“Yeah, you fucked up,” Jett whispers, reaching behind his wife to stretch his arm across her chair. “You can’t just sneak out and then ghost a chick.”

  “I didn’t ghost her. I texted her before I came here.”

  “Did you text her at all earlier in the day?”

  “No,” I bite out. “We’ve been over this shit a million times.”

  “Yep, fucked up big,” Jett mutters.

  I’m done with their bullshit. I refuse to allow them to make me feel guilty about something I did that wasn’t wrong. There was no way I was going to wake up a sleeping Arlo before I left. If she were my girl, maybe, but it isn’t my style. And since the deal was not to treat her any differently than I would any other woman, I left without saying a word.

  “I’m having the next one at the bar,” I announce, pushing my chair back and standing. “You can all fuck off and talk about me, but I’m going over there—” I tick my head back “—and finding a piece of ass to bury myself in tonight.”

  “Classy,” Lily whispers, peering up at me with her judgy blue eyes. “But you should—”

  “Save it,” I cut her off, waving my hand. “Whatever you’re going to say, I don’t want to hear it.”

  She purses her lips and narrows her eyes. “But—”

  “No, Lily. You’ve done enough.”

  Jett stiffens.

  “No disrespect, cousin, but I need to blow off some steam and get my head right. I love you, Lily, but butt the fuck out.” As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I’m making my way toward the bar, winding through the people.

  The waitress sees me, depositing the beer in front of me before the bartender has time to make it to me.

  “Thanks, doll.” I smile at the older woman.

  She smiles back. “Welcome, sweetie.”

  I watch the flat screen, unable to hear the muted conversation of the sports announcers but giving no shits because at least they aren’t chirping in my ear about all the ways I’ve fucked up like my own family.

  A person walks up to the bar and slides onto the barstool next to where I stand, brushing their elbow against me.

  I turn my head, going in for a quick glance as I retract my elbow, and I am caught by surprise. The woman is mint in that rough, badass biker girl kind of way. Harley tank, tons of cleavage, teased hair, and lots of makeup, looking like she is out to give exactly what I want to take.

  I smile at her, giving her my classic chin lift. “Hey.”

  She glances my way, her lips tipping upward before she moves her eyes down my face to my arms, taking her sweet-ass time. “Hey yourself, handsome.”

  “Can I buy you a drink, beautiful?”

  She nods, her big brown eyes locked on my biceps as I move. “Tequila on the rocks,” she whispers, barely loud enough for me to hear over all the noise around us.

  “Tequila it is,” I tell her, motioning for the bartender and giving him her order.

  “Aside from being sexy, what do you do for a living, honey?” she asks me, totally thirsty for my body, which I am perfectly fine with.

  I laugh, liking how she’s forthright. I know she wants me and that I could fuck her right now if I wanted to. That I have no doubt about. If I invited her to the bathroom, pinned her against the sink, she’d push her pussy against my cock, fucking herself if I let her. “Tattoos, babe.”

  Her eyes light up. “Sexy job for a sexy man,” she says, taking the drink as soon as the bartender places it down in front of her. Within three seconds, the glass is to her lips and the liquid is gone.

  “So, tell me, what’s a handsome thing like you doing in a place like this?”

  “Could ask you the same thing, sweetheart. A girl as pretty as you should have herself a man to be at home with, sucking and fucking all night.”

  Jesus.

  I almost roll my eyes at myself, but she smirks, looking at me like a meal.

  “Trying to get over a broken heart,” she tells me, and I know I’ve got her.

  Nothing says easy pussy like rebound pussy. This chick wants to be filled, having all the memories of her last dick wiped out by a new one.

  “You lookin’ for help, sugar?”

  “I put out my help wanted sign.” She waves her hand over her very large and visible breasts. “Think you’re up for the job?”

  My eyes move to her breasts, studying them, knowing they’d be heavy in my palms. But I’m not here to worship her body. I am here to forget someone else’s. I lean forward, my face in her wild hair, and whisper against her ear, “I could fill the position.”

