Hustle Him (Bank Shot Romance #2)(20)
Author: Jennifer Foor

He was finally acting like I didn’t repulse him and I was giving him the cold shoulder, after I’d decided that I was going to be the supportive friend he needed. “Ramsey wait!” He was starting to walk back to his truck. “I just had it out with my husband, well, my soon to be ex-husband. I didn’t mean to snap. If you want to come in and shoot a couple games, it might give me some time to cool down.”

He stood there for a second, just staring at me. It was too dark for me to be able to decipher what he was thinking. After his brief moment of silence, he started walking toward the door to the bar. “I think maybe you’re the one that needs a drink now.”

Once we got inside, I only turned on a couple of the lights. I didn’t feel like waiting on any patrons that would assume the bar was still open. My aunt did most of her business on Friday and Saturday and during the day shift, so the late night stragglers weren’t that important. Mostly, they just caused drunken trouble.

Ramsey walked behind the bar, like he knew his way around. “You just take a seat. I’ll get you something that will help you relax.”

“I have to still drive home, you know.” If this guy thought he could get me drunk, he was so wrong.

“One drink isn’t going to kill you, Vessa.”

“That’s coming from someone that drinks all of the time.”

“I don’t drink all of the time. Some nights I like to unwind. My life is complicated. The alcohol helps me relax.”

I wished that I could tell him that I knew about his family. I hated that I knew the truth. It was like I was lying to him. “My life sucks!” I grabbed the shot glass and let it pour down my throat. Ramsey leaned back against the bar wall and watched me.

“Because your husband?”

“Ex!” I shook my head and tapped on my glass. Ramsey started to fill it with more Bourbon. “He promised my son that he would take him fishing. The child has only wanted to go for the last two years. He was really looking forward to it. Out of nowhere that ass**le calls and says that they aren’t going. Can you believe that? He stood up his own son.”

Ramsey shook his head. “Some men don’t know what they got. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that. It’s a shame that your husband is…”

“Ex! We aren’t together anymore.”

“You know what I meant.” I did know, but after everything that had happened, I wanted nothing to do with the liar.

“I’m glad you came back.” My reply was both in a whisper and timid. I was actually scared to talk to Ramsey this way.

He cleared his throat and seemed to have to think about how to respond to me. “How bout that pool game?”

Ahh, he wasn’t going to answer me. It was okay. I got it. I just hated that this man could be holding in his demons and not letting anyone in to help him. It made me want to help him even more. Except, with my own set of problems, it made me seem like I was the one who needed the help. I was pretty sure that Ramsey was only coming around me now, because he pitied my situation. Why else would this broken man want to spend a single second with a still married, mother of two? “Sure.”

Just like the games before them, I let Ramsey take the lead. He played in a way that made me think that maybe, just maybe, he was showing off a bit. He played the game well and I loved watching it. I’d seen quit a lot of people play pool in my lifetime and there was just something graceful about the way he held that stick in his hands. It was like the gentle side of Ramsey Towers was peeking out of the hermit façade.

He ran out a few of his balls on the table before giving me a turn. “Your shot. Do you remember how to play?”

I laughed and leaned over the table. “Pretty sure.”

Since I had been the one serving Ramsey earlier, I knew that he’d had a bunch to drink, but the man standing before me seemed collected and far from being drunk. I suppose he really did handle his alcohol. It also reminded me of how sad and lonely his life must be to only have a bar to come to, instead of a friend.

Here I was, pretending that I couldn’t shoot, just to get to know him better. I’d really stooped low this time. Not to mention the fact that I was still legally married. He may have been a total douche, but on paper, he was my douche.

In all honestly, Ramsey was the first man that I had ever really been attracted to, other than Gavin. I’m not meaning like some guy that just looked good when he walked by or ordered a drink. I’m talking the kind of attraction where I was dying to know what made him tick. Perhaps it was just the whole mysterious vibe that he wore on his sleeve. There was so much more to Ramsey. Whether he wanted me to know or not, I was going to find out.

We played three games before he said something other than pool tips. A few times, I found myself biting my tongue to prevent myself from laughing. I wanted to turn around and contradict him.

Ramsey did a great job talking to someone without having a single personal detail revealed. He didn’t ask and neither did I. After three games, he walked over and got me another drink. By this time, I was already feeling a little too relaxed. I never usually drank, because when I did, I couldn’t shut up.

I knew I was leaning over the table, laughing and acting all giddy, but at the same time, he was smiling more. His teeth were almost perfect except he had one crooked canine on the left side. The stubble on his face must have grown pretty quickly, since he had a five o’clock shadow almost every night that I’d seen him. Don’t get me started on those matching tattoos that I wasn’t even supposed to know about. When he bent over, I found myself watching to see if his underwear were hanging out the top of his pants. If someone was watching me from afar, they would have thought I was just plain creepy.

When he handed me the drink, he opened his bottle of water and took a long sip. I too, sipped on my drink. “You feel any better?”

I nodded. “Alcohol can’t be the answer to my problems. I need to just face them.”

His jaw clenched and I could tell that my comment seemed like I was insinuating that alcohol was the answer to his problems. “I never said it was the answer, but it does take the edge off. Sometimes, I just don’t feel like caring.”

“Well, that is pretty obvious. I’m a good listener, you know. I mean, this is as close to having a friend as I’m going to get. So, if you need something, anything, just tell me.”

He let out an air filled laugh and shook his head. “I can tell that aside from your husband, you really don’t have much experience talking to men.”