My Darling Mayhem
: Chapter 12

I’d given Wren and Cruz a ride for three days in a row, and I was starting to enjoy the normalcy of seeing her every morning. I brought her coffee and made sure when I dropped her off that I never saw that asshole’s car there.

Each and every day, when she got out of my truck, she would smile at me, but I didn’t move to kiss her. I had no plans on not touching her, but I also meant what I told her when I said I was trying something. I wanted to build a relationship with her, so once we did start fucking, she knew we were doing it as a couple, not two random people who didn’t owe each other anything.

Now, it was early Wednesday afternoon, and I was home early because some school function had Kane’s foster mom asking if I could pick him up. I was annoyed that she hadn’t invited me, nor had the school notified me, even though I’d asked to be on the list for class updates. I only found out about anything school-related if I picked him up and he had something in his backpack with information on it. This wasn’t something I had seen any fliers about. Regardless, I was happy to go pick him up, just bummed that I missed what it was and equally annoyed because I didn’t see Wren there.

“Will you ever get married?” Kane randomly asked while we were watching television.

I had my laptop in front of me while I worked on a customer’s portfolio. They wouldn’t hit their goals for the year if they didn’t invest their money in a few places. I began pulling up options and ideas while glancing at my younger brother.

“What made you randomly think about that?”

Kane sat on the floor, his apple and peanut butter snack in front of him while he glanced back at me. “You have this big house with enough rooms for a big family. I was curious if you were going to get married or had a girlfriend.”

I withheld a smirk.

“I would like to get married someday…”

Kane tilted his head while biting into his apple. “Aren’t you running out of time?”

If I had been drinking anything, I would have spit it out.

“Excuse me?”

“Aren’t you thirty-five? That’s old.”

“It most certainly is not,” I laughed, trying to clear my throat. “A lot of people don’t start dating or get married until well past forty.”

My brother shrugged and returned his focus to the television. I also tried returning to work, but he turned around again.

“What about Cruz’s mom. Do you like her? Cruz thinks you guys like each other.”

I closed my laptop and set it aside. “He does?”

Kane nodded. “He thinks she likes you because she smiles a lot now, and she likes that you drive them every day.”

“She might like me, I’m not sure, buddy.” I tried to withhold a small victorious smile, but I didn’t have to when Kane finished his thought.

“I told Cruz you like his mom because you’re always looking over at their house, and I heard you dreaming about her that one night I slept over.”

I quirked a brow. “Dreaming about her?” I hadn’t dreamt about Wren yet, not in any meaningful way, maybe if she passed me on the street in my dream or something.

Kane laughed, finishing off his plate of snacks. “Yeah, you kept saying her name loudly. You had to be dreaming.”

Oh shit.

I was most certainly not dreaming.

I was, however, doing something else that wasn’t appropriate to discuss with my five-year-old brother. I had assumed he was asleep, and I wasn’t that loud; I’d just gotten a little carried away with my fantasy of Wren on her knees and my cock sliding over her tongue while those pretty lips of hers wrapped around me.

“Well, I do have a bit of a crush on her. But I don’t want her to know, so you can’t say anything to Cruz, okay?”

“Okay. I promise…but…” Kane tilted his head again. “Would you marry her?”

I had no fucking clue. Shit was way too complicated at the moment to figure out or sort, but had I pictured her with a ring on her finger, one I’d picked out and bought for her? Possibly. Had one of my fantasies been me taking off her wedding dress and seeing her white lingerie that was just tiny scraps of fabric?

Yes.

“Finding the right person can take time, buddy. You can’t rush these sorts of things.”

My brother lost interest in me and continued to watch his show after that, all while I kept thinking about what he’d said and how both boys were on to us.

Later that evening, I got a text from Wren, which had me sitting up in bed.

I didn’t even try to make it seem like I was busy.

No, it wasn’t nice. The fucker was flirting with her, but it was hard for me to ride that line of overbearing, jealous boyfriend when I wasn’t even her boyfriend yet.

I hated that fucking car. It wasn’t reliable in the slightest, and I had no doubt that this mechanic didn’t actually do shit to fix it. Even if he did, it wouldn’t last. Winter was coming, and I knew how unreliable that car was. The idea of her stranded out on a slick highway while cars nearly slid into her suddenly crashed through my mind, making me feel like I was about to have a heart attack.

