Charger (The Protectors Series) Book #16 Read online

  “I plan on it,” Charger replied immediately, without pause. As Jared started to walk out the door, Charger smirked. “What? No threats?”

  Jared chuckled as he looked over his shoulder. “You’re not a fucking idiot, Charger,” Jared replied, then his half-grin disappeared as his eyes narrowed, turning black as night. “Hurt her, and I’ll kill you.”

  Charger shut the door with a frown as he glanced toward the room Raven had disappeared into. If that was true, then Jared would have killed him a long time ago, because hurting Raven seemed to be all he ever did.

  Chapter 15

  Since Raven hadn’t had time to furnish her apartment, she lay on the floor staring at the ceiling. She’d heard what was being discussed in the other room. Thin apartment walls and her excellent hearing were benefits for sure. When everyone began to leave, her phone had buzzed. It had been Chantel checking on her. Raven felt even worst after the quick call. Even though she had seen Chantel frantically going through the debris, Raven should have checked on her. Instead, she’d walked away and since regretted it.

  Now, on the floor of her bedroom, staring at the ceiling, she wasn’t sure what to do. This so wasn’t like her, and if she wanted to be honest with herself, she was scared of all she was feeling.

  A short knock sounded on her door. “Yeah?” Raven said, knowing it was Charger.

  The door opened and he walked in. “Everyone left.”

  “I know,” Raven responded, still staring at the ceiling. “I heard them leaving, was going to come out, but Chantel called.”

  “Is she okay?” Charger stepped further into the room before sitting on the floor, leaning back against the wall.

  Raven moved her head back and forth. “No, not really.” Raven sighed and blinked her burning eyes. “I should have checked on her, but instead, I walked away. What kind of friend is that?”

  “You’re a good friend, Raven,” Charger responded, as she expected him to. She wasn’t looking for sympathy or coddling.

  “Whatever.” She snorted. Frowning, she turned her head to look at Charger. “Do you think this was an inside job because of the merges that are happening?”

  “You heard?” Charger cocked his eyebrow, then sighed when she nodded. “I hope not, Raven. I’m not ruling it out, nor am I ruling out that this has something to do with Jake. Doing what we do, we have many enemies.”

  “In Daniel’s vision I died.” Raven said, her eyes searching his. “That’s fucked up. Guess I need to watch my ass from here on out so Daniel’s vision doesn’t come true and I get wasted. Do all visions come true because if they do, I’m truly fucked.”

  “This isn’t a joke, Raven.” Charger growled, his golden eyes darkening.

  “Do you see me laughing?” Raven growled back, then she sighed. She wasn’t joking about something so serious, it just how she coped with her emotions. “Sorry, just how I deal with shit. I rambled and talk stupid.”

  “Nothing will happen to you, vision or not.” Charger said and she heard the conviction in his voice.

  “Do you think I was a target?” She asked, voicing all the thoughts going through her head. She would lose her shit if she had, in fact, been the target and the cause of her best friend dying.

  “Nothing can be ruled out, Raven. You know this.” Charger frowned, his golden eyes turning dark with anger. “But I think this goes much deeper than some bad guys pissed off about a merger of the Guardians and Warriors.”

  Raven agreed, something about it didn’t feel right. “I can’t just sit here thinking. I need to do something or I’m going to go fucking crazy.” Raven said as she sat up.

  “I talked to Jake before I came here,” Charger said, still in the same position. His eyes glowed in the darkness of the room.

  “How is he?” Raven bit her lip, realizing how stupid that question was because she knew exactly how he was.

  “He wants you and Chantel to take care of Tracy for the ceremony,” Charger responded, not answering her question.

  Raven nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat. “When?”

  “Tomorrow.” He hesitated before he continued. “Jake wants it taken care of right away so he can focus on finding the one responsible. He’s not doing well, Raven. Jake will never be the same after losing Tracy.”

  Tomorrow? She wasn’t ready to say goodbye, Raven thought selfishly. Anger and rage once again rose to the surface, this time directed toward Jake. She knew she was being unreasonable, but that didn’t help the pure anger racing through her. “Why so soon? He can’t wait? What’s his fucking hurry? Is that how it is with you guys? Hurry up, put her to the side, and move on?”

