Page 19 of Bad Cowboy, Tennessee

I locked my phone and slid it in my pocket.

“Last night.”

Andrew’s eyebrows raised up fast.

“Excuse me? Storytime.”

I kept my eyes down on the bar top as I grabbed a rag, cleaning off the polished oak.

“No story,” I said, even though there sure as fuck was one. I’d been terrified at first last night and then fucking pissed off afterward, but the one thing I hated about living in a small town was gossip.

I wasn’t going to gossip.

Not about Draven, and definitely not about myself.

Maybe you could callthatmy naive, small-town pride, but I didn’t care.

“Who was the guy?” Mason asked.

“My sister’s boyfriend.”

“Holy fuck,double storytime,” Andrew repeated, more emphatically.

I waved him off. “We accidentally ran into each other on my front porch. He was just coming to borrow a bottle of whiskey.”

Big.

Fucking.

Understatement.

“I didn’t know Lily was back in town with a boyfriend,” Mason said. “I can’t wait to see her. Feels like she’s been out in Montana forever now.”

“She likes her life out there,” I said. “It was supposed to be a one-year travel nursing gig, but the hospital in the mountaintown offered her a nice salary to retain her. She fell in love with it.”

Even if I’m questioning my sister’s sanity now that I’ve met her boyfriend.

And… bitten her boyfriend.

“So you accidentally touched another man last night,” Andrew said. “Fine. I guess that’s a boring storytime.”

“Listen. If men want to jerk off to me, I’m more than okay with that,” I said. “Some dude could jerk off while standing on top of this bar, and I wouldn’t even mind. As long as he kept everything clean and sanitary.”

Robbie snorted. “Now I'm picturing some dude standing up on this bar andyackin’it.”

“Don’t call ityackin’it. Sounds like you’re talking about puke,” Jesse said with a groan.

Robbie laughed. “Fine. Jackin’ it. Hopping up on the bar and fucking coming all over Kane’s nice, precious bottles of whiskey on the shelves?—”

“Hey,” a gruff voice barked from the back hallway, and Kane emerged a moment later. “I don’t know what the hell you guys are talking about, but if I see any of you up on my bar with your cocks out, this place will become a real Old West saloon, real fast.”

Andrew cocked his head to one side. “Did Kane just threaten to shoot us?”

“Nice to see you tonight, too, Kane,” Robbie added.

Kane ignored them, handing me a few clean rags and then disappearing back down the hallway toward the back office.

“Wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a revolver hiddensomewherein this place,” I muttered. “Hey. Revolver. That’s a good name for the bourbon and gin cocktail I was thinking of filming tonight.”

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