Neutral Zone

by Amber Lynn

  “Nope. Curtis says he’s taking Hannah home. Maggie apparently rushed to comfort the dick you made sing soprano and they evidently hit it off.”

  He knew a part of him should’ve at least been moderately protective of the woman he’d spent the afternoon with, especially hearing she’d set her attentions on a borderline rapist, but he could care less. If anyone wanted to question how relationships worked for him, there was their answer.

  “Big surprise there, on the Curtis and Hannah front. It’s not even nine o’clock, right? I don’t remember the last time I went out for the night at seven, but it was the only way they’d agree to come out.”

  Nina sucked the salt into her mouth when she finished her words and grabbed the tequila from the table to pour a shot. She made quick work of slamming the shot and putting a lime wedge in her mouth.

  Not wanting to be left behind, Brady put his phone on the table and followed her motions. He expected a burn when he took the shot, but it went down smooth. There was a slow heat that followed it down, but the zing from the lime was harsher than the drink itself.

  Nina reached over and picked up the bottle to take a closer look at it. Brady wasn’t sure what made the liquid a cool blue. As long as it gave him a buzz, he really didn’t care.

  “I was surprised you got them to come out at all. Too much excitement might open up those floodgates and bring our godchildren into the world a little early.”

  Curtis had mentioned wanting Brady and Nina to get along because of the kids, so he thought it was a good idea to bring them up. The subject of kids wasn’t one he liked, but hopefully, it would get him to quit letting his eyes drift down to Nina’s breasts peeking out above her dress. Yeah, he knew it wasn’t likely, but he could hope.

  She took another quick shot, forgoing the salt and lime before she responded. After the shot, she shook her head and let out a big breath.

  “That’s right. For some reason our two best friends are all of a sudden religious enough that godparents are required for their kids. I don’t know about Curtis, but I’ve known Hannah for decades and not once did I hear about her going to church.”

  Nina poured another shot and filled Brady’s glass at the same time. It would’ve been rude for him not to drink, so he went ahead and followed her lead. Shots weren’t his thing, but he was game to see how much of the bottle they’d get through.

  Putting the glass down, he cleared his throat. Nina quickly filled it right back up. She obviously was having a tougher night than he thought.

  “Curtis isn’t a church-goer either, but his mom and her side of the family are. I’m sure they’re just doing it to appease her.”

  Nina nodded as she took her fourth shot. As she poured her next one and set the bottle down, Brady made note that they were already about halfway through the bottle. If she kept it up, it’d be gone within twenty minutes of them sitting down.

  “That makes sense. I think it’s stupid that they’d pick the two of us. We’re the furthest thing from good role models in this city.”

  A small hiccup escaped Nina’s mouth, causing her to lift her hands up to cover it. The reaction was cute, but only lasted a second as Nina straightened up and leaned back in her chair.

  “I’m pretty sure they could do worse.”

  Brady didn’t think the title came with any responsibility other than saying some words to appease Curtis’ mom. The chances of either of them being called upon for babysitting duties were slim to none.

  Nina crossed her right leg over her left as she looked at him skeptically. Brady barely saw the look as his eyes followed her toned legs in action.

  “Of course they could do worse.” Nina licked her hand again and poured salt on it before she continued. “They could have picked a drug addict and prostitute as godparents. I think I have one or two of those somewhere in my family tree to offer up.”

  She took her shot and slammed the glass on the table. Brady went ahead and filled his and her glass back up, but he didn’t make any move towards drinking it. The couple shots he had were enough to tell him too much more would cloud his judgment more than he wanted. Just being around Nina did that enough, and he was trying to honor Curtis’ desire that they got along.

  “Don’t rule out the bank robbers and mass murderers. There are plenty of great choices if they smart up and find someone else.”

  Brady smiled as he made his point and slid down in his chair some. He spread his legs wider apart, trying to magically find a little extra room in his pants. It wasn’t going to happen, especially since playing around with Maggie all day hadn’t taken the edge off.