  “Raven,” Charger warned, his eyes narrowing.

  “What?” Raven crawled up to her knees, glaring back at Charger. She was talking out her ass, but dammit, letting it go felt damn good right now. And most of what she just said was true. What was the big fucking hurry? Her friend had just died. Didn’t it take a few days to get things ready?

  “Stop.” Charger slowly stood, and Raven did the same as they faced off. “If you want a fight, leave Jake out of it. He’s doing what he needs to do, and no one else has a say in it.”

  “Fuck everyone else’s feelings, right?” Raven was losing herself in the anger but didn’t care. It was too late to rein it back. Already she had buried it for hours… or had her anger been buried for years only to come to a head now? “Just like you? As long as you’re okay, fuck anyone else.” Shocked those words came out of her mouth, she wished she could pull the them back, but it was too late.

  “Not sure what you mean by that, but if you need to be angry at someone, better me than Jake,” Charger answered, and his response had her raging even more for some weird reason.

  “Of course you wouldn’t know what I mean because the incident didn’t affect you like it affected me,” shot out of her mouth. Holy fuck, what was happening to her? Was she truly losing her mind? Whatever it was, she couldn’t stop her attack on him. “FYI, Guardian, leaving a woman in your bed, then throwing her clothes in her face as you walk away is a dick thing to do.”

  “FYI, Raven, running to another man after that fact doesn’t scream being affected,” Charger countered with a growl. “You seemed more than willing to leave my bed for Val’s.”

  The slap across his handsome face echoed around the empty room. It happened before she comprehended what she was doing, but she’d do it again in a heartbeat. “Fuck you, Charger.” She turned to leave the room, but he stopped her, turning her back to face him.

  “You want a fight? I’ll give you a fucking fight. I don’t know how we just went from Jake to this, but here we are, and we are not leaving this room until it’s resolved.” Charger’s hand tightened on her slightly.

  “There’s nothing to resolve. You didn’t want me and someone else did.” Raven’s voice rose and sounded a little hysterical even to her own ears. She never got hysterical, especially in front of people. She only lost her shit in private, but she couldn’t stop this train wreck. “It’s pretty much cut and dry.”

  Before Raven knew what was happening, Charger’s mouth slammed down on hers. Her body was pulled into his by such force, she gasped, but not in pain. The gasp was pure excitement. Her mind and body betrayed what her soul knew was a bad decision. She didn’t care. At least she didn’t care yet. After was a totally different story. The kiss was hard, precise, as if proving a point, and she gave as good as she got. Feeling the wall against her back, she had no idea how she ended up against it.

  His hardness pressed against her stomach had her moaning deep in her throat. Eagerly, she wrapped herself around him, not caring how much regret she was going to feel later. For right now, this was what she wanted. What she needed. Maybe this would erase her obsession with the man whose hands were all over her body, or maybe it would make it worse. Honestly, she didn’t give a fuck at this moment. She would face those demons later, much later when she bitched herself out for being a fool.

  Charger pulled a
way from her mouth slightly, his black eyes glaring into hers. “Does this feel like a man who doesn’t want you?” His voice was deeper than she had ever heard it and her body responded by pressing closer to him, if that was at all possible.

  “Shut up,” Raven hissed, then nipped his neck as she rubbed herself against him. From that moment on, everything was frantic. Clothes were ripped as they were removed, cursing in their haste.

  Unwrapping her legs from around his waist, she slid down his body until her feet hit the floor. Her shirt and bra were already gone, torn from her body. They worked on each other’s jeans, sliding out of them as fast as possible. Their mouths still tasted each other until they were both naked. His eyes, heavy and black, raked over her body. His head lowered, and he took one nipple into his mouth. She groaned at the sensation, her hand reaching for the hardness of his cock. It was big, hard, and smooth as it pulsed in her grip. His body jerked when her hand moved, and a primal growl escaped his throat. Releasing her breast, Charger quickly and roughly picked her up.

