Defining Darkness (Royal Bastards MC Tampa Chapter Book 1) Read online

  He’s lulling me into a false sense of security.

  Yes, that’s what he’s doing.

  He’s trying to manipulate me into thinking he’s a good guy.

  Well, I won’t fall for it.

  I won’t fall for him.

  A jostling noise makes my head snap to the door. It creeks open. I sit taller waiting for Nycto to walk through, but my eyes widen when a tall woman walks in carrying some books. I tense all over. She appears rough around the edges. Her hair is onyx black. She has a cluster of star tattoos on the left side of her temple. Her plump, supple lips are covered in perfect red lipstick. Her arms are lined with black and gray tattoos, even down to her knuckles. She’s hardcore, even down to the black leather pants and skin-tight boob tube she’s wearing. She smiles while closing the door behind her. I don’t miss the sound of it locking from the outside as she struts over to me in her clear platform high heels.

  How can she walk in those things?

  “Hi, Eva, I’m Trixie.”

  Remembering everything Nycto’s told me about her—she’s the Cuban sandwich extraordinaire, head club girl, she goes to culinary School—she doesn’t look anything like the Trixie I was imagining. Though, I guess I didn’t really picture anything when Nycto was talking about her, but this Kat Von D knock-off certainly wasn’t her.

  I can’t manage to say anything back.

  Her lips turn up in the most gorgeous of ways. Though she appears grunge and punk, she’s still stunning. The way her face lights up like she’s glowing when she beams instantly puts me at ease.

  “I see you’re still a little unsettled being here,” she offers as she steps in front of me. “Nycto told me he was concerned about you being bored in here on your own. So, I offered to help.”

  “What? So, you’re going to babysit me?”

  She giggles. “There’s that feisty attitude he was telling me about. No, I’m definitely not a babysitter. Just thought you might like something to pass the time. They’re not Fifty Shades, but they should wet your whistle.”

  I tilt my head in curiosity. “Sorry?”

  She grins. “Some are your general everyday contemporary romances, but I did throw a real spicy one in there for you, too, but I won’t tell you which one. You’ll have to read them to find out.” She hands me the four books.

  I reach out, taking them from her. “Why romance?”

  She shrugs. “It’s all I had. Honestly, it’s so much fun to get swept up in a good story. Pretend the alpha hero is sweeping you off your feet.”

  “You don’t look like a book nerd.”

  She shrugs. “I don’t look like a lot of things. You’ve heard that saying, never judge a book by its cover. It applies to people, too, ya know?”

  My eyes wander over her. She comes across as a deadbeat if I’m being honest. Or maybe a hardcore rock and roll star. But a book lover, a culinary master chef, and all-round nice person, yeah, I would never have picked it. I guess the saying is true.

  “Thanks for the books. I really appreciate it. And for the great food.”

  Trixie tilts her head toward the bed, and I nod. She sits, letting out an exhale. “You know, Eva, you’re a really strong woman.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, you. You’ve been dragged into this mess. It’s beyond your control… yet, you’re handling it well, all things considered.”

  Letting out a long exhale, I flop backward on the bed staring up at the ceiling. “I don’t think I’m handling it well at all.”

  “How do you mean?”

  There’s something about Trixie I’m instantly warming to. She’s like a friend I’ve known for years. Maybe it’s because she’s the second person I’ve seen since this all began, and I’m going stir crazy, but I feel like I can open up to her. So, I do. “I broke down last night in front of Nycto. I’m not sure why, but he comforted me, and we fell into this safe place. I ended up falling asleep in his arms for hours. I’m pretty sure he fell asleep, too. It was just so damn comfortable. I didn’t mean to lose it the way I did. I didn’t mean to seek his comfort, it just happened.”

  Trixie narrows her eyes on me. “I feel like there’s a but?”

  “I woke up needing the bathroom, so I unhooked myself from him. Nycto woke as I was getting up. He looked panicked. I told him I was only going to the bathroom, then he calmed down. So, I went, but when I came back, he was walking out the door. He left… without saying one word, and he hasn’t been back since. Damn, if I don’t feel like such an idiot.”

