“I do have a table now,” I muttered with a chuckle I couldn’t suppress. “Priceless. That chair was my first friend in Barden, my new life. You gotta tell me all the words you hid in there.”
He smiled wide enough to show both dimples. “Never. You’ll have to find someone to inspect it up close and tell you.” He winked and headed up front.
I slipped on my top and checked the time. Damn, they’d worked on me for two hours. I was surprised I’d lost track of time, but then I’d lost track of everything reliving my fantasy from two nights ago.
The longer I held out against Dare, the more taboo my dreams became. I should give in soon. It didn’t have to be the full relationship deal, just some raunchy, casual sex that purged my brain of these explicit dreams. I’d reasoned out that two weeks was the longest I could remember not having sex, and I was beyond my limit, bound to explode soon.
We stayed busy the rest of the night, and I’d turned them down on the invitation to Blue’s. I was wound tight and the new art ached. I waved them off and headed upstairs to fix a quick pan of stir-fry before I headed off to bed.
Another week passed before I’d finally nailed the weekly schedule, so when Dare stormed in around one Tuesday afternoon, I had the numbers ready before he asked. The numbers were a bit down, which worried me, but he didn’t appear to care.
“Look who’s feeling cocky.” He grinned at me. “You got the job mastered?”
“Not everything, and especially not the customers, but the in-control moments now exceed the freaked-out ones.”
He laughed. “Ain’t ever seen you freak, just get a bit jumpy from time to time, but, Red, you’re as steady as they come.”
“Then my poker face is better than you think.” I felt sassy today. With Dare’s melodic laugh, now I could slay monsters. The sound always cheered me.
“Shit, then I hate to think what rattles around in your brain we can’t see.”
Rock joined us then. “What? Whose brain?”
“Red says she doesn’t show everything she thinks across her pretty face.” Dare glanced toward him.
“No way.” Rock elbowed me. “You’re the pretty one, no thoughts needed.”
I poked his side, rock hard. “Is that how you got your name? From those muscles?”
He laughed and winked. “Wouldn’t you like to know, but I’m not telling.”
Dare’s brows furrowed while watching us joke. It was there and gone. I might not have even seen it if I hadn’t made it my obsession to figure him out.
“I’m out, but let’s go to the bar tonight, and Red, don’t say no.” He gave Rock a shoulder slap and moved out the door. The echo of the door’s jingle was the only sign left of him.
“You know, with bikers, you don’t have to play hard to get, we’re a sure thing.” Rock stared at me with a knowing look. “You’re into him right?”
I bit my lip. “I’m not telling.”
He moved back toward the workroom and I thought I heard him say, “Well, some of us want to know.”
But surely not. I mean Zayn totally treated me like his big sister, and Rock, well, he hadn’t said anything or showed the kind of interest Dare did. I needed less guy trouble, not more, so I decided to ignore those thoughts.
We closed at seven tonight, and I was beginning to see another trend—our hours were just a thing printed, because we rarely stayed open to eight or ten on the weekends. When I mentioned this to Zayn, he said to take it while it lasted, soon I’d be wishing for days like this. I didn’t get a chance to follow up since Rachel headed straight for me, almost crushing me in her big hug. I think we’d become friends during my occasional nights out with the guys.
Rock, Zayn and I settled in before Dare arrived. The guys ordered without waiting for Dare, so I did too. About ten minutes later, Weasel and Angel sauntered in with their usual bad tempers. Thankfully, Weasel sat next to Rock across from me. I didn’t want to figure out how to make small talk with either of them. They both rarely spoke to me—well I should say, Weasel spoke to me when he needed something and Angel never said a word.
Rachel brought our food. I still hadn’t deviated from the burger and fries, even though Rachel swore they had other great food, like their tenderloin. I liked to stick with what I knew, and I knew it was awesome.
“Ok, we’ve passed the get-to-know-you threshold, right?” She brushed a flyaway black hair from her face.
“Okay, sure.” I honestly had no idea what she meant.
“Yeah? Then we need to do lunch so I can pepper you with personal questions and pry out all your secrets.” She rolled her hands in this evil-genius way.