Opal (Rugged Skulls MC Book 2) Read online

  “I’m scared of this,” I admit to him. His eyes soften and he leans in to kiss me softly, relaxing me some more. Damn him and his magical lips.

  “Baby, we are not a bad MC. Yeah, we do some stupid shit but nothing that will put you or Tucker in danger. You have to believe me on that. If you are mine, the club will protect you both, no matter what.”

  I nod and rest my head on his chest. Hearing his heartbeat soothes me some more. Any more relaxed and I think I will fall asleep on my feet.

  “Okay. Slow and steady,” I tell him.

  The vibrations hit my face as he chuckles, tightening his hold on me. We stay like that for a few more minutes, enjoying the moment of peace and the freshness of the start of a relationship.

  I shiver and Opal pulls back, looking down at me. “Come on, let’s get you home. Maybe we can give your neighbors a bit of a show and make out on the hood of the car again.” He winks and I laugh at him.

  “Oh yeah, they would definitely love that. You’re used to seeing people make out and have sex, since you own a very popular porn company,” I say sweetly at him, and he laughs. That sound goes straight to my underused pussy. Damn I need to get laid, preferably by this man next to me.

  “We do. Rugged Online Entertainment is doing well. The live streaming is going through the roof. Yeah, me and the brothers pop in to make sure things are running smoothly, but that’s all I do, hell what we all do. We don’t mix business with pleasure.”

  “I have seen some of the women that work there, Opal. They are freaking sexy,” I tell him. He stops sharply and looks down at me. His eyes darken.

  “You watch porn?” comes the question in a deep voice that has me shivering from head to foot. I nod because I have lost the ability to speak.

  “Fuck my life. Home,” he orders, his voice deep and gravelly. He marches us back to his car and helps me in again, before driving me back home.

  I can’t hide the smile on my face from seeing how affected he was at knowing that I watch porn. I mean, come on, I am a thirty-year-old single woman; of course I watch porn to get off. It helps.

  I can see that his knuckles are white with the force that he’s using to grip the steering wheel, and I cough to hide my chuckle. Opal looks over at me, his face still holding the evidence of his strained arousal.

  “You are a fucking tease, Jodie Simms.”

  With that, I burst out laughing and rub his thigh, which doesn’t help his mood.

  “Fuck. Out,” he snaps as we stop outside my house. He gets out and rushes round to help me out, then pushes me against the hood of the car. “Show time.”

  His mouth slams down on mine and I moan from both pleasure and pain, but I grip his short hair, keeping him to me as we devour each other’s mouths. He grinds his cock against my pussy, pushes the zipper of my jeans against my clit, and I pant into his mouth.

  I am loving the way he makes me feel, so free, wanted and sexy all at once.

  Opal pulls his mouth away and I whimper, making him laugh. He kisses down my jaw, over my neck, and I whimper again when he sucks on my pulse point. His hand comes up and cups my breast through my top. Moaning into his mouth and arching into his hand, he groans with me before pulling away.

  “Baby, we need to stop this before I strip you naked and take you right here on my car, making you scream my name for everyone to hear.”

  I shiver against him and he smiles before kissing me again and leading me to my door. With another earthshattering kiss, he tells me he will text me tomorrow, then I’m watching him drive away.

  When I’m in bed, I dream of Opal making love to me on the beach, making me scream his name for everyone to hear.

  Eleven

  Jodie

  I love shopping and luckily for me, so does Tuck. We’re walking around the mall, picking up a few clothes for him for the summer. He’s growing like a weed.

  “What do you think of these?” I hold up a pair of lime green shorts. His face says it all. He scrunches up his nose and turns to show me a black pair with red trim.

  “These are cool, Mom. Those are just… yeah, no.” He looks at me expectantly and I laugh at him, kissing the top of his head. Which is a big mistake.

  “Ewww, Mom, not in public. Jeez.” I laugh and watch as he walks over to a rack filled with designer t-shirts. That’s another thing he got from his father; always having to be kitted out in brand-named clothes.

