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MERCEDES
Sam was wrong. It wasn't okay.
Things got weird.
So weird that he took off on me for nearly five days, leaving Sunday afternoon and not showing up again until Thursday.
I had no idea where he went and didn't ask him about it when he came back. But it had to get less uncomfortable, right?
Because you can only be all tense and strange around each other for so long...
At least Bray started school without any problems, which didn't really surprise me. He'd always been good at making new friends and tended to roll with whatever changes came along.
Before Sam left on his club run...I wasn't a hundred percent sure what "runs" were, but apparently this one involved being gone for five days...he'd handed me some money and suggested I wait until the next week to start job hunting.
He wanted to explore work options with the club, and also thought I should focus on helping Bray adjust to his new situation.
I'd love to say I'm such a strong, independent woman that I told him to butt out, but it was actually a huge relief. Because, I couldn't remember the last time I'd had a week off, and I loved it.
I unpacked everything, sucked up a bit of sun and got reacquainted with the area.
I also spent an afternoon with my old friend Marley, who had invited me over for lunch on Tuesday.
We had stayed in touch throughout the years, and last summer I'd stayed with her and her new husband when we came to visit.
Marley was...Marley. She had gone a little wild for a while after graduation. Then she met Ryder and settled down.
He was some kind of software engineer and apparently did pretty well for himself, because she had one of those big fancy houses. It was part of a development, not custom like Sam's, but twice the size and pretty impressive.
She also had a pool...
"You want a margarita?" she asked, opening the door in a bikini, a brightly colored wrap, and sunglasses that would've made Paris Hilton jealous.
I smirked, because some things never change.
"This early?" I asked.
"It's always happy hour when you have kids," Marley replied, shrugging. "Either that or it's sad hour, and that's not half as much fun."
We grinned at each other like total dorks.
"So, you want one or not?" she asked, dragging me through her grand entryway and down the hall to her kitchen. "Because I'm definitely having one. Hannah was up all night teething, and finally fell asleep about fifteen minutes ago. If I'm lucky, I have two hours before she's up again. So I need to make the most of it and pack in six weeks' worth of social life before you go."
"Okay," I told her. "But just one. I have to drive and pick up Bray later. I take it you're enjoying mommy-hood?"
"Loving it," she replied, pouring me a drink in a brightly colored martini glass with a flamingo-shaped stem. "I can't believe how amazing Hannah is. But it's crazy, too. I had no idea how much work they could be...I still can't believe you did this when you were seventeen. I couldn't even find my keys half the time back then, let alone keep track of a baby."
"Well, sometimes life brings us surprises," I replied, thinking back to those early days.
After Bray, I'd gone to the alternative high school and lived with Sam's mom. It hadn't been easy.
"I couldn't give him up, so I figured it out. What doesn't kill us, and all that shit," I said waving my hand airily to illustrate the point.
Marley burst out laughing, and it was just like high school again.
God, I loved her.
We made our way out to the backyard, sitting at a tile-topped table under a vine-draped pergola.
Her backyard really was gorgeous. Totally different than Sam's wild acreage. She had a perfectly manicured little Garden of Eden in the suburbs.
"So, you're staying with Sam Evans," she said, arching a brow. I laughed.
"I haven't heard him called Sam much since his mom died," I replied. "He goes by Wringer. As a matter of fact, I think I'm the only one who calls him Sam."
"Um, yeah," she said, eyes drifting away from mine as she sipped her drink thoughtfully. "I don't want to be negative, but is this a good thing? I thought you hated him. I mean, things got bad there before you left Colorado. It was an ugly time."
"Um, hate is probably too strong a word for Sam," I replied, taking a sip from my flamingo-themed glass.
Ugh, way too much tequila. Yuck! She wasn't kidding about packing in weeks of social life. I set it back down, eyeing the yard speculatively.
If she goes inside, I'll dump it on a shrub or something.
Did tequila kill shrubs?
"I'd say our relationship is a little tense," I added. "He was kind of a jackass bullying me to come back to town, but I have to admit, it's a good move for us. Things weren't so great in Seattle."
Marley made a soothing noise and waved her hand at me.
"You'll be glad you came back," she replied. "If nothing else, now you'll have me around to babysit for you. I promise...no drinking when I'm watching your kid. Scout's honor."
