I laughed. “Right. Answer this: did you befriend that chick who cheated with Simone’s ex-boyfriend? Just so you could find out which one of them made the first move?”
Her eyes slid to the side. “That doesn’t matter. Simone’s perfectly happy now.”
She was trying to be funny, but I stuck to my guns. “Did you go out of your way to meet Tennyson?”
“Notoutof my way,” she muttered.
I raised my eyebrows at her. “Right. That’s what makes you scary. What was it you once said to Jasmine? ‘Lead with love, but master the throat punch?’ You’re ruthless and not only do you not take any shit, you won’t let your friends take any shit either - not if you can help it.”
She stood and wandered half-way down the hall to a small closet. “Speaking of not taking any shit, I’ve got a set of locks to switch out.” She brought back an entry combo set and put it on the end table. “I don’t want to keep you from anything, Raff.”
I stood and grabbed the package from the end table. “I’m not leaving, Lex. It’s great that you’ve got a set of locks at the ready, but after the vibe I picked up from him… I don’t trust that asshole.”
“He isn’t coming back,” she said, and just stopped herself from rolling her eyes at me.
“If you’re right, then I’ll eat those words, but at least you’ll be around to make me do it. Because if you’re wrong… then a new lock won’t keep him from breaking in to hurt you.”
She dipped her chin. “He cares about Ines, not me. Besides, hurting me would be a red flag to Ines.”
That might be true, but I wasn’t going to argue with her any longer. “Get the screwdriver and let’s get this done.”
I couldn’t help but watch the sway of her ass as she went to the kitchen, opened a drawer, and plucked out a tool. As she came back to the living room, I cleared my throat and focused on the locks.
She drew even with me and tipped her head toward the door. “I appreciate you hanging around, but I can take care of this.” She paused to shoot me a grin. “I’m not sure if you’re aware, but my dad installs doors for a living.”
I smiled. “Part of being a prospect means I work alongside your dad at least once a week, so yeah, I know about his business, and I can help you get this done faster.”
She shook her head twice, went to the door, and began removing the screws.
I wasn’t sure how I wanted to handle this. After her blow up with Brantley, I didn’t want Lex to think I was suddenly interested in her because she still had her v-card. I also didn’t want her to think I was coming on to her out of pity or worse, just to be her first. There was something instinctive, almost primal, inside me, though, that reveled in the notion that I would be her first - and possibly her only lover.
Unless she was still convinced the MC life wasn’t for her, I would make it my mission to prove to her that I was the only man she needed.
“You gonna stand there staring at the locks all day, or you think you can bring me the doorknobs?” she asked.
“I’m coming, Robertson,” I said, closing the distance between us in three strides.
I fitted the two pieces together after some jiggling and held them still. Alexandra scooted in close to tighten the screws. Her long dark hair brushed against my forearm.
“I didn’t realize you had… you’ve almost got a full sleeve of tats on this arm.”
“Yeah,” I said, my voice husky.
Usually I could control myself around her.
She chuckled and stepped back. “That’s cool, but will you even have room for the Riot MC tat?”
I twisted the knob to make sure it would hold, closed the door, and then I picked up the old locks. “There’s room.”
I needed to let her study. But I wanted to take her out to lunch.
“Are you okay?” she asked, moving in front of me.
“Yeah. I want you to think about something. Don’t say anything now.”
“Is this about Brantley?”
I took a deep breath. “No.” She would likely think this had to do with him, but it didn’t. “Yesterday… Lex, there was a moment I thought you were in ICU. I walked into that ER and you were being guided out…” I dragged a hand down my face. “The relief I felt was so damned overwhelming it was all I could do not to fall on my knees. Then you said you and Porter were done. I wanted to ask you to give me a shot right then, but it was the wrong time.”
