Anyway, I didn’t want to die. I liked my life lately. I was being fucked by a god of a man on a daily basis, was still free to see my friends and grandmother, still making good money at a job next to said god of a man. The only complaint was that I was surrounded by Borden’s men in the process.

Or Borden himself.

I had to be honest, it wasn’t so bad when he was around. He was unpredictable, and I always felt my pulse race in anticipation when he lingered nearby. Sometimes he’d just look at me, his face clear of emotion save for those icy blue eyes which bore into me with a lust that made me tingle everywhere. He wouldn’t touch me in those moments. Just stare and admire me the way a person admired a delicate piece of art.

And sometimes he just fucked me, out of nowhere, right when I least expected it. I could be making coffee in the kitchen and find myself bent over with my cheek pressed against the kitchen counter and his cock deep inside of me. Muttering things in my ear. Biting at my shoulder. Pounding into me until I came so hard around him my vision would lose focus, and he’d just carry on until he came, marking me.

There was no consistency with him. No night time sex sessions all neatly planned out and pencilled in. The spontaneity was glorious. I loved being used for his pleasure, which was a sick admission, I knew. But…it made my body fiery hot with need. Horny Emma was currently satiated and quiet.

No complaints here.

“Can I know who’s down there at least?” I asked, purposely steering clear of images of Borden inside of me, working me like the strings on a guitar. “I mean, how come Linda gets to walk in and out, and smirk at me like I’m beneath her, and I’m stuck here?”

“Linda is different.”

“Different how?”

“She doesn’t belong to Borden.”

Yeah, but I bet she wanted to. She hated me, probably as much as Hawke did. Only difference was I caught her staring at Borden at times and her look was so penetrating and filled with emotion. She cared for him, and it was no wonder she was always such a bitch to me. Whereas Hawke’s hatred was immediate and without real reason, and it only extinguished in the presence of Borden. He reminded me of a stray cat Granny used to take in some nights when I was a child. She called her Joy, and I never understood that, because that fucking cat wasn’t joyful in the slightest. She scratched and clawed, growled at me whenever I was within five feet of her, and hissed like I’d burned her with red-hot oil. Yet she pranced around Granny like a lover reciting a sonnet to its beloved, rested on Granny’s shoulders at night, and purred into Granny’s ear as she was stroked in ways that if it were done by me, I’d have ended up looking like I’d gone through a fucking shredder.

Joy and Hawke would have been perfect for each other. They both just wanted to watch the world burn.

“Just tell me who’s down there,” I pressed Graeme.

“Quit it, Emma. You’re starting to bother me.”

“I’m the one feeling bothered! I’ve been kept in the dark.”

Graeme opened his mouth again when the door suddenly opened, and Borden strode into the room, with dick Hawke following. Graeme looked relieved by their arrival, and I just glowered at Borden as he rounded the desk and took my face into his hands. Without warning, he bent down and kissed me quickly. Unfortunately, it wasn’t passionate enough to wipe away my scowl. He backed away, a curious look in his eye as he asked, “What the fuck is wrong with your face, doll? You eat something you shouldn’t have?”

My brows shot up and he chuckled, plopping down on his office chair.

“What am I doing here?” I asked tiredly. “I could have stayed home.”

“I’ve got business to take care of, and I need you here with me so we can keep an eye on you,” Borden explained.

“What business?”

“Private business,” Hawke interjected, looking annoyed by me, but then again he was always annoyed by me.

“I’m not talking to you,” I snarled at him before I looked back at Borden. “Who’s downstairs? It sounds like a herd of elephants.”

“I’d rather the elephants,” Borden replied, his amused face fading away. “We’ve got bikers here. The Warlord chapter from outside of town.”

My mouth dropped. “You’re dealing with bikers?”

“I wasn’t before, but now…Well, now I’m exploring my options.”

“Why?”

“For your protection,” Hawke cut in. “Not because Borden wants to. The President of the Warlords has been hounding him for over a year straight, so it goes to show how far Borden’s going for you. A little appreciation wouldn’t kill.”

“Why add that?” I whipped back, pointing at him as I stared at Borden. “Why does he have to add the appreciation part like I’m some sort of spoiled cow?”

“He talks to everybody like that, doll,” Borden replied on a shrug. “You know Hawke’s a dick and it’s not personal. He has a point in the centre of it all.”

I ignored Hawke’s smug look and said bitterly, “And his point under that bullshit is that I need protection?”

“Yes.”

“And this has to do with bikers?”

“Yes.”

I glanced at them all, searching for more answers, but they weren’t saying anything else. Bikers were bad. The city was lucky not to have had its share of them, but that was because Borden was here. Still, I heard things. Knew enough to know they weren’t just a bunch of jolly guys that created a cute little club just so they could ride their big Harleys around town and look cool.

“I don’t understand,” I finally said. “Explain it to me. Why would bikers offer protection?”

“It’s simple,” Borden explained. “I haven’t found the culprit behind the threat. On top of that, I can’t afford to have you vulnerable, and my guys on the streets have turned up nothing. The bikers, on the other hand, are better at finding people than I am. They deal, and with all their customers coming through, they’ve developed connections – very valuable connections. They know people. If I ally with them, I have a better chance at finding the threat, annihilating that threat, and making sure you’re safe in the process.”

“What do the bikers get in return?”

Hawke smirked, glimpsing at Borden. “At least she asks the right fucking questions.”