Sprung

by Kate Benson

  In fact, my irrational fears are the last thing on my mind.

  Instead, I focus on the way her blonde hair falls over her collarbone, the low hum her sigh pulls from my chest. The thought of her name on my lips, the way I crave her taste, want to drown in her laughter…

  For the first time since I woke up next to her in that hotel room, I do exactly what I’ve been telling her to do for months.

  I let go.

  “Absolutely,” I whisper, surprised at how easy the words slip past my lips. “Without question.”

  chapter thirteen

  evie

  “What are you doing?” he asks, his eyes narrowed as he peers over the bar at me with a smirk. “You need to stop.”

  “I need to stop?” I ask, eyes wide in disbelief. “I’ve been watching you honey and baby and sweetie these whores for the last hour and I’m the one with the problem?”

  “Don’t get jealous, baby,” he shakes his head, eyes still dancing slightly in amusement. “It doesn’t mean anything.”

  “Oh, get over yourself,” I roll my eyes. “I’m not jealous, I just think it’s gross to blatantly flirt when you have a girlfriend.”

  “They don’t know I have a girlfriend,” he shrugs.

  “Yeah, but you do,” I raise my eyebrow.

  “You need to chill,” he laughs as he steps away, taking money from another floozy. As she slips him a ten and gives him a giggly wave goodbye, he winks as his lips move into a wide grin. “Thanks, sugar.”

  By the time he moves back to the register near my end of the bar, it’s happened twice more and I’m ready to pummel him.

  “Are you fucking kidding me right now?” I hiss.

  “Baby, I’m working,” he says quietly as he presses a few buttons on the register, more eager to keep our disagreement under wraps than I am at the moment. “And about ninety percent of my income is off of tips. Do you seriously think these women are gonna tip me if I just slide a drink over and tell them to fuck off? No, they won’t. They come in here for the experience and flirting with the bartender is part of that.”

  “That’s stupid.”

  “Maybe so, but that’s the breaks, babe,” he shrugs. “I’d probably be sleeping on your mom’s couch if I didn’t flirt and act the way I do behind this bar.”

  “I don’t believe that at all,” I disagree, mumbling a trail of expletives under my breath as he moves to the other end.

  I watch his tattooed biceps bulging beneath his shirt as he leans over to hear the woman staring up at him. He finishes the order, laughing deep as she leans over the bar and whispers something into his ear, brushing her whore fingers over the collar of his shirt. His eyes go wide for a second before he pulls away and palms the generous tip, thanking her as she saunters away. Tramp.

  A few minutes later, he returns to find my eyes still narrowed in disgust.

  “What did she just say to you?”

  “Baby…”

  “I’m sorry. I’m sure I’m being annoying, but this is getting ridiculous,” I insist. “You don’t have to flirt and be a pig to make money, Dash.”

  “Evie,” he starts, unable to keep the loud laugh from bounding from his chest. “Baby, I swear to God if you quote even one lyric of ‘Roxanne’ by The Police, I’m gonna throw your crazy little ass in a fuckin’ cab.”

  “You’re so dumb,” I flip him off, fighting the smirk. “And for the record, I still don’t believe you. You’re obviously just using that as an excuse because you like flirting with other women. I wish you would just admit what a whore you are so I can at least have the pleasure of hearing you say I’m right.”

  “I’m not admitting shit to you,” he chuckles. “Especially when you don’t even know what you’re talking about. Have you ever worked behind a bar? Waited tables? Any of that?”

  “You know I haven’t,” I start, hating the victorious look in his eyes. “But I’ve been watching Mason do it for years.”

  “Well, you ain’t been watching close enough then, sweetheart, because your brother is the biggest tip whore I’ve ever met in my life,” he chuckles. “Seriously, don’t take any of this shit personally, babe. It doesn’t mean shit, okay? I’m just paying my rent.”

  I study his features, eyes narrowed for a moment before he walks away and I watch him move back down the bar toward another skank.

  When he moves back toward the cooler, he meets my harsh expression and starts to smirk again.

