I pull her closer, spinning her slowly around the room. “I should have been dancing with you more often. They would have wanted that.” Referring, of course, to her parents and the song they played that day I met them. They died in the car crash just a week later.
Shelby sucks in a shaky breath, but lets me lead her around the kitchen, the words sinking in and turning this from a casualfriend supper to something far deeper. I think about what Ridge said.If it’s like every other woman, then it’s not love.
Shelby has never felt like any other woman. She’s entirely separate from every encounter I’ve ever had with a female. She’s already head and shoulders above any of those experiences, and we haven’t even done more than kiss.
As the second half of the song plays out, I press my hips into hers, backing her up and pinning her against the countertop. I know she can feel me. She lifts her head from my chest. Her watery eyes open wide, and her tongue darts out to lick her bottom lip. Fuck. My fingers squeeze her hips and then they’re traveling, sliding under her tank top and smoothing across her waist. Damn, her skin is so soft. Quick puffs of air hit my chest, and I realize she’s breathing hard. I haven’t even touched any of the good parts, and Shelby’s out of breath.
“Can I kiss you?” I ask, like I’m a preteen needing confirmation he can kiss a girl for the first time.
Goddamn, what is wrong with me? I’ve kissed her multiple times already. But this…well, this feels different. There’s no one here to see us. No fake engagement story we need to keep up. No pretenses. No stories. No reason other than I might not be able to function if I don’t get my lips on hers in the next two seconds.
“Dallas?” Shelby whispers, her head now tilted back in offering. Oh fuck me, she’s already going soft, and I haven’t even taken her into my arms yet.
“Yeah, honey?”
She reaches between us and fists my T-shirt, pulling me violently closer. “Kiss me already!”
My grin is quickly lost as I wrap my arms around her waist, hike her up onto the counter, step between her knees, and kiss the ever-loving hell out of my best friend. My tongue plunders her mouth before I even get my hands up to her face, needing to be closer like I need to breathe. My fingers dive into her hair andsnag on the sloppy bun. She moans into my mouth, and goose bumps line my skin. My hips roll at the same time I pull a hand from her hair and yank her core to me. As soon as my erection presses between her legs she whimpers, shaking like a leaf.
Her hands slide under my shirt and scrape up my back, nails digging into my skin. I nip at her bottom lip, the one that’s been taunting me for weeks, then plunge back inside her mouth. She rubs herself against my dick, mewling in the back of her throat, the knowledge of her desperation for the same thing I want making me absolutely wild with need. I can’t fucking think straight. I just…need.
“What song would you like me to play now?” Alexa blares from the speaker right next to us.
Shelby jumps, and our lips part ways. We’re both breathing hard, and Shelby’s bun is hanging precariously on the side of her head. Her lips are red, and her tank top is bunched up. I take her in, thinking she’s never looked hotter.
She pats my chest and pushes me back. “Come on, cowboy. Food’s getting cold, and you know I get hangry at the drop of a hat.”
I have to shake my head to clear the lust that has me feeling like tossing her over my shoulder and running to my bed. Shelby hops off the counter like that wasn’t the hottest make-out session since I learned how to take off a girl’s bra. I clear my throat and adjust my jeans. There’s no hope for it. He’s pissed at being denied once again. I hang my head and promise him we’ll take matters into our own hands—literally—in the shower tonight.
Shelby turns with two loaded plates, handing me one, then reaching up and pulling out the hair tie so her long locks fall down her back. She heads for the table like this is just a normal occurrence before supper.
How can she not understand that everything’s changed?
We didn’t pass the fucking test. According to Ridge, I’m head over boots in love with my best friend.
And I ain’t mad about it.
Chapter
Fifteen
WHEN IN DOUBT, LET YOUR HORSE DO THE THINKING
Shelby
Turns out our high school drama teacher was dead wrong—and maybe a bitch. She told me I was better suited for the costume crew than the stage, implying I couldn’t act my way out of a paper bag. But I proved her wrong just now when I tore myself out of Dallas’s arms and pretended he hadn’t just rocked my entire world.
My knees are literally shaking as I carry my plate to the supper table and proceed to chatter incessantly about Skye’s new sheep while Dallas grunts and shoves spaghetti in his face. By the time we’re done eating, I’ve hit my acting limit, so I shoo him away, insisting that since he cooked, it’s only fair I clean.
But honestly, I just need him out of my space. He grunts some more and disappears to his workshop, allowing me to have my nervous breakdown in private. I’m so discombobulated, I don’t even check out his ass as he leaves.
“What was that?” I implore Nelly, who sits patiently at my feet waiting for me to drop some spaghetti on the floor. He onlytilts his head and lets out a small whine as I transfer the dishes to the sink.
“I mean, there’s nobody here but us. What was he thinking? What wasIthinking?” I absolutely encouraged Dallas and participated with vigor. A lot of fucking vigor. So much vigor, I need to go change my underwear.
When Nelly still doesn’t answer, I do it for him. “I’ll tell you what it was. Your daddy is just a sexual being, and that’s all there is to it. It means nothing to him. It’s a reflex. And since we’ve been forced together so much recently, it was bound to happen, right? To Dallas, a kiss is the same as a handshake. It changes nothing.”
Sensing this might take a while, Nelly sinks to the floor and rests his chin on his paws.
