Once in a Lifetime Read online

  “I didn’t start this shit. He started it, and now I’m going to end this fucker.”

  Don’t think about, Emily. You don’t know her, and she’s not important here.

  The other man came at him. His girlfriend was cheering him on, begging him to kick Guy’s ass for hitting on her.

  Watching his moves, Guy waited for him to strike before hitting out himself. The crowd was stupid. The drunken crowd was getting him angrier by the second. Did they know how fucking dangerous this shit was?

  “Your pussy is not worth this, man. Get a new one. She was not thinking about you when she took me around the back of the bar.”

  “Fuck you. My Claire is perfect and would never do that to me. You’re a liar. She told me you approached her, offering her money for her time. My woman is no whore.”

  Guy pitied the man. Shaking his head, he charged him, fighting with all of his might. He took the shots aimed at him, but when it came down to it, Guy got in the last punch sending the other man to the ground. He waited to see if the other man would get up.

  “Tommy, get your ass up,” Claire, the blonde, said. Her voice was raised, shouting across the distance.

  The man, now known as Tommy, stayed down. The night was ruined, and as Guy headed toward his friends he saw Emily and her friends climbing into the back of a cab.

  “What’s going on?” Guy asked.

  “We’re going home,” Dorothy said, answering him first.

  Emily looked at him with wide eyes. There was no fear, and as he glanced down her body he saw her arousal. Her nipples were rock hard pressing against the front of her dress. It was warm outside, so there was no way she was cold.

  “See you tomorrow,” Dorothy said, talking to Wayne.

  He didn’t have eyes for his friends, only the black haired woman staring back at him. What the hell was he supposed to say? He’d never been good at speaking or saying the right shit.

  Fuck.

  Shoving his hands in his pockets, he stared at her without saying a word. Dale and Frankie said goodbyes to their women, and he was left alone looking at her. She climbed in the back without saying a word. Once she was inside the cab, she didn’t even give him a glance, which pissed him off. All women looked back at him, waiting for his attention. What was so different about this woman?

  The car pulled away taking all of his unanswered questions with them.

  “Well, there go our women,” Dale said, turning on him. “Why did you have to start a fight?”

  Dale was their ride for tonight as he was the only one who hadn’t drunk.

  “It’s not my fault. The guy came at me, and then I was defending myself. He almost hurt, erm, that girl.” Why couldn’t he say her name? He knew her fucking name, Emily, but the words failed him.

  “Emily, her name’s Emily, and I’m sick to fuck of you behaving like a fucking teenager, Guy. When are you going to grow up?” Dale looked angered.

  “What the fuck is your problem? Is it because you didn’t get any pussy tonight, is that it?” He felt defensive. His friends had never criticized his lifestyle before.

  “Janet is not some fucking pussy to me, you fucking prick. She means something to me. I know all the women mean nothing to you, but to me, Janet is the one.” Dale pointed at Wayne and Frankie. “All of us are settling down, and you’re not seeing it. You’re too busy thinking about your own shit to even see what’s happening all around you. We’re settling down.”

  Guy looked at Wayne and Frankie and saw all of his friends felt the same. Guy was the only one in their group still playing the field. At twenty-eight years old he didn’t want to mess around. He liked not having to settle for one pussy and having his pick of all of them.

  “I can’t believe the shit you’re saying. I’m not going to change who I am just because you want the same fucking pussy. This is not about you or what you want. I’m not going to change.”

  “Whatever.” Dale charged toward the car.

  Guy couldn’t help but think about Emily. What was it about her that drew him in?

  There was no answer, and instead of trying to find one, he climbed in the back of Dale’s car. The answers to all the questions could wait.

  ****

  “I can’t believe Guy would do that,” Dorothy said, charging ahead into Emily’s two bedroom apartment. She was proud of her apartment as she was buying the place, not renting. Her new job started on the Monday, and she had all weekend to herself to pamper and get ready. The bar she’d been in tonight was the place her new job would start. She knew the owner, Tony, was going to be pissed with her. She hoped he’d know she wasn’t the one responsible for the fight.

