Stoned (Unlikely Heroes Book 4) Read online

  But if she really was attracted to him? Shit. Having that woman in his bed would be a wet dream come true. How far would she go? Would she sleep with him? Use him? It was a dangerous game they were playing. He doubted either of them would come out of this “adventure” unscathed. Their very lives were at stake. But he was here for a reason. He couldn’t leave until he’d taken care of business. He didn’t want her to be hurt by Viper or any of the other bikers. If Karen became a casualty of war, which was a very likely possibility, there wouldn’t be much Stoner could do about it. It would be wise for him to keep his distance from her. But when she looked at him with those big dark sultry eyes, he had a hard time thinking about anything except getting her naked beneath him.

  “Neal?”

  He gave a start as he came out of his musings. Karen stood next to him in the hallway where they’d paused outside of the game room. He’d snatched another beer from the kitchen on their way out. He lifted the beer, took a sip.

  A loud ruckus came from inside the room, indicating a fierce battle was underway on the screen.

  He glanced down at her. “Yeah?”

  “Rebel said you’re up.” Karen smiled up at him. A true smile, not a fake one. A smile that went clear to her eyes.

  Something twisted in his chest, squeezed. No woman had ever smiled up at him like that before. Stoner felt his lips curving up into a grin. She’d actually smiled at him. A true smile. What did that mean?

  “Buck needs to break for a beer,” she went on, still looking up at him.

  “Excuse me-eech.” Buck let out a belch as he came out of the room. He glanced at Stoner. “Hey man.” The younger biker nodded at Karen, then waggled his brows appreciatively at Stoner and stuck out his tongue, wiggling it in a suggestive, lecherous way before heading for the kitchen. Stoner forced back a chuckle. Karen was attracting the attention of all the males she came into contact with. It might be wise to make everyone think she was his woman so they would leave her alone.

  Karen leaned close to Stoner. “It’s your turn to play. I admit I’m eager to see you in action, Neal.” She lowered her voice. “In more ways than one.” She set her beer on the small hallway table next to several other empty beer bottles. Her fingers curled around his forearm.

  He glanced down at her hand.

  Holy shit, was she flirting with him? Was this part of her game plan? Or was she serious?

  He jerked his gaze back to hers, trying to unravel the truth behind her words. But her true intentions were hidden somewhere in the secret depths of her dark, mysterious eyes. Damn her, he didn’t want games. He wanted the truth.

  He set his beer next to hers on the table. Stoner twisted his arm loose from her grasp, wrapping his fingers around her slim wrist. He raised her arm above her head. Her eyes widened. He captured her other hand in his and smashed her up against the wall outside of the game room. She gasped, her gaze darting to his. Stoner pressed his body into hers, holding her in place.

  Her breathing quickened. She swallowed hard. Her lips parted.

  He witnessed the surprise in her gaze, then excitement. Or was it anticipation? Or maybe…lust?

  His jeans grew tight. Holy shit. If he didn’t know better, he would think she actually liked what he was doing. He studied her face, gazed into her eyes, but detected no sign of fear. None at all.

  “Is this the kind of action you want?” he asked huskily.

  She drew in a shaky breath. Her gaze dropped to his mouth. It took every ounce of his control to not kiss her then, like she wanted. Too many watchful eyes. Too many listening ears. While he had no qualms about making love to her, he didn’t want to do it in front of an audience. He wanted her all for himself.

  “Stoner!” Rebel called from inside the game room. “You gonna play or what?”

  Stoner released Karen and stepped back. Disappointment flickered across her face. She wasn’t pretending. She truly wanted him. And that excited him more than he dared admit. Karen was trouble. She could hurt him all too easily. But, oh, the things he wanted to do to her…

  “Stoner! Come on, man! If you’re not gonna play, then you forfeit your turn and Spike is up.”

  “I’m coming.” He brushed past Karen and entered the game room, plopping onto the couch next to Rebel. He picked up the wireless controller. Spike eyed him from the other end of the couch, impatiently waiting his turn.

  Much to Stoner’s disappointment, Karen didn’t follow him.

