“I don’t trust you, Briggs. You work for Digger. I haven’t seen Sawyer since his man took her out for a date.” Vida let her voice go breathy.
“I didn’t have anything to do with that, it was Rick. I’d take good care of you.” Briggs’s hands came up to cup her ass. Vida paused.“You know you’re not allowed to touch,” Vida scolded him.
Briggs immediately removed his hands and she felt his cock grow thicker under her. She subtlety lifted her weight off him, using the beat of the music. Vida was sickened when she recognized that he had responded to the dominance in her voice.
She let her weight fall back down for the remaining minutes of the music. Briggs was grinding his teeth and Vida felt a spurt of satisfaction she couldn’t repress. He wanted her. She was determined to use whatever means she had to get Sawyer back. The music ended and Vida pretended reluctance at getting off his lap.
“Come on, meet me tonight. Let’s get into some trouble.” Briggs thought he was being cute with his pun while Vida only thought he was pathetic.
Vida shook her head. “Maybe next time, Briggs. I’ll have to think about it. Sawyer was my best friend and I miss her. I don’t want to find myself in her shoes.” Vida tried to appear frightened of him.
“Trouble, you’re too fine. I’ll take good care of you. I wouldn’t let Digger touch you; he listens to me,” he boasted, taking her arm in a hard grip.
“Really?” Pretending to think about it for a minute, she again shook her head. “Let me think about it, Briggs. I work next Friday. Will you come and see me dance?”
Briggs didn’t try to hide his growing anger and Vida could tell she had pushed far enough for the night. She didn’t try to pull her arm out of his grasp.
“Let me go,” Vida demanded, trying to put just the right amount of dominance into her voice.
“I’ll be here,” Briggs said, reluctantly letting her arm go.
Blowing him a kiss, Vida slipped out of the door and walked into a hard wall of flesh. She looked up in surprise at the furious eyes staring down at her. Colton thrust her robe into her hand before taking her arm and leading her from the room. She almost fell trying to keep up with his angry strides.
“I can’t leave, I have another customer.”
“You’re done for the night. I’m ready to leave. I told Henry to tell King to find a replacement for the end of your shift.” Taking her to the doorway of the dressing room, he set her arm free.
“Get changed,” he said stonily.
Vida wanted to leave, so she decided not to argue with him. She went into the dressing room and quickly changed into jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt. Grabbing her jacket, she headed back outside to a waiting Colton. He followed her outside into the crisp air, which felt wonderful to Vida after the stuffy confinement of the nightclub.
Handing her the helmet, Vida put it on and then climbed on behind Colton. Expecting to go back to his apartment, Vida was surprised when he pulled into a late night waffle house.
“I’m hungry; let’s get something to eat,” Colton said, getting off the bike.
Vida was never hungry after working at the club, but didn’t say anything, merely going in with him and ordering a coffee when the waitress came.
“Bring her a stack of pancakes and some bacon,” Colton ordered.
“But I’m not hungry,” Vida protested.
“You’ve lost a good five pounds since you’ve been living with me. Your clothes are falling off of you. You’re going to eat.” Colton motioned the curious waitress away with a gesture of his hand after placing his own order.
Vida’s lips tightened. She had been well aware of the weight she had lost, although she hadn’t thought anyone else had noticed. She wasn’t happy Colton was the one who’d paid that much attention. Hell, she thought he hadn’t even been aware of what color her hair was the way he constantly ignored her.
“Now that my classes are over, my weight will come back. I’ve been overworked.”
“Shaking your ass all over that stage and rubbing it against every man that has a hundred takes a lot of energy,” Colton said snidely.
Vida stiffened in her chair. “Yes, well, I don’t have much of a choice about that, do I?”
“You have a fucking choice; you just won’t make the right one. Shake this town off and leave. King will eventually get Sawyer back.”
Vida stubbornly shook her head. She couldn’t believe how he expected her to turn her back on Sawyer.
