Free Stripped Bounty by Dorothy F. Shaw Page A

disgust in his gaze when he watches you, Rosie. That man has a hard-on for you. In a big way.”
    Shock plowed through Rosie at her friend’s words. It had never occurred to her that Badger could have a thing for her. And yeah, she thought he was attractive and sexy and dangerous…but it wasn’t like she was interested. Was she? “Maybe you’re right. I guess I never gave it much thought.”
    Sabby forked up a mouthful and spoke around it. “Girlie, if that were me, I’d be jumping all over that man. In a hot minute.”
    “I’ll keep that in mind.” Rosie laughed and took another sip of her mimosa.
    Maybe she was interested in Badger. She set her glass down and focused on her plate. Technically, she was single. Still mourning—sort of—for her dead husband, but definitely single.
    There had been days early on that she’d missed Joey with an ache so fierce it was physical. But as the months passed, it’d lessened. Considerably. On occasion a memory would hit her, and she’d find herself fuming at him rather than wishing he were still with her.
    Remembering all the bullshit, remembering how many chances she’d given him—none of it without wishing she’d done things differently—or how many times they’d been evicted because he’d blown their rent money. She was grateful she didn’t have to live that way anymore.
    Over the years, the love she had for him had died, at least the in-love part did. But she’d stayed with him anyway. Christ, they’d been together since forever. How could she not? Rosie had been his home base. The place he came back to after each stint behind bars…
    She blew out a sigh and picked at the waffle on her plate. All of that was done now. And although she wouldn’t have picked for it to end the way it did, it had, and she’d found a way to move forward.
    Rosie had come to Phoenix on a mission to start fresh. Change her future. Since she’d ended up back onstage, things hadn’t exactly gone as planned, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t still change it. She could. And she would.
    But now she wondered if Badger would somehow play a part in that future. Rosie took another bite of waffle and decided it didn’t matter whether he did or not. She’d do whatever she needed to do to move forward.
    Rosie was a fighter. A survivor. She’d learned early on how to be.

Chapter Eight
    R osie swung , upside down, one leg hooked around the slim pole, her back arched as she formed a perfect arch with her body. The powerful lyrics from Sia’s “Chandelier” flowed through the club’s sound system, wrapping around Rosie as she let herself get lost in the beat.
    It’d been about two weeks since Thanksgiving. And Badger hadn’t said a word to her. Ever since Sabby had brought up Badger watching Rosie while she danced, she hadn’t stopped thinking about the attempted conversation on Turkey Day.
    Now the only thing she was getting from him was a whole lot of grunts or groans. A couple grumbles, too. But that was it. No words, not even clipped ones laced with disgust.
    Rosie didn’t get it. And really, she’d grown damn sick of trying to figure it out—figure him out. He wanted to be an asshole? So be it. All she needed from him was to keep the crowd in line. Really, she didn’t need that, either. She was perfectly fine taking care of herself.
    She let go of her foot, and extended both arms out as she continued to spin. The song ended, and ZZ Ward’s “OVERdue” started. She’d picked the songs that night for Badger. Though she’d told herself the whole time that wasn’t what she was doing. Did he listen to the words while he watched her dance? Was he watching her now?
    Rosie curled her body around the pipe, her torso and thighs holding her suspended. She let herself drop, sliding down the pole and stopping only right before she hit the floor. The crowd went nuts. Considering it was Friday night, they were packed and the roar from their cheers was damn near louder than the