I had to fix this.

The worry over her safety caught me off guard again. A new sensation for me. The last woman I had worried over or had any concern about their safety or well-being was my mom. An ache unfurled in my chest like it always did when I thought of my mom and the way she died—car accident, cut brakes.

If my mom were alive, I’d tell her about Wren. I could almost see her smile as I explained this woman who had been firmly under my skin from the moment I met her. A familiar sadness invaded my chest as I remembered her death.

I knew it was my old man, but I couldn’t prove it. But he’d done the same shit with Kane’s mom. The memory of Brit meeting with me privately, telling me about how abusive my dad was and how fearful she was over Kane surfaced. She’d wanted me to take him, to keep him safe. I had promised to talk about it with her more the following day after she’d calmed down and had gotten sober.

She was high as a fuckin’ kite.

Kane was only three, but whatever my dad had done had freaked her out enough to come to me and seek out help. That weekend, she was in a car accident; the brakes were cut. Kane wasn’t with her, and I had a shit time replaceing him after that. Thankfully, Brit’s cousin had been watching him, but instead of calling me, she called the police to come and pick up an abandoned toddler.

My brother was in the system a few days later, mainly because my dad had gotten himself on the police department’s radar enough that he’d disappeared for a while, and they couldn’t locate him. I was hoping he’d stay gone.

Seemed like my luck had run out.

Bringing my phone back up, I shot a quick text to Buck, one of my club members who lived not very far from here.

My stomach clenched. This could go badly, but it would mean Wren and Cruz would be safe.

I punched out my idea, hoping this didn’t bite me in the ass.

The truck was already started and warmed up for my neighbors to ride with me. I was sipping coffee, watching Wren’s door as she emerged in a long wool coat that went down to her calves, covering a fucking pencil skirt with cute little boots.

Cruz’s hair was combed to the side, and he wore a thick coat that his backpack straps had difficulty fitting over.

I watched as she slid into her car and tried to turn the engine over, but nothing happened.

She got out, looking confused, and circled the car as if that would somehow explain it. Then she returned to her car and lifted the hood. Did she know what to look for?

I couldn’t hear her saying anything. I saw her head lift, look toward me, and let the hood slam. Cruz shut his door while the two began walking to my side of the drive.

“Morning.” I smiled at them while setting my coffee on the truck’s hood.

Wren had stopped walking as if something had hit her or shocked her.

With her mouth parted and eyes huge, I felt a blush working up my jaw.

“You’re in a suit,” she said, suspiciously as if she wasn’t sure if I was playing a prank.

“I have a meeting today with a pretty high-profile client. I try to dress nicer when he comes in.”

Wren walked Cruz over to me, standing there with her hand on his shoulder. Her eyes hadn’t stopped roaming over my face and down my chest. “Well, could we get a ride again? I guess my car isn’t working after all. I’m not sure what’s happening, but it isn’t even turning over.”

“Of course you can.” I hid my smile by raising my cup, then handed it to her. I loved that she accepted it, placed her lips right where mine had been, and began sipping.

I helped Cruz into the truck, then walked to her door, where she asked. “What exactly do you do for a living? I never did figure that out.” The second she reached for the handle along the doorframe, I gripped her hips and helped her settle.

“I’m in financial management, actually. I uh…I help people manage their money and investments.”

Before she could respond, I gently shut her door and jogged around the side.

Her gaze was locked on me the second I climbed in.

“Finance? You said you went to trade school…”

I began reversing out of the drive. “I did. I went to welding school but stumbled across these night classes focusing on finances. The professor noticed me sitting in the back of his classroom each night and decided to ask me a few questions about stocks. Then, I decided I was in the wrong class. He took me under his wing and trained me in everything he knew. Even though I was a part of a motorcycle club, I often missed classes because of it. He never gave up on me. His dying wish was to see me make a career out of it. Gave me a ton of recommendations to the firm he was a part of. Old man changed my life.”

“Wow, that’s incredible, Archer. Truly incredible. I never would have guessed.”