“I saw the game you were playing with Briggs. You’re going to get yourself in more trouble than you can handle, Vida.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Vida looked out the restaurant window, avoiding his eyes.
“Yes, you do,” Colton countered.
The waitress brought their food, setting it down in front of them. Vida took a bite of the warm, sticky pancakes and found herself starved, eating most of the plate without looking up. The waitress refilled her coffee and it was when she took a sip of the strong brew that she caught Colton’s amused gaze on her.
Blushing, she looked at her almost empty plate with a smile. “I guess I was hungrier than I thought.”
Laughing, Colton teased, “I see that, do you want me to order you another stack?” Vida couldn’t help staring at the change in his face that the laughter had brought.
He was extremely good looking; his long, dark hair was tousled from the wind, giving him an untamed appearance while the metal ball that pierced his sensual bottom lip caused Vida to lower her gaze to his mouth. Reverend had talked him into it last week. Vida had almost died laughing when Rev had also offered to pierce his cock and Colton had told him where to stick his needles.
Vida could understand why he didn’t have any trouble getting women in his bed. He was a woman’s fantasy with the sexual vibes emanating from him. In fact, several women in the restaurant were constantly looking at their table. Even the waitress kept making frequent trips back to their table, brushing against him unnecessarily every time she refilled his coffee cup.
“Are you finished?” Vida suddenly became aware the waitress and Colton were looking at her.
“Yes, thank you.” Vida turned to the waitress and asked, “Could I get a to-go box?” Both Colton and the waitress looked at her almost empty plate.
“Be right back.” The waitress left to go get the box. Colton didn’t say anything to her when the waitress returned, silently watching as she put the remains of her meal in the box then waited expectantly for her to finish the coffee.
“Ready?” Colton rose to his feet, going to the cash register to pay. Vida waited patiently by the door, watching as the waitress flirted with him now that Vida’s presence wasn’t stymieing her.
The two men sitting at a nearby table smiled at her, Vida turned her eyes away, not wanting to encourage their attention. It didn’t matter, within seconds the younger of the two got up from the table, finally brave enough to approach her.
“Me and my friend think we recognize you from the Purple Pussycat. Aren’t you Trouble?”
“Yes, she is, so you better move along before it finds you,” Colton said from behind the young man, who jumped when he heard the threatening voice behind him.
“Sorry, man, just curious.”
“Yeah, well curiosity got the cat killed.” The man practically ran back to his seat at Colton’s threat.
“That happen a lot?” Colton asked, glaring at the embarrassed man’s friend smirking from the table.
“Some,” Vida responded evasively.
“At school?” he probed.
“No, thank God.” Colton held the door open for her and Vida walked through the doorway, aware of several sets of eyes watching their departure.
She climbed on Colton’s bike after putting the helmet back on. He never wore a helmet, but he refused to let her ride without one. The restaurant was only a block away from the apartment; Vida wished it was a longer ride. She had grown to enjoy riding with Colton; he was a good driver and
handled the bike expertly.
Colton unlocked his apartment door, letting her go through first. Vida came to a dead stop seeing Tessa sprawled across the couch completely naked. Vida tried not to let her mouth hang open, but didn’t think she was successful. She didn’t know why it shocked her so much. After working at the strip club, nudity should have become familiar to her, yet she thought it was simply the surprise of finding Tessa with all her assets on display right on the very couch where she usually slept.
“What the fuck?” Vida felt Colton come to a stop behind her.
Tessa’s face was priceless. Vida didn’t think the woman appreciated that she was standing and gawking at her. The woman’s face turned a dark red as she jumped up from the couch, pulling on her clothes.
“What the hell is she doing here?” she screamed at Colton.
“Don’t worry why she’s here. You need to get out, now.” Colton came further into the room and closed the door behind him. Vida jumped at the sound of the slamming door.
“I need to take a shower,” Vida said, moving towards the bathroom.
“You need to get out. Colton and I need to talk.” Tessa tried to regain control now that her clothes were back on her body.
