Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 109640 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 439(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109640 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 439(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
The man was damn good. A pain in her ass, but impressive.
She had to give credit where credit was due. She only hoped he did the same for her.
“Isn’t it way past your bedtime, old man?” she asked him as she dropped off a fresh beer a little after midnight.
“That’s ol’ man to you.”
She stretched over the bar like she was about to kiss him and whispered, “I didn’t make you my ol’ man, you did. I also didn’t ask you to come in and babysit me tonight. What spurred this on, besides you not trusting me to do my job?”
Before she could pull away, he grabbed her and held her there. “Hey, you forgot to mention that you told the Demons you were getting the meth for me.”
How convenient that he was changing the subject and ignoring her question. “I did. You must not have been paying attention. Or you forgot. It was a cover story I came up with on the fly.”
“Yeah, well, I guess I look too damn good to be a meth addict.” One side of his mouth hiked up.
Holy shit, the man could be cocky.
“Sure you do.” She laid the sarcasm on thick.
“Weren’t you impressed with my body only recently?”
“Was I? Like you, I must have short-term memory loss.”
“You must. Anyway, your boss didn’t believe your story when he saw me in the flesh. I had to come up with another reason.”
“Maybe because he wasn’t supposed to see Throttle in the flesh. What’s the new story and why didn’t you tell me it earlier?”
“Because there were too many ears around,” he answered. “This place is busier than I imagined. Come around the bar and give your ol’ man a squeeze.”
When she pulled her head back to look at him, he cocked an eyebrow in an unspoken message.
She sighed but came out from behind the bar. He turned on the stool once she got to him so he could pull her between his thighs and wrap his arms around her to hold her close.
“So, what’s the story?” she prodded. Despite him being an annoying jerk, him hugging her was kind of… nice.
She must be tired.
He nuzzled the hair near her ear, sending a shiver down her spine and making her nipples pop like two turkey timers. “The addict is my brother. He lives with us and to keep him on an even level we supply him with what he needs.”
“Lame.”
“The fucker believed it, so who cares how lame it is. Like you, I had to come up with a story on the fly.”
“Speaking of fly, I feel something pressing against yours. And your hands are groping my ass.”
“Yep.”
Yep? “Everyone else in this bar who tries that is getting a lesson they won’t soon forget.”
“And you got one this morning. Remember that?”
“Should I remind you that afterward you got so damn spooked you ran out of there like a ghost was chasing your ass?”
“I had things to do.”
He certainly was good at telling stories. “Uh huh. Anyway, I don’t need a babysitter. You can go home and get your beauty rest.”
“I’ll leave when I’m ready.”
“Then, I’ll leave instead.”
“Not without your pay first.”
“Maybe I can get Bulldog to give me it early so you can take it with you,” she emphasized, “when you leave.”
“Why do you care if I stay?”
“Because you’re only here to look for a reason to pull me.”
“That’s not why.”
Bullshit. “Then why?”
When he pulled in a breath through his nose and released it out of his mouth, it tickled the strands of hairs that had escaped from her braid. “Those bruises concerned me, if you want to know the truth.”
“I always want to know the truth. And I said I could handle it and I have. I just didn’t want to take a stand the first couple of nights, so my ass wouldn’t be kicked out before my foot was securely wedged in the door. Whether you believe it or not, I actually had a plan and it worked. Bulldog now sees my value, so if I hurt a few of his customers along the way for being handsy, he’ll be more tolerant with my actions than pissed.”
“I also had a discussion with him.”
She frowned and pulled her head back to get a good read of his face. He might be annoying, but he was also too damn handsome for his own good. “What did you say?”
“Simple. I put my fucking foot down as any ol’ man would do when his ol’ lady is being touched—or even hurt—by another man.”
“And how did Sasquatch take it?” Cami asked him.
“Surprisingly, better than expected.”
“He must have since you’re still planted on that stool and not being planted six feet under.”
“Believe it or not, I have excellent interpersonal and negotiation skills. I can be very persuasive.”
She snorted. “I’m glad I’m not drinking anything right now because you’d be wearing it.”