Give and Receive - Bundle (Books 1-2): New Adult Romance (2 page)

She looked up. Catching Lena watching her.

She poked Reese. Spilling her drink a little.

“Reese. You are not fucking my bartender.”

She glared at Lena over her splattered drink. Continuing to smile at Dion.

Dion’s eyes practically humped Lena’s chest. Pushing up and out of her barely there, tight as hell, white tank top.

He gave her a deep, mournfully longing stare.

Which she was totally oblivious too. Of course.

“You dumped him. Didn’t you.”

Reese said this as a statement, not a question.

“Who, Dion? I did not dump him. We mutually decided to remain friends.”

Reese stared at Dion. Who continued staring at Lena.

Lena stared at her shiny new diamond bracelet.

She held it up to the light to see it sparkle, then showed Reese. They both stared at Lena.

It was
so
not mutual.

Reese scowled.

She never much liked it when someone got to the buffet table first.

And ate all the good shit.

Lena was such a greedy cow. Reese told her so.

Lena grabbed her hand, kissing it. Reese snatched it away.

She gave Lena’s arm a good pinch.

“
Ow!
What is the matter with you?”

“I’m referring to your boyfriend. Now then. As I stated. You dumped him, didn’t you?”

“So what if I did? He was terrible in bed. And…he had a crooked penis.”

“Which would explain the numerous orgasms you reported back to me on a regular basis.”

Reese arched her eyebrow.

“Yes…well. He had not one iota of talent in his whole body. How am I supposed to get down with that?”

“I suppose that’s why his art sells so much, and he’s worth millions?”

“Well, there’s no accounting for taste.”

Lena sulked. Tracing her glass with her fingertip.

“And I guess that’s why you purchased three of his pieces for our office, one for your house and one for your parents?”

“I was just being polite. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings. And…just shut up Reese. This is all your fault anyway.”

Of course it was Reese’s fault.

It was always her fault.

Even shit that wasn’t her fault...was still her fault.

“My fault? Do tell, my dear. This ought to be good.”

“You and this whole honesty thing. Tell the truth, blah, blah, blah. Be upfront, yada, yada, yada. Suggest
one
time he give head to Henry the vibrator. See where that gets you.”

She looked at Dion, who nodded understandingly.

“Say someone else’s name in bed
one time
and he’s all, what the fuck, Lena? And I’m all, dude…it was just one time take it down a thousand, ok? And then he’s all, we need to talk. Jeez. I swear. The sensitivity of this guy, am I right?”

Reese’s mind abruptly stopped wandering.

Rewind.

Someone else?

“What?”

“Um. What?”

Lena pretended not to hear her. Biting her nail.

“What you said.” She wasn’t letting her off the hook.

“What did I say?” Lena caught Reese’s eyes for a minute, before uneasily glancing away.

“Uh huh. Who were you fucking in your head, Lena?”

Lena signaled for Dion to refill her glass.

“Why must you torment me so? Can’t you see I am clearly in pain, needing love and support? You can be so self-centered sometimes, Reese. Honestly.”

Lena was on one of her rants.

The ones where Reese knew she was never going to get a straight answer from her.

The ones where it was wise never to become involved.

Reese exhaled impatiently. She took one last mouthful of her drink. Setting her glass down at the bar.

She could cause no more mayhem here.

Time to flee.

“I’m sorry. That was all horribly rude and insensitive of me. I wouldn’t want to cause you any further distress.”

She reached into her bag for a tip, waving goodbye to Dion.

“I certainly don’t want to hurt you any further. I’ll be leaving now.”

She smiled brightly, heading in the direction of the gorgeously sculpted bouncer.

Currently deep in conversation with one of the club dancers.

Important talk, she was sure.

“Reese.” Lena whined, sounding muffled.

Her head lying face down in her hands on the bar.

“Yes, poppet?” Reese turned, coming back.

Looking positively gleeful at the thought of being on the other side of the room.

Far away from Lena.

Well…as far as she could be in a club belonging to the aforementioned offender.

A girl could dream.

“What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I stay in a committed relationship?”

“Oh honey…but you are in a committed relationship.”

Reese eyed her compact mirror. Giving her hair a pat.

“Really?” Lena glanced up.

Confused, but a tad bit hopeful.

Reese bent down, kissing Lena’s forehead.

Grinning at her.

“Sure. You’ve been in love with and committed to one Lena Roman for years.”

Lena silently watched Reese walk away.

Stupid Reese.

She thought she was so smart.

What did she know, anyway?

Nothing. No. Thing. Did she know.

Plus, she had toilet paper stuck to her shoe.

She thought about calling her back to tell her.

Then figured Reese deserved it for the horrible, insensitive way she treated her.

Some friend.

Convincing herself her mood was the machinations of Reese’s evil, manipulative ways, she felt immensely better.

Of course it wasn’t her fault. How could it be?

She wondered why more people didn’t blame others for all their fuck ups.

It was certainly liberating.

Not to mention a great fucking morale booster.

She smiled. Downing the rest of her drink in one gulp.

