Taming Wes: BOOK THREE|BILLINGSLEY SERIES

by Ellen, Melissa

  “Are you sure about you and Wes?” Lottie tried again once the laughter died down. “Because things seemed pretty tense between you two outside my house earlier.”

  I bit at my lip. It was harder to deny how being around Wes made me feel when my guard was weakened with alcohol. “I’m sure. Like I said, I’m in no place. I’m sure you girls probably already know that after what happened the other day.”

  They all three nodded, looking at me with understanding expressions. “You don’t have to talk about it. We won’t pry,” Hannah offered, and the other two nodded in agreement.

  “Honestly…I kind of do feel like talking about it. I mean why the hell not? Right? Everyone already knows the worst of it, that the man I thought I’d be spending the rest of my life with was fucking his co-worker on the side for months and I didn’t have a clue. Not until I walked in on them of course… I mean, then I had more than a clue. I had her tiny white ass in my face.”

  “Asshole,” Leighton chimed in, stealing Hannah’s shot of water. She emptied it, then slammed the glass on the table. Spinning to face the bar, she did some sort of weird baseball signal aimed at Timmy across the room. The only thing I could figure was she was trying to order us another round.

  “How long were you guys together?” Hannah asked.

  “Four years. Four freaking years I wasted my life on him. Which is exactly why Wes and I will never happen. I made the mistake of falling for a playboy once, I won’t do it again.” I took my shot. “No offense, Lottie,” I added before biting into my lime.

  She put up both her hands. “None taken. I know his reputation as well as anyone. But I also know he’s a good man with a big heart behind that wall he’s built to guard himself. I just have no idea why he’s chosen to hide it.”

  Her admission surprised me, but I didn’t have a chance to think about it long before Leighton was putting her two cents in once again.

  “Well, don’t sweat it girl. You have the right idea. I don’t know why women always gotta be jumping into that shit. There’s a reason there are toys for the tidbits.”

  “You’ve been married longer than all of us. I don’t know what you’re preaching on about,” Hannah commented.

  “Exactly.” She lifted her finger in the air, as if she’d made a profound proclamation. “I have the most valuable input here. Play the field, girl”—she pointed her finger at me—"and don’t tie yourself down too fast. Not that I regret it… There’s a reason I locked Aaron down when I did.”

  Timmy chose that moment to show up with another round of shots for us. “Ain’t that right, Timmy?” Leighton slurred.

  Timmy placed the shot glasses on the table and snatched up the empties. “Anything that comes out of your mouth, Leighton, is either a load of bull shit or a load of horse shit.” He smirked with his adorable eyes.

  She smacked at his arm and he flinched away, chuckling. “You got these ladies under control?” he asked, looking over at Hannah.

  “What do you think?” She grinned.

  “That’s what I was afraid of,” he sighed, walking away.

  6

  WES

  “What’s up man?” I asked, answering my phone as I headed out for a night with Mandy.

  “Your old man just called the station. Sounds like some high-school kids are out on your land again. I was about to get off duty. You want me to handle it?” Roger asked.

  I opened my truck door, glancing across the dark, open fields, where I could hear the faint sound of music echoing from Tucker and Lottie’s place. The whole house was lit up, and I could smell a fire burning in the distance. Just thinking about Devin sitting around that fire, with the women I considered to be family, had me tugging on the bill of my hat. I knew I should get as far away from here as possible, before I changed my mind about this hook up.

  Damn it.

  “Yeah. I’ll meet you out there. They in the same spot as usual?”

  “Yep, down at the river,” Roger confirmed. “I’m about five minutes out.”

  “Okay. I’ll see you there.” I ended the call and then shot Mandy a text, letting her know I wasn’t going to make it, all while I tried to convince myself it had nothing to do with Devin.

  I’d already been second-guessing whether I should go out with Mandy. I’d started to get the feeling she was wanting more from me than just the occasional fuck. She was one of the only girls I messed around with on the regular, mostly because she was fun and didn’t seem to care what I did. But lately, it seemed she was taking that to mean more than it did.

