Bend Read Online Free Page A

help,” Rory added quickly. “Make yourself at home, Josh .”
    Annabelle turned to look at the other two men. “Max? Bo? Don’t even try to run off.”
    Josh snickered as the two men stopped their retreat, doing a one-eighty and returning to stand by Josh. Annabelle introduced them, and Josh soon found himself relaxing and enjoying their company, even if he did feel a little jealous now and then. It wasn’t a mean sort of jealousy, not at all. Josh would rather see the love flowing between Max and Bo, and Chance and Rory, than not, and even if he didn’t ever find that for himself, at least now he had cause to look for it, hope for it.
    “Makes you a little envious, doesn’t it?” Annabelle asked with a wistful note in her voice. “Like there’s maybe someone out there who can love you as you are, flaws and all.”
    Josh slipped his arm over Annabelle’s shoulders. “Annabelle, any man—straight man, I mean—would be lucky to have you like that. Probably even some of the not-so-straight ones, too.”
    Annabelle shook her head and stared down at her lap. “I don’t know, Joshie. I’m stubborn, and mean, and never know when to quit. I don’t see how that would make me a prize.”
    Josh frowned so hard he felt a headache start up in his temples. Who’d told Annabelle that load of shit? Or that any of it was a bad thing? Even being mean had its place, and, while BEND
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    he hadn’t known her very long, he had yet to see Annabelle be mean when there wasn’t a good cause for it. And it wasn’t really mean—if she was a man, it would have been called assertive or aggressive, but put those same qualities in a woman and that woman was a bitch. As far as double standards went, it was one of the worst. Josh shelved his anger and questions for now and used his other hand to press Annabelle’s head to his shoulder.
    “You’re the best woman I’ve ever known, the best person for that matter,” Josh whispered, brushing at Annabelle’s curls. “And no matter what line of bullshit someone else has told you, you are a prize, and a treasure, and everything someone could want in a lover.”
    Annabelle huffed and looked up at him with watery eyes. “Not everything. I’ve got the wrong parts for you.”
    “You wouldn’t want me anyway,” Josh told her. “You need someone as strong as you are, and I would never have had the nerve to grab Doc’s balls like you did. You’re my hero.”
    As Annabelle laughed, the sadness leaving her dark eyes, Josh decided he’d do what he could to help Annabelle find her special someone. “Maybe we should go out tomorrow, hit up a club or two.” Not that he wanted Annabelle to find some hook-up in a meat market, but it’d be good to get her out, make her laugh, let her see how many men were interested. He just wouldn’t let any of them touch her. Later he’d figure out how to put his plan into motion.
    “We could go to the Xxchange.”
    Josh nudged Annabelle’s head with his shoulder. “That’s a gay bar. I was kind of thinking we could go to Barking at the Moon or somewhere like that.”
    Annabelle gave him a look that told him she knew what he was thinking. “And I was thinking the Xxchange.”
    “Oh.” Josh tipped his head up and watched a fat white cloud roll by. Annabelle was trying to find him that someone special! “I doubt lightning will strike twice. Just ‘cause Rory and Chance met there and found their happily-ever-after doesn’t mean I will. That place was definitely a fuckstop.”
    “What’s a fuckstop?”
    Josh cringed and looked at Chance, who was now standing in front of him, Rory pressed to his side. “Uh…a place where you stop to get fucked? ‘Cause it’s pretty much a sure thing? Like, uh, some clubs.”
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    “Like the Xxchange,” Rory said, chuckling as Josh felt his cheeks flame. “That where you were talking about?”
    “I…” Josh really wanted that bone chip to take him out,