Prodigal Son Read online

  “I don’t want you to think that I’m like that asshole at the end of the bar, but is there any chance you’d have a drink with me when you get off?”

  The thought of Krystal getting off — and I was thinking sexually — made me hard again.

  “You know, I don’t usually do that, but I’m gonna make an exception for you.”

  I tried to keep a straight face, but a grin kept trying to find its way to my face. “Great. You want to stay here or go somewhere else?”

  Krystal laughed, “Oh, we’ve got to go somewhere else. If any of the customers here saw me with someone else from the bar, they’d never leave me alone. I don’t want to sound conceited, but I have enough troubles as it is.”

  “I’m sure you do,” I said. “You pick the place. My treat.”

  “Deal,” Krystal said as she headed back into the trenches, smiling, laughing, filling glasses, serving food, and absolutely captivating me with her easy charm.

  It was a few hours and a few beers later when Krystal appeared on my side of the bar. She’d changed out of her work shirt into a plain black t-shirt that hugged her curves and made me want to explore those curves with my hands first, and then my mouth. I tried not to stare as she walked toward me, but I don’t think I was very successful.

  “Ready?” she asked. “Sober enough to walk?”

  I laughed. “Yeah. I didn’t have that many. Didn’t want to get drunk and stupid and embarrass myself in front of a beautiful woman.”

  I saw it again…that hint of a blush, as if Krystal wasn’t used to sincere compliments.

  “You want more beer, or would you prefer wine or cocktails?” Krystal asked as we walked toward the door together.

  I felt the glare from the guy at the end of the bar who’d been so rude, and I have to admit that I took great pleasure in putting my hand on the small of Krystal’s back — just over the tattoo I’d glimpsed — as I opened the door for her. I knew that I was the envy of every single guy in that bar.

  “Your pick,” I said once we were on the sidewalk. “You deserve to get the drink you want after working that hard.”

  “Oh, I don’t care. I’m easy.”

  “Oh, I saw you handle that guy. I doubt that,” making it clear that I was deliberately misunderstanding her.

  She laughed. “I mean that I’m not picky about drinks. I used to be a rum and coke girl, but since I’ve been working at the Taphouse, I’ve learned a lot about craft beer, and even a little bit about wine.”

  I thought for a second. “There’s a bar at the Ritz,” I said, hoping that she wouldn’t take the suggestion the wrong way.

  “That’s fine.”

  She stopped walking, and I figured that she was about to refuse to go to my hotel with me. I was preparing to protest that I didn’t have any ulterior motives when she spoke.

  “I’m dressed pretty casual. You think a swanky place like the Ritz will let me in this way?”

  “Absolutely,” I answered with confidence. “They let me in,” I said, holding my hands out and gesturing to emphasize that I was dressed casually as well.

  “Well, then take me to the Ritz,” Krystal said with a smile. “Just don’t get any ideas.”

  Even though I had all sorts of filthy ideas about what I’d like to do with Krystal, I reassured her. “I’ll be a perfect gentleman.”

  “What a shame,” she said as she entered through the door that the valet held open.

  Chapter 4

  Krystal

  Hoping that I wasn’t making a huge mistake, I walked inside the fanciest building I’d ever been inside. The ceilings were high, and the room was enormous, leading to a front desk decorated with huge flower arrangements. The light fixtures probably cost more than my car.

  I was a little nervous, and I wasn’t sure how to act around Luke. He was clearly a whole different class of man than I was used to. I wanted to fuck his brains out, but I was also surprised that I enjoyed talking to him — at least as much as I could talk to anyone while I was working. I was gonna owe Mark big time for covering the rest of my shift. I hadn’t been exactly honest about how I’d managed to leave early, but for some reason, I felt like it was important that I go have a drink with Luke.

