Junkyard Dog(35)

“Don’t get shy now,” he teases, poking my back.

“I appreciate you not taking advantage of my stupidity last night.”

“It’s not stupid to want this,” he says, strutting ahead of me and showing off his ass. “There’d be something wrong with you if you didn’t want a piece of this beefcake.”

Despite turning beet red, I laugh at how he struts on the walk to the Waffle House. He opens the door for me, and I walk inside feeling like an absolute fool.

Hayes doesn’t say anything more until we order. I finally force myself to meet his gaze. I wish he didn’t look so f*cking handsome sitting next to me.

“I do appreciate you stopping us,” I say in the most solemn voice I can manage. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been with a man and clearly I was unprepared.”

Hayes nudges me. “Why are you so damn embarrassed today? You’ve put me through the ringer since day one. Can’t I tease you a little without you turning red and hiding your face?”

“I’m a sensitive woman.”

Hayes snorts. “Tell me one woman that isn’t sensitive.”

“I was being sarcastic.”

“Women are full of drama.”

“You know what,” I mutter, glaring at him, “f*ck you. I have one moment of weakness, and you think that proves your stupid ideas about my entire gender.”

“That’s the spunky bitch I’m accustomed to. Nice to have you back.”

Smiling now, I lean my head against his shoulder. “I never masturbate, but I did last night. Twice, in fact.”

Hayes narrows his eyes. “Damn, woman. How did we go from me in control to you making me feel like a horny chump?”

“Your fault for showing me pity,” I say, batting my eyes at him. “Now I’m back in the game.”

Hayes grudgingly smiles. “I jacked off three times last night, so I think I win.”

“Yeah, but were you thinking of me every time?”

“Yep. You were a dirty girl in my head. I could barely keep up with you.”

Beet red again, I laugh. “I’m lazy in bed. Not at first, but I get bored and just go through the motions.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Don’t grab my hair during blowjobs,” I whisper. “I panic when my hair is pulled and feel the urge to lash out. I’m sure your dick would survive. Your tender balls probably not so much.”

Hayes studies me with his hypnotic, dark eyes. “Well isn’t that something? My dick reacted positively to your threats.”

I pat his hand and sweetly gaze into his eyes. “I know you’re worried about being vulnerable during sex, but I promise I won’t hurt or scare you while we’re knocking boots.”

“Is that your version of sensitivity?”

“No, that’s me being seductive.”

Hayes grins. “If you keep up this shit, I’m taking you somewhere private after breakfast and working off these calories.”

I hold his gaze and imagine finally knowing what we’re like in bed. If it’s a train wreck, we can be friends. Or employer, employee. If it’s great, we can be more. At this point, I don’t even care what more means.

“Yes,” I say, answering a question he hasn’t asked.

Hayes studies me and then nods casually. He understands what I want. No reason to discuss it further. We eat our breakfast and talk about work. Hayes mentions a fire at a competitor’s restaurant overnight. I know he wouldn’t mention someone else’s problem if he weren't behind it. I smirk at his feigned concern.

“People need to know their place,” I say, mimicking something Hayes has told me a million times in the short period I’ve worked with him.

“I agree.”

We understand each other. While I didn’t necessarily agree with burning down businesses or busting kneecaps, I admire the way White Horse functions. The town lives under a dictatorship, but so do most places. In Cincinnati, the wealthy and politically connected control the city and leave the citizens to fend for themselves.

In the nearby Common Bend and Hickory Creek Township, obvious crime organizations control everything from elections to business licenses. Hayes’s more subtle in many ways. Fairer maybe too, but he never bends. His world is black and white. What he supports is on the side of righteousness even if it involves putting troublemakers in their graves. What interferes with his little utopia is evil and needs stomping.

I’m not na?ve. I’ve seen how wealth controls power, and power controls the lowly citizens. Hayes built his empire through fear but also hard work and intelligence. He’s a benevolent dictator and a man I can’t get out of my system.





TWENTY TWO - CANDY


Hayes opens the Holiday Inn hotel room door and waits for me to enter. I enter a standard room with a king-sized bed, dresser, and desk. Nothing special about it, but this is where I’ll finally see if Hayes’s sexiness is all in my head.

During the drive, he states, “I’m not using a condom. If you get pregnant, I’ll get my heir.”

“What about the other worries condoms help with?” I ask, feeling suddenly very nervous.

“Not a concern.” When I open my mouth, he interrupts in a hard, arrogant voice. “I use them with other women. Never with you.”