Bluff (Stacked Deck Book 6)

by Emilia Finn

  Me: I was honorable all night. Swear. She’s safe with me.

  Kane: You now have a lot of responsibility, because she’s not a regular chick you get to hurt. She can’t absorb a regular douche-guy screwup. She’s special, and you hold a lot of power in your hands. You can’t fuck this up, Morris. It wouldn’t be good for your health.

  Spence: I’m at his door. Tell me when to go.

  Riley: DON’T GO! Do not ram that fucking door, Spencer!

  Me: Do not ram my fucking door! Get out of our building. She’s fine! You’re all making it weird. She’s just a chick, a friend, we watched a movie, she fell asleep. That’s the end of it. But now you’re making it weird. You’re gonna be the reason I choke!

  Jay: You choke with her, we’ll shove a boot down your throat and make it permanent. Don’t fuck this up.

  Spencer: On three?

  Romeo: Wait. Where are you? Nobody told me we were partying. It’s still early.

  Me: Not on three!

  I shoot a wary look in the direction of the front door. On the other side of that thin timber is a seven-foot-tall ex-army ranger set to take me the fuck out. And Romeo, his equally large, equally terrifying brother-in-law, is mad because he’s missing out on all the fun.

  Sophia: Stand down. It’s fine. We have visual proof, and I have them on security anyway.

  Me: When did you put security feed in my fucking apartment?

  Sophia: The second Ang said he was renovating the place above the garage and you moved into your new apartment. Pretty girl across the hall…

  Me: So you decided to be a fucking voyeur?

  Sophia: I’m just keeping an eye on things. I’m responsible for her too, I had eyes on that club when she was hurt. I couldn’t fix it, so here I am in the real world, making sure she’s doing okay. Plus, my husband adores her, so…

  Me: Stop spying on me! Stop obsessing over her every move. She’s stronger than any of you realize, and you’re blind to it, because you’d rather smother her in love and there-there hugs. Give her a chance to fuckin’ fly.

  Angelo: Chuck…

  Me: What!?

  Angelo: You were supposed to go to the wreckers yesterday… you didn’t come back.

  I grit my teeth and keep my thumbs off my phone screen. I totally ditched my job yesterday.

  Me: We found an engine… Merv was dealing with the paperwork when we left. I’ll pick it up today or tomorrow and get started.

  Kane: Where’d you leave to?

  Sophia: Diner. They ate a meal and kissed a little bit.

  Jay: You kissed her??

  Kane: She let you kiss her?

  Me: It was a peck! In front of company.

  Sophia: It was peck.

  Me: Thank you!

  Sophia: But then in the hall last night, he basically claimed her like a savage. Hand up her skirt and all.

  Me: Sophia!

  Jay: Dude!

  Kane: Motherfucker!

  Sophia: She liked it.

  Kane: She… for real?

  Me: Yes! She did. Now can you all fuck off?

  “Tucker?”

  I toss my phone like it’s made of lava, grit my teeth when it crashes against the wooden floor, and turn into Nora as she rouses from her sleep.

  “Hey.” I press a kiss to her brow. Slow, gentle presses of my lips to her warm skin. “Good morning.”

  “Good mo—” She shoots up like a rocket, eyes wide like saucers, quivering lips like she might scream… or sob. “Oh my god.” She slams her hands to her chest, like she thinks she’s naked, drops her gaze and shoots her eyes over her belly, her legs beneath the covers. Then she looks to me; bare chest. Her eyes finally whip to mine, and she loses her shit. “Oh my god! Tucker. Oh my g—” She spins out of my arms with a cry, out of the fort, and bounces to her feet with a whimper. “Oh my god! I fell asleep.”

  Slower, I crawl out of the fort after Galileo, since he jumped with a start when she did. Sighing with resignation, I climb to my feet, and stand a full six feet away with my hands raised. We knew this was coming.

  “You can relax, Nora. Everything is f—”

  “I slept here!”

  “Yes you did. But it’s fine. We watched a movie, you fell asleep, and now you’ve had a full night’s sleep.”

  “What did you put in that wine?” she screeches. “What did you do to me?”

