The Bad Boys' Reluctant Woman Read Free Page B

pleasure. When it was just him, he needed to tie them up
and to have total control.
    He shook his head to try to clear
the hazy thoughts. Connor had never let go with any woman. He was the one in
control and giving out the orders. That was the way he liked it, and that was
the way it was going to stay.
     
     

 
    Chapter Three
     
    Zoe stayed behind later to help
Vicki with the cleaning up. They usually made their way into work early, but
just recently both had spent a great deal of time after work doing it instead.
    “I will never forget how messy bars
can be,” Zoe said.
    “Have you worked in many bars?”
Vicki asked.
    “No, this is my first one.”
    The sound of the brush falling to
the floor caught Zoe up short. Vicki was staring at her in shock. “What’s the
matter?”
    “You’re talking about yourself. I
never expected you to answer.”
    Zoe let out a sigh. The more she
tried to close people out, the more it was starting to hurt. “I don’t do this
because I dislike you, Vicki. I’ve never talked about myself before. No one has
ever cared.”
    She stared at the younger woman and
noticed her rubbing her tummy. “Are you all right?” she asked.
    “Yeah, I’m fine. Why has no one cared
about you? I saw Jake, Brent, and Connor follow you out when you had your
break. They care about you.”
    “No, they want to fuck me.”
    “What’s the problem with that?
Fucking can be fun.”
    “Because I don’t
intend to stay here forever. I’ll be moving on soon, and fucking brings with it too many
complications.”
    “You’re moving on?”
    “I never intended to stay here.” Zoe
picked up several loose bottles and a pair of panties. “This is disgusting. To
think some woman was being fucked with all those people in the bar gives me the
creeps.”
    “This is the one place they’ll get
it on. Do you ever think a married man would leave his wife?” Vicki asked.
    “Excuse me? Vicki, what’s going on?”
    “Nothing, forget I mentioned it.”
    Vicki moved away, giving Zoe no time
to argue with her. If Vicki was involved with a married man, well, all that was
going to do was lead to way too much trouble.
    She wouldn’t worry about it.
    You’re moving on. You don’t care about anyone or anything.
    “I’m moving on.”
    Zoe finished sweeping the floors as
Vicki restocked the beer.
    Together they were out of The Dugout
by three in the morning. They both worked late as the jobs were scarce and the
one place doing well was The Dugout.
    Vicki went to her car as Zoe began
the walk to her place. She’d pawned her own car when she’d made it into Law
Castle. It made her laugh how many times she moved. She was looking for a place
to settle her roots, and instead, she spent most of her time trying to sever
those roots.
    Her mind drifted to Jake, Brent, and
Connor. Three men who would undoubtedly be a handful. She thought about the kiss each of them had given her. Jake was demanding while
Brent was sweet, and Connor, well, Connor was downright disappointing. She knew
he’d kiss really well, and he’d left her hanging. A peck on the cheek and he’d
turned away as if it meant nothing to him. She didn’t know what hurt more, the
fact he’d left her hanging or the fact she’d wanted to call him back.
    “You shouldn’t be walking home alone
at night,” Connor said. She turned around to see the man in question leaning up
against a truck.
    “There is no one around.”
    “I’m here.”
    “I know you.”
    “Do you really?” he asked. His hands
were in the pockets of his jeans. Zoe wasn’t afraid as Connor, Brent, and Jake
only made her feel safe. It was those feelings alone that scared the hell out
of her.
    He moved closer. Zoe stood her
ground. When he was in her personal space, she wished she’d backed down.
    “What exactly do you know about me?”
he asked.
    “I don’t know what you’re trying to
do, but I don’t like it.”
    “I’m not trying to do anything.” He
stroked her hair then down to