  Trixie scrunches up her face. “You feel like an idiot? Why?”

  “For believing we had some kind of… connection. I mean, he stole me… he’s keeping me captive here against my will… he let my sister be taken by the scum of the earth. Why the hell did I let my guard down around him? I must be going insane, right?”

  Trixie grimaces as she turns, facing me a little more. “Thing is Eva, I’ve known Nycto for a long time. I’ve never seen him act without giving everything a second thought. He always thinks things through twice. Is he reckless? Hell, yes. Does he do stupid things? Always, but I’ve never seen him do anything like what he’s done with you.”

  My stomach twists as I sit up, facing her. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean he acted on instinct. He wanted to protect you, so he took you. Without thinking it through. Not even once, let alone twice. Nycto bends the rules all the time, he’s known for it, but blatantly breaking them means he’s done it for a reason. If he’s keeping you in here, and not in a cell, it means you mean something to him. And Eva, if he held you in his arms, you’ve gotten under his skin. Nycto is not affectionate. With anyone… ever. He wouldn’t just put that shit on for show. So, if you feel a connection with him, I bet he’s feeling it, too, because I don’t know a single person alive who’s felt a connection like that with Nycto.”

  “He’s never had someone to share his life with?”

  Trixie narrows her eyes as if considering the thought. “Not that I’m aware of. Sure, he’s had plenty of women by his side, but none who meant a damn thing to him. None he kept around longer than he deemed necessary.”

  “I don’t even know what he wants with me, or if I want anything to do with him.”

  “I get it. Nycto’s an asshole at the best of times. Coming into this situation the way you have is scary and very unusual. I’d hate him, too, but sometimes, the best relationships are formed under tense situations. Plus, the sex is off the charts hot.”

  My eyes widen as I gasp. “We’re not having sex!”

  Trixie laughs. “Not yet.”

  My shoulder bumps into hers as I shake my head. “Never. I just… no.”

  She waggles her eyebrows at me. “That flush on your face makes me think you’ve at least thought about it.”

  “Stop! He stole me. He’s keeping me captive. There’s no way I am ever sleeping with Nycto.”

  Trixie purses her lips. “Okay… but in the meantime, you have the books to satisfy your… needs.”

  My eyes widen as I take in the half-naked man on one of the front covers. “Not that I’m a prude, but there’s no way in hell I’m… um… taking care of myself in Nycto’s room.”

  Trixie leans past me pointing to a book with a cognac glass and a pearl style necklace on the cover. “This one might change your mind.” She winks at me, standing from the bed. “Chapter fourteen. Trust me… you’ll enjoy it.”

  I scrunch up my face turning the book over, sliding it away from me.

  Trixie laughs as she heads for the door. “Nycto won’t be back for a while. You have hours to yourself. Just sayin’.” She knocks on the door. It clicks and opens. “Honestly, Eva, just let yourself enjoy your time here. Otherwise, you’ll drive yourself crazy.”

  Trixie moves to walk out, but anxiety floods me at the thought of being left alone again. “Trixie!” She turns back to face me. “Thanks for coming to see me… will you come back?”

  Her face lights up. “Definitely. Read the book,
Eva.”

  Rolling my eyes at her, she giggles as she closes the door behind her, and I’m left alone in the red-toned room again.

  I flop down on the bed.

  My eyes slowly shift to the books on the bed. My jaw wracks from side to side as I debate whether to pick one of them up or not. Gulping a lump down my throat, I pick up the one with the half-naked man. He has abs on his abs. I bet Nycto has the same physique. Shaking my head from those thoughts, I quickly place that book back down. My eyes shift to the raunchy book which is face down on the bed like it has been banished to the naughty corner. Gnawing on my bottom lip, I pick it up, reading the blurb. It details a mafia kingpin forced into an arranged marriage to a woman who wants to join a convent rather than be a mafia queen. It’s piqued my interest enough for me to open and take a peek.

