Page 65 of Hot Summer Nights

“Sugar or cream?” I ask as I set it down in front of her.

“Yes, please,” she says, biting into a slice of bacon.

I put sugar and a splash of cream into her cup and pass it back to her, taking my seat at the counter next to her. I try to ask her questions about herself while we eat, desperate to learn everything about her, and she gives me brief, one-word answers back.

Where are you from?

“Texas.”

Any particular part of Texas?

“Houston,”

How old are you?

“Twenty.”

When is your birthday?

“May.”

What’s your favorite color?

“Green.”

What do you do for a living?

“Waitress.”

Where?”

“Landing Strip.”

I frown at hearing that she works in that shitty strip club and I try to figure out a way to get her to quit and never ever set foot in the place but before I can, she’s carrying her plate over to the sink and turning to look at me.

“I really need to head home now.”

“Yeah. Let me grab my keys,” I say, dumping my dishes in the sink too.

I grab them, leading her back out to my truck and lifting her inside. I reach over her, buckling her seatbelt and I smile when I see her roll her eyes. She’s stopped arguing with me already. I hope that she’s getting used to being taken care of because I have big plans to spoil the shit out of her.

She tells me her address and my hands tighten on the steering wheel when I realize that she lives only a couple of blocks from the strip club. It’s in the shady part of town and I hate the thought of her falling asleep there each night. She’s not safe there. She belongs with me.

I pull up outside the derelict building, parking at the curb and shutting the truck off. She looks at me curiously as I hop out and round the hood. She’s already opened the door but I can still help her down. She sighs as I wrap my hands around her waist and lift her out of the truck. I slide her down the length of my body and smile when I see the way her breathing picks up.

“I’ll walk you inside, Princess,” I say, lacing our fingers and tugging her toward the front door.

She tugs her dress down slightly as we walk up the path. I hold the front door open for her and follow her inside, frowning when she doesn’t head up the stairs but turns and heads down the hallway.

“You live on the first floor?” I growl. “Do you know how dangerous that is?” I demand.

She shoots me a glare over her shoulder as she puts her key in a door not far from the main entrance. This only proves to me that she needs someone to look out for her. I sigh as I follow her into her apartment and jerk Stella behind me when I see a strange guy sitting at a desk in the living room.

“What are you doing?” Stella asks as she tries to step out from behind me.

“You know this guy?” I ask, trying to keep my anger in check.

“This is Larry. My roommate,” she says like I’ve lost my mind.

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