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“Oh. I didn’t know you had a job. Where?” I can tell she’s surprised, either that or she thinks I’m lying, but she’s not surprised I shut her down about working at Morning Kick.
“I’m working at The Boulevard over in Tungsten Bay.”
“The casino?” Mom questions, disappointment heavy in her tone. I’m sure it’s not what she pictured her only daughter—only child now—doing when her and dad set up my college fund, but shit happens. “And what will you be doing at thiscasino?” This time she doesn’t even try to hide her disapproval. However, I’m too interested in Stu’s reaction to my mention of Tungsten Bay or maybe it was the casino. Whichever one, it sure has me intrigued.
Quickly turning back to Mom, I say, “I’m a croupier. And a damn good one too.”
“A croupier,” she repeats.
“Yes, Mom. Stop repeating everything I say. I’ve been working as one for the past three years.”
“I thought you were a legal secretary?”
“I am that too. Secretary by day, croupier by night,” I explain, as I pour myself another coffee. “Unfortunately, there isn’t a law firm here or casino, and I need a job and money if I want to find somewhere to live.”
“Find somewhere to live? Kennedy, you only just got back. What do you mean somewhere to live?”
I laugh. “Mom, I’m almost twenty-five years old and have lived in my own place for the past six years. I love you, but I need my own space, and so do you it seems.” I nod my head in Stu’s direction. Mom looks sad at the prospect of me moving out again having only just come home, but after a moment she seems to realize it’s probably for the best.
“Yes, of course,” she relents. “But you’re staying in Silverbell, right?”
“For now, yes,” I say. I know it’s not the exact answer she was looking for, but it’s all I’ve got at the moment. My phone buzzes in my hand and looking down I see it’s Owen again. Jeez, this guy doesn’t know how to take a hint. Not that he should need one. Fucking someone else and getting caught is usually enough of a clue that your girlfriend is going to leave you. If she’s got any respect for herself that is, and I have a fucking bucket load. The second clue, and the biggest of all, is don’t lay your hands on a woman aggressively unless she asks you to.
Distracting me from thoughts of Owen and his indiscretions, my mom asks about working as a croupier. I spend the next hour explaining it to her before she heads off to work and leaving me with Stu, who apparently has a day off.
I escape back to my room to make some calls before having a shower. Deciding I need some fresh air, but not wanting to be around a lot of people, I take a walk down to the bridge by the old mill.
As I approach, I can see the mill ahead. It looks a little older, aged like a fine wine, but still as I remember it. It was the perfect teen hook-up spot and somewhere Everly and I made out with guys more than once, but it’s the bridge that holds the best memories for me.
This bridge with its moss covered stone and flanked by several old River Birch is where as teens Everly and I spent hot summer days away from the tourist packed beach. Cooling off in the small stream and beneath the bridge out of the sun and watching as couples would disappear into the mill to make out, coming out sometime later straightening their clothes with smiles on their flushed faces.
I watched Asher go in there with a girl more times than I can count over the years, never the same one twice. The guy was a complete manwhore. We’d giggle about it, both of us thinking about when it would be our turn with boys, but as I got older, my feelings for Asher changed and watching him making out became torture.
I don’t know exactly when things changed, maybe when I was around fifteen and he was almost nineteen, but I do know it wasn’t one sided. I’d catch him watching me when he thought no one else was looking. I’d see because I’d be looking at him, checking out his bronzed skin, the perfect fucking V leading into his shorts and watching as the muscles in his forearms flexed as he moved.
As I step onto the bridge, I’m hit by a memory that changed everything between us forever.
“Just leave me alone, Asher.”I begin to jog toward the bridge wanting to get away from him. I can’t breathe around him. I can’t think. I can’t get the image out of my head.
“Hey, what the hell is this all about, Kenzie? Tell me.”
I spin around fast, almost crashing into him he’s so close. “Do you really need me to spell it out for you? And here I was thinking you were a smart guy. Pfft!” I let out a sigh as Ash’s hand reaches out toward me, and I step back, holding my hands up, not wanting him to touch me. “Don’t. Just go and let me be.”
“No, not until you tell me what’s going on. You can tell me anything, Kenzie. You know I’ll always look out for you. I care about you.”
“You care about me?” I say, repeating his words slow and deliberate and full of disbelief. “Like a sister, right. That’s how you care about me, isn’t it, Ash?”
He drops his head, sighing and placing his hands on his hips. When he looks back up, I see the conflict, but it won’t change anything. We’ve been over this a dozen times.
“Come on, Kenzie, that’s not fair. You know it’s not like that, but you know why nothing can ever happen between us.”
I step forward into his personal space but don’t touch him. I know my next words will light a fire under his ass and piss him off, but I can’t stop them.
“Let’s put that to the test, shall we? Do you want to know where I’ve been tonight, Ash?” I lean forward, a mere breath away from his ear and whisper, “I’ve been at Toby’s. Riding his—” The rest of my words die in my mouth as Ash snatches out and grabs my face, slamming his lips down on mine.
I don’t waste a damn second as his warm tongue demands entry, swiping along the seam of my mouth until I open for him. My hands grip at his hair, tugging and pulling him to me as he wraps his arms around my waist, then grinds his hips. I can’t contain the moan that slips free at the feel of his rock-hard cock, and needing to feel more, I hitch my leg up over his hip. His hand grips my thigh as he rolls his hips again.
I break the kiss as he squeezes my ass. “Ash,” I whisper into his mouth as he slips his hand beneath my dress, fingers tugging at the edge of my panties. My lips find his again just as he runs a finger through my wet folds, pausing to circle my clit, then dipping inside me.
