Page 14 of Queen of Spades

“Well, I’m not just talking shit to try to make you jealous.”

“Damn, she had a guy over last night, too, when I got home. I’ll talk to her.” Maybe threaten to cut her if she does something that ridiculous again. I know she’s going through some stuff, and I’ve tried to be supportive, but flirting with Grady is one thing I won’t stand for.

I don’t exactly have a lot of friends, but Lyra is one of the few I’ve let in because I’m pretty sure she can take care of herself.

“I didn’t want to upset you, but I’m also not trying to have problems arise because I kept shit to myself.” Grady nuzzles his cheek to mine. “You understand what I’m saying?”

“Yeah,” I agree. “Thanks for telling me.”

“Always, Anni Girl. You know how I feel about you,” he whispers. His lips meet mine as he crawls over my body, pushing me into the mattress as he kisses the fuck out of me. His half-hard cock grinds against my core, making me moan as I arch toward him.

My alarm goes off, breaking the moment.

“Fuck me. Is it three already?” he asks, stretching a hand over to grab my phone. “Aww, hell. I’m supposed to be in at four-thirty for a security meeting.”

I whimper as he crawls off of me, and his feet hit the floor.

“Sorry, baby. I’ve got to run home and take a shower before I head to work. It probably wouldn’t hurt to change my clothes too.”

My arms fall against the mattress as I pout. Using my forearms, I push myself up.

“How about we have quick shower sex before you leave?” My gaze rakes down his lithely muscled form as he smirks.

His chest and torso are covered in dark tattoos that make my nipples tighten. Don’t even get me started on the gauges in his ears or his nipple piercings.

Then there’s the fact that he’s had twin sparrow tattoos since we met.

At first, it really freaked me out.

I was extremely paranoid that it was some kind of sign he knew who I was, but that quickly faded when I realized sparrows aren’t exactly outside the norm with the military Americana tattoo aesthetic.

And I can’t lie—it does weird things for me. It very much feels like having my name tattooed on both sides of his neck.

Grady smirks, quirking a bushy eyebrow.

I whine, tossing myself back toward the pillows. He’s about to have a full-blown omega tantrum on his hands, which is a bad sign, because my heat is still three weeks away.

“Alright, darlin’, shower sex, it is,” he growls, prowling closer.

A bright smile crosses my face.

I really like it when he spoils me rotten.

For the second day in a row, Jimmy calls me in early. It might be a good thing because Lyra is passed out cold on the couch when I leave for work. I’m not sure exactly what I’ll say when the time comes, but I do feel like I have no choice but to address the Grady thing.

I’d also really like it if she could only have sex in her bedroom and maybe clean up after herself.

It’s entirely possible that I’m spoiled from never having shared space growing up. She’s my first roommate, so I’ve tried to be accommodating, and I really do care about her well-being. I think the best thing I can do is address it and move on. Not to make a huge deal about it, but I need to be firm.

It bothers me the entire drive to work. I do my best to put it out of my mind as I pull into the parking garage, park, and make my way to the club.

I head to the back of the building where the VIP entrance is for Spades. That crap with the asshole from last night is still a little too fresh for me to take the alley to the front.

I hit the buzzer by the door and wait for someone to let me in. It takes so long that I start to contemplate walking around to the front. This isn’t what I would call VIP service.

Jimmy pops out the door, letting it close behind him.

I frown, trying to figure out if the security cameras caught that little altercation last night.

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