Page 13 of Cocked Hammer

“Of course, I do.” She bent and kissed his forehead, leaving a bright red lip print on his skin. His head immediately fell back, and his cheeks blushed the brightest shade of red I’d ever seen on the kid.

“What brings you by, Sledge?” Tin Man finally called from the porch where he had been watching us from.

“Uncle Ira brought me an ol’ lady,” Xander answered, shocking all the adults present.

“No, I brought you—” had barely gotten out of my mouth before Lina interrupted me.

“I’ll be your girlfriend, but don’t you think we need to get to know one another a little more?”

“If you say so, but we don’t have girlfriends around here. We have ol’ ladies and wives. There’s nothing else unless they’re a club—”

“Yeah, old ladies and wives,” I quickly cut him off, my hand rubbing the back of my neck, and I glared at him.

“Anyway, what I was saying was I’ve brought you a gift myself.” Lina’s eyes didn’t leave Xander’s as her hand soared around her body, and she dropped the toy mouse into his hand.

“Finally!” He jumped in place and then into her arms. She caught him and twirled him around like how I typically did. “My snake was about to die,” he exaggerated his statement and winked at me again.

“Well, let’s go feed it before that happens,” Lina said with a hint of humor in her voice, holding her hand out for him to take her to his snake. His fingers curled around hers, and he jerked her forward, leading her into the house.

“Thought you liked the single life, brother,” Tin Man pointed out as I walked onto the porch and sat on the swing across from him.

“I do,” I admitted halfheartedly, and even I wasn’t convinced by my statement. Confusion slithered into my brain. In the beginning, I knew Lina was special, but I was just passing time with her, or so I thought. It was impossible to deny how pissed I initially was when Xander claimed her as his ol’ lady. I didn’t understand why, and honestly, I still didn’t completely.

“Yeah, so did I when I met Akeeva,” Tin Man brushed me off, lifting his cup to his mouth and swallowing.

“She’s just…” My voice trailed off, not having the answer to finish my statement.

“What? A friend?” He laughed once and shook his head in disapproval. “Sledgehammer, you literally have her lips on your face.”

“What in the fuck are you talking about?” My hands rubbed over my face in search of anything abnormal. Nothing felt out of place, and there wasn’t anything extra I could find.

“Her lipstick is on your cheek, brother.”

“Shit. I didn’t think about it.” My palm rubbed the area where Lina had kissed. “Is it off?”

He shrugged and smiled. After a second, he nodded. His smile widened, and his body shook with silent laughter.

“What the fuck is so funny, Tin Man?”

“Never thought I’d see the day when the notorious Sledgehammer’s pussy reign would end.”

“My reign hasn’t done shit,” I argued.

“Exactly. How many women have you fucked recently, Sledge?”

I didn’t answer at first. “I’ve gotten tons of ass.” I avoided giving the response he wanted.

“Let me dumb it down for you. You’ve only been with her since the day you met her. She’s not just a friend or a piece of ass. You like her, brother,” he stated in a matter-of-fact tone. He was right. I hadn’t so much as gotten a hand job or fingered a sweet ass since the day Lina and I met. I was pussy-whipped and hadn’t realized it. I guessed my brothers, on the other hand, had, at least Tin Man had.

“Damn.”

“Your skull is fucking thick.”

“Look who’s talking.” I scowled at him, tired of being the one on trial.

“Never said mine wasn’t. But at least I know when I love someone.”

“That’s…” The words wouldn’t come out of my mouth because I didn’t have them. I’d never loved a woman before, and until Tin Man made me see it, I still did not think I did. I was a fucking dumb ass. Of course, I did.

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