“He took her shopping. He showed up at her soccer game and got her to stop swearing. He told her that strong people stand up for the ones who can’t stand up for themselves. He picked her up at a sleepover. Watched football with her.”
Lina shook her head. “He’s so fucked up.”
“All men are,” Sloane said.
Joel stopped and gave her the eye.
“Except you, Joel. You’re a hero among villains,” she amended.
With a nod, he handed over a fresh glass of wine for me and vanished again.
Sloane attached herself to the straw of her drink like it was a protein shake after a body building competition.
“Okay, seriously. What’s going on with you?” I asked. “Does this have something to do with Lucian last night?”
“Lucian? Now, that’s a sexy name,” Lina said.
Sloane snorted.
“A sexy name to go with a sexy man,” I agreed.
“There is nothing sexy about Lucian Rollins,” Sloane said when she came up for air.
“Okay. You’re definitely lying. Either that or an entire section of the Dewey Decimal System fell on your head.”
She shook her head and picked up her shot. “I’m not talking about Lucian. None of us are talking about Lucian. We’re talking about Knox.”
“Can we stop talking about him?” I asked. It felt like an X-Acto knife to the heart every time I heard his name.
“Of course,” Lina said.
“Cheers,” Sloane said, lifting her shot glass.
We clinked glasses and knocked back the whiskey.
A man with a toothpick dangling precariously from his mouth wandered up and leaned an elbow on the bar, crowding Lina. His t-shirt didn’t quite cover the belly that peeked out over the top of his black jeans.
“Which one of you ladies wants to come check out the back of my bike?”
Joel lined up another round of shots in front of us.
Lina picked up her shot. Sloane and I followed suit and knocked them back. She put the glass down on the bar, and before Toothpick knew what was happening, she had the stiletto of her boot digging into his chest.
“Go away before I make you bleed in front of your friends,” she said.
“I like her and her shoes,” Sloane whispered next to me.
“Christ, Python, leave ’em alone before your old lady shows up and cuts off your balls.”
“Listen to the nice man, Python,” Lina said, giving him a shove with her foot. He slid down the bar a foot, then put his hands up.
“Just askin’. Didn’t know you were lesbos.”
“Because that’s the only reason we wouldn’t want to fuck you, right?” Sloane said.
Sloane was a lightweight, and she’d already had two shots and a very strong Bloody Mary.
“Can we maybe get some water?” I asked Joel.
He nodded, then cupped his hands. “Listen up, assholes. The ladies aren’t lookin’ for a ride or a good time. Next idiot who bothers them is gettin’ thrown out.”
There was a general muttering around us, and then everyone went back to what they were doing.
“Joel, are you married?” I asked.
He held up his left hand to show me a gold band.
“All the good ones are taken,” I complained.
The front door opened again.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Sloane groaned. Joel handed over a fresh Bloody Mary, and she dove for it.
I swiveled around on my stool, wobbling a bit as the alcohol fought my equilibrium.
“Oh, my,” Lina purred next to me. “Who are they?”
“More cavalry,” Sloane muttered.
Lucian and Nash wandered up to the bar looking six shades of gorgeous.
THE BABYSITTERS
Naomi
“This can’t be a coincidence,” I observed.
“Knox called the cops,” Lucian said, nodding at Nash. “And the cops called me.”
Nash skimmed me with a look. “You all right?”
“I’m fine. Why are you here?”
Nash blew out a breath, his gaze moving on to Lina. She arched an eyebrow at him.
“We’re babysitting,” he said finally.
My mouth dropped open. “We don’t need babysitters. Especially not babysitters who are just going to report everything we say back to Knox.”
“I hate to point out the obvious, but given everything that’s happened, I don’t think you should be out unprotected like this,” Nash said.
“Who said I’m unprotected? Lina just nearly pierced a man’s sternum with her stilettos,” I complained. “How did you find us?”
“I wouldn’t worry about that,” Lucian said without looking away from Sloane, who was glaring at him like he was Satan incarnate.
“You’ve got to be a Morgan,” Lina said, resting her elbows on the bar and giving Nash a head-to-toe sweep.
“Lina, this is Nash. Knox’s brother,” I said.
“On that note, I think I’ll be heading home,” Sloane said, sliding off her stool. She didn’t get far. Lucian stepped in on her, trapping her between the bar and his body without touching her.
She tilted her head all the way back to look up at him.
She was a foot shorter than the man, but that didn’t stop Sloane from shooting ninja throwing stars out of her eyeballs.
“You’ll stay,” he insisted darkly.
“I’m going,” she argued.
“I count three empty glasses on the bar in front of you. You’ll stay.”
“I’ll call a rideshare. Now get out of my way before I make you sing soprano.”
Lina gave up ogling Nash and leaned over my shoulder. “Okay. What’s their story?”
“I don’t know. They won’t tell anyone.”
“Ooooh. I love a torrid secret past,” she said.
“We can hear you,” Sloane said dryly without breaking her sexy staring contest with Lucian.
“We’re all friends here,” I began.
“No, we’re not,” Lucian insisted.
Sloane’s eyes blazed, making her look like a fiery pixie about to commit a homicide. “Finally. Something we agree on.”
My phone vibrated at Sloane’s elbow. Seconds later, Lina’s phone signaled a text. Nash and Lucian both reached for their pockets at the same time.
“For someone who doesn’t care about you, Knox sure seems concerned about how you’re doing,” Lina said, holding up her phone again.
“And what you’re saying about him,” Lucian said with a smirk.
I shook my head. “I think I’m gonna share that ride with Sloane.”
“No!” Lina grabbed my hand and squeezed. “Don’t give him the satisfaction of ruining your day. Stay. We’ll get more drinks. Talk more shit. And everyone who stays has to swear a blood oath they won’t report back to Knox.”
“I’m not staying if he’s staying,” Sloane said, shooting a murderous look at Lucian.
“And the only way you’re leaving is in my car, so sit down and order some goddamn food,” Lucian ordered.
Sloane opened her mouth, and for a second, I was worried she was going to bite him.
I clapped a hand over her mouth. “Let’s get some nachos and another round of drinks.”
* * *
Missed Calls: Knox 4.
“No fair! You said they were off-limits, Joel,” a drunkard with a skullcap and tattoos under his eyes complained from one of the pool tables when we sat down at a table with Lucian and Nash.
Joel flipped him the middle finger while our babysitters shared a look.
“See? I told you we didn’t need babysitters. We have Silver Fox Joel,” I said.