be into a girl like me.”
Aron stalks up to Ellie, all dashing grin and come-hither eyes. It’s something she’s never seen from him, but it has the ability to turn her on in an instant. He leans down next to her ear and her skin bursts out into goosebumps at the feel of his warm breath.
“If that’s what you think, you’re making a big mistake.” He places a soft kiss on her neck and pulls away with an alarmed look on his face. “Have you been drinking?”
“Shut up and kiss me,” she says.
She grabs his face with both hands and presses her lips to his. He was the last person she imagined bumping into during her fit of rage, but he’s definitely a good distraction.
The way he’s kissing her back is so different from the way Lance kisses her. The grip he has on her waist is soft, yet firm, unlike the way Lance holds her. And his scent…
It’s so fresh and woody. Unlike Lance who always smells like some brand of whiskey and cigarettes.
Aron breaks the kiss and asks, “What do you say we get out of here and go somewhere more private?”
“I know a place.”
***
Ellie and Aron pull up at Toby’s cabin and before she can even get off the bike, he pulls her helmet off and kisses her. This time, their kiss is different, though. Instead of being slow and passionate, it’s hot and urgent.
She breaks the kiss and asks, “Can we get inside at least?”
He lifts her off the bike and, even though she’s trying her best to protest; he carries her into the cabin.
He grabs onto her waist and pushes her down on the couch as he positions himself between her legs. But her dress keeps getting in the way. With a growl of irritation, he gets up and pulls a knife out of his back pocket.
He grabs onto the lower part of her dress and starts cutting it apart. Each piece he cuts gets thrown to the ground and soon there’s bright red fabric all over the place.
He sits back on his haunches and Ellie can see the hunger in his eyes as they roam over her inner thigh. She has never seen anything so intense before. Never felt so beautiful and desired before.
Lance has never made her feel even a fraction of what Aron is making her feel.
It’s making her feel like a goddess and forcing more moisture to pool between her legs. She grabs onto his shirt in an attempt to pull him closer, but he resists and licks his lips.
He trails a path of hot, wet kisses along her inner thigh and she undulates beneath the movement of his lips. Her body is begging for more. More of his heated stares.
More of his hot kisses and much, much more of him. She wants to drown in him and forget that Lance Mann ever existed.
In the early morning hours, wrapped up in a haze of sleep. Ellie is snugly wrapped in the memory of the great fuck she had last night.
“Fuck!”
It’s morning. And Lance’s bike isn’t where he left it.
Ellie bolts out of bed in a flurry of tattered clothes and Hail Marys.
She manages to roll the bike back into his garage without a sound.
Deep snores follow her down the hall as she tiptoes to her bedroom. Ellie lets out a sigh of relief as she nears her door. She just might get away with this.
“Well now, what do we have here?”
Ellie spins around, clutching her chest. Valerie is standing in Lance’s doorway, wearing his shirt and a smug smile.
“I can explain,” Ellie splutters.
“Explain it to everyone,” Valerie says, raising her voice. “Let them all catch an eyeful of the slut’s walk of shame.”
Valerie asks as she walks out of Lance’s room. “Ellie you slut! Look at you sneaking in at this hour!”
Ellie closes her eyes and bites down on her lip as all the doors start opening. To her dismay, the entire family and some of their friends step out.
