4. Chapter Four
Chapter Four
Griffin’s Beach Venom
“ T hanks, Barney. The club owes you one,” Venom says as he taps the top of the front desk of the hotel.
They still haven’t found a name for the guy after Shannon, but she told them they spent a lot of time at the hotel. He’s collecting the copies of their cameras for Brock to look through to find the guy.
“I’ll call to collect, don’t worry,” Barney says, his potbelly pulling at the buttons of his dress shirt.
Barney’s good shit, and Venom and he became quick friends after a random run in one night at the gas station. Barney was about to get busted by an undercover cop posing as a hooker, and Venom recognized her. The man may run the nicest business in town, but he’s lonely as hell.
Venom smirks and walks towards the restaurant. He has a general description of the man, and he wonders if maybe he’s stupid enough to be here now.
No one bats an eye at him as he walks into nice establishment wearing his leather. Most of the time, people flee or call security, which always amuses him. What the hell is security going to do?
It’s the first night since he met Cinder Hicks that Venom hasn’t spent with his sort-of-girlfriend. She’s the crazy daughter of a junkyard owner from Riverview, and things have heated up to an explosive level. No matter how great the sex is, something keeps holding him back.
A couple of things, actually. The first is knowing she used to sleep with Shep. The second is that Cinder is batshit crazy. Even her own father warned Venom about her.
But the biggest reason he keeps himself at a distance, preventing himself from ever falling in love with Cinder, stands behind the bar in the restaurant. Marnie Banks.
The daughter of Snake has had his heart since long before she ever gave him a second glance in Summerville. From the very beginning, he wanted her. She’d banter with him, fighting when he called her love . She’s the reason he bleaches his hair and slicks it back.
He offered to give her what no other man had been able to before, and when Marnie finally gave in, letting him taste her at her best friend’s wedding, he was hooked.
Hearing her moans of pleasure, feeling her body tremble on his, and tasting all parts of her became his addiction.
All he thought about was Marnie. Dreamed about. And for a short while, he had her.
“What are you doing here?” Venom asks after finally figuring out how to get his feet moving.
Smiling, he hates how damn hot she looks with her dark hair swept back to expose her neck. Only her bangs hang just over eyebrows, and she looks like a damned angel. A sexy, dirty angel he still thinks about daily.
“Well, hello to you, too,” Marnie says and points to the bar. “I’m working.”
“In Griffin’s Beach?”
She leans forward to rest her elbows on the bar top, and he can’t help but stare at the small amount of cleavage she shows underneath the uniform top with three buttons undone. “In Griffin’s Beach.”
“What… Why?”
“Because I need money to pay my rent, and I know how to bartend.”
Her eyes shine with amusement which only serves to piss him off. It almost feels like it used to before things got complicated between them. “You work in Griffin’s Beach but live in Summerville. That’s a bit of a trek, isn’t it?”
“I don’t live in Summerville, Venom.”
“What?”
He knows it’s a stupid question, but his brain doesn’t seem to want to work right now. And when she smirks at him with that sexy little mouth, all he wants to do is kiss her. More than anything in the world, and he wishes he was stronger because he almost gives in.
“I don’t live in Summerville.”
Blinking, he stares into her dark eyes. “You live…”
“In Griffin’s Beach.”
Stunned. It’s the only word to describe everything he’s feeling right now. “But… Why?”
“I told you at the funeral that I’m not giving up. You’re worth fighting for, and I wish I’d realized that before, but I know it now.”
Sighing, he shakes his head. “I’m with someone.”
“And she looks like a good time. A short period of time type of good time. I can wait.”
Is she serious? Marnie’s the reason he left Summerville and came to Griffin’s Beach. Seeing her after she agreed with her father that he’s nothing but dirt became unbearable. Suffocating. The conversation replays in his mind nightly, and it hurts more than he can ever put into words.
Venom loves her and hates her all at the same time. As painful as being away from her has been, being this close is worse. He wants to kiss her while pushing her out the damn door.
“Marnie—”
“I’m here, Venom. I can wait as long as I have to. Hopefully, it won’t be too long, but I want this. I want you. And I can’t blame you for not believing me and resisting the risk, but I’m going to prove to you that I’m not going anywhere.”
“You don’t get it,” Venom sighs and leans on the countertop. “I don’t want you here.”
Brows furrowed, Marnie tilts her head. “In this bar?”
“In this town. Go home.”
“Why?”
“Because.”
She looks amused, and it makes him want to shake her but also make love to her right here on this floor. Damn, if he isn’t a cluster of contradictions right now. “Because why?”
“It’s too hard trying to fall out of love with you if you’re here.”
“Until you can say you don’t love me anymore, I have a chance. I let you go once, and I’m not going to risk it again. Not if I can help it.”
Damn her. Pulling out his phone, he shows her a picture of Shannon. “Have you seen her in here with an older, rich guy?”
Shaking her head, she frowns. “No, I don’t think so. I haven’t been here that long, though. Took a little while to get things figured out when I came here. Who is she?”
“A girl who was hurt by the guy I’m trying to find. Her name’s Shannon, and the guy goes by the name Kiefer. If you happen to hear anything, let the club know. And stay away from him if you come across him.”
She nods. “Okay.”
Venom turns to leave but stops. “You’re safe, right?”
“Safe?”
“Wherever you live, you’re safe? A secure building and all that.”
A smile spreads across her face. “You’re worried about me?”
“I don’t want to see you hurt. It’s the last thing I ever want, and I just need to know that much. You’re safe?”
