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—Banks—
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“What’s that shit-eating grin for?” I demanded when Reed returned to our usual table at the LP.
He dragged a hand over his mouth and laughed, almost seeming embarrassed. “I just had a run-in with Simone and Kasey in the hallway.”
My eyes narrowed. “What kind of run-in?”
The girls hurried past, giggling and giving my brother the side-eye on their way to their table on the other side of the pub. Simone’s attention flicked to me and snagged, and I swear the tint on her cheeks deepened.
“The hell is all that about?” I asked Reed, thumbing over my shoulder at the girls.
His gaze drifted in their direction while he smirked. “I, uhh... I just got flashed.”
My knee jerked and hit the underside of the table with a loud thud. “You didn’t!”
Reed lifted his beer but paused with it poised at his mouth. He locked eyes with mine. “I really fucking did and trust me when I say this beer is going to go down a treat.”
I glared long after he lowered the empty glass with a dreamy sigh. “Who?”
His dark eyes flicked to mine. “Flashed?”
“Yes,” I hissed through my teeth, irrationally irritated about the thought of Simone showing her body to others.
Reed scoffed. “C’mon, bro, stop with the possessive growling.”
Indignant, I crossed my arms over my chest. “I’m not growling or possessive. And you’re pissing me off.”
“You’re jealous!”
“Am not,” I countered, only to scowl harder when he laughed again.
“You are.”
Christ, he was riling me. We both knew it, yet I couldn’t stop. I tossed back the remainder of my beer. “I’m annoyed, not jealous. There’s a difference.”
Reed snorted. “Cool your jets, Banksy. I only have eyes for Kasey. Simone’s a pretty little thing and all, but her friend...” He let out a low whistle while gazing across the pub. “She’s my type.”
“Unstable?”
Reed’s focus cut back to me. “That’s not my type.”
Feeling the tables turn, I grinned. “Uh-huh? So how do you explain Lauren?”
As my grin widened, his eyes narrowed. “She was a blip on the radar. I’m sure Kasey’s not like that.”
“Kasey, is it?”
“Yeah, it is,” he deadpanned.
I chuckled and toyed with my empty glass, only for my fingers to clamp around it when Reed asked, “Is Simone seeing Jacko?”
“I don’t think so. He would have mentioned it at work. Why?” My gaze darted around the pub, but I couldn’t see either of them.
Reed sat a little straighter. “He looked awful friendly with her on their way to the poolroom.”
I was on my feet before I’d finished stating, “I’ll get us another beer. And this conversation isn’t over either.”
Heading to the bar under the guise of ordering drinks, Wendy nodded when I held up two fingers while striding past her. She’d have another round waiting at our table by the time I returned.
Kasey breezed in the opposite direction and smiled widely. “Just getting more drinks. Do you guys want one?”
“We’re good thanks, darlin’,” I answered, with my focus firmly set on the poolroom.
When I entered it, I caught the moment Jacko’s hand touched down on Simone’s waist and her spine straightened. Even for someone who was oblivious at times, it was blatantly obvious to me that Jacko’s physical attention was not wanted.
Pushing aside the pinch of possession, I forced a wide smile and called my search and rescue teammate’s name.
“Jacko! How you doin’, man?”
His hand fell from Simone’s waist as he turned. “Banksy! I thought you were on call tonight, bro.”
I strategically stood between him and Simone. “I am. Drinking the nonalcoholic tonight.”
Taking her cue from the distraction, Simone distanced herself and used the pool table as a barrier between her and Jacko.
He noticed the change and his grin slipped a little. He leaned in and lowered his voice. “You’re cock-blocking me, bro.”
“There’s a reason for that.”
His expression showed blatant indignation. “Better be a good reason, Banksy, or I won’t be heeding your warning.”
He went to move away, but I grabbed his pool cue and held tight. “Don’t touch her.”
“You askin’ me, or tellin’ me?”
A silent challenge passed between us. We stared each other out. Both glaring and exchanging an inaudible argument that we’d eventually have to voice.
“Telling you,” I stated after a long moment.
Jacko’s eyes flicked to Simone, then back. “And if I asked her?”
I didn’t let his smirk sway me. “She’d say the same, but for differing reasons.”
He snorted and started to speak, but I cut him off. “This isn’t about you or me, it’s about her. And I’m telling you to not touch her.”
A glimmer of understanding triggered in Jacko’s light-brown eyes. He eyed me down his nose, and after another brief stare-off, he nodded. “I’m picking up what you’re putting down. On both accounts.” His head then tipped to the side. “You gonna let go of my pool cue so I can get the game started, or are we going to keep this conversation going outside?”
I smirked. “I don’t think we need to go outside, do you?”
“Nope. Not tonight at least.” He added his signature grin to smooth over the residual disagreement.
“I’ll leave you to it, then.” Despite speaking to Jacko, I locked eyes with Simone.
