Page 24 of Nitro

“Wouldn’t know. Haven’t touched her.”

“What about Daisy?”

“Also haven’t touched her. She’s better. Daisy seems genuine. She’s not all over me for sex the way Crystal is. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve told Crystal to fuck off, but she’s persistent as fuck.”

“And you’re not interested?”

“Nope.”

“Because of Holly?”

“Yep.”

“Other than wanting a wild ride, has Crystal done anything else I need to know about?” Scar asks.

“Nothing I can put my finger on, but I’ve got a gut feeling about her. She’s bad news.”

“She’s a good cook and no one else has complained. That said, I’ll ask around. See if anyone else has a problem with her. I’m not going to boot her for wanting some dick, but I’ll keep an eye on her. If she becomes a problem, she’s gone.”

“Thanks, pres.”

“Let me know how Holly’s doing later.”

“Will do.”

Wind rustles through the trees. I take a second to appreciate the sound before heading back inside. Crystal watches me walk through the living room into the hallway. Fortunately for her, she doesn’t say anything or try to follow me. I kind of wish she would so I could tell her to fuck off again. The girl won’t give up. I don’t know how to make it any clearer that I’m not interested. I have never been, and I never will be. Not when I could have a woman like Holly.

Tucker, the prospect I left to stand guard, is still at his post. He’s a good kid. He does what he’s told without ever putting up a fuss. I could see him getting patched in if he keeps it up.

“Has she come out at all?” I ask.

“Nope. Nina and Julia came by with some gifts for her. Clothes, I think. Not that I looked in the bags,” he quickly adds.

“When did they leave?” I ask.

“Maybe an hour ago or so. Yeah, about an hour.”

“Thanks for keeping watch. Scar’s on the back porch. He needs another beer.”

“On it.”

I figure it’s better to send the prospect instead of sending one of the girls. Scar’s married and doesn’t need to deal with bullshit from Crystal. Daisy’s okay, but no point in asking her to do it when Tucker’s around.

My heart beats a little faster as I open the door. Holly’s lying in my bed with her eyes closed. I shut the door behind me and carefully navigate through the piles of clothes to get to her. I really should clean this mess up, but I never seem to have the time. There’s too much shit going down. I’ll get to it eventually.

When I reach her side, I watch the soft rise and fall of her chest. Since she’s sleeping, I don’t want to disturb her by rustling things around the room. Instead, I pull off my boots and slidemy cut off my shoulders. I drape it over the back of a chair. I consider stripping down to my boxers, but I don’t want to scare her, so I slowly crawl onto the bed, still mostly clothed.

As I lay on my side, watching her sleep, a strange longing creeps into my heart. I’ve never felt this way before, but when I’m with her, I want to memorize every expression that crosses her beautiful face. I live for the sweet songs she sings while cleaning up the bar after closing. Even though I don’t know the words, I want to hum along with her. When we’re apart for more than a day, I can’t stop thinking about her. I never imagined she’d end up in my bed. It’s too good to be true, and I’m worried I’m going to do something to fuck this up.

Her eyes flutter open, and she turns toward me. “You’re back.”

“I am. How are you feeling?”

“I wish people would stop asking me that.” Her pout is so adorable that my cock swells in response. Now I’m really glad I didn’t take my pants off.

“We care about you,” I say.

“Okay.”