Grays shadow, p.28
Gray's Shadow, page 28
part #4 of Kings of Hell MC Series
Beast ignored the physical change in Gray. “The bullet only grazed me. But we’ve been ambushed, and the cargo is gone. What a fucking cockup.”
Laurent stood and started pacing. His eyes were red and swollen, his breath coming in shallow pants. The moment his gaze briefly locked with Shadow’s, it was obvious that regardless of how many jewels have been taken, all he cared about was his partner’s injury. And Shadow understood exactly how he felt. Just imagining Gray wounded, in pain, made his own eyes water, so he turned to Gray and stroked his hair, gently pulling on the dark blond strands.
“It really is different.”
Rev slammed his palm against the table, making Shadow flinch away. “Jesus Christ! Don’t touch him, you creep.”
Gray blinked, and he growled back at Rev without even taking his time to examine the change on his head. “Stop shouting at him! Don’t we have other problems to deal with?”
Knight scowled. “Gray, chill, okay? What’s gotten into you? Sit down.”
Gray sucked in some air, but then reached back and pulled the elastic band off his hair.
His fingers trembled slightly when he examined some of the strands. He stared at them in silence punctuated by rapid inhales and exhales. When he finally looked back at Shadow, his lips were a tight, pale line.
“Seriously, Gray, you wouldn’t have been the first man to dye,” Joker said and pointed to the bright hair on his own head, but Fox shushed him with a gesture.
“Can we go back to what’s actually important?”
Knight nodded. “What’s important is—don’t turn your phone off, Gray. We’re always on call, so what the actual fuck?”
Rev crossed his arms on his chest. “None of this would have happened if you let Gray come with you. Sure, he would have taken the creature with him, but—”
Shadow sensed a spike of heat in his head even before Gray stepped forward, letting his hair fall to his shoulders in disarray. “He is not a ‘creature’! Have you already forgotten that he saved my life?” he shouted, grabbing Shadow’s arm with his free hand.
Beast frowned but said nothing, watching them like a predator searching for weaknesses in his prey.
Shadow smiled when Gray rubbed his arm in a way no one would notice. “I’m trying to be as helpful as I can to my friends.”
Joker snorted. “Oh, my fucking God. You two are fucking.”
Gray’s fingers twitched, and he froze, as if his mind couldn’t keep up with what was happening around him, so Shadow was there to help.
“We haven’t connected bodies yet. What made you say that?”
Vars gave a heavy sigh, watching them with an unreadable expression.
“Yet?” Joker asked with a wide smile. He looked around for partners in mockery, but all the other men were serious.
Gray stirred back to life, and his beautiful, slim fingers slid down to entwine with Shadow’s. “Yes, Joker. Yet. Happy? Can we go back to the reason why we’re all here?” he asked in a low voice. Despite his wide posture, and head held high, Shadow couldn’t miss the way Gray’s hand clutched at his, damp and twitchy.
Joker gave a loud shriek and put both hands against his cheeks. “Oh. Fuck. I knew it! Will you repeat that to my girl? She. Just. Lost. A bet.”
Rev took an inhale so deep his nostrils flared. “You cannot be serious? This is exactly what Baal wants! That’s why he put him in this kind of body! Can you start thinking with your brain, not with your dick?”
Shadow cleared his throat. So far, he’d always taken these insults, but now it felt like Gray was as much under attack as him. Enough was enough. “Gray can think with the organ of his choosing!”
Shadow expected silence, maybe some defensive words, but instead witnessed half the bikers laughing out loud. Vars hid his face in his hands, and Jake, who sat right next to him, tapped his fingers on the table. “I think this really isn’t any of our business. Gray didn’t have anyone for a while. Why do you need to spoil it for him?”
Rev’s eyes were so wide Shadow feared they might pop out of their place in his face. “You fucker… you knew about this!”
Fox shook his head. “Rev has a point. We don’t know what Shadow’s real agenda is. We can’t afford to just assume he’s harmless.”
“How about you look at me when you talk about me,” Gray said, letting go of Shadow and stepping toward Fox so abruptly Vars rose, his eyes narrowed, as if he were trying to figure out whether he should physically intervene.
