The Halo Series Boxed Set

by Kimberly Knight

  “Yeah, boss,” Gary said. “Think of Brooke’s smaller boobs that you’ll get to play with tonight.”

  I cut my eyes to him, glaring. “Don’t talk about my girl’s tits.”

  “Just trying to help. This chick has a nice rack, but it ain’t worth ten g’s.”

  “Remember,” Avery said, bringing my gaze back to him, “eyes up here.” He took two fingers and pointed them at his own eyes.

  “Yeah, yeah. I got it. Fuck, you’d think I’d never seen boobs before by the way you two fuckers are acting.”

  Gary stepped closer to me and whispered, “She’ll make you look without you knowing. It’s like she has some power over you. Just don’t look at her when you take your shots.”

  I didn’t respond.

  They called that it was time to start the final game. I stepped up to the table and chalked my stick and the skin of my thumb that met my hand. It was game on, and I needed my stick to glide with ease. Black Widow smiled at me as she took her own chalk and rubbed it on her tit. Tip! When she rubbed it on her tip. I turned away and set the chalk on the side of the table and watched Trish rack the balls. I had no idea where she’d been for the past few hours. She appeared out of thin air and now was playing with my balls. The balls!

  Fuck!

  I shook my head, trying to clear it. Now that my brain was on sex, it seemed that was all I was thinking about. Even toward Trish who I hadn’t care about before.

  We flipped a quarter to see who would break. Black Widow won, and when I looked over at my boys, Gary was shaking his head. Well, fuck these idiots. I was going to win. I cracked my neck and watched as Black Widow rammed her stick into the cue ball. It went straight and hit the solid yellow number one ball head on. The balls scattered and several went into the pockets before I could see which ones.

  I turned to Gary, and he continued to shake his head. What just happened?

  “Looks like I’m solids,” Black Widow stated.

  I turned back to the table and assessed the rest of the balls that were left. She’d hit four of her seven in on one shot. Clearing my throat, I said, “Looks that way.” I turned away. I didn’t want to see our money go down the drain.

  A minute later she called, “Your turn.”

  I counted the balls, and another one of hers was missing, but so was the cue ball.

  She shrugged. “Hit it a little too hard.”

  I nodded and stepped over to the pocket she pointed at and took the cue ball, lining it up behind my green striped fourteen on the opposite end of the table. I aimed and hit the white ball, barley causing it to move. Then I turned, hit the striped red eleven in. The cue ball had darted across the table and lined up perfectly for me to hit the blue striped ten in. I did, and I heard Gary cheer before going quiet again.

  I rolled my eyes and stepped up to hit the purple striped twelve in. I missed and took a deep breath, feeling frustrated. Gary and Avery both groaned. Fuck.

  Black Widow stepped up to where the cue ball had stopped and before she could lean over to take her shot, I turned and looked at Avery and Gary. Avery caught my eye and I shook my head because I knew what he was thinking. Hell, I knew what all the guys were thinking in the room and I wasn’t about to be one of them.

  Baseball.

  Football.

  Beer.

  Brooke’s tits.

  Yes, Brooke’s tits! I wanted to bury my face between her breasts and suck …

  Hockey.

  Golf—fuck, that’s boring as fuck to watch on TV.

  She made a shot and then missed her next one. I turned to Gary because he’d stated she wouldn’t miss unless I sabotaged her. Which I didn’t. He shrugged.

  This was my chance. I’d done it ten or so years ago. I re-chalked my stick, and as I stepped up to the table to align myself for the shot, I prayed that my body had a memory for this. Like riding a bike. I hit my purple striped twelve in, the yellow striped nine in, followed by the blue striped ten. I had two balls left. I turned and smirked at the boys. They were both standing with a look of hope on their faces.

  I smiled and lined my shot to hit the maroon striped fifteen in. It went in and the cue ball teetered on the edge, wanting to follow the fifteen into the pocket. I held my breath, willing the ball to stop with my mind almost like Jean Grey from X-Men. If the cue ball went in and I lost my turn, I knew I’d be fucked. Black Widow would send me packing.

