Page 19 of Clear Your Mind

“Wait, how is it you didn’t assume I was a club girl?” Maxi asks.

I’d like to know that myself. She’s wearing cutoff shorts that show her ass cheeks. The pockets are lower than the frayed hem, and her tank barely covers her tits. She’s young and beautiful, so why would Krystal not make the leap?

“Your aura,” Krystal answers matter-of-factly.

That’s the answer? Her fucking aura?

Maxi’s smile is blinding as she beams at Krystal, and Krystal beams back. I’m shoved out of the way as the two embrace like they are best friends who’ve known each other forever.

“I like you. Most people think the worst, and I let ’em because how dare they judge me?” I hear a bit of emotion from Maxi I haven’t before. She was here when Dude and I arrived. Cowboy says she’s an old friend who needs the position. There’s a lot more to the story, but we trust him, and Maxi keeps the club clean and stocked, so no one complains. Even though she’s gone a lot with school, we never want for anything.

We all have our stories and maybe one day I’ll learn the two women hugging each other’s stories.

“What about me, love? What’s my aura saying?” There’s a teasing overtone to my voice, like I’m skeptical, which I am, but also a little not. My mom always believed in unseen shit. According to her, everyone gives off a vibe and if it disrupts yours, chaos ensues. She told me I’d meet someone one day whose vibe resonated with mine, and I’d know it instantly.

Could that be why I feel this connection to Krystal? She soothes my vibe?

“Yours is…complicated.”

“Ha,” I bark. “You don’t know the half of it.” I find I want her to though. I want to tell her everything. Which is insane since we just met, and she wants no strings.

The two ladies finally separate, and I usher Krystal upstairs with a nod of thanks to Maxi. I make a mental note to ask Cowboy if Maxi’s story needs a resolution, one we can help with. She already has our loyalty and protection, we just need the word.

I close the door behind me once we enter my room. I breathe a sigh of relief just having Krystal here. It feels right. I can’t explain it, it just does.

Soothing my vibe.

The thought coalesces again, but I ignore it.

But I need to know her story too, before I let her in too deep. And if Krystal’s tale needs some Iron Travelers’ justice too, I’m more than willing to make that happen.

Before that’s on the table though, I need her to open up and trust me.

I drop her bag to the floor and wrap her in my arms. Inhaling her amber-and-something-I-can’t-put-my-finger-on scent calms me. “You smell good.”

Running my nose along the column of her neck elicits a throaty moan from her.

“That’s my line,” she says with a laugh.

“We’ll share it.” Nibbling her shoulder isn’t enough contact. I crave more, so much more. “Let’s get naked, love.”

I pull back and rip my shirt over my head. Krystal laughs as she toes off her shoes while unbuttoning her jeans. “Damn, woman,” I quip as I shuck my pants. “The last thing a man wants is his woman to laugh when he’s getting undressed.”

I try to ignore the flash of fear that sparks in her hazel eyes but fail. We’re both naked, standing in the pile of our discarded clothes, but I don’t take a step forward and fall onto the bed with her like I’m dying to do.

“Would it really be so bad if there was a string or two?” I step into her personal space when she just stares at me like a deer caught in headlights. “Talk to me, love. I’m a hell of a listener. I know something about me scares you.”

When she wraps her arms around me with her cheek against my chest and whispers, “It’s not you that scares me,” I feel like Superman.

As much as that terrifies the holy shit out of me, it feels good. Better than I remember.

And just like that, sex isn’t at the forefront of my mind. I walk her backward until we’re beside the bed. I lean us both forward and peel back the covers. “In. We’re gonna snuggle.”

She gives me a disbelieving look but complies. I hand her the remote and pad to the kitchen area.

“White or red?” She turns and eyes me standing in front of the fridge. I may or may not flex my ass cheeks, hoping to impress her.

She smiles and I realize the lengths I’m willing to go to for that smile. It’s slightly jarring, but I refuse to let the panic set in. The past has held me hostage for far too long. I want to break free, and I want to break free with her.

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