“Come on, Beanie. This guy’s a turd.” Sam grabs my arm and shoves me up the steps in front of her and through the crowd, which closes behind us like we were never there. We’re almost to the street door when she turns back to shout over the newcomers’ heads, “Hey, Mr.Mister!I hope you know you’re an ugly gherkin-fucker and you don’t deserve her!”
“What was that?” I ask as we spill out onto the sidewalk, me blinking like a newborn and Sam on the warpath.
“This way.” She drags me around the corner and out of sight.
I stumble to a stop and lean against the brick wall, my breathing as harsh as if I’d just run a one-hundred-meter dash instead of dry-humping my off-limits colleague.
“Geez, Rae. Sorry I was late,” Sam says, eyes flicking left andright before landing back on me. “Although, do I really need to apologize?”
“You absolutely do,” I gasp, out of breath, out of my mind.
Turning, I start walking, just walking, barely taking in the people wandering by. I feel explosive. Grant’s down there inhisclub right now, probably with his real, full-time sub—or girlfriend or, who knows, poly triad?—picking up exactly where he left off with me. And it hurts.
Sam’s sneakers slap quietly on the brick sidewalk as she runs to catch up. “Hey. Hey, Beanie. Come on.”
I think it’s the sound of my family’s nickname for me that stops me in my tracks, my shoulders drooping. “Let’s go get drunk,” I say.
“Fine by me.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
Grant
“TAKE THIS,” LUCAS YELLSover the music from across the bar.
I stare at him for a few seconds before letting him slide a cold beer into my hand. “Thanks.”
“Not lookin’ so great, bud.”
“Fuck off.”
He shakes his head and looks out at the crowd. It’s busy. Very busy, in fact, which is great. Excellent news.
I swivel on my barstool, eyes searching for anyone who might be in the market for a partner tonight. There. Cute redhead.
Dammit. No redheads. I’m done with redheads.
“What are you doing?” Lucas has come around the bar to stand beside me.
“Checking out the crowd.”
“Yeah? What about the sub who followed you down here?”
Immediately, my hackles rise. “What about her?”
“Down, boy. You think I’ma try to steal her off you?”
Just the notion makes my hands tense up, readying for a fight.
Lucas, of course, notices. He’s not just a fellow kinkster and a friend. He’s a jock, an ex-fighter. The guy knows when someone’sgearing up for a tussle and, dammit, that is not me. I’ve got to release this adrenaline running through my veins or I’ll lose it.
“No.” I shake my head more to clear it than anything else. “’Course not.”
“All right.” His eyes flick down to where I’m doing my best to loosen my hands before returning to look at my face. “Mind if I say something?”
Forcing back a sigh, I take a long swig of my beer. “Go ahead.”
“Never seen you act like this before, man.”
