Page 66 of Mace
I keep my smile in place despite the disappointment threading through me. He’s only doing what I asked, and yet, I wish things could be different.
“Right. Bye, Mace.”
I give him a lingering look before I head into the building, not stopping until I’m safely inside the flat and behind the door. Only then do I realise I never got the fucking milk.
SEVENTEEN
MACE
I have a problem.I didn’t expect to kiss Maylie and feel the way I do. I know she’s pushing me away because she has shit going on in her life, but there is no way in hell I can stop pursuing her now.
It was her mouth on mine that filled my mind as I took my cock in my hand while I showered that same afternoon after breakfast. It was her face I saw as I blew my load over the back of my hand and onto the tiles the following day, and it was the thought of my cock buried in her sweet, tight channel that has been in my mind every day since. She is so deeply embedded in my mind that I don’t think she realises the danger she is in. I can’t just let her go. I can’t just walk away. Not now that I’ve tasted her.
Immediately, I want to learn every little thing about her. I also want to fix her problems, though I know she is not going to allow me to. She’s too proud to take money, which I understand. I would be the same, but I meant what I said. There is no way in hell she is getting on thatstage and taking her top off for the shithead clients we have in the bar.
The four days she takes off to let her wrist heal are torture, but I give her the space I think she needs after we kissed. I want to camp outside her flat, take her for breakfast every morning, but whatever is going on with her, I get the feeling if I push her, she’ll close down fast, and that can’t happen.
On Tuesday afternoon, I head over to the clubhouse before I need to go to Temptation, hoping to run into Nicky. The common room is empty as I step through the door, but I see him sitting outside, a cigarette placed between his lips as he enjoys the quiet.
I ignore the two club girls getting railed on one of the sofas by Grub and Blade as I make my way to the door and step out onto the terrace. Nicky lifts his head, acknowledging my presence as I come to sit next to him on the bench.
“I was starting to forget what you look like. You’re living at that fuckin’ bar lately. I didn’t know you were that invested in strippers.” He grabs a mug next to him on the bench, taking a sip of what smells like coffee.
“I’m not.” I’m invested in one person, who happens to work with strippers. “I got a favour to ask.”
My best friend gives me his attention completely, his eyes widening in surprise. I’m not big on asking for anything, even though I know he would do it for me in a heartbeat.
“What do you need?” he asks without hesitation.
“I have…” How do I explain to him what Maylie is to me? “Do we have any openings in any of our businesses?”
His brows draw up his head. “Openings like jobs?” Inod. “You need money?” He’s already reaching for his wallet before he’s even finished speaking.
I love that he does that, but we both know I’ve made enough money in my time at the club to retire twice over. “It ain’t for me.”
Nicky studies me intently, and I can imagine the things he’s thinking. For so long, I have been a loner, only interested in Nicky and my foster brother.
“I’m gonna need you to give me some information here, brother.”
He doesn’t want the information so he can decide to help me. He wants it because he’s a nosy fucker. “There’s a girl?—”
He snorts. “Of course, there is.”
I scowl at him. “She’s important to me.”
The look he gives me is entirely unreadable. “I didn’t realise you were dating someone.”
“I’m… it’s complicated.”
He takes a sip of his coffee, flicking the ash of his cigarette onto the ground. “I’m confused.”
“Can you get her work or not? Something that pays really well, Nicky.”
His lips tug up into a ghost of a smile. “Sure. What can she do?”
An idea occurs to me suddenly. “You found a manager yet for Temptation?”
“You want to put this woman you like in charge of a bunch of strippers?”