Page 34 of Dealing Dirty
He’s got half of his attention on the big-breasted woman in a revealing tank top, who’s tugging at the collar of his shirt, while focusing the better half of it on Hazel. His eyes make a buffet of Hazel’s ass in her tight leggings.
I shake my head, earning a flirty smirk when he catches me watching him. The woman plasters herself against him as he raises the DOF glass he’s holding, giving me a silent salute.
Dirty dog.
Hazel taps her chin before swiping my beer off the table and taking a long sip. “Not exactly. More like, he doesn’t trust anyone but his people, and Cooper and I have known each other our whole lives.”
I blink. “Hazel, that’s absurd. You can’t really be okay with that?”
“What am I going to do?” She shrugs. “Sure, he’s more like a best friend than a partner, but being with him would ensure my safety. Among other things.”
Cassidy and I exchange a wary look.
“Enough about me. Are you terrified or thrilled?” she asks, gesturing to Cassidy’s abdomen with my beer.
I’ve been wondering the same since they announced their pregnancy. There’s no denying that Cass and Jack were made for each other, but it’s so… sudden.
“Yeah, well, it certainly wasn’t planned.” She laughs. “Now I’m just another small-town statistic, shacking up and getting pregnant almost immediately.”
A little bit of light leaves her face, and I reach for her hand. Rubbing my thumb over the back of it, I force every ounce of love I’ve got into my words. “You’re not a statistic, babe. And even if you were, it doesn’t matter. You and Jack are going to be wonderful parents, and that baby is going to be loved by so many, especially itstia.”
That brings her smile back, and I give her a light squeeze. “Now, this is a party, and you may not be able to drink, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a good time.” Standing, I whistle at Jimmy. “Put something good on that rusty old jukebox!”
He gives me a toothless smile as he excitedly flips through songs for us.
“What on earth are you doing, woman?” Hazel’s eyes crinkle with delight.
I grab their wrists, dragging them to the other side of the room where there’s just enough space to shake a tailfeather or two. When the song starts winding its way around us, I spin Cassidy to Hazel, who catches her easily.
There’s one motto I live by: dancing cures everything.
“You’ve officially lost your mind!” Cassidy says with a giggle.
I shimmy and shake in a wide circle around them as the rest of the world melts away.
Cassidy might be scared, excited, and probably a little stressed, but she’s also one of the toughest women I’ve ever met. She’s going to be a great mother, and there’s no one else I would choose to stand beside her but Jack.
Hazel bends over, flipping her shiny locks behind her when she straightens back up. She yanks me into her, and I bark a laugh, spinning to see that we have a small audience. They smile and clap for us, while some of them even join us in dancing.
Jack’s ditched his scowl, trading it for warm delight as he shakes his head at our antics. My eyes close and I tilt my head back, running my fingers through my hair, swaying to the upbeat music.
I’m weightless. My heart swells to the point of bursting, and the hole that aches for my broken family eases just a touch as I look around at my newfound one.
They say it takes a village to raise a kid, and I’d say they’ve got a village and then some.
Chapter Ten
Derrick
My cheeks hurt from smiling, and my chest fills with pride for Jack and Cassidy. I still can’t believe my best friends are going to have baby.
I’m going to be an uncle.
I remember when Mom brought Sasha home, and she’d laugh every time I kissed Sash’s tiny warm toes. Her feet were so soft. It amazed me that something so fragile and precious could exist.
There’s a crowd gathered at the opposite end of the room. Jack and Ben stand on the outer edge of the group, wearing boyish smiles that really put a chink in their whole bad-boy vibe.
“These girls are something else,” Jack says once I’m able to cut through the bodies.