  She shivers, moving her mouth to my ear. “I may have an opening,” she whispers before her tongue comes out and strokes my earlobe.

  And then Arlo’s face and pretty smile flash through my head.

  Fuck.

  “I can’t,” I tell her, pulling away. “I can’t do this.”

  Goddamn it.

  This woman is a sure fucking thing, and I can’t do it. Arlo and I are nothing to each other, but somehow she’s between me and a night of pussy. Easy pussy, but still pussy.

  “Your dick broke?” she asks, tilting her head and narrowing her eyes.

  “No,” I growl and grab my beer. “Dick’s working fine. It’s my head that’s fucking me up.”

  “Don’t need to think to fuck, babe.”

  I shake my head. “When my head’s thinking about another chick, it’s not a good policy to fuck a different one. Sorry to waste your time.”

  She gives me a sorrowful smile. “It’s okay.”

  “You have a good night,” I tell her, tipping my chin to her before stalking back toward the table.

  “What the fuck just happened?” Pike asks before my ass has a chance to make contact with the seat bottom.

  “Fuck,” I groan, running my hand down my face. “I don’t know.”

  “Arlo,” Lily teases, smiling like an idiot because she did this to me.

  She broke my dick by setting me up with Arlo, tempting me with her sweetness when I’ve become used to so much bad.

  “You’re right,” Mammoth adds, lifting his beer to his lips. “You are fucked, and that shit happened quick. Welcome to the party.”

  “Baby.” Tamara turns to her husband, placing her hand over his as it rests on the table. “The party can end pretty fucking quick if you’re not satisfied with the guest list.”

  Mammoth smirks, locking his fingers with hers. “Princess, shut it.”

  Tamara’s head jerks back. “Excuse me?”

  “There isn’t anyone else in the world I’d put up with on a daily basis except you. I’m right where I want to be, and I happily accepted that fate years ago. But your cousin over there acts like he has some choice in the matter, when his head and heart are already playing tricks on him.”

  “That was kind of sweet.”

  “I have everything I want in the world—a wife, kids, a business—but Carmello is just now coming to terms with the simple fact that life needs to be filled with more than easy pussy.”

  “In the name of honesty, Tamara was easy pussy,” Gigi adds with a snort.

  Tamara’s eyes snap to Gigi and narrow. “Um, you literally had your mouth wrapped around a stranger’s dick within an hour of meeting him.”

  Pike smiles. “That stranger was happy too.”

  “Stop,” I mutter, not wanting to hear their mushy bullshit. “I’m not in love with Arlo.”

  “Didn’t say love, brother,” Mammoth says. “But she’s under your skin, and there’s no easy way of getting her out. It’s best to just give in and see where the shit lands in the end.”

  “Fuckin’ great,” I grumble against the rim of my beer, glaring at Lily. “You did this.”

  She lifts her hands, giving me an innocent smile. “I did nothing. I put someone in your path, but the rest is all you, cousin.”

  “I’ve been in your shoes, man,” Jett tells me with his arm slung around Lily’s chair. “Just give in and let whatever’s about to happen, happen, or you’re going to be one miserable bastard.”

  “I already am,” I mumble against my beer, knowing Arlo’s already fucked with my head.

  13

  An hour later, I’m standing on the front step of Arlo’s place, hands tucked in my pockets, waiting for her to answer.

  The front light is turned on, and then nothing for a few seconds before she says, “What are you doing here?” from the other side of the door.

  I stare at the peephole, knowing she’s looking at me. “Arlo, open up.”

  “I’m not decent.”

  I smirk. “And that’s a problem, how?”

  “It’s late,” she says, her voice muffled by the door, sounding a million miles away.

  “We have shit that needs to be said.”

  “We do not,” she shoots back immediately. “Go home, Carmello.”

  I rest my hands on either side of the door, moving my face closer to try to see her inside, even though it’s futile. “No, sugar. I’m not leaving.”

