“One sec,” he growled, pulling all the way out of her.
Then he sat bare-assed naked on the lounge he knew was an antique his family had picked up at some point, and pulled Kenzie onto his lap so she hovered over his dick.
“Ride me, Red.”
She licked her lips, gripped the base of his cock, then slowly slid down. “We’re defiling this lounge, you know,” she said, inching up and then slowly working her way down again.
“I’d say we’re not the first, but since I have my dick in you, let’s just keep it between us.” He said this through gritted teeth since he was now balls-deep in her and ready to come.
“Okay, cowboy, here I go.”
“I thought I was a duke in this fantasy,” he teased on a moan.
“You’re a cowboy visiting regency England, and you found a lovely debutante ready for debauchery.” She winked, and he laughed, loving the way she was into this. Into him.
She bounced on his dick, her breasts jiggling and just about sending him over the edge. He had one hand on her hip, keeping her steady so she didn’t fall off, and the other on the back of her neck, needing her to keep her gaze on his.
He knew it was a mistake, knew it would be too intimate when they came together, but he didn’t care in the heat of the moment.
So when they came, calling each other’s names in frantic whispers, he knew he had to walk away before things got even more complicated.
But he wouldn’t.
Not yet.
Because, like he’d told himself before, he was a selfish bastard.
Chapter 10
“Get your ass up off the couch and get yourself a beer,” Dare growled at Fox. His mood had been shit when he walked into Fox’s place an hour before and, apparently, it had only gotten worse since.
Fox nudged him in the shoulder and glared down at him. “Really? Keep your yelling at the TV and Mario Kart and not me, especially not in my house. I don’t know what’s crawled up your ass, but you can just fuck right off.”
“Could be the fact that we’re in our thirties and playing Mario Kart,” Dare grumbled, annoyed with himself. He liked playing Mario Kart, but now he was just picking a fight because he couldn’t find a way to fight about anything else. Between the three of them, they had a hundred games to play of various types and strengths but to start with for their rare joint afternoon off, they’d gone with something fun that would easily lead to more cursing and throwing things than any other hardcore game they had.
“Could be you’re freaking out since you’re sleeping with the innkeeper,” Loch drawled from his seat in the leather recliner. He had his attention on the screen in front of him as he chose a rider and vehicle. Loch was a very serious player, even when it came to a game from their childhood.
Fox sat up and grabbed the controller from Dare’s hand. Dare looked over at his younger brother and glared. “You’re sleeping with Kenzie? When did this happen?”
“I thought you were the reporter,” Loch said, taking the remote from Fox so he could lower the volume. “Shouldn’t you know these things before me?”
“I haven’t been by the bar in over a week since we’re on deadline with this special edition and all the other shit I have to do when I have two copy editors and my sports reporter down with a virus.” Fox glared over at Loch before turning back to Dare. “And you and Kenzie? I knew you two were sniffing around each other, but I didn’t know it had gotten that serious.”
“It’s not serious.” His brothers just stared at him when he said it. “It can’t be.” That was the truth, even though he had a feeling neither of his brothers actually believed him. Hell, he wasn’t sure he and Kenzie believed each other, but he’d be damned if he let it be anything else.
Fox held up one finger. “First, sex when it comes to you, is always serious. Even if you tell yourself that you’re a free man since Monica, it’s serious. Hell, you were practically married to her without the vows, no matter what she said.”
“Is there a second to this diatribe of yours?” Dare asked. “And you’re wrong about whatever the hell you just said.” He was glad he didn’t have a controller in his hand right then, or he’d probably brain Fox with it or crack it in his grip.
“I’m never wrong. Second,” Fox said, using his middle finger to point rather than holding up two fingers. Classy. “You wouldn’t be all grumbly and growly and getting on my last ever-loving nerve if getting it on with the innkeeper didn’t mean something.”
“Her name is Kenzie. Stop calling her the innkeeper like that’s all she is or some shit.”
Fox and Dare gave each other knowing looks.
Idiots.
“What?”
“You’re mighty defensive over a woman you say you’re not getting serious with.” Fox leaned back into the corner of the couch and raised a brow in Dare’s direction.
“Shut it. I don’t want to talk about it, okay?”
“We’re here if you want to, you know,” Loch put in, his voice low. “You might be growling right now, but you’re still smiling more than ever before at the bar when I’m there working on the inn.”
“Maybe it’s you,” Dare deadpanned. “I’m just glad to see my family.”
Loch flipped him off before turning back to the TV. “If that’s what you tell yourself so you can sleep at night.”
Dare couldn’t sleep at night, not with dreams of Kenzie mixing with the night he’d gotten shot. That was the problem.
“Dare?” Fox asked, all teasing out of his tone.
“What?” he growled.
“Kenzie is all high-class and a pretty amazing woman.”
“And? You think I’m not good enough for her? I know that, dipshit.”
Loch just sighed, and Fox glared. “No, that’s not what I’m saying, you ass. What I’m saying is that you two are pretty good for each other. At least on the outside looking in.” He paused. “I just don’t want you hurt again. Okay?”
Dare didn’t say anything, not sure what there was to say after that, so he took the controller back from Fox and went to select his player. “Anything but Rainbow Road, okay? I hate that one.”
