21. Matías

21

MATíAS

I grunted as I landed on Esteban. He tried to throw me off but stopped before we hit the ground.

That was good considering my fucking arm had been grazed.

Another gunshot sounded and I turned my head, fully prepared to roll us under the SUV.

I only knew two of the five men Rita had guarding us today. And Juan, who was the other street sentinel, fired back at the man who tried to take Esteban out.

That man was already on his bike, rounding the corner.

"What happened?" Matthews came running out of his restaurant with two of his men behind him.

Pushing off of Esteban, I held my gun loosely in my hand. It was a miracle it hadn't gone flying. When no other shots popped off, I stood. Rita tried to open her door, but I held it closed and shook my head.

The SUV was bullet proof and she needed to stay inside it if only for my peace of mind.

"Seems like someone doesn't like my friend, Esteban," I said lightly while Esteban brushed himself off .

He was shaken. I almost felt sorry for him.

The kid had probably never had to watch his back with his own club.

That was the story of my life, so this betrayal didn't cut so deep.

Shaking his head, Matthews peered up and down the street, as if he'd see the shooter. He was already long gone, and the other men who were our guards rode over.

No one said anything. Matthews and his men were still the enemy. But maybe now they were the enemy of my enemy.

"You all right?" Matthews eyed me like he was torn between offering me aid and not helping a potential rival.

"Fine. We're going to head out. If you change your mind on telling us who your contact is, give us a call." I pointed at Esteban. "Give him your number."

Without a fight, Esteban rattled off his phone number. Then we were in the car driving.

Rita’s knuckles were white on the steering wheel and she kept sucking in tiny, stilted breaths. Since getting in the car she hadn’t looked at either Esteban or me. I didn’t even think she’d blinked.

"Do you want to pull over? I can drive us." I rolled my head on the headrest to face Rita.

"Fuck no. I need something to do to take my mind off of Rob trying to shoot Esteban. Rob. I fucking picked him to be part of our security.” She cursed under her breath. “If you hadn't knocked Esteban down..." She shook her head and the car jolted forward.

"Hey, hey." I shh'd. "Don't think like that."

The more we drove, the more it became clear we weren't going to the compound. "Where are we going? "

"To your place." She uncurled and curled her fingers back around the steering wheel.

"If you're trying to lie low, the tail of Dirty Dogs isn't going to let you keep this secret." I nodded to the side where the four motorcycles now surrounded the SUV.

"I don't give a shit about that. But your place was locked down. Right? It's safe? I need to be somewhere where I don't have to worry about a death threat for just a fucking minute."

Pulling out my phone, I called Andre.

"Yes?" He answered on the second ring.

"What's the status of my house? Do you have a detail of men still guarding it?" I asked, keeping a close eye on Rita. Esteban was silent in the back.

"Parker had one of his connections upgrade the security so it's been on lockdown. It's monitored with our properties why? I thought you didn't want anything to do with that place."

I hadn't. But if that was where Rita wanted to go, then that was where I'd go.

"I changed my mind. Can you send a few of your trusted men over to guard us? We're going to stay there for a night at least."

There was silence for a few moments. "Sure. They'll be there in fifteen." He gave instructions on how to turn off the security system and rearm it. Then he hung up.

I could have told him what happened. He would expect it. But at that moment, my loyalty wasn't to him. It was to Rita and the Dirty Dogs. If she was okay with me filling him in, then I would.

We pulled up to my place. A mini mansion in its own right, though nothing like the massive structure that my father's had been .

The engine slowly stopped as the air inside the car became stuffier from no air conditioning.

We should get out, but I just stared. It had been a long damn time since I came home. The place would be immaculate. It always was. The housekeepers made sure it always seemed more of a museum than a home.

It was a reminder of everything that had gone wrong in my life.

Shaking my head, I popped my door open. "Let's go."

The Dirty Dogs sat on their bikes behind us, their helmets already off. "What's going on?" Juan asked, his voice solemn.

"We need a place to get our shit together that's one-hundred-percent secured. Can you guard the property? The wall is the property line and some of my brothers' men will be here in a few minutes. You can stay or go, up to you."

Juan took off his sunglasses and stared me dead in the eye. "We'll stay. You're Dirty Dogs and we'll protect you over your brothers’ men." He cursed. "Fucking Rob. He was a lifer. What the fuck?" he said to himself.

The other men mumbled their agreement.

