“When did you get back in touch?”
“We’ve never been out of touch,” he said. “We all fuck off on our own sometimes, but we eventually check-in.” He considered her. “I didn’t talk to Arch for a few months. I was surprised as hell when he said he had a girl.”
“Why?” she asked. “He believes in fidelity.”
“Yeah, but I could tell straight off that you were different,” he said, peering closer. “Something about the way he talked about you. You weren’t just a regular lay, you meant something to him.”
“I meant so much that he kicked me to the curb the first chance he got.”
Nya didn’t like sounding self-pitying and she couldn’t argue that Archer hadn’t been clear. But she had to admit that she hadn’t believed he was serious. Putting him in the line of fire to save herself just wasn’t who she was, and after how they’d met and her reaction to protecting Tag, she figured he’d known that.
His threats about dumping her, she thought, were meant to let her know he’d be pissed if she got hurt. Nya hadn’t thought he’d actually leave her. That being the case, she wouldn’t change what she’d done, and she’d do it again if it came to it.
Derren shoved his glass with his fingertips, sending it skidding to the center of the table. “That’s just Arch, don’t take it personal. He’s rigid about his fucking rules and has more of them than I do. Ester let him do whatever the fuck he liked and their trailer was always a mess ‘til Archer started making rules for himself.”
So his way of rebelling was to clean up and follow rules… his own rules at least, because he sure didn’t care about the law.
“He’s lucky to have you,” she said.
His chin went up. “He says you don’t have folks.”
“That’s right.”
Pulling his chair closer to her, he folded his arms on the table. “I’m only telling you any of this ‘cause you’re family,” Derren said. “I’d never tell another breathing soul Archer’s secrets.”
Nya understood that. “He broke my heart, not my trust,” she said. “I would never hurt him or discuss him with anyone he didn’t trust.”
“You can prove it by telling me something about your life,” he said. “Where does Nya Yorke come from?”
Talking to Derren was easier than talking to Archer, maybe because she wasn’t invested in his judgement of her. He’d been honest and so she was truthful with him about her family life and childhood. Sharing her history with a person who’d be in her life for such a fleeting time might have seemed like a waste of time, but her step was lighter for the rest of the day.
She’d told Archer that her old nightmare was over because she’d faced those demons. Since then, she’d confronted things about herself and her own psyche that gave her a new outlook. It was just a shame she had no one to share this new attitude with.
Nya got through the Saturday night at the club and spent most of Sunday there making plans for the renovations that were starting that week. She’d given Jada instructions and left early so she could read through the information she’d printed off the internet about selling a business versus managing it by proxy. Nya knew nothing about this shit and would have to bone up fast, because time was running out for her to make a decision before renovations started.
She had just got out of a cab at her apartment building when her phone rang. “Tag?” she asked.
“I need to talk to Archer.”
Sure he did, she swallowed a grumble and fumbled for her door keys. Since Levi had moved in the communal door was locked more often and as a woman on her own, she appreciated that even if it meant a delay for her on the sidewalk.
“I’m not with him,” she said, going into the entryway, and since she had her keys out anyway, she stuffed her folders under her arm, shoved her purse aside and headed for her mailbox. “Call him on the phone.”
“I’ve been calling him all day,” Tag hissed. “The fucker won’t pick up.”
“I wonder why that is, Tag, maybe ‘cause you threatened to kick his ass.”
“You think he’s afraid of me?”
No, not even a tiny bit, but she couldn’t say that. “I think he’s angry… or maybe he’s just busy.”
“What does he have on today?”
Tag had told her that Archer was bad for her, was thrilled when they broke up—told her to cut all ties, or at the very least, limit her contact. And now that she didn’t know the details of her ex’s schedule, it was inconvenient for her friend.
Even when they’d been together there were times it was impossible to get information about Archer’s plans out of him. “I have no idea,” she said. “He doesn’t share the details of his calendar with me.”
