1. Wicked

1

Wicked

I'm About To Start Barking

"The blonde at the pool table." I nod toward the end of the bar. "What's she drinking?"

Emilio raises a brow at me. "Vodka soda. Why?"

"Dude, come on." Ryan shakes his head. "She's clearly on a date."

"You're right. She is on a date, and she's clearly bored out of her mind." My two friends follow my gaze across the room and watch as the pretty girl bites back a yawn. We catch her subtle eye roll as the man she's with shoots the cue ball toward a pair of stripes at the center but misses tragically, knocking one of her solids into the pouch instead.

He lets out a forced laugh. "I'm a bit rusty, I guess. I used to play all the time in college, though, and I couldn't be beat. Did I mention I went to Cornell?"

Emilio, Ryan, and myself suppress our own groans as we turn back to the bar. The two of them return to their conversation, but my eyes stay on her.

She laughs lightly, feigning interest in the stories of his college years as she misses her next hit. "I'm not very good either."

She's lying.

The way she kicked her hip out and bent her elbow was unnatural. She was forcing herself into a poor position. If I had to guess, I'd say she could play circles around the douchebag, but for some reason, she's dumbing herself down. That tells me they don't know each other well. This is their first date, perhaps even their first time meeting.

Which makes me feel significantly less guilty about the fact I'm going to steal her away.

I snap my fingers at Emilio. "Can you send her another vodka soda and put it on my tab?"

"No," the bartender says without looking at me.

"Don't be an asshole, Everett," Ryan mutters.

I look back and forth between my two friends. Ryan's rich brown hair and brown eyes stare back at me unamused, while Emilio's dark features are narrowed at me like I'm some kind of pariah. I hold my hands up in surrender. "I'm not an asshole. I'm saving her. She looks miserable."

Ryan scoffs behind his beer. "I'm sure that's what it is. A selfless act that has nothing to do with how hot she is."

I mean, of course it has a little to do with how hot she is.

She's fucking stunning.

Shoulder-length blonde hair. Red manicured nails are constantly tucking her straight strands behind her ears so she can show off her pretty, pert nose and full, pink lips.

The way her dark-washed denim skirt hugs her ample hips is enough to put all the atoms in my body on alert, let alone the mile-long, smooth legs beneath it.

"Jesus, Everett. You're like a panting dog." Ryan laughs at me.

"I'm about to start barking."

"Alright, I'm gonna send her over another drink, but only because I can't wait to watch her throw it in your face," Emilio chimes as he turns around and begins mixing it.

I let Ryan tell me about his most recent work-related chaos. As the county's Deputy Sheriff, he's got no shortage of crazy shit to talk about, but I'm only half listening.

I smile to myself as Emilio walks the drink over to the blonde at the pool table. Her eyes light up as she accepts it, and Emilio nods his head toward me. She fights a smile as her pretty cheeks pinken. I raise my glass and nod when her date's head whips around, shooting daggers at me.

He puffs himself up, but that only gets him to about half my size. Balling his hands into fists, he begins to make his way toward me when she places a hand on his shoulder. She whispers in his ear as his eyes dart back and forth between her and me. Finally, he nods and steps back.

She looks at me, lifting an eyebrow as she assesses me. It's clear she likes what she sees. Whether it's my tattooed arms on display beneath my t-shirt, my beard, or my brown eyes that I've been told more than a few times are quite easy to get lost in, it's clear the way she's staring at me is a stark contrast to how she's been looking at her date. Her steps are slow and calculated as she moves across the bar, a sly smile on her face.

Slipping into the seat next to me, she slides the vodka soda I bought her in front of me. Her hair sways as she sits down, and I can now tell it's naturally a dishwater blonde, but she's got platinum highlights that accent the dreamy shade of her storm-blue eyes. "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's impolite to hit on another man's date?"

I slide the drink back to her. "I think what you meant to say is ‘thank you'."

She lets out a surprised huff as she shakes her head, and I notice her hiding a smile on her lush, glossy lips as she tucks her hair behind her ear once more, revealing smooth cheeks dusted with freckles. "You're forward." Turning to her side, she faces me head-on. "Was it that obvious?"

"Yes." I lift my beer to my lips. "For future reference, if you've got to fake your pool skills—or anything else, really— in order to accommodate a man, he's probably a waste of your time."

She hums. "And what are your pool skills like?"

I slowly raise one brow at her. "You wanna find out?"

Her eyes lock on mine—kaleidoscope shades of blue—as she slowly extends the glass to her mouth and takes a sip. I can't tell if it's a challenge or an acceptance. She looks down at her lap as she sets her drink on the bar. "It's a blind date. Not my idea." She chuckles to herself. "I'm new in town, and I was pressured to get out of the house, but I'm really not interested in getting to know anyone."

"What are you interested in?" I ask, leaning closer. I can't help it. It's instinct.

She smells like coconuts and something tropical.