I sent her a smile. “Most people don’t get this far with me to learn any of this…they just write me off as some redneck with a bike.”

I caught her slight wince and the way her head dipped, and maybe she had misjudged me…but really, she hadn’t. I was a fuck up. She’d been right to protect herself and Cruz, but it was only a matter of time before she realized it. By then, I was hoping to convince her that I was more than a hookup.

We reached Cruz’s school, and I couldn’t help but look around for Kane. I knew he rode the bus from his foster parent’s house, but my heart did a little lurch when I showed up without him. I hated that he wasn’t living with me full-time and that this custody shit was still being drug out. Thistle called his contact, and I was waiting for the hearing date. My lawyer told me everything on my end looked good, and there was nothing else I needed to do.

“Hey, Cruz?” I said, hopping out of the truck with him and walking him up to the crossing guard. The rest of the drop-off lane hated when I did this, and I understood it…but they could all fuck off. I didn’t care. Life was too damn short not to do what you wanted to do.

“Can you tell Kane I said I miss him and hope he has a good day?”

Cruz beamed up at me. “Yeah, I’ll tell him.”

“Thanks, Bud.”

I patted his back, but he twisted and gave me a hug. My arms came around his little back, and I squeezed him to my chest, telling him to have a good day before he ran off with the crossing guard. I made the mistake of turning around and seeing Wren’s expression through the windshield.

She watched intensely as if some puzzle piece had finally clicked into place.

I slid back into the truck, noticing that, today, no one honked.

“You okay?”

We started driving, but Wren was staring intently out the window. Her brows were dipped, and her lip was pulled under her white teeth.

“Wren?” I glanced at her, driving past the first street light beyond the school. We only had about three more until I took the turn for her job.

“Can we…” She dipped her head. “Can you pull over up here?” She turned her face, her tone urgent.

I did as she asked, pulling over into a vacant parking lot. The truck faced an empty storefront.

“Is everything okay?”

Wren wet her lips, then ducked her face. “Seeing you with him…it’s…” She stared down at her lap like she was nervous. “Seeing you be so good to him does something to me. It makes me want to…”

“To?” I asked, spreading my knees apart, hoping this would lead to kissing again.

“Touch you.” Her amber eyes were on me in a flash and then darted away. Her lips were so full and perfect. This same woman had said the most filthy things to me with her entire chest ready to get fucked. Now she seemed timid, almost shy.

I unbuckled my seat belt, hovering over the middle console with my hands shoved in her hair, gently pulling her face to mine.

I thought up all the ways I had been fantasizing about her. How I’d wanted to lay her flat and taste every inch of her. How I had pictured exact moments like this, where we were just randomly making out in a parking lot, casually on the way to work.

My cock swelled in my slacks, which had me releasing a low groan. It must have encouraged her because Wren was suddenly shoving her coat off.

“I had something else in mind, but I’m not about to have you pump the brakes, so you need to tell me if you’ll be okay with more?”

I sat back and patted my leg. “I pumped the brakes because I want you to take me seriously, but I’m at the point where I need you to touch me, Wren. I’ll beg if you want.”

She smiled slightly before crawling over the console and into my lap.

With her pencil skirt, she couldn’t straddle me, so I just held her in my lap, tilted her chin, and continued kissing her. Her arms were tethered at my neck, and her ass was over my erection, which I knew she felt. Especially when she started rocking her hips, making her ass move back and forth.

I let out a hiss, which broke our kiss. “Thought you were going to touch me. You ready to show me, beautiful?”

“Push the seat all the way back and raise the steering wheel as high as it will go,” she whispered against my mouth.

I did as she requested, providing a little more space near my legs.

Wren gave me a devilish smirk before slipping off my lap and sliding down onto the floor, where she fit between my knees. Her hands came to my thighs, and I stared down at her, unsure of what she was about to do because, surely, I was hoping for too much.

Her fingers gently tugged on my zipper, releasing the fabric button that held my slacks up. Her red fingernails dug under the band of my boxers, and she was gripping my length, her mouth parting as she pulled it completely free.

“So thick,” she whispered, staring up at me. It made me think of the other night when we’d stopped, and her filthy mouth had me nearly coming in my jeans.