  I pick up a pack of underwear for him and some socks, dropping them into the basket I’m carrying, then add a pair of sunglasses for him too. Yeah, my kid is spoiled.

  We pay for our things and walk to the next store. He needs a new basketball because his is scuffed so much that the under material is showing through. The store is full of kids trying the different sports equipment out, and the noise is crazy loud, but the kids seem to be behaving and having a good time.

  I walk around the store, making sure to keep an eye on Tucker. He has a tendency to race off if he sees something he likes. I smile as I watch him shoot hoops with some bigger boys, who I have to say, help him out. They don’t make fun of him. They actually pick him up to reach the larger net. I lean against the wall and watch him as he plays with them, each of them taking turns in passing to him.

  After a few minutes I call him to me. We still need to pick up a few essentials.

  “Tucker, come on, let’s go. I need to finish up.”

  “Coming, Mom.” See, he’s a good boy. Most kids would throw a tantrum about leaving, but he knows what will happen if he doesn’t listen. I start light with his punishment, like taking a few hours away from gaming, and that escalates to more hours and possibly removing the item. Very rarely do we get to that point.

  We stop at two more stores that Tucker is not impressed with because they have ‘girly things that boys shouldn’t see’.

  “Mom, really. I don’t need to be seeing these things. I mean, what’s this for?”

  I chuckle as he holds up a pink epilator. Taking it off him, I place it back on the shelf before explaining.

  “It’s for when we shave our legs, but this doesn’t shave the hairs off, it gently pulls them out.”

  “That is just… Ewww.” He fakes gagging and we leave the store once I’ve finished paying for what I picked up.

  “Come on, how about we go and get something to eat before we head home. I don’t feel like cooking.”

  “Food court. Boom!” Tuck fist pumps the air and I laugh, thinking back to one of our dates with Opal.

  “Boom, there it is,” Tucker shouts as the golf ball zooms into the clown’s mouth. He runs to Opal and me, high fiving us both, a big smile on his face.

  “Nice job, bud,” Opal praises him, and goes to take his shot.

  “Careful now, Opal. You need to take your time,” Tuck says. Opal goes to take his shot and Tucker speaks up again. “Can you see the hole okay, Opal? I mean, old age comes with a lot of issues. Bad eyes and aching bones,” he jests.

  I fight back my laughter as Opal straightens up and rushes at Tucker, picking him up and throwing him over his shoulder.

  “I’ll show you old, you little shit.”

  I laugh, and Tucker’s giggles fill the air.

  With my son over his broad shoulders, Opal takes his shot and makes it, then he’s spinning around in a circle, making tucker giggle more.

  “That’s how it’s done, son,” Opal cheers. He places Tucker back on his feet, and he wobbles, so Opal steadies him. “You good?”

  “Yep. I mean, that was a lucky shot, biker,” is all Tucker says before he runs off to the next hole.

  “Thank you,” I tell Opal, then I take his hand and we follow Tuck to the big lighthouse on the mini golf course. Opal leans in and kisses the side of my head, and the butterflies in my belly take flight.

  “No thanks needed, baby. I’m happy to spend time with him. He’s a part of you, so that means he means as much to me as you do.”

  “Come on, Mom, Opal,” Tucker calls, and we join him and finish up
on the mini golf, then go for ice cream, where Opal and Tucker continue their banter of old and young men. Making memories.

  “I’m starving.” My son’s voice breaks me from my thoughts.

  “Me too, bud.”

  We talk and laugh on the way, but then we come across something that has my steps slowing and my heart beating faster. My body becomes stuck in place. I feel Tucker tugging on my hands, but I can’t seem to tear my gaze from Opal and the pretty blond he is with.

  They are laughing and joking. He bumps his shoulder with hers, almost knocking her off balance, but he wraps an arm round her waist, keeping her upright. The familiarity between them makes my stomach knot. They laugh again and keep walking.

  “Mom, are you okay?” Tuck asks. I nod but keep my eyes forward.

  It’s like Opal can sense he’s being watched; his spine stiffens, and he looks around. I hold my breath, waiting for him to spot us. My feet refuse to move; they are cemented in place.

