Zane
I don’t know what it is about Hattie, but damn she is under my skin. I go to bed thinking of her and when I wake, the first thing I think about is seeing her smile. I don’t get caught up in females. I am a get my rocks off and get gone kind of guy. Hell, I don’t even bring women home with me. So, having Hattie on my brain so damn much has me ten kinds of fucked up in the head. I haven’t cared to be friends with a woman since I met my ex-wife, Lanie. And well, that shit didn’t pan out too well. She fucked around on me a lot. The bitch was even kind enough to empty out my savings before she screwed me ten ways to Sunday. She called me a loser and said I was headed nowhere because I turned down a recording contract. I had one song get on the radio and I hated the attention that came with it. The whole music scene wasn’t for me. Would I have liked to signed that contract? Maybe. I didn’t really have a choice though. Lucas was off doing his rodeo shit and our little brother, Mason needed a role model. Our old man had bailed, and the kid was in middle school. Someone had to be responsible for him. It meant no record contract. I wasn’t going to leave Mason to fend for himself and had Lucas been tasked with taking care of him, he wouldn’t be in college right now, earning his degree. Lanie wanted the rock n’ roll lifestyle and I didn’t. All I wanted was to own a bar and play some music. After she cleaned me out, my dream was dead in the water and I was stuck being a singing bartender who was raising his little brother.
Since she burned me, I swore I would never be that guy again. The one who falls head over heels. Once the divorce was final and she was gone, Lucas came home with an injury. He thought he would never ride again and took it out on me. He told me he had fucked Lanie. Told me what a whore I had been married to.
No one knows the hell Lanie put me through and I prefer to keep it that way. I don’t need pity. I won’t see Lucas find happiness with Hattie. He thinks he got one over on me with Lanie but he’s wrong.
I see how Kiesha looks at him. He has a thing for her too even though he won’t admit it. He’s only using Hattie to make her jealous because she told him no when he asked her out.
Working at a local bar gives me an advantage now. I have learned how to read people and know who is down for a little fun and who will grow attached after one night. Hell, one night rarely ever happens. It’s more like a few hours. Get laid and get out, that has been my plan. That is until I laid eyes on Hattie.
The day she wisped into town, Zelda had been hounding me to let her give me a reading. Telling me she seen that my love life was about to take an interesting turn. She said I was going to meet the love of my life that day. I thought she was full of shit, but then Hattie walked in and I swear I had never felt such a pull to a woman before. It was more than lust. I have felt lust at first sight plenty of times to know it and damn that feeling was so much more. It was intense and before I knew it, I was telling her that we were fated to meet. She looked at me as if I was an Ogre and shot me down quick. I dealt with the blow to my ego the best way I know how…random hookup.
When I came out of the bathroom, Sienna the other bartender at Rowdy’s that night chewed my ass out good. If it had been anyone else telling me otherwise, I would have told her where to go and how to get there, but I respect Sienna. And I like her old man, he has done a few tats for me in the past.
I have been trying to overcome my manwhore ways since Hattie breezed into town. I care about what she thinks of me. I want to get to know her. Fuck, I even told her I wanted to be friends. She basically laughed in my face, but I am determined to prove to her that I can get to know her. I can be friends with a woman I am attracted to—no big deal at all. Other than the fact that I swear I am falling hard for her and she wants nothing to do with me. However, I know she is attracted to me. I can feel the sexual tension that passes between us each time we are near one another.
This is uncharted territory for me, but I want to try, for Hattie. I am half-tempted to go for a swim today, but I don’t want to push too hard. I am not used to a woman turning me down. Hell, I can’t even get her to drink my coffee. I have even resorted to getting Kiesha, my brother’s secret fuck buddy to help me with Hattie. I must really be getting desperate.
As I am getting into my truck, I spot Lucas coming up the trail by the swimming area. I know he has been after Hattie too. Somehow, he has her fooled, but he doesn’t stand a chance in hell. He’s not good enough for my girl. Damn. My girl. Where in the hell did that come from? She has me sweating her bad. This can’t be good. Maybe I just need to get laid. It’s been weeks, but when Hattie told me I had probably never been friends with a woman, that resonated with me. I do love a challenge and I know what Hattie needs. She needs a good ol’ country boy like me that isn’t afraid to hurt her damn feelings all the time. I don’t care to tell her what’s really on my mind. Even if it is something she doesn’t want to hear.