Hold Me Closer: A Rebel Walking Novel (3 page)

His smile irritates me as I walk
right by him and into the bar.  Not waiting for him to follow, I pass by the few regulars and my bartender before I go into the back to get to my office.  This date is not going well and I need a moment away from him before I lose it.

Holden

Oh hell.
  This date just got even more interesting.  That damn sweater was hiding that sexy body.  She just quickly went from hiding it all, to everything being on the verge of falling out.  Her tits are perfect and that ass.... it's firm and looks like it'll be a perfect fit for my hands.  Her hair fall down her back when she let it loose caught my attention right away. 

I let my mind revel in her features
a few moments before I begin to walk through the door to her bar.  I'll definitely have to thank Eaven for telling me what bar she runs.  This worked out to my advantage for sure.  If the date is going to be this much of a challenge, I should at least get to enjoy the view.

She's obviously hiding from me because she's
nowhere to be seen when I walk in.  A few awkward glares from some older guys and appreciative glances from the women are given as I take one of the empty seats at the bar. 

"What can I get ya?"

"I'll take one of your beers on tap."

"Hey there
, handsome.  Why don't you buy me a drink?"  The feel of her whisper in my ear sends frustration through me.  The road life has made me appreciate the girls that don't scream desperation when they approach.  In fact, I'd prefer someone who
doesn't
approach me first.  Her voice sounds older and raspy.  I'm sure she's a bar hoe, but I'm stuck.  I could be an asshole and tell her no, or give her the wrong idea and buy her a drink. 

The bartender slides me my beer and I turn to face the latest
woman trying to get some.  She
is
older—as in old enough to be my mom.

"What's your name, big guy?"

"Holden."  I see Lyndsey across the room just as I tip back the glass for a swig of beer.  She pulls a pool stick from the rack and begins to rack the pool balls.

"Well, I'm Betty.  If you feel like getting to know me a little better, here's my number."  Her fingers slide behind me and into my back pocket. 

My eyes never leave Lyndsey's ass the entire time she's lining up her shot.  I decide right then and there that I'll have to make sure I start playing pool on dates more often. 

I move closer to watch her, taking the stool closest to the table.  It's times like these that I appreciate my patience. 
I wait with anticipation as she makes her way around the table, making almost every shot.  Each and every shot gives me a view of something I'm beginning to want more and more.  Her cleavage teases me every time she bends over if her ass isn't in view.  She seems to be deliberately ignoring me or teasing me, either way, I'm enjoying every single second of it.

"You going to stare at my ass and tits all night?"  She stands with her hand on her hip waiting for a response from me.  The fact that she just called me out makes this night even better.

"Until I find something better to do with ‘em."

"Don't hold your breath."
  Her sass as she says that challenges everything inside me. 

I have to stop and remember this is Eaven's friend and I probably need to
put the breaks on this attraction for her because right now I'm thinking of nothing but bending her over and fucking her senseless. 

"Brave enough to challenge me to a game?"  She has no idea how much I love this
game—the one she's playing
and
the game of pool.  I mean, it's a game of strategy, patience, and skill.  This is
my
game.  Both are.

"What are we playing for?  Let's make this game worth it."  I start to think about what I want to add to the pot.

"If I win.... This date is over and I get to drive MYSELF home without an escort."

"Well then,
when
I win.... The date continues and you have to go home with me tonight."

"No way in hell.  I'm not staying the night with you or anyone tonight."

"Okay then.  The date continues and you let me make sure you make it home safely tonight."

"I can handle that."

"Would you like to move our date somewhere else after I kick your ass in this game?"  Watching her face as I continue to challenge her is just encouraging me to do it even more.  I just met this girl and I can't seem to stop antagonizing her.  It's a complicated game that she started and I find myself loving it.

"You sound so sure of yourself.  Rack
‘em."  I see a small smirk on her lips when I begin to pull the balls from the slot.  In this moment, I can't think of a better place we should be. 

Lyndsey

   This should be interesting.  How did I know he would challenge me to a game?  This is why I purposely didn't shoot a perfect round when he was giving me the stare down.  His personality
screams
control and order.  Is this really a guy Eaven thinks should be in my life?  Talk about opposites.  The last thing I have is order in my life.  It's just not me.  Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have everything organized and perfect, but running this bar full time and dealing with the employees here doesn't allow for me to have perfection in my life.  Maybe I've pegged him wrong, but something tells me I haven't.

He's not going to be the only one enjoying the view during this game.  I'm not sure if there's any more give in that shirt he's wearing.  His broad shoulders and arms prove just how ripped he is without even getting a view of what's underneath.  I watch his back as he leans over to set the balls up
and catch myself imagining running my fingers across his shoulders. 

Why in the hell does he have to be so hot when I swore off men?  It really couldn't hurt if I
have fun tonight and enjoy the company just a little bit.  It's not like I have to let him move in and take over my house.  After all, he
is
very nice to look at and it never hurts to have people in your life like him.  Maybe we could become friends or something.

"You're up."  I steady my pool stick and begin to play the table.  Sinking three in a row is easy, but I miss the fourth shot. 
My strategy to block any easy shots works very nicely when the cue ball rolls into a terrible position for him. 

