With Force: A Taboo Romance (Men of Paradise Book 3) by Daisy Jane

Author:Daisy Jane [Jane, Daisy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-07-14T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

Mally

When shit isn’t right with Sammy… my tummy hurts.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, man, and I’m probably going to fucking whole-heartedly regret it, but… you’ve been quiet in the cruiser lately.” Van stands next to me, his sweaty bicep grazing mine, his tone private.

In the distance, Bran and Batman are doing chest presses, Bran pushing Batman to go harder, using his Dad bod against him as inspiration.

He knocks his shoulder into mine. “You can be a fucking clamshell in the cruiser, but if you keep walking around with that mope on your face, Bran’s gonna get all concerned about you.”

My shoulders sag with a heavy sigh. “Ugh, you’re right.” I practice a smile at Van, a bit over the top.

He depresses his palm. “Scale it back.”

I force my cheeks down to a different sized smile. Van flinches. “Less like you’re trying to suck my dick.”

The third time's the charm, and the phony smile passes. Van gives the universal sign for OK with his thumb and forefinger. “Perfect. Now, what’s the matter, Boo Bear?”

I’m twisted inside, but goddamn if I don’t love his private nickname for me. “You know how to get all my secrets out don’t you?” In unison–which happens often because we spend so much fucking time together–we lift our gallon jugs of water and toss some back.

Lifting the hem of my wringer to wipe my mouth, I put my back to Bran and Batman “I need to talk but we can’t do it here.”

Van cocks an eyebrow. “Oh, so it’s Sammy troubles.”

Pressing my finger to my lips, I hiss for him to shut his mouth. “Dude, shut it. Bran could hear you.”

Van rolls his eyes. “He’s lecturing Batman and you know how much he loves to lecture people about health and fitness. You’re fine.”

“Still–” I glance behind me and see we’re still safe. “Not here.”

Another long glugging and we set our jugs down in unison. Van swipes the end of his t-shirt over the lenses of his glasses, de-fogging them from sweat. When he slides them back on, he drags a hand down his beard. “Well, since we’re off until later, wanna wait to talk until we’re on shift again?”

“Dude, if you are saying you can’t tear yourself away from your wife for twenty minutes to counsel your work wife, just say that. Don’t try to frame it up–”

Van halts me with his hand on my chest. “Chill, Boo.” His stoic expression does calm me. Kinda like being reprimanded by your grandpa, his demeanor says to quit without the words. And it works.

With a sigh, the truth topples out of me. “I’ve been trying to avoid any real conversation with you because I was afraid I was gonna spill my guts. And I know I already told you… stuff… but this shit is way personal… for her.”

Van throws a hand on the back of my neck, giving me a quick squeeze. “I’ve never seen you hold your tongue, you chatty fuck, so now I’m kind of worried.

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