Duke shot me a wink, and I tensed. There went my chances of using Knox as a buffer between Duke and me.
“We’ll take Kaiden then,” Duke hummed. “In the spirit of tension from afar and all.”
“What the fuck’s that supposed to mean?” Tucker groaned as his friend slapped him in the back and came to stand on my other side.
I suddenly felt very small, surrounded by men who all had a few inches on me, at least. Even Maisie was taller than me, if only by an inch or two.
“Let the games begin.” Duke took on a menacing voice and rubbed his hands together like some supervillain, staring me right in the eyes.
I was so screwed.
10
KNOX
Iwished I could have saved Lucy from Duke’s…attention.
He meant well, but he was abrasive, loud, and obnoxious—something he prided himself on—and Lucy simply was not.
No. Lucy shrank under his family’s gaze, he stressed himself out over the smallest things, and he blamed himself when he didn’t want to do something that they wanted him to do. It was like the painting all over again. I don’t think I’d ever seen someone hate their passion so much. He stood at his easel and looked like he was undergoing torture and burying himself in guilt.
I knew about my passion. Cooking. Making things with my hands and the finest ingredients I could afford at the farmers market. It was like a dance in the kitchen, and I’d never felt more relaxed than when I was making something from scratch in my nana’s kitchen.
Lucy wasn’t like that. He didn’t have a nana’s studio where he could go and let himself go. He treated family expectations as a life sentence if he even considered saying no.
I brought him here to get him away from all of that, and now Duke was trying to give him the third degree.
“Just ignore Duke, okay?” I stepped into Lucy’s space and reached for the buckle of the bulky laser tag vest that he was struggling with.
Lucy jumped. “Knox, where did you come from?”
I smiled and clasped the buckle together at his narrow waist before cinching it tight so it sat snugly against him. “He means well, but he can be an idiot. He really isn’t going to be hurtful on purpose. And you can always tell him to fuck off.”
Lucy’s eyes widened. “I can’t!” he hissed, “what are you even saying?”
I grasped onto Lucy’s waist and spun him so I could check the buckle on his other side. I could say it was just me trying to be helpful, but I knew I was doing it for selfish purposes at least a little bit. He was so warm, and he felt so right in my hands—hands that almost fit around his waist if I tried on either side. And he didn’t tense up, even when I was touching him and in such close proximity. It didn’t seem to bother him at all, and I tried not to feel elated by that.
It reminded me of last night, feeling his waist under my hands, of aching to slip it just under his shirt so I could feel the warmth of his skin with mine. We’d both been tired, and our guards were down.
His mouth…
I hadn’t started the kiss, but maybe I’d made the first move. He’d curled his arms around my neck, and I got my hands on the waist I couldn’t stop thinking about.
He’d been heated, but pliant, happy to initiate the kiss but just as happy for me to take over.
“Knox?”
I shook my head. “Sorry, what?”
Lucy raised both eyebrows. “You just suggested I tell Duke to fuck off!” he whispers sharply. “I can’t do that!”
I snorted. “Of course you can. I do it all the time.”
“He’s your best friend.”
“And you’re with me,” I insisted.
His eyes widened, but I pushed forward, my hands still tight and holding him in my space.
