Embracing Everly (7 page)

The fact that Theresa had come on stage, and I had barely been able to check her out, irritated me to no end. This was supposed to be a free night of booze and pussy, not babysitting duty. Tits and ass were all I saw flash before me suddenly as she worked her way around the pole directly in front of me, dangling what the good Lord gave her. She smiled as she hung upside down, legs firmly gripping the pole when she picked up that I had finally given her my attention. I shot her a wink not wanting to be rude and watched until her dance was over hoping this shithead didn’t ruin my plans for the night.

Another dancer stepped on stage and then I felt her hand on my shoulder a minute later. “I wasn’t sure you were coming.”

“I told you I would.” I caught douchebag on the move out of my peripheral vision, heading toward the bathroom with chick in tow. I gestured to the bathroom with a nod. “People fuck in there?”

Her eyes followed mine, and she shrugged with a devious grin. “Sure, all the time.” The tips of her fingers grazed my face. “Why? You asking handsome?”

I wished. I inhaled deeply regretting my next words. “I’ll be right back. Stay put.”

She followed instead of listening, her nails digging through my shirt as she attempted to stop me. “Baby, what’re you doing?”

Her body covered in only a thong and pasties slammed into my back as I flinched at that god-awful term of endearment. “Just checking something out.”

Once I counted to three hundred, ensuring enough time had passed, I opened the door. Three urinals and two stalls, and only one of them were being used. I took a piss and looked in the mirror to see the four feet facing the toilet under the stall door behind me.

“Oh, Charlie, God, Charlie fuck, baby,” she screamed out. No doubt in my mind what was going on in there. I washed my hands slowly, waiting for them to come out. A few more ‘fucks’, ‘oh, Gods’ were murmured, and then the sound of a zipper before they finally emerged.

Charlie boy stopped when he saw me. “Dude? You in here listening?”

I shrugged. “Just taking a piss man. Public bathroom and all.”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her forward. She had been cowering behind him since they noticed me. It was funny how all of a sudden she was playing shy but had not one problem getting it on in a strip club bathroom belting one out louder than a fucking opera singer. “Go, Faith.”

His hand was on the door when I couldn’t resist any longer. I hated this guy, and I wanted him far away from Angel. “Haven’t I seen you around before? Don’t you date that Everly chick? Man, she’s fucking nice. Did you two break up?”

I could see his muscle tense under his too tight of a shirt. I hit a cord. I loved screwing with dicks like him. “What did you just ask me?”

“That chick who sings at the Loving Cup? I thought you were dating her? I could be wrong. I mean those tits alone would keep me at home.” I grinned, as I tore off a paper towel from the machine, pretending to keep myself busy while drying my hands.

He had shoved this Faith chick out of the bathroom before he returned his angry focus to me. “How do you know Everly?”

I approached him. “Neighbors. I see things.” I smiled, as I towered over him. He was a decent size but didn’t have shit on me. Hell, I could be five inches shorter and could still snap his neck in a New York minute.

“Leave this alone, asshole. That girl was a quick fuck, and that’s it. You know how it is with us men. One sometimes just isn’t enough.” He took one step closer directly into my personal space. “And if you ever talk about my girl’s tits again, I’ll beat the shit out of you.”

Oh, God, how I loved a challenge. “Yeah, I hear you, bro. That’s why I don’t date, so I don’t feel like a fucking scumbag afterwards.” I patted his back with a sinister smile letting him know I could ruin his perfect little life with Everly in the blink of an eye. And I planned on it. I opened the door. “Catch you around, asshole.”

I didn’t even stay for Theresa, who had been waiting for me to come out practically begging for me to take her home. My thoughts were with Everly, and if she had any clue about his little side dish, hoping to God she used protection with a cheating bastard like him. Because, if I was ever lucky enough to get a chance with her; I was slipping between those perfect thighs with nothing between us. Because she was that kind of girl, the kind who you wanted to feel every part possible.