  It’d probably be best if I ended things with her altogether before she got hurt. But I wasn’t going to do that over a text. I wasn’t that big of an asshole. It was a conversation I needed to have with her in person.

  When I saw a pair of high beams light up the pitch-black sky, I shook my head with a smile. I guess the girls called it an early night and were heading home. I gave one final look at Tucker’s place as I crawled into my truck.

  * * *

  Rolling to a stop next to Roger’s squad car, I took in the scene in front of me. Four kids stood by the tailgate of an old Chevy truck, looking scared shitless as his car’s spotlight shone brightly on them.

  Roger exited his car, meeting me at the side of my truck. “You recognize them?” he asked in a hushed voice.

  “I recognize one of them. That’s Ricky Logan. He’s the starting quarter back for varsity this year, isn’t he?”

  “Yep. And the other boy is his star receiver.”

  “Well, this should be fun,” I said in a low voice, being sure to wipe the grin off my face before we walked where they could see.

  Roger took the lead, shining his flashlight in Ricky’s eyes as we got closer. “You kids wanna tell me what you’re doing out here on private property?”

  “Nothing, sir,” Ricky spoke up first, stepping away from his friend and the two girls they had with them as he shielded his eyes with his arm. “Just hanging out, that’s all.”

  “We didn’t know it was private property,” one of the girls bravely added. The other one looked like she was near tears.

  “Uh, huh,” Roger said as I crossed my arms, doing my best to keep a straight face and look pissed. “You may not have, but these boys did. Ain’t that right, Zack?” Roger aimed his flashlight to the right, now blinding the receiver.

  The boy’s posture stiffened with a new wave of fear. “We didn’t mean any harm by it, Deputy Hill.”

  Ricky stepped back toward the braver girl, putting his arm around her. “We just wanted to find a good spot to look at the stars, sir.”

  I choked on a laugh, using my fist to cover my mouth and fake a cough. These boys were full of shit. Roger turned to look at me over his shoulder, giving me a warning look so I didn’t blow it. As he did, Zack slyly slid his foot to the side, kicking something under the truck tire. But he wasn’t sly enough. Roger saw it at the same time I did and pointed the beam of his flashlight to the spot where an empty beer can peeked out from behind the rear tire.

  “What do we have here?” Roger asked as he walked closer to the truck, shining his light inside the cab.

  He opened the door and looked around and under the seat, pulling out a poorly hidden twelve pack of Miller Light. He walked back to the rear tailgate, where the second girl was seriously about to cry, her friend with an arm around her trying to calm her.

  “It’s not ours!” Zack said in a hurry, and Ricky smacked him. “Ouch.” Zack rubbed at his shoulder.

  “Not yours, huh? Funny...I think you boys told me that the last time. Interestingly enough, there’s never anyone else around to claim it.”

  “Aww come on, Deputy Hill, can’t you cut us a break? You know what it’s like growing up in this town. There ain’t shit to do,” Ricky pleaded.

  “So, you think underage drinking and trespassing on private property is the answer?”

  All four kids shook their heads. I had no idea how Roger kept a straight face while lecturing them. We ha
d done the same damn thing growing up, with exception of the trespassing, since my family owned most the land surrounding town.

  “Does your coach know you boys are out here drinking during football season?”

  They shook their heads and Roger looked toward the girls. “What about you two? Your parents know?”

  “No, sir,” the braver one answered while the other one whimpered.

  Roger let out a heavy sigh as he turned his back to them, smiling and winking at me as he walked toward me with the partially full box of Miller Light. His smile vanished as he turned back around, his face hard and tone stern.

  “I’ll tell you what. I’m gonna let you off with a warning this time for the drinking. But if I catch you kids again, I’ll be calling all your parents. And your coach… I’ll have to confiscate this beer, though. As far as the trespassing, I’ll leave that up to Mr. Monroe, since it’s his property.”

