Whiskey Girl by Maggie Casper Read Free Book Online Page B

outcome.
    Ausha didn’t respond to his comment. “I’ll
be ready in about thirty minutes. If you could pick me up then, that would be
great.”
    “No problem. I’ll see you then.” Hell, he
was ready to see her now. Thirty minutes was going to seem like a lifetime.
    Doug made the short drive to Ausha’s with
excitement pumping through his veins. It was a short-lived emotion however
because when she answered the door, it was obvious she was not feeling the same
way. Her stance was rigid, her tone of voice tentative and unmistakenly
regretful. All of that was bad enough, but her refusal to look him in the face
as he greeted her was like a kick in the gut.
    She didn’t invite him in, instead she
closed the door behind her and locked it. Well, at least she’d learned one
thing, Doug thought to himself as he watched her turn the key in the deadbolt
lock.
    As he had last night, Doug made sure Ausha
was settled safely into the passenger seat of his truck before walking around
and climbing into the cab himself.
    “Thank you for coming to get me.”
    They were the first words she’d spoken
since he’d knocked on her door. “I said I would.”
    Doug wasn’t going to let her hide from him
even if it was within plain sight. Leaning across the bench seat, he took her
chin between his thumb and index finger. She turned to him without too much
prompting, her eyes bleak.
    “We can’t do this.”
    The hell they couldn’t! “What’s that, darlin’?”
    She motioned, a nervous gesture with her
hands. “Whatever this is. Between us. It isn’t going to work.”
    Doug stared deep into her eyes then. He
took in everything he saw, the fear, the pain, the confusion, and he took it
within himself in order to remain calm and patient. He had absolutely no
intention of letting her do a one-sided dictation of what happened to them when
he knew damn good and well she’d enjoyed herself last night. Doug also knew
that was the crux of the problem.
    “It already is happening, Ausha baby. It’s
been happening since the second we laid eyes on each other.” When she opened
her mouth to speak, he moved his hand from her chin in order to lay a finger
across her lips. “Have a little faith in yourself, darlin’.” He rubbed the
backs of his knuckles across the silky-smooth flesh of her check before
returning it to the steering wheel. His next words were hard for both of them.
“If you’re able to do that, then maybe one day you’ll be able to have a little
faith in me.”
    Driving to the bar was a somber event. They
both remained quiet. Ausha was probably just as lost in thought as he was. When
they reached Malone’s, Doug put the truck into park. “Stay where you are,
darlin’.”
    Of course she didn’t do as asked. Before he
got around to her side of the truck, she had already unbuckled her seat belt
and thrown her door wide.
    “I’m perfectly capable of getting in and
out of a vehicle all by myself.” Her chin was set, her mouth a frown.
    “Remember the spanking we were talking
about on the phone this morning?” She said nothing so he continued. “They
aren’t nearly as much fun if I’m not fucking you or touching your body in a way
that makes you tingle. Get my drift?”
    Instead of appearing meek or concerned as
pretty much any other woman would have when placed in the same position, Ausha
once again showed her true colors. She slid off the seat to land right in front
of him. Doug’s hands wrapped around her narrow waist then took a step back.
He’d been preparing to lift her down when she took matters into her own hands.
     
    Ausha’s skin felt too tight. She was wound
up and not too happy with the way her body and mind seemed to be warring with
one another. The whole damn thing made her crabby as hell.
    “You mean did I get the drift where I think
you should take your commands and go fuck yourself? Yeah, I got that drift all
right.”
    She watched as his eyes widened then he
laughed. It was such a deep,