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“That I am,” Screw said with a loud laugh. “But damn, that was fun. You ready to stop bullshitting me now?”
With a frustrated sigh, Thunder dragged his feet back over to the couch. After he’d plopped down and swallowed the rest of his beer, he glared at Screw. “That shit about Monty true?”
Nodding, Screw said, “Some of it. He wants your girl, but he won’t step on your toes.” When Thunder gave him a dark look, he added, “And I didn’t encourage the kid. Swear it.”
“I gotta head out in about fifteen minutes.” He stared up at the ceiling, stomach cramping as it had been off and on all day. “I don’t feel right about it.”
“What? Makenna?”
“Nah, working tonight. Something feels fucking off, and it’s been eating at me all damn day.”
“Ahh. Because of Makenna.”
Thunder didn’t say anything, just watched the ceiling fan spin above him. Screw hadn’t been asking, more stating the obvious.
“You like her.”
He turned his head to look at his brother. “I like her.”
“And?”
“And I left her bed in the middle of the night because I like her. Because no woman deserves my fucked-up experiences with relationships. The shit I saw growing up? The relationships I grew up around? Fuck, no one needs to benefit from those lessons. I saw her today at Copper’s, and I acted like I hadn’t spent my night buried inside her. I let it slip that I was working a bachelorette party tonight. She didn’t say a word, but I swear to fuck it was like I’d snuffed out a light inside her.”
“Whoa, okay, brother, this is a lot to unpack.” Screw picked some kind of glittery ball from a bowl on the coffee table and began tossing it in the air. High energy fit the guy to a tee. Always needing something to keep his hands busy. “Let’s start with the childhood shit.” He winked. “As any good therapist would.”
Thunder grunted. “I’ll give you the short version. Mom’s a whore. Dad’s a john. She’s remarried to my stepdad. They run a brothel. I grew up literally living in a small apartment at the back of the cat house. Saw all combinations of men and women fucking since the time I could walk. Seen normal shit, kinky shit, seriously fucked-up shit, basically women who’d do anything to get a dollar to change hands. The women there married and divorced like it was a sport. Men were abusive as fuck and high all the time. Alcohol started flowing the moment they opened their eyes in the morning. For some, it was the only way they could make it through the day. It wasn’t a classy place. I don’t have the first fucking clue how to make a woman happy beyond making her come. There you go, Dr. Freud. Not exactly a tough case to crack. Fucked-up childhood leads to an adult with more issues than he can count.”
“Shit, brother, I knew a little bit of that, but…well, shit.” Screw caught the ball then leaned forward, bracing his forearms on his knees. He stared straight ahead at the blank TV, perhaps lost in his own memories. Many unpleasant, if what Thunder had heard was accurate. “You know, you didn’t grow up too far off from how I did.”
“I’ve heard that.” He and Screw were close, brothers, but they didn’t typically sit around sharing their tragic pasts and crying in each other’s beers. Suddenly, he found himself dying to know what Screw’s life had been like prior to prospecting with the Handlers.
“My mom stripped, but not at reputable places like you have.”
Thunder grunted. He’d worked his fair share of seedy establishments.
“Most of my life, she headlined at this shithole titty bar notorious at my high school for letting teens sneak in.”
“Oh, fuck, brother. That must have made for one shitty adolescent experience.”
“Yeah, you can imagine how much fun that shit was. Anyway, any ‘relationship’ she had,” he continued, air-quoting relationship, “was off the charts dysfunctional. Telling you, brother, I’ve seen some shit as well. You think I had any idea what the hell I was doing when I hooked up with Jazz and Gumby?” He made a noise of disbelief. “I still worry I’m gonna fuck it all up on a daily basis.”
“Pretty sure those two won’t let you fuck it up. They love your stupid ass.”
Screw shot him a lascivious grin. “They sure do. Gumby is particularly fond of my ass.”
Barking a laugh, Thunder held up his hands. “Not touching that one, brother.”
“You better not touch it. Both of ’em’ll have something to say if you do.” As Thunder rolled his eyes, Screw said, “Man, I’m on a roll.” He gave himself a high five like the dork he was. “All right, I’m gonna get serious on you for a minute here, so man up and take it, ’kay?”
