Page 13 of Bullseye
“You deserved it.” The words are meant for me, but he’s looking at Avery.
Oh. Now, there’s going to be a pissing fight? I don’t need this. No one needs this. Just because I’m the only female here…
“So, uh...” He pulls his gaze off of Avery and speaks directly to me. “Are we playing darts?” He raises his eyebrows in anticipation.
My stomach turns to stone as disappointment settles in my belly. I don’t want to turn this kid down, but there’s no way I’ll owe him just because he nominated me. Seneca Villetrio owes no one. And that’s the way it will always be. Besides, I was rather enjoying the sexy game I was playing with Bullseye… And I don’t necessarily mean darts…
“Sorry, Seth,” Avery answers. “Seneca and I have just laid down a wager. It’s a two-person game. We’ll be playing for a while. We’ll let you know when the board is free.”
Scowling at Avery, Seth mumbles, “See you around, Seneca.” Standing up tall and nodding, he walks away.
Shit. I’m not even in yet, and already I’m causing trouble.
I glance at Avery, and it’s like he can read my mind.
“Don’t worry about him. He’s fine. I promise.”
Nodding, a flush of warmth covers me, rushing up my spine and stinging my cheeks. He must have seen me blush because he’s smiling, and in this instant, I realize that I was just claimed by Avery “Bullseye” Pairings.
The thing is, after everything I’ve been through, and all the trouble that lies ahead, I can’t let it happen. I cannot get involved. And I certainly cannot allow this nice guy to get dragged into my world of drugs, and jail… and murderers.
Then, it’s like all the noise of the bar falls away as Avery comes up to me and stops much closer to me than he should. As he stands here, his wide chest rising and falling with his labored breath, my heart does this funny little skip-a-beat thing. Oh no.
I cannot, under any circumstances, fall for this man.
“So, shall we play?” he asks. The sparkle in his eyes… the smoothness of his voice...
Crap. Yes, a million times, ye—
A vibration in my back pocket pulls my attention. “Excuse me, one sec.” Pulling my phone from my pocket, I read a long text from Johnny.
“Sen. I’m sorry, hun. They moved his probation hearing up to this afternoon. No one knew. I think it was because of our “friend”.”
Fucking Ironclad. He buried Matt even further as a fuck-you from Mikey and Tony, now that they’re out. Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you too.
“I’m sorry to say it was denied. But we’ll keep fighting. In the meantime, you lie low and stay safe until we know what those two shits are doing. Don’t tell me where you are or what you’re doing. Just stay safe. Love you, kid.”
Even Johnny had to get dragged into this. I’m poison. Just being near me, he’ll get burned to the ground. No wonder people call me, “Wildfire.”
“Seneca?” Avery asks me. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, yeah.” Burying my feelings along with my phone, I walk back over toward the dartboard. No, there’s no way I can have any kind of relationship with Avery, but it doesn’t mean I can’t have tonight. There’s no way I can go home alone right now. “Secrets and darts sound perfect.” He grins. “But we’re going to need some alcohol to go along with it.” A freaking boatload of alcohol.
“I’m on it.”
As he dashes back to the bar, I watch his strong muscles flex under his T-shirt as he leans across and orders. Turning back to me, he’s balancing two shots and two beers in his large hands. He smiles.
Damn. To forget about Matt tonight, I am going to need a hell of a lot of alcohol, and that’s perfectly convenient because to turn down Avery, I’m going to need the kind of strength I can only find in the bottom of a bottle of bourbon. Thing is, I’m also going to have to stay lucid enough to be careful of what I say.
Taking the shot from Avery, I shoot it back with him, and we both pound our glasses on a nearby high-top table. Glancing at his rugged good looks and charming smile, my stomach bottoms out, feeling like it’s dropped to my feet. I’m doomed.
Yeah, I’ve got to be careful of what I say…
But I’ve got to be even more careful of what I do.
Chapter Five
Bullseye
