Dex raised his palms. “Well, I’m not a member yet, am I?” He glanced at Hammer, not bothering to hide his joy. Dex had so desperately wanted to belong with Hammer, to mean something to him, and now, the man of his dreams had claimed him.
“If there’s no more questions, I’m taking my apprentice on the road,” Hammer said to Lion, as if this wasn’t all highly unusual.
Finn frowned. “No, I still got—”
Lion glared at him. “No, you don’t,” he said and gestured at the bar girl, who frantically switched the music back on as she swiped her gaze over Dex and Hammer.
There was always hope that the novelty of this situation would fizzle out, but Hammer appeared unfazed as he led Dex through the crowd that parted for them as if Hammer was Moses, and the bikers and girls—the Red Sea.
“I missed you so much,” Dex said as soon as they stepped out of the building, making the smokers, who’d gathered at the door, scatter like a flock of birds. His heartbeat quickened, and if he were a cartoon, he’d have stars in his eyes. Even the cold couldn’t get to him now.
Hammer stalled, swallowing, and the colorful lights flashing in the open doors behind him created an eerie halo around his head. “I was on the way to check out new intel on Ryker… but it wouldn’t be the same without you, so I decided this is something we should do together.”
Dex took a deep breath and pulled Hammer farther from the entrance, so they could have a semblance of privacy. What he really wanted was to climb Hammer like a tree, but this would have to do for now. He felt so special, so chosen, and wanted. By a man as amazing as Hammer at that.
“I won’t fuck it up, I promise. I’ll listen to you. Fuck, I was so scared you gave up on me.” In the shadow of the building, which was so much darker at night, he slid his hands under Hammer’s jacket, fighting the tightness in his throat. The scent of cedarwood and cigarettes, and the arm pulling him close were all the comfort he needed. “Just like at school, and with my mom. It’s because of my disorder, but it’s also my own fault, I can’t blame my life choices on a diagnosis I got as a kid.”
He could sense Hammer stiffen. “‘Disorder’? Are you saying you’re ill?”
Dex frowned, searching his mind for the name. “Nah, I don’t think it’s called an illness. It’s no big deal anyway.”
Hammer’s chest sank. “Oh… okay. Are you taking any meds? Seeing a doctor?” he asked, looking into Dex’s eyes with a tense set to his brows.
“No, it’s fine, it’s just this attention disorder or something like that.”
Hammer stalled. “Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder? ADHD?”
A box opened in Dex’s mind at the name. “Oh, yeah, that one.”
Hammer sighed before offering him a small smile. “That makes perfect sense, actually.”
“But I try not to be disordered! And to be attentive!” Dex squeezed Hammer’s hoodie. “I even stayed celibate all this time, thinking only of you!”
“Dex…” Hammer pulled him close, and when Dex’s face touched the warm T-shirt soaked with Hammer’s masculine, leathery scent, his heart filled with relief. Warm hands moved up and down his back when Hammer spoke. “Thank you… I suppose?”
“Hell yes ‘thank you’! Do you know how hard it is for hot shit like me to keep it in my pants?” Dex snorted with his cheek against Hammer’s chest. “But I did it. For you."
The firm arms tightened around him until all he could sense was Hammer protecting him from the cold as the noise of the party grew more distant. “To be fair, it’s only been a week.”
“A week of agony, okay? Any man who’s tasted you gets addicted.”
Hammer chuckled and kissed the top of Dex’s head in a way so sweet it gave Dex a sugar rush. “I don’t know about that. You’re the only one so far.”
“Exactly. And I need to make sure that’s always the case. We don’t want fucked-up dick junkies stalking you.”
“I’m sure you’d protect me like the most vicious dog,” Hammer said and pinched Dex’s chin. His gaze clouded as he leaned in for the shortest yet most electric kiss of Dex’s life. It had barely been a brushing of lips, yet it sent a jolt of desire through his blood.
Dex’s hands lowered to Hammer’s ass, and he pulled the man mountain closer. “I need you.” It came out sounding like begging, but he didn’t care.
Hammer inhaled sharply, but then his hand was on Dex’s throat, and he whispered straight into Dex’s lips. “Ryker can wait a bit more. Let’s go to mine.”
Chapter 30 – Hammer
Hammer’smindsangwitha thousand thoughts at once, but they all came together to speak about the man following him down the winding road home. The first drops of rain splashed on Hammer’s goggles before dispersing from the speed as they approached the place where they could reconnect unbothered. Hammer knew the area by heart, and when they took a turn next to a tall poplar tree, less than a minute parted him from pulling Dex against him.
He’d been stressed out of his mind when approaching the club with the patch for Dex earlier, but a sense of peace wrapped around him like a plush coat now that the cat was out of the bag. Whatever his biker brothers thought about it, Dex was his, and Hammer shouldn’t have taken this long to understand that after experiencing Dex’s colorful presence, life without him would always be gray. It was when he’d ventured out to go after Ryker on his own that it really hit him how much he enjoyed having Dex with him. And just like that, it had become crystal clear that Hammer didn’t simply want to put down Ryker. He wanted to do it with Dex.
So maybe Dex wasn’t as focused as him. He was messy, made mistakes, and went on tangents that led nowhere, but none of that mattered in the face of Hammer’s feelings, which burned hot despite the logical parts of his mind telling him that a life with Dex might be tough.