TWENTY-SIX
“Babe,whatareyou doing here?”
I shoved my hands into the back pockets of my jeans and tried to calm my erratic breathing as I faced Tack.
“You busy? Can we talk?”
“Umm.”
“Thanks, man.” I slipped past him into his small one-bedroom apartment and came up short at the sight of the man sitting on the couch.
“Damn, you’re pretty,” he said, making no effort to do up the zipper of his jeans. Instead, he spread his legs, showing off his bulge.
“Shit, I’m sorry.” I spun around to Tack. “I didn’t know you had company. We can talk another time.”
Before I could bolt past him, Tack grabbed my arm. “No, please stay.”
“Yes, stay.” His friend eyed me like a juicy bone. A shiver ran down my spine. “I can manage you both. Been a long time since I smashed two guys at once.”
“You’re such a fucking pig.” Tack beat me to telling the guy off. “I don’t know why I thought you changed. Get the fuck out.”
“Come on, baby. I’m just joking.” The man rose to his feet. “You know you always come back anyway. Let your friend get out of here, and I’ll make you real happy again.”
“Seriously, leave,” Tack said. “And don’t bother calling or showing back up here.”
“You’re making a big mistake.” The man stalked by us and, at the last minute, smacked me hard on the ass, smirking. “Let Tack give you my number, short stuff. You want a real man to fuck that ass good, I’m your guy.”
Bile rushed into my mouth. Tack followed him and locked the door behind the man. The asshole only made me appreciate Sully more.
“I’m so sorry,” Tack said. “Why didn’t you tell me you were stopping by?”
“I didn’t plan to. Who the hell was that?” I walked over to the far end of the couch where the guy had been sitting and flopped onto it.
“Nobody important.”
“You seem awfully familiar.”
He rolled his eyes. “It was nothing serious. Just a fuck for old time’s sake.”
“Don’t have sex with that guy. He’s a douche.”
“It’s not like I’m marrying him. It’s just been a while, but you’re right. He’s a dirty dog.” He plopped down on the beanbag, which was the only other seat in the living room beside the couch. I glanced around. Shame settled inside my gut at how little he had and how much I’d just wasted. “What’s up with you?” he asked. “Last time we talked, you were livid about something Sully did.”
“And I’m still mad at him.”
“Still not going to tell me why?”
I chewed on the inside of my cheek. How much could I tell him without giving away the juicy bits? “Sully and I met when he recruited me to work for him.” So far, so good. “He pays good money, and I was looking forward to doing the work and earning my way, to have some savings and help some friends out. We started sleeping together, and I never expected that to change anything, but now he doesn’t want me to work for him anymore, and it’s not fair.”
“Yeah, that’s bullshit. What are you going to do?”
I cringed. “You mean what have I done?”
“Uh-oh. Sounds bad.”
“He told me not to worry about money as he gave me his credit card, and—and I spent an obscene amount of money today out of spite.”
“Like how much? A grand?”