Risk (Gentry Boys #2)(3)
“Tallulah Rae Lee you get your loose ass out here!!”
“Truly,” said Saylor in the kindest way, “this is probably going to come out sounding all corny and shit but if you ever want to talk or just have someone stand by your side as you scream at the sky, well, you’ve got me.”
Oddly, it was the nicest thing anyone had said to me in a long time. I swallowed and took a deep breath, smothering the rise of emotion.
“Thanks Saylor,” I finally choked out. “You’re plenty gifted at girl talk.”
She grinned and quietly waited for me as I located a tube of half-forgotten red lipstick beneath all the garbage in my purse. I carefully rolled it on my lips and preened for her.
“So how do I look?”
She raised an eyebrow. “Like you’re ready to get busy.”
I laughed, feeling suddenly young, suddenly free. It was a good way to feel.
“Maybe I am.”
Ed had come crawling out of the bowels of his manager cave and he was giving Cord a hard time in the dining room. It was mildly comical considering Cord was a good ten inches taller and could have flattened Ed’s tantrum with one meaty fist.
“Told you again and again,” Ed sputtered, “not to come in here after hours.” He whirled on us as we exited the bathroom.
“How stupid are you girls? Don’t you know there are liability factors at play here?”
Saylor rolled her eyes. “Ed, what are you talking about?”
Ed advanced on her. In the background I saw Cord’s eyes narrow and could practically feel the tension gathering in his muscles. Cord had been a fighter, a good one from what I’d heard. If Ed got too close to Saylor then the night could go sour fast.
But Saylor stood tall, staring our boss down. Ed backed off with a grumbled pout. “You girls have no respect. People have families to support you know.”
I pulled Saylor away before anything ugly was said or done. “We’re sorry, Ed. We’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I’m off tomorrow,” Saylor grinned.
“Well, then I’ll be the only one seeing him tomorrow. Let’s go.”
Cord threw a steely glare in Ed’s direction before shoving his hands in his pockets and following us outside.
“You need to quit this rat trap,” he grumbled.
Saylor slipped her arms around his waist. “Everyone’s got to work somewhere. You told me that once.”
Cord kissed her forehead. “Soon I’ll be making decent cash at the shop. Then you can say Fuck You to Mr. Ed and stay home.”
“Ha! What’ll I do at home?”
“Keep my bed warm, baby.”
Saylor groaned and stretched, arching her back. Cord held her tighter and began breathing heavily. It was simultaneously embarrassing and fascinating.
She smiled up at him. “Smells like rain. Rooftop weather, you know.”
Rooftop weather? I didn’t know what the hell that meant. I wasn’t sure I wanted to.
It definitely meant something to Cord. He pressed into her harder. It was Thursday night, the start of the pre-weekend festivities, and the street was fairly busy. Neither of them seemed to give a damn that they were turning on the whole neighborhood though.
Suddenly Saylor laughed and grabbed his hand. “Let’s go before Truly starts thinking we’re no better than a pair of rabbits.”
“I already thought that,” I said cheerfully as we headed in the direction of The Hole. There wasn’t any reason to drive. It was a short walk and parking was limited over there.
Saylor untangled herself from Cord long enough to reach over and squeeze my arm. “So happy you came out with us.”
“Ah, well,” I stammered, a little embarrassed. I was glad to have Saylor. It was nice to find a friend in the world to share a few things with, especially if you’d kept yourself buried for as long as I had. I scarcely spoke to my sisters and my roommate was kind of an odd bird who I’d failed to connect with so far. Friendship was something I’d been without for a long time. I’d grown used to doing without a lot of things.
Maybe it was time to put all that restraint aside, just for a little while.
“It’ll be a good night,” I said with a sudden inexplicable thrill.
“As every night should be,” agreed Cord, holding Saylor even closer.
CHAPTER TWO
CREED
“You found it yet?” Chase wanted to know.
I’d been nursing the same beer for the last twenty minutes. If I went at it too hard my head got messed up. I wanted to do something tonight besides get pissed and pass out.
“Found what?” I asked.
My brother grinned wide. “The hole.” He was being clever. The Hole was the name of the bar we were sitting in. It was also a place I planned on entering in a different way.
“Still taking stock,” I answered, mulling over the teetering selection of college girls as they looked over at us. We could take our pick, as always.
It felt good to be out and I was fairly busting to get a ride. The last few months had been tough. First there was the agony of Chase’s injuries after he’d been jumped behind a gym and beaten to within an inch of his life. Then came the grim knowledge that I was a marked man. Day after day I waited for the hammer to fall. I still knew it would. I’d made a deal with Gabe Hernandez. He’d given me some information when I needed it. In return I agreed to bleed for him in the ring. I was just waiting for him to tell me when. It was a tough thing to live with and I’d spent many nights since then in an alcoholic stupor. When I was in that fog I didn’t want the company of even the most eager female. My brothers worried about me. As I saw Chase trying to measure my interest in any of the passing bodies it seemed like my brother wanted me to get f*cked even more than I did.