Page 28 of Arm Candy Warrior

Johnny sits back and presses a hand to my thigh. “Stop trying to get away from me.”

My face flushes. I just threw myself at him, and he…turned me down? I try not to think about how he was all too willing to stick his cock inside the girl at the dress shop. I know this has nothing to do with that. This has everything to do with his loyalty to his Crew. His dad laid the law down. He follows it. He doesn’t think beyond that.

“I fucking want you,” he growls, pinning me in place.

I can’t find anything to say to him. I can’t tell him I don’t give a fuck about the Crew or that I’m not following the Crew’s stupid rules and never have been. He might see through me. The only thing that’s changed in this scenario is me. I should’ve known he would’ve put a stop to it. “It was dumb,” I say. “Forget it.”

“It’s not,” he bites out. “I’m going to spend my life between these legs,” he says, caressing his fingers down my thighs and back up again. “Just not yet.”

Instead of placating me, his words piss me off. It’s my shit, and I should have the say in what happens. “Is your father always going to be in our bedroom?”

His face reddens. He grapples with his anger, maybe, hopefully, because of the conversation we just had. Now I just have to see which side wins. “I told you I’d make you come. Didn’t I the other night? I’ll do that,” he says seductively, trailing his fingers toward my core again. “I’ll bury my face in your pussy. I’ll do whatever you want. Just not this.”

“That’s a shame,” I say, anger and embarrassment mixing inside of me for a tumultuous cocktail of emotions. “Because all I want is your cock inside me.”

His shoulders sag forward. He’s a sight to see. I’m sure we both are, staring at one another half-naked. He moves forward again, dropping his head to my shoulder. His hot breath caresses my skin there. “Everything you say is perfect.” He presses his lips briefly to my collarbone. “You make it so damn difficult to be a good little soldier.”

I close my eyes, taking in his words. This is the second time he’s insinuated things about his dad. That maybe he doesn’t look up to him as much as I thought he did. Or as much as everyone else thinks he does. I want him to keep talking about it, but I don’t want to pry either. Johnny always takes giant leaps backward when I do that. He’s not used to anyone caring about anything that isn’t surface level. Like he said, being a good soldier boy is the only thing anyone cares about.

The sexy moment is gone, I quickly realize. He’s not going to fuck me, and honestly, I don’t want him to now, anyway. I shift to my side, facing him, and he mirrors me. Vulnerability skates across his face. Crinkles deepen the corners of his eyes, and a bone-deep tiredness sags off him. I press my hand to his chest, and he looks up at me. He frets over his lip. “I’ve never had someone I actually thought twice about before. I don’t know what it is about you, but you make me question everything.”

“You can talk to me about stuff, you know?” I say, starting out small. I don’t need to push his boundaries too far right now. “I think that’s how this works.”

I gesture between me and him, and he huffs. “I wouldn’t know. This life is all I know, and for some fucking reason, it feels like you’re pulling me out of it instead of me guiding you into it.”

“I…” I blow out a breath. I have no idea what to say to that. Everything I say could be wrong.

Johnny drags a hand through his dark hair. “For the first time, I don’t fucking understand something my dad’s told me to do. I don’t know why he fucking cares if we fuck or not. Other than that, he’s just…fuck. I don’t know.”

His mind works. Different emotions cross his face like he’s coming to the right conclusions, but as soon as they’re about to break through the surface, he takes a step back.

“He won’t know if we do,” I say, hoping I don’t sound like I’m begging. This just feels important. It’s not about wanting sex with Johnny, even though I really do. It’s about Johnny proving to himself that he doesn’t have to listen to everything his dad says. The Crew does not own him.

“ButI’llknow,” Johnny says, locking eyes with me. “I don’t lie to him. Period.”

I search his gaze and find a stark contrast from the guy who second-guesses to the one who doesn’t lie. He means those five words more than anything. And I can’t blame him, really. His father is all he knows. He’s been his only parent for the majority of his life. Of course, he trusts him absolutely. It’ll take more than me throwing myself at him to get him to break that pact.

A knock comes on the door. Johnny sighs and shouts over his shoulder, “Give us a minute!” When he looks back at me, instead of scowling about the intrusion, he says, “That’s probably Mag sent here by my father.”

“I guess you better get dressed then.”

He lowers his gaze. “It’s you I’m worried about.” He pulls my spaghetti straps back up, while I carefully stow away my breasts again. He finds my panties by our feet, and instead of giving them back to me, he pockets them, winking. “To remind me of what I could have had.”

He stands, then reaches out to help me up. He pulls me to my feet, and I arrange my dress, so I look like I did before things got hot and heavy between us. The ripped seams give me a little more room in this dress, anyway. Johnny does the same, leaving his suit jacket off, but tucking his button-down shirt back in and buttoning and zipping his pants into place.

“Alright, come in,” he finally calls out.

Magnum walks into the room. He focuses on Johnny, but I’m not naïve enough to think he doesn’t understand what he just interrupted. “Your dad’s brought Dunnegan in. They’ve been waiting for you.”

Johnny picks up my hand and kisses it, his lips lingering as he locks gazes with me. “I don’t know how long I’ll be.”

Well, that’s my life now, isn’t it?

Johnny walks from the room, but Mag lingers. In a regular voice, he asks, “Is there anything I can do?” I give him a look, but when we both hear the door across the hall click shut, Mag closes the door, securing us together in Johnny’s suite. He lowers his voice even though there are now two doors separating us from them. “I was a dick earlier. I’m sorry.” He looks me up and down, and I swear he can tell I’m not wearing any underwear. He nods to himself. “You can’t let Big Daddy K know you—” He gestures toward me. Or maybe a little toward my pussy. It’s hard to tell. He drops his gaze, but then immediately moves it back up. “—You fucked. You’ll be out before you know it. No fighting. No Johnny. Or Oscar and Brawler for that matter.”

“We didn’t,” I say, automatically, only because I’m so shocked that’s what he’s brought up after apologizing for his behavior earlier. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

“It’s the whole Crew’s business, Kyla. You don’t think everyone knows what the deal is with you two? That’s how Big Daddy keeps everyone on the straight and narrow. Trust me, there are more than a few people who’d love to see Johnny get taken down, so be careful who sees what. You’re a target for everyone. Johnny haters. Johnny lovers. Johnny’s enemies.”

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