He threw his hand in the air in obvious exasperation. “And there it is. What did he do now? Actually touch Juno while he was training her how to protect herself?” He pointed an accusingfinger at me. “You should be thanking the bastard, not plotting his murder.”
“You should’ve seen what she was wearing, though.”Fuck, did I just whine?From the shocked expression on West’s face, that would be a definite yes. “He shouldn’t have let her?—”
“Fuck no,” he snapped, pushing his glasses higher up the bridge of his straight nose with a single finger. “If Juno wants to work out fucking naked, that is her prerogative. Just because you have this weird fixation with her?—”
“Fixation?” I scoffed and crossed both arms over my chest. “Then what are you callingyourobsession with her?” He blinked those long dark lashes,acting all innocent, like he didn’t know what I was referring to. “Don’t give me that bullshit. You make up any excuse to be around her, and you watch her every move, just like me.”
“But with less hostility. You glare, I observe,” he grumbled. “And yeah, of course I watch her. Who wouldn’t? She’s sweet yet feisty and stubborn—the first part of which I obviously bring out, and the other is all you, my friend. And then there’s that….” He waved the hand in a cast, like that helped me understand the word he was searching for. “You know.”
“Clearly not,” I deadpanned.
“I just want to hug her. There’s something sad and scared about her when she lets her guard down. It makes me want to protect her.”
“Right,” I joked. “Protect her with your dick in her pussy.”
He waggled his dark brows suggestively. “I wouldn’t say no to that kind of cuddle comfort.” A sly smile pulled at his lips as he stared at my bare chest. “You know that firsthand.”
I did know that.
Not recently, though. I was still attracted to West and wanted him, but the idea of following through felt empty, almost like something—or someone—was missing and it wouldn’t be right.
“Whatever. I need to shower, and you need to take care of that situation.” West chuckled, nodding at the outline of my hard cock beneath my shorts. “And shower that stink off you before it permeates the fucking paint. We have a meeting with Brandon in an hour.”
I twisted to see the clock on the microwave, cursing. Damn, West was right. If I wanted to make the meeting with our boss without a hard-on and smelling like garbage, I needed to hurry.
Walking through the kitchen, I swiped my dirty shirt off the floor mid-stride and went to my room, heading straight for the shower.
Under the warm spray, I slapped a palm to the tile wall and wrapped the other around my stiff cock, squeezing until my hiss sounded over the streaming water. Remembering Juno in those tiny shorts that made her ass and thighs look fucking squeezable and that top that had her full tits spilling out had my hand pumping faster.
A dirty fantasy played out, of me pinning her to the wall with a hand around her throat while the other stripped her naked. I would take my time with her, teasing her to the breaking point like she had me these last few months before hiking her leg over my hip, giving me the perfect angle to slam into her warm pussy. Eyes sealed shut, I thrust into my fist, imagining it was her tight cunt squeezing me to death, not wanting me to ever pull out.
That image faded to the three of us on the bed, me taking her from behind while West stuffed his long cock down her throat, entranced by the way mine disappeared inside her. We’d watch each other, both of us taking her hard and fast, her muffled screams piercing the air with every soul-shaking orgasm we wrung from her as we chased our own.
Peeling my lids open, I gazed at my dick, fantasizing a different scene of West taking Juno hard on my bed with me right behind him, fucking him into her.
“Fuck,” I grunted, slamming a fist against the tile hard as a violent orgasm raced through me. Both knees shook and my thigh muscles spasmed, threatening to make my legs give out under me. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I repeated as I thrust into my hand, wringing out every drop of cum and watching the evidence of my obsession swirl down the drain.
So I found her sexy as hell. That meant nothing. Juno Jones was trouble, I just knew it, and there was no way in hell I’d let my defenses down around her long enough to see those fantasies come to life.
Forty minutes later, I no longer smelled like I’d swum in a dumpster full of rotten fish and piss, and I’d relieved enough of the earlier tension that I wasn’t a walking hard-on, which would’ve made the coming meeting awkward as hell. After locking up the cabin, I leapt down the front porch steps, eager to find out what this impromptu meeting was all about. In stride, West and I walked along the main road that cut between the row of cabins, heading toward the building where Brandon held all his meetings since his office was tiny and he shared it with Carl.
As we walked past Miles, Aiden, and Aspen’s place, the former SEAL raised a hand in greeting, and I returned the gesture with a nod. Not that he noticed, as his focus was already back on Aiden and Aspen, laughing about something while they rocked back and forth on their front porch swing.
“Careful there,” West murmured with that knowing smirk of his that made dimples pop in both cheeks. “Keep watching them with that longing look in your eyes and people will think you’re jealous of their little family.”
A huff escaped, sounding more like a scoff, as I jerked my attention to the opposite side of the street, forcing myself to look away from the idyllic scene. My heart squeezed painfully at yet another reminder of the type of relationship I didn’t have now or ever before. Well, except Mattie, but she was my baby sister anddidn’t count. And West, but what we had didn’t fill that family need that had grown over the last few months.
Sure, everyone here in our community was the family I’d never had in the way of love and support, but I wouldn’t admit how much I had wanted a family of my own, a solid unit that was mine to protect and I could depend on in return. That need made me feel weak, to want a committed relationship with someone who accepted me and stood by my side. West was my best friend, and I could count on him always, but there was still something missing there that no amount of support, love, or fucking him could manifest.
I cleared my throat. “I’m not jealous of them. Just watching to make sure everyone is good.”
“Right,” West drawled as he marched up the steps to the meeting room ahead of me.
Opening the door, he walked in first, then spun around with a mischievous grin, which had me groaning in return. With a hard push, the door swung fast toward my face. I slapped a hand to the center of the flimsy wood right before it could smash my nose.
“Stop being a fucking toddler,” I snarled, pushing it open so hard that he stumbled back to keep the edge from clipping his side.
“Fucking make me,” he joked with a middle finger raised high in the air, taunting me to finish what he’d started.
