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“You should have let me know that’s what you wanted. You’ve never been quiet about your desires before,” she returned with a snort. “Instead, you secretly held it against me. I would have been there for you, baby. You just had to let me know you wanted that.” Reaching out her hand, she stroked my cheek and then let it run down my chest.
Why were we going around in circles like this? It was pointless to argue about something I didn’t care about.
Plucking her hand off my chest, I placed it back down at her side. “I’ve got Church. I gotta go.”
“That’s right, walk away whenever things get tough, Bishop!” she lobbed at my back, her voice quavering.
That particular barb cut me deep. I wasn’t the kind of man who walked away when times were tough. I stuck it through. I followed through. Hell, I’d gone to prison for my Club without so much as a thought for my own safety! I’d been offered countless deals by the DA to turn rat, and I didn’t. I wouldn’t. Because that wasn’t the kind of guy I was. If Cici didn’t know that about me by now, she didn’t know me at all and she never would.
“Good luck with German,” I tossed over my shoulder. “I’m sure you guys will be really happy together,” I taunted as the door swung closed behind me.
I could hear Cici screaming a string of profanities as I walked away, but the only two words I could make out were “bastard” and “liar”. Oh well. Let her think what she wanted. I was done with that crazy bitch anyways. German could have her.
Chapter 9
Evie
I made up my mind to splurge on a blueberry muffin and a large special dark, roasted coffee. While I was here at Arturo’s, I’d also decided to pick up an application. As busy as I was with my business, I desperately needed the extra cash, and a few waitressing shifts a week would help with that.
After talking with the manager and receiving an application, I ordered my food and went to pay. “You’re all set,” the young girl behind the counter informed me.
Confused, I cocked my head to the side. “But I haven’t paid yet.”
She smiled dreamily then. “That man in the leather jacket sitting in the corner paid for your order while you were talking with the manager. He said you could have whatever you wanted. He gave me an amazing tip, too!”
Glancing in the direction of her finger, I saw who she was talking about. It was Bishop. Embarrassingly, my pulse notched up several beats faster and I began to sweat a little.
The man was the epitome of cool. Lounging in the corner, his long legs were splayed out in front of him. He wore a leather jacket and cut that were fitted to his muscular frame, and jeans that hugged his body in such a way that it hinted at exactly what he was packing underneath. Essentially, sex on a stick and every bit as lickable as a lollipop.
I knew every woman in the room had one eye on him while pretending to pay attention to whatever conversation they were having. I couldn’t blame them. The man was flippin’ gorgeous. The fading bruises and beard stubble only added to his dangerous allure.
But the most mesmerizing part about the man, in my humble opinion, were those bright, aqua-colored eyes. They looked directly into my soul, holding me prisoner in my own body. Jesus! The man was Adonis personified. How was I going to be able to resist the temptation of allowing him to have his way with me? Since I doubted my own ability, I knew distance was the only reasonable answer to my predicament.
Those mesmerizing eyes were on me now, scanning me up and down with animalistic interest. When he smiled, he was so beautiful that my breath hitched in my chest. Yeah, I was totally screwed.
“So, is he, like, your brother or something?” the girl at the counter pried, not even hiding the fact that she was trolling for details.
I frowned. “He’s a friend,” I returned a bit more possessively than was necessary.
“Oh,” the disappointed teen lamented. Resting her elbow on the counter, she propped her head onto her open palm and continued to gawk openly at the leather-clad man.
Getting to his feet, Bishop’s long stride ate up the distance between us. “Hey beautiful,” he greeted, stroking my cheek as soon as he was close enough to touch me.
My God, this man did it for me. A simple compliment and the barest of caresses were enough to turn my insides to mush and a liquid heat to dampen my panties.
“Hey,” I returned, his smile so contagious that I was parroting it on my own face without even realizing it.
Bishop’s baby blues scanned me up and down. “I wanted to take you out for dinner, but since you wouldn’t get back to me, I had to get creative.”
Well, I’d give it to him. He’d been creative. However, I was curious how he knew I frequented this place at all.
My brow rose quizzically as I asked, “How did you know I’d be at Arturo’s?” I’d never even been here before.
Bishop put his hand on the small of my back and led me over to a booth in the corner where we could talk privately. It seemed he too was aware of all the prying eyes around us, although he didn’t pay them an iota of attention.
“I have my ways,” he teased illusively.
That wasn’t going to cut it for me. I needed a real answer. “I’m not into mysterious,” I warned as I took a seat and he gracefully slid into the one opposite me.
