Beast nearly chokes on his water. "Ma, it's not—"
"Not love yet," I interrupt smoothly, placing my hand on his arm. The muscle beneath my fingers tenses. "But there was definitely something there right away. Wasn't there, Derek?"
His name feels strange on my tongue, intimate in a way his road name isn't. Beast stares at me for a moment, then seems to remember our charade.
"Yeah," he says gruffly. "Couldn't take my eyes off her when she walked in."
The intensity in his gaze makes my pussy clench with want. I have to look away, focusing on cutting my pot roast instead.
"Well, I think it's wonderful," Elaine declares. "And how does your brother feel about you dating one of his club brothers?"
There it is. The question we knew was coming. I take another sip of water, buying time.
"Tank is... protective," I say. "He's always been that way, especially after he left for the military when I was fourteen. He abandoned me with our father for four years, so now he overcompensates by trying to control my life."
I hadn't meant to be so honest, but the bitterness slips out anyway. Elaine nods understandingly.
"Brothers can be thick-headed," she says gently. "My own was the same way. Always thought he knew what was best for me."
"Tank doesn't get a say in who I date," I add with more firmness than intended. "I respect him, but I make my own choices."
Beast's hand moves to my knee under the table, giving it a gentle squeeze. My pussy throbs in response, my still-damp panties growing wetter. I shift in my chair, trying to ease the ache between my legs.
"Good for you," Elaine says approvingly. "A woman should always make her own choices. That's what I taught Derek, though the good Lord knows if he listened to half of what I said growing up."
"I listened, Ma," Beast sighs. "I just didn't always agree."
Elaine laughs, a warm sound that fills the room. "Fair enough. Now, Jenny, tell me about your family. Are your parents still in Riverbrook?"
"My mother died when I was twelve," I say, trying to keep my voice steady. "Cancer. And my father... we're not close."
That's the understatement of the century. The last time I saw him, he called me a worthless slut and told me I'd never amount to anything, just like my "whore mother." That was the day I finally left home, six years after Tank.
Beast's hand tightens on my knee, sliding slightly higher up my thigh. My clit pulses in response, and I have to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from making a sound.
"I'm so sorry to hear that, dear," Elaine says, genuine sympathy in her eyes. "Family can be complicated."
"Tank is my family now," I say simply. "And Amelia and Anna. And now, I suppose, the club too."
"And Derek," Elaine adds with a pleased smile.
I glance at Beast, finding his dark eyes already on me. "Yes," I agree softly. "And Derek."
Something changes in his expression, a hunger I've glimpsed before when he thinks I'm not looking, before he turns away, reaching for his water glass.
The conversation moves to safer topics after that. Elaine asks about my apartment ("It needs work, but it has potential"), myhobbies ("Reading, mostly, and I'm trying to learn to cook"), and how I'm finding Blackwater Falls ("Everyone's been welcoming, especially the club").
Throughout dinner, Beast's hand remains on my thigh, occasionally squeezing or shifting higher, then retreating. By the time Elaine brings out homemade apple pie for dessert, I'm so worked up I can barely sit still, my clit throbbing with every casual brush of his fingers.
I'm laughing at a story about Beast's high school attempt at auto shop class that ended with him accidentally dropping an engine block that barely missed his teacher's foot, trying desperately to ignore the slick heat between my thighs.
"He was banned from the garage for a month," Elaine concludes, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes.
"It wasn't my fault," Beast grumbles good-naturedly. "Johnson shouldn't have left the hoist unsecured."
"You've come a long way since then," I say, smiling at him. "Now you're building a motorcycle club instead of destroying cars."
"The club was King's idea," Beast corrects. "I just helped with the muscle."
