Bad Bad Girl

Amos chuckled. “Yeah, well, those ‘good girls’ are the dirtiest in bed. They like to be fucked hard in the filthiest of ways.”

Sawyer kicked the chair Amos was sitting in, feeling his temper building. “Shut up. Don’t talk like that.” Why was he feeling such a sudden need to protect her?

“Fuck! I was kidding.” Amos paused and studied his brother. “I was just kidding around. Sorry, man.”

Sawyer shrugged and turned his attention to cleaning up his station. “Why are you here, anyway? I don’t have you scheduled for a tattoo.”

Amos cleared his throat. “I was hoping I could borrow enough to cover my rent. I’m a little short this month.” Amos was always short covering one bill or the other. “I’ll pay you back with my next paycheck.” Which also wasn’t true. Amos had a way of conveniently forgetting his debts.

“How much do you need?” Sawyer didn’t even look up. Being asked for money by his brother was nothing new or shocking. It was as normal as taking a piss.

“Three hundred. Four, if you have it.”

Without saying anything, Sawyer walked over to a safe in the corner of the room. He quickly opened the combination and counted out a bunch of twenties and a few hundred dollar bills. He pulled out five hundred and rolled it up. He then walked to his brother and handed him the money without saying a single word. He didn’t want to encourage Amos, but he also didn’t want to make him feel bad or less of a man. He knew Amos would do it for him in a heartbeat.

“Thanks, man.” His brother pocketed the money without even counting it. “So, this chick. When do I get to meet her?”

“We aren’t dating or anything.”

“Why the hell not? If she has a hold of your heart like this, then why haven’t you made her yours? That’s not like you at all.”

Sawyer stopped and stared at his brother, taking in his question. Why hadn’t he? He wasn’t one to play games or fuck around. If he wanted something or someone, he made it happen. He didn’t overthink things or make it more complicated than it had to be. Not normally. So why was he acting like a drama-filled teenage boy avoiding doing anything about his feelings? Why was he not doing anything about it? He wanted Rebecca. He did.

“You’re right,” he said, nodding somewhat as he stared off into space. “It’s time I get off my ass and make her mine.”

What the hell was she doing up here? How could she have possibly thought that climbing this tree and sitting here for hours was a good idea? Search your soul, they say. Find internal peace, they say. Yeah well… her soul was hungry, and there was no peace to be found as she munched on a handful of raisins and pine nuts.

“Have you lost your mind? What are you doing up in that tree… bare-ass naked?”

Sawyer?

Rebecca tensed, not even daring to look down for fear that the smallest movement would send her falling to her death. Yeah, maybe being up in this damn tree wasn’t the smartest thing to do.

“Get your ass down from there before you hurt yourself,” Sawyer demanded, but his voice had a hint of amusement in it.

Sawyer. Her heart beat so hard against her chest that she feared it would knock her right out of the tree. Days had gone by since she’d last seen him. Days of wishing she had the guts to say she wanted more. That she wanted him.

She looked down through the branches at the man she thought had no interest in her at all. He was out of her league. Wasn’t he? Sawyer’s tattooed arms were folded against his chest as he anxiously awaited her descent. His dark hair tousled in a perfectly delightful mess, and his emerald eyes looked up at her, sparked with worry.

“Do you need me to help you?” There was concern in his voice even though he hid it with a smirk of his lips; lips that Rebecca wanted to feel against hers. What was he doing here? How did he even know how to find her?

Reaching for the thickest branch to hold her weight, she slowly made her way down. “I’m coming.” She tried her best not to picture what she looked like completely nude as she awkwardly maneuvered the branches. She most certainly wasn’t leaving anything hidden from his watchful eyes. No doubt he could see every crack, hole, wrinkle, you name it—lovely situation indeed.

“I swear to God, Rebecca, if you fall, I’m going to bust your butt.”

Scowling, she continued to climb. “If I fall, my butt will already be busted,” she grunted as her feet finally made contact with the ground.

Despite the fact that she stood before him completely nude, Sawyer’s presence eased the feeling of being lost that had tormented her. He gave her a sense of comfort, as odd as that was considering the situation she was in.