Melissa's Mates

Blissful Bets 3

JENNIFER SALAIZ

Copyright © 2010

Chapter 1

The soft caress trailing down Melissa’s body, accompanied by the loud bass pumping through the Martini Bar, left her in an erotic trance. Although she and the remaining girls continued to play Bets, the last four weekends were a complete bust. But now, right in this moment, she knew her bet was definitely in the bag. Thank God! She needed this.

Opening her eyes, she connected with light brown eyes staring back at her. The tall cowboy’s wide body moved closer into her curves while his fingers traveled to the junction of her neck. Currents of need tightened her skin as he lingered over the spaghetti strap of her top.

“How ‘bout you and I get out of here? What do you think, darlin’?”

“I think that’s a marvelous idea.” She slowly moved her hand up his chest, feeling the muscles flex. “I’ll be right back. Let me tell my friends.”

Disconnecting from Chris’ warmth, Melissa managed to flash him a smile as she headed to her friends’ regular booth. As she squeezed through the crowded bodies, she saw Natalie stand.

“You outtie?”

Winking at her new friend, she grabbed her purse. “You know it. Tell Jules for me, will ya?”

“Absolutely. Have fun tonight. I’m about to head out, myself.”

Natalie stepped closer, yelling over the loud pop music playing in the background. “You see that guy over there by the bar?”

Turning, Melissa caught a glimpse of a man in dark denim jeans with a white, long sleeve, button-up shirt. She could barely see the tiny black stripes stretching across the material. “Yeah, I see him. He your bet?”

“Sure is. I’ll have this wrapped up in five minutes. He’s been eyeing me all night. I thought I’d play hard to get.” Natalie laughed and reached for her beer, finishing it off. “Be careful. You need anything, call. Hell, Ev said Stephen was headed out here, but that was a good half hour ago. He should have been here by now. It’s too bad she’s sick.”

“Yeah, tell me about it. Well, I’m out then. It seems like every time I have a bet, he finds something wrong with them. I’m not taking the chance tonight. I need this!”

A laugh came from her friend. She knew Natalie understood what she meant. Stephen had put an end to a lot of their bets in the last few weeks. “I get you, girlie. Go have fun.” Melissa watched Natalie’s grey eyes dart in the other direction. “I’ll tell Jules on my way out. She’s over by the pool tables.”

Noticing the man dressed in a suit, she had no doubt that’s who Julie was targeting. “Sounds great. You be careful, too. Call me tomorrow.” Melissa gave her a serious look. Natalie might have started out as Evelyn’s friend, but over the past few weeks, they’d grown close. They all had one thing in common—past problems with men. Natalie wasn’t an exception.

“You bet.”

Both women laughed at the bad pun and took off in different directions. Flipping her dark auburn hair over her shoulder, Melissa looked up at Chris.

“You ready? I can’t wait to get out of here.”

Bright, white teeth flashed as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and led her to the exit. Warm air brushed against her face as they entered the packed parking lot. The humidity filled her senses, making it hard to breath. For being so close to the water, there was usually a constant breeze, but not tonight.

“So, your car or mine?” Melissa faced him as they came to a stop. She noticed how he looked around the parking lot as if expecting to see someone he knew.

He took a few seconds before answering her. “Maybe we should take yours. I mean, with you being a girl and all, you’d probably feel more comfortable that way, right?”

Red flags shot off in her head, but she could possibly be overreacting. Trusting any man put a metallic taste in her mouth, almost as if she was biting on tinfoil. No way. For once, she pushed away her suspiciousness.

“Okay, we can take my car. No problem. Just follow me.” The red, jacked-up truck couldn’t be missed. It sat higher than any other vehicle in the parking lot. Proudly, she walked toward it.

“This is yours? Holy shit, darlin’. Can you even get in that thing? How many curbs have you clipped? Women aren’t meant to drive trucks. Men are.”

Melissa felt her eyes roll back as she slowly looked toward him. All right. Not a good start. If there was one thing she didn’t like it was a man who considered women incapable and helpless, not to mention cocky. She couldn’t argue women had trouble doing
some
things the opposite sex could, but driving a truck? Come on. Quickly, she weighed her options. Could she go another weekend without a bet? She wanted to scream out in frustration. She needed contact, skin on skin preferably. Damn it! If she could just tape his mouth shut, everything would be great.

“I can get in my truck just fine, thank you.” The attitude was clearly laced in her words. She couldn’t help it. There was something about him that she was starting not to like.

“Oh, come now. Don’t get upset. There’s nothing wrong with you having a truck. What I was getting at was how you need to be with a man who can drive the truck for you. You’d look cute sitting on the passenger side.” He paused. “Or in the middle, closer to me.”

Anger flared. She could argue fifty ways with how she’d look cuter behind the wheel, alone, but as he pulled her into his body, the words disappeared. Softness pressed against her lips, and Melissa felt lust roar through her.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pushed her breasts into his chest. Before she could catch her breath, he was lifting and pressing her back into the driver’s side door. Hungrily, she massaged her tongue into his. He tasted like beer. There was something about the flavor that turned her on even more.

“Fuck, I want you. Let’s go before I fuck you right here in your truck.”