  Stoner needed something to get his mind off the lust surging through him. Eight years was a long time to want someone. He was pathetic, thinking about her all these years, wanting her all these years. But never once getting up enough courage to approach her all these years for fear of rejection. For fear that she would never give him the time of day. Why would she?

  Yet he’d just discovered she was attracted to him. Either she was a damn good actor or…she truly wanted him. He couldn’t comprehend that.

  Rebel eyed him strangely. “You okay, man? She cast some kind of spell over you?”

  Stoner cleared his throat. Something like that.

  “So, what we playing?”

  “How about Splinter Cell Conviction?”

  “Works for me.”

  Rebel loaded the game into the Xbox 360. Stoner was in the mood for a good combat, for something that would get Karen Williams out of his head. He would push her aside while he and Rebel hunted the enemy, then went after each other in the end. Damn her anyway. She was a distraction he didn’t want and didn’t need.

  Voices came from out in the hallway. He glanced up as Buck returned. The thirtyish, blond-haired biker paused to talk to Karen where she stood in the doorway. Buck was a ladies’ man who flirted with any female he came across. No woman was immune to Buck’s charms.

  Stoner had a good view of Karen’s profile as she spoke to Buck. She tilted her head back, smiling up at him. An unexpected surge of jealousy shot through Stoner. He pulled his gaze away, glad he couldn’t hear what Buck was saying to her. She could just as easily seduce Buck or one of the other bikers in an attempt to escape. But little did she know that none of them would help her. They would fuck her, but they wouldn’t help her get away. If Karen wanted to live, Stoner was her best chance for survival.

  The screen exploded with life and sound in front of him. Stoner shoved Karen from his mind while he and Rebel went after the enemies with no mercy. For the next two hours, he fought his way through the game until he messed up and got killed.

  “Motherfucker!” Rebel shouted. “What’d you die so soon for? I was looking forward to taking you out in the end.”

  “Not my lucky day, I guess.” Where was Karen? He hadn’t seen her since he’d first started playing the game. He tossed his controller to Spike, who sniggered and slipped into Stoner’s spot.

  Stoner headed out of the room in search of Karen.

  He found her a few minutes later in the dining room, sitting at a table with Tonya, Viper’s younger, very pregnant sister. Stoner glanced around but Viper was nowhere in sight. Karen was treading on thin ice if she was conversing with Viper’s sister without his approval. Viper had more or less threatened Karen earlier to stay away from Tonya. It was possible Karen didn’t know who Tonya was, though that was unlikely. Tonya shared her brother’s albinism, though her skin wasn’t quite as pale and her eyes were a light blue rather than pink like Viper’s.

  Stoner needed to gather Karen up and get her away from Tonya before Viper discovered he’d allowed her to wander unchaperoned around the compound for the past two hours while he played videogames. Stoner had wanted her out of his head, so he’d deliberately ignored her. Not the smartest thing he’d ever done. Has she seduced Buck in his absence? Had the two of them gone at it while he’d been absorbed in the videogame?

  Disgusted with his thoughts, he didn’t hear Viper until the man spoke behind him.

  “Stoner, we’ve got a problem.”

  Stoner tensed. He turned and met the other man’s gaze. “What’s
up?”

  Viper motioned across the room to where Karen sat with Tonya. “That is the problem. Why did you let her out of your sight? There’s no telling what kind of shit she’s been filling Tonya’s head with. You know my sister has a weakness for the inferior races and that she’s likely to fall prey to that woman’s vile tales. If you don’t get her under control immediately, I’ll find someone else to babysit her. Got it?”

  Stoner held Viper’s creepy gaze. “Sorry. Got caught up in the game for awhile and she just slipped away.”

  Viper studied Stoner for a long moment. “Did she give you the list you needed?”

  Stoner cleared his throat. “Actually, she said she has everything we need at her lab at home. She said it could take weeks to get all the supplies and set up a lab here, but if you let her work from her house, she can get started first thing in the morning.”

