Page 14 of Texas Hold Em'
So I had to make sure I could still look out for myself.
I wouldn’t wait around for Jackson’s orders to come down the line. It was time to take matters into my own hands, starting with Caroline Bates.
All I needed was the right window of opportunity.
For now, I would work recon. I would let these men in. I wouldlaugh at their jokes, drink beer with them, and let them think I was just another girl with a tight ass and a flirty smile.
In my experience, it was always better to be underestimated, even by your alliances.
Back out on the porch, Grant fetched me another beer while Sam did dishes in the kitchen. He and Brody chatted me up while another joint was passed around and I did my best to give them all my attention. It wasn’t easy. I could feel eyes on me.
Between Grant and Brody, I caught a glimpse of Tex leaning on the porch railing, watching us.
No. Watching me.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up.
I used to think Dan was sexy. I liked his boyish charm and clean-cut good looks. I thought his dimples were cute and his haircut was sophisticated.
Tex was none of those things.
He stood with his shoulders pulled forward, like the weight of the world was balanced on his back. His jaw flexed as he watched me with the men, and I felt a primal energy rolling off him as he averted his gaze and looked down to pull a cigarette out of his pack, drop the pack back in his pocket, and light the cigarette. He took a drag and the ember lit up his features—the dark stubble along his jaw, the shadow of his sharp nose and long eyelashes, his hooded brow. He was the opposite of cute.
In fact, some women might pass him on the street dressed all in black and think he looked scary. Dangerous.
And he was. They all were.
But the way he looked at me, I liked it. I craved it. There was a reason I walked around his apartment in a T-shirt and little else in the mornings. I knew he watched me with those hawk-like eyes of his.
Maybe fucking a biker wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe it was the release I needed to keep a clear head in the middle of this bullshit with Bates.
And what was more, a man getting good sex was always easier to bend than a man who wasn’t.
CHAPTER 7
JAMESON
Igrabbed Carrie’s wrist and pulled her away from Chips and Toke.
“We’re leaving,” I said.
She stumbled after me across the porch before managing to wrestle her hand free as we passed through the patio doors. “Hands off, pal. What’s your deal?”
Pal? Seriously?
“My deal?” I asked sharply. “I’m not the one parading my ass around like a hooker trying to get attention from everyone with a cock.”
She blinked and pulled back as if I’d slapped her. “I beg your pardon?”
I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. “I’m going home. You’re coming with me. Let’s go.”
“Maybe I want to stay.”
This woman was going to be the death of me.
“Listen,” I growled. “Jackson let you hang around, but there were conditions. One of which is that you’re undermywatch. So, you know what you’re going to do from now on? You’re going to smile and nod and say ‘yes, sir’ when I tell you to do something. Is that clear?”
Carrie’s azure blue eyes narrowed. “You’re a jackass.”
