Bend (4 page)

After a last slow check of the area, Annabelle shut off the engine and got out of her truck. She grabbed her cell phone from where it’d fallen under her seat. A glance at the screen showed half a dozen missed calls, all from Josh. Annabelle felt worry coil in her gut as she locked her door and slammed it shut. Maybe Josh had only been calling for clothing advice—six missed calls didn’t have to mean there was anything horribly wrong.

“Fuck it.” Annabelle shoved the phone in her back pocket and ran across the street to the apartments, cursing the fact that the place had such a miniscule parking lot as each renter was only assigned one slot. The few dozen unassigned ones had already been taken by the time she’d arrived.

Annabelle took the stairs two at a time, not giving a shit if her boots pounding on the cement steps shook the whole building. No one in their right mind should be asleep this early on a Saturday night anyway. She bounded up the last two steps and took a right, running the ten feet to Josh’s door. Raising her hand to knock, she heard voices in the apartment, angry tones though she couldn’t make out the words. Whoever was in there with BEND

Bailey Bradford

23

Josh was obviously pissed off about something, and her imagination began tossing out all sorts of violent scenarios. Annabelle pounded on the door three times and kicked it once for good measure when she heard Josh’s voice, the anger in it firing her own temper.

“Someone better open this goddamn door before I call the police!” Annabelle didn’t give them time to let the threat sink in. She smacked the door again. “Joshie! Are you okay?”

She heard Josh holler “Don’t!” then the front door was swinging open. Annabelle had started to beat on the door again and blinked with surprise when her fist connected with a broad, muscled chest. Too worried about Josh, she slapped both hands against that firm flesh, and, grimacing a bit at the pain that speared out from her injured wrist, Annabelle shoved that broad chest hard, putting her weight behind it. The man must not have expected a woman her size to make such a move or have such strength. He gave a startled sound and stumbled backwards as Annabelle shoved by him and bolted into the apartment. Her eyes locked with Josh’s. Finding nothing more than anger in his gaze, she swept a glance over him.

“You okay, Joshie?” Annabelle hurried to his side and hugged him, relieved to feel his arms immediately lock around her waist. She felt Josh rub his cheek against her temple, his soft sigh sending his breath tickling over the fine hairs that had slipped loose from her French braid.

“I’m fine, Annabelle,” Josh said softly, sounding so tired it made her heart ache. “It’s just—”

“
Joshie?
”

Josh tensed against her. Annabelle pulled away far enough to turn her head and glare at the man who’d spoken. She supposed the big jerk was the man who’d answered the door, just as she supposed the tingling she felt all over was from being mad enough to gouge the guy’s eyes out. It had nothing to do with the fact that he was gorgeous in that lived in, roughhewn way. Ignoring the fact that the tingling seemed to be strongest in her nipples and pussy, Annabelle turned fully to face the other man.

Goddamn it!
Everything about the man hit every one of her hot buttons—except for the way she’d heard him yelling at her best friend and the astonished, mocking tone in his voice when he’d repeated Joshi’s nickname. Those things were reason enough to smother the heat she’d felt seconds earlier.

BEND

Bailey Bradford

24

Cocking her head to the side, Annabelle gave the big man her haughtiest look. “Yeah, Joshie. Get over it. I have several names for you if I need them.”
Sexy bastard
would be at the top of the list, but as Annabelle looked the man over from boots to brim, not caring one whit if it was rude or not, she thought that might not be an adequate description.

Tall, broad and built, his Wranglers hugging thickly muscled thighs, his cock a large, luscious offering encased in denim, and narrow hips she’d love to feel slamming against her ass or pounding against her spread thighs… That tingling returned, ramping up to an inferno as Annabelle took in the flat stomach and broad chest. She wished he was wearing a T-shirt instead of buttoned up denim, she’d really like to see those muscles.

By the time she dragged her gaze up to his face, she was glad she’d decided not to forego wearing underwear tonight, that thin layer of silk was probably all that was keeping her from soaking her jeans with her happy juices.

Then again, that smirk on the handsome face might just be the cause of her utter humiliation. Full lips stretched wide, the move bringing up deep dimples in the man’s cheeks. Annabelle said a silent prayer of thanks to the DNA gods. This man had it all—sharp blades of cheekbones, a long, narrow nose with the slightest bump in the bridge, and large, light brown eyes that glittered with amusement. The brim of the Stetson kept her from getting a good look at the man’s eyebrows or hair colour, but she’d bet a week’s pay it was some hot as hell shade of brown.

