Page 7

Clyde

I try not to nod off as the bubbly young lady talks about her goddamn Etsy store. Her guy keeps giving me glances that I can’t quite figure out.

Is he making sure that I stay awake? That I pay attention? Or is he sorry that they sat down next to us to begin with?

“So, anyway,” she continues as she picks up her slice of pizza, “if you want to check out my greeting cards, I can give you a discount. Actually—here,” she says as she sets her slice down on the plate.

She reaches for a napkin to quickly wipe her fingers clean, then I watch, as patiently as I can, as she sifts around in her small clutch before producing a business card and holding it out to me.

“You don’t have to buy anything, so no pressure. ”

“Thanks,” I say as cheerfully as I can. I hope she doesn’t think I’m mocking in trying to match her disposition, but I’ve never met a happier person in my goddamn life and it’s a bit weird to me.

But at least it keeps my mind off Calla and wherever the hell she may have wandered off to.

“What did you say your name was again?” I ask, barely glancing at the card as I set it down next to my beer.

“Carly! And this is Fin,” she reminds me, gesturing toward her guy. He gives me a nod as he raises his pint of beer, and I return his nod.

“ Clyde, ” I say, holding a hand to my chest briefly, “and Doc,” I finish with a nod at my friend sitting on the other side of me.

Carly leans back slightly to wave at Doc before picking up her pizza again, and I elbow him as imperceptibly as I can when I hear him snicker.

“So, what is that you do, Fin?” I ask before I raise my bottle to my lips and take a swig.

“I’m in real estate,” he replies quietly.

I try to look interested, but I’m not. I want to get up with my bottle and Doc, and take off, but these two were nice enough to ask us to sit with them when the bar started getting busy, so I figured the least we could do is talk to them for a little while.

I just didn’t know it meant that my brain would slowly start seeping out of my head from meeting Queen Enthusiastic Etsy Lady.

“That’s cool,” Doc pipes up. I’m almost faint with the fact that he’s finally had enough mercy on me to enter the conversation since I’ve been carrying the entire thing by myself so far.

“What are you all doing here?” Carly asks as she takes another bite of her pizza.

“ We ’re in a program at our college. We’re out here with the head of the program as a reward for doing well,” Doc states proudly.

I roll my eyes at the ceiling before I glance toward the entrance of the resort again, then scowl that there is still no sign of Calla, Billy, or Jesse. Chances are they’re having a fuck-a- thon somewhere while we’re stuck talking to Mr. Stoic and Ms. Brightside.

“Anyway,” I state loudly as I push my chair back and get to my feet, “we gotta head over to the front desk and get checked in, but it was nice to meet you guys. Thanks for the beer.”

Carly smiles brightly with her eyes since her mouth is full, and Fin even gives us a small smile of his own. Weird. I didn’t think he knew how to do that.

I toss the rest of the beer back, place the bottle on the bar-top, then drop a couple of francs next to it before I walk away from the nicest, yet strangest couple I’ve ever met in my life.

***

“I didn’t know you had it in you, Clyde.”

My jawline becomes square as I grind my teeth at the sound of his voice. There’s a needling aspect to what he just said that he can’t hide, and I doubt he even tried to begin with.

“I didn’t know you knew how to stay quiet for so fucking long,” I snarl at him as I steal a glance at the entrance again. As Doc lets out a good-natured laugh, I stand up a little straighter when I see Billy walk in with Calla and Jesse trailing closely behind him.

“It’s about fucking time,” I grumble as I slap Doc’s shoulder and nod in their direction.

“You’re hooked on her pussy, Clyde. You gotta learn to calm down when she’s not around,” Doc says with a chuckle.

“Fuck off,” I growl as I walk by him and head over to meet them at the registration desk.

Addicted to Calla’s cunt or not, she’s got a pussy like a vice, and I’m dying to feel it clamp down around my cock again.

Number in line be damned, I tell myself as I sidle up next to her and run a finger down the curve of her torso.