Oliver (Inked Menace MC 2) by Ryanne Hawk Read Free Book Online Page B

speaking.
    “Kids are great, but I have no immediate plans to raise cubs. If it happens, awesome, if it doesn’t, that’s fine too.”
    Beside him, Amara let out a long, quiet exhale. Like she was trying to bury the pain he could feel rumbling in his chest.
    “So no white picket fence, family-filled yard, and barbeques?”
    Oliver leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes, letting the sunlight bathe him in warmth, forcing out the cold shiver snaking up his spine. “I didn’t say that. However, I learned a long time ago, never plan or have expectations, because things change, people die, and curve balls happen even with the best laid intentions.”
    She blew out a breath, the air whispering across his arm, then her voice took on a hard edge. “Yeah. That’s too bloody right.”
    “What about you?” Oliver said, turning the tables and starting his own inquisition. “What do you want out of life?”
    He’d decided on the passive route to feel her out, not wanting to spook her or make those lethal claws come out. Maura was fond of telling stories of her kick-ass little sister.
    “These days I don’t know what I want, or who I am. I find I’m surviving more than living.”
    The air between their bodies thickened and he waited a moment before saying, “Tough road.”
    At her silence, Oliver opened his eyes and turned to face her dead on. She’d squeezed her eyes closed and was pressing her head so hard against the tree bark he thought she might actually poke a hole in it through sheer stubbornness. Both of his hands grasped her face before he could think better of it, and he kissed her.
    She jumped at the contact, resisting a little at first, her hands coming up to wrap around his wrists, unsure whether to pull away or claw closer. She gave up and returned his passion with the same intensity. Her arms bound around his neck, her tongue dueling with his, and he enjoyed the way she crawled forward, placing her thighs over his, scooting further until his cock almost touched her sex.
    Time lost meaning, and he was so drunk on her scent and taste, a pack of wild dogs could have been gunning for them and he wouldn’t have noticed, nor cared. His fingers dug into her meaty thighs and he tugged her closer, until she moaned and thrashed, pressing her hips, urgently.
    “Oh my gosh, would you two get a room?” a woman said from a few feet away. “There are children present. This is not a place for such activities.”
    Oliver cracked an eye and saw a stern woman wearing a form-fitting pantsuit, leather handbag, and pointy stilettos holding a hand over a small child’s eyes- the same child who was fighting to get free of his authoritarian mother.
    Amara pulled away and bit her bottom lip, the haze abating from her eyes as she measured their surroundings. She quickly glanced up, then away, and moved her body a safe distance from his, which, if he were being honest, really pissed him off, and he was about to give the cock-blocker the what for when Amara jumped to her feet and ran off into the woods without a word, or a yelp for back-up.
    Rather than waste words, Oliver shrugged and high-tailed it after his crazy woman. The tiger listened while they ran, trying to discern what had made Amara tuck and run, but Oliver heard nothing but squealing laughter, yelling, and parents yapping. He followed her scent through the woods, until he came to a small clearing where a pond was nestled inside of the thick trees. As he made it past the last line of bark onto the sandy beach, he watched, fascinated, as Amara dove head first into the water fully clothed, and it was in that moment he finally realized. She was fucking insane!
    To the left, Oliver heard shouts. The speakers getting closer, someone yelling out a name.
    Oliver scanned the surface of the water, not sure whether to stay or jump in after Amara. The palms of his hands broke out in clammy nervousness, and he’d just kicked off his boots when her head broke the surface