  All four pairs of eyes flicked to me as they waited for my verdict. I shook my head in feigned disappointment, dropping my hands to my hips, maintaining a firm look on Ricky. “How much you had to drink?” I asked. There was no way I was letting these kids drive off on their own if he’d had too much to drink.

  “Barely finished half a beer, sir, when you guys drove up.”

  I could see in his eyes he was telling the truth. “All right, then. Get these girls home now, before I change my mind.”

  “Yes, sir,” he said as they all moved quickly to climb into the truck.

  “Oh, and Ricky…” I hollered.

  “Sir?” He stopped, looking back at me just before he climbed into the driver’s seat.

  “Good game last week.”

  “Thanks, sir,” he said, both of us grinning ear to ear. He shut his door, turning over the ignition, wasting no more time getting the hell out of there.

  As their taillights disappeared down the road, Roger held up the half-empty box of beer with a wide-ass smile. “I’m officially off duty. You got time for a beer?”

  “They cold?”

  “Mostly.”

  “Good enough for me,” I said with a friendly slap on his back as we walked to my truck, popping the tailgate.

  * * *

  “Damn…Jenna Hamilton…now there’s a blast from the past. Jenna…Jen-na.”

  “Will you quit saying her name like that?”

  “Like what?”

  “All slow and shit. And repeatedly. Just stop saying her damn name.”

  We’d been shooting the shit all night on my tailgate when he’d brought up Devin. It seemed I couldn’t go anywhere without her being a topic of conversation. Roger had only been giving me a hard time about me owing him double now after the ride home he’d given her and the beer he’d inadvertently provided us when she initially came up.

  “I’m sorry, man. I’m processing here. This is some funny shit, Jenna and that doctor being cousins…” Roger chuckled silently beside me as he took a drink.

  “It’s not funny.”

  “It’s funny to me.”

  “You’re a dick. I don’t know why we’re friends.”

  “Because who else could you get to drive drunk chicks home and steal you free beer from high-school kids?”

  “You got a point.” I grinned, taking down the last swallow of my beer. I tossed the empty can into the back of my truck bed and grabbed another.

  “And who would’ve guessed?”

  “You should’ve,” I scolded. “You should’ve fucking known the night you took her home and warned me, so I didn’t get blindsided.”

  He shrugged. “I didn’t ask for her family tree, just her address.” He tossed his own empty and grabbed the last beer, popping the top open.

  The sound of the beer cracking open and fizzing filled the gap in our conversation. We both sipped on our beers, listening to my radio play in the background.

  “So, what are you gonna do?” Roger broke the lull.

  “Nothing.”

  I felt his eyes on me as I stared straight ahead at the river.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. Really.”

  “All right, man,” he said with a single shake of his head, lifting the can to his lips. “We’re out. You wanna head to Dudley’s after this?”

  And that right there is truly why we were friends. Because unlike most people in my life, Roger knew better than to push me.

  “Why the hell not,” I agreed, downing the last of my beer.

  * * *

  Roger led the way to the bar after we stopped by his place for him to change out of his uniform and into civilian clothes. It wasn’t often he got a Friday night off, so he was always down for a night out when he had the chance.

  We entered through the rear delivery door, shaking Timmy’s hand on our way through the backbar. The three of us had all gone to school together and grown close over the years. Timmy hadn’t run with Roger and me back in the day. He’d been more into the music scene than the sports we played.

  “What’s happening, Timbo?” Roger asked, helping himself to a beer in the under-counter cooler.

  Timmy picked up his rag, resuming his efforts in drying off a few glasses to mix up some new drinks. “Getting my ass kicked, that’s what,” Timmy grumbled.

  The man worked every day of the week, refusing to hire a manager to give himself a night off. He didn’t trust anyone to run things the way he liked. Couldn’t blame the man. Dudley’s was his baby. And it was the best joint in town because of his hard work.