  Viper squinted even more, the movement causing the serpent’s tongue to twitch between his eyes in a realistic slither. Even Stoner, who wasn’t afraid of much of anything, found Viper’s appearance creepy.

  Viper snorted. “Seriously? And you believed her? She’s not leaving the compound.”

  “I figured you’d say that. But if she’s telling the truth, then we can get started much quicker if we go to her place. She said all she needs is a plant to take cuttings from. I’ll keep a close eye on her. She won’t get away, Viper. I promise. From now on, I’m not letting the woman out of my sight.”

  Viper considered him for a long, tense moment. Though Stoner didn’t want to leave the compound, Karen was safer away from here. If he had to alter his plans for a few days in order to keep her safe, so be it.

  “I’ll think about it,” Viper said at last. “But I need to investigate her first. Find out if she’s married, if she lives alone, if she has a family...I’ll let you know in the morning. Now get that woman away from my sister or I will.”

  He’d been dismissed. And ordered to get Karen under control.

  Stoner headed for the table where she sat.

  Karen’s head snapped up. Her gaze traveled down his body and back up to his face, making him grow warm all over. Damn, she had a way of looking at him with those dark “come hither” eyes that made him want to drag her up to his room that very second and explore every inch of her lush, curvy body.

  “Did you win?”

  He relaxed under her warm gaze and pushed his longing aside. Later, hopefully, he’d get the chance to love her in all the ways he wanted.

  “No. I got murdered.”

  She chuckled. Then she glanced at something behind him. Her smile disappeared.

  Viper came up behind him.

  “Tonya.” Viper glared at his sister. “What are you doing with this woman? You should be in bed at this hour.”

  Tonya snorted, rolling her eyes. Much like Karen, she wasn’t easily intimidated. Stoner had witnessed her standing up to Viper more than once. “I’m pregnant, you idiot, not deathly ill. And I can stay up as late as I want. I’m an adult.” Pushing her chair back, Tonya maneuvered herself up into a standing position, her sprawling belly protruding out in front of her as she rose.

  Karen bolted to her feet, her wary gaze on Viper.

  “I guess I’ll see you later.” Karen touched the other woman’s arm. “If you need any help when the baby comes, just let me know.”

  “Thank you.” Tonya squeezed Karen’s hand. The women exchanged a smile. “I will definitely take you up on that.”

  Viper scowled. He was obviously not pleased with the friendship building between the two women. His gaze darted to Stoner.

  Stoner took the hint. He grabbed Karen’s arm, leaning down to whisper in her ear, “Let’s go.”

  She didn’t resist, much to his relief.

  Neither spoke as they left the dining area.

  But as soon as they entered the hallway, Karen wrapped her hand around his arm. He paused, turning to face her.

  “Tonya wasn’t raped by the man Viper killed. She loved him. But I’d already figured as much.” Her dark gaze filled with accusation. “You guys killed that man in cold blood.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Karen wasn’t stupid. She knew now why Viper hadn’t wanted her around his sister. The way it looked to her, Viper had committed a hate crime. And Stoner had been involved. She didn’t want to believe Stoner would be part of a cold-blooded murder. But what else could it mean? He’d been there with those other men. He hadn’t tried to intervene. He’d stood aside while Viper murdered a man.

  Her stomach roiled. Her attraction to Stoner was real, yet she knew next to nothing about the man, except he’d been a drug dealer in his past life. She’d thought she’d sensed good in him. But had she? Or had she imagined it?

  “I had high hopes that you weren’t a bad man,” she whispered. “But I was obviously wrong.”

  Stoner stared down at her, his gaze hardening. “You don’t know me at all. The sooner you realize how bad I am, the better.”

  “When I escape, you’re all going down. Especially you.”

  A brow shot up. “Especially me?”

  “Yes. You could have stopped that murder, but you didn’t. You stood aside and let a man be killed!”

  Stoner grabbed her arm and dragged her down the hallway. “You don’t have a clue what is going on here, Karen.”