"They kicked you out of Scouts..."
"Only the Girl Scouts," she mused. "Those boys always found room for me in their tents. Seriously, though, Bray's a great kid, and it's not like I get to go out and do anything these days anyway. Not that I mind. I've had my fun."
I snickered at that.
She didn't even blush. I wasn't entirely sure she was joking about the scouts and their tents.
"Speaking of fun..." she said slowly, swirling her drink. "I need to tell you something."
I glanced over at her, and for the first time since I'd known her, Marley looked embarrassed and a bit apprehensive.
"What?" I asked, a little nervous.
Because nothing embarrassed Marley.
"I don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to spit it out," she replied, swallowing. "I slept with Sam three years ago. It was a one-night thing, nothing special. But I figured you should know, since I might want to come and hang out at your new place sometime. Full disclosure."
I gaped at her.
"Why did you sleep with him?"
She cocked a brow at me, eyes knowing.
"Seriously?" she asked, and I flushed. Of course I knew why. "It was before Ryder, so it's not like I did something wrong. You were still living in Olympia and could hardly stand him long enough to let him see Bray. So I thought I was in the clear."
I looked away from Marley, trying to process.
The thought of her and Sam felt wrong. In fact, it made me kind of angry. And that was ridiculous, because it wasn't like I had any business being upset.
Not only that, it'd been three years ago. A full year after things fell to shit here, and not even Marley knew all the details on that one...
Strong or not, I took a big gulp of my margarita, which blazed a nasty, fiery trail down my throat. And my lungs spasmed in protest.
"You aren't planning to do it again, are you?" I asked once I stopped coughing. She burst out laughing and shook her head.
"Of course not!" she sputtered. "For one, I'm married. Remember? You were in the wedding, dumbass. But even if I wasn't, he's not a return-trip kind of guy. I mean, I would've have done him again, because he's that good...trust me...but he's definitely not the type to stick around. He's screwed half of Colorado. It was fun, but I don't get off on being one of many."
"Do we have to talk about this?" I asked, squirming.
"No, not really," she said. "But I wanted you to know, just in case."
"Just in case what?"
"Well, just in case I come over. It seems weird not to tell you, now that I know you have a thing for him. I didn't know that when I had sex with him, though. I swear. I thought you hated him as much as you hated Shaun."
"I don't have a thing for him," I said quickly.
"Don't bother denying it," she replied lightly, giving a theatrical shudder. "I can see it in your face when you talk about him. And I get it. He's one of those guys you just want to shove down and lick all over. Which I did, actually. He's nasty in bed, too, never tried some of that shit before. He has a pierced dick. I shit you not."
My eyes widened and I took another gulp of my drink.
"Are you kidding?" I asked. "Does that mean...wait, no. No. I don't want to know."
She burst out laughing.
"The answer to your unasked question is yes," she said, leering comically. "But you need to stay away from him, babe. No kidding on that one."
I rolled my eyes. I wanted to be annoyed with Marley, but I just couldn't. She was too sweet and crazy to get pissed at.
"I live with him," I said dryly. "I can't stay away."
Her smile faded.
"I guess that's my point," she said thoughtfully. "But you can keep your distance in other ways. You need to build your own life and cut out any fantasies of messing around with him, because it won't end well. If you guys fall into bed one night, you better be ready to wake up and clear out before the next chick shows up. And the next one and the next one and the one after that. That's just how he is."
"I know. Pisser, hmmm?"
"Well, it's not like you have to give up on sex," she said. "Like I said, I'm stuck at home all the time anyway. Might as well watch Bray so you can go out and get some. You're hot...guys will be crawling all over you. In fact, there's someone I want you to meet."
"I don't do setups," I told her.
"You will," she replied knowingly. "Trust me, when you see his picture you'll be all over him. His name is Kevin, he works with Ryder. And he's loaded."
She turned on her phone, flipped around until she found what she wanted, then handed it over.
Damn! This guy really was hot, in a pretty, clean-cut lawyer kind of way.
"Okay," I told her.
She burst out laughing and I chugged the rest of the margarita. Then Hannah squawked over the baby monitor and Marley groaned.
"Fuck my life..."
As Marley went inside to check on her daughter, I pulled off my sarong and slid down into the pool, considering her cute friend.