"Let me know if you need anything. I'll have to place an order for anything that's not dry goods or water." Hopefully Andre had the fridge cleaned out.

Juan nodded and climbed off his bike. He huddled with the others as they worked out a plan to walk the perimeter.

Rita and Esteban were just climbing out of the SUV. Both seemed shell shocked. Rita, I got. Esteban surprised me. Then again, it didn't.

"Come on." I led the way to the front door. Entering the code, after the beep and sound of the door unlocking, I pushed it open.

I stepped through first, because shit, I didn't trust that no one would be here. The alarm system blared loud and shrill. It took two tries to get it off and rearmed.

When I turned around, Esteban stared at me with a blank face and Rita glanced around, taking in every detail with unhidden curiosity. I followed her gaze, trying to see it as she did.

It was what my father expected of his son. Sleek, high-end opulence to show my status and wealth. Cold in decor and artwork.

Beautiful but lacking any kind of personality. I'd just grown used to it.

I laughed under my breath. I hadn't even needed to grow used to it. It was all I'd ever known until my teenage years, and then it was normal.

"This is just like the mansion," she said quietly, eerily. I wasn’t sure if she was bothered by it, or if she was concerned that I was.

Then she suddenly walked over to me. "Are you okay?"

So it was me she was worried about. I tried not to get emotional as I twisted my arm. Rivulets of blood had already dried on my skin. Esteban cursed.

"Where's the first aid kit? Do you have one?" He kicked off his shoes and I grinned. It was like he turned a complete one-eighty.

"Under the sink, bathroom down that hall, last door on the right." Twisting my arm even deeper, I examined the graze. It wasn't bad. More of a decent gash. It wouldn't even need stitches. Just some disinfectant and a bandage.

"Let's go sit down." Rita grabbed my hand on my good arm and led me through the house. For someone who'd never been here before, she seemed to know her way around.

She found the living room and maneuvered me to sit on the couch. The shades were drawn with only cracks of light coming from the edges. The place was also hot and stuffy.

"Hand me that remote." I motioned to the remote on the wall. She grabbed it from the holder and handed it to me. Hitting a couple buttons, the system kicked on and air started moving through the room.

Esteban came back with the kit.

Taking it from his hands, Rita opened it on the couch next to me. Her thick, dark hair fell, covering her face from view as she rifled through it, picking out what she wanted.

"Let's take your shirt off." Her voice was thick with emotion as she tugged on the hem of my shirt.

I gently grabbed her hands. "It's okay," I whispered.

"It's not." She violently shook her head. "You got shot again–"

"Grazed. Hardly a shot."

"You could have died. Really died. Esteban could have died. I swear, if one more person I care about leaves me, in any way, I will paint this town as red as the bottoms of my shoes."

A smile threatened to break free. She loved me. Still.

"I'm here,” I assured her. “You can tend to it, but then we won't worry about this anymore, yes?"

"No," she griped. This time when she reached for the hem of my shirt, I leaned forward and let her strip me. The graze twinged from the movement, but it wasn't anything to worry about.

Rita froze, staring at the bullet wound that had long since healed. Then she reached forward, her fingers whispering over my skin as she closed her eyes. Then she took in a shuddering breath and dropped her hand.

My heart stuck in my throat. Ah, Rita, I’m so sorry for all the pain I didn’t know I caused you .

Kneeling beside me, Rita used the supplies and efficiently cleaned and bandaged it up.

"You've been around death before. Why are you so upset?" The Dirty Dogs was a gang. A prolific one that hadn't shied away from violence. Not that I was complaining, it felt good to be cared about, but this was something different.

I glanced at Esteban to gauge his reaction. He stood about five feet away, staring at us with a thunderous expression and his arms crossed.

She busied herself putting the leftover supplies back in the kit and closing it up. I didn't think she was going to answer me. Instead, she kept motioning her head and mouthing words like she was arguing with herself.

Then, she stopped. Kneeling, head bowed. The only movement was her chest rising and falling.

I was mesmerized. I always had been by Rita, but this reaction on my behalf, it was intoxicating.

Her breathing became quicker, the gasps became audible. Fuck, she was having a panic attack.

"Rit–" I reached out a hand to touch her but she dove toward me, her hands clutching my shoulders and her mouth fusing to mine.

She swallowed her name up as she deepened the kiss. Shoving her tongue artfully around mine. A forceful, yet sensual, kiss made to drive me wild. She'd never kissed me like this.

I was her air. Her reason to breathe. That was how I felt.

