Vintage (Adrenaline Series Book 2) (9 page)

Sweetly I assure, “I'm fine.”

Concern still painted on his face, he asks again, “You sure baby?”

“Positive.”

He smiles and slips his lips on top of mine.

“Stop that,” Ben fusses.

Merrick pulls away and gives his cousin the finger. “I'm gonna take Jovi to get a drink. Hayli you want one?”

She touches her chin with the tip of her index finger looking up at the sky innocently.

That's a major act.

Swiftly she swipes the cup out of Ben's hand and has a sip. “No. I'm good. Thanks though.”

I stifle my giggle as Merrick pulls me away, the sound of his family's laughter inebriating on its own.

It's infectious when you're around a McCoy. They just make you wanna laugh and smile and love life. Live life. How the hell am I really supposed to give all this up?

He leads me over to the far end of the patio where drinks are being served. Merrick orders me a margarita and another beer for himself.

“I gotta take a leak. I'll be right back. Wait for me okay?”

“Sure.”

After a sweet peck on the cheek he disappears the other direction back towards the patio doors. When I look back, I'm startled by a bouncy blonde in a hot pink bikini who has appeared beside me.

She introduces herself. “Hi! I'm Angela!”

I politely reply. “Jovi.”

“Nice to meet you.” She bangs her hand on the counter and points to her cup. The bartender merely nods and starts filling up another cup with a frozen margarita. “I haven't seen you before at Vinnie's parties. You new?”

“Um...kinda?”

“It's cool.” She grabs her cup after he hands me my drink and Merrick's. “You banging one of the McCoys?”

Does everyone talk about sex like that? Does anyone just say sex? I mean I guess 'are you sexing one of the McCoys' sounds stupid. Ugh. Nevermind.

Seeing my hesitation to answer she continues, “I'm Daniel's Tuesday girl.”

“Tuesday girl? As in-”

“As in the chick he bangs on Tuesday's. Not every Tuesday, but most of 'em. He usually calls around noon for a mid-day quickie.”

Casually I lift my drink to my lips figuring it's probably best to swallow my judgment about that.

“I don't know what it is about that time of the day, but it's his favorite for a blow job.”

A harsh cough comes out of me as I start choking on the liquor that just went down the wrong pipe.

Stop laughing at me!

With a wide grin Angela has a sip of her drink. “What about you? Who are you boning?”

I cough away the remainder of the misplaced liquid before answering. “I um...I'm with...Merrick.”

“Oh...” She wiggles her eyebrows. “Careful with that one. Rumor is he has a girlfriend.”

His arm drops around my shoulder again. “I think she'd be okay with it.”

Angela looks surprised. “You got a girl willing to let you call her your girlfriend
and
share you?”

“Not exactly.” He chuckles. “Wouldn't wanna be shared anyway.”

She gives him a sarcastic look, which forces me to speak up. “I'm...I'm the girlfriend.”

“Oh!” Her high pitch squeak almost hurts my ears. Suddenly she let's it settle in and sighs, “I'm such an idiot. Duh! Well whatever! Nice to meet you Jovi! And congrats on bagging a McCoy. You have in deed done the impossible.” She tilts her cup at me before pulling her sunglasses back down and strolling away.

Once she's gone I hand him his beer. “Can I ask you something?”

“Always,” Merrick hums.

“How many girls at this party have you slept with?”

Suddenly Merrick shifts beside me, his arm falling. With his eyes plastered in mine, he clears his throat and answers, “Sixteen.”

I gasp. “Sixteen?!”

He simply shrugs.

“Oh my gosh! You're serious?”

“Yes.”

“Sixteen? At one time?”

“No-”

“In the same week? Month? Year?” A mix of feeling indignant and crushed forcing me to continue. “Would you keep sleeping with them if you weren't sleeping with me?”

“Stop,” Merrick commands. “I told you, you could ask me whatever and I'd answer honestly.” On a sigh he steps closer to me. “But baby, don't waste your time asking questions you don't really want the answer to.”

Why are you agreeing with him?!

“Now.” His fingers lift my chin. “Ask me how many of them I've loved.”

In a whisper I comply. “How many?”

“None.” Hearing the words washes away the waves of anxiety that were trying to drown me. There's a change in music and Merrick smirks. “Come on. Let's dance.”

Merrick leads me away from the bar area closer to where J Money is mixing music while people are dancing. As soon as we're in the area, he starts singing along to “Love in This Club” by Usher. With one hand gripping his beer cup, he uses the other to pull my body closer to his, rocking his hips. Moving along with him I start to grind mine against his singing as well. His free hand travels it's way down my back until it's resting on my hip. When his forehead drops down to press against mine, he grips tighter, still rocking his hips to the rhythm of the song.

Suddenly...I'm wishing we were both naked. Oh so naked.

