"Nick, Nick, get it together, man. You've got to get your shit together and go get that girl." He looked around and then back at me. There were droves of guys following Melissa and the girls out of the bar room. "Otherwise, she really might start a riot."
"Fuck me."
"You've got that half right," Callaway said.
“What? What the fuck are you talking about?”
"Cal may be right. If I had to hazard a guess . . ." Jack said slowly in his deep, gravelly voice. "This might have something to do with your vow of chastity."
"Are you joking? This is because . . .” I shook my head as if I could clear the haze of lust away. It didn’t work. “They're just trying to make me snap?"
The big man nodded and we all stared at him. He didn’t talk much. But when he did, everybody listened.
"I think Melissa is pretty innocent and the girls know what they're doing."
Fuck. It all clicked into place. That was exactly what they were doing. They were literally trying to drive me insane. I wasn't sure Melissa had any real idea what she was letting them do to me, though.
The guys were all openly laughing at me now. Even Moose and Jersey Mike, regardless of the blood dripping down his face.
"Hey, man, you can use the apartment upstairs," Dev offered, still laughing at me. He hardly ever used it now. It was more likely that Drake or I would crash up there after a late shift. But technically, the apartment belonged exclusively to the club Prez. There were plenty of ratty couches and a few smaller bedrooms for the rest of the club to use.
"No,” I said slowly, a plan forming in my head. I was actually starting to see the light at the end of a very long tunnel. She would be mine tonight. Of that, there was no doubt. But where could I take her? “I need privacy and a bed. A very big bed."
"Use the loft,” Jack offered. "It's only two blocks away."
"Yeah, man. You can walk there. You look like you need a drink."
Fucking A, I did.
"I'll take a shot and a beer,” I said, deciding to take Jack up on his offer. “And those keys.”
I smiled crudely, suddenly feeling a hell of a lot better about what was about to go down. I was going to get what I wanted tonight. If they wanted to give me a green light, they had. But they’d done more than that. They had waved a red cape at a bull. A very pent-up, desperate, horny as fuck bull.
I downed the shot of tequila, grabbed a fresh drink for my woman and a cold beer, and strode out of the club to get my woman, with Jack's keys jangling in my pocket.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Angel
"Men are idiots," Janet said consolingly, putting her arm around a subdued Melissa.
“Here,” Becky said, filling a plate with food. “Drown your sorrows in barbecue sauce.”
“Thanks, guys,” Melissa said. But I could tell she was miserable. We all exchanged worried glances. Things were not going to plan. But I still had hope. Nick had looked absolutely shellshocked. He just needed to catch up. “I don’t think it’s working.”
“Oh, it’s working,” Kaylie said. We all nodded. It was true. Nick looked like he was in a tailspin. He’d get his act together quickly. “He’s just recalibrating.”
“He seemed mad.”
“Not mad. Furious.” Sally chuckled. “With us, not you,” she added hastily.
“Uh-oh, you guys,” Suzannah said as if she had just remembered something. “Did we give her the talk yet?”
“Oh, shit,” Janet muttered. “There's not a lot of time. Listen. If you start to get tired just flex your hips and bear down."
"Or offer to give him oral pleasure." Molly giggled. "Say it just like that."
"He won't last a minute," Sally chortled. “Run your tongue over the tip and pull it into your mouth, then just bob for apples.”
“Watch your teeth, though,” Kaylie said. I nodded. That was important for beginners.
Melissa had no clue what we were talking about. I sighed, starting to worry that we might have unleashed a beast on the poor girl. She was completely unprepared. I put my arm around her and whispered, “Just try to remember, sweetheart.”
“You're the one who holds the power. It's not going to be hard to get him to come,” Janet said practically. “I’m just worried he will be more enthusiastic than you’re prepared for. Men don’t need the same recovery time we do, especially when you’re new to this.”
We all nodded at that sage bit of advice.
“And if he's hurting you, just tell him,” Janet continued. “There is a very good chance he's not going to have a lot of control over himself and might be a little rough."
"You guys are going to scare her," I admonished them. But they were right. She did need to know. I wished fervently that we’d given her a lesson on blowjobs, at the very least. "Nick would never hurt you. You know that. We know that. But he's probably worried about it. The first time can be . . . a learning experience."