  The ball stopped, and I watched it for a beat to make sure it wouldn’t go over the lip. It didn’t, and I swallowed hard, thanking my lucky stars. I had one final ball and the eight ball left. That was it. Two more balls and I would have a shitload of cash in my pocket.

  Again, I stepped up to the table where the white cue ball lie and I took a few minutes, aiming my shot just right. The cue ball hit lucky number thirteen, and I watched as the orange striped ball disappeared in the pocket. I called the pocket I was going to hit the solid black eight ball in by pointing my stick at it. Black Widow rolled her eyes, and I smirked.

  I totally had this.

  I aimed and took my shot. The cue ball clicked against the black ball, and the eight ball glided across the table and into the pocket I’d called. Before I had time to throw my hands in the air and cheer, I heard a yell come from Black Widow.

  “What the fuck, Trish? I thought you said I’d only have to worry about the one with the scar?”

  I looked to Avery and Gary, and their eyes went to Rick. He had the money bag tucked under his arm and was making a beeline for the stairs.

  “Oh, fuck no!” I hissed and ran toward him.

  Before I could reach him, Avery had him by his neck collar. “Where do you think you’re going with my friend’s money?”

  Rick looked to Black Widow and Trish. “I was—”

  I snatched the envelope from his side and growled almost nose to nose with him as I bent down to be level with him. “You three better get the fuck out of here before we call the cops. I’m also going to talk to every pool hall in this city and shut you down. I see what you’re doing, and if those two weren’t women, there would be a brawl happening right now. But we’re used to fuckers like you and have no problem taking this outside. Now, get the fuck out of here before I change my mind.”

  Rick hurried up the stairs when Avery released him. Black Widow and Trish followed after him. We had a few cops who came into Halo, and it was time I had a chat with them about the shenanigans happening in their city.

  “Since they were scamming us, can we get our money back?”

  I looked and saw a guy walking toward us. I chuckled. “Fuck no. I have a wedding and honeymoon to pay for.”

  Bailee and Nicole refused to tell me what the plan was for my bachelorette party. It seemed to be a theme for the night because Nicole had said that Avery and Gary didn’t tell Easton what they were doing either. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know about Easton’s “last night of freedom.” Did he want to have that one last moment where he could forget about me and be with another woman? I trusted him. However, there was still the underlining feeling that I would never be enough for him. Dana wasn’t.

  It had been a few days since Easton and I had had sex, and men needed sex like their next breath. At least that was what they thought. And don’t get me wrong, I’d tried to fuck him as much as possible. I wanted to. He was the sexiest man I’d ever been with, and I loved him with my entire heart. But recovery had put a damper on my libido and, I was always tired after work.

  So for my bachelorette party, I wanted to get wasted and then come home and fuck Easton’s brains out. If he’d gone to a strip club, I’d need to remind him what he had. What we built. What we shared.

  If my night was anything like what we’d done in Vegas for Nicole’s bachelorette shindig, I knew I’d at least get drunk off my ass. And when I was drunk as a skunk, all inhibitions went out the window.

  “So, where are we going first?” I asked when Bailee and I jumped into Nicole’s car.

  “Halo,” Nicole answe
red.

  My brows furrowed. “What?” I was there practically every day. I knew we could get free drinks, but I wanted to go somewhere different.

  She laughed as I looked at Bailee, questioning if Nicole was serious. Bailee smirked.

  “Don’t worry. We’re only parking at Halo and then we’re going on a scavenger hunt,” Nicole affirmed.

  I looked out the window at the falling snow. It wasn’t coming down heavy, but I still didn’t want to walk out on the street in heels with it sleek and freezing.

  “We’re going on a scavenger hunt?” I asked, not believing my ears.

  “Yep,” Nicole replied with a pop of her mouth.

  “It’s not what you’re thinking,” Bailee chimed in from the backseat.

  I rolled my eyes. “And what am I thinking?”

  “We’re not going to do those lame ass ones where you have to find a guy named John and take a picture with him. Or find a guy to sing to you. Or hell, create some stupid ass veil with toilet paper. That shit isn’t fun.”

