CHAPTER SIXTEEN

“Ask Me How I Know”

Quinn

I wasn’t expecting his kiss. In truth, I thought it would never come—that we were meant to be together, yet destined to remain apart. But then his lips were on mine—soft, warm, sexy man lips—and suddenly, I didn’t know what to do. My body screamed jump him, but my conscience demanded answers.

As if sensing my hesitation, he loosened his grip on my hair. “Don’t be mad,” he murmured against my mouth.

Before that magical tongue got its hooks into me again and my conscience went on permanent vacation, I slid my hands to his chest and pushed him away. Away, being a half a step back—just far enough for me to gather my bearings, yet still close enough that I had to tilt my head to see his eyes. Dang, but those emerald green eyes literally turned me inside out.

“You can’t just...kiss me like that.” His brows drew together and I inwardly sighed. Great, Quinn. The words sounded fine in my head, but stupid out loud. A jolt of frustration slashed through me and I pushed him back a step, hoping to gain a little more perspective.

“I can’t be the other woman. I just...can’t, and it’s not because I don’t want to, because I do. I really, really do, but I know me. I’m already ten kinds of gone for you and if you keep kissing me like that, it’ll only make it worse.” I would have kept going if not for the distraction of his hand trailing down my arm. Down it went, until slowly, he entwined our fingers together, turning me into a complete puddle of mush. With a slight yank of his arm, he jerked me forward.

“Evan!” I gasped as my chest bumped against his. Before I knew what was happening, he had his arm wrapped around me. His lips grazed across my neck, causing my insides to ignite. I sucked in a deep breath, thinking, I can worry about my conscience later.

Softly in my ear, he said, “Bobby and Tut just confirmed it. Mandy is legally married to the guy in Virginia.”

My heart pitter-pattered like crazy inside my chest as my breath exploded in a loud, “What?” Tilting my head back, our eyes collided and I could see that he was telling the truth. I also saw heat—boiling hot, sexually intense...heat, brewing beneath that green-eyed stare of his.

“I still have some minor issues to take care of, but it’s over. I’m free of her, and you know what that means?” I knew what I wanted it to mean. “It means I’m coming for you Quinn.” Once again, I found myself pressed to his chest with his lips hovering at my ear.

“Watching you take care of yourself this afternoon nearly killed me. I want to take care of you. I want my hands, mouth, and cock—on you, in you, and all fucking over you, woman.” Lust dripped from each word he spoke and I fought back a groan. “But first, you have work and I have to check in on my Mom. I’ll come by the bar after.” Before I could reply, his lips were back on mine. Holy cow, the man could kiss! With one hand circling the nape of my neck and the other pressing against my backside, he all but devoured me. Sparks of desire bolted through my body, lighting me on fire. Burn baby burn, I thought as I shoved my fingers into his hair and gave him everything I had.

Had he not broken away, I would have let him take me right there. In front of God and his horn dog friends, I would have shucked off my shorts and shown him the way to the promised land. It was a good thing he chose that moment to walk away, because I wasn’t sure I could. Not now. Not ever.

Hours later, I was going crazy. If I heard one more word about Tut’s anaconda or Bobby’s meat cleaver, I would lose my ever-loving mind. I was so irritated that I couldn’t even enjoy the rowdy crowd as they sang along to “Follow Your Arrow,” which just so happened to be one of my favorite Kacey Musgraves’ songs of all time.

“Girl, you are strung tighter than a willy in the wrong hole! What is with you tonight?” Alex-Ann asked.

Not in the mood for conversation, I said, “I’m going for a smoke break. Hold down the fort.”

“Cigarette!” I snapped at Sam on my approach to the service window.

Scowling, he said, “I thought you quit?”

“Do I look like I quit?” His eyes narrowed dangerously on me when I snapped my fingers at him. He glared. I glared. He sighed. I smiled. Moments later, I was outside, perched on the ledge with a cigarette between my fingers.

I got two measly puffs in, before the door opened and out stepped Evan. Of course, his gaze immediately dropped to the cigarette.

“I swear, I quit,” I blurted.

He dropped down beside me. “Really? It doesn’t look like it.”

With a sigh, I flicked the remaining cigarette across the parking lot and slid my fingers inside my short’s pocket to retrieve the piece of gum I’d stashed, on the off chance that Evan showed up and busted me smoking. “How’s your mom?” I asked.

“She’s better. At least, she looks better.”

I held up the stick of gum. “Want half?”

“You know what I want.” The smoldering deep tone of his voice made me all gooey inside.

“Yes, well, as good as that sounds,” and it did sound so very good, “that’s not going to happen here.”

“Can I at least kiss you?” If he kissed me, it would lead to naughty naked stuff. He knew it and I knew it.

“Noooo. How’s your dad?”

He exhaled loudly. “I told him about Mandy. He agrees with Bobby and Tut in that we need more time.” My stomach dropped. And here’s where he takes it all back.

“For?” I asked, nearly choking on the word.

“According to him, the marriage needs to be legally declared void, in that it happened under false pretenses. This means I need to get before a judge as quickly as possible, because regardless of whether the certificate was filed or not, we had a marriage license and a ceremony within the sixty-day requirement period.” My eyes smarted as I waited for the other shoe to drop...and crush my heart to smithereens. “However,” he continued, “he said that in light of her previous marriage, no judge in the State of Texas would disagree with me, and just so you know, he’s friends with them all, so this is more a formality than anything.”