“I’m safe. Promise.”
He scans the restaurant before leaving and heading straight to Lex and Colt’s house. If he wasn’t sure about how he felt before, he’s nothing but a jumble of emotions now.
V enom steps inside as Lucas answers the door, purposely blocking the car in the driveway. It’s Lucas’s sister’s car, and it currently has Hailey and Gavin Short fogging up the windows.
Kid’s got balls. Fucking the President’s daughter in his driveway.
Lex smiles at him as he walks into the living room while Lucas leaves them alone. He’s the most well-behaved teenager Venom’s ever met.
“Hey, you. Grab a beer from the fridge, and we’ll step out back,” she says.
Doing as she says, he meets her on the back step and sits down next to her. “Lucas is either well-behaved, or he’s scared of me.”
“Both,” she says with a laugh. “Are Gavin and Hailey still getting it on in the car?”
His eyes widen. “You know?”
“Luke thinks he’s protecting his sister, but I’m not stupid.”
“You don’t mind?”
“She’s eighteen. What can I do?”
Of course, she’s a cool mom. “Colt would flip, though?”
“Probably. Before they slip outside, I make sure to call out when to expect Colt home. Gavin may be Ky’s son, but that doesn’t mean he’s safe.” She turns to look at him. “But I don’t think that’s what you’re here to talk about.”
Venom shakes his head. “No.”
“What’s up?”
“Guess who I found working at the bar in the hotel tonight.”
Narrowing her eyes, Lex juts out her chin. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope.”
“You mean behind the bar, right? She’s not part of some fancy escort service now?”
He chuckles. “Yes, behind the bar.”
“What spurred that?”
Taking a sip, he stares at the swing set lit up by the glow of the moon. “She says she’s not giving up on me. She told me at the funeral that she made a mistake, and until I can say I don’t love her, she’s not going to stop trying.”
“Do you?”
It’s not an accusation. There’s no disdain in her voice as she asks it. “I’m with Cinder.”
“Not what I asked.”
“Lex… I can’t love her and be with another woman.”
Taking a drink of her wine, she smirks. “Except that you are.”
“Lex—”
“You think I haven’t loved Colt since I was fifteen? We didn’t get together for a decade, and I was with other men. Engaged to one, but my heart always belonged to him.”
“I don’t want to be in love with her.”
“Unfortunately, you can’t do much about that.”
He searches her face. “What do I do?”
“Can’t tell you that.”
“You don’t have an opinion?” That’s not like Lex.
“Oh, I have many opinions, and I know what you’re going to end up doing. But I can’t tell you what to do. This has to be your decision and yours alone.”
“Cinder and Shep used to fuck,” he blurts out.
So much for keeping it under wraps.
“Say what now?”
Venom nods and recounts the conversation he had with Shep.
How he warned Venom to be careful and how crazy the woman is.
He doesn’t know if he’s sharing this to let her know how dangerous Cinder is since they don’t get along, or if he’s hoping she’ll tell him to drop her and run as far away as possible.
“Wow.”
“Yeah.”
“If being with Shep didn’t scare you away, you must care about Cinder.”
More like an entertaining distraction. “She’s a good time. Almost too much.”
“You can’t fall in love with her.”
Turning, Venom stares with wide eyes. “What?”
“Sex is never too much when you’re in love with someone or can love them. It’s actually never enough.”
Damn it, Lex. “It’s good, don’t get me wrong.”
“But it lacks connection. It’s only physical, which works as you try and heal your heart, but it’s always coming up short. You get off, but you’re not completely satisfied.”
“How the fuck do you do that?”
Laughing, she downs the rest of her wine. “Because I’ve been there.”
“So, you think I should give Marnie another chance?”
“Do you?”
“You think I should write her off.”
She shakes her head. “I didn’t say that.”
“What are you saying?”
“Nothing.”
Growling, he chugs his beer. “Frustrating woman.”
“Pretty sure that’d be my Native American name if I was ever given one,” Lex says with a laugh. “I know what you should do, and I know what you have to do right now. Telling you won’t make it your decision, and you have to be ready to make it.”
“I wish I knew what I wanted to do. As much as I want to follow my heart, I can’t unhear the things she said with her dad. How she made me feel when she didn’t want it to be real.”
Squeezing his hand, she rests her head on his shoulder. “Eventually, a decision will scream in your head so loudly that you can’t hear anything else. That’s when you’ll know you’re ready to make it.”
He rubs his hand over his face and leans forward, forcing her to release him. “I’m fucked.”
“Sounds like Cinder has that pretty well covered,” she jokes as Colt steps through the sliding door. “Hey, baby. You’re home early.”
“Surprised the hell out of the kids. Why is the best place to fuck her in the backseat of her car in my driveway?”
Lex’s jaw drops, and even Venom’s surprised by his nonchalant response. “You know?”
“I’ve known for a while. I figured we were just not talking about it until I caught them.”
“I’m gonna go and let you deal with that,” Venom says. “Thanks for the beer. I’d say thanks for the advice, but you gave me none. So… bye.”
Laughing, Lex slaps his leg as he stands. “You know what you need to do. You don’t need me to tell you, bud. When you’re ready, it’ll happen.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he says and walks out through the house to find Gavin and Hailey standing against her car.
“Venom, hey,” Gavin says.
“Might wanna get out of here. Colt knows,” he tells the Prospect. “Just warning you.”
It makes him smile when the younger man kisses his girl quickly and hops on his bike, peeling away as quickly as possible. Maybe the night wasn’t a total bummer.