Hansel 6

Hansel 6
Hansel

I stayed away from her. It was hard, but I never stopped watching her. Whether she was my wife or not didn't matter. She was Gretal, and I would always have her back. But, God, it was hard watching her dance with everyone but me. Flirt and laugh with everyone but me. It was almost too much and I couldn't even escape back to my room and lose myself in another woman.

Whilst Gretal was there, whilst she needed me, there would be no other women.

If by some long shot she gave me another chance, there would never be another woman. Not ever again. 

I was glad when Monster and Angela finally left. It meant that the party was winding down. Gretal would go back to her room, she would lock the door and be safe. Or as safe as she would ever be seeing the job she had been asked to do. I would be able to close my eyes and rest, maybe if I was lucky, grab a few hours’ sleep. 

Fang might think there was a traitor in our midst, but I couldn't believe it. These were my brothers. Men I trusted with my life. If there was a killer then it was from Gio’s organisation, not ours. I was sure of it.

So, inside the clubhouse she would be safe. 

As soon as Monster and Angela left, I followed after them. I needed some space to gather my thoughts, to lay in the darkness of my room and just be quiet. I knew Monster did the same regularly and it seemed to work for him. He managed to keep himself under control and not go ape shit on everyone. And I couldn’t blow up on anyone and blow Gretal's cover. 

Everyone trusted her, they loved her.

Jesus. I flopped down on my bed face first. Not bothering to lock the door behind me and groaned. Of course everyone loved Gretal. They all cared for her. But no one loved and cared for her more than I did.

She was mine.

She always would be, whether or not she ever came back to me. 

I slipped under the covers fully dressed. I couldn't be bothered to take my clothes off. I couldn't be bothered to do anything but lay there and think about what a fuck up I was.

I’d had everything I ever wanted in my life and I had screwed it up just like I always did.

“Hansel.” The blankets lifted slightly and a small body slipped in next to mine. I stiffened, not quite believing what I was hearing. 

Gretal’s perfume filled my lungs. Not overly sweet, but feminine and delicious. Just like she was. 

“Are you awake?” One small hand ran up and under my shirt, warm fingers sliding across my muscles. 

“What are you doing here, Gretal?” I couldn't open my eyes. If I did and she was looking at me with the lust I could hear in her voice. I would take her hard and fast and everyone would hear it.

“I didn't want to be alone.” Gretal's cheek came to rest against my back. Her arms encircled my waist so she could meld her body to mine. “No one saw me.”

“I wouldn’t care if they did, Gretal. But there's at least ten beds you could have crawled into tonight. Why mine? To torture me?”

“Because yours is the only bed I want to be in Hansel.”

My eyes flew open and I turned on my back, staring up at the ceiling. “Don't say that shit to me, Gretal, not if you don't mean it.”

“I do mean it.” She settled her blonde hair on my shoulder. The silky strands tickled my face. “I just want to…”

“You want to fuck? You want me to ease some of the pressure building inside of you?”

“Yes,” she breathed. “But I want you to hold me as well.”

I wanted to fuck her, but she was asking me for something so much more intimate. Something I had been dying to give her. She was asking to fall asleep in my arms like she used to. And that was so much more than sex.

“Come here, Gretal.” Pressing my lips to her hair, I gathered her in closer. We were both fully dressed. It didn't matter that we weren't naked, or that I couldn't feel her skin on mine. All that mattered was that she was in my arms.

Even if it was just for one night.



I couldn't sleep and I knew she hadn't drifted off either. I always knew when Gretal was asleep: she snored. Not loudly, but a soft and content sound that used to lull me into a deep sleep.

There were none of those contented sounds from her, her breathing was deep and even, but she wasn't asleep, so I couldn't drift off either.

It wasn't just that though. Gretal was in my arms. For the first time in years she had sought me out. I didn't want to sleep and miss a second of it. I knew it couldn't last. By the morning, Gretal would be gone again. If not from the clubhouse, most definitely from my life. She wouldn't sneak into my bed like a thief in the night again.

This was a one off. 

Unless I could get her to give me another chance, of course. I wasn't the kind of man to beg, but with her I might just give it a go.

“Hansel?”

“Yeah, baby?” I tightened my arms around her but didn't open my eyes.

“I thought you would be asleep.”

I chuckled. “No, you didn't. You knew I was awake.” I waited for her to say whatever it was she wanted to say. “You want to talk?”

“No.” Gretal’s voice became breathy. The fingers that had been resting on my stomach dipped lower, sliding across my abs to tease at the button of my jeans. “No, I don't want to talk.”

Fuck. I bit back a groan. 

“Christ, you are a tease. But we should really talk.” I couldn't believe what I was saying. I should have been all over her, pressing her down into the pillows and capturing her lips with mine. 

“Hansel.” She groaned, exasperated. “It doesn't have to mean anything.”

With a snarl that got stuck in my throat, I pinned her. Capturing her arms and lifting them above her head. The way she looked up at me was enough to drive me wild. Her eyes were hooded as she stared up at me and her pouty lips parted.

“You think you can use me as stress relief, Gretal?”

Her head cocked to the side but she didn't back down from my growling question. 

“I could just lay here next to you and perform a little stress relief on myself.”

I groaned again. Just the mental image of her doing that to herself whilst I lay next to her, not touching or at least watching, was enough to make me push up angrily against my zipper. 

“If you talk to me, Gretal, if you tell me how I can get you to stop with all of this nonsense...” Catching her look, my eyes narrowed. “You know what I’m talking about. Living apart and those stupid divorce proceedings. Talk to me about how I can make things right and I'll give you the best night of your life. I promise.”

Gretal's nose crinkled. “See, this is where we go wrong, Hansel. When we talk. Can't we just fuck? Why does it have to be more than that…?”

Frowning, I leant my forehead against hers. “Because we are more than just a physical relationship. You're my wife. And we need to talk.”

“I don't want to talk, Hansel. I want to fool around. If you don’t want to fuck me, then there are other people here who would love to.”

Emotional blackmail. Gretal had always been good at it. Back when we were younger, I would have fallen for it. But I wasn't a young man anymore. Rolling off her, I settled myself back on the mattress and hid my eyes with my arms. I didn't think she was going to leave but if she did then I didn't want to watch her walk away. 

“Then you best go find one of them, Gretal, because I'm not going to be used, even by you.”

There was a long pregnant pause and then she flopped down next to me. Her back ramrod straight in her anger. 

“I fucking hate you, Hansel.”

Smiling in the darkness, I knew I had her. She wasn't going to leave, and just this once I hadn't let her get her own way. It gave me hope for the future. 

“Of course you do, sweetheart, of course you do.”