“Do you need some more time, make sure you didn’t miss anything?” The man asked in a baritone that sent a shiver down her spine. Annabelle’s irritation returned full force at the smugness in that deep voice.

“Nope. Seen enough and heard enough to know you’re an ass.”

The man looked startled for half a second then he chuckled. The rich, warm sound only pissed Annabelle off more as she turned back to Josh. “Who is this jackass, and why is he hassling you?”

She ignored the laughter from behind her, figuring she did well not to toss the big jerk the bird. Josh studied her, frowning intently as footsteps pounded up the stairs. She thought there was a warning in her best friend’s eyes, but a warning for what, she couldn’t tell. Josh sighed and turned her around in his arms. He flopped a hand at the big man.

“Annabelle Calhoun, meet my brother, Justin Taylor.”

BEND

Bailey Bradford

25

I will not be embarrassed. He was being a jerkoff to Joshie!
“That doesn’t make him less of an ass for yelling at you.” She wasn’t going to budge on that. She’d file him away in her brain as Justin/Asshole. Annabelle glared as Justin grinned.

“And that,” Josh nudged her shoulder with his own, drawing her attention to a shape in the open doorway, “is Justin’s partner, Evan Ross.”

Well, fuck, of course.

BEND

Bailey Bradford

26

Evan was every bit Justin’s equal in attractiveness. Long and leanly muscled, he was less bulky. His straight black hair hung to his shoulders. A clump of bangs flopped over one of his pale blue eyes. He had a pert nose and pale skin, warmed by the pink tinting his cheeks. His top lip was thin but elegantly shaped, topping off the lower, plumper one in a way that made Annabelle want to suck on the full pink flesh. Then he smiled, and Annabelle felt her heart stutter and her core pulse.

“Hi,” Evan said tentatively in a soft voice. She felt Josh’s arms stiffen around her briefly, then he released her and muttered something she couldn’t make out.

“You must be Annabelle,” Evan continued, walking slowly into the apartment as if afraid she’d do him bodily harm. She might, just probably not the kind he was worried about. Evan shut the door and took a few more steps inside. “Josh has told us about you. I’m glad he has such a good friend here.”

Annabelle refrained, barely, from informing him Josh hadn’t mentioned either of them to her at all. She wasn’t sure what that meant, and would prefer to find out from Josh later when the other two men were gone. Annabelle crossed her arms over her chest and tapped the toes of one boot on the nappy vinyl flooring. She glared from Evan to Justin then back at Evan.

“What is this, good boyfriend bad boyfriend? Justin’s the jerk, and you’re the nice one?”

Evan’s brows shot up his forehead as Justin narrowed his eyes at her. Seemed his tolerance for her smart mouth had run out. Annabelle gave him a look, daring him to say something about it. When Justin’s lips only thinned into a line, she faced Evan again, tapping her toes faster, hoping the pop of the boot on the floor would burn off some of the emotions swirling in her gut, among other places.

Evan glanced at Justin questioningly then looked at her and shrugged. “I guess he can be abrasive sometimes.”

Annabelle heard Josh’s snort even as she made the same noise. Justin started to say something only to be cut off by Josh.

BEND

Bailey Bradford

27

“Try bossy, demanding, and convinced he’s always right.” Josh stepped to Annabelle’s side, fisting his hands on his hips. “And he always knows what’s best for everyone else, especially me.”

Annabelle cringed inwardly. That kind of sounded like a description of her. She looked at Justin to see his reaction and thought she must have been wrong. Surely that hadn’t been a flicker of hurt in those golden eyes.

“Josh,” Evan said, reaching out with one hand as if to stop the flow of anger between the two brothers. “Justin is just worried about you. He said he was only going to offer to move you into a nicer neighbourhood, somewhere with a good security system—” Evan stopped and gave Justin a worried look as Annabelle felt a sinking in the pit of her stomach.

Hadn’t she had those same concerns, many times over?

“That
is
all you told him, right?” Evan asked Justin. Justin crossed his arms over his chest and nodded. Annabelle didn’t miss the way she and Justin held themselves in similar positions. It irked her, even if it was a childish reaction, and she had to force herself not to drop her arms back to her sides. She pinned Justin with a narrow-eyed look and stopped tapping her toes.

