Shade wasn't sure which of them needed their back-pounding bro hug more as they crashed into each other and offered the manliest physical comfort possible. He actually felt a little better by the time Gabe opened the suite door with Shade's keycard.
Melanie and her very bendy friend Nikki were curled up together on the bed all sleep-tousled and feminine. Nikki's hand was cupped possessively over Melanie's breast, her beautiful face pressed into her bedmate's neck. Shade didn't know why lesbian lovers were such a turn-on to him, but he was definitely a fan.
"Well, what do we have here?" Shade asked with a crooked grin. This was a sandwich any man would want to be the filling in. Why exactly had Gabe defected to another room?
Melanie's eyes blinked open, and her intense dislike for him bubbled to the surface before she'd even taken a breath. "What are you doing in here?" she growled at him. "Get out!"
Shade was not in the mood for her sass. "This is my room. You get out!"
Nikki was more agreeable. She untangled herself from Melanie and stretched her arms over her head, showing off a strip of flat tanned belly at the hem of her tank top. "I guess I got to spend the night in Shade's bed after all," she said with a flirty smile.
And maybe Shade would have been better off with Nikki-or someone like her-in his bed. He'd have gotten his rocks off without the complications that came with emotional attachment. But even though Amanda had shredded his heart, he didn't regret a single moment he'd spent with her. He had loved her. Still loved her.
Maybe she'd change her mind about him. Would it be better to pressure her or give her time and space?
What was he thinking? She'd made it perfectly clear that she wasn't interested.
Oh hell, he didn't know. When it came to women, he'd never had this problem before. He was usually the one pushing them away, not the other way around. And he knew how fucking annoying it was for him when a woman he didn't want keep pestering him. It made him dislike her even more. How would he feel if he went after Amanda and her hated grew? Could he tolerate that?
Shade shook his head to clear it.
He didn't need Amanda in his life. He would not swallow his pride and go after her. Fuck her.
He turned his attention to the undercurrent of drama in the room. Nikki seemed her regular chipper self, but Melanie was definitely out of sorts. Gabe seemed shocked by Nikki's cheer. A bit puzzled himself, Shade couldn't help but stare at the dark bruises on Nikki's throat as she took Gabe's keycard, patted him on the butt, and left to return to Gabe's suite to get dressed.
"So what the hell happened?" Shade asked. "Owen said you two returned early from Austin, and there's obviously something going on with Nikki."
"I shouldn't have left her by herself," Melanie said, dragging a sheet from the bed to wrap around herself. She was wearing a nightgown, and it wasn't as if Shade had never seen a woman in her nightgown before, but the cover seemed to offer some comfort.
"She hooked up with the wrong guy," Gabe said. "An MMA fighter who wouldn't take no for an answer. I tried to kick his ass, but … " He shrugged and pointed to his blackened eyes.
"He did that to her neck?" Shade asked.
"Not just her neck," Gabe said.
"He fucking raped her!" Melanie shouted. "And no one was here to help her. She was all alone, lost in an unfamiliar city, broken and bruised."
"Mel, you can't blame yourself for what happened to Nikki," Gabe said, pulling her into his arms.
Shade half expected her to pull away, but she didn't. She melted into him and clung to his waist.
"Then who am I supposed to blame?"
"The fucking prick who hurt her."
"I wish she would press charges against him," Melanie said. "How could she let him walk?"
"I think she wants to forget it ever happened," Gabe said.
"Or she thinks she deserved it," Shade said. He'd spent enough time with Nikki to know how her mind worked. She had a victim mentality and until she figured out that she was in control of her destiny, life would continue to just happen to her.
"How can you say that? You're such an asshole," Melanie said. She shoved off Gabe's chest so she could flee Shade's odious presence.
"You really do bring out the worst in women," Gabe said, shaking his head at Shade before he followed Melanie out of the suite and shut the door with a loud bang.
Shade had to agree with him. He'd turned Tina into a bitter bitch and Amanda into a heartless shrew. They'd both been perfectly wonderful women until they'd tangled with him.