We sing along together, moving in a sync that feels every bit as erotic as it would if we were alone behind closed doors. While his hand travels back and forth between my hip and my ass, my free hand makes sure to caress his perfectly cut abs. His pecs. His V that's as incredible as everything else. With a wide smile I bite my bottom lip at all the little groans that come from him when I touch him in a way that causes his hard on to thump against me.

After we dance for a while, we head back to the pool where we spend time with his brothers, some of their friends, and Hayli who ends up camping out beside me on the edge of the pool. For a few hours we watch the guys splash around playfully trying to drown each other, listen to them go on and on about cars, and girls throw themselves aimlessly at all the McCoys except Merrick. 

Eventually needing to pee, I ask him as he swims back over to me, “Can you show me where the bathroom is?”

“Of course,” he replies.

“I'll show her,” Vinnie's voice says over my shoulder.

Looking up I'm surprised to see him in a pair of white board shorts and a tank top, his long arms actually sporting tattoos closer to his shoulders.

Carefully he asks, “You sure?”

“It's just the bathroom baby bro,” Drew teases. “She's not gonna fuck him in there.”

Merrick's face hardens at the idea. Quickly I touch his cheek. “I'll be right back. Go drown your brother.”

His grin expands as he swims off to take my suggestion.

Vinnie offers me a hand to help me up before guiding me towards the patio doors that lead inside. To my surprise on the other side of them are a set of guards with very grim expressions.

“No one's supposed to be inside,” he explains. “Other than to pee of course. They're just here to make sure no one steals my shit.”

I nod my understanding and he leads me past a line that can only be for the restroom. Vinnie leads me around towards the front of his home where apparently there's another bathroom.

“Family uses this one.”

Unsure of exactly how to take that, I sigh, “Thanks.”

He informs, “I'll wait.”

Slipping into the guest bathroom, I quickly use it, wash my hands and check out my sun soaked reflection.

Oh my tan lines are gonna be so bad.

A small throb from my head causes a groan to come out of me as I open the bathroom door.

Vinnie looks up from his phone and asks, “Getting a headache?”

“I think so.”

“Happens with too much sun and alcohol. Let's swing by the kitchen and get you some water and aspirin.”

I smile softly. “Thanks.”

The two of us head back towards his kitchen and he states, “I wanted to take a minute and thank you for what you did last weekend for me. For Ben. For our family.”

In a meek whisper I try to play it cool. “No big deal.”

“It was,” he corrects me pushing up his glasses. “You put our family before yours and that won't be forgotten. I told Merrick I owe him one. I owe you one too.” Vinnie opens a cabinet and grabs a bottle of pills. As he opens it he says, “You made a choice when you sent that text message. And I know it wasn't easy. Never is.” Two pills fall in my hand. “But you need to know something, Jovi.”

“What's that?”

“You see that.” He tilts his head towards the backyard where the party is still very alive. “Merrick has always wanted out. And you know what? I want him out too.”

Baffled I snap, “But he's your best racer.”

“Yeah. He's my highest fucking money maker on the streets and I want him out. Not for my own sake but for his. This lifestyle looks fun, hell it is fun at times, but for the most part, it's empty, addicting, and destructive. You get too reliant on bullshit like this and you forget there are only three ways living in it like we do can end. Dead behind bars. Dead behind the wheel. Or Dead from being double crossed.”

Hearing the truth my jaw drops slightly.

I don't want any of those things for Merrick. I want him...I want him with me. Is that why Dad's always so worried? Because he knows what Vinnie just said is true? My father is partially responsible for it being true. Encourages the locking up and harsh sentencing of street racers. Even first time offenders.

A cold bottle of water is offered to me. “I don't want that for any of us, but Merrick has the best chance of getting out. He's always wanted out. Come to think of it...he never really wanted in.”

“Why'd he start then?”

“Combination of his brothers and boredom. I think in the beginning he got some enjoyment from racing, but for those of us who know him, it's easy to see what's for show and what's real. Ben sees the difference and doesn't care. Madden sees the difference and tries harder to rescue him. I thought Merrick would spend the better part of his time searching for a real excuse to get out, but I was wrong.”

Unsure of what to say I stay silent.

“You chose to protect him and his family instead of your own in one brief moment. I think you need to know when the moment turns around the other way, Merrick will too. He's done searching. Now he's trying. Now, he has something waiting for him on the other side. Now, he wants out for
you
, Jovi.”

Placing the two pills in my mouth, I swallow the reality of just how deep Merrick's love goes alongside the pain killer.

Is it wrong knowing that makes me feel a little better about what I did? It hasn’t been bothering me as much as I thought it would be, but I still have moments where I wonder if I did the right thing interfering with my father's job like that. His career. The thing he's given his entire life too. No. No I didn't do it out of spite for him not giving that dedication to me. I'm not typically the spiteful kind. I just...I didn't want my love in pain. Or suffering. Or in trouble.