  Shifting up Nycto’s bed, I gather the pillows around me, getting comfortable in my reading position, opening to the prologue and beginning.

  My eyes widen as the antihero savagely tortures and kills a man in the most brutal of ways. I cringe, I gasp, but most of all, I love how intensely the book has drawn me in within the first few pages.

  The antihero meets the heroine, who kind of remind me of Nycto and myself. The feisty female who doesn’t want anything to do with him but is attracted anyway—the broody, broken, hot-as-sin guy, who harbors demons and makes all the wrong decisions for the right reasons. I can’t help but find myself picturing Nycto as the antihero and myself as the heroine.

  When he speaks, it’s Nycto.

  When she speaks, it’s me.

  I’m soon lost in a fantasy playing out in my mind of Nycto and I finding our way together in a world full of carnage and chaos. As I rush through the pages, their chemistry is electrifying. My breath catches at the way he fights wanting to be with her, and how she struggles to see the good in him, even though he’s putting his bad traits aside for her.

  They’re meant to be, and I’m only up to chapter thirteen. My heart pounds as they tear into each other, a fight of epic proportions. My adrenaline is climbing as I turn the page, desperate to find out what happens next. She screams telling him she hates him—it triggers something inside which I didn’t see coming. He spins, grabbing her, slamming her against the wall aggressively, his mouth colliding with hers as he takes control. She pushes him in the chest, but he grips her wrists slamming them to the drywall.

  My clit starts to throb as I gnaw down on my bottom lip. The entire time I read the scene play out, all I imagine in my mind is Nycto doing this to me.

  Wishing he were doing this to me.

  He spins me around, pressing my body into the wall with one hand as his other slides my dress up over my ass. I whimper as he tears my panties from me in one swift movement. “I’m gonna make you so fucking sore, you won’t be able to move,” he groans into my ear.

  “Hurt me. Hurt me real good.”

  A low growl erupts from deep in his chest as his leg slides in between mine pushing my legs apart. The unmistakable clink of his belt undoing sends a shudder down my spine, in a good way.

  The pulse of his cock sliding up and down my folds causes me to whimper as his hand threads through my hair in a tight grip. “You say you belong to Jesus, sweetheart. Well, I’m your fucking God. Understand me?”

  My clit throbs so hard I can hardly control myself as I push back against his slickened cock. “Fuck me, please.”

  “Once I take you, you’re mine. Understand?”

  “Mm-hmm,” I murmur.

  “Say it.”

  “I understand.”

  He yanks my hair, my head falling back, his lips connecting with my throat as his cock slams up inside of me without warning. I gasp at his width, my eyes widening with the fullness he’s bringing. Being with him was something I didn’t plan. I never knew we would get to this stage. Things between us have been fiery but also intense. Every time we’re together, an adrenaline rush surges through me.

  He pulls back, then thrusts up inside of me again. The force of him fucking me from behind, his fingers clamped tight on my hair, his other hand sliding around to my clit is almost overstimulating. All the pent-up emotions we’ve been going through has led us to this point.

  He rears up and slams into me, fucking me hard, fast, and unrelenting, his fingers circling on my clit. Sweat beads on my brow as his teeth graze along my neck. He thrusts deeper, so deep I can hardly catch my breath while his finger rotates on my clit. My skin dances in goosebumps, tingling and shuddering as he lets me know I am, without a doubt, his.

  “Fuck,” he groans into my ear the same time he circles on my clit.

  The sensation is running through me so hard, it washes over me.

  My back arches off the wall as stars flash behind my eyes. My legs weaken from the adrenaline coursing through me as my breathing is short and sharp. My skin riddles in sweat as the tidal wave hits me full force.

  I circle on my clit faster as I reach my climax at the same time as the heroine in the book. I gasp letting the rush crash over me.

  “Fuck, Nycto,” I call out, slumping onto the bed in a foggy haze, completely spent.

  I pant for breath, my heart pounding in my chest from my intense orgasm.

  Suddenly, my eyes fling open taking in the room.

