Page 12 of Tuck & Roll

Tuck laughed at the screwed-up face she’d made. “Still hate tequila?”

“Yes.” She shivered as she slid off her stool. “Thanks again, Race. I promise to do a good job for you.” She reached for her purse and slung it over her shoulder. She exited the building and had her car door open, ready to climb in. The feel of Race’s hand on her arm stopped her.

“Is that going to be a problem?” He tipped his head toward the door she just came out of. She didn’t pretend to not know what he was referring to.

“No. It’s not going to be a problem. I’ll be doing most of my work from home anyway.” She shrugged her shoulder as if it didn’t matter that she and Tuck had gotten into an argument. Maybe if she said it out loud enough times, she might start to believe it herself. Seeing Tuck with another woman had hurt. Seeing him with a woman and finding out he had no recollection of their time together killed. Killed with a capital “K.”

“Are you sure?” Race didn’t look like he believed her.

“Yes. Everything is fine. We’re old friends. We grew up living next door to each other. I guess he thinks that entitles him to pry into my personal life. I’m sorry if our bickering bothered you.” She stood with the open door between her and Race. His hands hung lazily over the door, but she wasn’t fooled. She wasn’t leaving here until he was satisfied with her answer.

She fought not to squirm under his attention. Finally, one side of his mouth hitched up and he dropped his arms from the door, taking a step back. He must have liked her response or maybe he was just letting it go for now.

“Later, Kylie.”

“Later, Race.”

She dropped into her car and backed out of her spot. At the edge of the parking lot, she glanced in her rearview mirror and saw Race still standing where he’d been.

She shook her head. What had she gotten herself into?

Two days after Race tasked Kylie with looking into Officer Miner, Tuck, Race and Jed showed up on her doorstep unannounced. The whole reason Race wanted the officer investigated was because the man appeared to be hellbent on harassing the club. He handed out tickets to the brothers and their families like his life depended on it.

Race and Jed got speeding tickets doing five MPH over the limit. Dagger got one for jaywalking. Lindsey, Trick’s old lady, got one for not using her turn signal while turning into her own driveway. And this morning, Bellamy, Race’s old lady, got one for a busted taillight that wasn’t busted this morning as she was heading off to work. Race had watched her drive away and they were both working fine then.

Jed and Race stood to the side of the door while Tuck knocked. He waited a beat or two and when she didn’t immediately answer the door, he knocked again. Still nothing. “Come on. Answer the damn door,” he mumbled. This time when he knocked, he pounded on the door, causing the knocker to bounce under the force. Her car was in the drive so he knew she was here.

“Jesus, Tuck. Why don’t you kick the door down?” Jed teased from behind him. He glared over his shoulder and raised his hand to knock again. Before his fist could make contact, the door was thrown open. His head jerked back at the sight before him. Kylie was standing in doorway with nothing but a towel wrapped around her and another twisted in a knot on top of her head. Water droplets dotted her smooth, creamy, naked shoulders.

“Why the hell are you beating my door down?” Kylie glared at him.

“What the fuck, Kylie? How about you get some clothes on before you open the door next time?” He completely ignored her question and asked a couple of his own. His eyes dropped to where one single droplet of water drifted from her collar bone, down her chest and disappeared between her tits.

“I looked through the peephole and saw it was you before I opened it.” One hand held her towel closed at her chest and the other landed with some attitude on her hip.

Tuck pushed his way inside, Race and a beaming Jed following behind him. “I’m not alone.”

“Oh.” She closed the door, her cheeks flushing a bright pink. “Have a seat while I get dressed.” She didn’t wait to see if they did as she suggested. She spun on her foot and disappeared down the hall.

He ran a hand over his face and sighed heavily. She always did this to him. He didn’t know how she did it, but she always tied him knots. It had been like this ever since they’d hit their teens. Part of him wanted to strangle her and the other part wanted to fuck her. It was always a toss-up as to which way it would land. Thank God he had always been able to keep a tight rein on his dick.

Noticing Jed adjusting himself in his jeans, he growled, “Get your hand off your dick, you asshole.”

Jed and Race both laughed at him. “I can’t help it. Did you not see the way her ass jiggled as she stomped off? Holy fuck.”

Tuck went to punch his friend in the face, but was stopped by Race’s hand on his chest. “Cool it. Do not get in a fight in Kylie’s house.”

He gave his friend one more narrow-eyed glance, before he stepped away and took a moment to take in Kylie’s living room. She had framed photographs everywhere. There was a picture of Kylie with her dad, mom and sister from when they were younger. Another one was of Kylie and her sister, her head thrown back, laughing at something Beth probably said. He’d forgotten how much he’d enjoyed hearing her laugh. She had a mesmerizing laugh, full bodied and lyrical. His eyes closed trying to remember the last time he’d heard it. Too damn long. He hated how they’d drifted apart. They’d been pretty damn close when they were younger, but as they’d grown older, they’d both gone on with their separate lives. He should have kept in touch.

He spotted another picture of her sister with who he was guessing were her husband and kids. Two blonde little girls that looked a lot like the Mason sisters. The next one was of Kylie graduating college. She looked so happy in her cap and gown, clutching her diploma to her chest. He started to turn away, but stopped, another picture capturing his attention. It was of him and her at his high school graduation party his parents had thrown for him. He had one arm slung around her shoulder, smiling at the camera and she had her arm wrapped around his waist, smile wide, her eyes focused on him. Before he could put much thought into the way she was looking at him, Kylie came back to the living room dressed in tight faded jeans and a navy t-shirt that read “What did one saggy boob say to the other? We’d better perk up or people will think we’re nuts!”

Tuck’s mouth kicked up at the sight. Race choked on his laughter while Jed threw his head back and laughed until he had tears in his eyes.

“I love your shirt. The one you had on the other day was good, but this one is hilarious. Where do you get them?” Jed asked.

“What?” Kylie glanced down at her shirt. “Oh. Yeah. My sister got this for me. She and her friends think it’s funny to buy me inappropriate shirts. Every time they’re out somewhere and find one that’s in poor taste, they buy it for me. I have a whole closet full of them. It’s getting ridiculous. I don’t have room for normal clothes anymore.”

“All right.” Race held up his hand, taking control of the conversation. “We’re not here to find out where Kylie gets her clothes. We’re here to see if you have anything for us regarding Officer Miner.”

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