“If that was all you were doing, why were you yelling at Joshie?” She saw Evan jerk and mouth “Joshie?” silently and gave him her best I-will-kick-your-ass look. Evan snapped his mouth shut.

“Because he said no,” Justin muttered. “He’d rather stay here in this death trap instead of letting me help him out.”

Oh shit shit shit!
Annabelle felt her cheeks burning. She’d planned on having the same argument with Josh as soon as possible—and she’d known it would be an argument, that Josh wouldn’t want to accept any help. He’d only let Chance help him get a job because he’d had no other choice, not after walking out on doc perv. Annabelle looked at Josh and saw the stubborn set of his jaw. The man might look sweet as cotton candy, but she knew he had a temper.

“I don’t need or want any more handouts!”

Justin ground his jaw for a second then said slowly, as if speaking to a child, “I offered to set it up as a loan then, and let you pay me back in instalments. I don’t see why that’s such a horrible thing to do or so hard for you to accept—”

BEND

Bailey Bradford

28

“Because I can make it on my own,” Josh said, sounding so much like his brother Annabelle barely kept from gaping at him. There was nothing of the sweet man she knew in his countenance now. “I don’t want any help from you
or
Evan. Jesus, cut the damn apron strings already, Mom.”

Annabelle swung her head back around to see Justin’s reaction, certain he’d have a sharp retort for Josh. Sure enough she saw anger flicker across his face, but then Evan was beside him, one arm over those broad shoulders, murmuring quietly in Justin’s ear. Justin tensed briefly, then his shoulders drooped as his arms dropped to his sides. He nodded once, his gaze darting from Josh to Annabelle. Annabelle found herself pinned by the look in his eyes, something dark and sensuous that fuelled a need she’d been keeping buried deep inside.

She knew that look, had seen it other men’s eyes. Justin wanted to fuck her, pound out the anger and frustration he was feeling by burying his cock in her warm, willing body.

Except she wasn’t willing, not when Justin had a partner.

Turning to Josh, she missed the look on Evan’s face, a nearly identical one to Justin’s.

“Are y’all done here?” Annabelle asked her friend. “The band is supposed to start any time now, and I’d really like to catch some of their show. Dancing would be good, too.”

Maybe she could find someone to help her work off a bit of stress. The Xxchange had to have at least a few bi guys in it. There’d certainly been several there when she’d been with Bo and Max; Annabelle hadn’t missed the lusty looks she’d received. That was why she’d chosen the place for tonight’s night out. There was a more than decent chance both she and Josh would get laid.

“I know I’m done, just let me get dressed.” Josh started to walk to the bedroom.

Annabelle grabbed his arm and waited until he looked at her.

“Wear the tight purple shirt and those ripped jeans we got at the mall. The make your ass look irresistible.” She glanced down to see what shoes he was wearing and cringed. “And dump those sandals. Shit, burn ‘em. Wear the black biker boots. You’ll have every guy in the place panting after you.”

Josh blushed in the way Annabelle found adorable. He glanced at something over her shoulder then back at her. “Okay, got it. Put on the ‘fuck me’ outfit.” Josh gripped Annabelle’s uninjured arm in return and began dragging her to his room. “But you have to wear one, too. Come on.”

BEND

Bailey Bradford

29

“What?” Annabelle blanched at the squeaked out word. She forgot about Josh’s guests as she tried to dig in her heels. “What the hell is wrong with my jeans and tank top? And my boots, I’m a cowgirl—”

“Not tonight you aren’t,” Josh interrupted. “Tonight you’re gonna be the hottest damn woman in Texas, possibly the whole world.” He jerked on her arm and ignored her cussing and the way she was dragging her feet.

Annabelle gave up and let Josh have his way. Maybe it’d soften him up and he’d be willing to accept an offer to live in the bunkhouse if she played this right. It wouldn’t be a lie to point out all the fun they could have if he lived with her, but they’d probably drive Max and Bo nuts. She grinned at the thought. It’d be good for those two, Max and Bo needed a little shaking up every now and then. So did Rory and Chance. Those four were going to turn into those dull couples whose idea of a wild night was playing bingo at the community centre. She’d make Josh see what a great idea it was without going at it from the same angle Justin had. Good thing he’d tried that one first. Now Annabelle knew to stay away from the whole ‘Josh, I’m worried about your safety’ thing.