The Skull King (Skull 1)

He took a step inside and looked around. “It pays to be the Skull King, doesn’t it?”

I knew he was envious of what I had after his tenure in prison. The whole time he was rotting there, I was living like a king—and I was the one who’d put him behind bars. He hadn’t given me a choice—but he didn’t see it that way. “Yes. I’ve got some clothes for you in the bedroom. My apartment is upstairs. Let me know before you stop by. I’ll do the same for you.” I didn’t want him to walk in on Cassini and me. If he laid eyes on her, he would want to fuck her too, and since he looked identical to me, she might go for it.

He crossed his arms over his chest and took a look around. “There’s a bar just a few blocks down, right?”

“Yes.”

“You wanna go?”

“I thought you wanted a hooker.”

He shrugged. “I think I’ll work for it tonight—make it that much more rewarding. You coming?”

It was my brother’s first night of freedom. I’d said my piece about my expectations and I knew he understood them, so now it was time to enjoy his company—and see if we still had a relationship the way we used to. “I could always go for a drink.”

The bar where I met Cassini was quiet, so we went somewhere with a bigger crowd. This place was packed, with loud music over the speakers, annoying lights that constantly changed like a disco, and women all over the place.

Exactly what my brother wanted.

My brother downed liquor like water, ordering all of his favorite drinks because he hadn’t had access to anything but water and juice in prison. He would be hammered out of his mind by the end of the night, but since it was his night, I didn’t try to cut him off.

He could do whatever he wanted.

“Check out the brunette in the purple dress.”

I followed his eyes to a brunette with hoop earrings. She was tall, which was perfect for my brother since he was six three. She had a nice smile, a perfect body, and judging by the shortness of her dress, she was hoping to go home with someone tonight. “Go for it.”

“She’s got a friend. What do you think of her?”

“I don’t need to piggyback off you, Heath.” I finished my scotch then glanced at my phone, hoping for a text message from the woman I hadn’t heard from in four days. In the back of my mind, I was always worried her husband would find out about us and hurt her—when he should be hurting me.

“But it’ll make it a slam dunk. Neither woman will feel bad about ditching the other because they’ll both be with equally sexy guys.”

“We both know I’m the more attractive one.”

“How do you figure?” he asked, still looking at the woman.

“Because I have a place to live. You don’t.”

He rolled his eyes. “You’re such a bitch sometimes.”

“You are too.”

He finished his drink then nodded to the woman’s friend. “She’s hot too. We doing this?”

Her friend was blond and tall, but I wasn’t feeling it. “I’m gonna sit out on this one.”

“Alright…do you want someone else?”

I was in my thirties, so I’d already had every sexual experience that existed. Sometimes I really enjoyed it, and sometimes it felt stale. Right now, sex was amazing, but it was amazing because of the woman I’d met in the bar. I was her fantasy, her dirty secret, and that turned me on. She wasn’t getting the satisfaction she needed at home, so she was coming to me. She was too honorable to go back on her word, so she would never develop anything real with me. That made it perfect.

And that made me immune to everyone else. “Not really.”

Heath stared at me, calling bullshit with his eyes. “You’re picking up pussy with your brother, but you don’t want any pussy?”

It wasn’t that I didn’t want pussy. I just wanted one pussy in particular. “I get pussy all the time, Heath. Sometimes you just aren’t in the mood.”

“That’s not the Skull King I used to know.”

I was very much the same.

“Are you seeing anyone?”

I looked away. “That’s a stupid question.”

“Fine. Are you fucking someone?”

That was more accurate. “Yes, I suppose I am.”

“And it’s exclusive?” he asked. “That’s not like you.”

“It’s not exclusive. But she’s the only one I’m interested in fucking right now. So I could force myself to be with one of these women, but I know I prefer her. So until she’s out of my system, I’d rather stick to something I know I’ll like.”

My brother didn’t read between the lines and make false conclusions. “She’s a hot piece of ass, then?”

“Yes. And she’s married.”

His eyes shifted to the woman in purple, and he chuckled. “Now that’s my brother. I knew there was something missing in this story. You’re the biggest jackass I know, so now it all makes sense. And the husband has no idea?”