Tug, page 1
part #10 of Cerberus MC Series
Table of Contents
Tug
Copyright
Acknowledgments
Synopsis
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Social Media Links
OTHER BOOKS FROM MARIE JAMES
Tug
Cerberus MC Book 10
Copyright
Tug: Cerberus MC Book 10
Copyright © 2019 Marie James
Editing by Marie James Betas
EBooks are not transferrable. All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded, or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale, or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Acknowledgments
Huge shout out this time around to the #1 man in my life! My dear, sweet husband, you are amazing! Thank you for making my dreams come true and supporting me relentlessly from day one. This wouldn’t be possible it is wasn’t for your support!
My amazing BETAs, you ladies are the absolute best! Laura, MaRanda, Brenda, Jamie, Michelle, and Jo thank you so much for the help on this book! Mary, you amaze me each and every time we work together! Thank you for your help and all of your support through this process!
Laura Watson! Thank you! You keep my head on right. I couldn’t do this without you!
Another shout out to RRR Promotions and Natasha for helping get this book out into the world. As always you nailed it!
Readers, I can’t even begin to tell you what you mean to me. Without you, I’d have no reason to write these books. Thanks for your continued support of the Cerberus MC!
Until next time!
~Marie James
Synopsis
The plans I made for my life didn’t pan out.
I walked away from my best friend, my lover, the only man I could see spending my life with to make a career of being a Marine, but it didn’t happen.
A car accident took him away from me before I realized the mistake I’d made.
Now, thirteen years later, I’ve met a woman and a man who makes everything seem ideal.
He’s perfect in a familiar kind of way, and she’s the kind of brand new you can’t get enough of.
It’s just my luck that one’s a ghost and the other is my boss’s daughter.
These plans may not pan out either.
**This is NOT a paranormal romance**
**Tug is a standalone MMF novel in an interconnected series**
Prologue
Tug
“I’m glad you came out tonight.”
I smile and press my lips to the top of Max’s head.
“Never doubt that I’ll always be here for you,” I remind him, not for the first time since we started whatever it is we’re doing.
We haven’t labeled it, doing so would require a level of reflection I won’t allow myself. How do you even begin to understand having feelings for the boy you grew up with, especially when you’re a boy yourself? So we haven’t labeled it. I don’t think there’s a clear title to what we are. All I know is I love this boy with all my heart, and he feels the same for me.
The real pain comes from knowing that even though we feel this way about each other, it won’t keep us from parting ways tomorrow. I’m heading into the Marine Corps, and he’s going to stick around town and do what every Vazquez man in his family has done before him; he’s going to work for his family.
“I’ll consider going to college if you stay.” His words are sad, most likely because we’ve had this conversation a million times before, and my answer never changes.
I know he’s not destined for formal education, just as he knows the Corps is the only thing that will save me from my own father. Where his expects him to contribute to his family by way of working in their family-run shop; mine only sees me as a whipping boy, the person he turns on to blow off steam with his fists when he has a bad day. Every day is a bad day for my old man.
“You don’t want to go to college,” I remind him.
Max only graduated because I helped him with his classes all through high school, and even with my help, he had a couple of close calls. The computer and tech classes were the only ones he excelled at, but it’s knowing he has to take all the other ones in college that will keep him away. He’s a smooth talker with charisma like I’ve never seen before, but he knows he can’t bullshit his way through college.
“But I want you to stay.”
I sigh, pulling him closer to my chest. As much as I want to be annoyed with his insistent begging, internally, I wish there was an alternative solution. I’d love nothing more than to stay here with him, but my options are limited in this town.
“I can’t stay.”
“You can’t be gay in the Marines, either. They’ll kill you if they even suspect it.”
“I’m not gay.”
This is another conversation we’ve had countless times.
“You just got finished sucking me off,” he says as if I need the reminder when his taste is still heavy on my tongue.
“And I told you before, you’re the only guy I’m attracted to. You’re the only man that gets me hard. No one is going to know about my history because I’m not going to do to others what I’ve been doing to you for the last year.”
“But you won’t write to me while you’re gone.”
It isn’t a question. He knows better than to start this line of conversation again, but he’s grasping at straws. I don’t blame him. I always tell him no, but in actuality, I’m dying to say yes. Yes, I’ll stay. Yes, I’ll love him forever. Yes, I’ll spend the rest of my life loving him no matter the consequences for coming out in our small little country town.