“Will you call him for me?” Tag asked.
She didn’t like how frantic he sounded; either something was really wrong or he was using drugs. If it was the latter, being that it was only around nine-thirty, that didn’t suggest social usage. “I don’t need to talk to him,” she said. The last thing she wanted to be was in the middle of the two men again.
“He’ll pick up if you call, you know it, please, Yorkie.”
“Fine,” she said, looking through the letters she’d pulled from her mailbox. When she saw nothing interesting, she unlocked the box above hers. “I will tell him to call you. But that’s it, Tag, and don’t fuck him around, ok? It’s not the way to get him to do you a favor.”
“Thanks, Yorkie.”
They hung up and she dialed Archer, although Tag was wrong, he didn’t pick up and the call went to voicemail. She was looking through his mail when she heard the beep. “It’s me, Tag says you’re not picking up and he has to talk to you,” she said, and clutched the letters to her chest as she frowned at the wall. “Is this about Gio? You bypassed me completely, didn’t you?” They hadn’t talked since their mutual gratification incident in the hallway. “You’re not going to be weird with me now after… whatever. Call Tag, please.”
She hung up, stuffed the letters into her bag, and locked up the mailboxes. She’d just pulled out her key, when she heard the apartment door behind her open.
Whirling around, she saw Levi admiring her. Nya thought he’d hate her and be running for safety, but his eyes had definitely been on her ass before she turned around. “Do you want to get a drink?”
Wow, ok, that was unexpected. Nya wasn’t sure where this was going. “I’m sorry about the other day, he’s protective, but he’s not usually such a pig.”
Actually, he could be, but most of the time, in public, Archer was amiable. He wasn’t super social, but he was only rude to people who’d done him wrong. Unless these two shared history that she didn’t know about, Levi had done nothing to wrong him.
“I’m gonna guess you guys broke up recently,” he said.
“Forty-four days.”
He smiled. “She’s still counting it in days.”
Yeah, that did make her sound pathetic. “Sorry, it’s… habit, and one I’m trying to break.”
“Then you should come for a drink with me,” he said. “There’s a bar just a block over, I’ve been meaning to check it out.”
A shithole bar with bare floorboards, standing room only, and a distinct smell of urine lingering in the air. “It’s a dive bar full of old men,” she said. “I don’t think we’d fit in.”
“If you know somewhere better, I’m up for trying anything,” he said, leaving his apartment to come closer. “I got invited in to everybody’s place except your ex-boyfriend’s. I think that deserves a consolation prize.”
It probably did and after the way Archer had treated him, Nya didn’t want to create more friction. “Let me dump this stuff upstairs and get changed. I’ll come back down in ten.”
“Deal,” he said. “And if you want to get dinner too…”
“A drink is all I’m committing to,” she said.
He could ask all he liked, but she couldn’t sit through a meal when she had so much to do. She’d go to the old-man bar
with him, he’d hate it, and then they could come home, so she could get through her reading.
eight
“Ok, you were right,” Levi said as they walked back into their building.
The bar was as awful as she remembered from the one time Archer had taken her in there. He’d gone in to pick up a message, and they were only there for a few minutes. But it was a few minutes longer than she’d wanted to be there.
In The Tavern, a woman stuck out like a Christmas tree wrapped in neon lights in July, but it had been fun all the same. She and Levi spent some time talking about how awful the place was, they commented on the décor, and what they might, or might not, adopt for their building.
That conversation took them onto her upcoming renovations at Sizzle. Levi was impressed that she owned a club; she didn’t explain how it had happened.
She was used to Archer walking her home, so when Levi bypassed his place and started up the stairs with her, she assumed he was doing the same thing. Her files were lying on her dining table and she thought about how long it would take to get through them as she pulled her keys out of her pocket.
Unlocking the door, she turned and was startled to find him standing so close. “Uh, I had a good time,” she said.
