Page 7

Danger

They call me Danger. I took the name after I left home. Kav said I was full of danger one day when I crashed a car into someone’s house. He had laughed as we ran from the scene. And we never even got caught for it.

It’s amazing I’m still alive.

And look at me when life hands me a second chance, I get into a fight with Cole Danforth. I don’t care that I hit Thad, fucker deserved it. But Cole was someone I needed on my side.

Of course the media was all over the scene in the ballroom when I lost my temper.

I can’t lose it again.

Especially when I’m around Monterey.

She’s too good for that kind of life.

I sit in a high wing-back chair in the lobby, waiting for Monterey to smooth things over with security, and I want nothing more than to get away from her. I’m embarrassed, or maybe it’s something more. All I know is watching her dance with Thad turned me into some sort of monster. A monster I recognize all too well.

“Let me take you up to your room.”

“Stay away from me,” I shout, making sure she doesn’t come near me.

“You’re a real jerk, you know that? I mean, what was that in there? Were you defending my honor or something stupid like that?” Her hands are on her hips and I have to say this woman is all kinds of cute right now. The expression on her face calms me down a little.

“I mean,” she pushes my chest, “what the hell did you think you were doing?”

I stare at a few reporters heading our way and I grab her by the wrist. “Media. Let’s get out of here.” I drop my hand a little, interlacing our fingers together. “Follow me.”

We cross the lobby, her heels clacking against the marble floor, trying to keep up.

“We need to get you to your room,” she says beside me as I make my way in the opposite direction of the elevators.

“Not yet.” I know if Monterey comes anywhere near my room tonight I may not be able to withstand her.

And right now I need to be a little reckless.

I need to be a little wild.

I need a little danger.

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.” I head up a back staircase and head up a few flights of stairs and then open the ‘employees only’ door at the end.

“I don’t think we’re allowed up here.”

“Do you always follow the rules?” I ask her as we step out onto the roof of Caesar’s Palace.

“Oh wow,” she says, before she can answer my question, gazing at the lights of the strip. “You can see the whole world up here.”

I laugh a bit. “Tell me,” I say, leading her to the railing near the edge where we can see all of Las Vegas. “Do you always follow the rules, sweetheart?”

Her big innocent eyes hold mine. “Well, yes.” She bites her lower lip and I have to look away. Because all I can think about now is me biting her lower lip, and what it would feel like between my teeth.

“I thought so. You’ve never broken the rules ever?”

There’s this kind of energy between us, and I have to say it’s freaking me out in a small way. I’ve never felt anything like this before. Like electricity in the air.

And even though I’m a bit scared, my body craves more of it. More of her.

She shakes her head. “No.”

God, the urge to kiss the innocence out of this woman is so fucking strong.

“Now that’s no way to live, is it?”

She doesn’t answer, her eyes dropping to my lips. “Well,” she finally says, “it’s better than being like you. Do you ever follow the rules?”

I smile with a quick laugh. “There’s one rule I’m going to follow.”

“Oh yeah, what’s that?”

“I won’t cheat on you. I won’t hurt you. And I’ll make sure everyone knows you’re definitely my woman.”

She sucks in a breath. “For pretend, right? You’ll let everyone know we’re together but only for pretend.”

“Who’s pretending right now?” I press my lips against hers, and barely touch her face with one hand.

And then I can’t hold back as I deepen the kiss, trying my best not to overdo it with a woman like Monterey. She opens her mouth to me, letting me drag my tongue along hers. It turns even more frantic as I keep kissing her. I can’t fucking stop now, and I plunge my hand into her silky strands. She moans as her body melts in my hands like putty.

“Wait,” she says, breaking the connection and pushing me away from her. “You can’t kiss me like that.”

“I think you were enjoying it.”

She blinks, placing both hands on her hips. “We need to get to bed. We’ve had the longest day in history and I want nothing more than to take a bubble bath.”

“Is that an invitation?”

Her eyebrows shoot up. “No, it isn’t. Now come on, tomorrow we have to clean up your mess once again.”

My stomach drops, thinking about how I’ve once again fucked things up.

She heads to the doorway and jiggles the handle. “Oh my god. It’s locked.”

I laugh a little. “No way.” I try the handle and nothing. This is not how I planned on this going when I brought her up here. I pull my phone out of my pocket and call the front desk, letting them know the situation. “They’re on their way,” I tell her once I’ve hung up the phone.

“See, this is why I follow the rules.” She crosses her arms over her chest, pushing her tits up in her dress, showcasing her full cleavage.

I smile, leaning closer, her flowery perfume filling my nose and making me dizzy with lust. “Yeah, but you have to admit you liked living on the edge when I kissed you.”

“This is going to be the longest season ever.”

* * *

Back in my room, I think of what Monterey said about once again cleaning up my mess. I didn’t mean to swing on Cole, but I did however fully mean it with every ounce of my being to swing on Thad.

I can’t let my anger get the best of me. If I do, then I’m no better than him.

I raid the minibar, looking for all the alcohol, because I’m going to need it tonight. I hate that I let Luther and Monterey down once again.

It’s in my nature I guess. To be a complete fuck up.

I don’t know how else to be.

I don’t think.

I react.

Thinking is for people like Monterey, not for people like me.

I grab the bourbon bottle first, and swallow it whole. They’re little bottles and I wish I had a big ol’ handle to drown out the chaos thrashing around in my head. It’s been that way for as long as I can remember.

I drink more bottles, going through the whole stash and feel nothing. None of the alcohol can erase years and years of pain. Not the kind of pain I have.

Not the kind that follows you around everywhere you go even though you’ve done everything in your power to leave it behind. Not only leave it. I’ve buried those demons, but that’s the thing. You can never forget the past, only move on from it.

It’s ok though. I have one thing going right in my life and I’m about to screw it all up.

Why can’t I be like Thad? Well, I know the answer to that one. Because I’m not a pussy. But it would be so much easier if I could follow the rules. Do what Luther and Monterey expect of me.

I grab my phone, needing to call the one person who can always set my shit straight, but before I can dial Kav’s number, the phone blinks with an incoming call.

Monterey.

“Hello,” I slur into the phone.

“I’m just checking on you, making sure you’re ok.”

Maybe I do feel a bit of the effects of the liquor because all of a sudden I no longer need to quiet the stir of madness deep inside me, instead I need to draw Monterey into it. “I’d be better if you were here.”

She doesn’t answer right away and I have to check the screen to make sure I didn’t drop the call. “Danger, get some sleep. We have a busy day tomorrow.”

“I’d sleep better if you were here.”

“Are you drunk?”

“Who me? No, I’m just thinking about you while stroking my hard shaft in my hand.” I think I went too far.

“You better be talking about a drive shaft.”

“Yes. Driving. Riding. My hard shaft.”

She hangs up on me, and I realize I did go too far. I wasn’t lying when I told her I’d sleep better with her in my bed. Since the moment I first heard her voice tonight on the phone my head no longer spun.

In fact, since the moment we left LA my mind has been silent. I don’t know what that means, but I know I don’t really want to find out either.

In my life pussy, alcohol, and drugs are the only things that usually calm the mayhem of my life. Never has one woman been able to do that. Especially not one I haven’t even fucked yet.

I blink. Did I really just think that?

Yet?

I let the thought of fucking Monterey marinate, wondering what she would feel like beneath me.

Will I fuck her?

I guess there’s only one way to find out.