Bella Jewel - Angels In Leather

“Hi.” She smiles when she sees my eyes open. “How are you feeling?”

“I...” I croak, with a dry, scratchy throat. “I’m okay.”

“How’s the pain?”

I shift again, and shake my head. “It’s not too bad.”

“You were very lucky. The doctors stitched you up, but they had to repair some damage done to your skin. It was quite messy.”

God.

I nod. It’s all I can do. I’m still in a mild state of shock. The nurse walks over and places a small device on my finger.

“There’s a man waiting outside for you. He’s not left.”

My heart speeds up. Axel?

“A-A-Axel?” I whisper.

She nods. “Yes, that’s him. He’s been barking orders around, and not letting anyone but us in. He’s quite an over-protective boyfriend, isn’t he?”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I say, shaking my head furiously.

“Oh, I just thought...”

“Why wasn’t I informed she was awake?”

I hear the loud, dominating voice, and turn my head to see Axel standing at the doorway, wearing the same clothes he’d been wearing when all this went down. He’d really stayed with me? I chastise myself inside. Of course he isn’t here because he cares, he’s here because he doesn’t want any bikers finding me before he can make sense of the situation.

But if he didn’t care, just a little, he would have just let me go. He’s got what he wants. Right?

Axel walks in and stops by the bed, staring down at me. His aqua eyes look tired and he’s staring at me with a blank look that gives nothing away. “The pain?” he asks, his voice monotone.

“It’s okay,” I say in the same tone.

He nods, then lifts his head and looks at the nurse. “When can she go?”

She looks confused. “Well, we’d like to see her in for a few days so we can check the wound, and...”

“Is there antibiotics she can take away?”

She stammers. “Well yes.”

“And are there instructions on cleaning the wound?”

“Yes, but...”

“Then we are going. You can’t hold us here.”

I gape at him. “Are you serious?” I snap. “Just leave me here, Axel. We both know you don’t really want to take me.”

He shoots daggers down at me, and I quickly close my mouth. “Don’t tell me what I do and do not want, Cricket.”

I turn my eyes away from him, and watch as he argues with the nurse. She finally gives in, and gets a doctor, whom he also argues with. In the end he gets his way, and I find myself dressed after a few hours and hobbling down the hall. Axel has a hand full of medications, and a hard, angry look on his face.

The minute we get outside, I turn to him. “Tell me one thing; why are you keeping me around when we both know you’ve got what you want?”

He doesn’t answer. He just unlocks his car and shoves the door open, looking at me expectantly.

“Goddammit, Axel, can you at least do one thing for me, and answer my question?” I cry, crossing my arms.

He leans down, so we’re nearly nose-to-nose. I can smell him, and something inside my body sparks to life. “I’m not going to let you get shot, no matter what I feel for you. Now, get in the fuckin’ car.”

I narrow my eyes at him, and I know he can see challenge in them. With a low rumble in his chest, he leans down and scoops me up, putting me in the car before slamming the door and turning away, walking around to the other side. When he climbs in, we sit quietly, neither of us saying anything for majority of the trip.

Finally, I get up the courage to be the first to break the ice.

“Who were they?”

He glances at me, and then stares at the road again. “The enemy.”

“Really? That’s all you’re going to give me?”

He sighs with frustration. “They’re someone who wants the information on that drive as much as I do. They’re someone who has been chasing you for as long as I have, but I’ve constantly been saving your ass by stopping them. They want you as leverage now, and they’ll do whatever they can to get to you.”

He’s been saving me?

I don’t understand.

“You’ve...been saving me?”

His face hardens, and he doesn’t answer me.

“Axel?” I push.

“What I did doesn’t matter. All that matters is what we do now.”

I growl, and turn and stare out the window. He refuses to budge. It doesn’t matter what I do or say. Nothing will break down that wall he’s built so high.

Nothing.

“Put her back in the room, don’t lock her up. If she runs, she’s signing her own death certificate,” I snarl, pushing Meadow toward Jax the minute we step inside the clubhouse. “Put everyone on full alert. We’re on lockdown.”

Jax nods, and Meadow glares at me. She got my point, and she got it loud and clear. She runs—she dies. It’s that simple. I turn my eyes away from hers, and walk into my office where Cobra and Colt are waiting. “What do we know?” I ask, kicking a stool back and sitting down on it.

“We know they’ve been keeping track of her, my guess is through something that’s person of hers, likely her phone. They knew we would be at that bank,” Cobra says.

“Get her shit and burn it, destroy her phone. Lock this place down. I want no fuckers gettin’ information in and out. No one leaves until I deal with this shit once and for all.”

Cobra gives me a hesitant glance. “You sure you wanna do this, boss? You and Beast don’t have a good history...”

“That’s exactly why I need to fuckin’ end him.”

Cobra nods, and Colt stands. “What about Meadow? Is she in danger?”

“She ain’t your concern, boy,” I growl.

“Don’t get on the defense, boss. You don’t even fuckin’ like her. I, however, do. And I don’t want to see her shot down, because you can’t pull your stubborn fuckin’ head out of your ass.”

I stand, lunging toward him and wrapping my fingers around his throat. He gasps, and struggles. “Who has the authority around here, boy?”

“You,” he snarls.

“Then you know if you ever fuckin’ speak to me like that again, I’ll put you six feet under.”

His jaw tightens, and he jerks himself from my grip. The boy has balls of steel; it’s why I added him to my club. I got the world of respect for him, but that doesn’t mean I won’t put him in his place. He turns, and walks out of the room, slamming the door. I turn to Cobra, and he puts his hands up. “Don’t look at me, boss. I want nothin’ to do with what goes down between you and that girl, but whatever is there, it’s fuckin’ explosive.”