  “Maybe that’s why they picked us. We’ll make sure all those bad examples don’t get anywhere near those two kids. Anyway, do you have a medical problem or something?” Nina pointed to his crotch. “I know you guys are in your offseason or whatever, but it can’t be comfortable while you’re playing. Does the cold of the ice help?”

  For some, the mocking tone would be a deterrent, but it only made Brady want to push back. Their interactions were usually filled with a slightly heated back and forth. For some reason, Curtis thought they were always fighting, but Brady thought of it more as a match of wits. Whether either of them technically had any wits was always in question.

  “Why do you think I play? The doctors say it’s the only treatment for my ailment.”

  Nina playfully laughed as she tilted her head back and closed her eyes. When she didn’t say anything for a minute or two, Brady thought maybe she’d fallen to sleep. He’d never seen her drink anything like tequila, so he wasn’t sure if she was prone to falling asleep after so many shots.

  “Are you a betting man, Brady McDonald?”

  She didn’t move, not even to open her eyes. For a second, Brady thought he’d imagined the words, because he was staring at her face and hadn’t seen her lips move.

  “Only if there’s something I want involved.”

  That wasn’t particularly true, since there were always silly bets going on around the locker room. It just sounded better the way he said it.

  “I’m pretty sure there is. We’ve been playing around with this attraction between us for almost a year now. I think we’re both generally on the same wavelength in life, so let’s have a little fun. I’m tired of mediocre sex and I have a feeling you would provide at least a notch above that.”

  She had his attention when she acknowledged the attraction. Stating that he could only manage a notch above mediocre in bed caused his brow to rise.

  “Oh don’t look at me like that. My recent run of bed buddies has taught me not to get my hopes up. The bet I was going to suggest, before your scowl rudely interrupted, is that we abstain for say a month and then if we both happen to pull that off, we spend an entire weekend getting all the pent-up lust and frustration from this attraction out of our system.”

  Nina wasn’t slurring her words, but she had to be drunk. He knew he wasn’t drunk, which made the reason for him actually considering the idea a complete mystery. The month part of it seemed crazy, but the reward was hard to pass up.

  “Two weeks.”

  The last time Brady had gone two weeks without sex was more than likely when he was ten. That was an exaggeration, but the margin of error was within five years.

  “Three.”

  “You seriously think you can go three weeks without hooking up?”

  Nina smiled and leaned forward, making sure her bright blue eyes had Brady stuck in their hold. Of all the outcomes the night could’ve had, the bet they were bargaining over wasn’t something even in Brady’s wildest dreams. He’d jumped through some hoops when he continued to flirt with Nina for months after they met, but he’d never abstained from sex.

  “I was the one who started at a month. Are you in?”

  Chances were whenever she slept off the tequila, she’d change her mind, so Brady didn’t see any reason not to go along with the challenge. He imagined she’d call him up and take it all back, if she even remembered it.
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  “Sure,” he said slowly. “Let’s do it.”

  Chapter 5

  “You did what?” Hannah squealed in an octave that made Nina put a finger in her ear. “Why in the world would you bet Brady to not have sex? I don’t understand how that even works.”

  Nina had thought Hannah would like the little game she’d decided to play. She always went on and on about how Nina should find someone to at least pretend to be serious with. Vowing to not have sex for weeks in the hopes of having something that would pull her out of the funk she’d been in was as close as Nina Hughes got to an honest to god relationship.

  “You don’t know how not having sex works? You can’t tell me you and Curtis are still at it with you being the size of the house.”

  They were sitting on opposite couches in Hannah’s living room. Although, Nina wasn’t sure she classified the weird brown lumpy thing Hannah sat on as a couch. Nina had tried to tell her friend many times she needed to put her foot down and get rid of the thing. As with many things, Hannah totally ignored the suggestion.

