Game (Gentry Boys, #3)(47)

My interview with Truly’s boss went well. He seemed like your average bland Type A middle-aged dude, but I could tell he thought highly of her and that was enough for him to give me a chance even though I had no experience.

“Can you start on Monday?” he asked and I was pleased. Waitressing was a pittance income next to sports booking but it was honest work. I’d climbed out of the shadows of my family’s history and I was going to stay out of there.

I shook the man’s hand and thanked him profusely.

When I left his office I could see Chase already sitting in the restaurant. There was another waitress hovering over him under the pretense of taking his order. She brushed something off his sleeve and he looked annoyed. The girl was thin-lipped and skinny and looked like she might need my foot up her ass.

Chase saw me and grinned. I raised my eyebrows and pointed to my future coworker with a look of disgust. Chase grinned wider when he realized I was feeling territorial and he held his arms open for me.

“Missed you,” he said, kissing me so sloppily the girl couldn’t possibly be confused about who had his attention.

“Can I get you anything?” she asked me in a snotty tone.

“Whatever my boyfriend ordered,” I answered, turning on my bitchiest east coast voice. “You just run off to the kitchen and fetch me the same f*ckin’ thing.”

Chase cracked up as she stalked away. “Awdawed,” he mimicked me. “Awf.”

I smiled. “Accent comes out more when I’m pissed.”

“So I’ve noticed. I’m making a mental note to piss you off later so I can hear it again.”

I poked around in the shopping bag he’d stowed under the table. “What’d you get?”

“Costumes,” he said happily. “Although the selection was somewhat limited.”

“Really? You mean on the day of Halloween there are not many costumes to choose from?”

He nodded seriously. “Yeah. Who would have thought?” Then he gave me one of his enchanting Chase grins and I had to kiss him again.

When our cranky waitress brought our food I slid over to a different chair. I peered more carefully into the bag. It held a short red dress with a feather boa and a black pinstripe suit. The bag also held a pair of toy guns.

“Are we masquerading as hooker and pimp?” I asked as he tore into his chicken sandwich.

“Bonnie and Clyde,” he said proudly after he swallowed.

“I don’t have as much history crammed into my head as you do but weren’t they a pair of heartless murderers who were eventually shot to death?”

“Yes. Didn’t I tell you the selection was limited? It was either homicidal figures in American history or a matching pair of morph suits.”

“Well then, I guess you chose well.”

Chase touched my knee under the table. “Plus I keep picturing you in that short red dress while I tie you to my bed post with that feather boa.”

“The boa doesn’t look sturdy enough for that.”

“I’ll double knot it.”

Chase was intent on hitting Mill Avenue when it got dark out. We headed back to my apartment to change. It was Truly’s night off so she was home when we got there. Unfortunately, Creed was there too.

He said hello but seemed equally uncomfortable. I noticed he was watching Chase carefully and remembered that Truly had said he felt bad about their argument. And even though Chase hadn’t specified, that had to be the reason he was so grim last night.

The three of us stood around awkwardly as Truly finished getting ready. Chase stared at the floor with his hands jammed in his pockets. Creed stared out the window with his hands also jammed in his pockets.

“So what are you guys doing tonight?” I asked Creed, just to thaw the tension in the room.

He gave me the barest hint of a smile and glanced at his brother. “Don’t know. Whatever the lady wants is what we’ll do.”

“The lady just wants to be in your arms,” Truly said as she walked into the room. She was absolutely stunning in a black satin dress with a tight bodice and flared skirt.

Creed stared. “Where’d you get that?”

Truly winked at me. “This lil’ thing?” she asked, twirling around in her black heels to show her shapely legs. “Why, I just whipped this up on my machine this week. You like it, Creedence?”

“Yeah,” he said and I could practically see him drooling. She smiled up at him when she got close and he circled his arms around her waist, reaching lower to unabashedly grab her ass. The Gentry brothers sure as hell weren’t shy.

“Creed,” she scolded but she laughed and didn’t move away.

“Hey,” I whispered before she ran out the door, “can I borrow some of your makeup?”

“Help yourself,” she shrugged, then looked past me. “Bye, Chase.”

Chase glanced at his brother and they exchanged a long look. “Happy Halloween,” he said.

Creed lingered for a few seconds like he wanted to say something else, or maybe was hoping Chase would, but then he just exhaled noisily and followed Truly out.

“You want to talk about it?” I asked Chase when the door closed.

“Nope,” he said immediately. Then he dumped the contents of the costume bag on the floor. “I want to have some fun.”