  Our gazes connect and he frowns, dropping his gaze to Tuck, then bringing it back to me. My eyes move from him to the woman next to him and back. The woman touches his arm and draws his attention, before he brings his gaze back to me. I see the moment the realization hits him. I just caught him with his woman, after he has been on a number of dates with me over the past two weeks.

  We have done a variety of things, some that included Tucker, which was amazing. We played mini golf and went to the movies. He took me on long rides on the back of his bike, which was beyond amazing. The way he treated me, the things he said to me… and I never got one inkling that he was already in a relationship. Then again, I never knew Roy was in an MC either.

  Clearly, I’m a shitty judge of character.

  “Come on, let’s go home. We’ll get food on the way.” Tucker doesn’t argue with me, just starts walking.

  We keep walking, even though I can hear Opal calling my name. My heart is racing, and I am sending thanks to God that Opal fired me. This way, I don’t have to tell him to politely fuck off.

  “Hey, can you stop. Jodie. Fuck.” His voice is strong, and I can hear the frustration in it, but it isn’t enough to make me stop.

  Huffing, I speed up, practically dragging Tucker along with me. A hand clamps down on my bicep, pulling me a stop rather harshly. I swing my gaze around to the person I know has a hold on me.

  His eyes are narrowed, and he’s breathing heavily. Opal’s eyes bounce between mine, trying to assess me maybe, but in this moment I don’t care. Pulling my arm away from him, I step back.

  “What, Stefan?”

  “You were going to leave without speaking to me,” he states. My eyes flick over to the woman and back to him, before I take in a breath.

  “Yeah, we were. You were busy. We didn’t want to interrupt. So now, if you’ll excuse me, we have to go.” Tightening my grip on Tucker’s hand a little, I go to turn, ready to end this day and get this man out of my head.

  I can well and truly say that any more dates with him just went out the fucking window. Me and the dating pool seem to have the drowning down pat. I think it’s time to step out of the water.

  “Why don’t I take…” the woman speaks, nodding at Tuck.

  “Tucker.” Opal fills in my son’s name, not moving his gaze from me. She smiles at me and looks at me for my permission. I start to shake my head and go to answer, but Opal makes the decision for me.

  “Thanks, Risk. Tuck, go with Risky. We’ll meet you at the food court.” He brings his gaze to me. “He will be safe. Risky won’t let anything happen to him.”

  “I think your name says otherwise,” I say, looking at the woman. Up close, I can see her hair is that amazing rose gold color, not blond like the lights in the mall make it.

  “Fair enough. My name is Kara. I like her,” she adds, looking at Opal.

  “Me too,” he states, still never taking his gaze off me.

  We stay like that for seconds, minutes, I’m not completely sure. My heart is racing with anger, and my need for this man is crazy. A throat is cleared, breaking the trance between us. I look at Kara and then down at Tuck.

  “I’m hungry, Mom.” Sighing, I give my son a smile and nod at Kara, who gives me a huge bright grin, looking back down to Tuck.

  “You stay with Kara and you listen to her, okay?” My voice is stern, so he knows I’m not messing around.

  “Got it, Mom.”

  They walk off and I keep my eyes on my son for two reasons. One, I just let him walk off with a complete stranger, but oddly I feel like she would protect my boy. Two, it’s a delay tactic.

  Fingers ghost over my forearm, making me shiver, and I curse at myself for allowing that response to be so open. Turning to look at him, I take in the smile on his face and his bright eyes.

  Why does he have to be so damned good-looking?

  “He will be fine. She won’t let anything happen to him. Come and sit with me.” He takes my hand, not waiting for an answer. Pulling me along behind him, he leads me over to the banks of benches placed around a water feature.

  We sit and he keeps my hand locked in his, probably making sure I don’t make a run for it. His hand is soft, but I can feel callouses from hard work, maybe from his Army days and working on his bike.

  “Are you going to listen to what I have to say?” he asks, and I look away. Roy was a man who knew how to handle a woman. He always knew the right things to say and how to touch a woman to make her his. Hell, I fell for it for years, until I saw him for who he really is.