  “Evie, that’s enough,” he shakes his head. “Baby, why’d you stay up here if you just wanna be mad at me all night?”

  “I don’t want to be mad at you all night, Dash. You just make it so fucking easy,” I blurt, pulling a louder laugh from his chest.

  Truth be told, I’d considered staying at my mom’s while he finished his shift tonight, but thought better of it. Mason was still pissed off and refused to speak to Dash and it was awkward as hell being around him right now. I know he’d never tell me I couldn’t go home, but when I weighed my options of arguing with my brother or drinking for free all night, my decision to call a cab here was an easy one.

  Apparently to watch my boyfriend behave like a whore.

  “You’re insanely cute when you’re jealous.”

  “I’m not jealous. I just think you’re a full of shit liar.”

  “Think what you want, babe,” he shrugs. “You deal with drunks in a bar, you aren’t making shit for tips without givin’ some kind of show. Just be glad in my case it’s teeth and biceps. ”

  “Whatever,” I shrug childishly, sipping from my drink. “I just wish if you were going to act like a trollop, you wouldn’t lie to me about it.”

  He studies me for a minute, his gaze stuck somewhere between amusement and irritation.

  “You know something?” he says finally. “Let’s test this little theory of yours.”

  “What?”

  “You think it’s so easy? Put your money where your mouth is,” he challenges with a smirk. “My server called out, your brother’s still being an asshole and refusing to work with me and thanks to my adorably infuriating jealous girlfriend, I’m getting a little behind. I could use a little help.”

  “I don’t know how to waitress, Dash,” I shake my head. “And I’m not jealous.”

  “Despite how full of shit you are, you’re a smart girl,” he winks, handing me an apron. “You’ll figure it out.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “As a heart attack,” he beams. “The bar closes in three hours. You think you can make just as much money without flirting? Prove it.”

  I study him, his lips still wide as mine move into a subtle smirk and my eyes narrow in suspicion.

  “What’s in it for me?”

  “The pleasure of knowing you helped me,” he laughs at my expression. “Not to mention bragging rights, which I know you’re a fan of.”

  “You do realize that my alternative is sitting here while you make me free drinks all night, right?”

  “Fine,” he asks, leaning forward on the bar, close enough I can taste his breath on mine. “What do you want?”

  “Anything?”

  “Pretty much,” he promises, his voice low and husky as he holds my eyes while I think on my demands. When the first one hits me, I can’t stop the Cheshire grin. “What’s it gonna be, pussycat?”

  “Okay,” I smile smugly. “If I win, you never flirt with another woman as long as we’re together.”

  “Done,” he nods. “And if I win, you can start by admitting you’re jealous.”

  “You’re wasting a demand on forcing me to lie?” I ask, giving him a shrug. “Fine, if that’s really what you want, but there’s an art show in a month that I was going to ask you to go to. If I win, you have to come,” I counter, his eyes already glazing over in boredom. “I was prepared to do some pretty disgusting shit to convince you, but this seems like it could work just as well,” I shrug. “I mean, unless you don’t think you can win.”

  “Fine,” he concedes, hi
s features shifting into humor. “But I’m putting my own list of sexual favors on the table and when I tell you they’re disgusting?” he laughs, holding my eyes as his widen suggestively. “I mean… wow. I’ve really outdone myself.”

  “I’m sure I can hang,” I blush lightly as I go in for the kill, eyes dancing in evil glee at my final demand. “And last, but certainly not least, if I win you have to tell me what happened at the pool.”

  I watch the color drain from his face, taking the smirk with it as this little game of his own twisted creation comes back to bite him in the ass.

  Jackpot.

  “I uh…” he stammers. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Yes, you do,” I grin wider. “I want to know what Mason was talking about at your apartment the other day. I’ve asked you about it three times now and it’s the only thing you’ve ever refused to talk to me about, so that’s what I want,” I drain the last of my drink. “I’ll play your game, Dash, but if I win, you’ll tell me the pool story.”

  “Fuck…” he whispers under his breath, shaking his head for a minute before he freezes, raising his eyes to mine. “Done.”