That poor girl was working her ass off to make money by singing in coffee shops to make her dream come true while her dick of a boyfriend was off wetting his whistle in a strip club. There had been plenty of times in my life when I had been a dick, but I would never be the cheater.

By the time I got out of there I knew she was done singing, so like the fool I was, I find myself knocking on her door just before midnight. It was easy to convince myself that it was a harmless visit after hearing a Guns and Roses song on the radio and a few cocktails taking away any inhibitions before getting home. And since we made friends, sort of, I blew off the fact that this was most likely a very bad idea.

I could hear her shuffling around inside. “Charlie, go away.”

I cleared my throat. “It’s me, Mick.”

The door opened a minute later, and I swore my heart dropped down to my toes. Something that had never, ever happened to me before and I had to catch my damn breath. She was in flannel pajama pants that had different types of dogs all over them, a very tight, revealing tank top, no trace of make-up, and her long blonde hair was piled up on top of her head with a pencil holding it all in place. All I could think of was yanking it out and letting all that blonde hair fall and what it would look like unkempt on my pillow. “Hey, I thought I’d stop and see if you wanted to meet for coffee tomorrow?” I didn’t even know what the fuck I was saying at this point. It was like being hit over the head with a baseball bat that suddenly woke my ass up to her beauty. I knew she was a knockout but seeing her like this, all natural, I couldn’t think of a better word than adorable—cute didn’t even cut it anymore. And Dawson’s warning that always kept me at bay suddenly didn’t mean shit to me, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.

She crossed her arms only enhancing her cup size, which was thankfully plentiful already, but now my eyes were trained downward, and it was a losing battle. “You stopped by now to ask me about tomorrow?” I wanted to tell her ‘hell no, I came here to be with you,’ but refrained.

I heard her, but forgot to answer. “Hellooo,” she said, snapping her fingers in my face. “My eyes are up here, Mick.”

Once I refocused at her pissed off glare, I asked, “What? What did you say?”

She narrowed her eyes were still studying me. “I guess I can have coffee if it’s not a date, but if you want to think of it as one, I can’t. I told you I have…”

“I know… a boyfriend,” I cut her off. “If you were my girl,” I leaned in just close enough, my hands on the doorframe and whispered, “you wouldn’t be sitting here at night all by your lonesome.

She swallowed and made a small attempt at clearing her throat. It was easy to see I made her nervous. And nervous was good because it meant she wanted it too. “Is that supposed to be some weird invitation?”

“No, I don’t date.” I pushed off and stuffed my hands into my pockets, so I didn’t reach out and do something I’d regret. “Just pointing out a fact. But, you don’t look like the cheating type, so you should probably just dump the dude before we get together for that one night neither of us would ever forget.”

She glanced over her shoulder as her phone rang somewhere in her apartment. “You are so cocky.” She smiled, and it was the first sincere one she’d given me, so I started to switch gears and invite myself in.

“How about…” A phone sounded in the background again.

“I need to take that. Coffee, say ten at the Loving Cup?” I was enthusiastic about the lack of response to my suggestion to dump the asshole, so I grinned. I shot her the O’Malley trait, the one I knew made her squirm and may have her dreaming of me later that night. She wouldn’t agree if she weren’t at least somewhat interested in seeing where this might lead.

“Oh, I’ll be there.” Bet your sweet ass I was not missing a chance to get to know her better. Because now Mick O’Malley had a mission and once my mind was set it was a done deal. And Everly Moore had become my personal mission.

“DADDY, WHERE THE
hell have you been? It’s been weeks since I’ve heard from you.” I was planning on only giving him until the end of the month before I reached out to my so-called godfather, Dawson. And his call couldn’t have come at a better time. I was just about ready to throw myself into the arms of a male slut if he kept up that damn grin of his. Crap that boy was good looking, and he knew it and he knew the effect it had on me.

