Cotton: Satan's Fury MC (3 page)

For me, being with Cassidy was like that kick you get out of that first cup of coffee in the morning. I was always surprised by the charge I got whenever she walked into the room—a feeling that hit me deep down in my gut. I couldn’t get enough. Nothing had ever made me feel that way, not since I was a kid on Christmas morning. There was something about her that captivated me, like she knew something nobody else knew—some great secret you just wish to hell you could figure out. She was beautiful, so damn beautiful, but it was so much more than that. It was the way her smile would light up a room, the sexy sway of her hips when she danced, and even the way she tucked her hair behind her ear when she was nervous about something. It was the way she’d sing to herself as she worked behind the bar, completely unaware that the minute she opened her mouth, she’d cast a spell on everyone around her, captivating us all with the magic of her voice—especially me. She was strong and determined, but there was a soft side to her, almost fragile. The brothers respected her, knowing she’d do anything to make sure they had whatever they needed. It amazed me. In such a short time, she’d become invaluable to us all, always putting the needs of the club first.

There was so much about her I was drawn to, but it was her spark that got to me the most. I couldn’t end my day without getting that kick I got whenever I saw her, making me feel like the world wasn’t so bad after all. It gave me strength. It gave me hope. I knew my brothers thought I was trying to keep her for myself, but that wasn’t it. I couldn’t take the chance that one of them might hurt her… destroy her light. I had to protect her, even if that meant protecting her from me. I just couldn’t take it if something happened to that spark, and I was determined to make sure it stayed just the way it was. I’d done what I could to keep my distance, thinking I was protecting her, but I was done with that.

She stood there, looking like every man’s wet dream with the curls of her long, brown hair flowing loose around her shoulders. Her short skirt inched up her thigh, showing off her long, lean legs, and her dark blue sweater showed off her perfect curves, making me want her more than my next breath. Without warning, without permission… without thinking about the consequences, I lowered my mouth to hers, kissing her with heat, and angst, and promise of what was to come. The beat of her heart next to mine calmed me, refueled me, and that’s when I knew. She wasn’t my first, but she would be my
last
. I pulled her closer as I continued to devour her mouth, claiming her in the only way I could in that moment. Damn. I loved how her body instantly responded to mine, but it made it damn near impossible to not take her over to my bed and finish what I’d started. I reluctantly pulled back and asked, “You still need the words?”

When she nodded, I continued, “The day you walked into my club, I knew there was something about you I had to have, but nothing could have prepared me for the first time I had you in my bed. After that, I was done. I can’t get you out of my head. You’re in my every thought. I can’t even escape you in my dreams. You keep drawing me in, and I am helpless to stop it.”

With her face flushed red, she answered, “I think I got it.” A small grin slowly spread across her face as she tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear, letting me know I was getting to her.

I brought my hands up to her face, gently brushing my thumb across her cheek as I said, “You’re the favorite part of my day, Cass. Just one look at you, and the rest of the world just fades away.”

Her eyebrows furrowed when she asked, “I’ve waited so long for you to say something. I hoped there was something more between us, but I was beginning to think it was all in my head. But I’ve gotta ask… Why now? After all this time, why did you choose tonight to tell me all this?”

She knew me too well. After fending off a major attack on our club’s territory, only to find out that my cousin, Derek, was behind it all, I realized life is just too damn short. I’d fucked up by keeping my distance, but I couldn’t leave this world without telling her how I felt. I knew it was selfish of me, especially since I had no idea how things with Derek were going to turn out, but in the end, I was just a man—a man completely captivated by the woman who stood in front of him, and I couldn’t wait a moment longer to have her.

“You needed the words,” I teased, hoping she wouldn’t push for an answer I couldn’t give. Before she had a chance to question me further, there was a thundering knock at my door.

“Cotton?” Big Mike called out.

“Yeah?”

“You got a minute?” he asked. “Something’s come up. It’s important.”

Cass gave me a nod, letting me know she understood club business came first. Turning my head toward the door, I shouted, “Need a minute. Office in five.”

“Sure thing, Prez.”

I waited until I heard him head down the hall, then I turned back to Cass and said, “We’re not done here. Not by a long shot.”

A sexy grin spread across her face as she said, “Good to know. I’ll be here when you get done. For now, I need to get back out to the bar and see to my girls.” She lifted herself up on her tiptoes and kissed me, making my dick strain against my zipper as she took her time exploring every inch of my mouth. When she was done, she looked up at me and winked before heading toward the door. Just before she walked out of the room, she looked back over to me and said, “Just so you know… you are the best part of my day, too.”

I followed Cass out of the room and headed straight to my office. His timing couldn’t have been worse, but I was eager to see what had come up with Big Mike. Our club was under attack, had been for weeks, and when we discovered Derek’s face on the surveillance video, I knew things were only going to get worse. Derek wasn’t only after our territory. He was after revenge, plain and simple, and I was going to do everything in my power to make sure he didn’t get it. But before I could stop him, I had to find him. That’s where Big Mike came into play. If anyone could find that piece of shit, it was Big Mike. When I reached my office door, he was standing there, waiting for me. He had several folders in his hand, and I could tell from the look on his face that he was anxious.

“Whatcha got?”

“Right now, I’ve got more questions than I do answers. I need some help filling in the blanks.”

I opened the door to my office and motioned for him to follow me inside. As I sat down at my desk, I said, “What do you need from me?”