Precisely the time she felt strong, muscular hands wrap around her waist from behind and squeeze.

She sputtered.

Immediately choking on her drink.

As it burned its way down the path of absolutely the wrong pipe, she started coughing.

In the midst of trying to breathe, she prayed for the huge metal kind of pipe to appear out of thin air.

Along with a large, meaty hand to beat him soundly with.

If she were very lucky, maybe it would crush his skull.

She gasped for air. Dion rushed to get some water.

She tried to stop coughing and slowly drank. Resisting the urge to grind her pointy stiletto on the foot of the one person who managed to amuse, antagonize and annoy her. Often at the same time.

She didn’t turn around.

What was the point?

He wasn’t going anywhere.

Her voice returned to a semblance of normal.

She finally spoke, sounding raspy.

“You have five seconds to appeal to my sense of kindness and decency. Convince me
not
to carve out your genitals and feed them to cannibals. Go.”

Tyler grinned down at her.

“Well for starters….you hate the sight of blood.”

“No, I said I hate the sight of
my
blood. Because then I would be bleeding. And that would make me sad. Seeing
you
bleed…that would make me happy.
And
glad. Not so sad.”

She added the last part for him.

Tyler loved rhyme time.

“Besides. My security team can take care of any…unfortunate events? Can we call it that? Yes? Awesome. So. Where was I? Unfortunate events, as the mob says? Thank you. Any who. Security team. Commencing with the carving. Your genitals. Unfortunate events. That might occur. To you. Sergeant Stupid.”

She stopped long enough to rub Dion’s arm soothingly. Assuring him she was alright.

He frowned murderously at Ty. Making a cutting motion with his hand. Slicing it across his neck.

The universal sign for I love you, truly, madly and deeply.

At least that’s how she was sure Ty took it.

He thought everyone was secretly a little in love with him.

Ty put his middle finger in his mouth.

Sucking it out slowly.

Dion looked totally offended at the obscenely erotic gesture.

Lena ignored them both, and continued.

“One word from me you’ll be singing soprano the rest of your very short life. So that would be a big, fat, next?”

Tyler grinned. Showing a perfect smile.

With rows of dazzling white teeth.

Even more amazing considering his lifestyle.

And the junk food he ate on a regular basis.

One of life’s great mysteries.

That, and why fat, balding European men wore Speedos on the beach.

“You love me. Additionally, do you know any cannibals?”

She felt her anger dissolving, but had to at least pretend not to let him off the hook.

“This remains to be seen, jackass. I’m sure your groupies have eaten more than their share of human flesh. Perhaps consensually, knowing you and the slutty male counterparts you call band mates. But you get my point. One more try.”

“Baby. You always say the sexiest things.”

He swiveled her bar stool around to face him, kissing her on the lips. His touch surprisingly gentle.

But then, Ty was always a contradiction in terms.

His lips were soft. Warm. A little squishy.

He’d been drinking. He always got extra touchy feely when he was sloshed.

Lena was not amused.

Her lady parts might have been. Slightly.

Maybe someone giggled inside.

Maybe it was her.

She wasn’t telling.

She refused to give the motherfucker any kind of satisfaction.

She gave a quick nod to Nikko, the head of security. He and the other bouncers retreated. She figured she’d better call them off. Before they yanked Ty by his throat.

And put a real hurting on him.

The things she did for her friends.

“None of what you just said is reason not to mutilate and maim you terribly. And, I don’t appreciate choking and coughing up a lung because you think it’s fun to scare the shit out of me.”

She scowled, pushing him away.

“Oh come now. Surely you don’t want me dead before you can experience all this?”

Ty moved her hand over his zipper.

She hesitated a fraction of a second over his semi-hard erection. Then pulled her hand away.

Jesus Christ.

Had he always been
that
large, and she just never noticed?

Lena blinked. Wisely ignoring her own question.

He laughed. Mercifully overlooking her obvious pause.

“Cut it out, Ty.”

He smirked. She, on the other hand was not pleased.

“I’m serious.”

“Ok, ok…I’ll behave.”

“And as impressed as I am with your somewhat drunken, always less than witty repartee, why are you here? Don’t you have autographs to sign, groupies to fuck, puppies to kiss? Possibly in that order?”

“Hey now. What’s this? Aren’t you glad to see your best friend in the whole wide world? A best friend, who might I remind you, took time off Retribution’s sold out tour to grace your little club with his presence?” 

Lena rolled her eyes.

“Here we go. And thank you for telling me the name of your band. I might not have known it otherwise.”

Oh, but Ty was just warming up. Of that she was sure.

“A best friend who forgives you constantly when your security team, on your order I might add, is relentlessly trying to kill him at the slightest provocation or whim of your violent, bloodthirsty little heart?”

So he
had
noticed.

This warmed her soul.

She smiled, showing lots of her own flashy white teeth.

Maybe a little wolfishly. But good mood restored.

“Well, alright. I’ll forgive you. And my club is fabulous, you silly boy.”

She gave an impish grin and giggled. Fascinated he could possibly think otherwise. To her, everything she did was fabulous.