  I hadn’t realized how much I missed having Moses to talk to until Luke had walked into Falling Rock. My conversations with Bug were limited to occasional discussions about where to go for dinner on the rare occasions when he took me out to eat and Bug’s instructions for how he wanted me to suck his dick. He wasn’t very creative in bed, and to be honest, he didn’t really do much for me in that department. He was selfish and wanted to feel like he was in control. In another man, the control craving might be sexy, but in Bug it was just pathetic. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been completely satisfied in bed…and then I realized that it had been with Moses.

  Realizing that I had the chance to forget about how pitiful I felt chasing after Bug — a man I neither liked nor respected — I decided to just try to enjoy having a few drinks with Luke.

  “Here we are,” he said, as we walked into the bar.

  “Wow,” I said. I was used to the mountains since I’d grown up in Denver, but the view really was spectacular. The bar felt warm and inviting, and Luke held my seat out for me while I sat down.

  The bartender came over. “Evening, folks. What can I get you to drink?”

  “I think I’ve had enough beer for one night. You have any decent scotch back there?” Luke asked.

  “Of course, sir. We have Macallan twelve-year-old and twenty-one-year-old, as well as several small production scotches from Bruichladdich. We have Oban, Laphroigh, and Balvenie Double Wood.”

  I had never even heard of most of the scotches he mentioned, and I wasn’t a scotch girl, in any case. Luke ordered one of the scotches with a couple of ice cubes.

  “I’ll have a glass of red wine, please,” I said to the bartender, hoping that he wasn’t going to ask me any complicated questions about the wine and embarrass me. I felt completely out of my element in the fancy bar that just oozed money.

  “We have both a Cabernet and a Pinot Noir by the glass, ma’am,” the bartender told me.

  That much I could handle. “Cabernet, please,” I said, relieved that I had managed without looking like an idiot.

  The bartender walked away and Luke looked at me, as if he was studying something fascinating.

  “What?” I asked.

  “I was just thinking that I’m glad I walked into your bar this evening, that’s all.”

  I looked back at Luke, unable to figure out if he was feeding me a line to get me into bed, or if he really meant what he’d said. Most of the guys I’d been with had just wanted a fuck, and to be honest, I wasn’t sure that I believed that there were any men who wanted anything else. I figured I’d just be careful. That was easier said than done, though, because Luke made me think of all sorts of things that were less than innocent.

  “I’m glad you did, too,” I replied. “I sure wouldn’t be at the Ritz, otherwise.” I realized that I might sound like a gold digger, so I tried to change the subject. “So you’ve had a tough week?”

  Luke looked up as the bartender brought us our drinks. “Thanks,” he said as the bartender set them down. After he walked away, Luke continued. “My parents both died a week ago. It was a car accident.”

  “Oh, Luke, I’m so sorry. How awful.”

  “Yeah, to be honest, I feel a little lost. They were really my only family, and we were pretty close.”

  I put my hand on Luke’s arm, and even though I really was trying to be thoughtful, I couldn’t help but notice the hard muscles beneath his black shirt. “Only a week ago?”

  “Yeah.” He stopped talking for a moment. “Are you sure you want to hear this? I might not be very good company tonight, now that I think about it.”

  I took a sip of my wine. “The wine’s delicious, this bar is gorgeous, and I’m happy to listen. Sometimes it helps just to talk about things.”r />
  “You’re very sweet.”

  I couldn’t help but laugh. “I sure don’t hear that very often.”

  “Well, I think you are.”

  “Go ahead, talk away, if you like,” I told Luke, taking another sip of my wine.

  “Well, it was bad enough that my parents both died, but what happened next was the shocker. My parents adopted me when I was a baby, and they’d always told me that because it was a closed adoption, I had no way of locating my birth parents. A few days after they died, I met with their attorney — the one who’d drawn up their will, and he gave me a file.”

  I was riveted. “What was in it?”

  “My parents had hired a private investigator years ago to track down my birth parents. The file contains their names and their address at the time the investigation was done. My parents wanted me to be able to contact them so I wouldn’t be completely alone after my parents passed away.”

  “Wow. That’s huge news.”

