Chapter 6

SIX

KYLE

I thoughtit was busy in the bar last night, but it doesn't hold a candle to tonight. I am swamped. There are men everywhere. They come and go, in the back, out to the floor, to the back again.

And they all want food and drinks, apparently. Doing whatever it is they're doing back there makes them hungry and thirsty. Even though they can go to the dance club in the back of the bar, this is the only place they can get drinks. Which means I'm their only waitress unless they are sitting at the bar, then Sal and another bartender work that area.

I am ecstatic.

The tips have been amazing.

Sal really hooked me up with this job. A complete stranger. I can't believe this is real life. I want to pinch myself. If I had time, I might do just that, but these men keep me busy as I run back and forth to the bar.

Thankfully, most of them just order bottled beer or something from the kitchen, which is easy enough.

I don't know if it's a small-town thing or just a Pineville thing, but these men really tip amazingly. I don't know how many apartments are here yet, but if every night is like this, I'll be in my own place soon. Really damn soon.

The night goes on, and it only begins to die down about an hour before closing. Then Sal finally closes down, and I start to help him clean up. The bartender, Dennis, Sal, and I start chatting about the evening. It seemed really calm for as many people as there were in the building, which intrigues me.

Once I'm finished flipping the chairs to the tabletops and sweeping the floors, a group of ten girls appears from the hallway. I see Bren among them. She lifts her hand and waves, calling out my name.

The girls almost move as a single unit, making their way toward me. Bren introduces me to all of them. They are all gorgeous with full faces of makeup, their hair up in varying messy buns, and wearing comfortable-looking clothes.

"You're gorgeous," one of them states, lifting her hand and pointing at me.

"No," Sal shouts from the other side of the bar. We all swing our heads to look at him. "Kyle stays in the bar. I need someone to work the floor, and she's great, the best I've ever had. She doesn't go to the back, not ever."

Bren's eyes widen, and she swings her gaze back to meet mine, but then her lips curve up into a grin. "Did you make some good money tonight?" she asks.

"More than I made when I did try to strip once," I state. "It was bad."

"Then that's all that matters," she says. I watch as she turns her head to look back over to Sal. "We won't recruit her, then, Sal. You're safe."

Bren and the other girls laugh, but Sal just lifts his hand and waves them off. "One of the Dark Horse guys has his eyes set on Kyle. It's not me you have to worry about if you try to recruit her."

Walking behind the bar, I gather my belt bag and wave to Sal as I throw it on over my shoulder, then head out of the bar. The other girls are close behind me, but they're whispering amongst one another, and I turn around to face them.

"What?" I ask.

"A Dark Horse guy?" Bren asks.

"I don't know him. I just met him today. Sal seems to think he's into me or something," I explain with a shrug, trying to act nonchalant. "But I'm not looking to date right now," I quickly add.

One of the other girls snorts behind me. I think she said her name was Missy. "Babe," she calls out, "those guys don't care if you're looking to date or not. They take what they want when they want it," she states, then shivers as she lets out a heavy sigh. "It's hot."

I'm not sure if I should feel like it's hot or not, but I agree with Missy that it is. I'm sure some psychologists would have a field day about this whole scenario. I should never want another man again after the hell Xavier has put me through over the years.

"Sounds like it," I murmur as I make my way toward the car.

Bren reaches out, wrapping her fingers around my wrist. Her eyes find mine, and she holds my gaze for a long moment before she speaks.

"I just… I want you to know that you don't ever have to do anything you don"t want. Those guys can be pretty forceful, but if you say no, they will back off. They're scary-looking, but they're pretty nice."

"I'm serious. I'm not looking to date anyone," I say softly.

She nods her head once. "Yeah, I'm sure."

She watches me in silence, and then her lips curve up into a smile. "But I don't think it's going to matter what you're looking for."

With that, she turns around and walks toward her Jeep. I watch her climb inside. The other girls disperse as well. Starting my car, I suck in a deep breath and hold it for a moment before I shift it into Reverse and head back to the motel.

I find myself calm and relaxed even as I think about my evening at the bar, about the fact that those girls are strippers and that I like them all. The last time I was around any strippers, they were absolutely hateful.

Sal is amazing, and just thinking about him makes my lips smile. I want to stay here forever. It's only been two days, and I'm ready to call Pineville my home. But I know I'm far too relaxed because I've hardly looked for Xavier today. And even as I drive back to the motel, I'm not checking my rearview mirror for him.

This is how I am going to get caught again.

I'm going to get too relaxed, and that's when he's going to get me.

Shaking my head, I try to get myself back into the zone. It's only been two days, and there is no way I should be this comfortable. He's not that far, and Pineville is small, but it's not invisible, and neither am I.

My stomach growls as soon as I reach the town, but I ignore it. I don't have to be at work tomorrow until the evening when the bar opens. Sal already gave me my schedule, and I only have to help with inventory one day a week. The bartender has a handle on the day-to-day part of it all.

I'm glad, because I don't think I could do another shift like today. Fifteen hours was just a few too many for me. My body is exhausted, which is great because I'll be able to sleep, but at the same time, it's just plain grueling.

After a long, hot shower, I crawl into bed, tugging the comforter up to my chin, and roll to the side so I can face the door. My eyelids instantly grow heavy, and I fall into a sweet, serene sleep.

