Bad Bitch Read Online Free Page A

drained his glass and motioned to close his tab. “The missus will be all over my ass if I don’t get home. The grandkids are in town. Running around, destroying every goddamn thing they can get their hands on.”
    “I thought Leslie and Pete had moved to L.A.,” I said.
    “They did, but they like to visit every few months. Total chaos.” Wood paid his tab. “Lincoln, see you in the morning. And you, man-eater, stay away from him.” He gave me a warning look. The deep creases in his brow mimicked his frown until his weathered brown face was nothing more than a wall of disapproval.
    “I’m sure Lincoln’s a big boy. He can handle himself against little old me.” I winked. The frowns did not abate. They likely stayed planted on Wood’s face the whole way home and only grew deeper when he walked into whatever mess his grandkids had made.
    I slid over the two seats to Lincoln. He watched me with interest in the mirror, his eyes disappearing behind a blue bottle, then showing back up, then gone again behind an extra-cheap tequila. I settled next to him and put my leg on his chair, testing him.
    He looked down, giving me a view of his thick dark hair, no grays in sight. Then he held my gaze and moved his leg away.
Denied.
    I glanced at myself in the mirror to see if anything was off. No, I looked fine. My auburn hair still curled prettily around my face. My lipstick had faded a bit as I drank, but my lips were still a faint red. Enough to get attention. And I wanted his attention.
    He was big next to me. Tall, maybe six foot five, an entire foot taller than I was. Well built. Even through the suit I could tell he had the inverted triangle. Broad back, narrower waist and hips. Perfectly lickable.
    “What’s your game?” he asked. His eyes were smiling, a slight twinkle lighting the green.
    “No game. I just wanted to say hi since you’re new around here.”
    “You already said hi, remember? When you were on your way to the ladies’ room.” The smile moved down to the corners of his full lips, the edges turning up ever so slightly. The smirk was gorgeous somehow, sexual. He wasn’t a “cute” guy, not like Jonesy was. Lincoln was something a bit more primitive, masculine.
    Did he just mention me going to pee?
Awkward.
“Well, yes, I did.” Something in my game was off. If I could have gotten away with smelling my breath, I would have. But we were too close now.
    “So, you’re, um, from New Orleans?” I changed tacks.
    “That’s right.” When a man pronounces “right” like “raaaaiihhhttt,” the panties naturally dampen. Mine were no different. Southern charm truly was a thing.
    He took a swig of his beer. I watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed, so male and mesmerizing. He drained the bottle.
    “What’s my tab?” he called to Mike.
    “Wood paid for everyone already.” Mike didn’t look up and continued stacking shot glasses.
    “Way to go, Wood.” Lincoln dropped a few more dollars before standing with finality.
    I was disappointed he was already leaving. Now I knew something was way off. Or maybe he was gay? I hoped not, but so many handsome ones were.
    He ran his gaze over my body. Looming above me, he had a good view down my blouse, past the chemise and to the edges of the red lace bra underneath. His skin flushed ever so lightly, a darker bronze spreading over his tan cheeks. Definitely not gay.
    “You coming?” he asked.
    Coming? Yes
,
please.
“Wait, what?”
    “Are you coming back to my place, angel? It’s still covered in boxes, but the bed is ready.” He laughed. I couldn’t tell if it was at me or with me.
    Mike chuckled but kept working on his shot glasses, scrubbing them to a shine with his bar cloth.
    My mouth hung open. Lincoln stared at my lips, a noticeable look of heat stealing across his angular face. I was unused to this sort of directness. He knew what he wanted and wasn’t afraid to ask for it. He even had the nerve to use a pet name. That was usually my