I felt her nod against my chest as softly as an evening breeze. Ever so carefully, I sat up. After testing my balance, I let go of the root and got my bearings.
Fortunately, we’d landed in the best location possible. The spot was covered in grass that had a rolling aspect to it that almost acted like a speedbump. If we’d gone a few feet to the right,where I suspect water run-off had been traveling and exposed a trail of loose rocks through the process of erosion, we wouldn’t have been so lucky.
“I’m going to put you on my back, then I’m going to climb back up this hill,” I explained matter-of-factly. “Do you have the strength to hold on?”
Though it wouldn’t have been impossible for Cat to climb back up the hill on her own steam, I wasn’t about to take the risk of her slipping and falling again. If she did, I might not be able to catch her a second time.
“Yes, I can manage that,” she replied, only the barest hint of a quiver in her voice.
Wrapping Cat’s arms around my neck, I slowly shifted her onto my back. Ever so carefully, I got to my feet. Finding my balance, I leaned against the hill with my palms and crawl-walked up the side of the embankment with Cat attached to me like a human backpack. At one point, my boot slipped, sending a shower of debris rolling down the hill and she gasped in horror.
“We’re not going to fall,” I promised her, as I dug deeper into my foothold and we continued upward. “Don’t let go of my neck.”
“Fuck, Prez, are you okay?” Mad Dog shouted, as he came racing out of the woods and saw me ascending over the lip of the hill.
He and Domino had chased after Kane as soon as the man had tossed Cat to the ground. They knew I could catch her, though honestly, I’d had my doubts. I so badly wanted to hunt down the fucker that had wronged their president.
“Yeah, we’re fine,” I told him, hating to let go of Cat, but needing to inspect her for any potential wounds. “No thanks to you,” I grumbled.
Mad Dog chuckled, his dark humor always in the forefront. Hence his Club moniker, a name he lived up to on a daily basis.”I knew you’d be fine,” he arrogantly dismissed. “I wasn’t worried about you getting a booboo.”
Of course, he was right. I’d never been in any real danger falling down that hill, but Cat had. That fact was shaking me up something fierce.
Brushing her long hair behind her ears, I looked my girl directly in her big, beautiful whiskey-brown eyes. I could feel her heart wildly thumping as I braced my hands on her delicate shoulders and gave them a reassuring squeeze. “You still good, babe?”
I didn’t see any cuts or bruises, only a few smudges of dirt on her pristine work uniform. She was wearing one of those flippy little skirts with a matching pair of pink Lycra panties underneath that showcased her toned thighs perfectly. Yeah, I’d noticed. So sue me. I could see myself ripping that white, fitted tank down the middle, exposing those luscious tits of hers, then bending her over while she was still wearing this skirt. Just the thought of it caused me to harden painfully in my jeans. Fighting the urge to adjust myself, I pulled my mind out of the gutter and forced myself to focus on her response.
“I don’t feel any pain. How about you?” She considerately posed. In a small, awed voice, she added, “You took the brunt of the fall and saved us both. You could have been killed!”
“Don’t worry about Ace, kid,” Mad Dog retorted with a shit-eating grin. “His head has a better chance of injuring the groundthan the other way around. Our Prez is more machine than man.”
Cat frowned at his lack of concern, which I found adorable as hell.
My hands traveled over her trembling shoulders, down her arms, and then to her waist and she instinctively placed her palms against my chest, looking up at me with genuine concern.
“I’m fine, Cat. Not a single scratch on me,” I stated with a smile.
My fingers flexed around her narrow waist, and I sensed a tiny shiver of lust skitter up her spine. It was clear her body was responding to mine. My proximity. My pheromones. My sex. Everything in me wanted to give her what she needed. What she craved. To mark her with my scent and seed. The urge was so strong, it felt like I’d been shot up with a drug. It was riding me hard, demanding I ride her even harder.
Mad Dog cleared his throat, and the tension sparking between Cat and myself. “Kane must know these woods well because he stashed his bike not too far from where the road meets the tree line. The cowardly fucker took off on it before we could catch him. Domino wanted to hunt him down, so I came back here to check on the two of you.”
By “hunt him down”, my brother had meant shift and give chase in animal form. Domino was one strong, fast motherfucker, but he wasn’t about to outrun a bike even on his best day.
“Call to him and tell him to back off,” I ordered my Club’s Road Master. “We’ll deal with the asshole later. We know where he lays his deranged head at night. He’s not getting away with this shit.”
Kane’s club house was located a few counties over in Harrisburg. It was a run down, flea infested shack that should have been condemned, not sold to their MC. Hell, letting him hide in that rat’s nest was punishment in itself. Though it wouldn’t be nearly enough for what he could have done to my girl.
I didn’t have to say as much to Mad Dog, but we both knew Kane’s time was limited. Let him sit in his filthy lair and wonder when we’d strike. It would make the moment when we did even more enjoyable.
“I’m going to take Cat back home. I’ll call you later,” I said to my brother.
Cat took a step backward. “I still have two hours left until the end of my shift, Ace. I can’t leave now.”
She must be joking. After what just happened, there was no way I was going to let her hang around like bait for Kane to come back and snatch up.
“Babe,” I carefully began, not used to being challenged as both an alpha and president of an MC, while trying to be understanding about the differences between human and ware social structures. As much as they might piss me off, I had to remember that Cat was still in the dark about who she was. And, by extension, who I was to her. Her alpha. The one destined to care for and protect her. “You’re not staying here after what happened. It’s not safe.”
Cat gave me a pointed look at what she probably perceived to be a heavy-handed statement. “I most certainly am staying until Krammer’s closes. There are only two waitresses on shift besides me tonight. If I leave now, they’ll be overrun with cars and haveto stay for cleanup long after closing. I admit, I’m rattled by what just happened, but I can handle it and I’m not leaving, Ace.”