My lungs squeezed, and I darted a nervous lick across my lower lip. I had never been so struck by a woman before. Her intense blue eyes rendered me barely able to breathe from across the green-felted table. The poolroom blurred, and the background noise faded. We could have been standing in a stadium packed with thousands, but I only had eyes for her.
My heart lumbered within its confines, feeling as foreign as it did the day I woke after surgery to the medical equipment monitoring its rhythm.
I subconsciously rubbed at the gnarled scar that ran the length of my chest. I was a confident guy, but like Simone, I preferred to keep my scars under wraps.
Jacko’s sharp shove to my shoulder broke the time-warp Simone had me tethered within.
“Bro, you’re practically panting.”
It wasn’t a lie; each inhale came forced and every exhale too loud. I cleared my throat and glanced at Simone again to find her cheeks flushed with an ever-deepening hue of pink.
“I’ll see you at work, Jacko.”
“Will do, mate. Have a good one.”
After a matey slap to his shoulder and one final peek at Simone, I left them to their game of pool satisfied that, while I couldn’t have Simone for myself, Jacko’s hands wouldn’t be on her tonight.
My table was empty when I returned to it, though two glasses sat waiting for me and Reed. I slid into the booth and kicked back, lifting the cold beverage to my lips to take the first sip.
I casually surveyed the bar, then checked my watch a few minutes later. Where the fuck had Reed disappeared to?
By the time I finished up my beer, he was still nowhere to be seen, so I pulled out my phone to text him.
“Banks!” I looked up to see Simone’s stricken expression. “Have you seen Kasey? She’s been missing for ages.”
My eyes narrowed. “So has Reed. Have you checked the ladies’ room?”
“Yes, but she’s not there. Can you check the guys’ bathroom for me?”
I chuckled. “If they’re in there, maybe we should leave them for a few more minutes.”
Her eyes grew wider. “Are they in there together?”
“Well, one can assume they are since they’re both currently M.I.A.”
Simone jigged a little. “Please, Banks. I don’t care if they’re in there together—I just want to make sure she’s safe and not belly up in the lake.”
I rose to my feet while placating her with raised palms. “Okay, okay, I’ll check.”
Simone followed me down the corridor but stopped when I pushed through the heavy, self-closing door of the men’s bathroom.
“Bro? You in here?”
A grunt, then his gritty voice came from the farthest stall. “Yeah.”
“How long are you going to be?”
“Uhhh... a few minutes. Why?”
Since I was already in the bathroom, I figured I may as well use the urinal. “Is Kasey in there too?”
“Are you seriously pissing right now?” Reed exclaimed.
Making sure I didn’t piss on myself, I laughed. “You can’t answer a question with a question. What do I tell Simone?”
Kasey giggled. “Tell her I’ll be out in a minute.”
I chuckled while tucking away my dick, washed my hands, then casually leaned on the closed stall door. “Just one?”
“Fuck off already, Banks!” roared Reed. “Now!”
Laughing hard, I double-slapped the stall before walking away. “See you out there, bro.”
Simone was in my face the instant I opened the bathroom door. “They’re in there together, aren’t they?”
My grin turned wry. “Give them a couple more minutes, darlin’. Let them... finish.”
She fell in step beside me when I started walking away. “I feel like I should be surprised, but I’m really not.”
I raised my brows and looked down at her, cute as fuck and striding beside me. “About Kasey, or Reed?”
“About Kasey. She’s like you—all action, no thinking.”
“It’s a curse I tell ya,” I joked as we arrived at my table. “Wanna join me? Just until those two are done?” I inclined my head in the direction of the bathrooms.
Simone’s playful expression faltered, and I saw the debate playing out behind her irises. All but holding my breath, I let it go with a whoosh when her stance finally relaxed.
“Okay. Just until they’re done.” She slid into the booth opposite me and lifted the beer that was waiting for Reed. “Should I drink this?”
I flapped my hand. “Go for gold. He can order another.”
She took a sip, then set it down. “Are you guys having a big night?”
A snort left my wry smirk. “Reed is. Me, however...” I lifted my glass while casually drifting my eyes over Simone. “...I’m not. Nonalcoholic beer for me tonight; I’m on call.”
Simone shifted under my gaze and cleared her throat. “I’m not.” Her voice held a grit and depth that hadn’t been there previously, and it had my blood heating.
“Not what?” I asked thickly.
After all the times she’d pushed me away, verbally and physically, tonight seemed different. Maybe it was because she’d been drinking or maybe I misread the cues, but the chemistry between us seemed blatant.
“Not on call,” she clarified.
Christ, that voice again. It had my grip tightening around my glass and me barely able to hold back a groan.
Her foot nudged mine under the table. I stilled, eyes boring into hers and asking a million silent questions. As her foot slid higher up my calf, anticipation had pressure building beneath the zipper of my jeans. My breath grew short. Each beat of my heart lumbered as if injured.
Voice hoarse, I asked, “Do you want to take a walk with me?”