“Shit,” I rasped, watching as she held the base and merely stared at it in wonder. Ever so slowly, she leaned forward and licked over the tip of my erection, swirling her tongue around the precum that coated it.

“Mmmmm,” she moaned, which made my balls tighten and my hand go to her hair.

“You seriously about to suck my cock right now, beautiful?”

Her gaze slid up, and with a smile, she wrapped her red lips entirely around me and slid down my length. Silky, caramel hair was a curtain around her face while she bobbed up and down on my cock. I inhaled a sharp breath, relishing how good she looked on her knees, barely fitting under my steering wheel but making it work just the same.

“That’s it, Wren. You’re so fucking perfect.” I hissed, closing my eyes and keeping my hand on her head. Fuck this felt good.

She hollowed her cheeks, which had her going even lower, then let up, repeating the process.

“I need you to take me deeper. I want to hit the back of that throat, Wren.”

She rose on her knees, and with the base of my cock in her fist, she started going deeper, but I tugged her chin, which had her letting me go. With her mouth open, her red lipstick, and a ring around the base of my dick, I smiled at her.

“I think you want me to fuck your throat the way I want to. Tap my thigh if it’s too much, okay?”

She smiled and nodded before readjusting herself over my slick length.

I gripped her hair and forced her down even farther. She started gagging, and I nearly came on the spot. Once she tapped my thigh, I let her go, and she came up for air, then immediately went back down, not caring that saliva was dripping from her chin or trailing from my cock.

She took me again, and I lifted my hips. “Shittttt.”

My hold on her hair was rough as I rocked forward and began fucking her throat. She’d gag, then moan and keep me there, repeating the process until I couldn’t hold on any longer.

With a deep rasp, I warned, “I’m about to come down your throat, Wren…” I was breathing harshly as I held her there. “Tap my thigh if you want me to let you go.” She took me deeper, and I let out an agonized groan, pushing my cock to the back of her throat and coming so hard I nearly blacked out. I heard her gagging and moaning all at once while I filled her up.

We were making a mess, but fuck if I cared now.

My suit might even be ruined, but I’d rather go home and change before letting this girl go.

Once I’d finished, I opened my eyes and looked down. Wren was slowly releasing me, while dabbing at the corners of her mouth. She’d missed her chin and somehow even her nose. I realized I really liked seeing my seed covering her face.

“That was…” she breathed, still trying to swipe at the missed spots, “an experience…I’ve never uh.” She flushed, and my heart nearly stilled.

“You’ve never swallowed?” Because I knew she’d fucking sucked cock before, she was too good not to have, but I couldn’t deal with the idea of her mouth on another man at the moment.

She shook her head. “No one has ever made me feel that…excited, where all I wanted to do was⁠—”

“Filthy, depraved things?”

Another flush worked its way into her face. “Yeah, something like that.”

“I’m sure it’s just the suit,” I joked, but her face fell.

“It’s not…it’s just you.”

Wren laughed and then rested her face on my thigh. I gently stroked her hair, not hating how it felt to have her like this. She was just staring up at me like I had found a way to whisper those fairy tales against her skin.

“Also, I don’t think I can get up; my left kneecap has been numb for about two minutes.”

Smiling down at her, I brushed her hair to the side and laughed. “If you’re gonna be stuck anywhere, darling, you may as well be…”

She pinched my calf, which had me reaching for her and helping pull her up.

Once she was up near my face, I held her chin and kissed her. She moved with my kiss and fell into my lap again, sighing into my mouth.

“Thank you,” I whispered, pressing my forehead to hers.

She spread her fingers over my chest and under the buttons of my shirt. “What are we doing, Archer?”

“We’re taking our time. You’re safe with me, Wren. Trust me.” I closed my eyes and pressed a kiss to her mouth. She let out a shuddery breath as she kissed me back. Her fingers dug into my hair, lightly tugging before she released me.

“Crawl over or open the door?”

She eyed her seat and then my lap, realizing my semi-hard erection was still out.

“Uh, I’ll crawl so you can zip up.”

She carefully lifted her knee and pressed it into the center console, which put her ass in my face. I had to look away while gritting my teeth because I really wanted to touch her, but I also really needed to make it to my appointment.