  My head snaps back like she slapped me. Like she took a swing at my face with world-champion fists. “What?”

  “Did you drug me? The wine! The fucking wine, Tucker! What did you do to it?”

  “I didn’t do shit!” I roar, as shock and hurt wage a war in my blood. “You saw me open the fucking thing.”

  “I slept in your apartment! I slept in your arms. That’s not something I would do.”

  “Well, I guess you stepped outta your tidy little bubble last night and did something new. I didn’t fucking drug you, Nora! I would never, and your accusation is fucking ridiculous.”

  “This isn’t…” She storms around the room with tears streaming over her cheeks. “I can’t… I would never…” She stops with her purse in her hands and stares into my eyes. “I wouldn’t have done that on my own. I can’t. I don’t trust men.”

  “You trust me!”

  “I don’t even know you! You’re my annoying neighbor, you sometimes chat at me when I’m tired and have no energy to tell you no.”

  “I chat with you as often as I fucking can!” I shout. “Because you’re pretty, and strong, and sort of funny, if I ignore that you’re actually trying to be serious. You let down your guard last night, you crawled into a fucking blanket fort with me, fully clothed, by the way, you relaxed for the first time since you were sixteen, and now you’re panicking, because oh shit, Chuck took your control again.”

  “I didn’t give you permission to—”

  “To what?” I follow her with my eyes as she storms across the room. “You walked into my apartment on your own damn feet. You crawled into bed, all by yourself. You drank three fucking sips of five-dollar wine, then you went to sleep and got nine solid hours.”

  She skids to a stop and turns to me with wide eyes. “Nine hours?”

  “Yes! Nine. You slept on my chest, you hugged me all night long, and now you wanna play victim like I did something wrong.”

  “You did do something wrong! You won’t leave me alone. I don’t want you, Tucker! I don’t want to know you.” She snatches up her shoes, searches my living room for anything else that might belong to her, and cries when Galileo rests his shoulder against her thigh. She wants to be strong, she needs to be in control.

  Her watery eyes come to mine as boogers stream from her nose. “I don’t want you. I don’t like you. And I would be perfectly okay if I never see you again. Galileo, come.”

  She turns in place, then storms toward the door and, swinging it open, screams like a banshee when she comes eye-to… well, chest, with the massive army ranger.

  “Spencer!”

  She shakes her head when he reaches for her, escapes his arms when he tries to pull her in for a hug, and sidesteps him when he tries to stop her.

  “I think he doctored my wine or something.” She shoots an angry glare at me. “I think he was trying to hurt me.”

  Spence’s gaze whips to me as she races across the hall and pushes her door open. He stands in his camouflage best, like he’s going hunting today, and I’m the fucking deer.

  “Morris?” He stalks forward with slow, deliberate steps. “Do I need to hurt you?”

  “I didn’t doctor shit!”

  I turn away when Nora slams her door across the hall, then I move to the romantic fort I built with a smile twelve or so hours ago. I tug the blankets from the chairs, toss them to the couch, and throw the pillows on top. Then I start pushing my furniture back in place while Spence prowls my space.

  “She’s lashing out, but she knows I didn’t doctor shit, so you can stand the fuck down.”

  “You disappeared fro
m the chat,” he glowers. “You were doing fine, then you bailed.”

  “Because she woke up and panicked!”

  I slam a chair against the dining table, press my hands to the tabletop, and, closing my eyes, I breathe through the rage – the pain – that her accusation leaves in my chest. “She knows I didn’t drug her. She fucking knows.”

  Turning away from the table and sidestepping the army ranger like I’m not afraid he’ll snap my neck just for fun, I swing my door wide and stomp across the hall.

  I expect to be completely shut out, I expect her apartment to be secure, but when I turn the handle, her door swings open and reveals Nora standing at the end of her hall in that beautiful dress. Her feet are bare, her shoulders slumped. Her hair is a mess, and she can’t even lift her eyes to meet mine. She only stands in the hall and cries.

  “I’m sorry.” Leaving the door wide open, I dash forward and sweep her up into a hug. “I’m sorry, Nora.” I press a kiss to her temple. Her cheek. Her neck. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Why are you sorry?” she sobs. “I’m the jerk that says mean things.”