  He’s not here, thank God, but I just masturbated to that entire scene of the book, thinking it was Nycto and me. I snap my hand out of my panties, pulling my dress down, completely ashamed of myself. I close the book, throwing it across the room in my haste. It thumps against the floor loudly.

  “Holy shit!” I whimper. “What the fuck was that?”

  Chapter Eleven

  NYCTO

  I try to control myself by inhaling, but it stutters. My cock is semi-hard as I stand at my door listening to the moans and whimpers coming from inside my room. I can’t be certain, but it sure as hell sounds like Eva is having one hell of a party without me. The fact she’s comfortable enough to take care of herself in my room says something. Maybe she doesn’t hate me as much as she lets on.

  My cock strains against my jeans hearing her let out a loud moan like she’s climaxing.

  “Fuck, Nycto!”

  Clenching my eyes tight, I lean my head against the door trying to calm my raging thoughts. Going in there now would only freak her out. I need to give her some time to get herself in order before I go in to see her. But fuck, it’s going to be hard being able to smell her desire throughout my room and not take advantage.

  Thud.

  Something bangs in the room making me open my eyes in concern. “Holy shit! What the fuck was that?”

  The best orgasm of your life while thinking about me?

  I try to calm my raging boner as I unlock the door. I do it loudly, so she’s aware I’m coming in.

  “Shit,” she murmurs, but her frantic movements on the bed like she’s trying to hide evidence is clear for me to hear.

  Taking a deep breath, I open the door and walk in, closing it behind me. I prepare myself for the sight. Steadying my shoulders, I turn, and she’s propped up on the bed in an overly exaggerated way, tussling with her hair. Her cheeks are bright with color, her eyes sparkling with life, and her breathing still quick.

  She’s trying too hard to compensate.

  She’s guilty as hell.

  “Doing some light reading?” I ask while keeping my distance from her. I don’t want to make her uncomfortable.

  Her eyes widen. “What? No… I mean, yes. but it’s nothing you’d care about.”

  Smirking, I know where this is headed. Trixie was bringing in some of her books. She probably brought in her mommy porn. I get it now.

  “I hope the books are good enough to keep you entertained?”

  Eva’s cheeks flush again as she wraps her arms around herself. I have to admit, this bashful side of her is fucking cute as hell.

  “They’ll get me by. Trixie said you weren’t coming around for a while. Is something happening?”

  I cock
my head. “It’s been nearly four hours since I was in here, Eva. Just wanted to check on you. Make sure you’re okay.”

  “I’m good,” her voice comes out high-pitched, completely overcompensating, then she clears her throat. “I’m good. Maybe a little hungry,” she lowers her voice back to normal.

  I walk over to the bed. The sheets are tangled. I wish I were there when she tangled them. Her eyes follow my line of sight, and her hands quickly move out, straightening the bed sheets. Inwardly, I grin as I sit without bringing up anything about what she was just doing in here, even though it’s written all over her face.

  “Eva, I know you don’t want to stay cooped up in here forever. I don’t want that for you either. The only way we’re going to be able to let you come out into the clubroom to eat is if I’m sure you’re not going to run or make some kind of attempt to find Ivy.”

  Her shoulders slump. “I can’t give you that promise, Nycto. I have no idea if you know what it’s like to have a bond with someone, someone who’s like another part of you, but if you do, then you know I can’t give up on her.”

  I clench my eyes shut.

  I’m a fucking asshole. I should tell her.

  I should tell her now, but we’re not in a good enough place just yet.

  She will turn on me in a heartbeat. I need her to trust me. To want her to want to stay before I give her a reason to want to leave.

  “I understand. So you have to understand why the longer I consider you a threat to your own and my club’s safety, I have to keep you in here.”

  She sinks in on herself. “Do you think you can try and find Ivy for me? Get her back?”

  My eyes widen.

  Well, fuck me!

  Maybe this could be my out.

  Maybe I can tell Eva I found Ivy, then she will perceive me as a hero and not the villain in this story.

  Who am I kidding?