Her foot immediately recoiled, and the come-hither glint in her gaze vanished. An edge of fear and regret replaced the flirtatious undertones in her expression and the unexpected change had me instantly sobering.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she whispered, straightening and sitting with her back ramrod straight.
Each kick beneath my ribs had me cursing myself for pushing her too hard. “Sorry, I must have misread...”
Simone shook her head in apology. “It’s not you, it’s me.”
“But you started whatever that was.”
“I shouldn’t have,” she mumbled, now on the verge of tears.
I leaned forward and peeled her fingers off the glass so I could hold them. She could have pulled away—her hand vibrated like she wanted to—but I held firm.
“While I don’t know your past, I can see you’re still tethered to it. I’m an open, honest, and understanding guy, Simone. It’s no secret that I like you, and while I know you’re not ready, I do ask that you don’t toy with me. I can see you’ve been hurt. I’d never make you feel unsafe, but this whole hot-cold thing you’ve got going on is hard to keep up with.”
My heart sank as the first of her tears fell. “Fuck, darlin’, I didn’t mean to upset you. Please don’t cry,” I implored, holding her hand tighter, refusing to let go when she tugged.
“Let me go, Banks. Please.”
“Not until we sort this out. I hate that I’m the one causing your tears.”
The rigidity in Simone’s fingers eased a little. “You aren’t. It’s... it’s a long story.”
“I’m a good listener,” I appealed, only to receive another sad headshake.
“It’s one I’m not ready to share.” Her hand slid from mine when I reluctantly eased my hold. I sat back, defeated, as she dried her watery eyes and took another sip of beer. When her gaze found mine again, a different kind of regret swam in her irises. The gutted kind. The type that happened when your head and heart are at odds.
I forced a smile and prayed it looked natural. “It’s okay, new girl. I get it.” When she gnawed her lip, I added, “There are no hard feelings, I promise. Don’t beat yourself up about it.”
“Banks...” She sighed heavily while picking her words. “I—”
Irritation roared through me as Kasey interrupted Simone’s seemingly important confession.
“Aaaand, I’m back.” Kasey slid into the booth, then froze with her eyes locked on my glare. “Uh... what was I interrupting?”
“Nothing,” both me and Simone snapped.
Her eyes narrowed further. “I’m calling B.S. on that.”
Simone strategically shifted the conversation while I kept an eye out for Reed. “What took so long?”
Kasey’s face turned gleeful, and she cracked a mega smile. “Girl, I’ve got a newfound fetish for cops, because let’s just say that man’s dick was m—”
I snapped up a hand. “Let me stop you right there. If there’s one thing I don’t need to hear, it’s praise for my brother’s cock.”
Kasey laughed unashamedly and a dark blush crept over Simone’s cheeks, deepening when Kasey countered, “Makes me wonder if it runs in the family.”
I chuckled and kicked back. “Ain’t had any complaints so far.”
“To your face, anyway,” she teased through her laughter.
Simone covered her eyes. “Oh my god! Kasey stooooop.”
“Girl, I’m just saying it like it is.”
I scoffed and drawled, “I can assure you, that’s absolutely not how it is.”
My eyes connected with Simone’s again to find curiosity. Or was it desire? Her expression had me scrambling to decipher it. Unable to look away, I turned my head in Reed’s direction when he returned to the table while holding Simone’s gaze.
The quick dart of her tongue across her lower lip had me copying the movement. The urge to kiss her again filled my veins and pushed my blood to new heated levels.
“Anyone gonna tell me what’s going on?” came Reed’s voice.
Mine wouldn’t come. Simone’s innocent look combined with a renewed blush was too much of a distraction.
Kasey answered. “That’s what I asked. You can practically taste the sexual tension, right?”
My eyes cut to her and narrowed. “Pretty sure that’s your own sexual tension, darlin’.”
I chanced another look at Simone while Kasey and Reed shared an inside joke and gave her a small smile. Simone reciprocated it before taking a long sip of beer.
I studied her lips pursed around the glass a little too closely and for a little too long, then laughed when Kasey tilted the glass at a sharper angle, making Simone gulp faster.
“Drink up, buttercup. Adventure awaits.”
Simone spluttered as she set the empty glass down. “You weren’t in a rush five minutes ago. Why are we rushing now?”
Kasey paused, already on her feet and waiting at the end of the table. “I wanna play pool and drink more.”
Simone’s eyebrows hit her hairline. “I just played pool, and you were banging Reed in the bathroom!”
Enthralled, I kicked back and watched their exchange.
Kasey threw her head back and laughed. “No regrets.” She then tugged Simone to her feet and dragged her toward the poolroom.
Simone glanced wistfully over her shoulder as her insane friend towed her from sight. I wanted to join them, but I was no man’s fool. I was slowly figuring Simone out, and all the warning signs told me to tread carefully.
Reed slid into the booth, snickering. “Christ, she’s wild. Ten bucks says they end up in the cells again.”
I smirked. “Twenty says it’s your ass they’ll be calling to bail theirs out.”