“There ain’t nothing between her and me except a whole world of hate.”

Cobra doesn’t look like he believes me, but he lifts his head in a nod and turns and leaves the room. Fuckin’ hell. This is all going to a place I never wanted it to go.

Nothing is ever easy.

* * *

MEADOW

I groan in pain, and roll to my side. Axel let me sleep in his bed, God only knows why. I guess he felt sort of sorry for me. He’s not in the bed, but it doesn’t matter, I wouldn’t be able to sleep even if he was. The ache in my leg is beyond anything I’ve ever felt, and nothing I can do seems to ease the pain. I just swallowed two pills, and I can only hope they kick in soon.

“If you’re gonna fuckin’ roll like that, then you really need to move from my bed,” Axel says in a deep, husky voice, walking into the room and kicking off his shoes.

“Excuse me for getting shot,” I snap.

“Doctor gave you drugs. Take em’.”

“They don’t fucking work,” I bark, using my good leg to kick the sheets off. I shift and sit up, getting off the bed. “Is there somewhere else I can sleep?”

Axel snorts, gripping his shirt and lifting it over his head. “Sure, plenty of rooms. If you like sharing, and being fucked senseless.”

Asshole.

I shake my head, and mumble a curse under my breath, followed by a, “Maybe I do.”

“What’s that?” he says, walking past me and into the bathroom.

I try to keep my eyes off his ass in those black jeans, but I can’t turn my eyes away, I can’t stop looking.

“I didn’t say anything,” I mutter, lying back down.

A moment later, I feel the bed dip beside me as Axel slides in. He turns and faces me, staring at me with that hard expression.

“What?” I ask.

“Do I need to cuff you?”

“Fuck you, Axel,” I spit, rolling to my side, and taking the pressure off my leg.

He says nothing, and we lay there in silence. This is more than a little weird for me. The man hates me, yet he’s letting me sleep in his bed. Why? I don’t understand. If he hates me so much, why am I not on the floor? I sigh loudly, and close my eyes. I hate to admit it to myself, but something about having Axel beside me brings me great comfort.

* * *

“Fuck!”

I slowly come to, and the agonized cries that fill my ears bring me around quicker than usual. I turn my head to see Axel tossing in his sleep. His back is arched, and his body is rigid. His hand is in his boxers, and he’s tugging angrily again. I feel my hands forming fists over and over again as I contemplate whether or not to touch him again. Will he shove me away? Or will he welcome me?

Something inside me screams that this is so wrong, but my body refuses to accept that. It begins to ache in places I didn’t expect it to ache. The idea of him allowing me to touch him again has everything inside me clenching with a need I can’t fully grasp. I feel guilt swell in my chest, and I know there’s something so wrong with what I’m about to do, yet I can’t stop myself from doing it.

I reach over, and I place my hand on his belly.

“Yes,” he rasps, rolling to the side. “Yes.”

His eyes are clenched shut, and his shoulders are so tight that tiny veins have broken out over his smooth, olive skin. I run my fingers up his bulging arm, and stop when I reach his neck. After a moment of hesitation, I slowly slide up, and stop when I reach the stubble on his cheek. I close my eyes, enjoying the feeling of having my hands on him. I slide my fingers down over his lips, and a throaty growl leaves them.

Then his hand lashes out, and he tangles his fingers in my hair. I cry out, and he pulls me closer. Pain shoots up my leg.

“Axel,” I beg. “Stop.”

Then his lips crash down over mine, and all my fight dissipates into nothing. The kiss begins rough, and the stubble on his jaw scrapes against my flesh, causing a whole new level of burn. A ragged moan leaves my lips, and I open to him, accepting his tongue as it invades my mouth, consuming me.

I’ve never felt something so amazing in my life.

His lips move with force for the longest moment, leaving me with a bruising feeling, but then they soften, and his kiss becomes gentle, almost affectionate. His tongue dances with mine, and his hand loosens in my hair. A pathetic little whimper leaves my throat, and I forget about the pain in my leg. All I can feel is him, and the way his hand moves against my belly.

He’s still stroking his cock.

I groan desperately when his lips detach from mine, but instead they move down my neck and over my shoulder. Is he awake? Is this real? Or is this a dream?

His hand leaves his swollen, rigid cock and finds my hip. He jerks me closer until the hot flesh presses against my stomach. My pussy clenches, and I close my eyes, hating myself for wanting this with someone who’s been so cruel.

This isn’t how it’s meant to go.

So why aren’t I stopping it?

Am I so desperate? Have I got some sort of syndrome?

Axel’s fingers slide over my panties, and I can’t stop the whimper that escapes my slightly parted lips. He makes a rumbling sound, and I feel it vibrating from his chest through to mine. His fingers move again, running up the soft silk that’s now damp with arousal. His cock is still lying heavily against my belly, and I’m still wondering if this is all really happening.

He presses his fingers firmly against my panties, right where my clit is, and I feel pleasure shoot through my pelvis and up my spine. I clench my teeth, despising myself for wanting him like this. His fingers move again, and more pleasure fills my body. Then he begins to rub, making small circles. It’s a skilled move, too skilled, and I know he’s awake. He’s with me on this; no one is that talented while sleeping.

Now it’s my choice to keep going, or to stop.

If I keep going, I’m giving him a part of myself that I’m not sure I’m willing to give. He confuses me. By day he’s a monster, cold and deadly. I see nothing but darkness when I look into his eyes. But by night, he’s just a man desperately seeking something to fix the hurts that haunt him. When he’s lying against me like this, I know a part of him has found that something to fix the pain. But I know if I give myself to him, there’s no going back for me.