Page 49 of Inglorious
“Sounds like the type of guy you want in your corner,” I acknowledged.
“Of course, Magic’s a fuckin’ lunatic that put bombs in half of Rapid City during the war,” Scythe added, and chuckled.
“Magic did what?”
“I’ll grab you tonight. We’ll go eat and have a chat. I’ll catch you up on the shit you’re unaware of,” Scythe said.
“Make it tomorrow. I don’t know how long this shit will take,” I replied.
“That’s a date.”
“As friends,” I stated, and Scythe’s eyes met mine and a smile crossed his lips.
“I’d never say no to another taste, Nanci, but you set the rules,” Scythe replied.
“Thanks for the offer, but that night… it was a one-off.”
“Not a problem Nanci, I was honoured you chose me,” Scythe said, and a blush hit me. That night, reeling from Inglorious’s rejection, I’d turned to Scythe and given him my virginity. And oh boy, he’d left a lasting memory on me. No man had ever matched his memory.
My thoughts must have been written across my face because Scythe laughed and leaned in close. “Nice to know I’m the standard your lovers had to beat,” he murmured, and I blushed deeper.
Eyes burned deep into my back. Uneasily, I turned around.
Inglorious was glaring at me.
Vortex walked past with Party over his shoulder, and Inglorious stormed away after him. What the hell had that been about?
Chapter Eleven.
Inglorious
Iswore something was going on between Nanci and Scythe. Worse? I guessed something had happened because an unnatural ease existed between them. Plus, Scythe’s eyes heated whenever he saw Nanci. I bet everything I had that they’d fucked each other. Nanci wasn’t one for being openly affectionate, especially around people not of my MC. Yet, she let Scythe touch her when he wanted.
I barely held on to my temper as I drove back. The way Scythe looked at Nanci kept replaying in my head, and my hands squeezed the steering wheel. Nothing was stopping Scythe and Nanci from being together, but I fuckin’ hated that idea. A possessiveness rose in me, totally aimed at Nanci. That in itself was shocking. I’d only ever once considered Nanci as a sexual partner, and that had been the night she threw herself at me.
AA was teaching me not to lie to myself, and I couldn’t. I was attracted to Nanci, but I also understood she was too young. And Psych would have lynched me if I had made a move on her. Refusing Nanci’s advances had been harder than anything I’dever known… before the war. Now, I’d welcome a genuine smile from her. Nanci had given up her life to come here and resolve the issues I’d avoided. That fact didn’t make me happy. Instead, I felt awful, and I suspected Nanci realised that.
My shame had been pretty public. All the allied MCs undoubtedly knew about my boozing, and that caused even more embarrassment for me. I realised they were all waiting for me to break, to drown my sorrows again, but I refused to. My strength had returned, and I would not fail. Memories were to be cherished. The dark war ones had inhabited my mind for too long. Now it was the turn of those I’d loved.
Recollections such as the time Psych had swapped sugar for salt and Trip had literally tumbled down the stairs and landed on his feet with a bow. Or the laughter and good-natured fights at cookouts. Those were memories I wanted to recall. Not how they died. Janet had told me I had to accept their passing, but asked why I needed to remember them in such detail? Janet had wondered if there had been favourable memories and, if so, why wasn’t I focussing on them?
Those questions had made me pause and consider what Janet was saying. I’d latched onto the deaths and allowed that to dictate how I honoured my brothers, and I’d failed them once more. Everyone commented on how stubborn I’d been in the past; now I was reaching for that trait and holding on tight. No. More. Drink.
Nanci
I stared at the guy in front of me in disbelief. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
Raymond offered me a sickly smile. “You left Vegas, babe, without a word. What did you think I’d do?”
I glared at him in shock. “Raymond, we haven’t been together for over a year. Why on earth would I let you know I was leaving?”
“Bah. We were on a time-out,” Raymond responded, waving an airy hand.
“You mean a break? You fucked several whores behind my back. One of whom was a show dancer for me!” I snarled.
Raymond didn’t even flinch. “Babe, that’s just a man sowing his wild oats. You and I had something special.”
Surely, Raymond couldn’t be serious? He’d screwed at least four women unbeknownst to me, and those were the ones I knew about. I studied him carefully, wondering what I’d seen in him. Raymond was good-looking, but it was a false type of handsomeness. His skin was fake tanned, his teeth whitened by a dentist, his eyes sparkled thanks to eye drops, and his hair had subtle highlights.