Fox growled, adjusting the cast on his leg. “Fine. I’ll say it to you then. You’re getting involved with someone that isn’t human, and who will be gone next month. Sorry, Shadow. I hate to be the one to bring it up, but this thing you two have will not end well for anyone.”
Shadow’s shoulders slumped under the weight of Fox’s accusation. Was his decision to connect with Gray really so selfish? Had he made a mistake by drawing Gray in without telling him what exactly their blood connection meant?
Had he hurt the one person he cared about most?
Gray stayed silent, staring back at Fox like a statue of an angry god about to strike the heretic with thunder.
Knight raised both hands. “Guys. I think Jake’s right. We stand for personal freedom, and if fucking Shadow makes Gray happy, then I’m gonna support that. Gray’s a brother, and I wouldn’t care if he fucked goats.”
Laurent stepped behind Beast, going green in the face, but it was Vars who voiced everyone’s feelings. “Seriously?”
Knight groaned and pushed back his hair. “I was just making a point. Christ, haven’t you heard of metaphors?”
Laurent scowled. “Oh, my God, Knight. That is not what a metaphor is. And besides, no one is that perverted!”
Beast rubbed his eyes. He must have run out of patience, because when he spoke it was in a stern tone. “All those things are unimportant right now. Can we finally discuss the reason for this gathering?”
Shadow cleared his throat, trying not to boil in the heat of Rev’s hateful glare. “Yes, the transport of jewelry.”
Beast stared at him. “You are not a member. You’re not involved. I don’t even know why you’re in this room, because Gray doesn’t need his arm to talk to us.”
Gray’s Adam’s apple bobbed, but he held on to Shadow’s hand, breathing loudly.
“He knows about rubies. That’s why he’s here. Right, Shadow?” he asked, briefly glancing Shadow’s way, still flushed yet with more focus to his gaze.
Shadow squeezed Gray’s hand to make sure his human understood Shadow wasn’t going anywhere. He still remembered the utter loneliness of his early existence, and he wanted Gray to adjust to their connection more smoothly.
“Yes, I can easily sense them.”
Jake perked up in his chair. “Like a dog? I mean that in the best of ways. Could you track them? I remember Shadow could tell by taste if they were valuable to a being like him.”
Beast growled. “Is that right?”
Shadow nodded. “The bigger they are, the more powerful, and the easier they are to find.”
Gray’s hand twitched around his, and he faced Shadow with pure hope glinting in his eyes. “So if we went to the place where they were taken, could you lead us to where they are now?”
Somewhere on the periphery of Shadow’s attention, Rev was scowling, but if Gray ignored his father, so would Shadow. He put his arm around Gray to make that point even clearer. Something fluttered in his stomach at the way Gray’s shoulders fit into his embrace.
“I could try. They do leave behind a scent that lingers for a while.”
The smile that brightened Gray’s face was like the full moon warming Shadow’s face with its glow. “We could go and deal with this then. And then you could—”
“He could what?” Beast asked calmly, following the conversation despite his injuries.
Gray licked his lips and slowly looked back at him. “He could stay longer if he absorbed a ruby.”
Shadow stilled. “And… you’d want that?”
“It doesn’t matter, because that’s not what those rubies are for!” Rev butted in, but the message behind Gray’s words was already sinking in.
Gray didn’t want Shadow to leave come next new moon. He liked Shadow and wanted him around.
Gray swallowed. “I know they’re meant for Magpie, but I’ve worked with him for so long. I’m sure he’d agree to offer me a couple of small gems that wouldn’t have made a difference in the grand scheme of things.”
Knight frowned. “What? I mean… maybe at a different time, but Magpie’s getting frantic. He needs those rubies to stop Baal. I can’t see him taking this kind of risk.”
“Even if he got the Pigeon Heart?” Jake asked.
Knight spread his arms. “Maybe then. Maybe. Until it’s in our hands, we can’t take any risks.”