“Over my dead body.” Melissa covered her hand across her lips.

“Excuse me?” Chris’ head reared back as if he’d been slapped.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like it sounded. What I meant was—”

“Was what?” He cut her off, narrowing his eyes.

“Put me down.” Melissa wiggled, but he clamped his fingers tighter onto the jeans, covering her thighs.

“No. Explain. Am I so repulsive that you don’t want any memories of fucking me in your truck? Is that it?”

An internal groan echoed through her head. She so did not feel like going into her problem right now. “Repulsive? No, not even close. I would just like to keep my truck clean of sexual encounters.”

“So now I’m just an encounter?”

Growing aggravated, Melissa wiggled a bit more. “Listen, I just met you, and I’m not looking for a relationship, especially one that starts out with me meeting the person at a bar, if you know what I mean. Now, let me down. I’ve changed my mind.”

“You’ve changed your mind? I don’t understand. All I did was ask you some questions.”

“And I’ve answered them. Now let me down.”

“No. Maybe I don’t want to. Maybe I want to ask you a few more.”

This guy had no clue what he was getting himself into. She’d had a hell of a time keeping her mouth closed this long. Could she bite her tongue for the next five to ten minutes it was going to take to ditch this guy? The longer he kept her pinned against the truck, the more she felt trapped, and for Melissa, that was the wrong thing to do.

“I’m done. I want to go home. Let me down or else I’ll make you.”

Chris’s loud laugh echoed throughout the parking lot. The sound, so appealing before, now grated her ears.

“You’re going to make me. That’s so cute. Really. I like that. How about we stop talking and kiss again. That felt good, didn’t it?”

Melissa turned her face and pushed against his chest as he tried to put his lips against hers. Great. This was just what she needed. How in the hell did she manage to get herself into these messes?

“Hey Mel, you okay?”

Stephen’s voice had Chris turning his head around, but he quickly turned back to her. “Who’s this guy? Your boyfriend?” He nodded in Stephen’s direction.

“My friend. Now put me down.”

He dropped her on command. Melissa hit the ground hard, knocking the breath from her. Damn, she was going to have a bruise on her ass tomorrow. But she would worry about that later. Right now, all she could feel was rage.

Jumping up, Melissa dusted off her pants. Stephen pulled her toward him and glared at the cowboy. “I don’t think that’s what she meant by put her down. Can you give me a reason why I shouldn’t kick your ass right now?”

A female voice had Chris stepping away from Stephen.

“Chris! What in the hell do you think you’re doing? You said you were having poker night with the guys? You promised you wouldn’t do the bars anymore!”

“I was just grabbing a beer on my way over there, baby. Everything’s cool.”

In shock, Melissa could feel her lips part. Oh, hell no. Throwing a glance at Stephen, she stepped around him and walked forward. “He’s lying.”

“You shut your mouth.” Chris threw her an angry expression and looked back at the petite blonde. “I don’t know who this is, honey.”

The woman looked back and forth between them. Melissa cocked her head to the side giving the girl a “don’t be stupid” look. “Listen, I have no reason to lie to you. He was about to take me to a motel. Insisted we take my truck. You’d be stupid to stay with this piece of shit.”

“Hey, fuck you! Crazy, bitch,” Chris said.

“Crazy?” The word made Melissa literally see red. He could have called her anything in the world and she would have walked away like she intended, but no one called her crazy.

Before she even knew she’d moved, her fist was clutching Chris’s shirt and Stephen was pulling her off. “Call me crazy again, you fucking bastard. All men are the same! Fucking assholes.”

“Mel, calm down. Come on, let’s go.”

“Yeah. Get her out of here. She needs help,” the girl spat.

Chris threw her a glance and then wrapped his arm around the blonde while he whispered and led her away.

Wiggling out of Stephen’s arms, Melissa pulled down her shirt, trying to calm herself. Damn, that one word triggered her like nothing else. It opened wounds she knew she’d never be able to forget.

“Actually, Stephen, I think I’m going home. Don’t worry, I’m not drunk. Go ahead and go inside. I’m not sure if Nat has left yet, but Jules is still inside.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

Melissa watched as Chris and the girl walked off. Turning her attention back to Evelyn’s boyfriend, she nodded. “You know me. I’ll be fine.”

“And you’ll call me the moment you get home?”

“Yes, officer. I promise.” Melissa laughed and opened her door, climbing into her truck. Leaving it opened, she watched the tall blond peer up at her.

“Mel, please be careful. Evelyn would be lost without you.”

Growing serious, she nodded. “I’d be lost without her, too. I’ll call. Tell her I hope she gets to feeling better.” Shutting the door, she watched as he waited for her to pull out. The traffic wasn’t too bad as she headed back toward the island. The drive wasn’t but a half hour tops, so she’d make great time.

Cranking up the country music, she let herself get lost in the lyrics while she went over her life. Reflection was something she kept getting sucked into lately, and it was getting worse as the weeks went by. Everything started with Evelyn getting back together with Stephen while also having Brandon as a boyfriend. Their ménage relationship had really taken her by surprise. Then Sarah got into one, too, and
bam,
Melissa’s reality took a blow.