“Exactly.” I chuckled.
Before she could reply, the lady came back with half of our food and placed it down in front of us.
The old lady looked from me to my date and back.
“What are y’all’s names?” she asked.
Startled, the woman across the table said, “Iris. And this is…”
She trailed off, realizing she didn’t know my name either.
I chuckled and said, “Callum. But people call me Shine.”
“Callum,” Iris mused. “That’s a cool name. But so is Shine… why Shine?”
The lady left with a nod to herself, leaving Iris looking at me expectantly.
“A long time ago,” I started, “my sister decided that we all needed nicknames. I’m not sure why, or how. But we all of a sudden were called these nicknames, and then nothing else since. Even my mom calls us that. Which is weird, because she was the one who named us, right?”
She smiled, making my heart skip a beat.
God, she had pretty lips.
“What are the rest of the nicknames?” she asked curiously.
I held up a finger and started to list them off. “Haggard goes by Thief. Price goes by Trinket. Tide goes by Rook. Bram goes by Reap. Short for Reaper.”
“And your sister? What does she go by?” she asked. “And I’m assuming all of these are associated with a Crow?”
I nodded. “Crow is our last name. And no, my sister goes by Cannel. Haggard calls her Gypsy sometimes but it’s not more or less permanent like our nicknames. I’m not sure why, but I never thought to question it before now, either.”
She took a long sip of her drink, then set it down and stared at me curiously.
“Are you seeing anyone?” she blurted.
My brows rose. “No.”
“Do you want to be?” she wondered. “Because I could really use a fake boyfriend.”
I snorted. “What is this Teller’s occupation? I know I heard cop, but is he a detective? If he is, it’d have to look convincing for that to pass. As in, you can’t just say I’m yours and then not show him how I’m yours.”
Because the idea of being her fake boyfriend was definitely appealing. As long as it came with me being able to fuck her.
Iris blinked. “I… well, I guess I didn’t think that through before I just blurted it out there. He’s the chief of police for a city about forty minutes away from here.”
I blinked. “You’re dating the chief of police, and he’s following you around like some creepo?”
Iris smiled, but it definitely wasn’t a real one.
“Swear to God. I’m not sure what’s gotten into him, but I feel like maybe if he sees that I’m okay, that I’m not holding some epic grudge because he kissed some other woman, I think he’ll move on,” she admitted.
Our plates were set down in front of us, and then the waitress said, “Enjoy, Iris and Callum.”
I shot her a grin and started to dig into my food, my thoughts on the woman in front of me doing the same.
I was halfway through my second meal when she finished her first.
By the time I finished all the way, and ordered more biscuits, she’d finished what was left of her burger, and pushed the rest of her plates away. “I should’ve gotten one meal and eaten the biscuits for extra.”
Sticking to her guns, after I finished, she paid for her half of the meal, and I reluctantly let her, realizing that this felt like a test on my end.
After we paid, we both headed out to the bike.
The ride home was just as good as the ride there, and before I could stop myself, I pulled over to the side of the road once we got back into town.
She took my helmet off that I’d handed her to wear and looked at me curiously.
“Don’t know where you live, babe,” I said reluctantly.
Her frown showed that she, too, was a bit put out about going home.
Which started to solidify the request that was on the tip of my tongue.
That had been on the tip of my tongue the entire time.
“Could take you to my place,” I offered. “Give you some time off from him.”
Her eyes went intense as she bit her lip.
“I won’t maul you or anything,” I added. “At least, not if you don’t want me to.”
“I…” She pursed her lips. “I think I’d like to go home with you.”
CHAPTER 4
Do not regret past mistakes. All decisions, good or bad, led you to where you are today. Disregard if you’re in prison.
-Iris to Shine
IRIS
I think I’d like to go home with you?
What in the absolute hell was I thinking?
I’d had all of four relationships in my life, four sexual partners, and not a single one of them had been with a man that I’d met only hours before.
Yet, I’d agreed to go home with this one?
What in the hell was wrong with me?
I was on the back of the man’s bike, my entire body pressed up against him, and I was acting like an alien Iris.
I, Iris Magenta Dalton, did not do one-night stands.
Though, if I was being technical, this didn’t feel like a one-night stand. Especially since I’d now been with him for two days. Or, at least, four hours that spanned over the period of two days.
“Just a warning.” He moved his hand so that it pressed against the outside of my thigh, making a chill sweep up the length of my body despite the heated weather. “Lindy will hear about it, and if she can, she’ll make it awkward as fuck.”
I shrugged. “Can’t be any worse than having your ex-boyfriend following you around town.”
He straight up laughed in my face.
“Just wait,” he teased. “Just wait.”
He wasn’t kidding.
It was as if his ex had stayed up waiting for him.
The moment we walked into the house, he cursed. “I left via my bedroom window. Swear to God, I don’t know how she always knows when I’m on the way home. Or even left.”
The moment we walked through the door, I heard two things.
One, the sound of music—quite loud music—coming through a door at the end of a hall. And the hiss of a breath as his ex saw us walk inside.
“Are you telling me,” she demanded, “that all this time, I’ve been listening to this stupid fucking music, and you’re not even home?”
I strained my ears to hear the music and nearly giggled.
He had on a Garth Brooks song. And, from the way I’d just heard it click over, it was on repeat.
Seemed the man had a thing for ol’ Garth.
“Sorry,” he apologized halfheartedly. “Didn’t realize that I’d be gone for this long.”
The ex’s eyes turned to me, and that was when I realized what true hatred was.
“And who the fuck is this?” she snarled.
I bit my lip, then couldn’t stop myself from saying, “Well, that’s up to you. I have an apartment that you can lease, if you want to switch with me. I’m in need of more room than I have, and Callum brought me here to help hash it out with you.”
The man behind me froze.
That’s when I realized that I probably shouldn’t just blurt out the things that I think before I actually think them all the way over.