Blinking back the tears, I asked, “A formality?”

“It means that I need to contact my attorney and tell him that instead of mediation, I want to set up a time to meet with Amanda to talk about a reconciliation.”

“Are you serious?” I hissed, spearing him with a glare.

“Relax, it’s just a ploy to buy us more time. Bobby and Tut are leaving for Virginia tomorrow. They’re going to get a copy of the marriage license and have a chat with the husband. In the meantime, my dad is on the hunt for a judge that can get us on his docket as quickly as possible.” My shoulders slumped with relief.

Swallowing my brief mental meltdown, I said, “This all sounds really good, Evan.” He shifted beside me and then began scooting back. Once his back was to the wall, he leaned forward, grabbed me by the hips, and pulled me between his legs.

“It’s better than good,” he murmured against the back of my head. As he pulled me to his chest, I came to a decision. I wasn’t going to tell him that I knew Baxter and Amanda. Alex-Ann was right. It would only complicate things, and Lord knows we didn’t need any more complications in our lives. With that settled, I relaxed back against him, breathed in the night air, and let the happiness fill me.

About that time, Garth came on the jukebox. “Ask Me How I Know” was one of his newer songs; a song I liked, but hadn’t really taken the time to listen to. That is, until Evan started singing it. With his arms wrapped tightly around me, he sang about a man so set in his ways, that even when he met the girl that changed it all, he was too proud to admit it and too scared to hold on, so he let her go. Even though it was depressing as all get out, I loved hearing Evan sing it.

When the song was over, he placed a gentle kiss on my neck, and whispered, “What a fucking idiot.”

Glancing back at him, I asked, “What would you do if you were that guy?”

“I am that guy, Country. Do you see me running?” My breath hitched in my throat. Oh, God, was this really happening?

Staring straight at him, I whispered, “I’m crazy about you.” He smiled. Then he tried to kiss me, but the angle was awkward, so I sat up, flipped around, and crawled back into his lap. Now, straddling his legs, I could feel every temptingly hard inch of him pressed against me. He watched me with a hungry expression on his face, and I thought, Jesus take the wheel, because I’m about to be a very bad driver. Then his lips were on mine and all I could focus on were the tiny beats of pleasure coursing through my body.

Evan made a noise in his throat, somewhere between a growl and a moan and I couldn’t stop myself from rocking against his erection. Jerking me in tighter, he deepened the kiss and we both groaned. If he wasn’t careful, this spring-loaded gun was going to come unsprung right in his lap.

We were seconds away from stripping each other naked, when the door flew open and Alex-Ann stepped out.

She took one look at us and shouted, “Ha! I knew you were riding that wild baloney!”

Evan buried his head in my neck and we both burst into laughter.

Margo’s was packed that night. College was back in session, which meant that summer was officially over. Evan took up residence at the end of the bar, but we were so slammed that I could barely talk to him. At some point, I looked up to find Chaz, Olivia, Bobby, and Tut circled around him.

It took me a minute to make it down to their end of the bar to take their order. That’s when Chaz informed us that he and Olivia needed to get back to New York.

“When are you leaving?” I heard Evan ask as I poured their beers.

“Tomorrow afternoon,” Chaz answered. My eyes brushed over Evan’s face as I lowered the beers to the bar top, and I knew what he was thinking. With Chaz and Olivia gone and Bobby and Tut in Virginia, it would just be the two of us...all alone...for who knows how long. His mouth slowly lifted into a wicked smile—a smile filled with dirty, sexy promises. A smile that made my insides quiver and my nipples stand at attention. Lord, what this man did to me.

“Is it just me or does it suddenly feel hot in here?” Olivia asked on a laugh.

“Shaw, this ain’t nothing,” Alex-Ann cut in. “You should have seen them outside earlier. They were seconds away from playing bury the boner.” My face flamed with embarrassment as everyone burst into laughter. Alex-Ann bolted to the other end of the bar before I could slap her with my bar towel.

I was standing at one of the tables gabbing with a few of my regulars when some of the college kids recognized Chaz and Evan. All of a sudden, things went a little crazy. I knew it was bound to happen, I just didn’t expect it right then. It was easy to forget they were famous, but super exciting to watch them in action. They didn’t just sign autographs, they actually talked to the kids and made them feel special. Watching Evan in his element only made me want him more. Evan the rock star was just another piece of Evan the man—a man I both respected and appreciated more than I ever thought possible.

The gang took off a few hours before closing. Bobby and Tut wanted to run through some things before they left. I was shocked when Evan pulled me across the bar and kissed me. In front of a crowd of people, he kissed me!

“See you at home,” he murmured.

All eyes were on me as I watched him walk away. After that, several of the girls set up residence at my end of the bar, and each time I was within talking distance, they bombarded me with questions. Some of them were downright personal.

It was well into the morning hours when I finally made it home. It was nights like this I wished I had a job with normal hours. However, the promise of Evan Walker overruled the fact that I was dead on my feet.

He did wait up for me. Well, kind of. I found him asleep on the downstairs sofa. I stood there for the longest time, just taking him in. Amanda James was a stupid woman, but I was not. Her loss was my gain.

With a smile on my face, I tiptoed to the hall closet, where I had an extra blanket stashed away. After covering Evan up, I went to bed.