Reaper's Legacy(36)

“You’ll be glad you came back,” she replied. “If nothing else, now you’ll have me around to babysit for you. I promise—no drinking when I’m watching your kid. Scout’s honor.”

“They kicked you out of Scouts.”

“Only the Girl Scouts,” she mused. “Those boys always found room for me in their tents. Seriously, though, Noah’s a great kid, and it’s not like I get to go out and do anything these days anyway. Not that I mind—I’ve had my fun.”

I snickered at that. She didn’t even blush. I wasn’t entirely sure she was joking about the scouts and their tents.

“Speaking of fun …” she said slowly, swirling her drink. “I need to tell you something.”

I glanced over at her, and for the first time since I’d known her, Kimber looked embarrassed.

“What?” I asked, a little nervous.

Nothing embarrassed Kimber.

“I don’t know how to say this, so I’m just going to spit it out,” she replied, swallowing. “I slept with Ruger three years ago. It was a one-night thing, nothing special. I figured you should know, since I might want to come and hang out at your new place sometime. Full disclosure.”

I gaped at her.

“Why did you sleep with Ruger?”

She cocked a brow at me, eyes knowing.

“Seriously?” she asked, and I flushed. Of course I knew why. “It was before Ryan, so it’s not like I did something wrong. You were still living in Olympia and could hardly stand him long enough to let him see Noah. I thought I was in the clear.”

I looked away from her, trying to process. The thought of her and Ruger felt wrong. In fact, it made me kind of angry. And that was ridiculous, because it wasn’t like I had any business being upset. Not only that, it’d been three years ago. A full year after things fell to shit here, and not even Kimber knew all the details on that one …

Strong or not, I took a big gulp of my margarita, which blazed a nasty, fiery trail down my throat. My lungs spasmed in protest.

“You aren’t planning to do it again, are you?” I asked once I stopped coughing. She burst out laughing and shook her head.

“Of course not!” Kimber sputtered. “For one, I’m married. Remember? You were in the wedding, dumbass … But even if I wasn’t, he’s not a return-trip kind of guy. I mean, I’d have done him again, because he’s that good—trust me—but he’s definitely not the type to stick around. He’s f*cked half of Idaho. It was fun, but I don’t get off on being one of many.”

“Do we have to talk about this?” I asked, squirming.

“No, not really,” she said. “But I wanted you to know, just in case.”

“Just in case what?”

“Well, just in case I come over. It seems weird not to tell you, now that I know you have a thing for him. I didn’t know that when I f*cked him, though. I swear. I thought you hated him as much as you hate Zach.”

“I don’t have a thing for him,” I said quickly.

“Don’t bother denying it,” she replied lightly, giving a theatrical shudder. “I can see it in your face when you talk about him, and I get it. He’s one of those guys you just want to shove down and lick all over. Which I did, actually. He’s nasty in bed, too, never tried some of that shit before. Pierced dick. I shit you not.”

My eyes widened and I took another gulp of my drink.

“Are you kidding?” I asked. “Does that mean—wait, no. No. I don’t want to know.”

She burst out laughing.

“The answer to your unasked question is yes,” she said, leering comically. “But you need to stay away from him, babe. No kidding on that one.”

I rolled my eyes. I wanted to be annoyed with Kimber, but you just couldn’t. She was too sweet and crazy to get pissed at.

“I live with him,” I said dryly. “I can’t stay away.”

Her smile faded.

“I guess that’s my point,” she said thoughtfully. “But you can keep your distance in other ways. You need to build your own life and cut out any fantasies of messing around with him, because it won’t end well. If you guys fall into bed one night, you better be ready to wake up and clear out before the next chick shows up. And the next one and the next one and the one after that. That’s just how he is.”

“I know. Pisser, hmmm?”