Sugar on the Edge (5 page)

I couldn’t help myself, shrugging my shoulders violently back and dislodging his hands. Standing up from the chair, I pushed back at it and it hit Eric in the knees. Spinning on him, I growled, “Enough! I’m sick of your come-ons, corny lines, and touching.”

Eric just blinked at me in surprise, acting like he had no clue what I was talking about, but I knew he wasn’t that dense. Sadly, he was actually a fairly good-looking guy, but he had no tact, no manners, and absolutely no brains when it came to what women wanted.

“I’m sorry if I did something inappropriate,” he said with an apologetic smile.

“Well, you did,” I huffed. “And you’ve been doing it a lot. I need you to stop, or I can’t work here anymore.”

I held my breath in fear he would fire me, because I really, really needed this job right now. Fortunately, all he did was make another profuse apology, and then his demeanor chilled to near subarctic temps. He told me I could go ahead and leave and that he’d finish the editing. He also told me that he’d call me when he needed me again. So, while technically I wasn’t fired, I’m not sure he’ll call me for any more work and that has me in a near-panic mode.

Sighing, I walk through the crowded bar, all the way through to the back while letting some peaceful, easy feelings from the Eagles song that is pouring out of the jukebox suffuse through me. As I hit the back bar area where all the pool tables and dartboards are set up, I’m surprised to see Brody behind the bar.

He grins at me as I step up to an empty spot, resting my forearms on the wooden top. “You filling in tonight?”

“Yup,” he says as he pours a draft beer. “One of Hunter’s bartenders apparently has a case of the crabs so severe that he can’t stop scratching at his crotch.”

I blink at him dumbly, unsure of what he just said. Just to clarify, I ask, “Are you serious?”

“Nope, completely kidding. I think he has allergies or something, but it was worth it to see that look on your face,” he says, laughing.

Who would have thought it? Brody Markham, only out of prison for just over nine months, having been completely broken and withdrawn from life, was now sitting here throwing out jokes at me. I freakin’ loved it.

It never fails to bring a smile to my face when I see how easily he’s now reintegrating to life. Much of that has to do with him falling in love with Alyssa, but it also has to do with the incredible support system he has. His identical twin, Hunter, and his fiancée, Gabby, and of course, his little sister and my roommate, Casey, as well as his parents and myself. He has a close cocoon of people around him that share his secret… that he took the fall for a drunk driving accident where his ex-girlfriend, Stacy, was actually the one driving. Tragically, a man was killed and Brody became a felon, forever losing his charmed life in one blink of an eye.

But he’s back now, and as he told me last week when we were bathing the dogs at The Haven, he has never been happier in his life. Of course, he said that while staring sappily over at Alyssa, who was clipping one of the dog’s nails. It made my heart seize up in joy over the love they share. I’m not sure I’m ever destined for something like that, but there is enough of a romantic in me that I have to hope it will happen to me one day.

“The girls are out on the back deck,” Brody says as he inclines his head toward the door. “You’re the last to arrive.”

“Work and duty first,” I quip. “Can I get a Screwdriver while you’re at it?”

“Sure,” he tells me as he passes the draft beer he poured across the bar to the guy sitting to my right. After he takes the guy’s money and makes change, he starts making my drink. “Doing work with the photographer tonight?”

“Yup, but I might have lost my job,” I tell him sadly.

“Why’s that?” he asks as puts some ice in a glass and turns briefly to grab the Ketel One from the back shelf.

“I sort of snapped at Eric after he put his hands on me. He apologized, but I could tell he was a little taken aback that I finally called him on it.”

“It’s about damn time you did so,” Brody growls. “You’ve been taking too much shit from him.”

“Yeah, well… I need that damn job so I was willing to put up with a lot of crap from him to keep said stupid job.”

Brody’s hand freezes just before he tips the vodka over the glass. His eyes narrow at me, and his voice is dangerous. “What exactly did he do to you that made you finally speak up?”