Despite being drunk on Gray’s touch, Shadow still listened carefully, increasingly aware that he could have a future he hadn’t expected. A future with Gray. A future among humans.
Next to him, Gray was becoming more animated. “Okay then, let’s go.”
Joker leaned back in the chair. “You’re joking. Unlike you, we’ve ridden for a couple of hours, and Beast is injured. We don’t even know yet who exactly we’re dealing with.”
“Vars and Jake have stayed here. They could go with me.”
Rev shook his head. “I was all for you going with the others, but not like this. We will find the fuckers and retaliate in due time.”
Gray pulled on Shadow’s hand, leading him closer to where Beast sat watching them with a thoughtful expression. “Why? There’s no time to wait. He said he can only sense rubies for so long after they are gone. Tonight might be our only chance!”
Beast frowned. “What’s gotten into you?”
“I know what,” Joker said with a smirk.
Gray hissed like a rabid cat. “Shut the fuck up. We need those rubies, all right? I’m going to get to them and deliver them to Magpie myself. Beast, come on…”
Beast rubbed his nose, watching them both with a stern set to his brows. “We all know the genuine pigeon blood shade rubies are drying out. It might be that none of the jewels we were supposed to pick up tonight fit the bill. At least five men participated in the ambush. They knew our movements, and we don’t know who they are yet. I don’t want unnecessary risk when we’re set to get our hands on the Pigeon Heart, anyway.”
Gray took a deep breath and rubbed Shadow’s hand with his thumb. “And if I end up not getting any rubies for him, then what? Will you offer me your engagement ring?”
Laurent straightened behind Beast, holding onto his husband’s shoulders. “Excuse me? He is not getting that ring. Frankly, he shouldn’t be getting any rubies. He is but a tool in Baal’s hands, and I would not be surprised if he’d bewitched you for the very reason of extracting the rubies from us. He does not think like us. He is a shadow wearing human skin, Gray!”
Shadow’s muscles went solid. He couldn’t remember ever feeling this angry, not even when Gray had locked him in the cell for days! What has he done to be disregarded by everyone?
If Gray wanted him to stay, then Shadow did not want to die.
“And what are you?” he growled, and looked at the humans. “Aren’t you all just souls dressed in flesh and bone?”
He expected Laurent to come right back at him with some retort, but his pretty lips parted, and he stared back without a word.
Knight sat on the table with a deep sigh. “He’s got a point.”
Beast rubbed Laurent’s hand, but in the end met Gray’s eyes again. “I have another job for Vars and Jake, so if you absolutely want to do this, you’d have to go alone. Is that really what you want?”
Rev stood, hitting the coffee table with his knees and making it clatter. “There is no need for this!”
Beast shook his head. “If Gray can go through with this, it will be beneficial for the club. I will not stop him, provided he makes sure to remain cautious.”
“Of course I will,” Gray said with exasperation, though Shadow knew that once Gray was set on something, safety could fly out the window, as evidenced by their first job together.
Beast’s heavy gaze settled on Shadow. “I expect Gray to come back in one piece.”
Shadow instantly straightened and pulled Gray into an embrace. “There is no shadow without the man to cast it.”
“Aww…” Jake smiled widely, but Beast shook his head.
“Just go. And if you do find the rubies, I expect you deliver them all here. We will decide what to do together, once we have a clear picture of the situation.”
When Gray looked back at him, Shadow whispered, “I want to stay.”
Gray’s eyes flickered, and he gently squeezed Shadow’s hand, as if to say “I want that too.”
Chapter 20
The world buzzed around Gray as if only a thin sheet separated him from swarms of insects making an insistent, thudding noise that vibrated all over his skin as he walked away from the common room. Even the floor was somehow too hard under his feet, the air—too hot, his own hair—continuously tickling his flesh. But most prominent of all was Shadow.
Gray was so acutely aware of his presence he could’ve written essays about the scent of him alone. Shadow wasn’t new in his life, nothing had changed about him, yet the effect his company had on Gray changed in a way so fundamental it confused him. In random moments, Gray found his hand on the small of Shadow’s back without remembering when he’d put it there. It was impossible to focus on the rubies when all he could think about was getting Shadow naked and horizontal.