  And that was why I loved Nicole. She didn’t sugarcoat a damn thing.

  “This night is going to be epic!” Bailee squealed.

  I turned toward the backseat. “Is this your first bachelorette party?”

  “Of course. None of my friends got married in college.”

  “You’re in for a treat, Bai.” Nicole grinned.

  “So are you two going to tell me what we’re doing?” I was starting to get annoyed. I loathed surprises.

  “We will … In time.” I hated the smile on Nicole’s face. She was totally getting me back for Vegas.

  “Do I have to wear penis attire?” I prodded.

  “Hell no. We don’t need no fake penises when we have real ones at home!” Again, Nicole didn’t sugarcoat anything.

  “Um, speak for yourselves.” Bailee frowned.

  I hadn’t asked Bailee about Gary. I thought it was better I didn’t know. But now that Bailee and I were seeing each other more and we talked every day, I was starting to see her as my best friend and not just as the little sister I’d raised. I was slowly coming to terms with the fact that she was an adult.

  So I asked the question I really wanted to know. “What’s up with you and Gary anyway?” Bailee looked away and didn’t say anything. “Bai …” I prompted.

  “There’s nothing going on.” She frowned.

  “But you like him.”

  She chuckled. “What’s not to like?”

  Nicole and I both nodded in silence. Gary was hot. Hell, most of the men at Halo were hot. It was no wonder the bar was always packed.

  “Have you two been talking?” I wondered.

  She grinned. “Yeah. He wants to come see me in Boston, but our work schedules make it hard to pick a date.”

  “Maybe something will happen this weekend,” Nicole said.

  My eyes shot to her, ready to protest that my baby sister needed to wait until marriage to have sex. Except then I would be a hypocrite.

  “Maybe.” Bailee looked out the backseat window, a smile spread across her face and a dreamy look casting over her.

  “Maybe tonight you can go to his place and leave Easton and me alone.”

  “So you two can fuck?” Bailee asked, turning her attention back to me.

  A grin touched my lips. “Maybe we’ll all get lucky tonight.”

  “After what we have planned, it’s a possibility.” Nicole chuckled.

  “I still want to know what the fuck we’re doing.”

  “A scavenger hunt,” Nicole stated.

  “I know that,” I snapped, “but what are we looking for?”

  Nicole grinned as she pulled into Halo, not saying anything. I groaned, frustrated they were keeping me in the dark. “So we’re just gonna go into Halo and do a scavenger hunt?” I asked, really not liking the idea.

  “Will you shut up and just go with the flow?” Nicole snapped.

  “Sis, there’s a surprise in Halo for you. Then the fun will begin.”

  My gaze flicked to Bailee. I was always the one taking care of people and making the plans, not the other way around.

  We nodded a greeting to Marshall, one of the other bouncers we employed. He smiled as he let us pass, and I followed Bailee and Nicole to the bar. I thought for a second they had lied to me, and we were going to spend our night at Halo. Instead, Nicole tapped a girl on the shoulder, and as she turned, I realized it was Tonia.

  I squealed and rushed to her, wrapping her in my arms. “Oh my God! What are you doing here?”

  “You think I’d miss a night of partying in NYC for your bachelorette?”

  I wanted to say that she never came to visit me in the hospital. Hell, I hadn’t heard from her since my bowling birthday party almost a year ago. But before I could respond, I noticed she wasn’t alone. My gaze flicked to the other woman who was smiling.

  “Oh shit! Lucy, what are you doing here?”

  It was the same scenario. Lucy was my old co-worker and she hadn’t visited me in the hospital either. I’d thought for sure I didn’t mean anything to them. I guess I was wrong.

  “I couldn’t miss this night either.” She smiled, and I wrapped her tiny self in a hug too. “This is my friend April.” Lucy nodded towards the person next to her.

  “Hope you don’t mind me crashing your party. They said they needed another person to even up the teams.” The brunette smiled, and I shook her hand.

  “Teams?” I asked as our hands shook.