  “You had no problem leaving before.”

  Bing-fucking-o.

  “Come on. Let me in to explain.”

  “Explain from there,” she tells me.

  I growl, gripping the frame tighter, and rest my head against the door. “I’ll stand here until morning if I have to.”

  The light switches off, and I’m cast back into darkness. Un-fucking-believable. The woman has big-ass balls, and she is sporting them for me right now.

  “Arlo,” I beg, not hearing her walk away. “Please.”

  “Give me one good reason to let you in.”

  I let my head fall forward, holding on to the doorframe, my body stretched out and boots firmly planted on the cement. “I could’ve kissed a woman tonight. Hell, I could’ve fucked her in the bathroom.”

  “You’re not winning me over,” she interrupts.

  I lift my head, staring straight into the peephole, and hope she can see my face. “The important word is could’ve.”

  “You should’ve,” she bites out. “We’re not in a relationship, Mello. You don’t have any loyalty to me.”

  I take a deep breath, remembering Arlo doesn’t know me and she’s pissed. She’s super pissed, in fact—not about the chick, but because I left without so much as saying goodbye. It was a dick move, especially since I didn’t contact her after either. “Fuck,” I groan. “You know why I didn’t, and you’re pissed at me for the same reason.”

  “Nope,” she clips. “And it’s none of my business.”

  “I didn’t and couldn’t because, even with her in front of me, offering herself up on a platter, all I could see was your face.”

  “Am I supposed to be flattered by that?”

  I peer up and grunt. “What are we, Arlo?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “What do you want to be?” I ask.

  Silence.

  “I thought we were going to be friends at the most— and at the very least, acquaintances—but fuck me, one night with you and…”

  The door opens a few inches, and I see half her beautiful face, with her body hidden behind the door. “And?” she asks, her eyes staring into mine.

  I don’t let go or move a muscle but keep rolling with what I had been about to say before. “And you’re the only thing I can think about. Do you know how fucked up that is for a guy like me?”

  Even with only half of her mouth visible, I can see the small smile. “I’m sorry,” she whispers. “Feel better now?”

  “No,” I snap. “We have to talk about us before we dig this ditch so deep, the depth becomes too high for us to crawl out.”

  She sweeps her gaze across my face. “What?”

  “You’re pissed at me for leaving last night.”

  “You mean this morning.”

  “Same thing, but you’re pissed, right?”

  She shrugs.

  “You are, and I’m not leaving until we talk about why you’re pissed and why I left.”

  “Carmello, it’s been a long day, and I….”

  “It’s going to be a longer night if you make me keep standing out here.”

  She sighs before opening the door wide enough for me to come in.

  “Thank you,” I tell her, walking inside and immediately kicking off my boots.

  When I turn around, she’s standing with her head cocked, dark hair up in a messy bun, arms folded, and clearly still not happy with me.

  “Stop being mad at me.”

  She purses her lips because my words don’t resonate, and she isn’t about to listen without explanation.

  “Can I sit?”

  “Yep. Sure. You’re inside now. Might as well.”

  Her attitude level is maximum. I can’t say I blame her with the way I ditched out, but that has always been my MO.

  As soon as my ass touches the couch, I pat the cushion next to me. “Come closer.”

  She stares at me without so much as blinking.

  “Please,” I ask again.

  She moves, and I can’t keep my eyes off her legs in her tight yoga pants, revealing every inch of her body, along with a T-shirt cut just below her breasts, revealing her fresh ink.

  “My eyes are up here near my ears,” she says before collapsing onto the cushion next to me, quickly tucking one leg underneath, using it to keep a space between us. “You’re here. Now, talk.”

  I mimic her position, turning to face her, leg tucked beneath me, but I sling my arm over the back of her couch. “You have my head twisted.”

  She cocks her head and furrows her brow. “How’d I do that?”

  “I don’t know.” I shake my head slowly. “But you did. In the last twenty-four hours, I’ve done things I never thought I’d do.”