  “I know. And I don’t know how to feel about it. Part of me wonders why my birth parents didn’t want me, and part of me can’t wait to meet them.”

  I felt just awful for Luke. “So what are you going to do?”

  “Well, they live in Denver, so I’m here to find them. I haven’t decided whether I want to talk to them or not, but I at least want to see where they live and try to get a look at them. I figure I’ll decide when I see them if I want to say anything.”

  “Well, I’m sure they’ll want to meet you.” Given the dirtbags I’d spent time with, I couldn’t imagine parents not being proud of Luke. I’m sure my parents would be much happier if he had been their kid instead of me, in fact. Listening to Luke talk fondly about his parents who’d just passed away tugged at my heart a little as I remembered the huge fight we’d had over a year ago — the last time I’d talked to either of them.

  “Maybe not, though.” Luke’s statement brought me pack to the present. “What if they have other kids and don’t want to have to explain that they gave up a child? What if they don’t want another complication in their lives?”

  “A complication?” I asked. “How could you think that? Meeting you could be something they’ve hoped for.”

  “Could be. Could be the opposite. Anyway, I figured I’d take a little time off work and come find out. My parents left me some money, and I figured I’d blow a little of it on a fancy hotel — hoping to take my mind off the mess I’m in.”

  “You sure picked the right spot for that,” I said, wowed by the fancy bar.

  “Yeah. Part of me wants to drink until I can’t think straight anymore, and part of me wants to just dive in, tackle this problem, and get it all over with.”

  “I can’t imagine how hard it is to deal with everything that’s happened.”

  “Yeah,” Luke said, polishing off the last of his scotch. “Let’s talk about something else. Tell me about yourself.”

  “Not much to tell. I work at Falling Rock and go to school part time. I wish I could afford to go full-time, but it’s just too expensive.”

  “Where do you go to school?”

  “I’m at the community college.” I looked at my watch and realized that Bug would probably be calling me soon. He was ridiculously jealous, even though I didn’t think he actually cared about me that much. I think he mostly didn’t want anyone else to have me. He’d been so jealous of Moses, and I thought that after Moses had been killed that things might settle down. They hadn’t.

  “You have somewhere to be?” Luke asked when he saw me check the time.

  “No, but I’m expecting a call at some point.”

  “Boyfriend?” he asked.

  I sighed, unsure how to answer. “Sort of. Maybe. I don’t know. It’s complicated.” I didn’t want to lie to Luke, but the situation with Bug really was complicated — not exactly settled.

  “What a shame. I was hoping that you were single, to be honest.”

  “Well, he doesn’t own me, that’s for sure. I don’t really want to get into it, but I can do what I want.”

  “Do you want to go to a ballgame with me?”

  I smiled at him and thought that I’d never been asked out by a man as sexy as he was. Moses had been as hot, but we hadn’t really dated. There hadn’t been candlelight dinners and romance. There had been plenty of hot sex, though. Knowing that Luke was in town just for a short while, I wondered if I should just leave him alone, or if I should try to make something happen. He was so gorgeous that I wanted to sleep with him. I’d never been with a guy as polished as he was, and I wondered what he’d be like in bed.

  I didn’t know what to say. Part of me wanted to take him upstairs to his room and keep him up all night long. Part of me wanted to let him move on with his life without getting involved with a girl as messed up as me.

  I figured I’d hedge my bets. “Haven’t had a chance to check my calendar yet,” I said with what I hoped was a sexy smile.

  “A gorgeous woman who plays hard to get,” Luke observed while shaking his head. “I do love a challenge.”

  Chapter 5

  Luke

  I ordered another scotch for me and a second glass of wine for Krystal. I knew I should probably lay off the booze and go to bed, but I was really enjoying talking to Krystal. Not only was she smoking hot, but she seemed like a genuinely nice person. The fact that she had a boyfriend — or whatever he was — gave me pause, but she was a grownup, and they weren’t married. I figured it was okay to give it a shot — try to get her to agree to go out with me. It wasn’t like I was proposing. I was only in town for a little while, and I was enjoying the company.

