Betting on the Bad Boy (Bad Boys of Newbridge #1)
1. Faith
CHAPTER 1
Faith
I could have played it either way: waltz into the library like I owned the place, or go in full incognito. I'd always sucked at dancing, so I stood in front of the self-checkout in a bulky sweatshirt and dark shades, with a LA Dodgers baseball cap tugged low over my eyes. Hopefully, I'd find something in one of the books to inspire the final sexcapade in my manuscript before submitting it to my agent.
Receipt in hand, I pushed through the heavy glass doors into the unseasonably blustery September afternoon. As soon as I stepped outside, a gust of wind ripped my hat off, and I rushed to snag it. The hat bounced along the sidewalk, and I lunged as it tumbled toward rush hour traffic.
I grasped the brim, my sunglasses slipped, and the books fell out of my arms, scattering across the sidewalk. I snatched Cunnilingus: An Oral History and Love Knots: A Beginner's Guide to BDSM and tucked them under my arm. The last book sat open on the pavement two feet away. Before I could reach it, a large hand closed around the spine.
Six-plus feet of prime male crowded the sidewalk in front of me in suit pants, polished dress shoes, and a hint of a five o'clock shadow. His starched white oxford had the top few buttons undone, revealing a tight white t-shirt underneath.
My heart flip-flopped in my chest as his fingers casually flipped through the pages of The Illustrated Kinky Kama Sutra .
"Whoa, I didn't know the library had books like this," he said, his deep, husky tone vibrating through me.
I held out a shaky hand. "It's for a class I'm teaching."
His lips quirked into a crooked smile, and he let out a deep laugh. "Sounds like I took the wrong classes."
His laughter rolled over me, making my stomach clench. I hadn't made a man laugh in a long time. Would it be completely out of line if I pressed my palm to his chest so I could feel the vibration ripple through him? I fisted my hand instead.
He pushed his glasses up on his nose, drawing my attention to his teasing blue-green eyes. "What class is it?"
The bones in my legs turned to jelly under his probing stare. I stumbled forward, convinced I'd end up splayed across the sidewalk.
His hand flew out, catching me by the elbow. "Careful there."
Even through the thick jersey knit of my sweatshirt, I could feel the pressure from his fingers. Dammit, I should have just googled the info I needed, although last time I'd done that, my laptop had been infected with a slew of viruses.
"Thanks. Sorry, I'm not usually quite this clumsy. The class is women's studies," I lied. "Can I have my book back?"
He held it out, pointing at an illustration on the open page. "You should check out the Lotus Blossom. It's one of my favorites."
My eyes widened, and I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. The sound of brakes squealing to a stop next to me pulled me out of my stupor. I snatched the book out of his hands, snapped it closed, and stuffed it into my backpack. "I've got to catch my bus."
I brushed past him and took off down the sidewalk.
"Hey, wait!" His voice pulled at me as I flung myself through the doors to the city bus.
The doors whooshed closed behind me while I stumbled down the aisle and slid into a window seat. As the bus rumbled past, he lifted his hand in a wave. Pulling my hat even lower on my head, I hunkered down in my seat, my cheeks on fire.
I should have known better than to go to the library, even the cavernous downtown branch. But I'd promised my next manuscript to my agent in less than a week, and I had to do something to get past my debilitating case of writer's block.
Hopefully, the books would help. Next time, if I wanted to keep my side gig a secret, I'd have to be more careful.
The bus wound through crowded downtown Newbridge, Indiana. An hour from now, the streets would be deserted. A group of business owners and city officials had been trying to infuse the downtown district with nightlife over the past few years, but it hadn't paid off yet.
I glanced out the window as we passed a slew of warehouses that had been recently renovated into loft apartments and some trendy restaurants and bars that had popped up along the riverfront.
My cheeks still felt hot from my incompetent interaction with the suit on the street. I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the seat. Within minutes, my breathing stabilized, and my heart slowed down. That was too close of a call. I'd never seen the hottie from the sidewalk on campus, and he dressed much better than my colleagues, so he couldn't be a student or member of the staff.
But what was with the comment about the Lotus position? I made a mental note to check it out as soon as I got home. Not that I should waste any time or energy on a stranger. Especially a stranger with a searing gaze and a laugh that could literally make me fall flat on my face. No, I didn't have time for that.
I opened my eyes, pressed my nose against the glass for a final lingering moment, then turned my thoughts to all the prep work I had to fit in over the weekend.
My phone pinged with an incoming text alert.
Jess: You're going out w/ us tonight. Pick you up at 9.
Jess just wouldn't give up. She'd pestered me earlier in the week about going out with a couple of friends, but I kept putting her off. I was way behind on my lecture notes and needed to focus.
Me: Can't. 2 much 2 do. Have fun!
Before I tucked my phone away, Jess's response lit up the screen.
Jess: Robin's bday. 9pm be ready!
Nice touch. Of course, I'd have to go out if Jess made it all about birthday drinks.
Me: Fine. One hour!
Jess: We'll see about that!
I smiled to myself. Thank god for Jess and Robin. If left to my own devices, I'd probably only venture out of my apartment to travel the short distance back and forth to work.
We'd met at a happy hour hosted by the English Department a few years before. Someone had the bright idea to set up some party games so the three of us teamed up and spent all night holding onto the Pictionary champion title.
Now we all had real jobs—Jess and I as adjunct professors and Robin working at a local insurance company. I rarely joined them on their weekend excursions, but sometimes appreciated the distraction from my class prep and self-imposed writing deadlines. Unfortunately, tonight was not one of those nights.
The bus slowed to a stop on the corner by my complex and I filed off behind a handful of students. I'd lived in my apartment for just over a year, but still didn't recognize any of my neighbors.
Unfortunately, with a desire to live close to campus, I had to pick from the complexes that appealed to many of the undergrads. I kept to myself, avoiding the raging keggers and late-night parking lot parties that took place most weekends. Partying wasn't really my style. I'd rather spend my evenings getting my reading done or dreaming up steamy scenes for the erotic romance novels I penned.
I unlocked the apartment door and set down my backpack. Mr. Darcy wound around my legs then hopped onto the kitchen table. Nudging his head into my stomach, he prompted me to run a hand along his silky back.
"You're not supposed to be up here." I slid a hand underneath his belly and lifted him up so he could nuzzle the top of his head under my chin. He rumbled a purr of satisfaction, then leapt to the ground and sashayed over to the couch where he took up the never-ending task of grooming his unruly fur.
I tossed the baseball cap onto the counter and unzipped my bag. My hand closed around the books I'd picked up at the library. My interest was piqued about what exactly the Lotus Blossom entailed, so I flipped through the pages, past images of couples, trios, and entire groups of men and women engaged in various acts of pleasure.
As my gaze scanned over the intricate illustration of the position in question, warm tingles marched down my cheeks, flushed my neck, and made color bloom on my chest. The Lotus Blossom itself wasn't so shocking. I'd written about experiences much more risque than that.
But my breath hitched as I pictured the dark-haired, mass of man from the sidewalk and what he might look like sitting cross-legged and bare-assed underneath me.