“Actually, we were talking about you,” Raine said with a sweet smile.
I shot her a warning look across the room. She ignored me.
Trooper flopped into a chair, tucking his hands behind his head. The hem of his shirt rode up, revealing an inch of clear skin at his hip. My gaze snagged there and suddenly, my mouth was as dry as the Sahara desert.
“I thought my ears were burning,” he replied.
“Shea was checking out your ass,” Raine put in. “She said it’s so tight and grabbable andhot.”
I choked on my food.
“Damn it, Raine,” I wheezed. “I didnotsay that—”
“Wow,” Trooper said, grinning from ear to ear like a smug cat. “I should hang out with you ladies more often with all these compliments you’re throwing my way.”
I grumbled with defeat and shoved my fries at him.
“Great. Now we’ll never get rid of you.”
Chapter two
Trooper
While I finished off the last of Shea’s fries, I flipped through her portfolio of tattoo designs. She’d added a few more pages since the last time I looked.
“Are you hiding from someone?” Shea ventured, organizing her work table, sanitizing her tools. “Typically, you hang out here when you’re dodging some responsibility at the club. Or a pissed off ex-girlfriend.”
I shrugged. “Are you gonna rat me out?”
She shook her head.
“You brought me food. That earns my undying loyalty, even if you did end up eating most of my fries.”
I chuckled, studying Shea’s profile. She had a gorgeous neck tattoo that she designed herself—twining ivy that sprawled across her collar bones and up her throat, disappearing behind her ears. In her black tank top, I had a clear view of the dragonflies inked down the length of her spine.
She was like a living, breathing mural of color and lines, shapes and forms. Every single tattoo that graced her skin hadbeen completed by her own hand—from initial concept sketch to finished masterpiece.
“I’m not hiding from anyone,” I replied. “It’s been a while since I pestered you, so I thought I’d remedy that.”
“Well, you certainly accomplished what you set out to do,” Shea said.
“Raine is right. Youaregetting bitchier than usual.”
Shea flipped me off, but a faint smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, indicating she knew it was just teasing.
Aside from the squad of ex-soldiers who moved to Colorado with me, Shea was the first friend I made in Juniper Creek. She was a guarded, private person, who didn’t reveal much about herself, unless it was forcibly pried out of her.
But every once in a while, Shea would be comfortable enough to let something slip. Trusting me enough to really, truly see her—vulnerable, exposed, and raw. It didn’t happen often, but I lived for those moments.
Of course, I didn’t tell her that. Because it would be cheesy. Then she would kick me in the nuts for being a dumbass, and lock down tighter than Fort Knox.
So, I kept my mouth shut.
My phone buzzed in my back pocket. I pulled it out, glancing at the screen to see a text from my brother, Sean. Better known as “Tarzan” in the Reckless Order.
Favorite uncle is needed at clubhouse ASAP.
“I’ve been summoned for uncle duty,” I announced, pocketing my phone again. “Try not to miss me too much while I’m gone.”