“Hey there, Sunshine, I miss the hell out of you, too. How’s school?”

“It’s great. How’s Europe? Why haven’t you called?”

“Very European. It’s a nice change to see how the rest of the world lives, and I’ve been busy.”

“When will you be home?”

“Be back in a few weeks and then I’m straight on the job. I’ll call when I land on American soil. Now, enough of that, tell me what’s going on with you?”

Relief was the first feeling I had when his silly ring tone of the Everly Brothers boomed from my cell. He had a thing for them, and since my parents danced to them at their wedding, I was named after them as well. He sounded wonderful, happy and somewhat back to his old self again. He still hated Charlie even though he only met him once, but he hated all my boyfriends, so it didn’t bother me as I raved about him, trying to forget about Mick.

A pounding at the door had me ending my conversation. “Speak of the devil. I have to go, Dad.”

“What time is it there?”

“Late. I got a booty call I need to answer,” I teased him, knowing how much he hated it.

“Everly Jane Moore.”

“I’m kidding, Dad. But, Charlie is here, so I’ll talk to you when you get back.”

He sighed, and I could hear the regret of not being here. “You got it, kid. And Ev, remember what I told you, guys are all assholes and only want one thing from you.”

“Got it. Love you Daddy, bye.”

I could hear him laughing on the phone just before I hung up. I barely got the door open when Charlie fell into my arms. He stank of alcohol and cigarettes, which was odd since he didn’t smoke. “Babbbyyy…” he slurred, as I turned my head from the stench of his breath.

“Oh, my God, Charlie how did you get here? Did you drive like this?” I was trying my best to hold him up, but he was almost two hundred pounds of dead weight.

“Nope. Got a ride from a pledge.”

Mick’s door opened, and he narrowed his eyes at Charlie before he shot me a look of disproval.
Just what I needed
. “You need help?”

“Nope, we’re good.” I helped him to the couch where he flopped down and immediately passed out.

Mick was standing in my doorway, watching us. “Are you sure?”

Quickly, I rushed to the bathroom to grab the bucket from under the sink and placed it by the headrest. Not wanting him to be cold, I tugged the blanket off the recliner and draped it across his body, so he didn’t catch a chill. “He doesn’t deserve that, or you,” Mick grunted out right before pulling the door closed.

Leaning down to kiss his cheek I got a whiff of cheap perfume. I stood there and stared wondering for a few beats if he was cheating on me, but then his phone beeped. I reached into his pocket and pulled it out to see a text from Billy reminding them how much fun they had at the strip club. This news pissed me off because he never came to see me sing. He always went on and on about brotherhood and pledges and no time for my dreams and me. When four months ago he was all about anything and everything that had to do with me.

It was hard to sleep peacefully knowing he was out there drunk and throwing up. I had heard him dry heaving for over an hour before I shut my eyes. Served his ass right though. He should’ve gone home instead of here, making me worry all night.

But the alarm didn’t know any better, so it still rang loudly in my ear at eight, waking me. I had a morning lecture and then a meeting with Mick, which I had to admit I was looking forward to it until he tempted me last night. I felt so guilty meeting another guy, but I pushed it aside, unable to fight this odd curiosity I had when it came to him. I jotted down on a note where I’d be and left it for Charlie to find when he woke. If he woke up before I even got back. He was sleeping like the dead when I checked on him before taking off.

The lecture involving the three faces of social psychology although interesting, still couldn’t keep my attention from a certain panty-soaking smile. I dodged out early to get to the coffee shop before him to gather my wits. It was just before ten when I took a seat before realizing he was already sitting a table away, studying every move I made. “You’re early,” I pointed out, wishing to God he looked bad today, but no, not a chance in hell.

“So are you,” he said, with that cute little dimply grin. “Why, Miss Moore,” he stood from his chair and walked toward me, eyes unwavering. “Were you looking forward to our coffee date?”