hadn’t even scratched the surface.
This woman was screwing with my head, and I knew it would only end one way.
You can tell her tonight. Let yourself enjoy the day.
The odd hour let us grab a table outside on the patio of Café Du Monde. Ordering us double beignets and café au laits, my legs stretched out under her chair, her smooth legs knocking against mine.
“After coming here, where did you go?” She leaned back in her chair, her long hair still damp and falling down her arms, her face bare and stunning. Really looking at her, I saw the young girl I used to know, but Kinsley had grown into such a gorgeous woman. Smart, strong, with a sense of humor like a whip. But it was far more than just looks. Beautiful women were a dime a dozen in LA. Before Becca I dated several models and actresses. None had me feeling like this. The girl had a power over me that scared the shit out of me. “Smith?”
“Oh. Sorry.” I shook my head, breaking my trance off her. “I went a lot of places, like Chicago, Denver, Seattle, and San Francisco where I met someone who lived in LA and told me to come visit.”
“A woman,” she teased.
I gave her a look.
“What? Am I wrong?”
“No.” I laughed, grabbing my glass of water, sipping it. “She was the one who showed me the spot in Joshua Tree, who took me to the art place. But that one was a mistake.”
“Why?”
“Crazy… but you know what they say? The truly unhinged ones tend to be magnificent in bed.” I nudged her calf, lifting an eyebrow.
“Oh really?” She leaned forward, her mouth twisting with a playful smile. “Unhinged, huh?”
“Total psycho.” I took another drink, eyeing her intently. “But damned if I can’t stop thinking about being inside her again.”
She sucked in sharply, her cheeks flaming with my insinuation.
“How are you doing today?” The waitress picked that exact moment to place down our food, making me chuckle at Kinsley, who was pretending she wasn’t flushed red from my declaration.
“Fine.” She forced a smile, grabbing for the coffee.
“Well, enjoy.” The waitress winked at me before taking off.
Kinsley snorted derisively, her head wagging.
“What?”
“Poor Smith… wanted by every woman he encounters.” She picked up a beignet. “Must be awful.”
“What? I was just sitting here innocently.”
“Nothing is innocent about you.”
Fuck if it wasn’t the truth.
Kinsley bit down, the powdered sugar billowing off the warm dough, a deep groan rumbled from her throat, going straight to my dick, her eyes rolling back in her head.
“Oh my god… This is sooooo good,” she moaned.
“Better stop that or I will be tossing you over my shoulder again and taking you back to the hotel,” I muttered. “Actually, it will be the bathroom here.”
“Soooo good.” She licked the sugar, provoking me, causing me to shift in my chair.
“Dammit, woman.” I grunted, swiping up a fried pillow and shoving the light fluffy dough in my mouth. “Oh god, I forgot how good these are.”
“See?” she exclaimed. “I think we should take an order of these back.” She coyly took another bite, filling my head with ideas of powdered sugar covering her body. This girl was going to kill me.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, drawing my attention away from her. My face scowled at seeing ten missed calls from Becca, two from Kasey, one from Kyle, and pissing me off even more was one from my dad’s sister, my aunt Meg. Since my dad’s funeral, the one she claimed she paid for, she had been contacting me, wanting “help.” They were cut from the same fucking cloth.
“Do I ask?” Her voice filled with uncertainty, her flirtiness vanishing in an instant.
“My dad’s sister.” My hand brushed through my hair with aggravation. I had never been close to her. Her popping into my life now was deliberate.
“What does she want?”
“Money,” I snipped.
“Oh. Do you talk to her much?”
“Not if I can help it.” I looked out at Jackson Square, resentment burning my throat. How fast my father’s family could shift my mood.
My father’s death was another “fuck you,” life screwing me even worse.
Growing up had been hell, but still, I carried the guilt of his death like a weight. What people saw on the outside was vastly different from what happened behind the scenes. After my mother died and we moved to North Kingston, we got a small but decent house. My father was manager of an electric company, which is where I learned