“You have something to talk to me about, talk to me tomorrow at the shop,” Colton told the woman. Vida almost felt sorry for Tessa. Pulling her gown and robe out of the hall closet, she tried to ignore their voices as she went into the bathroom. The loud yells were smothered with the water as she turned on the shower.
Vida took her time showering, washing her hair, shaving her legs and then combing and braiding her hair. Dreading going back into the living room, she was relieved to find it empty. Putting her to-go box in the refrigerator, she carried her sheets and blankets to the couch. Pausing, she hurriedly flipped over the cushions then laid out the sheet on the couch and neatly made it up for the night.
The front door opened just as she finished with the couch and Vida saw him hesitate after it had closed. When his eyes then brushed over her body in the blue toweling robe and neatly braided hair, Vida’s stomach clenched at the look in his eyes.
“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know she had a key. That won’t happen again.” Vida would take that bet. Tessa had been humiliated in front of Vida. No woman would risk that twice in a lifetime.
“It’s all right. I’m sure she was as embarrassed as I was,” Vida lied.
“That’s doubtful.” Vida saw the anger in his face, glad that it wasn’t directed towards her.
Running his hand through his hair, his frustrated sigh filled the silent room. “I’m going to bed. Need anything?” He paused before leaving, waiting for her reply.
“No thanks.” He gave a sharp nod at her reply.
Vida turned out the lights before lying down. She had actually slept better the last two weeks in his apartment than she had in a long time. Colton’s presence made her feel safer than she had felt in King’s guarded nightclub. Vida’s mind shied away from figuring out why, snuggling down into the warm blanket and letting the sound of the shower lull her to sleep.
Chapter 6
Vida woke with a start when Colton shook her shoulder.
“Shake that ass; we’re running late.” Vida sat up; looking out the window to see the sun was bright. Forgetting that she was only in her t-shirt, Vida jumped from the couch then, disoriented, she tripped over her backpack and fell against Colton before he could move out of her way. Putting her hands on his chest to regain her balance, Colton’s hands landed on her hips to steady her.
“You all right?” His voice sounded amused.
Vida nodded. “Sorry,” she mumbled, moving away towards the hall. She picked out clean clothes, went into the bathroom, and pulled on loose jeans and an oversized shirt. She hurriedly brushed out her hair before pulling it back.
She was in the kitchen eating her leftovers from Waffle House when Colton came into the kitchen. Giving her a sour look, he pulled out a box of cereal and made himself a bowl before joining her at the table.
Vida finished eating, licked off the last of the syrup from her lip and was rising from the table with her plate when Colton’s eyes caught hers. Vida froze, she had seen that look enough on the men’s faces in the front row to know exactly what it meant. Quickly averting her gaze, Vida washed her plate before putting it in the drainer to dry.
Gathering what she would need for the day, she put her recharged computer into her backpack while waiting for Colton to wash his bowl. Getting his keys, they went outside to the motorcycle. Vida ignored the tension-filled silence from Colton, grabbing his waist when he throttled the engine.
She had promises to keep and future plans that a man like Colton would derail. He obviously enjoyed a variety of women and Vida had no intentions of being just another piece of gum he chewed and discarded.
Sawyer, Vida and Callie had made promises to each other that they wouldn’t grow up to be like their mothers. Vida’s own mother would fall in love with any man who wanted her, making her false promises that were never kept. Each time Vida watched her mother sink further and further into depression, blaming herself because it never worked out.
Sawyer’s father had been killed in a car accident, devastating her mother. She had never sought solace in another’s arms. She had held her heart untouched by another until the day a vicious mugger had taken her life for twenty dollars in ones and some change.
Callie’s mother had been by far the worst. Even now, Vida’s mind shied away from thinking about the monster that had given birth to such a beautiful child, both in body and spirit. She had used men to her own advantage and had been a ruthless, money-grabbing whore.