GNAW

The club isin full celebratory swing, but I'm not feeling like finding a whore and getting my dick sucked. Especially when all I can think about is Kyle. She's the one I want on my dick right now. I need to find out what I can about her—everything I can about her.

I'm completely and totally enamored by her, and I don't understand it.

"She's beautiful," Atomic murmurs, sitting at the bar beside me.

"Who?" I ask.

He snorts, bringing his glass to his lips before taking a drink. I do the same with my beer, taking a long pull as I swallow the liquid down, trying to think of a way to avoid this conversation. But he doesn't allow me to do that.

"The girl at the bar. New in town, fresh and beautiful."

Arching a brow, I don't respond to his words verbally. I'm not sure they need a response. Kyle is beautiful. Long dark hair, long sexy legs, tight ass, handful-sized tits. She's my type—if I ever had to choose a type, which I never have.

I'm not someone who dates. I'm someone who fucks, much like the rest of my brothers. Except they're all beginning to succumb to women and relationships, to marriages and babies. I can't deny that as much as I pretend I want nothing to do with that shit, they're happy as fuck.

I don't understand that emotion—happiness. I've never felt it before, at least not in the last twenty years or longer, so watching Atomic and King find theirs is intriguing.

"You come from fucked-up shit, brother," Atomic points out as if I don't know that already.

I hum. "Yeah, I know that," I grunt.

He doesn't say anything else immediately. He lifts his glass to his mouth again and takes another drink, lets out a hiss, then turns his head, swinging his gaze over to meet mine. His eyes search my own, and he frowns slightly.

"Didn't mean anything by it. I just meant that you may not realize that you have a thing for her. I wasn't the best at figuring my shit out. I don't want you to waste a decade like me."

Atomic did waste a lot of fucking time. He missed the first six years of his kid's life. But I would like to think I'm not going to let that shit happen. Inhaling a deep breath, I hold it for a moment, then let it out as I slide off the barstool.

"I think you're jumping the gun here," I murmur, lifting my hand before I clap it down on his shoulder and gently shake him. "I don't even know her last name."

Atomic's gaze slowly shifts to the side, his eyes finding mine again. "Don't have to know even her first name to want to fuck her, to want to keep her," he murmurs. "Ask me. Ask King."

"I know," I say before I walk away.

Instead of going to my room, like I should, I walk out of the clubhouse and toward my bike. The rock music is loud behind me, and not for the first time, I'm glad we're out here in the middle of nowhere with no neighbors to complain.

Climbing onto my bike, I start the engine and roar down the driveway and out of the clubhouse compound. I'm not sure where I'm going yet. It's too dark to go to the lake, so instead, I make my way toward town.

And because I'm a fucking asshole who can't keep his mind off the pretty girl I saw earlier, I make my way straight toward the motel. I already know she's staying there. Sal murmured that tidbit when I left his bar.

I think the old fuck is trying to set us up, and I'm going to soak in all the information he wants to give me.

Pulling into the parking lot of the motel, I park beside her piece-of-shit car and scan it. She needs a sweet ride, and this is not that, but I'm sure it's probably paid off. And sometimes, a paid-off car can be the sweetest ride there is.

There is a whistle to my left, and I turn my head, looking over to see Ophelia waving me in from her office. Killing my engine, I throw my leg over my bike and move toward the office.

Tugging the door open, I slip inside and walk over to her counter. She tosses something toward me, and I catch it instinctually.

"A deck of cards," I mutter.

"Play double solitaire with me. I need to stay awake, and the lives on my game haven't replenished yet."

"On your game?" I ask.

"Some app on my phone. I don't pay for the premium, so I am stuck waiting for the lives to replenish. Set up your cards," she mutters.

Slipping the cards from the deck, I shuffle them a few times, then set up my end of the game. Ophelia does the same, her eyes finding mine and her lips curving up into a smile. She laughs softly before she speaks.

"Be ready to get your ass kicked."

I chuckle and clear my throat, but before we start, I open my mouth to ask about Kyle. Ophelia lifts her hand, her gaze focused on mine before she speaks.

"Listen," she begins, "don't know much about her. What I do know is she's been through the wringer, whatever it was. She's not here to party or get fucked by some fuckboy in leather. She hasn't said anything, but I can tell she needs someone to take care of her and to actually care for her."

"Are you finished?" I ask.

"That's all I have to say about that," Ophelia snaps.

"I'm not here to be a fuckboy. I don't even know Kyle yet. Just met her today. I like what I see. I'd like to get to know her better. I didn't want to party tonight, and my bike brought me here. I wasn't planning on acting on anything yet. Tonight is going to be me and you playing cards."

She hums. "I like the sound of that," she murmurs. "Now, it's ass-beating time."

And that is how the evening goes. I play cards with Ophelia until the sun comes up, then I head back to the clubhouse and pass the fuck out. I do so, knowing that I was close enough to Kyle that I kept her safe from whatever she's running away from.

I'm not an idiot.

I know she's on the run.

I know she's been through hell.

I can see it in her eyes, mainly because they look like mine. But hopefully, whatever it is, I can protect her from it all—every square inch of it.