Page 33 of Bear

CHAPTER TWELVE

Bear

“Crow, I already toldyou. I ain’t in the mood for this shit.” I climb off my bike and follow him through the throng of people. There are several hotted-up cars and a few guys laying drag by doing donuts. Plumes of smoke fill the air, the smell of burnt rubber assaults my nostrils, and the sound of their screeching tires grates on my nerves. “What the fuck are we doin’ here?”

“You’ll see.”

Some college-aged asshole in a fucking flamingo shirt jostles me and spills his beer over my boots. I ball my hands into fists and clench my jaw, about ready to kill a motherfucker when the screeching tires stop, and a cheer goes up.

“Beat it, fuckface, or I’ll cave your goddamn skull in.” I push the kid out of the fucking way and shove through the crowd in order to see better. When the smoke clears, the neon green car doing burnouts is gone, replaced instead with a sleek silver Dodge SRT, and a familiar black ’64 Mustang.

Her words from the first day I met her come screeching back to me.I prefer burning rubber on four wheels.

“No,” I mutter, but I’m not sure if I’m talking to Crow or to the fucking sexy woman strutting across the asphalt in those fucking Daisy Dukes. “Jesus Christ.”

“You’re welcome,” Crow claps a hand on my shoulder.

“You fuckin’ knew she was gonna be here?” I ask through my teeth.

His brow furrows as he looks genuinely puzzled. “Yeah.”

“And you didn’t stop her?”

“Um ... one, I don’t know her that well. And two, calm your fuckin’ tits and just watch.”

Tink smiles and shakes hands with her opponent. He eyes her appreciatively and presses a hand to his heart, shaking his head.Oh, now I’m definitely killing a motherfucker.

They both climb in their respective cars and Bobby Ray runs up to the driver’s side of Tink’s. Another guy approaches the other vehicle and then they’re melting back into the crowd.

“Alright, y’all know the rules?” Jupiter shouts as she hangs out the window.

“Get back or get smacked!” the crowd roars.

She laughs, and it’s like the fucking sun just came out ... after goddamn midnight. They rev their engines, and the stoplight turns green. Both cars take off in a roar of screeching tires and burning rubber. The sound of nitrous cuts through the air and the Mustang puts on a burst of speed, running the next red light. She’s gotta be going more than 150mph and I’m torn between covering my fucking eyes like a little girl and seeing everything, afraid to miss even a nanosecond. Every muscle in my body is rigid, including my cock.Jesus. I wasn’t wrong when I said this bitch was gonna kill me. I may even keel over before she crosses the finish line.

Several seconds go by, and they feel like hours. Another cheer goes up and the crowd jostles all around me. Well, I’ll fucking be. Not only is Tink a fucking smoke show angry feminist who’s wild in bed and a master under the hood, but she’s also a goddamn speed racer. This bitch is so far out of my league she’s in her own universe. I guess her stupid-ass name is fitting after all.

“You doin’ okay there, brother?”

I shake my head. “I’ll let you know once my brain finishes imploding.”

He tosses his head back and laughs, and then he moves toward the rest of the crowd. “You coming?”

“Where the hell are we going?”

“To collect my winnings.”

“You bet on Tink?”

“Well, I’m sure as hell not dumb enough to bet against her.”

No. I guess I’m the only one fool enough for that.

I follow him through the crowd and find myself face-to-face with Bobby Ray.

“Hey, man.” Bobby Ray holds out his fist for me to bump. “You came.”

“Almost,” I mutter absentmindedly, because I can’t take my eyes off Tink. She’s out of the car, making her way over to us. She stops when her gaze lands on me, and a small smile tips the corners of her lips.

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