He glances over his shoulder and winks, causing me to blush as I pass.Okay, maybe he hasn’t forgotten what just happened.With my back to him, I let my defenses down as I head back out to the main dining room. A whack to my ass causes me to jump and yelp.
“What the hell?”
I turn, placing my hands on my hips, a scowl on my face. Rhyland only laughs as he tucks his towel into his apron.
“Just a sign of affection, babe. Go get ’em, tiger.” He smiles ear to ear, and my knees nearly go weak.
How can I be mad at that smile?
My mind is elsewhere as I exit the kitchen and end up running directly into someone.
“Whoa, Pay.” Archer grips my arms and steadies me. “You okay? You look a little flushed.”
My hands fly to my cheeks as if that could change anything.
Damn you, Rhyland Cole.“Oh yeah, I’m fine. I just came out of the kitchen, and it was a little warm in there with the ovens rolling and all.”More like super hot with that sexy-as-fuck chef working in there.But I keep that thought to myself.
I run my thumbnail across my bottom lip, remembering just how hot it got, when my brother clears his throat.Oh fuck, right, Archer.When I lift my gaze, I find eyes just like mine staring back. Thank fuck mind reading is not a Mosby family trait.
“Well, just be careful, okay? Get your head out of the clouds. I’m just thankful you weren’t carrying a tray of food or anything. I prefer to eat my food, not wear it,” he says before he leaves and walks into his office, shutting the door behind him.
I can tell that something is clearly bothering him. I just wish that he would open up about it. But who the fuck am I to judge about keeping secrets when I’m harboring the biggest secret of all?
An hour later, I’m standing at the bar, waiting for a drink order. Ollie is busy at the other end of the bar, so, of course, Logan is the one who took my order. He sets one beer down on the tray and goes to grab one last glass to fulfill the order.
“Hey, Payton.” Logan glances over toward Ollie, who is busy deep in conversation with one of the regulars. “Don’t worry, I didn’t see a thing.”
My stomach dips as if I just rode down the first drop of a roller coaster.Fuck, he knows. Don’t freak out.
I step closer to the bar and lower my voice. “Logan, please don’t say anything to anyone, especially my brothers. It’s still new for us.”
Logan places his hand on top of mine, not the way Rhy does, but more in a brotherly manner. “Don’t worry, I won’t say anything, but maybe just don’t be so reckless at work if you’re keeping this a secret. Just so you know, Ollie was the one who asked me to get those garnishes. It could easily have been him walking in there instead of me. Just be careful, okay?”
That’s the second time tonight someone has told me to be careful. Why am I overthinking this so much that there is more behind their words?
“And I don’t think anyone here wants to have another WWE SmackDown in here.”
I know he’s teasing from the smirk on his lips, but he’s absolutely right. I nod in agreement as he places the last drink on the tray, and I head toward my table.
No matter how great it feels, we have to be smarter, or we have to come clean about it to everyone and hope that it all works out. They’ve both always said all they want is for me to be happy, so it shouldn’t matter who it’s with. Even if they didn’t agree with it, I’m not willing to give Rhyland up.
It’s just shy of ten thirty when I’m finally getting in the shower. Gabby was extra clingy when we got home, so I didn’t have time to shower off the stench of Tilley’s before now. But after three books, she’s finally out cold.
Logan’s words of needing to tell everyone about Rhyland and me haven’t left the forefront of my mind since that conversation.
The shower curtain opens, and I shriek, reaching for the first thing I can find and throwing it at whoever is there.
“Rhyland? What the hell?”
Rhyland is bent over with his hands on his knees, laughing uncontrollably. “Who else would it have been?”
I rest against the shower wall and allow my heart to stop racing. He bends down and picks up my weapon of choice. “Did you throw a rubber ducky at me?” He chuckles, and now that Ican relax a little, I join in. I just shrug because he’s lucky I didn’t grab the removable showerhead and spray him or something.
Rhyland’s eyes roam over my naked body, and heat flares behind them. “Got room for one more?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
He wastes no time stripping out of his clothes, revealing his already hard cock. My throat becomes dry and my pussy, well, not so much as I watch him grip his erection and slowly stroke it before joining me.