  “Because you’re hurting. I’m sorry you’re hurting. I’m sorry I couldn’t help you when you needed it.”

  I scoop her up when her arms wrap around my neck. I hug her to my chest when her legs wrap around my hips. I lift her with my hands under her ass, but I’m not trying to sneak a feel. I walk through her apartment and cross to her couch, and, dropping down so she straddles my lap, I keep her close and let her purge her tears.

  Loud, keening sobs, sopping, torrential tears, she cries for her sister, for her fears, for the unfairness of this world. She hugs me so tight that her shoulder digs into my windpipe, but I’ll be damned if I’m gonna move her away. Her hair tickles my lips, but her fingers thread through my hair and hold on.

  “Let it out,” I croon. “Let it all out, I’ll be here when you’re done.”

  “I’m always going to say mean things,” she cries. “I’m always going to be mean, because I don’t know how not to be afraid.”

  “I can take some of your pain.” I press a kiss to her hair. Her cheek. Her temple. Pulling her face up, I swipe rough thumbs beneath her eyes to wipe away her tears. “I’m gonna be your safety net. I’m never going to let you down, I promise.”

  “You don’t deserve my baggage,” she cries. “Nobody deserves my kind of mess. It’s too heavy.”

  “I wonder if our sisters are friends in Heaven?”

  “Oh god,” she howls. “Stop it.”

  “I bet they are. Pretty much the same age. They’re both beautiful, both kind, and smart, and a little bit sassy. They both love us, and that kind of love can’t be broken so easily. So I bet they sought each other out. And now they watch us fumble through this shit.”

  “Stop it,” she cries. “Please stop it.”

  “I bet they think we’re funny, because we’re both emotionally-stunted idiots. We’re down here, stumbling our way around each other, and they’re up there, still beautiful, still sassy, and they’re placing bets on how many times I’m gonna have to chase you down before you learn to trust me.”

  “I do trust you.” Her voice crackles and breaks. “I do. That’s why I slept. That’s why I stayed.”

  “I didn’t drug you.”

  “I know.” Fat tears dribble along her cheeks. “I’m so sorry for saying that. I didn’t mean it, I swear.”

  “I know you didn’t.” I pull her forward, I take advantage when she’s weak, and press my lips to hers. “You will always be able to trust me.” I kiss again, and slide my tongue along her bottom lip. “Forever. Even if you dump my ass and marry someone else, I’m gonna keep watch. I’m gonna be your Kane and Jay, your sentry.”

  “Even if I marry someone else?”

  “Well…” I clear my throat. “I would probably set the dude up to die or whatever, so I can swoop in and seduce the shit out of you. But I’m gonna protect you, okay? I’ll do right by you for the rest of my life, I swear. Because I care about you. In here.” I take her hand and place it over my still-bare chest. Over my heart. “I care about my snooty fuckin’ neighbor. I care that she’s safe and happy. I care, and hope that I can make her feel safe again.”

  “I’m not scared when I’m with you.” She brings her other hand up to wipe beneath her nose. “It’s so dumb, because the fact I’m not scared, scares me. It’s so ridiculous.”

  “We’re allowed to be ridiculous. I walked into the hall last night buck-ass naked. I could’ve gotten my ass beat if that dude was jacked up on ‘roids or whatever.”

  She laughs, exactly like I was hoping. “You’re so silly. I swear, I nearly had a damn heart attack when I saw you.”

  “You looked at my dick.” I wipe her cheeks and croon, “I know you checked me out. I nearly came when you looked.”

  “You have serious issues when it comes to… ya know…”

  “Coming?” I laugh.

  “You’re gonna make me get all invested with my heart, we’ll go to bed, and I’ll find out that you really can’t last more than two seconds.” She rests her forehead on my chest. “I might be devastated if you suck in bed.”

  “There’s only one way for you to find out.” I smirk when she comes up to glare. “I’m not even gonna brag, I won’t warn, I won’t give you any clues whatsoever. You’re just gonna have to jump on and see what you get.”

  “So crude,” she gives a watery snicker. “So friggin’ crude, it’s almost endearing.”