Her gaze flickers to me again, taking a short moment to look me up and down before settling on my face. She studies me like I'm a risk, and she can't decide if it's worth taking. "If I'm being honest, a good lay who won't call me afterward."

I can't help the laugh that bursts out. Her face remains completely blank as she studies me. It was the last thing I was expecting to come from her mouth, but I'm not at all disconcerted.

I call over to Emilio, who's standing with his back to the bar, pretending like he isn't listening. "Can you get us two shots of—" I turn to look at her.

She contemplates for a moment before shrugging. "Fireball."

"Fireball?" I scoff.

A salacious smile tilts up her glossy pink lips. "Felt like the night needed a little spice."

Emilio slides the two shots across the bar, and I catch them, handing one to her and grabbing the other for myself. "I have a feeling it's about to get spicier." I raise my glass toward her. "Cheers—" I pause. "I didn't get your name, cari?o ."

She hesitates for a moment, glancing around the bar. Her eyes dart everywhere except her date, who's glaring at us. Finally, her head swivels back to meet my gaze. "Are you about to offer me the good lay I was needing tonight?"

I try and fail to fight my smile. "I didn't plan on being quite so forward about it, but yeah. I was definitely gonna try." Fuck. She has got me on my toes. Nothing about the way this exchange has gone is how I typically play things, but it's working nonetheless.

I'm normally much more composed. In control. I've got a process that works. Something tells me my game wouldn't work on her at all, that she hardly thinks I'm worth her time, and yet, she's essentially offering me the only thing I'm ever looking for anyway. This woman is throwing me through a loop, and I don't even know her name.

She knocks her shot glass against mine quickly and downs the Fireball, chasing it with her vodka soda. "One more, Emilio," she says through a hiss as she holds a finger up.

My friend looks over at me, eyes wide. I take my shot as he hands her another, and she tosses that one back too. I watch shivers run down her spine as the liquor courses through her veins. She squints her eyes as she gets it down, polishing off her drink before facing me again. "No names."

"What?"

She shoves her empty glasses across the bar, crossing her legs. "No names. Nothing that can tie us together later. You're hot, I need to get laid, and I'm assuming you won't complain about that offer. So, we can fuck, but I don't want to know you."

I hear Ryan cover up a cough next to me. Emilio leaves the bar entirely, I'm assuming to hide his laughter. I've never had a woman—or a man, for that matter—tell me they had no interest in knowing my name before.

She studies my face with that intensity again, devoid of emotion. She's all business. But as I drown in her blue eyes and heat creeps across my flesh at the sight of her smooth skin and soft lips, I decide to go for it.

If I don't take my chance with this woman now, I'm going to spend forever wondering what if. She may look at me like I'm a risk, but I know for sure she's a challenge, one I'll gladly accept.

"Fuck it." She smiles as I kick my barstool behind me and grab her hand. "I've got a place we can go." She jumps out of her seat and begins to follow me before we're stopped short.

"What the fuck?" her date shouts from the other side of the room.

Shit. I forgot about him.

I pause, releasing her hand, but she grips mine harder. I turn around and watch her flash him an apologetic smile. "I'm so sorry, but…" Her shoulders meet her ears as she sucks in a breath. "When you know, you know. Y'know?"

"You're kidding me, right?" he seethes.

I nod toward Emilio, who's watching us like one of his soap operas. "Take all her drinks and put them on my tab." I nod toward her date. "Sorry, man."

She giggles as I haul her off behind the bar and into the back office. Emilio will be on my ass about it later, but I don't care. I enter the keypad on his door and wait for it to click before I push it open. He's got a black leather couch next to the door and his desk across from it. Other than that, the room consists of a standing lamp in the corner, an old-fashioned bar against the window, and a rug in the center of the floor.

"Is this your bar?" she asks.

"No, but the owner owes me a favor." He doesn't, really, but I do change that fucker's oil for free, so he can deal.

She hums as I shut the door behind us, spinning her so she's pressed against it. My chest crushes hers, and I can feel the softness of her full breasts. I place both hands on the door above her head, dropping mine so my nose hovers just over hers.

"You sure about this?" I ask.

Her breathing increases at our proximity, her cheeks flush, and she pulls her lip beneath her teeth. Her blue eyes are hooded and hungry, but there is a shyness to them too. The look in them tells me this isn't something she does often, and fuck, if that doesn't turn me on more. It's her attraction to me causing her to be this reckless.

"Let me check."

One hand slowly finds its way beneath my t-shirt. Her skin is cool against mine as her fingers brush my stomach, traveling downward. I keep my hands exactly where they are, afraid I'll do something she doesn't like.

I hiss as she brushes against my cock, hard as steel beneath my jeans. She brings her other hand up my neck, gripping the back of it and pulling me down. I fall into her like gravity. Squeezing my dick, she whispers, "I have to see what I'm working with here."

"Ah, baby," I rasp against her lips. "Let me show you."

Before she can get in another word, my mouth is on hers.