“Your history with the club… how it all started and how it all led to Derek losing his shit,” he replied.

“Hell, that was a lifetime ago. I wouldn’t even know where to start.” Big Mike wasn’t the kind of guy who skimped on details, so I wasn’t surprised he had questions about our past. Actually, it’s one of the reasons he’s the best.

He took the seat in front of my desk and said, “Just start at the beginning. I want to know anything and everything you can remember. It doesn’t matter how insignificant. There has to be something that might help me put the pieces together.”

Needing a smoke, I reached in my pocket and grabbed my pack of cigarettes. I quickly lit one and took a long drag before I said, “As you know, I got my in with the club when I started working for Uncle Saul. I didn’t officially start prospecting until the summer after my junior year of high school and didn’t patch in until I was almost nineteen, right after I graduated. By then, both my brothers had started prospecting.” I took another pull from my cigarette as I thought about everything Uncle Saul had done for my family. He was a guiding force in our lives, and I missed having him around. I exhaled, then continued, “We were young. Hell, we were the youngest to ever join the club, but we all knew this was the only life for us. We just had to graduate first. Uncle Saul wouldn’t have it any other way. We were family, and he was like a father to all of us.”

“And Derek?” Mike pushed.

“Derek was just a piece of shit. Always has been, always will be. I tried to make the best of it with him, but just never really trusted the guy. Hell, none of us did. He couldn’t stand the fact his father had chosen to take me under his wing, teaching me everything I needed to know about running the club.” I took another drag of my cigarette, then after I exhaled slowly, I continued, “Uncle Saul had only been working with me a few years when he had the accident. It was tough, but he gave it a good fight. When he didn’t fully recover, he gave me the nod to take the gavel, and with the club's unanimous agreement, I was voted in as President.”

“Did you ever wonder if Derek had anything to do with your uncle’s motorcycle accident?”

“Yeah, but none of us were ever able to tie it to him. I knew in my gut he was behind it and wanted to make him pay for what he’d done, but it was Uncle Saul’s last order as President for us to let it ride.”

Mike looked down at the folders in his hands and started rifling through them. When he found what he was looking for, he asked, “What about his mom? Were they close?”

“I wouldn’t call them close, but it wasn’t because of Aunt Gracie. Hell, she was always trying, but Derek wasn’t having any part of it.

“I think I found something. It might be the link we’ve been missing. Your aunt had a sister named Gertie who lived in Alberta.” He stopped just long enough to show me a picture of a woman who looked a lot like my aunt, then he continued, “She rented out her upstairs apartment to a man named Logan Stewart around the time when Derek left Clallam County. He was about the same age as Derek, and there is no record of him before he moved into Gertie’s apartment. Now, here’s where things get interesting.” He handed me another picture of Gertie, standing next to a man wearing a biker’s cut, and said, “Her husband was a member of a small MC that had connections with several clubs in Alaska… including Anchorage.”

“Okay. So talk me through all of this. Are you thinking Derek is this Logan Stewart? And if so, how does that help us find him now?”

“All it takes is one connection. We work off this Logan Stewart intel, and find one person who Derek is associated with now. Then, it’s just a matter of tracing their steps. One swipe of a credit card, and we have him.” It sounded simple enough, but I knew nothing with Derek had ever been simple.

“I want this done, Big,” I grumbled. “Don’t care what it takes.”

He stood to leave, but before he walked out of my office, he turned to me and said, “We’ll get ‘em, Prez. We’re close. I can feel it.”

As soon as he was gone, I reached into my desk and pulled out the folder he’d given us a few weeks ago. Big had been able to pull all the intel off of one of Derek’s computers, which gave us all the information he’d been able to uncover about every brother in the club. Each folder contained all the intimate details of our lives, including pictures Derek had taken over the past six months, pictures of us and the people we cared about. I sifted through all the pictures of Cass. Damn. She was beautiful. My stomach turned at the thought of him even looking at her, much less watching her every move. The pictures were very detailed, letting me know she’d sparked an interest in Derek, and it pissed me the hell off. I knew how obsessed he could become over something he wanted. I continued to flip through the pictures until I came across a couple of old shots of Sara and I together. I had no idea where Derek had managed to find them. I hadn’t seen any of them in years. We were at the clubhouse, celebrating Sara’s high school graduation. We’d been dating for almost a year, and back then, we were crazy about each other. I studied the photo, first noticing the bright smile on Sara’s face and then my own. We were happy. I remembered how we talked about plans to conquer the world together, but life got in the way. I glanced back down at the picture, and that’s when I noticed Derek lurking in the back corner of the clubhouse bar, gawking at Sara. I wasn’t surprised. We all knew Derek was obsessed with her. Hell, he’d almost gotten himself killed when he tried to drug and rape her, but even that didn’t stop him from pursuing her. He was always pushing her to go out with him, and even tried to convince her I’d been unfaithful a couple of times. She never listened and just continued to ignore him, which only made him angrier with me. Luckily, Derek’s lust over Sara settled down when she left for college. His interests were quickly drawn elsewhere, and he’d soon forgotten about Sara… or so I’d thought.

I spent the next hour going through everything Mike had uncovered about Logan Stewart and eventually made a connection. I was able to lock in on two possible aliases Derek had used since he left and found two clubs he’d had dealings with over the past year. We were finally making headway, and it was only a matter of time before we found him. Derek’s little game of cat and mouse was coming to an end.