Ten #2
“I know! You’ve finally quit nursing and you’re signing up to work the pole. I’ve told you, you would make a killing with those boobs.”
I growl out, “Over my dead fucking body.”
“So no to the stripper career? Oh, I’ve got it, you discovered Zac’s too much man for one woman, and you want me to be your sister wife.” She raises her eyebrows suggestively at Alyssa. “Just so you know, Lyssa, if there was anyone in the world I would be sister wives with, it would be you.”
I can feel Alyssa’s body tense. She’s fucking hot when she gets her green-eyed monster on.
Before she can say anything, Bray cuts in, “You’re not going to be her sister wife.
My brother doesn’t share well. Besides, a girl like you needs more than sharing a man.
You need one all for yourself. It’s going to be a tough job, but I’m up for the challenge.
” Bray turns his full smirk on to Reilly.
Huh, interesting. But right now, I don’t care about my brother trying to get laid.
I care about where I can get my hands on the fucker who hurt Alyssa.
Whispering in her ear so only she can hear, I say, “Baby, I’m going to step out the door, just for a minute. I will be right outside the door. Will you be okay here with your girls for a moment?”
Snuggling into my neck, I feel her breathe me in. I love when she does this, although I’m smart enough to not let on that I know that’s what she’s doing. I love that she takes comfort in me, in my body, in my hold, and even in my fucking smell.
“I’ll be fine. Stop worrying so much. It’s going to take more than a little slap to keep me down, Zac. I’m not some damsel in distress you have to babysit. If you have work to do, I can just go home with the girls and see you tomorrow, or whenever.”
Lifting her chin so her eyes are on me, I say, “You’re not going anywhere but my fucking bed tonight, sunshine. I will be right outside that fucking door.”
I kiss her, claiming her lips. I pull away far too soon for my liking, but the sooner I deal with this, the sooner I can take my woman home to bed.
Standing, I grunt out to Bray and Dean, “Out.” Pointing to the door, I lead the way out.
As soon as the door closes, I am on them. “What the fuck happened? How could you let some fucker get close enough to lay a fucking hand on her, let alone fucking hit her?”
I can feel my body fuming, vibrating with rage again.
Now that I don’t have Alyssa in my arms, I am an inferno of pure rage.
It’s almost like she’s a balm to my soul, calming me like nothing else can.
For a few minutes, in that office while I was holding her, I had forgotten how fucking angry I was.
“Bro, it was the fucking singer for Cyrus. Caitlyn gave the band fucking VIP passes again. We didn’t want to draw any attention, so we let them be.”
Bray looks pointedly at me. I know he’s right; we can’t draw unwanted attention from that band. There can’t be a link between their missing drummer and our club. I know they’ll never find his body, but we still don’t need that headache.
“That doesn’t answer how he got close to her,” I say, pointing to the door.
“He was dancing with Sarah. She was into it, so we left it alone. One of the other guys at the band’s table started talking shit about how their drummer was last seen here in the club and never left, started questioning where he was.
Bray and I went over to dig out what they knew.
” Dean shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair.
He’s frustrated—well, good, because I’m still fucking fuming.
“Look, man, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left her.
I didn’t think. I shouldn’t have left her. ”
“No, you fucking shouldn’t have. She should not be sitting in there with a fucking shiner. Where the fuck is this fucker now? I can’t wait to get my fucking hands on him.”
Bray looks at me with concern. “Zac, you can’t kill him.
You killed his brother last night. You think the band won’t start asking louder questions if their lead fucking singer went missing from this club right after their drummer?
” He paces, running his hands through the ends of his hair.
Stopping in front of me, he looks me square in the eye.
“Look, man, the guy had to be taken off in a fucking ambulance. The beating I just gave him… he’d have to be fucking stupid to show his face around here again. ”
“I know you’re right, but it doesn’t do anything to help the fact that I feel like I need to kill the fucker.
Fuck. Okay, you’re right. We don’t need anyone questioning the club in relation to missing fucking bodies.
” I pause and take a calming breath before I go back into the office to Alyssa.
I don’t want her to see me so worked up.
I need to be in control. I need her to see me as someone in control.
Walking in, I’m stunned at the scene that greets me: Alyssa and Reilly, drinks in hand, dancing around what I’m assuming is an imaginary pole.
Fuck me, this friend of hers is a dangerous influence. “If my girlfriend ever ends up on a real pole,
I will hunt you down, Reilly, and I won’t be kind just because you’re a girl.”
All four women gasp and stare at me with mouths wide open.
I raise an eyebrow in question at them, but they say nothing.
Turning my head to the guys for help on this one, I see Dean over in the far corner, texting someone.
Who the fuck he’s texting, god only knows.
Bray is staring at Reilly. I don’t know what’s going on with him there, but I’m not touching that one with a ten-foot pole.
Bray will break the girl’s heart if he goes near her, then Alyssa will be pissed at me, and I don’t want to have to choose sides between my brother and her.
It scares me to think Bray wouldn’t come out on the winning side.
“Okay, I give. What’d I say?” I ask the four women but staring directly at mine, at Alyssa.
She doesn’t say anything but runs towards me, jumping up into my arms. I brace myself at the very last moment, only stumbling back one step before she’s plastered herself to my body, slamming her lips down onto mine.
It doesn’t take me long to take control of the kiss.
I swipe my tongue along her lips, and she opens wide for me.
I take everything she willingly gives. This kiss is one of ownership, of me owning her, of her owning me.
In this kiss, we tell each other exactly what we don’t say with words.
Pulling back from the kiss, I smirk at Alyssa. “Sunshine, if that’s the kind of greeting I’m going to get every time I leave for five minutes, I might have to
find reasons to stand on the other side of the door more often.”
She smiles and leans her mouth down to my ear, so that only I can hear her reply. Although, looking at the smiles on her friends’ faces, I get the feeling they don’t need to hear for them to know exactly what’s gotten into their friend.
“That kiss isn’t because you left and came back, although if it means you’re always going to come back, I will gladly give you that kind of greeting kiss every time.
” She pauses and kisses just behind my ear briefly before continuing, “Sorry I get distracted by your… well, your everything. That kiss, that was because you just called me your girlfriend. Well, at least I think you did, you did, right? Oh god, if it was a slip of the tongue, we can totally just forget—” I cut her off, slamming my lips back onto hers.
A throat clears. “As hot as fuck as Lyssa is, it’s not so hot when she’s playing tonsil hockey with my fucking brother, my older brother, might I add. I’m out.” Turning, Bray pulls his trademark smirk on Alyssa’s friends. “Any of you lovely ladies need a ride? Home, that is?”
Not giving any of them a chance, I answer for them. “They all need a ride home, bro. I’m taking my girlfriend home to bed.” I take extra care to annunciate the word girlfriend, letting them all, especially Alyssa, fucking know that it was not a fucking slip of the tongue. She is mine.