  “Almost endearing,” I sigh. “That might be the sweetest thing you’ve ever said about me.”

  Ignoring my joke, she pulls back to stare into my eyes. Then she takes my hand and places it on her heart. “I feel you too. Right up in here, I feel you. And that thought scares the crap out of me.”

  “It doesn’t have to be scary.” I let my eyes flicker between hers. “You could think of it more like an adventure.”

  “But it is scary,” she presses desperately, “because what if I lose you? I can’t sustain those kinds of hits anymore. I can’t take any more loss. I’m just…” She shakes her head. “I’m not built to take that kind of trauma again.”

  “So instead, you keep everyone at arm’s length?” I tap her nose and smile. “Silly plan. Because then you might miss out on some really fun stuff.”

  “Some say that it’s better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all.” She searches my eyes. “I’m not sure I agree. You can’t miss something you never had.” She swallows. “But I miss my sister every single day of my life.”

  “But to never love at all means a dull, gray existence. Work, sleep, TV, repeat.”

  “I’m comfortable in my routine,” she counters quietly. “It doesn’t hurt me.”

  “But just think… if you stayed in that routine, you would have never crawled into a blanket fort while we watched a kissy movie and sipped wine.”

  “That was really nice,” she admits on a whisper. “I had a nice time, and I haven’t slept nine hours straight in…” She shakes her head. “In a really long time.”

  “That means something.” I pull her forward and press a kiss to her lips. “It means you’re already invested, so if I disappear tomorrow, you’ll have already lost something, won’t you?”

  Tears surface all over again. Silent, but fat, heavy tears.

  “You already care, so if I walk, you’ll already hurt, right?”

  Biting her lips closed, she nods.

  “So there’s no reason why you shouldn’t jump in head-first. Explore this with me, go on this adventure, and if it all goes to shit… well, we were already going to feel the pain. But maybe this way, we get to have fun first.”

  “I’m not a very fun person,” she murmurs. “Seriously, I’m anti-fun. I’m a party pooper. I ruin smiles.”

  “And yet,” I press a kiss to her lips, “I’m smiling. What have you got going on today?”

  She shrugs. “I was going to visit my sister in a bit. Tell her about
this guy that won’t stop bugging me.”

  “She already knows.” I point at the ceiling and grin. “She sees all. Maybe…” I add on an exaggerated drawl. “She sent me to you, because she knew you were wound so tight, you might snap soon. She could have sent you someone equally uptight so you could sit in your apartment together and chew Xanax like candy—”

  “Instead, she sent me the class clown and hoped you could shove me out of my comfort zone.”

  “Sounds like a solid plan to me. Come on.” I tap her hip and steal another kiss. “Go have a shower, get dressed, then come to breakfast with me. After that, we can go on an adventure.”

  “A shower?” She frowns. “Do I smell?”

  “You don’t smell,” I laugh. “But you’re wearing last night’s date dress. Which means you’re officially doing the walk of shame. Everyone thinks you’re a filthy whore now.”

  “You’re such a jerk.”

  She pushes off my lap with a huff, only to squeal when I tug her back and slam my lips to hers. I plunder, like the thieving pirate she thinks I am. I steal her kisses, her sighs, her clutching hands that find no purchase because I’m not wearing a shirt. I slide my hand along her bare thigh where her dress has ridden up. Around to the panties I felt last night. And when she releases her worry, when she relaxes into my arms, I nip at her bottom lip until she hisses.

  “Go shower, get changed into something more comfortable. Then we’re eating. I’m starving.”

  The moment she goes to her bathroom and closes the door – and lets me remain in her apartment while she does so – I make my way to the front door. In the hall, exactly as I expected, I find eight muscled and armored men, and one tiny ballerina, watching me with lifted brows.

  “She’s safe,” I speak softly so she doesn’t overhear. “She had a cry, she feels better now, and you guys need to stop coddling her so damn much.”

  “Where is she,” Mac asks.

  Where the fuck did Mac come from?

  “In the shower. I told her she looks like a dirty whore and needed to wash that off.”

  Instead of anger, like Kane and Jay show, Sophia only snickers. “Smooth. Where’s Galileo?”