But not today. Baby Jade headed to flush the tiny baggie down the toilet. As she stepped closer, a voice stopped her in her tracks.
“Oh, yeah. Like that. Don’t stop.”
The deep groans coming from behind the closed bathroom door belonged to Slade. She shuddered at the sound, one she knew all too well. She couldn’t make out the woman by the throaty moans, but she definitely knew what they were doing.
“Shit! Oh, shit!”
The raspy moaning became rhythmic, leading to the gasping sounds of an orgasm.
Baby froze in place, still holding the coke in her hand, listening to the commotion coming from the bathroom. As soon as she heard the female voice cry out in a combination of pain and elation, she knew instantly it belonged to Lolli. The sound was familiar. Slade had a consuming case of little man syndrome and attempted to compensate by using force. He was full of aggression and loved to unleash it in the bedroom or bathroom. Actually, anywhere he felt the urge—public or not.
“Oh, shit—Fuck me” Slam “Harder” Slam “Harder” Slam
By the sounds of it, Lolli had figured out how to appease Slade. The only thing he loved more than flexing his muscle was for one of his concubines to beg. She envisioned how he had Lolli bent over the same nasty sink she had once sprawled herself across. A fistful of her hair entwined around his left hand, yanking and pulling while he used his right to squeeze her breasts or slap her ass.
Her stomach churned. She swallowed back the vomit in her throat, and tucked the baggie of coke back in the envelope and tossed it into her bag. She tried to compose herself enough to head back up to the club, not wanting Lucky to ask questions.
Jewella and Barbie were still sitting up at the bar, only now they had a small gathering of hungry tourists. Good. Maybe that’ll keep them out of my hair. Lucky leaned against the wall with arms folded across his chest and legs crossed at the ankles.
He nodded to a couple of men as they walked in. They nodded in return. Having him on as a bouncer seemed to be working out well for the club. He had a presence about him, and he was a master when it came to reading people. He had somehow managed to strip away her every inhibition. Baby Jade still didn’t know how she felt about that special character trait of his.
Once he spotted her, Lucky stood upright. A smile crept across his face as she drew closer. His perfect lips upturned, revealing his deep dimples. Baby could nibble that plump bottom lip for hours. She loved the way he ran his hands over his beard when he didn’t know what to do with himself. She liked that she had that effect on him.
“What’d you think of the set?” Baby Jade asked, her chin quivering as she still tried to control her emotions.
He ran his fingers through his beard, rubbing his chin. “I haven’t been able to focus on anything since. You’re too good to be in this shithole.”
“Yeah, well, obviously fate doesn’t agree.” Baby edged her way closer to Lucky. The magnetism between them drove her insane, rushing blood through her veins. She couldn’t be close enough. Her body longed to find out how close they would have to be to satisfy the ache.
Lucky reached out one hand and ran his index finger from the hem of leather rimming her firm breasts down her smooth stomach before settling at the knotted straps holding on her boy shorts. Goose bumps covered her flesh causing Lucky to smirk; his eyes were hungry for her. She knew it.
Chapter Ten
Lucky
It was obvious she was hiding something. Before Baby said a single word, he knew she was hard as stone. However, right now, she looked like she was falling apart at the seams. Something must have happened to rattle her. He could see the cracks forming in her rock hard shell, and all he wanted to do was be there to piece her back together.
Damn. This girl is seriously fucking with my head.
Baby Jade completely consumed him. From the moment he laid eyes on her, Lucky hadn’t been able to think of anyone or anything else. No one had ever gotten under his skin the way she did. Every time she walked into a room, he felt like he’d been sucker punched in the gut, and left gasping for air.
His body reacted to her in ways he wasn’t used to, involuntarily responding to her movement, her voice, her smell, and the most agonizing, her touch.
The way the two of them talked and opened up to one another about their painful pasts had blindsided Lucky. He told Baby Jade things he never told anyone before. He’d never opened up about the abortion to anyone. Carrie had wounded him. He swore he would never open his heart up to another woman, but damn if she hadn’t coaxed her way in, and now it was as if she was holding him hostage.
This day was one for the record books. He had been up all night worried about Baby after the run in with the jackass from the club, Slade. He woke up early with plans of heading over to make sure she was safe when his mother called. She had called a few times since he’d been back in town. He didn’t answer, letting it go to voicemail. He had no doubts it would sound exactly like the others, “James, this is your mother. Call me. We can discuss the upcoming meeting.” The board meeting that he was in town for was still a few days away. The thought of crossing the river made him want to punch something. He had nothing to say to any of the Gauthiers. He was going to cast his vote and walk away like he always did.
He tracked down Baby Jade’s address from a guy at Rodney’s who said he had delivered her pizza on his old route. When he found the place, he was shocked to see how run down it was. He would never tell her that though. She reminded him of himself, pity would only piss her off. She wasn’t looking for a handout or charity.
He beat on the door for what felt like an eternity before he heard her scream. His instincts kicked in and he knocked down the door to find that Baby had stubbed her toe on the bookshelf. He saved her from a fucking bookshelf.
Lucky stood in the middle of her living room red-faced and embarrassed while Baby ripped him a new one. Of course, it turned out to be one of the best mistakes he had ever made. He could still taste the sweet wine she had drank right before he licked her lips and explored her mouth with his tongue. When he touched her smooth skin, it left him feeling as if his fingertips were on fire.
The feelings were all coming to a head, leaving Lucky ready to combust. The heat and sexual tension. The confusion from the unexpected feelings. The anger and dread of having to see his parents again. The apprehension of the strip club scene.
As Baby stood in front of him looking good enough to eat, Lucky knew he was in trouble. He was spinning out of control. She had knocked him on his ass and he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Chapter Eleven
Baby Jade
Baby all but panted while Lucky’s fingers dipped past the leather waist of her shorts. With every rise and fall of her chest, she became increasingly aware of the disappearing space between the two. She pressed her palms to his chest, closing the gap. Her lips remained parted as her heavy breaths landed on his neck. His fingers continued to delve deeper beyond her waistline.
And almost as quickly as it started, it stopped.
Lucky’s hands fell and his body went rigid. She looked up to find his face hard and lips pursed into a hard line. His narrowed eyes focused above her head. She followed his gaze across the room and landed on Slade, his broad shoulders filling the doorframe to the basement staircase. His lips curled into a sneer as he finished buckling his belt.