Chapter Seventeen

When Adira stepped into the tattoo parlor, Treat smiled.

"Hey, you! I see you finally found a lover."

"That I did. Two, actually."

"Good for you." Treat nodded politely to Hunter. "Gonna get the heart tattoo?"

"No," she replied. She walked over and grabbed the design book, flipping it to a symbol she remembered seeing. "I saw this when I was last here. Zibu angelic language. This one here means family."

Adira settled on putting a decorative symbol on the inside of her left wrist. The swirling lines appealed to her, especially in the wake of her own discovery. Treat prepped her, wiping it down with alcohol. Then she put on a pair of black nitrile gloves and turned the tattoo gun on. The buzzing sound almost drowned out her nerves, and she tensed as the needle entered her shin. Hunter held her other hand but before she could even get scared, it was over.

"Done," Treat said.

Adira blinked and looked down, seeing the beautiful design offset from the center of the wrist, and she couldn't stop looking at it.

"Do you like?" Treat asked.

"I love it," she replied softly, hard to believe she got a tattoo. Her father would be so upset, which made her love it even more.

After it was wrapped and she had paid, Hunter led her back to his bike and they took off toward the large two-story house. The name Belladonna was painted above the door. Working around strippers was one thing. Stepping into a brothel was something completely different. Red was the theme, with scarlet walls and drapes. Velvet love seats and chaise lounges were artfully arranged. The low lighting gave everything an intimate appeal. Women in barely-there clothes draped themselves provocatively around the paying customers. Majority of the clientele were men, but there were also a few women.

Hunter led her through a door marked EMPLOYEES ONLY. Several doors lined the hallway, and he unlocked one, stepping back so she could enter. It was the typical office except along one wall was nothing but flat screens watching over various areas of the house. The lounge, the upstairs, a kitchen she hadn't seen, even inside the bedrooms.

"This is high tech for a red-light house."

"In here, maybe. Out there is still redneck."

A grin lifted one corner of her lips. "That's what Ares said of The Pussy Willow."

"There's a fine line between not being too fancy for the clientele but able to provide protection to the girls."

In a few monitors, couples writhed on beds, and she couldn't seem to look away. Never had she ever thought she'd be a voyeur, but she had to be honest with herself. It turned her on. Hunter stepped up behind her and rested his hands on her hips.

"Lean over the table," he murmured in her ear.

She jerked a little. "What?"

"Lean. Over."

He gently placed her hands on the tabletop, and then pushed her down. Running his hands down her back, over her hips, to the front where he popped the button on her jeans.

"W-what are you doing?"

"Shh," he said. "Keep watching."

Doing as he ordered, her breath grew shallow as he slipped his hand under the elastic of her panties. "Oh, baby girl, you're so fucking wet."

He rubbed over her slit, gathering her moisture to rub little circles over her clit. She moaned and her hips jerked up, seeking more.

"Want me to fuck you? Right here, as you watch the couples fuck on the monitors?"

Her eyes rolled back as pleasure burst through her body. She opened her legs a little wider, and he abruptly yanked his hand out. It brought her out of the euphoria.

"Wait," she cried out.

"Answer me, Adira. Do you want me to fuck you right here? Right now?"

"Yes," she gasped. "Please. Yes."

He pulled back and then yanked down her pants and panties, helping her step out of one leg and then the other. The zipper sounded extremely loud in the room.

"Lay your hands on the desk and don't move," he ordered.

She quickly obeyed. Hunter kicked her feet out, widening her stance. He placed one hand on her lower back, bent a little, and then pressed against her. His cockhead brushed her slit, and oh God, she was ready.

The only thought she had was about having him inside her. Fire ignited in her blood when his dick rubbed against her. Up, down, getting itself nice and wet with her slickness, teasing her as if he knew exactly what she wanted but was deliberately making her wait. Adira rocked backward, pushing against him, and he pulled back to give her bottom a little swat.

"Not so fast, baby girl."

He stroked her again with his fingers and found the erect nub of her clit, lightly flicking his fingertip against it. A little whimper slipped from her lips, and she wiggled her hips with desperate need.

"Please," she begged, her voice raspy.

"Please, what?"

"Please, I need you."

His hand slid between her bottom cheeks, and he brushed over her back hole. She tensed, not sure if she liked what he was doing, but that combined with him still caressing her front almost sent her tumbling into bliss.

"Uh-uh," he murmured. "You have to say the magic words, Adira. Tell me to fuck you."

"Fuck me, oh God, fuck me now."

"That's right, I am your god."

That was all the urging he needed. He gripped her hips with one hand and with a forceful jerk of his hips buried himself into her channel. Adira moaned, awash with pleasure. He pulled back and slammed home again, over and over. Pumping into her harder until wet smacking sounds mingled with her moans. He consumed her, like some savage, primitive creature. Fucking with no thought beyond the ecstasy of it all. Her excitement mounted with each thrust, and then…

A brief perfect moment of timelessness, suspended in that space between Heaven and reality. Weightless. Sublime. Exhilarating. Hunter's cry of completion echoed through the room, mixing with her own cries. Then he slumped over her, resting his forehead on her back. She felt his heart racing, mimicking hers.

She knew in that instant that her heart was in trouble.

****

The next week went by quickly, and she used the excuse of being busy as to not linger around Ares. He'd come kiss her hello, but she always managed to slip away before it led to something more. She had to, because she was getting in too deep. She had to protect her heart because this wasn't about sleeping with two men. It wasn't about how they made her body sing with desire. This was about her catching feelings, and it was far too quick to put a label on any of it.

When Friday rolled around, she had to clear her head so she went for a long drive until she found a beautiful lake dotted with whitecaps and men fishing in small boats. She slowed and then pulled onto the rocky parking lot. The brown National Park placard stated it was Cardinal Lake. Adira got out and walked to the shore where she pulled off her sneakers and socks to bury her toes in the frigid water. Fall was approaching, bringing with it cooler temperatures.

Hunter and Ares consumed her thoughts. If she continued on the path she walked, she was going to fall for them. She wasn't sure if her heart could take another beating. Losing her parents hurt worse than losing Abel, but she had a sneaking suspicion that losing the two MC brothers would devastate her. The smart thing to do would be to leave. To quit and move on until she found another place to settle. Perhaps she had been na?ve thinking she'd be able to continue working for Ares once their liaison was finished, because now she realized she could never see them with other women. It would break her in ways she couldn't even imagine.

But maybe she wasn't as smart as she thought she was, because she didn't want to leave. She wanted the memories. Once they tired of her and moved on, she would need all of them to sustain her. Even with the acceptance she would face pain once more, she knew she was going to stay.

With that resolve, she left Cardinal Lake behind. The water carried away her misgivings.