  “So why don’t you enlighten me!” She yanked at her arm, but his grip tightened into her flesh. It was the first time he’d hurt her. Her heart sank. He was one of the bad guys. A leather-wearing badass biker who hadn’t stopped a cold-blooded murder. If she pushed him too far, he might truly hurt her. He might even kill her.

  “You’re hurting me,” she whispered.

  He halted, his gaze darting down to where he gripped her arm.

  He thrust her away and stepped back. He didn’t apologize.

  Yet he’d let her go, as if he hadn’t realized he’d been hurting her.

  Karen stared up at him as she rubbed her sore arm. The man was so confusing. Who was he? He wouldn’t have released her if he’d wanted to hurt her. Right? There was good in him somewhere. She’d just witnessed that. Was he pretending to be something he wasn’t?

  “You’re not as bad as you want me to think.” Her gaze never left his. “Or you would have kept hurting me just now.”

  They stared at each other in the hallway, neither moving. “Do you want me to hurt you?” he asked softly.

  Karen swallowed hard. Why did every conversation they had turn into sexual innuendos?

  Because they wanted each other. The attraction between them smoldered, crackling through the air like a jolt of electricity. God, if he kissed her now, she wouldn’t stop him. She wanted him to shove her up against the wall, rip her clothes off and…

  No!

  What was she thinking? It would never get that far. As soon as he discovered her secret, he’d no longer want her. He would push her away in revulsion. The knowledge deflated her desire. She pulled her gaze away from his. Despair settled in, squeezing itself into her heart.

  She’d once been desired by many men. In the past she’d shamelessly used her looks to get what she wanted, even going so far as having an affair with her husband’s younger brother and destroying her marriage. Something she now regretted. Her actions had hurt so many people. Most of all her daughter.

  Over the years, Karen had dated more men than she could count, using her body to get what she wanted. She wasn’t proud of that fact now, wasn’t proud of the woman she’d once been.

  But that had all changed three years ago.

  No man would want her now if he discovered her secret. And that hurt. She wanted Stoner to want her, to need her. She supposed this was her punishment for all the men she’d used over the years, all the people she’d hurt with her callous actions.

  The smart thing to do would be to push Stoner away before he found out the truth. Before he destroyed what little bit of self-esteem she had left.

  “I apologize,” he murmured,
staring down at the hardwood floor. “I didn’t mean to hurt your arm. I admit I can be a brute sometimes, but I don’t get off on hurting women. Forgive me?”

  What? Had he just apologized? She stepped closer to him, forcing him to meet her gaze.

  She searched his eyes, seeking the truth. The coldness had vanished from his eyes, replaced by…what? Remorse?

  She gave a slow nod. “Okay. Thank you. I accept your apology.”

  They continued to stare at each other, neither moving, their bodies just inches apart. Heat flared in his eyes again. Her heart galloped crazily. She wanted him to kiss her, wanted to feel those wonderful lips against hers.

  Just do it, she urged silently. Kiss me.

  Then, slowly, he dipped his head.

  “Hey Stoner!” a voice shouted from down the hallway. “We just pulled out the bong. Come join us, dude!”

  Stoner jerked his head up. He glared at the other biker, then turned back to Karen. His gaze swept over her face, down her body, then crawled back up to hers.

  “Wanna smoke some weed, Karen?”

  She let out a snort. Was he joking? Then a small giggle escaped her lips. She stared up into his face. His too-serious face. He wasn’t joking.

  The giggle turned into a full blown laughing fit. She fell back against the wall, clutching her stomach as hysterical laughter overtook her. This place, these bikers, Stoner…were all making her crazy. This had to be a bad dream. A very bad dream.

  Stoner crossed his arms over his chest and watched her, a scowl darkening his features. That made her laugh even harder.

  Then, amazingly, his lips twitched. Those striking hazel eyes brightened with humor. And then…he chuckled. “What’s so funny?”

  “What’s so funny?” She let out another giggle. “You just asked if I wanted to smoke some dope. Seriously? Do I look like a pothead to you?”

  His lips compressed, the smile disappearing, his gaze direct on hers. “Don’t tell me you’ve never smoked pot before.”