Blacklisted (Loveless, Texas #3) - Jay Crownover Page 0,93

I was sure of it.

“Where did you say you were from again? And what brings you to Loveless?” They were asinine questions, but I wanted to keep her mouth occupied so she would keep it off of mine. She suddenly seemed like she had more arms than an octopus and the suction of a Hoover. It might’ve been the first time I worked so hard at avoiding the advances of such an attractive woman, but all I could see was her black heart and evil eyes. And that she wasn’t Presley.

I didn’t want to kiss someone who wasn’t Presley, which made it even more clear that I was no longer falling in love with her—I’d fallen, all the way. Nothing could’ve prepared me for the landing, either. It was a startling revelation that couldn’t have come at a worse time.

To my surprise, Ashby—or Ashley, as she kept referring to herself—vaguely answered the dumb questions I threw out to buy time.

“I’m from close by. I used to work in a town between here and Austin, so I’m familiar with the area. I came back to visit a friend.” She slid her hands over my shoulders and under the leather of my cut. I fought to hide a wince as she did her best to work the well-worn leather off my body. “I haven’t seen her in a while and I’m long overdue for a visit.”

“Oh yeah? Who’s the friend? Everyone in this town knows everyone else. I bet I’m familiar with whoever it is.” If I could get her to admit on tape she was here for Presley, that was the first step in getting some kind of confession to all of her misdeeds.

I let her take the leather vest off and stood still as she slid her hands up and under the cotton of my plain, black T-shirt. There was a limit to how far I was willing to let her go no matter what she was going to say or not say, and she was getting close to my breaking point. Everywhere her hands touched my skin felt dirty. There was a nasty taste in my mouth, and an unsettling vibration humming underneath my skin. I wanted to put my hands around her throat and squeeze. Again, I’d never be inclined toward violence when it came to women, but she really was the exception.

“Oh, she’s just a friend I went to school with. We worked together for a bit as well. She isn’t a very nice person, though. She has a bad habit of taking things that don’t belong to her and thinking she’s better than everyone else. I haven’t seen her for some time. I thought it would be a good idea to check and see if she’s changed. I’d like to think she’s learned some hard lessons lately.” A sour look crossed her face even as she tugged my T-shirt off over my head. Some of the pretense she artfully wore slipped just a little. If I hadn’t been paying attention, I would’ve missed it. Under her perfectly normal mask was a layer of maliciousness that gave even me the creeps. I’d seen a lot in my life, but this woman’s warped sense of reality was truly alarming.

I cleared my throat and grabbed her shoulders in a punishing grip when she touched her lips to the intricate tattoo of a bullet hole that rested right over my heart.

“Doesn’t sound like you’re actually friends at all.”

The woman pouted and stepped away from me so she could slither out of her nearly indecently short skirt and skintight top. She was wearing a matching set of lingerie that was so ridiculously wasted on me it was almost funny. It didn’t matter what the package was wrapped in, I knew the stuff on the inside was rotten to the core.

“We were best friends. I loved her, but she kept hurting me over and over again. Eventually, I had no choice but to hurt her back.” Sharp fingernails dug into my skin and angry lips attacked mine. It was like being caught in a whirling tornado of seduction and anger.

Prying myself free and struggling to catch my breath and keep my cool, I forcibly pushed the nearly naked woman back onto the messy bed behind her. I lifted an eyebrow and asked, “How did you hurt her back?”

The woman smirked at me and crooked her finger in a “come closer” gesture. I ignored the command and instead put my hands on my