  “Sorry.” He growled with a grimace, and she knew he was trying to keep control. But she didn’t want his control. She wanted him, all of him, unrestrained.

  She felt the tip of him, and without thought or hesitation, she used her own strength to slam down, taking every inch of him inside her.

  Nothing about their joining was gentle, and she was absolutely fucking fine with that. The harder, rougher, the better. She needed to feel him, feel wanted by him, and his actions were proving that he wanted her just as much. She didn’t need sappy words or gentle touches. She needed a man who knew what he wanted and took what he wanted without hesitation and with a passion that met her own. And to her absolute delight, his desire matched hers, leaving her with no question about whether this time he wanted her or not.

  Charger pounded into her, Raven meeting each and every thrust. When her head bounced against the wall, his hand cupped it for protection. Raven couldn’t have cared less, but that thoughtfulness made her sigh between moans of pleasure.

  Glancing at him, she saw him watching her breasts bounce as he thrust inside her. Surprised at how much his intensity turned her on, she slammed into him even harder, just so her breasts moved with more force.

  “Fuck!” Charger actually moved his hand from the back of her head to grab and squeeze her breast, teasing her nipple with hard pulls and pinches while she took over most of the motion. He was obviously a tit man, and she definitely had plenty of that.

  She was close but tried to hold off, not wanting this crazy but absolutely amazing fuck to end. Yeah, she wanted to be fucked. Making love was so overrated, and a real man fucked you. Charger McNeil was definitely all man.

  Certain he realized she was close, he pulled her off him, turned her around, and bent her over. She braced her hands on the wall just as he rammed himself inside her from behind. Her scream of pleasure escaped as he gripped her hip. One hand moved to her breast, but only for a moment before dropping and finding her sweet spot. Within seconds, her body and mind lost all control as she was pulled into an indescribable bliss.

  Charger’s growled release had her pussy tightening around him, wanting more, craving everything he had to give, and she almost cried out when his body parted from hers. Slowly, she started to straighten but felt lightheaded and stumbled. Charger caught her in his arms, turning her to face him.

  “Not so cut and dry now is it, Raven?” Charger mumbled against her lips before devouring her mouth in a much gentler kiss.

  Raven wanted nothing more than to respond with a smart-ass counter, but words wouldn’t come. Later, she would reply. Right now, she was going to enjoy him before reality set in, and reality always seemed to come between her and Charger. With that thought, she kissed him frantically as she held him tight.

  He was right, though. Nothing with them was or ever would be cut and dry.

  Chapter 16

  Charger walked into his house, his mood a mixture of…. Fuck, he didn’t know what kind of fucking mood he was in. One thing for sure, thinking about the night he just spent with Raven had his dick so hard he could hammer a fucking nail into a piece of wood. Reaching down, he squeezed himself before adjusting his heavy cock in his jeans. He’d taken her to her car, which was where they went their separate ways. She headed in for training, and he needed to check in with Creed and the other Guardians to see if they’d gotten any leads, but he sure as fuck couldn’t do that with a hard-on.

  Stepping into the shower, he turned it on, leaving the water as cold as possible, even though he knew it wouldn’t make a damn bit of difference. He looked down at his straining dick. Carefully unzipping his tight pants, he released himself to stroke his hard cock. It jerked in his hand, making him curse.

  He always thought women who were submissive in bed was his style. Holy hell had he been wrong. Raven was no submissive. She liked it rough. The harder he had fucked her, the more she’d liked it. She’d grabbed a handful of his hair and pulled his mouth toward hers, and when he fucked her from behind, he’d used her hair, sending her screaming in pleasure. The harder he smacked that round ass, the more she’d spread open for him, and her tits were fucking fire. The last thing he fucked, before they went their separate ways, were those big luscious tits, and it had been her doing—her delicious mind-blowing idea.

  The memory of his cock between those two large mounds had him pumping his cock so hard and fast he practically fell in the shower. He braced himself with one hand. The cold water hit his back as he tried to find release. Gripping his dick hard, he was surprised he hadn’t exploded yet, but images of her head instead of his hand bobbing up and down on his cock plagued him.

