Smolder (Georgia Smoke #6)

• Six •

Come on, Ace. You know you want to.

Sebastian

Hattie Dolvin was currently in Paris on a photo shoot for her father’s cosmetic line. She was returning next week and had invited me to a new release party for one of her father’s products. The same one she was modeling for now. It had been entirely too easy. We’d flirted some at different events we both attended, but never anything more. It seemed one call from me was all she’d been waiting on.

I finished the drink in front of me and set it down just as the bartender returned. Royal hadn’t lied to me about having plans tonight. She wasn’t at the pool hall. Hattie had taken a hell of a lot less work to hook than Royal. I wasn’t going to be able to tail her again. She’d be looking next time. I needed a plan, and right now, I hadn’t come up with shit.

“Another one?” the bartender asked.

He was the one who had been talking to Royal last weekend. I could tell he remembered me.

“The blonde last weekend, the one hustling the guys at pool,” I began.

His expression tightened, and he said nothing as he continued to pour my whiskey.

“She come here often?”

He set my drink down in front of me. “Lots of blondes come through here. I talk to them all.”

I smirked. “You know who I’m talking about. The pool hustler.”

He glanced around, and then his eyes came back to mine. “No hustling happens here.”

Liar. He knew goddamn well that she had hustled those men. He was protecting her. That damn face and body made men do stupid things.

“I’m not here to cause trouble. I’m just curious. That’s all.”

He placed both his hands on the bar, and his jaw stood out as if he was clenching his teeth. I was pissing him off.

“I’m Rodney McVeagh. I own the place. Like I said, lots of blondes come through here. Whoever that girl was last week—”

“Royal.” I supplied her name, and he appeared pained that I knew it.

Not a very good bullshitter, Rodney.

“You know her name,” he said, then inhaled deeply and released it. “Look, Royal is a good girl. She’s got a lot on her, and she handles it better than most men I know. She don’t need, uh, someone, uh, like you coming around her.”

Ouch . What the fuck had I done to Rodney?

“Someone like me being what exactly, Rodney?” I asked, then took a drink from my glass, curious as to what had made the man dislike me.

His eyes darted around again. He was uneasy. “You know …” he said.

It didn’t really matter what Rodney thought about me. Not really. I just wanted him to give me some idea of when Royal might be walking back in those doors. I figured I could convince him I was safe.

“I come from a family that breeds and races thoroughbred horses. On Sunday, we eat brunch at my grandmother’s house with the rest of the family. It’s a big, tight-knit Southern bunch. I was raised to work in the family business. I love horses and racing.

“I’m just curious about Royal. She intrigues me. I’d like to get to know her.”

I’d laid it on thick. Taken the truth and made it sound pretty.

His brows drew together. “That might be the case, but Royal, she’s worth protecting. She’s already messed around with one like you. Wealthy, elitist, someone who has no idea what she’s been through or the life she’s been forced to live. My fiancée would slit my throat if I didn’t try and keep Royal safe from any more pain. Her little sister is Royal’s best friend. They grew up together. She’s watched Royal struggle her entire life. Your kind will never understand or respect her the way she deserves.”

His fierce expression as he spoke about her made me want to believe him. But the darkness of the world was often wrapped up in a pretty package to deceive. Being blinded by beauty was a mistake I couldn’t afford.

“Okay,” I said. “I can respect that. But you still don’t know me.”

He shifted his feet, and his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “No, I don’t. Just like I don’t know where the bloodstains in my parking lot came from. And I should, but my security cameras seemed to have missed that.”

I frowned. “Security cameras?”

Storm had missed something. That wasn’t like him. What had this man seen? Fuck, I hated to take him out, but if he was an eyewitness or had any footage, I’d have to make sure he never talked. We were too close to Dancastle’s trail for that.

He nodded. “Yeah. The security cameras I have outside. They should have shown me where that blood came from that night. The night you and your friends were here. They don’t though. One second, the pavement is normal, and the next, there are small pools of blood in several places. Weird, huh?”

Smarter than he looked. That was Storm’s mistake. He’d underestimated the man.

I shrugged. “You can’t tell me you’ve not had blood in your parking lot before.”

He shifted again. “Yeah, but the other times, I had footage of who had caused it.” Rodney sighed and gave me a wary look. “I don’t want no trouble here. And if it were anyone other than Royal, I might answer your questions just to make sure you don’t cause an issue. But she ain’t got no one looking out for her. That sorry-ass father of hers …” He paused and clenched his teeth. “She’s …” He paused again, then muttered a curse as his eyes locked on something behind me.

I glanced back to see who it was that had him so tensed up, and relief came the moment I laid eyes on her. Royal was walking in this direction—until her gaze met mine. She stopped, and her shoulders rose and fell as she looked at me.

Come on, Ace. You know you want to. It’s right there in those pretty eyes.

When she started walking again, I could feel it. I was gonna get an in tonight. She didn’t like to show weakness, although according to Rodney, she’d had a rough life. That would toughen someone up. I was going to find out exactly what she’d been through or if she was full of shit and Rodney just believed her stories. The man clearly didn’t know about her current boyfriend being a senator’s son. Seemed she only told him what she wanted him to know.