I give Brody an easy smile of reassurance. “Nothing bad, so don’t go all Rambo on me. He just put his hands on my shoulders after making some lame comment about me being sexy. I just sort of lost it and couldn’t help myself when I told him to back off.”

Brody resumes finishing my drink. “You are totally sexy, Savannah, and one day, you’ll find a guy that is deserving of that sexiness.”

I snort out loud, and Brody has no trouble hearing it over the music. His eyebrows rise up in surprise. “What? I’m serious… you’re totally a babe. Sexy hot,” he says with an attempt at a lecherous wink, but it fails miserably because one, I’m so not sexy, and two, Brody is just one of those guys that is so nice, he likes to make everyone feel good about themselves.

Sliding the drink across the bar, Brody says, “This one’s on the house. Now go hang with your girls, you sexy thing you.”

“No way,” I protest as my hand dives into my purse for money, but he’s already turned away from me to see to another customer.

Jerk!

Lovable jerk!

Grabbing my drink, I take a quick sip and my eyes water. Damn, Brody made that strong and I know he did it because he just gave me a double shot for free basically, knowing that my budget is limited. He’s trying to make sure my girls’ night out is fun.

Sweet man!

I head out to the back deck, which Hunter closes off in the winter with drop-down walls and portable heaters. I immediately see Gabby, Casey, and Alyssa sitting at a table with Hunter. He’s identical to Brody in almost every way, especially now since Brody cut his long hair and shaved the beard he’d accumulated in prison. He’s sitting next to Gabby, his arm around her shoulders and his fingers playing with her long hair. They make quite a beautiful couple with his sunny, surfer good looks and her exotic beauty born of having some Cherokee Indian in her bloodlines. Her slanted, hazel eyes pop against her dark hair, and her high cheekbones make her almost look like royalty of some sort.

As I approach, they all turn to look at me with happy, slightly buzzed smiles. They have about an hour head start on me with the drinking. When I reach the table, I look pointedly down at Hunter. “You’re in my seat,” I tell him sternly.

“Grab another chair and pull it up,” he says with a grin.

“Nope,” I tell him. “In case you missed the bulletin, this is a girls’ night out, and you Mr. Testes Between The Legs, are most definitely not a girl.”

“I can vouch for that,” Gabby says with a giggle. “So scram, baby.”

Hunter takes it all in good nature, because he knew without a doubt he wasn’t allowed to hang with us tonight. Leaning over, he gives Gabby a kiss. It starts out sweet and light, but before you know it, he grips her firmly behind the head and dives in for something that borders on pornographic.

“Ewww,” Casey says, wrinkling her nose up in distaste. “That’s just gross.”

“I think it’s kind of hot,” Alyssa says while she watches Gabby and Hunter kiss.

“You’re just saying that because your man is identical to Hunter and you’re wishing you could do the same thing to him right at this very moment,” I quip at her.

Alyssa leans her elbow on the table, puts her chin in the palm of her hand, and sighs dreamily as she watches Gabby and Hunter make out. “That’s the truth.”

Taking another sip of my drink, I smile at Alyssa. Where Casey has golden, beach babe beauty along with a smokin’ hot body, and Gabby looks like an exotic princess, Alyssa wears her brownish-gold hair in a really short pixie cut, only a few inches in length all over. Her face is classically beautiful, which means she has no need to wear makeup or jewelry to enhance herself. She’s one of those women so comfortable in her own skin that she could be wearing a brown paper bag and still be one of the most beautiful women you’d ever behold.

Yup… I’m surrounded by mind-numbing beauty from my best girls, and while I do feel way out of their league, they’ve never made me once feel like I didn’t belong here with them. I’m clearly the one that sticks out in the group, the one that is just a bit different. For example, my idea of my sluttiest dress and theirs vastly differs. Mine is a simple, black sleeveless dress that has a scooped neck that stops just shy of revealing my cleavage and comes just above my knee.

