Chapter 12
Fuck. Me. I needed to get laid. Now.
It was at my fingertips, the bar full of girls, many giving me clear indication they would be more than willing. But I couldn’t seem to keep my attention off the one in front of me, no matter how much I wanted or pretended. And shit if I hadn’t almost kissed her earlier. I blame the adrenaline pumping through my veins, being caught in the moment. Looking at her lick the salt off her lip, my dick was still as interested as it was when she had been pressed into me, flying through the air.
No. This one you can’t touch.
Not even a little. I had ruthlessly learned not to mix friends, relationships, and business—a lesson still tarnishing my life. My life was beyond a mess, twisted and convoluted. I could barely see through the muck. I was only designed to have someone for a night. No strings attached. Kinsley Maxwell came with a web of strings. And a rope her brother would hang me on.
All because I let people in. Which taught me not to care again. To ever fall in love.
A flare of anger and resentment burned up my spine. Fuck them. They destroyed my life. Took everything. Even my father. Now I had nothing except guilt, hate, and bitterness.
“Another!” Kinsley shoved a shot glass into my hand filled with tequila, drawing me out of my punishing memories with a snap, her smile waving off the darkness like a wand. She bounced on her toes, her high from the jump earlier still buzzing at full speed, the grin not leaving her face. Her brightness eased my chest, lightened the darkness as I watched her bubble with energy.
Damn, she was sexy.
I grunted, shoving the thought from my head, looking over at a group of girls loitering close to me.
It was her idea to go to a local bar when we arrived in Santa Fe, needing to release the high rushing through her blood. She practically skipped to the pub down the street from our RV park. Goat left with treats and his toy, happily spread over her bed like a king.
Shooting the liquor down, my forehead crunched at the burn sliding down my throat. The dive bar was packed, thrumming with energy, music, and horny coeds. The lights were low, disguising the seediness of the place, but it still coiled in the air, whispering in your ear to let the sordidness and dirtiness take over. The night felt electrical, the heat adding to the sinful need.
A small pool/darts section was set up in the back, but some girls had turned the little space between there and the bar into a dance floor, jiggling their barely dressed figures, trails of glistening sweat trickling down their forms.
“Two more doubles.” Kinsley leaned over the bar, her tank tightening around her breasts, her smile flirty as she spoke to the bartender.
“Sure thing, sweetheart.” He winked at her, causing a growl to flood my throat. His eyes snapped to me, his sexy grin vanishing, his demeanor stiffening so fast it almost made me laugh.
Yeah, that’s right, buddy. Off limits.
Feeling Kinsley stare, my attention jumped to her. Her lids narrowed, her arms crossed, an eyebrow lifted.
“What?” Except I knew what.
She tipped her head the opposite way. She was good at looking threatening, but damn if it didn’t make her look even hotter. Her legs were long and sculpted in those barely there shorts, her pert breasts snug in her backless black tank showing off the fact she wasn’t wearing a bra. Her long, silky, dark hair was pulled into a sleek ponytail. The impulse to sweep one hand over the bare skin, while the other wrapped in her hair, tugging it hard, twitched my fingers.
“Thought I was free to screw the next douchebag until my heart’s desire?”
Another wave of possessiveness stiffened my spine as I tried to hide my response.
“Him?” I motioned at the guy grabbing the tequila bottle for our order. “That’s the one you choose?”
“Why do I have to choose one?” She tipped one shoulder, grinning cheekily, turning back to the bar. “This place is full of possible one-night stands.”
Extreme jealousy slinked up my back, curling around my shoulders, making me grit my teeth.
The bartender poured two more doubles and quickly moved to the next patron, not even giving Kins a second glance.
She frowned.
I smirked.
“Well, cheers to you throwing yourself off a bridge.” I held up the glass at her. “Next, we’ll try skydiving.”
I expected her to refute my challenge, but she grinned, holding up her cup to mine.
“Bring it.” She knocked it against my glass and downed hers, my gaze stroking over her mouth and down her throat.
I shook my head, looking away from her as I drank mine. The third double shot was starting to warm up my muscles, but Kinsley’s eyes were starting to gloss, her cheeks reddening, her smile huge, hips swinging sexually to the music, sending a tightness into my chest and my pants.
“Hey,” I yelled over at another bartender who had moved to our side. A pretty girl with a figure I usually gravitated toward smiled seductively the moment her eyes landed on me.
“What can I get you, sexy?” She sauntered up, leaning on the bar to hear me better.
“A bourbon.” The side of my mouth hitched.
“Anything else?” She eyed me intently. I was no stranger to women hitting on me, but I had been out of the game for a while.