  “He’s a good time kind of guy. He doesn’t care about who he screws around with. Why wouldn’t you think the worst?” Emily asked, going for the fridge where her bottle of wine was chilling out.

  “It’s that reason why it’s so surprising. He doesn’t fight over pussy. The guy who hit him first would have only got that hit in. Guy would have handled it calmly, and then that would be it. Guy’s many things, but a fighter and brute he’s not. I know he’s always straight with the women,” Lilly said.

  “You’re defending him?” Emily asked, surprised.

  “He’s an ass, but he’s always been nice to me. I’ve not got a problem with him.” Lilly shrugged. “You got to know him first.”

  Her friends had been dating Dale, Wayne, and Frankie for the last six months. Nathan being the jealous bastard that he was had kept her away from her friends when he could. The only time she’d been allowed to see her friends were when they visited her.

  She couldn’t believe when she looked back over her time with Nathan how he’d manipulated and controlled her life. Watching the news or reading about it in books was completely different from actually living it. Nathan was controlling, but he’d never actually hurt her, not physically. The right woman might like his way of living, but she did not.

  “He fell on me after the guy hit him. Guy looked angry about that.” She shrugged and poured out four glasses of wine.

  “Yeah, I don’t think Guy was angry about that,” Dorothy said. “I saw the way he was looking at you.”

  Handing out the glasses, Emily stared at her friends.

  “You’re all crazy. That guy was getting off around the back of the bar while I was talking with my ex. There’s no way that guy likes me. He doesn’t even know me.” Emily brushed off their comments.

  “He likes you, and he wants to kiss you and do the nasty with your lush body.” Janet bumped her hip, giggling.

  “Guy does not like me. He was glaring at me.”

  “So you noticed he was staring at you. Your tits are like a beacon to the male population. They want to see how they bounce while they ride you.” Janet sang the words to her.

  Laughing along with her, Emily shook her head. “You’re all terrible. Nothing is ever going to happen between me and Guy.”

  “We’ll see,” Dorothy said, taking a seat. “You’ve only been together this night, but give it time. I’m going to have a bet that before the year is out you and Guy will end up in bed together.”

  “I’ll put a hundred dollars to that,” Lilly said, slapping notes on the coffee table.

  Grabbing the wine bottle from the kitchen counter, Emily topped off all of their glasses. “Not going to happen.”

  The women took their money back. Her thoughts drifted back to Guy, seeing him against the wall. God, she must be a sucker for bad guys. There was no way she was letting herself fall for a man who used women the way that Guy did. She would put up with him for her friends and not for any other reason.

  Throughout the night the wine was flowing, and her friends even started to joke about their men in the bedroom. Emily saw through the laughter. All of her friends were completely smitten with their men. She wished she could join in, but she was not interested in dating anyone. Her breakup had only been a month ago, which had been the best month of her life. She glanced around her apartment a
nd remembered Nathan trying to convince her to get rid of this place. Emily had put her apartment up on the market with the intention of selling it. She’d moved in with Nathan, and he’d even convinced her to quit her job as a secretary in a law firm.

  Every request he made, she’d gone through with. When he asked her to lose a few pounds she’d done everything she could to do to please the fucker.

  She was so stupid when she looked back, pretty much kicking herself at her own stupidity. Nathan wasn’t an all-bad guy. Being away from him made her realize the good in the relationship along with the bad. There would be a woman soon enough who liked his overly possessive ways.