“There’re like four Rainbow Roads on this version,” Loch pointed out. “They took some of the old console layouts and added them into this one, just a little smoother.”
“So none of the Rainbow Roads.” If he focused on petty crap like that, he could at least breathe for the afternoon. He had no idea what the hell he was going to do about Kenzie or his life for that matter. He might as well play games with his brothers for the two hours he had off and just forget what else was going on in the world around him.
Because his brothers knew him, they stopped asking him about Kenzie for the time being. Instead, they tried to beat the hell out of each other with each game they played within the small break they had. Dare knew Loch had to go and pick up Misty from her friend’s house soon—a friend who had a very single mother that seemed to want to get in Loch’s pants, but his brother wasn’t interested as far as Dare could tell. Fox had work to do as usual, and Dare was surprised his brother had even taken time to sit around and do nothing for as long as he had. Fox was constantly moving and reading, doing his job and loving it.
Dare, on the other hand, might work his ass off, but sometimes he didn’t particularly like it. It was hard work, and he was good at it, but it wasn’t the only thing he loved in the world. Anyone who adored every aspect of his or her job was one lucky asshole.
Their father showed up about an hour into their game time and joined in with gusto. This was why Dare knew he’d been an asshole when his parents told them they were hiring Kenzie. His parents needed the time off to relax and just be. And what had he done? Gotten all butt hurt over the fact that his parents hadn’t told him about their plans for their business. It was any wonder his mother hadn’t lashed his hide right then.
“How’s Nate doing?” Bob asked soon after he’d arrived. “You’re getting him soon, right?”
&
nbsp; Dare nodded, taking a sip of his soda. “Next weekend. He’s good. We talked last night for almost an hour. If he wasn’t so young, I’d totally get him a cell phone so we could text, but that might be pushing it.”
“Considering I didn’t let you get one until college, I feel like an old man.”
“There were only a few kids who had those old Nokia phones in high school. They didn’t become a big thing until like freshman year of college for me, and then came the flip phones.” He snorted. “The insanity of the flip phone was over quickly compared to when the touchscreen came out.”
“You kids and your technology.”
“Says the man who killed it at Candy Crush before the rest of us had even downloaded the app.”
His dad just grinned. “I’m good. What can I say? Plus, it was candy without the calories that could lead to the infamous Collins gut.” He pointed at Dare’s stomach. “Better watch out with all that whiskey of yours.”
Dare patted his flat belly. “Keep dreaming. I do pretty well for myself.”
Loch snorted. “If you or Fox ever came to my gym and punched a few bags, you might actually have some muscle.”
“I like my leanness, thank you very much,” Fox said, his attention on the TV in front of him.
“You say leanness, I say skinny ass arms.” Loch’s lips twitched, and Dare full-out grinned. They just needed Tabby and his mom here, and it would be a perfect family afternoon. Of course, if Tabby were here, she’d beat them all as Link or Princess Peach since that girl had the best Mario Kart moves of the four of them.
Twenty minutes later, he left the guys playing another game since he had to go to work. Rick was on shift at the bar that night, but Dare still needed to be there to oversee things. Plus, Claire had mentioned there might be an issue with his chef’s attitude, and that wasn’t something he was in the mood to deal with in the middle of a rush, so he’d get there and see what he could do before they were fully open. He knew Loch would only stay at Fox’s for probably another ten minutes and then he’d head over to pick up Misty and then go into work. Fox, on the other hand, would probably find a way to keep working while they let their dad play. Dad didn’t get enough time with each of them, so they’d make it work.
Rick was behind the bar finishing up the last of the lunch stragglers when Dare walked in. Claire, on the other hand, was right at the kitchen entrance, fists on her hips.
“I don’t care if you want to try a new recipe. You want to do that? You tell me before shift starts and when I can order at cost. You don’t tell me after everything is printed and ingredients are not only hard to come by but also pricey as hell.”
She had her voice low so it wouldn’t carry to any of the people in the bar or the inn above, but Dare was still pissed that she had to deal with any of it at all.
“What’s going on?” Dare asked, frowning as he watched Griz, their top chef and genuine pain the ass, growl behind the stove.
“I’m a chef. An artist. I don’t need to be held back by society’s norms.”
Dare pinched the bridge of his nose and prayed for patience. “Did you really just say artist? And society’s norms? We’re a restaurant. We make steak, chicken, fish, pork, a vegetarian option, and an exotic option like pheasant or wild boar if we feel like it. That’s it. You dress it up. You make it taste phenomenal because that’s what you do damn well, but you don’t fuck with shit.”
“Art. Ist.” Griz said the word in two syllables that made him sound like an ass, not an award-winning chef. Though, really, those two weren’t exclusive.
“He ordered the rainbow trout and didn’t tell me,” Claire growled. “He had it overnighted for tomorrow so he could make a special he’s been dreaming of. He did it on his own, Dare. And I’m going to kill him.”
“No bloodshed,” Dare warned. “We don’t want the mess or the paperwork.”
