by Nikki Ashton
“Strange in what way?” I thrust one hand to my hip. while the other smacked at him with my clutch.
“What the actual fuck, Ellie,” Hunter complained and took a step back. “I need danger money when I’m with you.”
“If you didn’t insult me all the time, I wouldn’t feel the need to slap you.” I narrowed my eyes at him and then pushed to the bar. “What do you want to drink?”
A big, rough hand landed on my upper arm and pulled me back.
“Nope. No way you are buying me a drink, or any drinks for that matter.”
Hunter pushed past me, his arm brushing the side of my boob and my belly swooped down close to my toes. In fact, I was so caught up in the smell of his cologne and the fact that I could see the outline of strong back muscles under his shirt, I forgot to complain about him being a chauvinistic pig.
“Beer or vodka?” Hunter asked over his shoulder.
I considered for a few seconds. I was rostered onto a late shift the next day so…
“Vodka please.”
How the hell did he know I drank vodka occasionally, anyway?
Contemplating it momentarily, Jefferson soon pulled my attention by strolling into Stars & Stripes. Looking good in a white dress shirt and pants, he like Hunter, had his sleeves rolled up, showing off his tattoos that far outnumbered Hunter’s which were only on his biceps and chest.
His chest!
Shaking my head to get Hunter’s chest out of it, my attention went back Jefferson. He was talking to a tall guy with a shock of black hair; a guy whose name I didn’t know, but knew he worked at the seed store – a while back Bronte’d had a thing for one of the guys who worked there. They were both laughing, but I could see that most of the ladies’ attention in the bar was drawn to Jefferson.
He was tall and broad, his grey hair and beard were stylish and even from where I was standing, I could see the twinkle in his eye. Yep, he was striking alright, and it was clear what Hunter would look like when he got older.
“Oh my,” I whispered to myself, exhaling deeply.
Licking my lips, I glanced over at Hunter, who was laughing with Penny as she handed him his card back. When he reached around to slip his wallet into his back pocket my eyes were drawn to his ass. It was not so high it looked like a girl’s, but high and firm enough that I thought about bouncing a nickel off it just for fun. I was pretty sure it was the nicest, firmest male ass I’d ever seen.
My nipples began to ache as they rubbed braless against the fabric of my dress, and there was a distinct throb between my legs. While it all felt pretty nice, it felt weird too. This was Hunter Delaney, my brother’s best friend. The guy I loved giving shit to on a regular basis. The guy I’d known all my life. Why the hell was I suddenly having dirty thoughts about him?
I couldn’t give it any more consideration because Hunter was walking toward me with a large glass of alcohol.
“Vodka and diet,” he said passing it to me.
Our fingers brushed and I couldn’t help my sharp intake of breath.
“Okay?” he asked, a smug smirk on his lips.
I rolled my eyes. He damn well knew what he was doing to me. If that stupid gasp hadn’t given it away, I was pretty sure my nipples almost poking him in the eyes had.
Hunter and I were pretty tight and well on our way to being drunk. In fact, drinking, laughing and talking were the only thing we’d done in the hour and a half we’d been in the bar. We’d done nothing to put our plan to get Jefferson hooked up into action. Reason being, we didn’t need to. He’d managed that all by himself, just like Hunter said he would.
“Oh my God,” I snorted leaning into Hunter. “He’s got his hand on her ass.”
Hunter lifted his bottle to his lips and grinned around it.
“Hunter, he’s squeezing it.”
I started laughing. Jefferson had been talking to this particular lady, a tall, curvy redhead for around twenty minutes, and was already putting the moves on her. She didn’t seem to mind though, because as we watched, her hand snaked up his chest and rubbed seductively against it.
“My Pop is the shit,” Hunter groaned. “He only has to look in a woman’s direction and she’s melting at his feet.”
“Pity he didn’t pass on his expertise to you.”
Biting my lip, I tried not to smile, but when Hunter’s mouth dropped open, I couldn’t help it.
“You little shit,” he said, pulling me closer and poking a finger into my side. “You know how fucking good I am with women.”
