Page 31 of Gunner
“Do you want to take off at lunch?” he asked, and I looked at him, shocked he was offering to let me leave early.
I never wanted to shirk my responsibilities with the club but leaving early to spend time alone with Sadie sounded nice. Glancing at my watch, I saw we were less than an hour before they called lunch, and I looked at him with a smile.
“That be great, man. I appreciate it.”
“It was Claw’s idea. If I had my way, I’d keep you here all weekend and make you work a little harder to win back that sweet girl, but I know what you have planned for tomorrow,” Hatchet explained. I could tell he was still pissed at what I did to Sadie, but willing to give me the chance to make things right.
I couldn’t blame him for his hostility, seeing how happy he was with his old lady, Reba. The only time Hatchet was at the clubhouse was with Reba on the back of his bike. He was one of the brothers who was cold to me when I returned and when he explained why, I started to observe how he treated Reba.
She was his everything outside of the club, and he treated her like a queen. I shook my head at him, and he smirked as we lifted another piece of drywall. He saw how hard I worked to win back not only Sadie’s trust, but the trust of the whole club, and he loved to bust my balls. With my plans for tomorrow, there would be no question who Sadie belonged to.
When Claw showed up at noon to hand out our paychecks, I practically ran off the construction site to my bike. I could see Claw and Hatchet laughing at my eagerness from the unfinished front porch, and I lifted my middle finger into the air as I drove away.
The roads were wet from the overnight snowfall, but the temperatures rose enough to melt most of it from the ground. I pulled into the Death Hounds compound and backed my bike into the line near the rolled-up front door. Music filtered through the doorway as a few of the brothers started their weekend early.
I saw Smokey and Piper sitting down in the large dining room, and I pecked Piper on the cheek as I passed through.
“Everything’s ready for tomorrow afternoon. Are you sure Skid’s okay with you doing this while he’s away,” she asked.
Everyone knew Skid and Jacob were going away for a guys’ weekend with Mick, and my eagerness to be alone with her was evident to anyone who looked. My plan for tomorrow had been in motion for months, and Skid gave his blessing for it to happen while he was away.
“He wants this for Sadie and he’s fine with missing it.”
“Don’t think this will magically fix her or her . . . issues,” Piper warned, and I nodded.
“I’m not expecting anything and I’m not pushing for anything. I just want everything to be official,” I responded, and Smokey pulled her against his chest.
“Give Gunner a break, babe. He’s worked hard, and it’s not our place to get involved,” he said to her, and I caught his eye, offering a subtle nod to my president.
Leaving them in the dining room, I walked into the kitchen and made myself a quick lunch before I slipped out the side door to the clubhouse. I didn’t need anyone’s encouragement or words of wisdom. I didn’t know if or when Sadie and I would get to the intimate parts of our relationship, and the stress of it wasn’t worth the worry. When it happened, it happened. Until then, I would be happy to hold her in my arms, protecting her from the real monsters that existed in the world.
There was something about her attack that remained a secret, and I wouldn’t push her for answers. When she was ready to tell me, I would listen, no matter how deep her words cut into my soul.
During my time in the military, I saw my fair share of death and had plenty of blood on my hands. If they weren’t already dead, I would find the men who hurt Sadie and I would bathe in their blood.
When I asked Smokey, Bullet, or Mick about the vengeance the MC took for her, I got shut down quickly. Skid and I hadn’t spoken about it, and I didn’t want to bring it up to him, if I could help it. He was a young boy when she was raped, but he carried a tremendous amount of guilt over it. Sometimes when I looked into his eyes, I saw a darkness that seemed to grow the longer he was with Callahan.
That was a debt I wished he hadn’t taken on, but his need to protect his family was just another reason to respect him. He was gaining skills from the new leader of the Flats that had already proven to be valuable to the club. We had a state-of-the-art security system at the compound, along with thirty cameras monitoring the perimeter of the property. It had been years, but the club still had enemies who would love to take over our territory.
Bear was asleep on my bed when I unlocked the front door to my cabin. He jumped down from the bed, and I let him out into the yard to do his business. He had transitioned to more of a pet than a service dog, but he was still on alert when my anxiety or PTSD became too much to handle. His ability to calm Sadie when she’s reliving a memory endeared him to me even more.
I opened the box sitting on the dining room table and pulled Sadie’s cut out, holding it up in front of me. Her name was patched on the front, and when I turned it around, my heart filled with pride with the words, ‘Property of Gunner’ patched onto the back under the Death Hounds MC emblem. Anyone who saw her now would know she had not only mine but the full protection of the club. She would never have to worry about her safety or well-being ever again.
I packed a bag before taking the fastest shower in history. After tossing on a pair of jeans, a long-sleeved T-shirt, and my leather cut, I grabbed my bag and clicked my tongue to call Bear. He barked and followed me to the front of the clubhouse, where my sidecar was parked. He jumped inside, and his tongue hung out the side of his mouth while I cranked my bike and pulled it next to the car.
After hooking the car to my bike, I pulled Bear’s goggles onto his face and clipped his helmet on. His tail wagged eagerly as I strapped my bag into the car before pulling away from the clubhouse. The prospect manning the gate gave me a chin nod that I returned as I turned onto the asphalt toward Sadie’s house. The drive took about ten minutes with traffic, and as I pulled into her driveway, I willed my cock to behave.
Just being around Sadie made me hard as steel, and I tried not to let her see how much she affected me, but having her small body pressed against mine was sweet torture. Bear barked loudly, wanting me to free him from his harness in the sidecar.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m working on it. Give me a minute,” I muttered and pulled his helmet and goggles off.
The front door to the house opened, and Sadie leaned against the open doorway with her arms crossed over her chest. She was wearing a pair of tight yoga pants and a long-sleeved T-shirt with a cute pair of unicorn slippers on her feet. She smiled at me, and I felt the sunshine in her expression, warming the cold parts of me, offering me hope.
I unclipped Bear’s harness, and he jumped from the car, running toward Sadie with an excited bark. Grabbing my bag from the car, I pulled a cover over my bike to protect it from the predicted snowfall before walking up the sidewalk. She still stood on the porch with Bear sitting next to her as she watched me approach.
When I walked onto the porch, I dropped my bag on the top step and stepped up to Sadie. She licked her lips and brought her gaze to mine through her painted lashes. Her heated gaze fueled a fire inside me, and I gripped her by the back of the neck and pulled her into me before slamming my lips to hers.
She moaned and grasped my jacket, tugging me closer to her small body. Sadie’s fingers dug deeper into my chest, and I rocked my growing length against her, only to feel her push against me.