Groaning, I pulled her against me. The bandage stretched as my arms flexed. I ignored it. If it peeled off in places, we'd fix it. That was one thing I had plenty of. Bandages.

I only had one Rita .

"Please," she gasped as she shot up for air before kissing me again. "Don't." A lip bite. "Leave me." This time she sucked on the side of my neck as her hand worked my pants. "Ever again."

"Never," I vowed. I meant it. Hell would have to pull me away.

She gripped my cock and gave me one strong stroke. My eyes briefly rolled back in my head. "What are you doing?" I panted.

When I opened my eyes, Esteban was no longer standing across from me. He'd taken a seat next to me. His brows were still low and his mouth was still set, but he wasn't trying to rip Rita away from me. He seemed content to watch her.

"Rewarding you," she breathed. "You could have let Esteban die. Hell, maybe you should have."

Esteban grunted and she continued to stroke the fuck out of me. Then she leaned over and spit on the tip, using her hand to spread it over my cock.

For the first time in over a year, maybe even two, she was really mine again. She wasn't just touching me out of grief or guilt.

Fuck, was she? No, this was gratitude. I'd take grateful all day long.

Not wanting to take her out of the moment, I tightened my hands into fists, pressing them into my sides. I would do nothing to risk breaking the spell of how perfect she was with my dick in her mouth.

"But you saved him. He could have died because of that cabrón ," she spat, then licked me from base to tip. "Why?" Rita demanded before kissing the head of my cock in a nasty tease. She locked eyes with me as she laved the tip with her tongue, a line of spit hung from her mouth to my dick as she raised her head up.

"What?" I had trouble concentrating on what she was saying because the pleasure felt too good. Years of only my hand and then a quick and dirty fuck in a backroom killed my stamina.

"Why did you save him?" she asked again with just as much authority.

"Because," I gasped as she swiped her thumb over the head. Her spit glistened on my cock.

"Because..."

"He matters to you. So he matters to me."

Esteban cursed as Rita lowered herself to suck my cock between her plush, red lips. Finally, I let myself touch her again. I gathered her hair up on top of her head so I could watch her suck me off. Flexing my hips, I fucked her face. Each time her lips pressed against my groin, I grunted.

"So good. You're so good at this. Such a good girl." Words fell from my lips between groans. She worked me over until I started to swell. "I'm close. So fucking close."

Pulling back, she wiped her mouth with her fingers as she stripped. "You're not coming unless you're inside me.”

My cock pulsed, threatening to do just that, even without her still touching me. Pre-cum beaded at the tip.

A gloriously naked Rita straddled my lap as she gripped my shoulders. "Esteban. Can you put him where he needs to be?" she asked so sweetly.

"Only because you asked nicely." He spit on his hand and gripped my cock, giving it a firm stroke.

"What the fu..." I groaned, gripping Rita's hips.

"I don't want you. Don't get scared. But I'd do anything for Rita. Any fucking thing. And if she wants me to line you up," he angled my cock as Rita sat on the tip, "then that's what I'll do and I'll make it good for her and you."

He moved his hand and she sank down on top of me.

"God." I could barely hold my eyes open for the pleasure of her wet warmth surrounding me.

Rolling her hips, she rose up and sunk down. Rita set a decadent rhythm and before long, I was close again.

"No, no, no," I muttered. She froze.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm fucking close," I complained, digging my fingers in her hips to slow her down when she started to move again.

"Then we'll have to make sure Rita goes right along with you." Esteban started strumming her clit with expert fingers as he turned her face to his. The erotic sight of his tongue lightly tangling with hers started the white hot tingle at the base of my spine.

Once again, I swelled and as I felt the first stream of hot cum erupt, Rita started bouncing on top of me. One of her hands cupped my neck, the other fisted Esteban's short hair.

He swallowed every one of her moans as she pulsed around me, milking every single drop of pleasure from my body. I groaned, long and low, rolling forward to suck and kiss her tits. I couldn't. The pleasure was so good that concentrating on anything but my orgasm was useless.

Wrapping my arms tight around her, I hugged the shit out of her and bucked my hips two more times. I stilled, my heart banging against the walls of my chest as I drifted along in sated ecstasy.

My harsh breathing was the first thing I noticed.

Then Rita's heartbeat.

Lastly, Esteban's chest leaned into me. I couldn't see what he was doing but somehow, he was pressed into me to touch Rita.

How did we get here?

Better question, where did we go from here?