“One for me as well.” Kinsley’s slim body slid over, worming slightly in front of me, the curve of her ass bumping into my dick.
Jesus.
Kinsley tipped her head slightly, staring at the girl. She wasn’t being catty, but you could still feel the challenge hanging between them.
What the hell?
Like the male bartender, the girl’s inviting smile dropped away, her gaze going between us before she nodded, turning to pour our order. She dropped the glasses on the bar and took the money without looking at me again.
A smug grin ghosted Kinsley’s face as she scooped up her drink and took a sip.
“Ah.” I chuckled. “Getting back at me?”
With her drink poised at her lips, something flicked over her face too fast for me to catch. Her head dipped. “Yep.” She took another drink, not meeting my eyes. “You cock-blocked me twice now. Only fair.”
“Is that right?” My voice went lower than I meant it to. Our bodies so close, my neck craned to peer down at her, the heat of her skin brushing against mine. Against my demands, warnings, and advisement, my dick reacted on its own, pushing painfully against my jeans. Not giving a shit about what was right or wrong. Probably made her more desirable.
Her gaze dropped for a moment, her throat swallowing roughly, giving no doubt she noticed. The pulse in her neck fluttered against her damp skin, making my cock jump again, liking her attention far too much. The rush of desire moved me toward her, like a child running for his mommy.
“Uh.” My throat hitched, my thumb automatically pointing back. “You want to play pool? Or darts?”
She blinked at me.
I turned before she could respond, needing to put space between us. I scanned the crowd for another choice as I moved, hoping some girl would pique my interest like the one behind me. Anyone would do… It just couldn’t be her. Pretty faces and figures swam in my view, but my gaze didn’t land on one in particular. Sadly, it didn’t matter. Tonight, I had to go with one of them. Give them the best night of their life, and let my body have what it’s wanted for so long. Anything to stop the need pulsing inside my boxer-briefs. It had been a while, and being in close proximity to Kinsley had put her at the top of the list. That was the only reason. Any woman I was spending time with would have me feeling like this.
Would you feel the same if it were Kasey here instead?
I tried to imagine her in Kinsley’s place. I had seen recent pictures of her on Kyle’s Facebook page. She hadn’t changed much, still beautiful, still very much in shape, with a huge smile.
Her sensual smile and batting lashes flooded my head, the memory of her in her nightgown, finding me in the hallway one time as I exited the bathroom. She was coy, twisting my shirt, talking in a slight baby voice, like I would find that sexier.
Granted at seventeen, I found anything sexy, and she was without a doubt. But something always held me back from pursuing her. It wasn’t because I found her slightly boring and far too controlling. It was because I knew she liked the game—the teasing, the getting me hot and wanting me running after her. She was used to boys falling at her feet and didn’t like that I wasn’t.
I enjoyed women too much to settle then, loving all their attention on me. Who wouldn’t? We never officially dated, but she told everyone we were. Got me to take her to the prom. The night in my car…
My feet almost stumbled as the memory of Kasey’s beautiful face and young body straddling mine in the driver’s seat as we fumbled and took what we wanted—but then the image turned into another person—and this time it was an RV, and not my pickup truck. Her dark hair wrapped in my hand, her head back in utter pleasure, riding me.
Heat filled my gut, swirling around the alcohol, slipping and sliding over my skin. The heady music played from the jukebox and hummed through my veins.
Stop, Smith. You can’t think of her that way. It’s wrong. Not with your past and present situations.
Kasey had already messaged me, saying how excited she was to see me and pick up where we left off. Thanks again to Kyle… She must have gotten my number from him. There was no mistaking her intent. She was never one to be sly. She was direct in what she wanted, and she pursued it with the same determination. And all I needed was another Maxwell sister to set upon me with that kind of resolve. I really was a dick.
Locking down my thoughts and feelings, I strolled to the pool table, almost tossing the sticks on the table.
“You’ve played?” I barked.
“It’s been a while.” Her brows furrowed, sensing my shift in demeanor. Anger at myself and her moved me like a beast around the table as I racked the balls.
“Ask if you need help.” I chalked my tip, not looking at her. “You can go first.”
She was silent long enough to pull up my gaze. Her narrowed eyes were on me.
“What?”
“Nothing.” She grabbed a stick, chalking it. “Why don’t you break?”
“You sure?”
“Yep.” She kept her expression blank. “I’ll watch and learn.” Her voice was slightly strange, but I shrugged, taking point on the cue ball, drawing back my stick; the sound of cracking clapped in the air, a striped ball sinking into the corner.
“You’re solids.” I relocated to get a good shot on another striped one.
“Am I?” Her light tone craned my head back to her. Her face was still empty. I turned back, dropping another one, my third ball missing the pocket.