He added a couple more fingers and started to tickle me, making me giggle and squirm.
“Say you’re sorry,” he demanded.
“Nope.”
I could barely breathe for laughing, but I didn’t care. It felt good to be actually enjoying spending time together. While we’d stood at the high table, we watched everyone around us, neither of us even considering finding someone we might like to hook up with. I hadn’t gone there for that anyway, but that didn’t mean Hunter wasn’t interested. Yet he’d only strayed to the bar and back, never any further, and I didn’t think his eyes had either.
That thought gave me a little warm feeling inside my chest and a few more butterflies in my belly.
“Want me to prove it?” Hunter asked.
“W-what do you mean?”
My heart went boom-dah-dah-dah-boom as I waited for him to put the moves on me. Then he looked around the room, looking discerningly at all the women.
The boom-dah-dah-dah-boom was replaced with pathetic bump and I moved away from him. It wasn’t me he was going to put the moves on. Every single one of those beautiful butterflies I had flying around my stomach, just went and dropped to the pit of my stomach and died.
“I can prove it to you that I have my Pop’s skills with the ladies.”
Swallowing down the bitter taste of disappointment, I pushed my shoulders back and nodded. I’d been stupid to even start to feel an attraction to him, never mind consider what a few drinks and giggles together might mean.
“Okay,” I said feeling a new determination to get him out of my head. “Let’s have a wager.”
My eyes skimmed the room until they landed on a tall blonde woman wearing a gorgeous red dress that fitted her like a wet suit. She was talking to a preppy guy who although good looking was a little too smooth for me. His golden blond hair looked like it may actually have been sculpted, it was so neat and tidy.
“See that couple over there.”
Hunter followed my gaze. “Yep.”
“Let’s see who gets asked to go somewhere quieter first. Winner has to clean the other one’s car. Inside and out.”
Hunter snorted and carefully placed his bottle of beer down onto the table.
“It’s a deal,” he said, holding out his hand for me to shake. “Easy.”
I placed my glass next to his bottle and then shook. I was determined I’d win. For one, I didn’t want Hunter to beat me, I really didn’t want to have to clean that monster of a truck of his. For two though, maybe chatting to preppy guy would help me to forget that I wanted inside Hunter’s boxer briefs.
Oh God, was it possible that Hunter went commando? No, he was definitely a boxer brief kind of guy. The chafing while riding Dante every day would be awful.
“Quick,” Hunter said as he started to move away from me. “The guy has gone to the bar. Now’s our chance.”
“Oh, my goodness,” I sighed, with what I hoped was a seductive lick of my lips. “That’s amazing. Wait until I tell my Dad.”
It turned out that preppy guy, Conrad, had been to the same college as my dad and had also played on the football team as cornerback. That’s what he’d said, but he hadn’t heard of my dad and as he was in their college hall of fame, I wasn’t quite sure Conrad was telling the whole truth. He was cute though and as I wasn’t interested in anything after tonight, I’d forget his white lie.
“So, how come you’re here tonight? I mean I would have thought a good-looking guy lik
e you would have lots of girls falling over themselves to date you.”
I’d glanced over at Hunter a few minutes earlier and he seemed to be doing better than I was. The blonde was pushing her girls up against him and had flicked her hair enough times to create a tornado.
“I do okay.”
Conrad raised a brow and winked with the opposite eye. He looked like he was trying to pass wind, but hey if he thought it looked sexy and I might be interested then so be it.
We continued to talk, well Conrad did, and for another ten minutes I listened. It was totally boring. I couldn’t give up though because every time I looked over at Hunter, Miss Red Dress had pushed even closer to him. She was so close I was holding my breath and waiting for her to mount him like a spider monkey.
“So,” Conrad said, taking one of my wisps of hair and running it through his fingers. “Tell me about yourself.”
Finally.
“Well I’m a pediatric nurse and… sorry, I…” I trailed off as I noticed Miss Red Dress’ hand that had been on Hunter’s chest had moved around to his ass and given it a squeeze, just like Jefferson’s had done to the redhead earlier.