“Didn’t expect to see you here,” she said, placing a hand on her hip and giving me a pointed look.

I turned completely around and faced her. “I didn’t expect to see you here either. Thought you had plans that didn’t involve hustling men at pool.”

The corner of her mouth twitched. “I did. I had plans hustling a bunch of frat boys at Texas Hold’em. Unfortunately for them, they drank too much, so it was over much faster than anticipated.”

I let out a surprised laugh. “You’re serious.”

She nodded. “Very,” she replied, then walked over and pulled out the stool beside me. “Now, tell me, Amory Blaine, why are you here?”

Rodney cleared his throat, and she swung her gaze toward him.

A soft smile touched her face. “It’s fine. Down, boy. I can handle myself. You know that.”

“I just thought you might want to, uh, play some pool. Those two are passing through. Heard ’em talking. They are stopping here to see a friend at the University, then headed further north.”

She leaned over to see around me toward the pool tables. “The younger ones, dressed like they walked out of a Ralph Lauren store?”

“That’d be them,” Rodney said.

She straightened back up and looked at me. “I googled you. Nothing. No social media. Not one small thing. That’s odd,” she said, narrowing her eyes. “What do you want with me?”

Straightforward. Damn, that was sexy. Hell, she’d be sexy, even without all the other shit. But that sassy mouth and no-nonsense approach were refreshing. I’d never experienced it before. At least not with a smoking-hot female. I wasn’t going to let that affect me though. Hattie was also gorgeous, and she wasn’t hiding shit.

This one was dangerous in ways that Merce couldn’t be. He knew it, and she was his weapon. That had to be it.

“I didn’t plan on it,” I replied. “Typically, when a woman tells me no, I don’t come back.” Which was the truth, but with her, I had no choice.

She laughed then. “You got a lot of experience with women telling you no? I’m calling bullshit on that. I would even wager I’m the first one. Which is probably why you’re here. I’m an anomaly. Or is it the chase? You never had one you had to chase, and it’s exciting.”

Dammit, she’d be fun. Why did she have to be an illusion?

“I can’t say I like the idea of a chase. But you have my attention, and I find myself unable to stop thinking about you. If you did something to turn me off, then perhaps I’d go away. Instead, you’re just making it worse.”

Thankfully, new customers came up to the bar, and Rodney had to leave us to go get their drinks. I wanted to talk to her without his presence hovering. I had to get her interested in me, but as of right now, she seemed to be the only one who was charming anyone.

“If you knew me, you’d realize you’re wasting your time. My kinda different isn’t something a guy like you would want in his life. Trust me. I’ve dated the rich guy with a powerful family, and he dropped me the moment his dad told him to.” She reached over and picked up my glass, then took a drink.

“You saw my house. I’m not one of you. My dad is a drunk, who I have to pick up from Miller’s Bar almost every night and get him home. I don’t know my mother, and my Grams, who was my only real parent, is slowly going batshit. Still interested?” she asked with sarcastic smile.

I took my glass from her hand and took a drink from the exact spot where her mouth had been, then licked the taste of her berry-flavored gloss that had transferred to my lips. Her gaze dropped to my mouth, and for a moment, she didn’t breathe.

She was lying to me, and I was still getting hard. Damn her.

“How old was he?” I asked her.

How far was she going to play this game?

She blinked, and her eyes shot back up to meet mine. “Who?” The one word came out breathy.

Finally, she was distracted. I’d gotten to her, if only a little. Or perhaps that was part of her act.

“The pansy-ass whose daddy told him what to do.”

She let out a deep breath, and her shoulders slumped. “Twenty-one.”

I smirked. “That’s the problem. You were dating a boy. I’m a man.”

She let out a nervous laugh. “I can see that.”

I reached out and brushed the pad of my thumb over her cheek. “How old are you?” I asked even though I already fucking knew not only her age, but also that her birthday was in four weeks and she’d be turning twenty-one.

“Twenty-one—well, I will be in a few weeks,” she replied.

She was honest about some things. Good to know. I wasn’t dealing with a habitual liar. Just one who covered up what she had to.

“What about you, old man?” she quipped. “How old are you?”

“Twenty-nine,” I replied dropping my hand back to the bar.

“Damn, ready for a walker soon.” Her eyes twinkled as she said it.

Keep that up, Ace, and I might fuck you to get you out of my system.

She glanced over my shoulder and then back at me. “I didn’t come here to drink and flirt with old men,” she told me. “Might as well go see if those two want to play a round.”

I hadn’t been able to watch her finish the last game, but then I’d not known what and who she was. I did now. Studying her and learning her tells would be good leverage.

“By all means. I’ll enjoy the entertainment.”

She rolled her eyes with a curl of her lips as she stood up.

I had her interest. Next step was to gain her trust. I didn’t see why fucking her couldn’t play a part in that. Might as well enjoy something about all this.