He got even closer, putting a hand on the doorframe to lean in to her. “Dinner next time?” he asked.
Putting a hand on his chest, she maintained some pressure to stop him getting any closer. “I was being neighborly, Levi. I felt bad for the other day. I’m not interested in… you know, dating you.”
Great, she’d hoped to apologize for the other day and now she was insulting him again.
“You’re not interested or you’re worried about what our neighbor might do if he finds out we’re seeing each other?”
“We’re not seeing each other,” she said, pushing harder when he tried to lean down. “Archer’s a man of his word, you don’t want to push him.”
Levi’s swagger wasn’t affected. “I’m not afraid of him.”
“You should be.”
The deep growl behind Levi came a fraction of a second before he was hauled off and tossed to the opposite wall. “Archer!” Nya didn’t even need to register the identity of the attacker; she could smell his possessive rage.
Archer pinned Levi to the wall with a forearm on his chest. Levi grabbed hold and tried to pull it down, but he couldn’t budge it.
“You had your fucking warning,” Archer snarled.
When his hand twisted to the back of his waistband, she leaped forward to grab his wrist after he unsheathed his knife. Clinging onto him, she pulled back with all her weight to stop him taking the blade to Levi.
“No! You can’t kill him! Nothing happened!”
“You can’t tell her who to date!” Levi called out and she wanted to snap at him to shut up. Her arms were aching at the amount of strength she exerted holding Archer’s arm back from what it wanted to do. “Who do you think you are?”
“I’m the boyfriend, you fucker,” Archer barked.
“Ex! You’re the ex-boyfriend!” Levi spat back.
Archer surged forward, pressing more of his weight into his victim. “Not anymore.”
Nya’s shock made her relax, giving the knife a chance to move. Panicked by that sight, Nya’s muscles clenched and she swung herself around into the inside crook of Archer’s elbow. The force of her sweeping turn made her hit both Levi and Archer where their bodies connected.
While Archer didn’t take his eyes from his victim, she could see him. Archer’s tense expression was fierce and angry, he wanted to kill this guy, wanted to inflict pain, and he was capable. But she wasn’t sure if he knew what he’d said, let alone if he meant it. Just like when he told her that he loved her for the first time, he spoke before his mind kicked in.
“Don’t talk shit. You’re not together,” Levi said.
Nya was still gazing at Archer, waiting for some clarification. “Archer?”
Though his eyes dropped onto hers, his fury was still hot. “Doing my job, protecting my turf. Get your ass inside.”
“Gimme the knife,” she said, curling her hand around his on the handle. “Please, baby, just give it to me.”
She couldn’t let him kill Levi when nothing had happened between her and the neighbor. Out here in the hallway, clean up would be tough, and as soon as Reyes heard the commotion he’d be out to pass judgement.
Slanting toward her, Archer got in her face without letting Levi move. “You’re gonna get it fucking good tonight, baby. We’ve got forty-four days to catch up on.”
So she wasn’t the only one who’d been counting the days after all. Pure anticipation speared her heart and a bolt of pleasure fired outward. Struggling to focus on the consequences of what might happen out here while her mind considered what might happen inside the apartment, she swallowed.
“If you hurt him…”
Swooping down, Archer kissed her fast. “You still my girl?”
“You know I am,” she whispered, bringing his knife-wielding hand to the curve of her neck, she nestled the danger close.
“Then trust me. Get your pussy into that apartment, take off your clothes, and wait for me in bed.”
She didn’t know if he was serious, but she read hunger in his eyes and it made her belly tighten. When she moved away, she felt Levi try to move at her back, but Archer thrust him to the wall.
Levi said her name.
Archer had asked her to trust him, and following his instructions was the best way to help Levi out, so she ignored their neighbor and kept going. If Archer wanted to have a word and warn the guy off, Nya wasn’t going to make a scene.