  “Like…” She dips her chin and waves her hand in between us.

  “I’ve never slept at a woman’s house.”

  Her shoulders drop, and I get the feeling she already thinks I’m lying. “Never?” she asks.

  I shake my head. “I always left, or they did.”

  She makes a face. “How is that possible?”

  “Baby, I wasn’t there for a relationship. When we were done, it was over and time to go.” I lift my hand from my leg. “I take that back. There was one girl I slept with, but that was over a decade ago. No one since.”

  Her mouth opens as she blinks at me, confused. “For real?”

  “No lie.”

  “But we cuddled last night.”

  “Another thing you have me doing that I’ve never done before. I had never cuddled with anyone, especially someone I haven’t fu…slept with.”

  “That’s crazy. Cuddling is fantastic.”

  “Well, so are orgasms.” I smile.

  She doesn’t return my smile. “There’s more to life than sex.”

  I touch my chest, pretending to be shocked. “Obviously, you haven’t had one that rocks you to your core.”

  “Well…” She clears her throat, shifting her body weight. “Obviously, you haven’t had the right cuddle partner.”

  “I did last night,” I tell her.

  Her cheeks instantly turn pink, and she glances down. “But then you ran out of here like your ass was on fire and didn’t bother to contact me all day. I figured I did something wrong.”

  I brush my fingers over her shoulder, and she doesn’t move away from my touch. “That was about me, not you, Arlo. I was so comfortable with you, I fell asleep, and when I woke up…I freaked out and ran.”

  “Like a pussy,” she mutters.

  “What?”

  “Nothing.” She smiles, but it’s a devilish look.

  “It’s like if you woke up naked after sleeping with a man you didn’t know. You’d run, wouldn’t you?”

  Her brows furrow again. “You are not comparing sex to snuggling, are you?”

  “To you, sex is…”

  “It’s emotional and opens me to a vulnerability I’m not ready to show.”

  “That’s how I feel about cuddling and sleeping. I did it once eleven years ago, and it ended in tragedy. After that day, I told myself I’d never do it again, along with never getting involved in a relationship. I wouldn’t allow myself to be left open like that.”

  She rests her shoulder against the couch cushion, moving her body closer to my hand. “What happened eleven years ago that made you change your life entirely?”

  “There was a girl, Carrie. She was twenty, and we were in college. She was beautiful, funny, and so full of life. I was crazy about her.” I keep my eyes on Arlo as I talk, trying to get the words out no matter how painful the memories are. “We got into a car accident, and she died. I was a mess for years. It took therapy and a lot of self-care before I could forgive myself. But I knew I never wanted to experience that pain again. To do that, I couldn’t and wouldn’t allow myself to have any possibility of falling in love.”

  She lifts her arm, placing her hand on my bicep. “I’m sorry, Mello.”

  “Thanks, babe. It was a long time ago. But sometimes, I can still hear her laughter, and I know I’m the reason no one else will ever hear it again.”

  “It was an accident, sweetie,” she says, giving me a sad smile.

  “I know, but since I was driving, I’ll always question what I could’ve done differently to keep her alive.”

  “That’ll only lead to sadness.”

  “I know that too. Headed down that path for a long time, finding nothing at the end but a heaviness I couldn’t shake.”

  Her fingers tighten on my muscle. “You don’t seem to be on that path anymore, though. You seem really happy.”

  “I never stay still for long, Arlo. Stillness has always led me astray.”

  “But you asked Lily to help you settle down, didn’t you? When she told me about it, I volunteered to help. In all honesty, I wanted to see you again.” She pauses, and we stare at each other for a second before she continues. “It’s the least I could do to pay you back, and the tattoo was a bonus.”

  “I thought you came for my mad ink skills.” I dip my eyes to her ribs and my mark before going back to her face. “It is a work of beauty, just like the girl wearing it.”

  “Does that shit work on people?” she asks with a smile.

  “Usually.”