Page 8 of Dancin' with Demons

Raylynn shivers as I stand again and stare down at her. Her eyes are wide, and her lips are parted a little, and all I want to do is fuckin’ kiss this woman— like fist my hands in her hair and take her until she is beggin’ me to fuck her right here in the parkin’ lot. Instead, I wink and turn toward the truck. As I get in, I glance over, and she’s standin’ there, lookin’ like a deer in the headlights. She jumps a little and blinks as I start the truck and I don’t back out of the space until she turns around and takes her fine ass back into the diner.

I meant every fuckin’ word, too— Raylynn is gonna see me again real fuckin’ soon.

Chapter 4

Raylynn

Usually, I stress about having a day off because that’s a day I’m not making money.

Thanks to Renegade’s charitable donation, though, I made eight hundred dollars tonight. So, I’ll be able to pay half of last month’s rent, so I’ll only owe six hundred more on that, and I can pay the two hundred dollar electric bill when they open on Monday and get that turned back on. If Saturday and Sunday are their usual pace, I’ll have another six hundred to at least catch the rent up to this month.

Seeing him tonight has my insides all messed up, though. I didn’t ever expect to see him again, but I’ve played the what-if game a thousand times in my head. None of my imaginary meetings were like tonight. I wanted to put my arms around him and run away at the same time. I honestly didn’t think he’d even remember me if I saw him again, but the way he looked at me tonight, I don’t even know what it means or what to do with it. I know he watched me the whole time he was in here because I could feel his eyes on me.

And every time I went to the table and got close enough, and when he leaned down to whisper in my ear before they left, his scent hit me like a truck. It was like being transported back to three years ago, lying in his bed. Just the smell of him makes me feel safe, like nothing in the world can hurt me as long as he’s that close. But every time I looked into his eyes tonight, I sensed his anger, too. And why wouldn’t he be pissed at me? I lied to him, ran, and never bothered to so much as tell him that I was okay. If I was him, I’d probably hate me.

“So,” Edna says, sliding onto the stool next to me where I’m counting my tips and filling out my paperwork before I head home, “you seemed familiar with Phoenix and his friends.”

“Phoenix?” I say, confused, my brows furrowing.

Edna chuckles. “Ah, I forget no one else calls them by their real names. I guess you know him as Catacomb.”

“Oh,” I say, heat spreading across my cheeks, “yeah, from before I moved here. I know, I mean, I knew, his friend. Renegade.”

Edna nods real slow, her eyes searching my face. “And what’s the story there?”

I swallow hard and glance at her before turning my attention back to my receipts, picking them up to put them in order by table. “What makes you think there’s a story?”

“Because your cheeks are so red it looks like magical blush appeared on them, honey.”

I glance at her out of the corner of my eye, and she’s resting her hand against her cheek with a smirk on her face. Sighing, I roll my eyes. “There’s no story. Renegade and Catacomb helped me a few years ago, and I left. Tonight’s the first time we’ve seen each other in three years.”

Edna hums, followed by a snicker. “Sweetie, that man watched you like a hawk tonight. So, you ain’t gotta tell me, but there is not only a story there, but it’s also nowhere near finished.”

After she gets up, I grumble to myself as I finish everything and put my paperwork in the little collection bag they take every night. Glancing at the clock as I grab my stuff, I sigh. It’s a little after one thirty in the morning, and I’m exhausted, confused, and just want to go snuggle my daughter and pretend like today hasn’t played hell on my emotions. Saying goodnight to Edna and Troy, I make my way through the kitchen to the side entrance and step out into the cool air. A shiver runs down my spine. I should’ve brought my hoodie with me for the walk home, but my head was just out of it this morning. Crossing my arms over my chest, I rub my hands up and down them to try and make the goosebumps go away as I head toward the front of the building to go home.

As I step onto the sidewalk, though, I freeze, and my breath catches in my throat.

“Told you that you’d be seein’ me again, little love,” Renegade says in a low tone, my eyes roaming over him from head to toe.

His hair is down, and he’s wearing the same jeans and long-sleeved shirt he was early. Leaning against a black pick-up, he keeps his eyes on me as I take a hesitant step forward, reaching up to tuck a loose hair behind my ear.

“What are you doing here, Renegade?”

“Makin’ sure you can’t fuckin’ disappear on me again,” he says as his eyes narrow a little.

“We don’t have anything to talk about,” I snap, trying like hell to fake the whole I don’t care attitude when what I really want is the exact opposite.

As I turn to walk down the street, Renegade comes stepping in front of me. “Like hell, woman. Three years ago, you fuckin’ kissed the hell out of me and then up and fuckin’ vanished.”

Taking a step back, I swallow hard as too many emotions bubble inside me. “It was one fucking kiss. That’s it. You and I both know it didn’t mean anything.”

His nostrils flare as he growls as he takes a step toward me. “Bullshit.”

Huffing, I roll my eyes again. “Whatever. You and I were together for three days. It’s not like we had some epic history that I walked out on, Renegade. I didn’t mean shit to you. I was some girl you saved and took pity on.” I know every word is a lie, and I’ve never felt that way, ever. But if I don’t get him to leave, I’m going to just want him more, and his life isn’t even here in Nags Head. It’s in Gatlinburg, five hours away, so it doesn’t matter what I still feel for him. We live in two completely different worlds.

I jump a little when he steps close and brings his hand up to cup the side of my face, his fingertips running through my hair some. Without being able to stop myself, my eyes close, and I lean into his touch. The warmth from his body increases, and my eyes open to him closing what little bit of distance is still between us. Bringing his other hand up, he cups the other side of my neck, just under my ear, and runs his thumb across my bottom lip.

“You and I both know it wasn’t like that in the least bit, little love,” he whispers. “I would’ve stood by you for however long you needed me to.”

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