Going inside, she took off her jacket and shoes, but didn’t go so far as to take off her clothes because she still didn’t know if Archer had meant what he said or if he was making a show for Levi. Nya wasn’t going to embarrass herself by being an eager beaver. A couple of weeks ago, sure, but not any more.
Eventually, Archer’s hand smacked the door open, he grabbed it and threw it into the frame and marched up close, so close that his body hit hers.
“You’re not naked,” he grunted.
“You’re not sane.”
“Give me shit later, Ny. My cock is gasping.”
Seizing the back of her head, he raised her up onto the tips of her toes and opened his mouth over hers. Bending his knees, he scooped his arm around her pelvis, and hoisted her from the floor. He took two steps forward and began to lower her onto the dining table.
“Mm, no,” she said, struggling to free her mouth from his that was so amorous and desperate to devour her that it fought to keep consuming her. “Not here.”
Impatient, Archer kept trying to kiss her. “It’s not our first time,” he said fast like he was pissed off she was delaying their joining.
“It won’t hold,” she said, grabbing his hair to kiss him again.
If he put her on that feeble surface, it would buckle beneath their passion. It was little more than a bistro table that wouldn’t give them much room to maneuver.
Archer didn’t let her complaint slow him down. His long legs ate up the floor and before she had a chance to open her eyes, he was putting her on her back on her bed. “I told you to be fucking naked,” he said, kneeling over her to rip off his own tee shirt and jeans.
Opening her hands on his corrugated abs, Nya whispered her delight and stroked them up to his hard chest as he doubled over her to drive his tongue into her mouth again. He groped over her clothes, shoved her top over her breasts and bowed to kiss them through her bra. Frustrated that it was in his way, he grabbed the cups and tore them from each other, uncovering the responsive mounds he ached to feast on.
“Oh, Fella,” she said. “Yes, fuck me.”
Her whole body was tingling. Her thighs to her core were so sensitized that she could feel every thread of cotton rubbing against them. When she parted her legs wide to curl them around his body, she was delighted to feel the hot, naked girth of his cock p
robing her inner thigh, stimulating itself as his hips began to mimic the love-making she’d craved since the last time they’d been in this bed together.
Though it went against every screaming, fervent atom in her body, she pushed at him. “I have to get my clothes off,” she said.
His mouth ascended from her breasts to kiss her again, he sucked her tongue so hard that her throat hurt. But she wanted him like this; wild, unable to contain himself, no barriers or rules. He needed her. His hot hands roamed her form, squeezing and teasing the flesh he’d neglected for weeks.
“Fuck that,” he said, shoving her underwear aside to stick two fingers into her as he licked and nibbled at her neck.
“I don’t need that, Arch, fuck me,” she said and his thumb massaged her clit.
“Cheerios?” he mumbled into her ear.
Nya shook her head so hard her cheekbone bumped on his. “No Cheerios, cock, I need your cock.”
In almost the same moment his fingers slid out of her body, his dick took their place. “Delivered,” he called out in time with her scream.
It had been so long that she wasn’t as accustomed to him as she used to be and she squirmed beneath the stinging of her tight tissue.
He pumped in and out, fast. “Oh, Squirm, baby, I can’t stop.”
“Don’t stop!” she screamed because there was something arousing about her body being forced to accept his.
Nya needed him in every way. Archer was claiming her now, marking her from the inside, forging a route so deep that she could feel him pounding against her limit.
“Arch!” Her voice was getting louder. “Archer!”
“Oh, fuck, yeah, baby, scream. I’ve missed that scream,” he said, pushing his sealed lips down onto hers. “Let me hear it!” His forehead landed on hers as their hips worked to drive them nearer to their bliss. “Make my ears fucking bleed, horny one, come on!”
With fistfuls of the blanket beneath them, she boosted her hips high, tilting them to allow the head of his dick to rub and stroke each crevice within her. “Archer!”
“You’ve got it, baby, you get anything you want.”
Marked (Branded Book 3) Page 9