“Griz? For fuck’s sake. Really? If you wanted the trout, just tell us, we’d do it for next week. We don’t overnight ingredients we aren’t prepared for because you’re in a mood. And we damn well don’t waste money. Got me?”
“I can’t send it back,” Griz growled. “Nor can I cancel the order. It’s too late.”
Claire started grumbling under her breath, and Dare shook his head. He’d been a cop, that was what he’d thought he was good at. This? Fuck, he hated when he felt out of his depth even though he’d trained to run the businesses, as well.
“This is the last time you do this. You do it again, and you’re looking for a new job.” He held up his hand when both of them started complaining. “I won’t take the extra costs out of your pay, but you will do whatever Claire needs you to for the next week in addition to your extra duties. I’ve been lax on your time because you and Claire do good work, but I’m not in the mood for petty bullshit. You got me?” Griz nodded, his face set in straight lines. “And if you talk to Claire again like you were when I walked in here, you’re gone.”
With that, he stormed back into his office, Claire on his tail. “I can handle him usually, but sometimes I know he gets pissy that he has to answer to a woman.”
Dare shook his head and searched through a few files for the one he was looking for. He had a shit-ton of paperwork to get done before he worked the floor, and he already had a headache from hell.
“You can handle him always, but right then, it wasn’t about him not listening to you because you were a woman. He did something against the business as a whole, that’s why I spoke up. I’d usually leave it to you to deal with because you can handle it, but I couldn’t just then.”
“And I get that,” Claire said. “If I felt like you were trying to protect me because I’m the little woman, I’d have said something.”
He snorted, a smile twitching at his lips. “I don’t doubt it. You’d probably have kicked my ass on the way.”
“True enough.” She let out a breath, her shoulders relaxing slightly before she pulled herself back up. “Okay, then. Time to get to work and make the place shine. By the way, your innkeeper was down here earlier, walking guests through the place and setting up reservations. She’s damn good at her job.” She gave him a knowing smile, and he narrowed his eyes.
“She’s not my innkeeper.”
She just smiled at him. “I meant your family’s innkeeper, but…interesting. Very interesting.” She drew out the word, and he went back to his paperwork.
“Don’t you have a restaurant to manage or something?”
“I might. I just might.” She laughed on her way out of his office, and he glowered. Was he that transparent? He and Kenzie were just…well, he didn’t know what to call them, but they weren’t serious.
They weren’t.
And the mix of laughter and doubt in his head could just back the fuck off.
Knowing he only had about forty-five minutes to get some work done before he was needed out front, he sat down and pulled out some of his paperwork. And because he was a glutton for punishment, he also pulled out his phone and sent a quick text.
Dare: In the office. Hope you’re having a better day.
Kenzie: Doing okay. We’re full-up tonight so that makes me happy. I’m about to show one of the new couples around the area a bit since I need a walk. Then I have paperwork so I’ll eat upstairs while I do it. Fun, right?
Dare: Sounds like my life.
Kenzie: Yay us for being adults.
He shook his head and pushed his phone away so he wouldn’t be tempted to text her again. He didn’t know why had in the first place, other than the fact that he hadn’t wanted her to hear he was in the building from anyone else.
He just kept making one mistake after another it seemed, and it didn’t look as if he were going to quit anytime soon.
“Idiot,” he mumbled and got to work.
Right when he was about to head back out into the front to see how things were going, his phone rang. This time, he smiled wide and picked up, eager to hear the voice on the other end.
“Daddy?
Mommy let me call all on my own!
“Nate, my man. How’s it hangin’?”
“Today I picked up a rolly bug that made Mommy squeal. And then I helped Daddy Auggie with his books. Oh and then I talked to Misty on the phone because she was with her friend that she says isn’t as good a friend as I am but she still thinks that her friend is great. That means I’m great too, right? And then I played in the outside again because I was being too loud with the blocks and trains but I like outside because the leaves are different colors and soon I get to play in them. Oh, and Mommy says I get to get a new bed soon because I’m too big for my other bed. I’m a big boy now. Mommy and Grandma say so.”
All of this was said in one or two breaths, and Dare was frankly concerned his son might not be getting enough oxygen to his brain. He also didn’t correct any of his grammar since Monica was right by him, and he could hear her subtle corrections on the other end of the phone.
“You sound like you had a productive day.” Tiring, yet Dare could only think of how nice it would have been to play video games with his son and brothers instead of having to hear about Nate’s activities in passing. One day, he reminded himself. One day, things might change.
He hoped, at least.
Of course, the idea of the letters he’d dropped off at the precinct reminded him that he still wasn’t exactly safe for his kid, at least according to Monica. He hadn’t told her about it since he was sure nothing would come of it, and the detectives on the case were now keeping an eye out, but still, Dare had the thoughts of what could happen to his family if his past life came back circling in his mind.
Maybe there was a reason he hadn’t gotten full custody.
And that was exactly why he should stay away from Kenzie.
Full. Fucking. Circle.
He talked to Nate a little longer, soaking up each word and moment he had with his son, then sat there a few minutes after they’d hung up so he could gather his thoughts. He had work to do, and a life to live, but damned if he didn’t want to throw it all away and find time to be with Nate.
Whiskey Secrets Page 11