  A bad kind of biker.

  Roy’s club, the Snake Heads MC, are the bad kind of club. They deal in anything they can get their hands on, including women. He hid that fact of his life for years, until one day, a woman came to the house claiming that she was Roy’s old lady and that she was pregnant with his child. I flipped the hell out and called him. He came home and told me everything. That’s the day I kicked him out and decided that Tuck and I needed to be away from him.

  He never brought any club business into our home, but he did sleep with an abundance of women, until he got one pregnant and claimed her. So, he had his cake and he was eating everything in the bakery.

  Fingers lightly touch my chin, turning my face to his. His frown shows his concern.

  “Talk to me,” he says, keeping his fingers on my chin. I pull back a little, keeping my gaze locked on his.

  “Me talk? Don’t you think it’s you who should be talking, Stefan,” I tell him. I try to pull my hand out of his, but he tightens his grip, shaking his head at me.

  “Listen, Risky isn’t who you think she is. I can see the cogs turning in your pretty little head, and you’re thinking the worst. She is my prez’s old lady. Do you know what that means?” he asks.

  “More than you know,” I mutter before I even realize what I did. I hold my breath, waiting to see if he caught what I said.

  “What does that mean? Explain, please?”

  He did, shit.

  Huffing, I try to pull my hand away again, but he just smiles at me and keeps his hold on me. Deciding that holding my hand isn’t enough for him, he slides his other arm around my waist, latching onto my hip, sliding me even closer to his body.

  Oh dear Lord, he smells amazing.

  Like vanilla and leather.

  “Through the years I was married to Tucker’s father, I never knew he was in an MC. With my training, deployment and having a baby, I was engrossed in me and Tuck. I clearly missed a lot. But Roy never brought club business into our home. Then one day, a woman turns up on my doorstep, saying she’s Roy’s old lady and that she’s pregnant with his child. So, I divorced him, deciding she could have him. We moved here and started fresh.”

  “Are you happy with moving here?” Opal asks, his voice now full of tension. I would imagine it’s because he is hearing about Roy’s club.

  “Yeah, best thing I did was moving here. I kicked him out after he told me everything. He was like a different man to the one I fell in love with; cold and dist
ant,” I explain. Opal’s arm tightens around me, and I find myself leaning into him, taking comfort in his touch.

  “That’s good, babe. What club is he with?” he asks me. Sighing, I tell him.

  “Snake Heads MC.”

  “Fuck. Has your ex been in contact with you since you’ve been here?”

  “Yeah. He wants to see Tucker. He only wants to see him when he wants to.”

  “Okay, I will deal with that later. So back to us. One thing you need to know about me, babe, is that I fucking hate drama. I like things smooth sailing, all calm and on track. I’ll always tell you as it is when I can. Club business is off the table unless it is directly linked to you or Tuck.”

  “Are we already in that deep?” I ask him, frowning at him. I know I am, but I want to hear him say it.

  Pulling my body back from his but not getting far, I scowl at him, and he returns my scowl with a grin that he no doubt uses to get away with things. Then he slides his hand under my blouse, at the waist.

  The heat from his touch both soothes and excites me, but I feel the tension leave my body. My gaze snaps to his and he smirks at me because he knows what he’s doing. He knows what his touch does.

  “How do you do that?” I ask in a breathy tone.

  “I have the magic touch, babe. I will explain it one day. But as for the relationship talk, I called dibs, so I made it so. You are mine, Jodie Simms.”

  “Oh, am I?” I retort, forcing my way out of his hold and standing.

  “I believe the way I had my tongue in your mouth and my hand on your breast the other night says yes.”

  His sexy smile gets bigger as he stands to full height, towering over me. I am taller than most women, but he still dwarfs my size. Once again, he wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me flush against his body, before leaning in and speaking close to my ear.

  I can feel his warm breath on the shell and the shiver lets him know that I like it.

  Dang it.

  “Dibs, baby. Dibs,” is all he says.

  Twelve