Unfortunately, when I tried to imagine him kissing me, I only thought about sucking on Sam's lips instead.
Then I thought about sucking on other things, which wasn't productive at all...
What exactly did a pierced dick look like, anyway?
And how would it feel inside?
I shivered...
Marley finally got her daughter settled and came back outside, jumping into the water with me.
"So, have you started job hunting yet?" she asked.
"Not yet," I replied. "Sam wants to see if there's something I can do with the club. I'm on the fence about that. Not sure I want to get involved."
"Well, if your goal is to make good money, the best place to work is Top Shot."
"The strip club?" I asked, widening my eyes. Everyone knew about Top Shot, of course, but I'd never been there.
"Yup. Totally paid for my degree that way," she replied, leaning back into the water to wet her hair. I gaped as she came back up.
"You worked at a strip club? Stripping? Seriously?"
Marley laughed.
"No, I worked there valet parking," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Yes, I stripped. I made really good money, too. I only had to work two nights a week. It kicked ass."
"But wasn't that kind of...icky?" I asked, intrigued.
She shrugged.
"Define icky," she replied. "I mean, sometimes it was really fun. I liked dancing on the stage and all the flirting. The lap dances weren't quite as much fun, especially if the guys were old or something. But they aren't allowed to touch you. At least, not unless you go back into the VIP rooms. All kinds of things happen back there...but only stuff you decide to let happen. Nobody forces you to do anything."
I turned this information over in my brain, stunned.
"So did you?" I asked, knowing it was rude but completely incapable of not asking.
"What?"
"Go back in the VIP rooms?" I asked, unable to help myself.
She giggled.
"Yeah, I did," she replied. "You don't have to, but that's where you earn the most money. Security keeps a pretty close eye on things. It's not dangerous or anything."
I stared at her. She stared back, smirking.
"Wow!" I said finally. "I didn't know that."
"What? Are you going to get all judgy on me?" she asked. "Fuck that! I'm not ashamed. Ryder knows all about it, too. That's where I met him."
"And it didn't bother him?" I asked, even more startled.
"It would be pretty damned hypocritical if it did," she said, laughing. "First time he came in, he paid for me all night. And I gotta tell you, we had a damned fine time in that little room all by ourselves. I swear, I fell for him on the spot. He didn't like the idea of sharing me with any other guys, so I quit the next day. I didn't want to mess things up between us, you know?"
"Wow!" I repeated. "I know I keep saying that, but I'm just trying to wrap my head around this. I hate to be too nosy, but how much were you making?"
She leaned over and whispered in my ear.
"Holy shit!"
"No kidding, right?" she asked. "Well, I worked hard at it, and took it seriously. And I didn't get into drugs. A lot of the girls blow their money on drugs and stupid shit. But the smart ones? They save their cash and retire early. I covered our wedding, our honeymoon, and the down payment on this house. And Hannah's got a college fund started, too."
"Damn!" I murmured. "That's amazing!"
Marley laughed.
"Well, it's not a long-term career," she said. "But think about it. A regular job will keep you away from Bray forty hours a week, at least. Maybe more. If you start stripping, you're only away from him two nights a week. What's better? A mom with a lily-white reputation, or one who's actually around to take care of her kid?"
"Hell of a good point," I answered, bemused.
"No shit," she replied. "And consider this...when you start making good money, you'll have your own place in no time. I don't care how nice Sam's house is. So long as he's living there, you're up shit creek."
It was hard to argue with that.
PORTLAND, OREGON
SAM
"I've never seen a town with so many damned strip clubs," Plank muttered, sipping his beer. I glanced over at my club president and shrugged. It was Wednesday afternoon, but we've only been awake for a couple hours.
Last night I had found a hot little blonde who'd done her best to make me forget all about my new roommate. Unfortunately, I'd screwed myself over by pretending she was Mercedes the entire time I pounded into her.
I wasn't a hundred percent sure, but I might've called Mercedes' name too, when I released.
Hell, I needed to get a handle on this...
But there was just something about the thought of her in my house, all available and at my mercy. It was too much power.
I had never been one of the good guys.
I took a long, deep breath. This was a business trip, so it was time to pull my head out of my ass.
No Samcedes in this chapter, but I guarantee Samcedes interaction in the next ;)