“Yeah, but that dress is gonna be a problem for me.”
“Ah, I hate to break it to you big boy, but it’s the only option.” She was grinning that sexy fucking grin at me that made me want to rip that fucking dress off here and now.
“Yeah, I know. I fucking know,” I muttered.
She laughed and it was the sweetest fucking sound. Jesus. Where were these thoughts coming from? I flicked my hand towards the door. “Go. And Harlow, I’m driving you home again tonight.”
She rolled her eyes, but simply said, “Yes, Scott.” And then she was gone and I was left wondering yet again, what the fuck I was doing.
Chapter 13
Harlow
I sat at a table and laid my head down, closing my eyes for a minute. After only four hours sleep, I was exhausted. Working at Indigo at night and here during the day was going to kill me eventually. Mum had told me not to come in until later but I knew she had cakes to make for orders so I didn’t want to leave her on her own to do that and serve customers. Thank goodness I had tonight off work from Indigo; me and my bed were going to get very cozy together.
“Harlow, wake up.” Someone was gently shaking my shoulders. I cocked one eye open and peered out to see who it was.
“Go away, Madison,” I grumbled, not really meaning it, “Your brother has worn me out and I need sleep.”
She smirked. “I knew he had a thing for you. How long you two been going at it?”
I snapped my head up. “Oh no, you misunderstood. Crap, I guess I did put it kinda like that, didn’t I? No, nothing’s happening between us -”
She cut me off. “Slow down, honey. Deep breath.”
I did as she suggested and took a very long, deep breath. “I’ve been working at Indigo the last two nights and the café during the days so I’m pretty tired. That’s all I meant.”
She dumped her bag on the table and sat across from me. “Yeah, I heard you were working at Indigo. I feel so out of the loop with all your news; I haven’t had time to come in for my coffee the last few days. Why did you take a job there and how did you know that Scott was looking for staff? I’m still trying to wrap my head around it all because you and Scott didn’t really hit it off at the barbeque.”
“You want a coffee for this?”
“Girl, you know me too well. Of course I want a coffee.”
I smiled and then hopped up to go and get her coffee. “We need to hang out more often,” I said as I made it.
“Yes! How about next Friday night? I’ve become friends with my hairdresser and she and I are having a girl’s night out.”
“Count me in, so long as I’m not working at Indigo. I need a girl’s night out. Can I bring a friend?”
She nodded enthusiastically. “Hell yes, the more the merrier.”
I made us both a coffee and then settled back in across from her. “Long story as to why I’m working at Indigo, but basically just what I told you last week; I need the money to help Mum with her bills. One of her fridges died on Tuesday and we couldn’t afford to replace it so I asked Scott for the job. And, he also organised a fridge for us. Oh, and this was after I turned up at his club drunk and abused him for losing me my job at the vet’s.”
“Wait. How did you know Indigo was his club?”
I shook my head. “I didn’t. My friend and I were out drowning my sorrows about losing my job and we saw Indigo and wondered what a strip club looked like on the inside. So, we went in. The rest is history.”
She was laughing. “You’d never been inside a strip club before?”
“No! I’m a good, country girl. We don’t do strip clubs.”
“And what do you think of it now?”
“Actually, it’s kinda hot. But that could just be because of all the hot biker boys roaming around in there.” I winked at her as I said that.
“Shame on you, Miss Country.”
“Seriously though, Storm has some hot guys. Don’t you think?” I was loving this girly chat with her.
She almost spat her coffee at me. “Shit, no!” She shrugged and then added, “Okay, well Nash is pretty fucking hot and has a dirty mouth to go along with it. Don’t you ever tell J I said that or I will kill you. Right after he kills Nash. And Griff... Mmm, there’s something about him that scares the fuck out of me but at the same time, he does it for me. I don’t find any of the other Storm boys hot but remember, I grew up with them so I pretty much just look at them like brothers.”
“I met Griff the other night. I know exactly what you’re saying about him; he scared the shit out of me too. You wouldn’t want to get on his bad side, that’s for sure. Nash has hit on me a few times but I can tell that he’s the type to do that to anything in a skirt, right?”
“Yeah, Nash doesn’t discriminate. He’s all about the ladies. Told me once that he’s got no interest in ever settling down which is pretty much the same as Scott. I’m just waiting for the day these guys meet a woman who brings them to their knees. It’s going to be fun to watch.”
I processed what she’d said about Scott. He’d also told me that he didn’t do relationships and. “Have they ever been in a relationship?”
“I don’t know about Nash before he came to the club but definitely not since. And Scott hasn’t had a girlfriend since just after high school.”
“How old is Scott?”
“He’s thirty-four. Why?”
“Well, I’m just wondering how someone gets to be thirty-four and not had a relationship since high school. And let’s face it, a high school fling is hardly a real relationship.”
“Scott’s been pretty focused on Storm his whole life. And, he’s screwed some real nasty bitches. As in, bitches who tried to trap him by getting pregnant from the one time they slept together. That’s happened to him twice now, and then there’s been the stalkers who wouldn’t take no for an answer. Those club whores who are desperate to become an old lady will stop at nothing to get their claws into one of the Storm boys. So, I think Scott’s been burnt by women to tell you the truth.”
“Scott’s got kids?” I was surprised; even though I thought he’d make a good father, I had gotten the impression he didn’t have any.
“No. One of them was pregnant but miscarried; thank God. The other bitch was lying but Scott didn’t work that out for a couple of months, so she put him through it for awhile.”
We sat in silence for a moment, drinking our coffee. I was thinking about Scott; he’d been screwed over like I had. Sure, it was in a different way but still, he’d been screwed because when someone takes your trust like that and stomps all over it, it marks your soul.
“So, what’s the deal with you, Scott and Blade?”
“Oh, God! Where to start? Okay, long story short, my Dad screwed around on my Mum and had a child with another woman. That’s Blade. But we only found out a couple of months ago. Dad’s been hiding his other family all this time. I’ve gotten to know Blade and like him. I mean, it’s not his fault how he came into this world. But Scott’s got it in for him and won’t give him the time of day. I just stay out of it and have my own relationship with Blade. You’ve met him; he’s okay, right?”
“Holy crap, your family could have its own soap show. Bloody hell. How did your Mum cope when she found out about your Dad? And yes, Blade seems okay from what I’ve seen.”
“I used to think my mother was a strong woman but I’m not so sure anymore. She’s still with Dad. I couldn’t tell you why though because we’ve grown apart since all this went down. She’s kind of pulled away from me and Scott. I think it’s because we’ve made it clear we want nothing to do with Dad and that we think she should leave him.”