Vida felt tears and had to swallow the lump in her throat at the thought of Callie and the promises the three had made each other. Their bubble gum promises had seemed so simple in their childhood, yet they remained unfulfilled. Sawyer was held at the mercy of an unknown man, Vida found herself in the same job that her mother had been unable to escape and Callie hadn’t even made it out of childhood alive; a victim of the very life that had created her. The wind dried the tears that Vida couldn’t prevent from falling.
Colton drove the bike to the side of the tattoo shop where Vida climbed off as soon as he stopped and then, without waiting for him, she rushed into the shop. The lobby was empty, but Tessa, hearing the bell, came into the room. Her expression showed she wasn’t any happier than she had been the night before.
Ignoring Vida, she turned her anger towards Colton. “You were supposed to be here an hour ago. I rescheduled your client for twelve. Since you’re so late, you can make the time up during your lunch hour.” Vida didn’t think Colton was going to be happy with Tessa’s bossy attitude.
Vida tried to ignore the tense situation as she sat behind the desk. She pulled out her computer and turned it on.
“Let’s not forget who the boss is here, Tessa. I called from the apartment and had already rescheduled the appointment. Call him back and ask which time he prefers.”
Tessa stiffened. “I ran this shop while you were in prison; it’s more mine than yours.”
“Don’t forget who is the one responsible for putting me in prison, Tessa. I bought this shop with my own money. Now that I’m out, I’ve told you that you need to move on. There are other shops in town who would be happy to give you a job.” His deadly calm voice had Vida glancing up from her computer. She had no doubt that Colton could be a mean son of a bitch.
“I’m not leaving!” she yelled.
Colton shrugged. “Then don’t, but you’re not going to boss me around and bitch at me every five seconds. If you stay, you’re just another employee to me.”
“Colton, I’m your wife.”
“Actually, in thirty days you will be my ex-wife,” Colton informed her.
“You filed the papers?” Vida could see the shock on Tessa’s face.
“I signed the papers the day after I was released from prison. I told you to take care of it, you didn’t
. I did.” Unremorsefully, he continued, “Now all we have left is a business relationship, one I no longer want, but I will leave that to you. Me and you, in any other way, does not exist. Do you fucking understand me, Tessa?”
Tessa’s pale face stared back at Colton mutely before storming from the room.
“I think you should tell her why I’m staying with you. It will calm her down,” Vida advised. “I really don’t want her blaming me for you wanting a divorce.”
“Tessa knows exactly who is responsible for our divorce,” Colton said grimly.
“Then why is she throwing all these dirty looks at me?” Vida asked in confusion.
“Because she thinks she owns me and doesn’t want to admit our divorce is her fault.” Colton crossed his arms over his chest, his t-shirt stretched, leaving the tats on his forearm visible. Vida’s eyes traced the lines of the various tats.
“And,” he continued, “she thinks I’m fucking you.”
“Her name is on several of your tats; a woman begins to think a man is hers when he brands himself with her name. I would appreciate it if you would tell her I’m not sleeping with you. It will definitely make my day go easier when I have to deal with her clients.” Vida was getting tired of Tessa’s snide remarks.
“It won’t matter; she won’t believe me.”
“Why?” Vida asked, looking down at her computer and refusing to gaze into his eyes.
“Because Tessa knows that I like to fuck. She won’t believe there is the slightest chance that you could live with me and not have me put my cock in your tight little pussy.” Colton’s voice became intimately suggestive.
Shocked, Vida looked up into his face. For the last two weeks he had completely ignored her presence, treating her with cold indifference, now he was talking to her in a way that was sexually explicit. Something didn’t add up and Vida was pretty sure she knew the answer to Colton’s big change.
“King wouldn’t let you get rid of me, would he?” Mischievous laughter erupted as Vida was unable to hold back. She could practically see the smoke coming out of his ears. Desperately trying to dampen down her amusement before he strangled her, Vida gathered her control. It wasn’t easy, but she finally succeeded.