Once she was over, I pulled my boxers back up and then my slacks, ensuring nothing showed from how much of a mess we’d made. Then once she was buckled, we started back toward her job.

When I pulled in front of the model home where she worked each day, I saw a familiar-looking car parked there.

“Is that Brian’s car?” I already knew it was, but I needed a second to calm down. The idea of him being around her right after she’d just had my cock in her mouth was making something dangerous begin to claw its way out of my chest. I’d never felt this way before. The mere idea of him looking at her had me feeling murderous.

Wren’s gaze slid over a spot to where I was looking.

“Yeah, he’s probably here with a client.” She let out a longsuffering sigh, then opened her door. “Thank you for the⁠—”

I killed the engine and pocketed my keys. “I’ll walk you in.”

Her mouth pursed as she watched me, but I didn’t care. I opened her door and held out my hand for her to hold.

“Looks icy.”

It didn’t.

I could hear her small laugh, but she wrapped her hand around mine and interlocked our fingers as we walked into her job. Laminate flooring ran under our feet with a nice-looking runner that worked to catch dirt and other things from people coming in. There was a sleek L-shaped desk that had an apple monitor on it. There were photos along the wall of all the various floor plans for different houses.

“This is pretty cool,” I said, moving around to the drawers of custom carpet and fixture pieces.

I slid one out when Brian walked in.

“Wren. Finally.”

I didn’t appreciate his abrupt tone.

He froze when he saw me standing there, glaring at him. “What is he doing here?”

Wren started unpacking her laptop bag, mostly ignoring him.

“Archer gave me a ride today.”

I snapped my gaze to hers, wanting her to say more. That we were a couple or something that made me seem like more than just her neighbor, but why would she offer more than what I had given her?

Brian moved past me. “Thought your car was fixed?”

Were they texting each other still?

Why would it bother me so much if they were? Fuck, I hated this.

“I thought so, too. I’ll replace out later.” Wren left her spot behind the desk and walked over to where I was standing.

“Well, she’s at work now. You can leave,” Brian said smugly while glancing at me. I thought I had taught him his lesson without even hitting him. But apparently not.

Letting out a laugh, I ducked my face. “You won’t be the one who tells me to leave. Trust me on that. I’m here as long as Wren wants me.”

Wren turned toward Brian and crossed her arms. “What are you doing here?”

He bristled slightly like he wasn’t prepared for her to question him. “I have a client question.”

“Is it something Gwen can help with?”

He twisted his lips, almost in a sneer. “Why can’t you help me?”

Wren glanced at me. “Because I’m helping Mr. Green with something related to his home. Also, I emailed Denise asking you to be assigned to Gwen from now on if you have any future clients. I know Gwen would love to assist you when she’s back. Perhaps you could email her and make a plan.”

She had already requested he deal with someone else? Shit, that made me feel good.

Brian glared at Wren, which I didn’t love. I was going to be late for my own meeting, and this was one I really couldn’t fuck up with all the custody shit going on, but there was no way I was leaving her here with him.

“I’ll take off so you can work, Wren…but I’ll see you right after work when my mechanic arrives. I already texted him to meet us after we get the boys.”

Wren’s lips thinned out, almost as if she wanted to say something else, when she glanced at Brian. “Okay, yeah.”

I closed the distance between us, stood directly in front of her, and pulled her chin.

“Thanks for this morning,” I said before I kissed her.

I smiled against her mouth when she kissed me back, and we remained locked like that, kissing and breathing one another in while her shitty ex watched on. Once we broke apart, Wren was breathing hard.

I gave her one last smile before I turned toward Brian.

“After you.”

He glanced back at Wren angrily. He looked like he was about to throw a punch at me.

“I’m not leav⁠—”

I stepped closer, clicking my tongue. “You’re not staying here with her. So, either leave, or I will have you taken out on a stretcher. Your fuckin’ choice.”

“Fuck you!” Brian pushed past me, shoving his shoulder into my sternum.

I let him go, giving Wren one last look. She wagged her fingers at me, giving me a little smirk, and mockingly said, “Have a nice day, honey.”

I replied in the same sugar-sweet tone, “You too, darling.”