Page 118 of Whips and Chains
Both Nyah and I stopped to stare at her.
And even I couldn’t help but get involved in the gossip. “Wait. You do, don’t you?”
Francine chuckled to herself. “There might be a new man in my life, yes.”
Nyah slammed her palm down on the table. “I knew it! Go, girl! Is he a silver fox? Ooh, is he a younger man? Tell us all, Francine!” Nyah glanced over at me. “Maybe she could come on our double date? Make it a triple?”
Francine waved us off. “You don’t want a middle-aged woman like me cramping your style. Go on. I’ve got to get back to work anyway.”
Nyah and I left her to it and emerged back out into the early morning sunshine, with the addition of Nyah’s jacket over her arm. “I bet Francine is super freaky between the sheets,” Nyah said as soon as we were out of earshot.
I made a face. “I don’t need that visual, thank you.”
Nyah laughed, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the way Francine hadn’t shamed me when we’d told her I was dating three men.
Something warm settled inside me. Something that reminded me not every middle-aged woman had the sharp, vile tongue of my foster mom.
And that some could just be happy for a girl who was finally finding herself with the help of three men.
I walked back to the tattoo shop with a lighter step and the hope maybe Levi and Whip were right.
That I could have my cake and eat it too.
That society wouldn’t make me choose between three men it felt impossible not to fall for.
27
VIOLET
Hours later, every barstool and seat at Psychos was taken, despite the fact it wasn’t party night. It was a mostly Slayers crowd, as it often was, their motorcycle jackets slung on the backs of chairs, their bikes all lined up in a neat row in the parking lot.
But Travis was in the mix as well, this time sitting at the far end of the bar, shooting me pointed looks whenever I turned in his direction.
Bliss eyed him. “Say the word and I’ll throw him out.”
But I didn’t want to cause a scene, and he wasn’t even doing anything, other than sitting there, reminding me he existed and he wanted money.
Didn’t mean he was going to get any. Hell, did he really think I would be working two jobs if I had any money to give? I wasn’t going to hit up my brother and ask him for cash for me, let alone for the foster brother I had no desire in having a relationship with. I knew how it would work. If I gave him a dollar, he’d just come back and ask for two. It was better to just ignore him entirely. He’d lose interest eventually when he realized I wasn’t the payday he was hoping for.
Anyway, he wasn’t going to be doing anything when Levi was sitting at the bar, catching my hip every time I moved past him and drawing me in for a kiss.
It was terribly unprofessional behavior, but I was powerless to stop it. I craved the trail of his fingers and kept finding reasons to be near him so I could feel it again.
Despite Travis being in the room, I was happy.
Levimade me happy.
His drink was empty, and I poured him another, pushing the beer across the bar top. He wrapped his hand around mine and leaned over, kissing me as a thank you.
Bliss sighed beside me. “You two are so cute.”
I smiled against Levi’s lips. I wasn’t sure how a biker who’d done six years in a prison would feel about being labelled cute, but if he objected, he didn’t say anything.
The bar door opened, letting in a gust of cool night air, and butterflies mixed with relief lit up my stomach at the sight of Whip in the doorway. On the other side of the front windows was X’s ice cream van.
Levi followed my line of sight and raised a hand in Whip’s direction.
Recognition lit up Whip’s features, and he quickly made his way through the crowd to Levi’s side. He gave me a quick smile and a, “Hey, sweetheart.” But I didn’t even get a chance to respond before his gaze was back on Levi. “Can I borrow you for a minute?”