  “Seriously?” I ask, surprised.

  “Of course,” he shrugs innocently. “If you can beat me, I’ll give you anything you want, princess. Hell, you can even drive Sue.”

  Sue…

  I’ve been trying to convince him to let me drive his classic Mustang again for months, but he hasn’t budged an inch. Until now.

  He sees the temptation taking me and it pulls his full lips into a wide smile.

  I can already smell her leather interior, feel her bucket seats cradling my ass as her engine purrs against my skin.

  As he winks at me, we both know he’s got me exactly where he wants me.

  “Oh, my God, baby,” I gasp, my eyes already heavy with lust for her. “Sue drives me wild.”

  “Hmm… I know she does, sugar,” he hums, his eyes darting toward my mouth before he meets my eyes. “So, do we have a deal?”

  “Absolutely, we have a deal!” I blurt, his hand in mine before I can process what I’ve done. “Wait! Shit! You never told me your third demand.”

  “Too late,” he sings. “You already shook on it.”

  “Dash,” I ask, narrowing my eyes as my stomach begins to plummet. “What is it? What are you gonna make me do?”

  “Does it even matter?” he teases. “Deal’s a deal.”

  “You tell me right now, Dash!” I ground out, smacking the bar and pulling a victorious chuckle from his lips. “What’s it gonna cost me?”

  “Don’t worry. You’ll find out soon enough,” he shoots me a wink before sliding a beer onto the bar. “Order up.”

  chapter fourteen

  dash

  “You are such a cheating bastard!” she hisses, her eyes narrowed into angry slits as she sets her tray down roughly on the back counter beside me. “You’re flirting way worse than you were before.”

  “It’s a competition, baby,” I smirk, focusing on the screen in front of me. “You didn’t think I was gonna go easy on you, did you?”

  When she says nothing for a second, I glance down at her and can’t hold back the laugh sitting in my chest.

  She is absolutely fuming.

  “I don’t care about your stupid competition, Dash,” she spits. “If you don’t stop acting like a whore, I swear to God I won’t fuck you for the rest of the week.”

  The booming laughter that slips through my lips is more than even I expect. A sharp smack of the tray against my arm pulls my eyes back to hers, still narrowed in annoyance.

  “I don’t believe that for a minute,” I admit, making her even madder. “Babe, I’m not trying to be a dick. I’m just sayin’… Look how pissy you’re getting over a couple of drunk girls trying to cop a feel. The second you realize I’m not the adulterous manwhore you thought I was three months ago and I’m still takin’ your mean little ass back to my apartment, you’re gonna be all over me.”

  Her nostrils flare in fury as she holds my gaze, her chest heaving with a combination of desire and annoyance. She takes a step closer, her hot breath falling coming out in a low pant.

  “You’re an arrogant asshole and I hate you,” she insists as she slaps the order from her notebook down onto the counter beside me. “And it hasn’t been three months, it’s been four, you jackass!”

  “Son of a bitch, you’re hot when you’re angry. You’ve got my cock fuckin’ throbbing right now, baby,” I admit in a husk, brushing a strand of hair behind her shoulder, my thumb grazing her collarbone as I lock on the outline of her nipples growing hard under the tight t-shirt she’s wearing. “That list of disgusting favors is growing by the minute, princess.”

  “I’m gonna make you eat that list, Dash.”

  “Oh, I’ll be eatin’ somethin’ alright. Don’t you worry about me,” I wink, pulling a groan I can’t quite decide is made up of desire or rage as she reaches for her tray. “That’s right, baby,” I discreetly smack her ass as she leaves to stomp back out onto the floor. “Go make daddy some money.”

  evie

  “This is the last time I agree to play a game with anyone,” I grumble under my breath as I feel inside the pocket of my apron for the small stack of tips I managed to collect.

  I hadn’t counted them yet, but after looking at the two full jars on the bar I know he emptied at least once earlier tonight, my chances for victory flew out the window the minute I made a deal with him.

  I tried everything, but it was no use.

  Dash absolutely kicked my ass.