I’ve played the hard-ass for the last six months, ever since the recruiter came to school and offered me a life I never thought I could have.
We’re best friends, but he knows once the sun comes up, I’m going into the Corps and not looking back. It makes me the biggest asshole that ever lived, but I’m walking away from everything, including him. As far as I see it, I have no other choice. If I stay, my dad will end up killing me. He’s come close one too many times, and as much as I want to choose Max, I’m choosing myself this time. Selfishness comes easy for an only child, and I’m taking control of my life the only way I see fit.
“I’m still holding out hope that you’ll come to your senses.”
“Max,” I grumble.
“I know,” he interrupts before I can continue. “Just know that if you decide the Corps isn’t for you, or if you just miss me too much, I’ll be here for you. I can’t imagine loving anyone the way I love you. I’ll be here.”
Four hours later, I leave him asleep in the treehouse in his backyard, hating that I never told him I loved him, too.
Three years later, I would be hit in the gut with the news that my best friend, my lover, the only person I could ever picture growing old with was dead. A car accident on rain-drenched roads had the power to take a life and leave me an empty shell.
The regret of walking away from him, from not being there for him will eat me alive.
Chapter 1
Jasmine
“I should’ve just gone back to Head’s & Tail’s,” I mutter as I climb off my bike and look up at the Hale-ish Retreat and Spa.
Not only was my old club back in Albuquerque closer to home, but it isn’t owned and run by one of my second cousin Kaleb’s close friends.
Turning my back on the darkened building that contains the closed spa, I grab the mask Gigi let me borrow earlier this week. How she got wind of my time back at school in places like this, I’ll never know. I didn’t confirm or deny verbally, but the glint in her eyes when she handed over the mask with the reminder that tonight was masquerade-themed told me she was well aware that I’d be here tonight. She also coaxed her man, Hound to the Cerberus guys but Jameson to the rest of us, to have a big party at the clubhouse. The guys having willing women come to the clubhouse, almost guaranteed they won’t make the almost eight-hour drive to find someone to fulfill their kinky desires.
Th
Tying the monarch butterfly-winged mask around my head, I straighten my spine. I’m not ashamed of what I like or the things I’ve done. I just don’t want my parents to find out. You’d think I was thirteen, not thirty. Not that I was doing anything remotely similar to what I’m about to do tonight while I was thirteen. Hell, with the Cerberus men keeping a close eye on me, I didn’t even start dating until I went to college, but I was a quick study and made up for lost time.
After I’m certain my mask won’t slip, I walk around to the side entry. The front doors lead into the spa and retreat area, and only people who’ve heard about the extras Hale-ish provides know to enter on the side. According to Gigi, this place has been open for two decades and seems to be more popular than ever. With kinky books becoming more mainstream each and every day, attention to sex clubs are all the rage right now.
“Name?” the guy manning the front counter asks as I step inside.
The dim lights in the front room only begin to prepare you for what’s past the anteroom. Soft music plays, but the bass hits harder than one would expect. It seeps under my skin and tangles with my own heartbeat until they sync together.
“Lilly,” I tell the man. “Lilly Evans.”
Just like every other time I lied about my name, I grow nervous as the bouncer looks over his list. I made reservations for tonight online, using my membership to several clubs in Albuquerque as credentials, since I’m not a member here. Like most sex clubs, Hale-ish is proud to welcome members from other clubs when they’re traveling through.
“There you are.” The bouncer marks me off his list before lifting his eyes again. They sweep down my body, causing my teeth to dig into my lower lip.
I’m about to ask him if he’s planning on playing later when his thumb hitches toward a board displaying a key for what their bands mean.
“Which ones can I get for you, gorgeous?”
“Umm.” I look over the key, making note of the differences from the clubs I’ve been to before. “I’ll take—”
“Maybe the black?” Suggestion marks his tone, and as much as I’d like to think I’m brave enough, I don’t think I’ll ever be ready to offer myself up for any and everything.
“How about green and purple?”
Purple, for exhibitionism, is always a go-to but even asking for the green one which indicates a willingness to participate in group sex is a little out of my comfort zone. Even with as many times as I’ve been to other clubs, I’ve always stuck to a single partner. Tonight, I’m even surprising myself.
“Fair enough,” the bouncer says before pulling my colored band selection from under the counter. He motions for me to hold out my right wrist, and I oblige.