“You’re up.” I leaned against the table, pulling my stick in close to me.
“Hmmm.” She tapped at her lip. “It’s been so long. I kind of forgot.” She gripped the stick wrong, bending over the table. My gaze darted to the handful of guys hovering close to the table, their eyes locked on her ass.
I stood to my full height, glaring at the group, but they were too drunk to notice.
“Anything for you two?” A waitress stopped by.
“Fuck, yes,” I growled.
“Six tequila shots.” Kinsley popped up, her cheeks already rosy from the heat and alcohol.
“And a bourbon,” I grumbled.
The server nodded, heading to the bar.
“Let’s make this interesting.” Kinsley looked up.
As if the girl was gravity, pulling me into her orbit, I stepped closer to her. “Interesting, huh?”
“A shot for every one you miss.”
“Okay.” I narrowed my eyes on her. That sounded too easy. “You aren’t playing me?”
“I’ve played this game maybe a couple of times. I’m awful.”
“Then you sure you want to do this?”
“Gonna drink them anyway.”
“Okay…” I lifted one shoulder, noticing we seemed to have gotten closer, her knee brushing against my jeans. “Then let’s make this even more interesting. The winner gets the bed.”
Her eyes flashed, a moment of panic hinting at the edges of her dark eyes. Her cheeks pinkening, her teeth biting into her bottom lip. Her head finally nodded in agreement. “Fine.”
My back would love a night on an actual mattress.
The waitress came by with our drinks, lining them up on the sill next to the table.
Kinsley folded herself over the table, and I moved to the other side so I wouldn’t stare at her like the other douchebags in the corner.
Fumbling, her stick scuffed the table, not hitting the ball. She frowned, biting her lip again.
“Try again.” I motioned to the table.
“You sure?”
Nodding, I watched her set herself up again. Her angles were all wrong, her hold too stiff. Her stick crashed against the cue ball, bouncing it off the table. I reached over and grabbed it.
“Oops.” She picked up a tequila shot, downing it. She tried again and failed.
Shit. The way she was going, she’d be drinking them all in minutes.
“You just need to loosen your hold and hit the cue ball to direct your ball. You can’t hit the cue ball as if that’s the one you want in. Most likely the angle will be wrong when it hits the actual ball.”
She stared at the table for a moment, then at the shots. “Can you help me?”
Oxygen sealed back in my throat. Me being anywhere near her was a bad idea.
“Yeah. Sure,” I said, ignoring the alarms in my fuzzy head. I downed what was left of my first bourbon, setting the glass down and heading to her, stopping at her side.
“Bend over… Spread your legs.” My voice went low and gruff. Demanding. Holy fuck. Every word from me sounded bad…a phrase that had come out of my mouth before, but in a totally different setting.
She sucked in, her skin flushing a deeper shade.
I was about to mutter an explanation, but instead I watched her do what I asked. Fucking. Hell.
I guzzled my fresh bourbon, trying to shove out every bad, twisted thought in my head. I didn’t trust myself to move any closer to her, feeling my cock wanting to take her right here. Hear her cry out.
She held the stick, pointing it at a ball.
“Loosen your grip.” I tapped her arm.
She tried, but still the angle was all wrong, putting the 8-ball into a pocket.
She scowled, frustration lining her brow.
“Pretend that didn’t happen.” I tugged out the ball, putting it back in place. “You’re hitting it wrong.”
“Then how?” She sighed in defeat. “Show me.”
My need to be near her to do what she asked overrode every warning, every intelligent reason not to.
I came around her, my hands going to her hips. “Lean over.” My mouth brushed against her ear. She shivered, swallowing hard. She bent forward, pushing into my cock.
A slight dizziness spun my head as the rough fabrics of our clothes rubbed against me, almost making me groan. She felt so good… and my dick became so needy for her, for more. I gripped the ledge of the table, trying to keep myself from acting on it.
“Like this?” Her voice croaked, her hold on the stick too loose now.
“No.” I pressed fully into her, all the voices yelling at me to stop were currently being ignored. We weren’t doing anything bad, right? Just showing her how to play pool. Innocent. Right?
My brain fell off his chair laughing at me as our forms pressed together, her back arching slightly. There was certainly nothing innocent about what I was thinking right now.
My arms sliding over hers, I moved her arm in position, moving the stick back and forth until I felt she got a better understanding, then I shot it forward, the ball knocking into the one she wanted. It still missed, but only by a hair.
Her head curved, glancing back at me. “Better.”
I stared at her, feeling the chemistry crackle, our mouths only a breath a part. Very slightly, her ass pressed back into me, raking desire down my nerves. Claws burst into my chest and clapped down on my lungs, spearing hunger through my groin. I didn’t care about anyone around us, everything a blurry humming… I could fuck her right here.