  I should have known better. Not only is he a decent bartender, he’s drop dead gorgeous. Despite our years of mutual hatred, over the last few months I’d called him mine, I’d come to learn just how charming Dash Hunter could be. As much as I hate to admit defeat, I’m just glad there’s no one else here to witness my epic failure.

  “Alright, baby. How’d ya make out?” he asks as he makes his way back from locking the front door, raking his hand through his hair with a yawn. “I’ve got about two-eighty, but you started late, so to make it fair, I’ll split it in half.”

  “I don’t know,” I shrug as I spin around to face him from my stool, leaning against the bar. “But I know I didn’t make half of two-eighty. You definitely won.”

  “You may have done better than you think,” he offers, walking behind the bar to hit a few switches, effectively dimming the lights and coming back to me. He comes to a stop in front of me, handing me one of the two beers he’s holding and staring down at me. “Those aprons can be deceiving.”

  “I doubt they’re that deceiving,” I argue, tossing what little money I’d made onto the bar, unable to stop the smirk at the apologetic expression he’s wearing when the laughter begins to slip from his chest. “Oh, this is yours, too,” I admit, pulling a twenty from my bra and tossing it on the bar behind me with the rest. “I got desperate there at the end when I saw how badly I was getting my ass handed to me and took it when you weren’t looking.”

  “You stole from me?” he asks, his eyes wide in surprise as he sips from his beer.

  “Hell yes, I stole from you! I cheated, too,” I confess, pulling another loud laugh from him. “That last table of guys sitting over there in the corner all got fake numbered. I only made like seventy-four bucks and half of it was from that table,” I rail. “How do you think I got these tens?”

  “Your charming personality?” he teases, smirking when I deadpan. “Witty humor?”

  “Well, you’ve met me. What do you think?” I arch my brow, making him chuckle. “Thank God I’ve got good boobs. I’d never get anywhere in life.”

  “That’s bullshit,” he shakes his head, his lips still turned up at the corners as he presses them to my forehead and pulls away to meet my gaze. “I had fun with you tonight,” he admits quietly as he rests his forearms on the bar behind me, caging me in. “Secrets can be fun, but it was nice not having to keep one for once.”r />
  “Yeah, it was weird feeling like a normal couple,” I nod, searching his features as I brush my fingertips over his jaw, tugging affectionately on his beard as I release a long sigh. “So, are you done with everything back there?”

  “Pretty much. I’ve already locked up and counted down the register, I just need to wipe everything down and we can head out.”

  “Okay,” I release a low sigh. “How do you want to do this?”

  “What?”

  “A deal’s a deal. Time to pay the piper,” I say nervously. “What’s demand number three? You said you’d tell me at the end of the night.”

  “Yeah,” he says quietly, giving me a soft smile as he traces my jaw with his fingertips, using his knee to push my legs apart and move closer. “I haven’t forgotten.”

  Before I can reply, he takes my mouth, slipping his tongue inside slowly, but forcefully. He lifts his palm from the bar behind me, gripping the back of my neck and commanding my lips, taking complete control as his fingers wind into my hair.

  He closes what little distance remains between us, my legs spreading wider effectively pushing my skirt higher up my thighs and pulling a gasp from me.

  “Wasn’t there something you wanted to tell me if I won?” he asks, his lips quirking up as he brushes the pad of his thumb over my chin, holding my eyes.

  “I’ll tell you that you’ve got horrible timing,” I pant, making him chuckle.

  “Come on, baby,” he teases my lower lip with his teeth as his palm covers the side of my neck. “You were right before, a deal’s a deal. You only have to say it once and then you’ll find out what my third demand is.”

  I hold his eyes, fighting the urge to roll my own as he moves his free hand to brush over my waist, teasing against the seam of my top.

  “Fine,” I swallow hard. “I hate it when you flirt with other women. It makes me crazy jealous.”

  “Hmm…” he smirks against my lips as my cheeks flare. “Good girl.”

  “Don’t be a jerk about it,” I warn in a low voice. “Intentional or not, you made me feel like shit.”