  Going out shopping for their week’s groceries and coming back to see Nathan fucking a blonde had been the wakeup call she’d needed. She hadn’t even been hurt by seeing him screwing another woman. If anything, she was happy they were ending the relationship because of him. Immediately she’d packed a bag while he’d been stumbling around the place they shared. She’d called the agent who put her apartment on the market to take it off. Within a matter of hours she’d been out of his life for good. Only, he kept calling her to apologize and ask for forgiveness. He’d not become stalker-like, but she was waiting in case he decided to turn into a problem. At the moment all he wanted was her forgiveness and to see if she would give them a chance. She doubted he would cause any other problems. Nathan was a lot of things, but he wasn’t intentionally mean. Thinking about it, Emily wondered if Nathan had been with the right woman. Maybe the person he cheated on her with was his Miss Right? She didn’t know if that was the case, but it made her feel optimistic about her own future.

  “We’re going to crash here for tonight,” Dorothy said, drawing Emily out of her thoughts.

  Nodding her head, Emily got to her feet and started to get the blankets out for her friends. Before she met Nathan and he took over her life she’d had plenty of sleepovers with her friends. After him, those sleepovers had all but stopped so that he was happy with her.

  So stupid for trying to please a man who cannot be pleased.

  She hated the way her life had turned out with Nathan, especially when she thought he was the one for her. In the beginning everything had been perfect. Then over time, life had become difficult with him. No more wasting her life on men who were going to hurt her. She put the bottle in the recycle bin as she cleaned everything away.

  “You should see the way Guy looks at you,” Dorothy said, slurring her words.

  Rolling her eyes, she helped her friend get out of the clothes she was wearing. “Not going to happen.”

  “He keeps everyone at arms’ length on purpose.”

  “I think you’re too busy looking at the good in him instead of seeing him for a player.” Emily smiled at her friend, loving how easy her life was without a man with her.

  “You need to give a guy a chance, Em. You’re going to end up shriveled or something. I don’t want that.”

  “Dorothy, you’re drunk. We’ll talk more when you’re not intoxicated.”

  “That sounds good.”

  Emily chuckled at her friend.

  After she settled everyone down for the night she headed to bed herself. It had been a long night.

  Not once had Nathan got your pulse pounding the way Guy had.

  She pushed the thoughts away. There was no way she was going to let herself get drawn into feeling something for a man she didn’t know.

  Closing her eyes, Emily fell to sleep.

  Her dreams were filled with Guy and what she’d seen around the back of the bar.

  Chapter Three

  “I’m not going out tonight,” Guy said, lifting his box of tools and carrying them over to the counter. He created his own designs of furniture and was doing quite well. His parents had footed the bill for the shop along with the warehouse. The business was a one man operation at the moment, but he hoped to expand soon.

  Dale, Frankie, and Wayne were inside watching him work. It was Monday, and Guy was not in the best of moods. For the entire weekend the black haired siren, also known as Emily, had invaded his thoughts. On Saturday he’d tried to pick up a woman and had even taken her back to a hotel room ready to fuck. Emily had been there at the forefront of his mind, and his cock had lost all kinds of stiffness.

  How the fuck was he losing his edge at the thought of a woman? He hated it, and he hated his friends for picking Emily’s friends as girlfriends.

  Wayne worked at a bank. Dale worked as a mechanic at the local shop while Frankie worked at the hardware store. They were all happy in what they did as they lived on the outskirts of a city.

  “Come on, man. The women are going to be there, even Emily.”

  “I’m not interested in her.” He spoke too fast. All three men went quiet and gave him a funny look. “What’s your problem?”

  “We think you’re denying a little too much,” Wayne said, taking the nearest seat.

  “I’m not denying shit.” His friends gave him a pointed look, pissing him off. “Fine, I’ll come out with you guys tonight. You fuckers better not abandon me if a fight breaks out with all the available pussy there.”

  “Whatever, Guy,” Frankie said, flicking his phone closed. “We’ll see you there.”

  They headed out the door leaving him alone to think about what he’d just agreed to. After Saturday’s disaster he’d headed home to visit his parents and not even tried to get another woman.

