“Guessin’ since you’re sneakin’ out before sun up, you used them, so maybe you should be thankin’ me.”
“Ain’t sneakin’ out.”
“It’s dark and early as fuck. What would you call it?”
“Havin’ a damn job.”
Ozzy took another long drag on his hand-rolled and blew it in his direction. “Shoulda known you were into older women as much as you sniffed around Liz.”
“Fallon’s not much older.”
“She’s got a few years on you. Sure she can teach you some stuff.”
“I know enough. Just ask Liz.” Using Liz as a slap back against Ozzy wasn’t as effective now as it used to be. Which sucked. Now Whip needed better ammo.
“Think you’re gonna get me riled up with that shit?”
“Dunno. Are you?”
Ozzy sat up and took one more hit on his cigarette before grinding the end out on the chair’s arm. “Nope. More than happy with my ol’ lady.”
Yep, Oz had made his peace with Liz leaving his ass. He was lucky that he found Shay. She had the patience of a fucking saint to deal with the man sitting before Whip. “Shouldn’t you be in bed with her right now?”
“Had to pull an all-nighter. My midnight clerk called off last minute.”
“That sucks. Thought you had that buzzer to wake you up.”
“Yeah. But don’t want it to wake up Shay. She’s gonna relieve me in a coupla hours.”
“What’s goin’ on with Josie?”
“She got class. Soon as she’s done with this semester, she’s comin’ back full time.”
“What about Maddie?”
“She’s working this evenin’. Can’t wait for Ry to get his ass back for summer break so he can take these fuckin’ midnight shifts. Wanna be upstairs warm in bed with my woman.”
“Hear that.”
Ozzy jerked his chin toward the end of the motel, where Fallon’s room was. “She good.”
“With what?”
Ozzy chuckled. “You fuckin’ know what.”
“How’s Shay in the sack?”
Oz’s chuckle quickly faded away.
“Yeah, thought so. How she is or ain’t, ain’t your business.”
“If you gave her a glowin’ recommendation, was thinkin’ I could ask Shay if she’s up for a third.”
“The fuck you will.”
Ozzy shrugged as he flicked the remainder of his hand-rolled out into the dark. “She ain’t against it.”
Whip shook his head. “But I am.”
“Ain’t askin’ you to join us.”
“You ain’t askin’ Fallon, either.”
Ozzy smirked. “Pussy must be sweet then, if you’re bein’ all possessive.”
Whip sighed. Ozzy got what he wanted, to get a rise out of Whip and Whip fell right into it.
“Gonna end this conversation the same way it began. You’re an asshole.” He spun on his boot heels and strode over to his bike.
“Tell me somethin’ I don’t know,” Ozzy called out.
Chapter Eleven
Whip didn’t bother to park his sled in the shed, instead he pulled it around to the back of the bunkhouse since he would be hitting the road again soon, anyway.
His first stop would be his room to shower and change, then he’d try to dig up something to eat in the kitchen. After last night he needed to refuel his body. With food and caffeine to make sure he stayed awake.
He dismounted and rubbed his numb hands together to get his circulation moving. At the end of March the weather could go either way and at night it tended to still be bone-chilling cold. Hell, a snow storm could blow in at any time, too. They’d had some nasty ones even in late April and early May.
He hoped to fuck it warmed up for Sunday’s club run.
Jerking the rear bunkhouse door open, he stepped inside and—
Slammed directly into someone in the dark, making him grunt at the impact and the woman he ran into gasp.
“What the fuck?” he growled. Who the fuck was rushing out of the back door at this time of the morning?
Was it a sweet butt sneaking out since they weren’t supposed to spend the night?
He grabbed the arm of the person trying to escape and dragged her with him over to the light switch.
In a flash, the corridor lit up and so did Tessa.
What. The. Fuck.
“What the fuck are you doin’ in here?” he practically yelled.
“Keep your damn voice down!” The dark-haired woman quickly glanced around and then frowned at him. “I needed to grab something from the kitchen.”
Bullshit. She lived in a house with a stocked kitchen. She had zero reason to be sneaking out the back door this early. “At five in the fucking mornin’?”
She shrugged. “Yes. And why is it any of your business?”
Whip stared at Trip’s sister and she stared back. One of his eyebrows lifted slowly when it dawned on him why the fuck she wouldn’t want to be seen. And no doubt why she wouldn’t want to be caught. “Who you doin’?”
Her dark brown eyes went wide for a second before she quickly hid her worry. But he didn’t miss it.
He was right.
She answered, “Nobody,” way too calmly.
“Then why are you sneakin’ out the back door?”