His skin prickled where it was nearest to Shadow’s, almost as if the little hairs on their forearms bristled and reached for each other. Not long after leaving the common room, the storm raging inside Gray turned into a tornado that filled his chest and pushed at his ribs until he couldn’t normally breathe. His skin itched. He couldn’t swallow. His mind was a chaos of lewd images that became more tangled the farther away they were from the others.
He was overstimulated, and his underwear rubbed against his hard, pulsing dick so insistently he could have sworn it was Shadow’s third hand touching him. But that wasn’t the case, because when Shadow did actually touch him, Gray couldn’t hold in a moan.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find the jewels,” Shadow said, but Gray did not want to think about the upcoming job. Couldn’t they make time stop for a few minutes? The corridor was getting longer somehow, like a physical reminder that it could be ages until Gray could comfortably get his hands on Shadow,.
Just thinking about it had his body aching with pain so severe walking was no longer an option. He rested his forehead on the cool wall, but it didn’t provide him the relief he needed. Each breath felt like yet another temptation, offering him Shadow’s warm scent, but not the taste, not the meat he wanted to sample.
His head was about to crack, like an egg boiled in water way too hot.
He took deep breaths, hoping that the onslaught of sensation would pass, but then teasingly gentle touch slid down his back, and he could no longer stand the wait.
He simply couldn’t.
Spinning around, he clutched at the sides of Shadow’s jacket and pulled at them, all but ripping the garment off him.
Shadow’s eyes went wide, but he let Gray shove the jacket to the floor. When he leaned in for a kiss, long black hair dropped to the sides of Gray’s face, blocking off the outside world as if nothing else mattered anymore.
Was Shadow human? A demon?
All Gray knew was that Shadow didn’t have secret agendas, no wrong intentions toward him. He’d known that before they even bonded tonight, but now he truly understood it.
And he needed Shadow.
Once that thought appeared in his mind with all certainty, it spread throughout his body like a command. Gasping into the soft, warm lips, he spun them around and backed Shadow against the wall, so starved for touch he might have not even noticed if someone walked in on them.
When his groin finally rubbed warm flesh, the sensation was of fire climbing his legs. How was he to remove Shadow’s clothes? He technically knew how to proceed, but with his brain fogged by the frantic lust, obvious options remained hidden. So he tugged at Shadow’s button-down, hoping to rip it apart.
Shadow snorted and backed out, only to open his shirt, button after button.
Faced with the beauty on show, Gray had no idea how he’d been able to ignore it for so long. Shadow’s chest was massive, kissable, with dark nipples and a dusting of hair, and his shoulders seemed firm enough to hold the weight of the world.
Shadow’s third arm reached out to stroke Gray, making his cock even harder, and that was too much to take.
Like a horny teenager, he rubbed against the phantom limb before pressing his face between the strong pecs and letting the short, dark hairs tickle his cheeks. Shadow’s clean yet masculine scent filled his lungs, but instead of providing relief, the aroma triggered yet more urgency.
Shadow put his arms around Gray. “We don’t have much time, but we can… if you need to. There’s that room by the garage.”
Only half of what Shadow was saying made sense. There was need that Gray couldn’t deny. So strong that he didn’t want to talk about it, didn’t want to find some stupid room, or wait even a second longer when Shadow was right here, just as hard as him, and ready to fuck.
“Now,” he said firmly and pulled down the zipper of his jeans, forcing the phantom hand inside. Its touch—warm, smooth, and glorious—put his head into a rapid spin, and he got to his toes, licking fragrant sweat off the dark hair between Shadow’s delicious nipples.
The fingers curling around his cock almost made Gray come on the spot, but Shadow gave him no more touch than that. Was Gray really asking for so much? Wasn’t this exactly what Shadow had wanted? Why was he stalling?
“No, not here. Let’s go. It’s just down th—”
“No,” Gray moaned, squeezing Shadow’s flesh and rubbing his entire body against him. His balls ached as if they were about to break. “Let’s just do it here.”
