Page 37 of Now You See Him
She was sure the person that he was having an affair with had to be in New York. She hadn’t cared at the time, but the more she thought about it, the more it was clear that those trips to the city for work seemed too excessive. He must’ve been visiting this other woman the whole time that he’d been with Tina in Pennsylvania.
“I wish I had the answers for you,” Derrick replied as he pulled into the parking lot at Iron Fist Brewery. He was able to find a spot towards the back of the lot where his truck wouldn’t get in the way.
“We’re getting close to Halloween,” Tina said. “If all the ridiculous horror movies and stories are right, if we’re truly in supernatural territory, then the barrier between the underworld and our world are the thinnest that night. Do you think he’s waiting to do something so he can, I don’t know, manifest?” She scrubbed her palms over her face. “I feel ridiculous just saying that. Please tell me I’m not ridiculous.”
“You’re not ridiculous,” Derrick replied smoothly. He turned off the car, then twisted to face her. He cupped the back of her neck, and in the shadows of the dark parking lot, his smile was reassuring and kind. “We need a night off. I think we’re too in our head about trying to understand my brother.”
Tina leaned forward and kissed him. She meant for it to be a quick, reassuring touch of lips, but just as she pulled back, Derrick followed her, maintaining their contact. His hand curled into her hair, and she sighed when his tongue slipped over hers.
It was a long time before they came up for air. Her hands fisted in his shirt at his shoulders; his fingers stroked over her throat. Their breaths grew ragged as Derrick pressed tiny kisses along her jaw.
There was a flash of headlights in the distance as another car pulled into the lot.
“When this is over,” Derrick said, then nipped the base of her neck. His scruff scraped against her sensitive skin leaving a trail of goosebumps. “When you’re rid of your fiancé, I want to take you out on a real date. I want to ride you in a bed that belongs to both of us. I want to take my time and know all your secrets and stories. I want to introduce you to my mother. I want to fuck you knowing that you’re mine and mine alone.”
Her pussy clenched at the sound of his dominance, while her stomach warmed when she realized Derrick was interested in more than sex and late-night conversations that were tangentially connected to his brother. They barely knew each other, but she wanted to know him, and he made it clear that he wanted to get to know her, too.
She cupped his cheek with her hand and kissed him again. Tina was tempted to crawl over the console and into his lap but knew that wasn’t the smartest idea for them right now.
“Come on,” she said as she reluctantly pulled away. “I want to play some trivia.”
They got out of his truck and walked side by side, their knuckles brushing with every other swing of their arms before they reached the entrance. Derrick held open the door for her, and his fingers ran along her lower back as she passed him.
They spotted Jackson right away. He was holding a high-top table for them and waved when he saw them at the entrance.
“No Mrs. today?” Tina asked as they approached.
Jackson shook his head. “She wanted to stay home and keep her feet up. I asked her if she wanted my company, but she said that my breathing was too loud and it was getting on her nerves so I had to leave.”
“I’m assuming that has something to do with her pregnancy,” Derrick said with a chuckle.
“You would be right.”
One of the Iron Fist Brewery staff came by and took their order before placing trivia cards in front of them. The bar was packed with crowds of people that looked both familiar and new to Tina. She liked that she was beginning to recognize faces. It made her feel like she was settling in. That was the one good thing about her new place so far.
When she looked over at Derrick, she realized there might be a second good thing in her life now, too. Even though she was technically still in a different relationship and there was that whole evil poltergeist haunting her house thing, Trivia Night at the Iron Fist reminded her that her life was on the upswing. Sort of.
“So, Tina,” Jackson said. He folded his arms and rested them on the table. His eyes sparkled with mischief. He twisted his hat backwards and winked at her. “No fiancé this time, either, huh?”
She shook her head. After debating how honest she could be, she glanced at Derrick, who made an almost-imperceptible nod with his head.
“No fiancé at all,” she said to Jackson, her words slow and measured as she spoke for the first time. “We’re in the process of…separating. There was some infidelity involved.” Hopefully he wouldn’t ask any follow-up questions, because she didn’t exactly want to specify that it was a mutual-cheating situation.
Jackson’s eyebrow quirked, and he shot a look at Derrick. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Yeah, me too. We were together for a long time.”
“Mhm-hmm,” he said.
That sound held a dozen judgments. Tina crossed her arms over her chest. “Okay. Out with it, Jackson.”
He grinned. “Out with what?”
She held out a hand to stop him from lifting the bottle to his mouth again and hiding his smile. “If you have something to say, then you should definitely just say it. Otherwise, the not-knowing is going to drive me crazy all night.”
“I don’t really have anything to say…”
Derrick snorted. “Stop messing with her, man. I want her to stick around, not run away.”
