Melissa woke up the following day to being on the brink of a powerful orgasm. Eric had woken up before her and used his tongue and fingers to wake her up as well. Melissa moaned his name as she threw her head against the pillows while Eric looked up from where he was, crouched between her legs.

-"Morning. How's your headache?" Eric grinned at her while her eyes darkened. "I brought you an aspirin and some water in case you need them, but I figured I could find a way to ease your headache without pills."

-"I'm fine. Thank you for asking. Your method worked remarkably well. I don't feel the need for any pills." Melissa tried to stand up, looking for her nightgown, her legs still shaking from the way she woke up. "Eric, about last night, there's something we need to..."

Eric silenced her by kissing her and keeping her body close to his. Melissa sighed into the kiss, feeling annoyed that he would act this way. Eric would always weasel his way out of conversations by kissing her. "Phoenix, whatever it is you want to say it will have to wait until we're both dressed and out of this bedroom. I'm not letting you ruin the mood with talking."

Finally releasing herself from his hold, Melissa stood up and gathering her nightgown she put it on. She felt herself flush as she realized that she probably had given Eric the wrong idea with her behavior the previous night. Turning around to face him she noticed he, too, got up. A pair of boxers was the only thing covering his private parts.

-"Take it easy. I'm not going to jump your bones, despite the way I woke you up. I know you need time and space, but while I was willing to give them to you before, now I won't do so anymore. I watched you walk away once and I didn't stop you. I'm not letting you go this time around and before you start saying that you're not interested I ask that you be honest with yourself about what you want from this."

They walked through the house towards the kitchen. Melissa took a seat at the kitchen table, watching Eric's back and the tattoo painted on his shoulder, her mind focusing on his words. Eric turned on the coffeemaker while preparing breakfast as well.

-"I won't lie to you or to myself Eric. I want you and I know for a fact that you want me. But I'm also aware that being together ended in pain last time we tried this and honestly I'm still picking up the pieces. That's why I could never get back together with you. Because I know in the end I will just end up getting hurt."

-"Phoenix." Melissa stopped him from talking by raising her hand and continuing speaking.

-"You're a great guy, Eric. You're fierce and loyal and protective of your family. But I'm not a part of it anymore and quite frankly I don't know if I'll ever be willing to join it again. Sure, sex between us is great, but that's all I can offer you right now."

-"Very well. If that's what you want then we'll do things your way. I won't pressure you into giving me more than you're ready for right now. But make no mistake, Phoenix, I'm in this for the long run. I will do everything I can to fix things between us and get you back." .

They started eating in silence, tension building inside the kitchen. Eric knew that he could easily make Melissa change her mind by revealing the truth of what really happened the night of their anniversary years ago. But in doing so he would be destroying one of her most valuable relationships and Eric knew that he had no right to do so.

Melissa finished her breakfast and did the dishes quickly before heading back up the stairs and getting dressed. Eric was keeping something from her, that much she was certain of. But she couldn't put her finger on it. Melissa blew her thoughts off, thinking that it was something related to the MC or her stalker problem. She didn't think it was possible for Eric to keep any other major secret from her.

Walking down the stairs, she noticed him waiting for her near his car. Raising her eyebrow at him, she waited for him to explain what was going on. He opened his passenger door for her and silently gestured for her to get in the car. Glancing down the sidewalk to her car, Melissa gritted her teeth and got into Eric's. She had no doubt he would cause a scene if she said no.

-"I'll drive you to work and pick you up when you are finished. One of my boys will drive you around town if you have any places to be. Don't argue with me, you'll lose." Melissa sighed as she fastened her seat belt.

-"Why? Did something happen recently? Is everything ok with the club?" Melissa turned her head to him and noticed his grip on the steering wheel tightening. "Eric? What's wrong? You want this to work? Then tell me what's going on."

-"Phoenix. I'm going to say this only once. You don't mess with our club's old ladies and walk away. We learned this lesson with Bunny. Whoever this guy is, he crossed a very serious line when he started harassing you. If he or she is stupid enough to still come after you then the club will step in to protect you."

-"Why the hell would you do that? I'm not your old lady. What gives you the right to act this way?" Melissa refrained herself from yelling when Eric pulled the car over to her office. She remained in her seat, her eyes flashing with rage.

-"You may not be my old lady, but right now you are the woman living in my house and also you are my attorney. And no one messes with the people I care about and gets away with it. We'll talk some more about this at home."

Melissa clenched her jaw and getting out of the car, she slammed the door shut. She passed an intrigued Alex on her way to the office. Olivia watched her enter the building from the window, wondering what the hell her friend got herself into now.

Eric rubbed his head before nodding to Alex. He had spoken to a few of his guys about the added security measures to Melissa's protection. Granted, he knew she would be pissed about him making those decisions for her, but his brothers agreed to have his back on the matter.

Wren and Alex had volunteered to look out for Melissa while Caleb insisted they should take Lucas, their prospect, with them. They all needed a little break from the club's drama and keeping Phoenix safe would require all hands on deck for she would not agree to the idea easily. Whistling Eric made his way to the club's strip joint.

He really needed to find a suitable manager for it and fast. All those numbers would give him headaches. He would've asked Hanna, Caleb's girl, to take over, but Caleb would throw a fit at the idea for two reasons. He wouldn't be able to work with her on a daily basis and she would be exposed to dealing with slags all day long.

Truth be told, Eric didn't want to see Hanna or any of their other old ladies involved with the slags either, which left him with the annoying task of finding a replacement for Bunny. He chuckled as he approached the strip joint's entrance. The boys in the MC who had significant others in their lives were completely whipped by said women. Now if only he could find a way of making his stubborn woman do things the way he wanted…

Hey guys,

I'm back with a quick update on the fics and on my private life. I got a new job recently and I'll be moving to another city which means that for the time being I won't have as much time for writing. I'm trying to finish my current fics so as not to leave you guys waiting. I hope you had fun reading this chapter. Remember to review ok?

Nico