  He spent the rest of the day in his workshop working and carving another rocking chair. The design was specified for his customer who’d requested it. He did work by requests, and he loved embellishing some of the designs. Most of the time his customers were happy with what he did, but there were some who asked him to take them away.

  For the rest of the afternoon he worked on the rocking chair taking care not to injure himself. He left a couple of times to sell some of his work. By six he locked up the shop and headed on home.

  The shop meant everything to him. All of his life he’d gone through odd jobs, never really finding his niche in the world. He’d worked in the mechanic shop and even a bank to find the right work for him. Every day after a hard one he would go into his garage and create something out of his spare materials. One day his father stopped by and was interested in his work. Before he knew what was happening, his father had bought this place, investing in Guy’s future.

  He really did love his parents. They were so supportive of him and the choices he made.

  Checking the time he saw he wouldn’t have a lot of time to get home and get back out. Looking down at himself, Guy decided he was neat enough to go to the bar.

  Maybe get a woman for the night.

  The more he thought about fucking a woman the happier he got. All he needed to do was lose himself inside a woman and completely forget about Emily. She seemed a little stuck-up to him.

  She was fucking gorgeous, and you want a piece of her ass.

  Pushing the thoughts out of his mind, he went toward the bar where he’d gotten into a fight. The bruising he’d gotten from being clocked around the face had all but disappeared in the last couple of days.

  He ran his fingers through his hair, keeping his head down. Guy rounded the corner and picked up his speed. He felt his body grow tenser with every passing second. Losing himself inside a woman was the only way he figured he’d get over Emily.

  Probably won’t see much of her again.

  After thirty minutes of walking, he walked inside the bar. He found Wayne and Dale at their table. Considering it was a Monday the bar was heaving with activity. Tony’s place offered a good drink, music, and fun.

  “Where’s Frankie?” Guy asked, sitting down on one of the stools.

  “He’s apologizing to Tony for you and helping our women get the drinks.” Wayne nodded toward the bar.

  The throng of people opened up. Dorothy was giggling at something someone said behind the bar.

  Squinting his eyes, he saw the reason for the woman’s laughter. Emily
stood up wearing one of Tony’s uniforms. The woman who’d been plaguing his thoughts was stood behind the bar, serving drinks.

  “What the fuck is she doing working here?” Guy asked, turning around to face his friends. He could handle her having a drink, even avoid her, but her working where he hunted for sex was too much.

  “Emily?” Dale was looking at the woman in question

  He nodded. “Fuck yeah.”

  “I don’t know why. She works here ‘cause she needed a job. Janet and the girls wanted to show her some support on this night. It’s her first since leaving her jerk-off of a boyfriend.” Dale kept talking, but Guy tuned out at boyfriend. She wasn’t seeing anyone?

  Guy quickly asked Dale the question. His friend was frowning at him.

  “Emily’s single.” Wayne spoke slowly.

  Turning back to the other woman, Guy wondered if he should avoid fucking other women and simply settle on the one he wanted. The moment he fucked her, she’d be out of his system, and he wouldn’t have to think about her again.

  “What the fuck are you planning?” Dale asked, invading his thoughts.

  “Nothing.” He felt happier than he had all weekend. Fuck the woman invading his thoughts and he could go back to forgetting about women and living his life. The idea was perfect, and his problems were all solved.

  “You’re planning something, but you hear me, Guy, it better not have anything to do with Emily. Janet and all the girls care about her. She’s off limits to you,” Dale said.

  “I’m not going to do anything.” He watched Frankie and the women approach the table. Staring at Emily he saw her smile at a customer. Tony was standing close to her, observing her. The owner had to be close to her as he was training her. Looking around at his competition Guy liked his plan more and more.

  Taking the beer from Dorothy, he smiled up at the woman. “Thank you.”

  “Get that look off your face. Emily is never going to go for you.”

  He kept his gaze on her. “And what makes you think I’m thinking about your friend?”