  “What’s going on in my sex life is none of your concern. Normally, I wouldn’t want to hear about yours, but you just kind of dropped a bomb on me. Brady actually agreed to this crazy idea?”

  Hannah reached over and grabbed a cookie from the plate next to her. Nina kept her comments to herself as far as asking whether Hannah really needed a fifth cookie. She was eating for three and all, but seeing a total lack of self-control when it came to food drove Nina crazy.

  That was probably reason number one that Nina should never have a kid. Her figure was something she’d never give up.

  “He’d only had a couple shots at the time, so I’m pretty sure he was on board with it. Come on, you know it’s funny. I’ve got Mr. Playboy himself all tied up in so many knots that he’s willing to go without to have a chance at this.”

  Nina ran her hand up and down her body to illustrate exactly what he would win. They had a few details they still needed to iron out. It dawned on her after they finished the tequila and chased it down with a few cans of beer, there had to be some kind of punishment if one of them, or both of them, didn’t make it the full three weeks.

  At the very least, they had to invent some kind of checks and balances. Brady could find another desperate woman looking to make her boyfriend jealous at breakfast. After a few more drinks, he replayed the day for her. Most of the detail was clearly to make sure she got the idea he left women satisfied.

  Frankly, that had never been a question. Nina had seen a handful of women after they’d been with him, and all she saw was women who wanted more.

  Hannah dusted the crumbs off her purple shirt. Nina decided to wait and see how long it would take her to notice the frosting she’d left on her upper lip. Hannah had never been big about wearing makeup, or really pampering herself at all. As soon as the gremlins were out of her, Nina vowed a spa day was in order for the two of them.

  “It’s not funny. It’s impossible. You two have more sex combined than probably everyone who lives in your apartment building.”

  Nina nodded her head to the side and shrugged. When she got around to clarifying things with Brady, she was going to make sure there was an understanding that sex that broke the bet only involved other people. Sure, she’d mentioned that they kept it all pent up, but she was a reasonable woman.

  “I feel sorry for those people if that’s the case. But look, you can’t be upset that I’m finally taking your advice. You and your husband told me to just screw Brady and get it over with. That’s what I’m doing.”

  “In the most bizarre way possible,” Hannah interrupted before Nina finished.

  “Hey, he was damn lucky I didn’t kick his ass for interrupting me teaching that guy a lesson last night. He was even luckier that he bought a bottle of tequila for us that put me in a good mood.”

  “So good that you’re willing to give up the toilet paper boy toys? I can’t believe there’s a bottle of anything that makes you want to do that.”

  It was annoying that Hannah insisted on calling the guys Nina spent time with toilet paper, and she let her friend know it as she narrowed her eyes. Nina had never sat down to think of something better to call them, but Hannah had enough free time on her hands that she should’ve come up with a more pleasant term.

  “I’m bored, Hans. Between trying to be good so you don’t kick me out of your life again and dealing with guys who can only pretend to know what they’re doing when it comes to the bedroom, I need some kind of fun and excitement in my life.”

  “And where exactly does the fun and excitement come in? Neither one of you are going to last a week. Chances are high he’s already voided the bet.”

  Nina pouted. She’d thought that herself, but she didn’t want someone else coming to that conclusion.

  “You said Curtis and Brady are at one of their workouts, so unless you’re going to tell me that they have a special relationship, I’m thinking there’s a good chance he hasn’t already lost the bet.”

  Hannah sighed and grabbed another cookie. If she kept trying to kill Nina’s mood, those cookies were going to be snatched away from her.

  “I don’t know why you’re calling it a bet. It’s an agreement, if that. I mean you were both drunk, so it can’t be binding.”

  “Why are you such a downer this morning? I thought you’d be excited that I’m switching things up.”

  Nina had expected plenty of surprise when she shared the news, but the negativity brought her mood down a notch. It wasn’t like it was the first time she’d done something similar. In the twelfth grade she bet someone she could go two months without opening a single text book and still manage to get at least a B in all her classes.