“Go on,” Conrad urged chinking his glass of wine with my vodka.
I tried to move my attention back to him, but I couldn’t take my eyes from Hunter. I was waiting to see how he reacted. Would he see her hand on his backside as his sign to make a move?
I didn’t get chance to find out, because the bar doors flew open and Lynn-Ann and Janice-Ann strolled in waving at everyone, like they were the Queen of England only in duplicate.
“What the hell,” Conrad said around a laugh. “What have they come as?”
My gaze spun to his and he was literally looking down his nose at the two old ladies dressed in coordinating pant suits. Janice-Ann was in baby pink, while Lynn-Ann was in sunshine yellow. They both had on white pumps and carried purses the color of their outfit. They looked like walking candy bars, but not one of the few locals in the bar batted an eyelash. The only people really staring were those who’d come in from out of town.
“They’re my friend’s aunts,” I replied with a hint of snark to my tone. “They’re extremely lovely ladies.”
Conrad laughed and took a delicate sip of his wine and watched as the twins parted the small crowd on the way to the bar.
“Do they think they’re actually going to pick someone up here tonight?” he asked.
“There is some older gentleman in.” I nodded to a small round table where three older guys I didn’t recognize sat.
“Forget them,” he said as he trailed a finger down my arm. “How about we get out of here? I have my Porsche out front; I can take us wherever you want to go.”
I shook my head and glanced over at Hunter, sensing his eyes were on me. I was right. Miss Red Dress was on her tippy toes and bending her body around Hunter so that she was able to put her face into his. Hunter though had his gaze firmly on me.
“Thanks, Conrad, but I think I’m going to stick around.”
“Oh, come on,” he urged as he edged closer, his nose skimming down my cheek. “You know you want to.”
I gave him a tight smile, pushed my glass between us and tipped it to my lips, giving him time to move away from me. Unfortunately, he didn’t take the hint.
“We could have a great time.”
His soft hand – ugh yep, soft – took my arm and gave it a gentle tug.
“Conrad,” I bit out, teeth gritted. “You want to get your hand off me?”
The fuckhole grinned and kissed my cheek.
“Hey,” I said taking a step back. “When I said get your hand off me, that didn’t mean put your lips on me instead.”
“Ah c’mon, Elsie. You know you want me to.”
He did not just wrong name me!
First, he put his putty soft hands, and slimy lips on me, and then he damn well wrong named me.
“I’m sure you’ve never had anyone with a Porsche show you any interest before. Just think of how you could boast to your friends.”
“I’m sorry?” I took a step back and stared at the stupid douche with my mouth wide open.
He winked and pulled me to him, slapping a hand onto my ass. “You know you want it. I bet a girl like you has never been with a guy like me before.”
Okay, so wrong naming me was one thing, acting like a dick about having a Porsche was another, but touching my ass and intimating I was a sure thing because he had money… well.
“You really are a dick,” I said, resigned to the fact I was going to have to hurt him.
Still not getting my drift, Conrad smiled as I put my drink down and took a step back, clenching my hand into a tight fist.
“I certainly haven’t met anyone like you. You’re quite right.”
“Count yourself lucky then.” He veered toward me, his lips already wet and pursed.
Before he had chance to do anything else smarmy, I landed a punch right on his nose.
“You fucking little…” He clutched his face and stamped his foot cursing as he did. “I’ll fucking kill you.”
With one hand still holding his nose, he advanced toward me his eyes burning with anger as he cursed and reached out a hand to grab me. I stepped back, but he caught hold of my arm and roughly dragged me toward him.
“You want to fight me, do you?” I asked pulling my arm back ready to strike again.
“Try it, you little bitch.”
His hand shot out like he was going to slap me, but before it reached my face he was pulled back, and Hunter crowded into his space.
“Please tell me you weren’t going to hit a woman,” Hunter growled, his nose almost touching Conrad’s. “Because if you were then you’re a bigger piece of shit than those tight pants and ridiculous hair make you look.”
