Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 103637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 415(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 415(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Leo was drinking coffee when Arden arrived. He moved behind the vehicle at the front of the large room smelling of oil and paint, as if trying to flee, but gave up the moment Arden waved at him.
There. He could do this.
“Arden, right?” Leo asked, leaning against the side of the car as if he hadn’t tried to get out of sight seconds ago. “What’s up?” he asked without much energy. He was good-looking, but way below Mike on Arden’s personal hot-o-meter. Maybe because he actually seemed sane and friendly, unlike the men who usually gave Arden shivers and made him draw porn until his pencil went aflame.
“Yes. I’m sorry to bother you, but Mona told me I should talk to you because you’re the nicest Heller…” He smiled, letting the fact that they both knew each other’s sexuality hang between them unsaid. It was awkward as fuck.
Leo’s gaze lifted to meet Arden’s. “What?”
“Would you go to a mall in Reno with me? I’ve got to see my hairdresser. Can’t go anywhere close, because my hair is kinda difficult to work with. It will take two hours tops.”
Leo took a deep breath, then his face twisted when he glanced beyond Arden’s shoulder. Something changed in the air, and Arden’s nape broke out in goosebumps as someone entered the garage, their boots scraping against the dusty concrete behind him.
“Leo here can’t wait to go back to his husband. But I can take you right away.”
That voice. Low and sultry. Delicious.
Arden could just see himself under—
No. He would not think about things that weren’t allowed to happen. So despite the shivers running up and down his body, he ignored Mike’s presence and smiled at Leo. “Pretty please? I can pay.”
Leo rubbed his greasy hands on a towel so dirty it likely distributed germs rather than soaked them in. “I’m really busy. Sorry, but my advice is don’t go with him. He’s charming on the outside, rotten on the inside.”
“Hey,” Mike complained. “Don’t be a cockblock. My intentions are completely honest. And I can get you wherever you need to be free of charge. I’ve been meaning to go see a barber myself anyway,” he added as his burning hot hand slid along Arden’s shoulders, creating invisible sparks. He smelled of some woodsy cologne, and Arden could already sense the fire.
He must have showered after that long drive he’d come from earlier. As he came into Arden’s line of sight, refusing to be sidelined, the breeze tangling in his hair transformed him into a music video hottie.
Don’t get drawn in. Don’t get drawn in. Don’t get drawn in.
“And what are those honest intentions?” Arden asked, secretly enjoying the touch. Mike had to be at least twice his size, and his hands were massive. Like a biker demigod gracing Arden with his presence, he had the most golden skin, the bluest eyes, and the whitest teeth. The birds and exotic animals tattooed on his arms looked as if they were ready to move their colorful wings and carry him away from undeserving mortals. Tall and cocky, he could have flirted the pants off anyone in his way.
But he’d zeroed in on Arden.
The filth Arden’s mind suggested was like a wave he couldn’t stop, no matter how wrong it was to be this shallow.
Mike rubbed his thumb against Arden’s chin, as if there was something stuck to it. His beard was thick and a bit bushy, but appeared pillow-soft, and Arden wanted to roll into his sun-kissed arms.
“I want to buy you a drink,” Mike said. Again.
Leo offered Arden a stare that could have been meant as a warning, but it was so very hard to focus on logic when Mike spread his outlaw biker charm like spores that wouldn’t stop getting in Arden’s eyes.
Tight white T-shirt, black leather vest, a belt Arden could just about hear being unbuckled. Would the signets on his fingers tangle into Arden’s hair when Mike held him down?
It shouldn’t have been so hard to make the right choice, considering that being a stupid slut who didn’t know any better was what had gotten Arden into this mess in the first place. “Okay. I’ll let you take me to the mall, but only if you buy me a bubble tea.”
Mike showed off his strong teeth in a grin as he glanced at Leo’s somber expression. “See what I did there, bro? I’m on a roll!”
“What about your future bride?” Leo asked.
Arden perked up at the possibility of a chaperone. He’d need one around Mike. “She can come with us.”
But Mike’s expression soured. “Don’t listen to that idiot. He means the girl I dated for a while. Her family is a bunch of crazies, and they demand I marry her. Not gonna happen. I’m a bird who needs to fly free,” he said pulling Arden out of the garage.