  “B, it’s time to get this party started.” Nicole reached into her purse and took out a black velvet bag.

  I laughed. “It’s about time.”

  “So here’s what’s going on,” Nicole started. “We’ll be in teams of three. Each team will take an Uber or taxi to different sex shops around the city looking for everything on the list. After the team gets all the items listed, they are to go to the designated place. Brooke, you get to keep everything we purchase.”

  My eyes widened. “I get to keep everything?”

  She smiled. “Everything.”

  “What the hell is on these lists?”

  “Each team has the same items listed, but since people have different tastes, you shouldn’t get the same items.”

  I was nervous as hell. Everyone seemed modest except for Nicole. I was certain she’d find a big, thick dildo to give me—if that was on the list.

  “So, I get to pick out stuff on the team I’m on?”

  Nicole grinned. “That’s the catch. You’re only going along for the ride.”

  I glared at her. “Well, that’s no fun.”

  “Sounds like fun to me.” Lucy laughed.

  Nicole did a quick clap and dismissed my grumble. “Okay, now for teams.” She dug into the bag and pulled out a small piece of folded paper. “Lucy, you’re with me.”

  Bailee grabbed the bag and drew a name. “Tonia’s with me.”

  Nicole took the bag again. “April.” Nicole smiled.

  I quickly added everything up in my head. “Wait. I’m looking at sex toys with my baby sister?”

  Bailee wrapped an arm around me. “It won’t be bad, sis. I won’t tell you what I’m into.”

  My breath caught as a million thoughts ran through my mind. I shivered. “Yeah, let’s not go down that road.”

  “All right. Let’s head out.” Nicole started to walk, and everyone followed, Bailee hooking her arm through mine.

  I wanted to protest. I was certain I would need to have a good buzz going to get through sex shop hopping with my sister. However, I kept my mouth shut and went with the flow. I wanted to get drunk later so I could have sloppy sex with Easton anyway.

  We walked out to the busy street that ran in front of Halo. Two cars were parked in the red zone and I followed Bailee and Tonia into one car while the other three went in the other car. Bailee gave the driver an address, and we were off. I watched as the taillights of the car disappeared in New York City’s constant traffic.

  “So do we get so
mething if we’re first?” I looked toward Tonia and then Bailee.

  Bailee turned around. “Nope. But if we come in first, then we can start drinking earlier.”

  “What about dinner?” I was starving. Dinner, drinks, and shenanigans were supposed to be a part of the plan.

  “That’s after the sex shops.” The driver’s gaze turned toward Bailee as she spoke and he smiled. “We’re meeting at the restaurant.”

  “Oh, thank God,” I murmured.

  “So …” Bailee looked at the Uber app on her phone, “Uzzi. We need to go to multiple places tonight. You down to drive us around for a few hours?”

  He grinned. “You mean multiple sex shops?”

  We all chuckled.

  “Yeah,” Bailee confirmed.

  “This will be the highlight of my year.”

  Bailee nodded. “Awesome.” After a few beats, she spoke again. “Your name sounds like a gun.”

  Uzzi laughed. “I guess it does.”

  “Is that your real name or what’s only on the Uber app?”

  “It’s my real name.”

  She smiled at him. “Your parents in the mob or something?”

  “Nah. Uzzi is Hebrew. It means my strength or my power. Different references say different things.”

  “That’s a cool name,” I said.

  Uzzi looked at me through the rearview mirror. From what I could tell from the backseat, he had black finger-length hair, piercing grey eyes and a light stubble across his cheeks and chin. He wasn’t bad to look at, that was for sure. “Thanks.”

  “So what’s first on the list?” Tonia asked.

  Bailee dug in her purse and pulled out a piece of paper. “First is Clone a Willy.”

  I snorted. “Clone a Willy? What the fuck?”

  Tonia and Bailee laughed. “We couldn’t just put vibrator or something boring like that. Then it would be too easy,” Bailee stated.

  “What if we find everything at the first sex shop?” I asked, my stomach growling.

  Bailee looked at me as she spoke. “Can’t. Only a max of three items per store. We have four places to go.”