The Biker and the Loner (Oil and Water #3)- S. Ann Cole Page 0,16
THE NERD AND COME HOME.
Kendra: His name is ALEC, asshole
Kendra: Give Ley her phone back. And stay AWAY from her too! (ß See? That’s how you should use caps)
Me: Hey Kenny. It’s me. He just snatched my phone.
Kendra: Girl
Kendra: W T F????? *confused emoji face*
Me: He’s lying. We’re not together.
Kendra: But something happened between you two?
Me: I’ll tell you about it soon.
Kendra: Damn right you will
Me: Gotta go. TTYL.
Indignation coursing through my veins, I sit back down and lean in to hiss in his face. “Why the hell would you do that?”
Unphased, he scans the pub. “Which one is Zac? Show me who I need to beat the living shit out of.”
“Excuse me?” Mindy butts in, eyebrows raised, glare directed at Scratch. “Isaac is my boyfriend and her cousin. Who on earth are you?”
Scratch’s hard gaze cuts to her, then as if determining she’s not worthy of a response, he goes back to scanning the bar.
“Do you know him?” Mindy asks me, seemingly torn between being angry or scared. Can’t blame her. Scratch’s new face scar adds an extra layer of lethal badass to his demeanor.
“Yeah. Don’t mind his mood, he’s harmless,” I say good-naturedly, hoping to assuage her, considering he just threatened to beat the shit out of her boyfriend.
At that, Scratch looks at me and arches one brow, a slight kick to his upper lip. He’s amused, of course. This man is anything but harmless.
Plastering on a fake smile, I start to stand while I ask, “Can we talk outside for a minute?”
He stares up at me for a long moment, then jerks his chin in a manner that says I’m supposed to go ahead, and he will follow.
“Be right back, Mindy.”
A few steps off and I feel his heated, masculine presence at my back, his hand on my hip, guiding me, marking me, making my heart ricochet in my chest.
Every inch of my body is alive at his touch and I’m acutely aware of him as I move through the crowded pub, desperate to get outside and inhale a lungful of fresh air to cool down my overheating loins.
My mind is running a mile a minute. I’m no stranger to men’s blatant lust, but Scratch takes it to another level. Maybe because he has a one-up on everyone else: my virginity and my truth.
We finally make it outside. There’s an adjoined smokers’ area with bar stools and high tables, sectioned off with ropes. Only two people are making use of it at the moment, as the others opt to hang out on the sidewalk and at the side of the building instead.
I set my clutch down on one of the high tables and take a deep, fortifying breath before whirling on him. “What in the hell is—”
My words die in his mouth. That’s right. Because he’s kissing me.
His grip is at the back of my neck, my body smashed up against his, his tongue in my mouth.
My will, the traitorous wretch, doesn’t even fight back. It just gives in. Caves and bows down. And my body, it sings as a moan leaves me, as if this is what it’s been waiting for all along. Of their own volition, my arms loop around his neck, pulling him down for more.
He kisses me hard and deep and beautifully sweet, taking me to a place I’ve been only once before. And he was the one who took me there.
When he breaks, I almost squeal in protest, not wanting it to end.
He gazes down at me with unbridled intensity. “You were saying?”
How on earth is he not gasping for breath like I am? Oh, right, because he’s a well-experienced womanizing badass who can ravish a woman’s mouth with the ferocity of a dragon and not skip a breath.
“I’m not yours,” I reemphasize once I’ve recovered.
“That look in your eyes right now, and the way you’re hanging on to me like you’re afraid I’ll leave, they say otherwise.”
Dammit. I drop my hands from around him and take a step back, clearing my parched throat. “You kissed me,” I argue in defense. “I’m only human. You’re attractive and a great kisser. You can’t blame my body for responding. It’s simple science.”
“Right.” He moves to prop himself on one of the stools and crosses his arms over his chest. “Who’s Zac?”
Oh, for Christ’s sake. “Zac—Isaac is Alec’s younger brother and a good friend to both Kendra and me.”
“You’ve got no ‘good friends’.”
Taking umbrage to that, I shoot back, “Kendra is a good friend.”