“Get off me,” Conrad hissed and tried to pull away from Hunter.
“Let me at him,” I screeched as I tried to push into the space between the two men. “I’ll show him what a girl like me can really do.”
“He hurt you?” Hunter asked without looking at me.
“Hurt her, she fucking broke my nose.”
Hunter peered at him. “Your nose ain’t broken, but if she punched you, she had a reason. And, if Ellie had a reason, then I think maybe I should finish the job.”
Hunter curled his hand into a fist, and I saw red. It was my nose to break not his.
“No,” I cried and pulled down on his arm. “I want to do it.”
Hunter turned to me, there was fire in his eyes and his nostrils were flared as he spoke. “I’m finishing this piece of shit. He was going to hurt you. That’s not right.”
“But I-”
If I’d thought that Conrad would stick up for himself, I was wrong. The yellow, pansy-ass, dickweed took advantage of Hunter’s attention being on me, pulled away from him and ran. Literally ran. He shoved past Miss Red Dress, almost pushing her over and like a pin ball flying between flipper bats, he bounced through everyone in the bar to get to the door.
“Fucker!” Hunter yelled. He turned to me, looked me up and down and raised a cupped hand to my cheek. “Did he hurt you?”
“No, he did not,” I replied indignantly. “And even if he had, I could have handled him. You didn’t need to rescue me like I’m some pathetic little woman who can’t look after herself.”
Raising his brows, he slammed his hands to his hips. “Say that again.”
“You heard,” I snapped. “I had it under control.”
“You had it under fucking control. Well, it sure didn’t look like it to me. He was about to slap you.”
“And if he had I’d have hit him back.” I copied his stance and leaned into his space. “You did that so that you’d win the wager, didn’t you?”
The words sounded stupid as soon as they left my mouth. When they registered in my brain, I realized how ridiculous they really were. It also crossed my mind that maybe I was being a little hasty. However.
“You know I could h
ave taken him. I could easily have punched him.” I shook my head and added flared nostrils for good measure.
“You are one ungrateful little turd; you know that, right?”
Hunter ran a hand through his hair, and I couldn’t help but watch the way his biceps flexed against the cotton of his shirt. Then, when he chewed his lip, something went pop inside of me and my sensibility up and left.
My libido had rubbed the bottle and let the sex Genie out. Just like that, I wanted his lips on mine. I wanted his hands in my hair and I was pretty certain I needed his dick inside my vajayjay. It was most probably the alcohol, but I didn’t care. There was a beat throbbing between my legs that could easily challenge Taylor Hawkins’ expertise.
Without thinking any more about it, I grabbed a hold of Hunter’s shirt and dragged him to me. By the time his mouth hit mine, I was already breathing heavily with my nipples screaming to get in on the action. Instantly, Hunter’s hands went around my neck, his thumbs cradling my jaw, and his tongue insisting that I open up for him.
My hands went to his slim hips and pulled him closer, and when I felt how hard he was through his pants, I let out a low moan. Without saying anything, or taking his mouth from mine, Hunter started to walk me backwards. Where we were going, I had no idea, but I just about had the wherewithal to snatch my clutch up and let myself be led. When my back hit a door, Hunter reached around me, pulled down the handle and maneuvered us inside another room.
I was slammed against a wall causing something to fall and my tongue paused in its exploration of his mouth.
“Forget it,” Hunter growled. “It was just a yard brush.”
I opened one eye and saw we were in the bar’s storeroom; a faint smell of antiseptic invaded my nostrils. Did I give a shit that I was about to have sex with Hunter Delaney in a cleaning cupboard?
Like hell I did. I threw my clutch to one side and went straight back in.
Hunter
As a yard brush fell to the floor, I almost had second thoughts about what Ellie and I were doing, but she tasted too good to stop. She was into it as much as I was, at least I thought she was. Ignoring any doubts, I walked us backward toward a high bench that had packs of paper towels stacked on top and swept my arm across it, pushing everything onto the floor. I then lifted Ellie and deposited her on the bench with a little gasp of surprise.