"Very nicely played."  He seems genuine.

"Thanks."

"How long have you played?"

"My brother and I played for years.  He taught me how to play when I had to stand on a chair to reach the table."

"He taught you well, but you still have more to learn."

"Haha.  Is that right?  You're pretty cocky for someone who hasn't even taken a shot yet."  The smirk on his face as he leans over the table to sink the first ball is fierce.  It goes straight through me and shoots to hell most of my reservations about liking this guy. 

His body flexes and moves in ways that should be illegal, because it's doing bad things to my restraint and I'm not sure I can take much more of it. 
He perfectly places every striped ball into the pockets and then ends the game by landing the eight ball in the corner, which he called.  He puts the stick back on the wall and walks over to me as I stand here waiting for him to say something else.

"How would you like this date to end?"  His words brush across my face because he's so close.  It's as if he's half attempting to kiss me and half attempting to whisper in my ear.  I could turn my head either way and his lips would land somewhere that I wouldn't mind at this point.  Choosing not to move is extremely hard. 
Keep strong, Lyns, you don't have time for a guy right now, especially one that looks like he could devour you at any second.

"We could just stay here."  That came out breathy and ridiculous.  He's too close for me to be myself.  Does he not know appropriate space limits
are required for people to breathe?

"Sounds good to me.  Should we play another game?"  His fingers begin to slide down my arm and chills run through my body, waking up every sense of feeling. 

"Um..... Sure."  I'm not even sure those words could be heard as I tried to talk around the lump in my throat.  The way my heart is beating, that lump may be my actual heart trying to thump out of my body. 
This is absurd.
  I don't get like this with a simple touch.

Pulling away from him is necessary before I push him down and sit on his face to ride this one out.
  I probably should reconsider continuing this night at the pool table.  It could mess everything up watching him move like he does. 

"So.  You run this bar for your brother?"  He begins to gather the balls again to start a new game. 
This could be good.  Conversation to get my mind off of his lips.  And eyes.  And ass.  And Arms.  And Back. 
Damn it!  

"Yeah. 
It was part of his dream."

"That's great that you do that for him."

"Yeah.  He was always there for me, it's the least I could do."

"What
about
your
dream?"

"H
e opened it so I would have a steady income while he was away.  He always wanted to run a bar, but he never really made any decisions when it came to the bar except who I hired.  He always put a big, bulky bartender in here to work nights."

"I like his way of thinking.  You're up first."  I move to take the first shot and casually tug my tank top down
, exposing more of my cleavage.  If I can't beat him with skill, then I need to distract him to pull this game off. 

Holden

Her attempt to distract me is working.  She's sending mixed signals, though, so I don't know where this is headed.  Her body is smoking hot and thoughts of how she'll look underneath me have run through my head, but I can tell she's conflicted. 

I watch her
stretch out across the table to make a shot that is more complicated than one she could have easily had without the dramatic sexy gestures.  I'll never complain, but I'm definitely taking notice of her game.

She continues to land each stripe
d ball in a pocket—each time positioning herself into the sexiest pose possible.  Her efforts are certainly catching my attention.  She finally misses a shot with only one of her pool balls remaining.

"I guess you're up.  Would you like another beer?"

"Yeah.  I'll take another."  She signals the bartender to bring us a round.  He's been watching me closely since I walked in the door, so I guess it's time to introduce myself.  Taking the beers from him, I move to shake his hand.

"Holden Walker."

"Gus Brooks."

"Gus, this is
the blind date I was telling you about."

"
Walker.  So that means you're related to Talon?

"Yeah.  I'm his older brother."

"Well, if you're anything like your brother, then we'll get along just fine."  I'm guessing he's never met Taron with that statement. 

"Not sure how alike we are, but we shouldn't have any issues."

"Okay, guys.  I can feel a pissing contest coming soon. Gus, it's all good.  If I need you to save me again, I'll let you know." 
Again?
  What did he have to save her from?  It's impossible to turn off my concerns for people when safety is what I do.  Security is my number one concern while on the job and it tends to overflow into my personal life no matter how hard I try to relax.

"You know I'm always here for you
, Lyns."  He pulls her in for a hug and her face lights up.  There's obviously some sort of history for these two. 

I'm curious about him now.  "How do you know Gus?"

"He was one of my brother's really close friends.  Kayde asked him to help me with everything here, and it eventually just turned out that he's here as much as I am." 

"Is there any kind of history between you two?" 

She flashes her beautiful smile as she asks me.  "Are you checking out my past, Mr. Walker?" 

Twisting open our drinks, I answer her with as much honesty as I can handle.  "Just asking because it seems like there's history there."  Her face drops.  She moves her eyes to the floor before she responds.

"I could never look at him as anything but an extension of my brother.  He was always there for Kayde.  He wouldn't even think of trying to cross that line and neither would I."

Trying to change the subject, I begin to take the first shot on the table.  I make it and move on to the next just as she slides into my view.  She bends over to look at the ball, exposing even more of her chest.  My confused thoughts don't know whether to center on the ball or that gorgeous view. 

Trying my hardest to focus, I completely miss my shot.
  She begins to celebrate my error and I enjoy her little celebration dance.