you have a boyfriend?”
“No,” I mutter, trying and failing to stop staring at his mouth.
“Good. I’d feel sorry for him if you did.” His hands release me. “Let’s go get your stuff.”
My arms fall away from him. “Sorry for him how?”
He touches my bottom lip with his index finger. “No reason, wing-woman. Go get dressed.”
I throw on a pair of jeans and a tank top, and put my hair in a ponytail, and then muster the courage to face Camden again. Kent’s twirling a pair of keys around his finger when I come out. His fresh blue jeans and black tank top hug his long, lean body. We’re silent on our way down to James’s silver truck.
Kent opens the passenger door and gives me a hand crawling inside. I brush against his chest as I do so, recalling the way we were so close together last night.
His eyes find mine and he clears his throat. “Up you go.” He nudges my lower back, urging me in the passenger seat. When I’m inside and he’s pulling away he looks at me. “As my wing-woman, you should be helping me.”
“I did last night.”
“I think you could do better.”
Who was he kidding? “How?”
“Try harder. We’ll practice more tonight.”
“Practice,” I scoff. “I have to work.”
“From when to when?”
“Seven to three. And before you get any ideas, I work until Sunday.”
“We’ll have to compromise. Did I mention that I love Oblivion?” His grin is wide and damaging.
Great. Not only will I have to serve the men at Oblivion, I’ll also have to serve Kent and his manwhore friends. “Any good sidekick knows how to compromise,” I respond cheerfully.
He chuckles. “Your smart mouth is going to get you in trouble.”
His laugh wafts over me. “I’m not afraid.”
“You should be,” he warns. “I love to punish women. Be careful.”
“Why do you like to punish them?”
“Because you’re all bad, lying, whores,” he says simply.
I gasp and cover my mouth with my hand. “Kent.”
He glares at me. “What? Are you saying you’ve never lied? Hmm?” I look away. “That’s what I thought. Your mouth is smart and I’m not saying you’re a whore, but you dance like one.”
My jaw unhinges. I cross my arms over my chest and look out the window. What a bastard this guy is.
After a second he sighs. “Raina? I’m sorry. You’re not a whore. You’re not going to talk to me? That’s fine. Wing-women aren’t hired for their stimulating conversations.”
He turns the radio on and starts singing along.
“Where am I going?”
“Right,” I grumble unwillingly.
Why did Kent have such negative thoughts and feelings about women? He was punishing all of us for doing something none us did. Auburn Hair didn’t give us all a great shining name, but she hadn’t done anything he didn’t want her to do. We weren’t all that way. Certainly not me. Becca neither. And if some of us were, so what? As women we all had different standards and viewpoints. That was no reason to treat us all like crap.
Why did Kent want to punish us all?
Chapter Three
When we arrive at Camden’s house, she’s outside washing her car. The neighbor is out front drooling on his Dockers. Kent is no better. He leans over the steering wheel to watch her bend over the hood in her short shorts and bikini top.
“Oh,” he groans, his voice deep and wanting.
“She is such a cliché.” I smack his shoulder. “Stop it.”
He smirks at me but he’s looking at her. “But she’s hot.”
“She makes Auburn Hair look chaste.” I open my door and get out.
“Auburn Hair?” He laughs and meets me around front, eyes never leaving Camden’s ass. “Is that what you’re calling her?”
“Do you know her name?”
“No.”
“Then that’s what I’m calling her.” I grunt under my breath and refrain from slapping him silly. Why does he want her? Why Camden? “Help me get my stuff and stop staring at her.”
“Yo, wing-woman? Introduce me.” He licks his lips. He’s in manwhore mode, all gleaming eyes and muscles.
“Kent. I’ll run interference between any girl you want, but please not her. She’s my enemy.”
“She didn’t do anything to me. At least not yet.” He runs a hand through his hair and finally looks at me. “How do I look?”
“Gorgeous,” I answer unthinkingly. I blush and look away from his penetrating gaze. “I mean you look fine.”
He gently touches my chin and brings my face toward his. I feel trapped suddenly. He cocks his head to the side and stares intently into my eyes. There’s a patch