“I think I got it now.” She gulped, her body pressing back again.
It took a moment for her words to sink in, to realize I was still on her like a second skin, and she was nudging me back. “Oh.” I jerked back, stepping away. “Good.”
She stood up, her eyes not meeting mine. She grabbed another tequila shot.
“Maybe not drink one every time you miss a shot?”
“A deal is a deal.” She downed the single shot.
I stepped back up to the table, clearing it in a matter of minutes.
“Another game?” she slurred.
“I don’t think so.”
“Come on. Double or nothing.” She waved as the server neared us. “Another round of shots. But make them doubles.”
“Oh, hell no.” I shook my head at the waitress. Kinsley was already drunk. “I do not want to hold your hair again.”
“You’re backing out of a bet?” she challenged me.
“Back out? I won.” I clapped my hands together. “Bed’s mine. Get ready for a night on the lumpy ground with the bugs and snakes.”
She snarled at me, putting her hand on her hip. “Bed for the rest of the week.”
“What?” My mouth dropped. “You really want to sleep on the ground that bad? You could have asked.”
“Double shots,” she told the waitress.
The blonde looked between us, shook her head, and headed for the bar.
“Okay, but remember when a rock is stabbing into your spine and a spider is crawling over your face… you chose this.”
“Be an adventure, right?”
“Sure.” I racked the balls, setting up the table. “You break this time?”
“Okay.” Her footing was unsteady as she went to the end of the table. I tossed down a large bill on the tray as the server dropped off our drinks.
“Thanks.” The waitress winked at me, then trotted off.
“You ready for this?” I motioned to all the double shots. Neither of us needed them, but we were at the stage we thought we could handle it. I usually felt differently the next day. Bourbon or beer was my drink. Tequila was not a drink I should have been consuming around Kinsley.
She swayed as she leaned over. I laughed. The girl was bad sober; if she thought seeing double the balls would help her aim…
Crack.
The balls spread out across the table like an explosion. A striped ball fell in a side pocket.
“You’re solids.” She rose, giving me a patronizing wink before shifting down the table.
Crack.
Two more stripes went into pockets.
I blinked.
“Twelve in right pocket.” She pointed with her stick before she got down, her shot landing that very ball in the hole.
“What the fuck?”
Her demeanor totally shifted. The unsure girl was gone, she slid around the pool table like liquid, every ball going in.
“You said you only played a couple times… that it had been a while?”
“It has been.” She smirked at me. “At least a month. And I meant a couple times that night.”
My jaw dropped. “You played me?”
“Oh, that’s a bit harsh.” She dropped another ball before prowling over to my side, her sandals hitting my boots, her head craning back. “You seemed eager to play the misogynistic stereotype… and I let you.”
“You. Fucking. Played. Me.”
“Don’t feel bad.” She grinned, patting my arm. “You’re not the first.”
I noticed she was no longer slurring or swaying. She had tossed out the bait, and I had totally gobbled it up.
I should have been mad, but her audacity had a grin tugging on my lips. A chuckle bumped up from my chest as my hand ran over my head.
“Did you forget my brother had his own pool table down in the basement?” She dropped another stripe in the pocket.
The Maxwell’s had a full game/media room in the basement, which I wanted to move into. It was heaven compared to my house.
“Yeah.” I folded my arms, awed in watching her move. Her confidence had my full attention again. Especially my lower half. “We played all the time. And if I remember you acted like you hated the game. Rolled your eyes every time you came down, irritated you couldn’t watch one of your movies.”
“I was irritated, especially when you were there interrupting my movie time. Doesn’t mean I didn’t know how to play. Kyle taught me since no one else in the house would play with him.” She went in for her last shot, the 8-ball in a difficult position. With an ease that popped my eyes, the last ball went in. She stood, tipping up her eyebrow. “Taught me everything I know. Especially how to con easy prey. Now…” She went to the four double shots of tequila, gesturing to them like a game show. “You ready for this?” she mocked.
Another gruff laugh came from me; rubbing my scruff, my eyes latched on to her. Little Kinsley Maxwell totally played me… and it completely turned me on.
I looked at the liquor then back at her, my inhibitions already crumbling into dust. All the logic and reason why I couldn’t touch her slipping from my head.
I should have said no. That she won and that would be the end.
Instead, I stepped up, my fingers wrapping around the tall shot glass. Fuck it.
I took them one right after another, knowing perfectly well I would have no fight in me left. And yet, I didn’t seem to care.
I was so fucked.
And for the first time ever, I hoped it wasn’t in the good way.