30. Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Trix
"Is it true we finally have a woman joining us at the clubhouse long-term?" Luxe asks, as he sits down at the bar with a bag of chips in his hand.
"Nope."
Grabbing a chilled beer, I uncap it, then slide it over to him.
Frowning, he gulps half the beer down.
"So, you're not staying here?"
I sigh, running the damp cloth over the bar's surface, cleaning the sticky mess Chad left behind.
"I am staying here, yes. Not long term though," I tell him. "Just until I can figure something else out."
His eyes run over my face, and his lips thin.
"You're not thinking of going back, are you?"
My eyes flick over his shoulder to where Reeve is sitting in the corner booth with Ghost beside him, whispering to each other while hunched over a tablet.
Gaze drifting back to Luxe, I shake my head.
"No, I definitely won't be going back. I won't make the same mistake again, even if I get word that my dad's disappeared again."
He watches me for a moment before nodding.
"Okay, good. I don't want to see you hurt again."
My lips tilt up, and I playfully swat his arm with the cloth.
"Sounds like you care about me, Luxe."
"I do," he replies instantly, with no hesitation. "We all do."
My brows draw down.
"As soon as you started working here, you became one of us," he says.
"Everyone here speaks highly of you, Trixie.
You helped out by taking a load off of Honey's shoulders.
You never once judged us for who we are, or the life we live, and we respect that.
You've also made a huge difference when it comes to our grumpy Enforcer over there. "
Rolling my lips together, I find my eyes being drawn back to Reeve.
"He hasn't changed that much since I first came here," I mumble.
Luxe laughs, opening his bag of chips.
"You may not have noticed, but we have." He glances at Reeve before turning back to me. "He's a hell of a lot less snappy since you've been here. He's actively spoken to other members multiple times, and he's not as uptight as he used to be."
"He's right," Slate adds, plopping down into the seat beside Luxe. "I've never seen Reeve relax before you started coming around. Although, he's also more tense than ever. It's strange."
"You mean when it comes to Trix?" Luxe asks.
Slate nods.
"Man's like a guard dog, always watching her and assessing everyone around her to see if they're a threat toward her. He'll easily bite their head off too if they scare her or make her uncomfortable."
"Like the other day when Garrett was at the bar," Luxe says, nodding.
"Exactly. Or when Cruz suggested adding Trix into his rotation of women."
"Okay, firstly, ew. Secondly, I'm right here. Stop talking about me as if I'm not," I interrupt, shaking my head. "I also think you're both delusional."
They both chuckle.
"You don't believe us?" Slate asks.
"No. I know he's protective, but that's his job, isn't it?"
"With us, yeah," Luxe says. "With you, I think it's more him staking his claim on you."
Laughing, I shake my head.
"You're so wrong."
"Okay, let's put it to the test," Slate mutters, a crazed look of excitement taking over his face.
"How?"
He winks, hops off his stool, then slowly makes his way around the bar.
My chest tightens with every step he takes toward me.
He stops a couple of steps away, close, but not too close.
"There's still plenty of space between us, and he's already burning a hole into the side of my head," he whispers.
I go to turn my head to look in Reeve's direction, but Slate's hand darts out, grabs my chin and keeps it in place.
"Don't look. Just wait."
I peek at Luxe, who's still sitting at the bar, watching everything that's happening with a smile on his face.
Slate takes a step closer, and almost instantly, I hear loud footsteps echoing off the wooden floor.
"What's going on?" Reeve bites out, leaning over the bar.
Slate removes his hand from my face, winks at me again, then looks at Reeve.
"Just proving a point to Trixie," he says, shrugging.
Reeve's eyes slice to mine, where he runs them over my body quickly, before they flick back to Slate's.
"And what point was that exactly?"
His hands are fisted on the bar, tattoos rippling as he squeezes his fingers together.
"Nothing." Slate shrugs and immediately moves away from me, Luxe following after him.
Gulping, I look away from Reeve before his eyes can connect with mine, busying myself with cleaning some dirty glasses on the side.
"Are you okay?" he asks, still leaning over the bar, his eyes pinned on me, heating my skin.
I nod, intently focusing on the glass in my hand.
"Was he bothering you?"
I shake my head.
He taps his knuckles against the bar and sighs.
"Alright, well, make sure you let me know if anyone does."
Before he can turn around and walk away, I look at him.
"Why?" I ask.
He pauses, mouth opening and closing a couple of times as if he's taking the time to choose the right words.
"Because I don't want anyone making you uncomfortable here."
I hum, watching as his eyes dart between my own.
Maybe Slate and Luxe were right.
I'm positive the attraction toward each other is mutual, and I think Reeve is just as affected by the cuddling last night as I was.
My cheeks burn at the thought, and my teeth sink into my bottom lip.
Tucking my hair behind my ear, I clear my throat.
"I'm going to get a snack," I say as I excuse myself, then walk out from behind the bar and into the kitchen.
Pulling my phone from my pocket, I bring up my text thread with Emery and start typing a message, but halfway through, I stop and frown at the screen.
I can't ask her for advice on the situation, because then she'll have questions, and I'd have to admit I'm no longer at the trailer park.
Sighing, I slide my phone back into my shorts.
I guess I'll just have to figure out whether Reeve's actually interested in me on my own.
A smirk crosses my face as a thought pops into my mind.
I think I have a plan.
After cleaning the whole place, warning the guys still in the bar not to make a mess, and then loading the dishwasher, I head to Reeve's room.
When I reach the door, I pause, shuffling from one foot to the other.
I'm unsure what to do.
Do I knock, or do I just walk in?
After thinking it over for a few moments, I choose to knock.
It's not my room, and I don't want to interrupt anything.
Within seconds, he pulls it open, frowning when he sees me.
"Why are you knocking?"
Rolling my lips together, I shrug.
"I didn't want to just walk in, in case you were busy or indecent."
A smile tugs at his lips as he steps to the side, letting me walk in.
"You can walk in any time, Red. You don't have to knock. This is your space now too." His phone chimes in his hand, and he glances down at it with furrowed brows. "I need to step out for a little bit. Are you going to be okay?"
I nod. "Yeah, just gonna shower and then get into bed."
His eyes rake over me, his tongue swiping across his lips as he does so.
"Okay," he mutters, leisurely dragging his gaze back up to mine. "I'll be back in about fifteen minutes."
He walks out and closes the door behind him. I immediately jump into action, opening my duffel bag and rifling through the clothes shoved inside.
When I find the silky black nightdress brush against my fingers, I grab a hold of it and rip it free, tucking it against my chest.
Zipping the bag back up and tossing it to the side, I rush into the bathroom and strip out of my clothes, then turn the water on.
We're obviously sleeping in the same bed again tonight, and I'm happy to have another cuddling session, which I'm hoping Reeve won't be opposed to.
Wearing the silky, tight nightdress might be going a bit far, but I want to know for sure if Reeve's experiencing any of the same feelings as I am.
Fortunately for me, and every other girl on the planet, it's usually quite easy to find out if a man is sexually attracted to you, and I plan to put it to the test tonight.