  “So about that ballgame?” I asked again.

  Krystal sighed dramatically, and I couldn’t help but notice her curves underneath her t-shirt. Goddamn, did I want to see her naked. I realized that the scotch wasn’t helping my decision-making.

  “Tell you what,” she said after a moment’s thought. “I’ll give you my number, and you can call or text me if you check the schedule and want to go later in the week.”

  I felt like I’d won the lottery. “Done,” I said instantly. “I’d check the schedule now, but I don’t want to waste a moment of my time with you, and anyway, I think I’ve had too much to drink to manage it.”

  Krystal laughed and reached into her purse for a pen and paper. “Well if you can’t look up the schedule, then I can’t very well trust you to store my number.” She wrote down her number and handed me the piece of paper. “Don’t lose it, now.”

  “Not a chance,” I said, putting it carefully into my wallet. I was really starting to feel the booze.

  “Luke,” Krystal started, as she looked at her glass of wine. “This has to be my last drink. I’d love to stay longer, but I have a long day tomorrow. I have an assignment due by ten o’clock, and then I have to work the lunch shift.”

  “Well, it would be ungentlemanly of me to keep you out later than you want. I’m glad you agreed to have a drink with me, and I will call or text you tomorrow for sure.”

  I wasn’t sure, but it looked like Krystal was almost disappointed that I wasn’t trying to get her to stay out later.

  She finished off her wine and stood up. “Thanks for the drink, Luke. It was nice to meet you.”

  Goddamn, was she sexy. I decided to make one last play. “Wanna come up and see my room? It’s the biggest suite here.” I could hear myself slurring my words a bit, and I hoped Krystal wouldn’t notice.

  She stood there, studying me, and she looked like she was struggling to decide what to do.

  “I promise to be a gentleman. I won’t attack you. The room is really gorgeous, though. Great view of the city and a bathtub big enough for four people.”

  “Okay,” she said at last. “I’ll come up, but just for a minute. I don’t guess I’ll have another opportunity to see a suite at the Ritz.”

  I slammed the rest of my scotch, waved over the bartender and signed the slip to charge the drinks to my room.

  Krys
tal and I walked back into the lobby and I pointed the way to the elevators. All of a sudden, I felt nervous. I wondered what Krystal was expecting from me. I could tell that she was interested in me, but she seemed a little conflicted. I figured it had something to do with the guy whose call she was expecting. I resolved to be a gentleman, though, and I pressed the button for my floor.

  I turned to face Krystal. I was all nervous, and she looked cool as a cucumber. I was about to try to make small talk when I heard her cell phone vibrate. She pulled it from her purse, pressed a button, and put it away.

  “Not going to answer it?” I asked.

  “Nope,” she replied. “I’ll deal with it later.”

  The elevator chimed to announce our arrival at the floor, and I gestured for Krystal to precede me into the hall. She stood there, unsure which way to go, and I stared, unable to take my eyes off her absolutely perfect ass. She turned around and caught me staring.

  “Enjoying the view?” she asked with a wicked, sultry smile.

  “I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about,” I said as I put my hand on the small of her back, just over the tattoo that had teased me at the bar.

  I directed her toward the room and concentrated hard so that I wouldn’t fumble with the key. I was trying to act much more sober than I felt. I slid the card key into the lock, and opened the door. Krystal stepped inside and I followed her, looking forward to hearing her reaction to the enormous, lavish suite.

  She walked toward the huge windows, turning to take it all in. “Wow. Just wow. All of this space just for you?” she asked. “You could fit a circus in here.”

  I laughed. “Maybe tomorrow. For tonight, it’s just me…and you, for now.”

  She turned to look back at me, and I had no idea what she was thinking. She studied me for a while, and looked me up and down, as if she were evaluating something for sale. She turned back to the window without a word.

  “Want a drink?” I said, walking over to the bar to get myself a ginger ale — without the scotch this time.