  He passed the freshly made drinks off to one of his waitresses before grabbing three shot glasses. “Your women are gonna drain me of all my tequila, Monroe.”

  “My women?” I asked, turning my eyes where he’d jerked his chin toward.

  Even if he hadn’t pointed me in their direction, my attention would have been drawn to the rowdy table of women surrounded by men cheering them on as they took back-to-back shots of tequila, then chugged a beer.

  Roger walked up beside me, where I stood fisting the beer he’d handed me, watching as Leighton and Devin raced to the finish. Devin beat Leighton by half a beer, slamming her empty onto the table, immediately throwing her hands in the air as she screamed in victory. Leighton flipped her off. Lottie and Hannah laughed. Then some jackass picked Devin up, spinning her around in some sort of celebratory dance.

  I scrubbed a palm over my mouth as I controlled the possessive impulse coursing through my veins after watching the dipshit with his hands all over her. And what the fuck was she wearing? She hadn’t been wearing that when I saw her earlier. The tight dress rode up, nearly exposing her ass as he lifted her higher in the air. My fist clenched as I nearly lost my shit.

  Roger gripped my shoulder, pointing the neck of his beer bottle toward the table. “Yep. Probably best you do nothing. I don’t think even you could handle a woman like that.”

  “Someone should probably warn Bradley he’s gonna have his hands full tonight,” Timmy said, joining us as we watched the wild scene unfold.

  “Why the hell are you still serving them?” I growled at Timmy.

  “They have a DD. And you try cutting them off. I already tried twice and nearly got my ass kicked by Leighton and Dr. Chaplin. Besides, this is your fault,” he said, pointing a finger at my chest.

  “How the fuck is this my fault?” I asked, peering over at Timmy.

  “Because the doc made me promise to keep the drinks coming to make it up to her for calling Roger the other night.”

  “Still not seeing how any of this shit is my fault,” I argued, staring back over at the table, where the guys were now trying to convince Lottie to let Leighton take a shot from her stomach.

  For fuck’s sake. What is this? Girls Gone Wild?

  “Tucker is gonna kick all of our asses if we don’t get this shit under control.” I pointed to where they were all now chanting Lottie’s name. Thank God she was refusing, but I wasn’t sure how much longer she’d hold out before they convinced her to do it.

  7

>   DEVIN

  I clutched my stomach, laughing while everyone continued to chant Lottie’s name. My abs ached from all the laughter tonight. I felt alive. I hadn’t acted this wild and crazy since college. And though I knew I’d probably have some regrets in the morning, it felt so damn freeing to just let loose.

  Lottie laughed as she kept shaking her head adamantly. She’d stopped drinking nearly an hour ago, letting Leighton and I battle off.

  “Okay, boys!” Hannah hollered over the ruckus. “I don’t think you’re gonna get her to accept this challenge.”

  I had no idea when the guys had joined us. But at some point in the night, they’d parked themselves at our table, throwing different drinking challenges at us. If we completed it, they paid for a round of our drinks and vice versa.

  They were here for a bachelor party. They’d driven over from another town not far from here, looking for a good time for their buddy. The soon-to-be groom was now passed out drunk in their car in the parking lot.

  The chanting died with Hannah’s announcement, and was replaced by good-hearted booing and groans. Most of the guys dispersed, headed for the bar, except for the one who’d been flirting with me all night.

  “How about we get out of here?” Ben asked, whispering into my ear with his arm draped across the back of my chair.

  Releasing a small laugh, I tucked my head to the side, lifting my shoulder to my ear where his voice had tickled it. He was cute and maybe in another lifetime I might have said yes. But before I could say anything, a large figure suddenly loomed over my back, silencing the whole table.

  “How about you get lost?” an authoritative voice demanded.

  I didn’t need to look to know who’d just issued that threat.

  Ben stood taller as he looked from me to Wes. “Excuse me?”

  “You heard me.”