By contrast, Alyssa has on a short, red mini-skirt and low-cut, black halter top that reveals most of her upper back, Casey has on a tight, white dress that is strapless but cut low so most of her breasts are on public display. That, however, is how Casey likes it, and I can’t begrudge her showing off her assets. Finally, Gabby is wearing a silky, flowing top in a blue, tropical print that only has one sleeve, the other revealing a bare shoulder. She has it paired with dark jeans and brown boots. At first glance, it doesn’t look like there is much sex appeal to it, but when you look carefully, you see that there is a keyhole cut out of the material in the center of her chest that gives a scandalous glimpse of the inside swells of her breasts. It’s just a peek of forbidden skin, but it’s probably the sexiest outfit out of all of us tonight.

So yes, my sedate, black dress that could easily be worn to a funeral will never be noticed by men… not in the way that my girlfriends are sure to be noticed tonight, but that’s fine by me. I only made a half-assed attempt to dress up tonight because the girls insisted. Otherwise, I probably would have been in a simple pair of jeans and a sweatshirt, along with my comfiest pair of tennis shoes. I wasn’t in the market to show off my goods, nor catch the eye of a man with said goods.

Hunter finally pulls his mouth away from Gabby’s, leaving her looking slightly dazed and confused. I wonder if I’ll ever have someone kiss me that way… someone that would leave me breathless and begging for more.

My thoughts turn unbidden to Gavin Cooke, and my cheeks immediately heat up when I think of him.

When he opened the door to his house yesterday, standing half naked with a massive chest right before my eyes and rippling muscles all around, I about had a heart attack. I probably would have continued my stupid stare at him had he not barked at me, bringing me back to full awareness.

Gah, the guy is such an asshole… all sharp words, snide remarks, and evil smirks. I’m still sort of regretting my decision to clean his house, because he screams danger and stressful times, just like Eric. If I’m lucky… he’ll keep himself and his humongous penis that I caught a quick glance of firmly locked in his office whenever I’m there.

But man, what a penis. I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’d be a complete and utter liar if I didn’t admit that I hadn’t thought of it a time or two since then. I don’t have much experience with men, but I’m not a complete fool either. No doubt, his package is something special.

Giggling at myself, I take a sip of my drink as Hunter stands from the table. “Okay, you ladies stay out of trouble tonight.”

He leans down and gives Gabby a sweet kiss on her forehead, and then he’s gone. I immediately sit in his vacated chair. No sooner has he stepped two feet away from the table, then Gabby leans over to me and says, “So tell us all about this hot, British author that you’re going to be working for. Casey told us a little bit about him.”

I take another sip of my drink, feeling the vodka warming me from the inside out. When I set it down, I decide to go full-on girly gossip. “So, he answered the door yesterday in nothing but his boxer shorts, with his Mr. Happy hanging halfway out.”

“No way,” Alyssa gasps, leaning forward to hear more.

“He’s hot, right?” Casey says.

“Totally, and let’s just say he’s well hung too,” I tell them, my cheeks burning a bit over this admission, because I don’t normally talk sex with the girls. Gabby and Alyssa are in committed relationships—both engaged to the Markham twins—and although Casey has no qualms with bragging about every one of her conquests, I’ve never been much of a sharer when it comes to the opposite “sex.”

But the alcohol is already working its magic on me, I’ve had an extremely stressful evening with Eric, and my tongue is feeling a little loose.

“I knew he’d be packing,” Casey says with authority. “You can just tell… he has that swagger about him.”

“I can confirm that to be true,” I say with a laugh, “but he’s also sort of a douche too. Really grouchy and has an ego the size of Texas.”

“I bet he’d be great in the sack though,” Casey says dreamily as she circles her finger around the rim of her wineglass. “I thought about making a play for him the other day, but he has some serious bad vibes coming off him.”

“Totally,” I agree, and then I amend, “about the ‘bad vibes.’ Not about making a play for him.”

Gabby laughs and reaches over to slap my forearm lightly. “You should totally make a pass at him, Savannah. You deserve to have some bone-melting sex.”

“No way,” I say firmly. “That guy is way out of my league, plus… he sort of scares me a bit.”

“Mmmm,” Casey sighs again. “The danger is what makes it hot.”