Chapter 35 - Ginger
Ginger
The bar is packed, bodies pressed shoulder to shoulder as I elbow my way through the crowd. It takes a minute, but I finally squeeze into a spot and flag down Hudson, who’s busy shaking something neon and dangerous looking for a woman wearing a ‘Bride’ sash across her body.
He catches my eye and grins, tipping his chin up like, I see you, before sliding a pink drink across the bar and making his way toward me.
“What can I get you?” he asks, drying his hands on a towel slung over his shoulder.
“I’ll take something ridiculous,” I say with a smirk, hoping to drown out Natalie’s words with booze. “Something bright, too sweet, and embarrassingly girly.”
Hudson chuckles, already reaching for a bottle. “That kind of night, huh?”
“Absolutely.”
He lines up a shot glass, pours in something suspiciously pink and fizzy, and finishes it with a swirl of whipped cream. He douses it in a mixture of rainbow sprinkles and edible glitter before sliding it across to me.
“What’s this one called?” I ask, eyeing the whipped cream mountain.
Hudson grins. “That’s a Unicorn Sneeze. Don’t ask what’s in it.”
I raise a brow. “Why not?”
“Because if I told you, you’d never drink it.” He winks. “Just trust the chaos.”
“Fair enough.” I laugh and take the shot, whipped cream and all. It’s a sugar bomb, ridiculous just like I asked, and strong enough to warm me straight through.
“Also,” I add, licking a smear of cream from my lip, “I need a round for the table. I’ll grab them on my way back from the bathroom, if that’s okay?”
“You got it.”
I nod, still recovering from the sweetness of the shot, when someone slides into the spot next to me. Tall, dark, too confident.
“Damn,” he says, leaning in close enough for the scent of aftershave to hit me. “That shot looked like it was almost as sweet as you.”
His hand drifts toward my hair, brushing the ends before ghosting a fingertip down my bare arm like we’re old friends. “What’s your name, gorgeous?”
I freeze. He’s got a voice like gravel and the kind of smirk that says he’s used to hearing yes. And even though I have zero interest, a flicker in me sparks at the attention. I’ve had twins, my body isn’t what it used to be, and I don’t get looked at like that anymore—well, not usually.
Before I can even respond, a low voice comes from right behind me.
“She’s got a name.” He steps forward. “And she’s not interested.”
The guy turns, sizing Hutch up, then thinks better of it. He mutters something and stands up, melting into the crowd.
Hutch takes another step, one arm caging me in against the bar, the heat of him steady and sure.
He leans in, voice low and full of smug heat. “Didn’t know we were letting just anyone put their hands on you.”
“Little possessive, isn’t it?”
He lifts a brow. “Didn’t hear you complaining.”
“Hmm,” I hum, eyes flicking back to the crowd like there might be something more interesting than this conversation.
His gaze sharpens. Dark, steady—like he’s marking every inch of me without a word. No grin, that slow, quiet warning: he’s already staking his claim, ready to replace every thought of that guy.
That heat between us, that silent, dangerous fire, it’s exactly what we do. And fuck, I love it.
I flash a sly smile, barely leaning in. “I dunno… Maybe I should’ve heard him out.”
His jaw tightens, a flicker of something dangerous sparking in his eyes.
I push off the bar, heart pounding, and start toward the bathroom, daring him to follow.
My blood ignites and I beeline for the bathroom, heart racing and skin tingling.
I hear him just before I swing the door open to the bathroom, voice low, curling around my spine, enough edge to it that I need to see the expression that matches that tone.
I don’t need it. I crave it.
“Ginger.”
I whirl around, arousal and anticipation lighting a fire in my veins. “What?”
Beneath the flash of anger in his eyes, heat simmers. Something wild, dark. Dark enough and dangerous enough that it burns a hole right through me.
God, I’m a sucker for his control. But at this moment, I want him to lose it.
I want to push him until he feels as out of control with this stupid, hot, aching need that I do.
Goddamn him for being so fucking composed all the time.
So carefree, so good at holding back when all I want him to do is break.
Break for me.
Break me.
I cross my arms across my chest, tilt my head, and bite my lip. “You jealous, Hutch?”
Three long strides have him towering over me, even in heels. His voice drops, deliberate, dangerous in the best way. “You’re goddamn right I’m jealous. I’m the only one who gets to touch you like that.”
From the set of his jaw and the posture he took, I could tell that I was one step away from the best kind of punishment, and I couldn’t help but push.
I narrow my eyes at him, incensed that he can read me so easily. “Screw you, Hutch.”
I try to spin away, but he grabs my wrist, hauling me against him.
A startled gasp leaves my throat, my body lighting up.
All I smell is cedar and woodsmoke and the light tang of beer on his breath when he leans in, running his nose along mine. “Oh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you, filthy girl?”
I struggle to free my wrist, but he raises his other hand and wraps it around the front of my throat, pushing me backward until my back hits the closed bathroom door.
He brings his knee up, pushing between my legs, forcing them open as he delves his tongue against my mouth.
I turn my head to the side to bait him, but when his knee hits the fabric covering my clit under my dress, I whimper and open for him.
He tongue fucks my mouth relentlessly as I grind on his knee, the opening riff of Thunderstruck by AC/DC drifting into the hallway from the main bar.
Keeping our mouths fused, fingers still squeezing my throat, he turns the knob on the door behind me.
I stumble back, but he keeps me upright before shoving me inside and slamming the door behind him. The lock clicking into place is like a delicious sealing of my fate.
Then he’s turning us, pressing me against the door, making me shiver and whine like a needy whore.
And that’s what I am. So fucking needy and desperate to push him to his breaking point.
He lunges for my mouth again, kissing me hard before pulling back.
Heart racing, chest heaving, lips swollen from his rough kiss and the stubble on his jaw, I try to suck in a breath. My clit aches and I’m dying for him to fuck me. Dying for him pin me by the throat and fuck me until my vision swims and my limbs feel light and tingly.
He leans in, pressing his lips to my ear and biting out three little words.
Three little words that will be my undoing.