Page 100 of Playing With Danger

The crowd dissolved in fits of laughter.

“I hate you all,” Valentine grumbled.

“She didn’t just assault him,” Riddle said through his laughter. “She jumped on him and climbed him like a monkey. He didn’t know what to do with his hands so he held them high and to the side like he was blessing the room. The naked chick took that as her opportunity to climb higher. Shiloh had to save his ass. Or actually his face, seeing as that’s where she was headed.”

I pinched my lips because I wasn’t sure if I wanted to laugh or ask for this woman’s name so I could beat her up. I was edging toward laughter but Valentine’s unhappy grunt pushed me over the edge and I lost it and joined in the hilarity.

“And the dog?” I giggled.

“A puppy,” Chip choked out. “He was sniffing around Valentine, jumping on his leg, but when the woman attacked the dog got excited and just started pissing.”

I looked up at Valentine frowning at Chip and busted out laughing again. His attention came to me and his eyes narrowed.

“I thought you were irrationally jealous?” He actually sounded perplexed.

“Was she hot?”

“She was cracked out and didn’t smell real good.”

“Then she doesn’t count.”

“Woman, she was humping my vest.”

At that I laughed so hard I couldn’t breathe. This lasted too long for Valentine’s liking.

“All of you suck,” he grunted.

“I’d rather suck than have a snail trail on my vest,” Shiloh put in.

I stopped laughing and went back to pinching my lips.

“There’s a joke in there somewhere but I don’t wanna be snipered so I’ll refrain,” Riddle said with a smile.

“Smart,” Luke rumbled.

Eek.

“So, Sophie, what is it you do?”

“Thankfully, not a job where there’s a possibility I’ll get humped by a stranger.”

The backyard filled with laughter again.

And there I sat in the waning Georgia sun, drinking a beer with my man and his friends.

Oh, yeah, I’d take happiness any day of the week.

24

I was a total chicken shit! I’d circled the parking lot of my apartment building twice to check for my mother’s car before I parked. It was Sunday. Valentine had to work so I thought this was the perfect opportunity to run back to my place, grab a few more things, and talk to Hayden about moving out. Part of my plan changed when I didn’t see Hayden’s car. I’d have to call him and ask to meet somewhere. Which was probably the safer thing to do if my mother was coming to the apartment. The less time I spent there the better.

I knew I needed to deal with my mother but I had important things to see to with Valentine, and moving, and work. However, I’d come to some realizations about her and our relationship and I needed to talk that out with her. I just didn’t want to do that today or tomorrow. Maybe sometime next week and she should know that. I needed to stop being childish and unblock my mom and send her a text. I was being unfair. Before I could enforce the new boundaries of our relationship she at least needed to know what those were. Then if she overstepped or didn’t respect them and I limited communication she’d know why.

Those were my thoughts as I was gathering stuff out of the bathroom. However, by the time I was folding jeans into a suitcase I’d talked myself out of unblocking my mother. I didn’t want anything negative screwing with my happiness. I’d text her after I was moved in and settled. Hayden was today’s priority.

I didn’t have a single concern about his reaction to me moving in with Valentine. Our lease was up in three months, I’d continue to pay my half of the bills, and he’d be free to do his own thing. I would never tell this to Hayden, because I knew he loved me and it would piss him off, but there were times when I’d felt guilty for holding him back. I knew he stayed my roommate so I didn’t live alone. I knew he stayed even though he had the means to buy a house and start building his future. I knew there’d been times he’d canceled plans to stay home and binge shit TV so I wouldn’t be sitting home on a Saturday night by myself like a loser. Beyond all of that I knew he’d be happy for me.

And that was what I needed—my best friend’s excitement and encouragement, not my mother’s misgivings.

---