  The comparison wasn’t great, since she hadn’t opened a textbook before the bet, but the idiot teacher making the bet with her didn’t know that for sure. High school life was easy with all the geeks tripping over themselves to help her out.

  “Quit thinking about high school, would you? God, you get this sappy look on your face that makes me think your body’s been taken over by aliens. Which, it very well might have if you’re betting Brady. There’s nothing in it for you, so it’s just stupid and can only make things worse.”

  Hannah had worked herself into enough of a rant that she sprung up from the couch and started pacing. After all the cookies, she could use a little exercise, so Nina sat back and watched as her friend walked from the couch to the front door and back again. Hannah still hadn’t really given an answer about why she was raining on Nina’s parade.

  Nina had been so excited that she’d cancelled a meeting to tell Hannah the news. Cancelling meetings was something she did often, but not when it came to her hair stylist. She pretended to have the sniffles to make sure the stylist didn’t think she was jumping ship. Most people had to wait a whole year to get in to see Nicole, and Nina didn’t want to lose her clout with the woman.

  “How is it going to make things worse? I wasn’t the one who invited him to ‘Nina’s night out’ last night. He even told me you guys were trying to get us to hook up again. Mission accomplished. There’s a chance it will finally happen.”

  Waving her arms around helped reiterate the words. She was always demonstrative, but things tended to go up a level if she was agitated, at least more agitated then she was just dealing with people in general.

  “For once, I really need you to see this as a logical person,” Hannah said as she huffed and rubbed her belly as she continued doing laps around the room.

  Nina picked up her phone to look at the time. She’d been sitting on the leather couch for over thirty minutes. She’d rushed over around ten, thinking it would be a quick in and out, but clearly that idea was out the window.

  “Brady is Curtis’ best friend. It goes without saying that before I was in the picture, those two were completely attached at the hip. I’ve actually found Brady’s clothes in our closet.”

  The thought made Hannah shiver, and at t
he same time made Nina wonder if she could check out said clothing. She knew the man had some fashion sense, but she was curious what kinds of things he left at his friend’s house.

  “That’s beside the point. You screwed with Curtis once, and he’s never, ever going to forgive you for it, which makes you hanging around hard enough. If you fuck this up and things go south between you and Brady, and believe me, there’s no question in my mind that they will, Curtis is going to kill you.”

  Nina chuckled. It started small, but she raised her hand up to cover her mouth as she kept playing the words over in her head. That was what Hannah was worried about? Curtis killing Nina.

  The pair of them had been at war for over a decade. He’d told her plenty of times that he wanted to or was going to kill her, and not once did she ruin a manicure by chewing on her fingers in terror. The man was all bark and no bite.

  “It’s not funny, Nina. Brady isn’t my favorite person in the world, but he’s never done anything to cause me grief, and he’s got Curtis’ back when he needs it. I can’t have you doing something that would drive a wedge between them.”

  “Hasn’t done anything to cause you grief? The man is a borderline imbecile at best sometimes. Do I have to remind you of all my grievances with the wedding reception he threw you? He somehow got under my skin last night, or rather the fact that his big dick is always hard around me finally got to me, but the guy is an idiot, like everyone else we deal with day in and day out.”

  Anytime he came up in conversation, Nina liked to bring up the horrid event that was their wedding reception. Nina had gotten to the wedding just in time to make sure that it wasn’t a failure, but it was too late to do anything about the food and drinks and just general atmosphere of the reception.

  “Well, at least you acknowledge you think I have a big dick. We could put this whole deal you proposed last night on ice and go upstairs to one of the guest rooms, so I can give you a closer look.”

  Nina looked over her shoulder to see the owner of the voice standing in the door that connected the living room and kitchen. Of course, the man they’d been going back and forth about just happened to walk into the room with Curtis at his side. And of course, his skin was all glistening from either the sweat of a workout or the shower following a workout. Since he was in a t-shirt and pair of jeans, Nina thought it was probably the latter.