His touch is softer than I expect it to be as he fastens them in place. Before I can pull my wrist free, he presses a stamp on the top of my hand. WELCOME TO HALE marks my skin, and I look over at him and frown.
“House rules,” he begins. “All newbies get stamped their first time inside. It lets the monitors know to keep a closer eye on you.”
“It’s also a red flag for the regulars.”
“Don’t like having your boundaries tested?” he challenges.
My skin grows warm again.
“What do you say?” His eyes narrow as he asks the question I’ve heard a million times, but never really gave much credit to.
I didn’t get a band indicating I’m submissive, but it’s clear the man in front of me is a Dom.
“Thank you,” I whisper, more out of respect to his lifestyle than real submission.
He grins as he looks back at me, both of us knowing I didn’t add in the sir he wanted purposely. Maybe playing with him later isn’t such a good idea. I don’t imagine we get off on the same things.
“Masks come off at two. That gives you three hours to play before you either leave or allow others to see your face.”
I nod. My old club had the same rules. They claimed it gave people time to get comfortable while playing before facing others without the disguise. I’ve always left before the masks come off.
“When is the next masquerade night?”
“We have them every other Friday.” He must notice my unease because he points to the door. “Right through there, Lilly.”
The front door opens, but since it’s masked night, I don’t turn to look to see who’s entering. If they haven’t put a mask on or they need to get one from the bouncer, I don’t want to ruin their fun before it even gets started.
The door closes heavily behind me as I chide myself for being nervous. I’ve walked into a club like this a hundred times before.
But never one owned by someone you know, my brain chooses to remind me.
Honestly, that extra thrill lights my skin on fire. Add to it the atmosphere that engulfs me after only taking three steps toward the bar, and I already know how much of a great time I’ll have tonight. Any doubt that I’ll strike out on finding a play partner, which has happened more than once at other clubs, vanishes when the scent of sex and pure lust engulf me.
The huge room in front of me is scattered with various seating areas, most of them full of people who got an early start to their night. People sip on drinks as they chat, pet, and play.
I grin at a sub as she looks up lovingly at her Dom as he simultaneously strokes her hair while carrying on a conversation with another man. The second man is ignoring his pouting pet as she kneels at his feet, and I grin, wondering what the poor girl did to earn such a punishment. Judging from the pout on her lips and the glimmer in her eyes, she’s planning on getting his attention very soon, and his punishment for misbehaving is going to be exactly what she’s striving for.
“What can I get for you?” the bartender asks as soon as I approach the bar. “We have a two-drink maximum, so order wisely.”
“Rum and coke please.” He begins to make my drink as I pull cash for a tip out of my pocket.
Jeans and a long-sleeved shirt covered by a not-so revealing bustier isn’t ideal, but neither is riding eight hours on the highway half-naked.
“Here you go, doll.” He slides the drink across the sleek bar top as I shove the cash in the tip jar.
I tip my glass to him before lifting it to my lips. He winks at me before moving on to help the next customer. First the gorgeous bouncer, now the sexy as hell bartender? Garrett and Alexa Hale know exactly what they’re doing by employing these ridiculously good-looking men to work here. They make the women feel more comfortable, knowing they can keep close to the bar and be safe while they acclimate to the debauchery that’s going on deeper in the club.
Motion to my left draws my attention and if I were anywhere else, the sight of the woman on her knees, servicing a man sitting on the barstool right beside me would make me gasp. Here, it’s expected, so I don’t bother to pull my gaze from the way her lips spread wide to pull his girth deeper into her throat.
Her whimpers, when he presses too deep, hit me in the core. It also makes me want to find my own fun quicker than I normally would.
“Man, that’s a sexy sight.”
I grin before turning my head toward the man who just spoke.
“Yes, it is,” I agree as we both turn our gazes back to the man just in time to see his face screw up in pleasure as his orgasm shoots down his friend’s throat.
“I’m Carlos.”
The man offers me his tanned hand, and out of courtesy, I take it to shake.
“Lilly,” I tell him. “Pleasure to meet you.”
“Hopefully, the pleasure will be for both of us.”
There’s an accented lilt to his voice, and it only makes his appeal grow tenfold. I love an exotic man, and there’s something about Latin men that drives me insane. The black mask wrapped around his face makes me think of Zorro, and that also makes me want to know more about him.
“Wanna find a dark corner and get to know each other a little better?”
I know exactly what he’s asking, but this isn’t a normal club. I came here exactly for what he’s offering.
I can’t wait to get started.
