Page 105 of Oblivion

Forrest’s sharp inhale resulted in a coughing fit that sounded satisfyingly painful. I rolled my eyes and took another swig of beer while he pulled himself together.

“Fuck, Lotus. Are we talking about the three girls we took home?”

“Yes, we fuckingare.Penny,” I clarified.

A mystified whistle cut through the air, then more gritty laughter. “Well, I’ll be damned. So you’re having a little fun on the side, huh?”

I shifted in my seat. Forrest’s offhand comment made me unjustifiably pissed. “I’m not.”

“Aaahhhhhh, I see how it is; you’re not boning her, but you fuckingwantto!”

“Christ, man.”

He whooped into the night despite walking home alone. “How long have you been on the task?”

“All up, a couple of weeks.” That included searching for her when she went missing.

“Bet you’re all blue-ballin’ and rosy cheeked, eh?”

“Day and night. She moved in with me.”

“Jesus, boy, you movefast.”

“It’s not like that, Forrest. It’s… She’s the job, ya know?”

He hummed, then cheered when a car drove past and tooted at him. I waited until he’d finished hollering into the night, filling the seconds by finishing off my beer and going to the fridge for another.

“So, why ask her to move in if she’s just the job?”

I snorted. “It’s a twenty-four-seven arrangement, and the original proposal was to move us both to Virginia Beach for a month or so.”

Forrest hummed under his breath. “Virginia Beach, though…”

I ran a hand through my hair. From the kitchen, I could see a faint glow coming from under Penny’s bedroom door. It was the timely reminder to keep my voice down. This girl had me tripped up and questioning decisions I normally wouldn’t have given a second thought about.

“I know, and offering my place was unplanned,” I admitted.

I twisted the lid off the beer bottle and tossed it in the trash, then made my way back to the couch.

“So, how’s things with the team?”

Forrest scoffed. “Ward is still a cockhead. How he wasn’t booted still perplexes the fuck out of me. He’s settled, but I get the feeling it’s only a matter of time before some other shit goes down. He ain’t right in the fucking head, Lote.”

“You’re telling me.”

Even months later, it still disgusted me that he got off scott free. What’s more, he didn’t give a fuck about the dishonor he’d brought our team.

“He got a little roughed-up not long after you left—wrong place at the wrong time after the bar closed. Found himself on the receiving end of a little in-house corporal punishment.”

I smirked in vindication. “You have anything to do with it?”

“Well, I mean, it would be rude to miss out on the fun, right? Besides, the fucker had it coming and deserved every one of those broken ribs and missing teeth.”

Satisfaction burned through me. Ward deserved everything he got. I just wished I’d been there to add my two-cents.

“Me and the boys have been wonderin’ when you’re gonna come visit us. Or are you too cool for school now, Lote?”

I chuckled quietly. “Goes two ways, bro. It’s not as if your sorry asses have anything better to do, right?”

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