  “Son of a bitch.” He hissed, pumping himself like a maniac. He had been here before—dick in hand with thoughts of Raven—but not with this intensity. Now he knew exactly how her pussy felt, and it was fucking life changing. He was a sexual creature, and to find someone that matched his tastes was a definite fucking turn-on.

  What had him exploding was the thought of not leaving her the next time without the taste of her pussy on his lips. At that visual, Charger’s head fell back as he roared his release.

  Weak in the knees, he fell back against the coolness of the tiled wall, eyes closed and trying to regain control over himself. A slow grin spread across his face as he realized that even after multiple rounds of amazing sex with Raven, he’d just had the most intense jack-off session he’d ever had. He was truly fucked, but surprisingly he was feeling okay with that.

  Chuckling to himself, he showered quickly, keeping his mind off Raven so as not to be stuck in the fucking shower all day. Once finished, he changed into fresh clothing and headed into the kitchen. He grabbed a quick bite to eat and checked his phone as he finished his eggs and coffee.

  Before they’d parted ways, they both made a promise to keep each other informed of any information that came their way. His light mood turned dark, thinking about what was to come in a few hours. Even though what he and Raven just shared didn’t dim the coming hours, it just turned their focus elsewhere for a short moment.

  Staring at his phone without really seeing it, his mind swirled with thoughts of how fucking stupid he had been the night he’d left Raven in his bed. There were things he definitely regretted in his life, but that one thing he could honestly say he regretted the most. She hadn’t deserved that. He’d been a fool, and in turn, had sent her into the arms of another man.

  The thought of her and Val together made him sick to his stomach, rage eating at him, but in truth, he couldn’t blame her or Val. Okay, he wanted to fucking kill Val, but that was his issue, and Val was still breathing, so that was saying something.

  The door opened, suddenly causing Charger to swiftly grab his gun and aim it toward the door. Seeing Kane stomp in had him cursing. “You almost got shot,” Charger griped, then frowned. “Where’s Jake?”

  “Creed’s with him. I came just to grab a shower and clean clothes.” Kane walked closer, looking at hi
s empty plate. “What was that? Eggs?”

  “Yeah, you want some?” Charger stood, already knowing the answer. Kane was a dumpster when it came to food.

  “Sure.” Kane set his stuff down. “How’s Raven holding up?”

  “Fine,” Charger said, noticing his voice deepened when he answered. He cleared his throat.

  “Fine, huh?” Kane laughed, then disappeared from the room.

  There was no way in hell Charger would ever discuss what happened between him and Raven with Kane. Kane returned by the time his eggs were done while Charger poured himself another cup of coffee and sat down. Kane stood across from him, eating his eggs.

  “Jake’s fucked up, man.” Kane broke the silence. “We’re going to have to keep a close eye on him after today. I’m worried about what he’s going to do once we find the motherfuckers responsible. Tracy was his fucking mate, man. He’s lost without her. Honestly, I was kinda jealous of him until last night. I hope I never find my mate, dude. I don’t want that kind of messed up.”

  Charger’s thoughts went directly to Raven. Without any doubt, he would lose his shit if something happened to her. He’d known for a long time she was his but had refused to accept it because of who he had been. Raven was one of a kind and deserved someone better. Well, last night changed that for sure. No man would ever touch her in the way he’d touched her last night. Fuck that.

  “Where’s your mind at?” Kane watched him closely. “You look like you want to kill someone and piss on their corpse.”

  Yeah, that pretty much summed up what he would do to anyone thinking they had a chance with Raven. Ryker came to mind. “Where you going now?” When Kane didn’t answer, Charger glanced up at him to see a wide grin on his face. “What?”

  “Hot damn!” Kane slammed his fist on the counter. “It’s about fucking time you got that head out of your fat ass. So, you and Raven, huh?”

  “What in the hell are you rambling about?” Charger snorted, finishing off his coffee as he stood. He took the empty cup and tossed it, yes, tossed it into the sink, not caring if it broke. He needed to get the fuck out of here before Kane pissed him off.