I freeze, eyes on the door. The voices are close now, and it hits me—we can’t exactly be going at it on the kitchen counter while my brother, his fiancée, and half my friends and teammates are out there getting drunk. But if we leave the room, I’m afraid we’ll get pulled straight into the chaos and won’t be able to slip away after.
I hear my name again—clearer this time.
Moon follows my gaze, then says quietly, “They’re looking for you.”
I nod, reluctant. I don’t want to break this—whatever this is between us now.
“Come on,” he says, taking my hand and tugging me toward the door. “We’ll see what they want. Then you can…uh, show me your room.”
“Alright,” I say, breathless. And for a second, it actually feels like I’m drunk out of my mind.
But before we go, I pull Moon in for one more kiss. It’s long and breathless, and he melts into me with these soft little moans that nearly undo me. We stay like that a little longer—kissing, touching, lost in it—before we finally straighten our shirts and step out of the kitchen.
The second we walk into the living room, Nick and Eric appear.
“There you are,” Nick says, looking between us with a faint smile. “Have a nice talk?”
I nod, pretending not to notice the sly twinkle in his eye. Eric doesn’t even bother with subtle—just gives us a slow once-over, his laser eyes back in full force. It’s obvious they both know exactly what we’ve been up to—and while Nick looks way too pleased that his evil plan worked, Eric’s clearly not a fan. I ignore him and turn to my brother.
“What’s up?” I ask, trying not to look as horny as I feel.
“I couldn’t find the first aid kit,” Nick says, “but I got it.”
“Everything okay?” I frown.
“Yeah—João broke a glass and cut his hand.” He nods toward the couch, and that’s when I spot João wedged between Derek and Samia. Derek’s bandaging his hand, looking as grim as ever. João, meanwhile, is clearly wasted—flushed and grinning at something Samia just said.
“Where’s the broken glass?” I ask, glancing around.
“I already cleaned it up,” Nick says, then turns to Moon. “You okay, Sawyer? You look kind of flushed. Might want to lie down if you’re not feeling great.”
I roll my eyes, jaw tight. Of course he’s milking this.
“Yeah, you might be right,” Moon says—and when I look at him, he’s got that kissed-silly look written all over his face. But clearly, he’s decided to play along with whatever ridiculous little show my brother’s putting on.
Moon looks up at me. “Can I go rest somewhere?” His face is completely serious—but I hear Eric sigh behind me, clearly not buying it.
“Sure,” I say, my face heating. I turn to the other two. “I’ll be right back. Just…keep the guests entertained.”
“Don’t you worry, little brother,” Nick says, flashing me a smug grin and shooting a look across the room. Samia catches it, then throws a knowing glance our way. God, those two are meddling little Smurfs.
“Let’s go,” I tell Moon, nodding toward the hallway.
He starts walking, but before I can follow, Eric grabs my elbow.
“What?” I mutter, trying not to let the irritation show.
He’s been on my ass about Moon for a while now, and I still don’t get why he hates him so much. And before you start thinking Eric’s secretly in love with me—don’t. First, he’s basically a brother to me. Second, he’s never cockblocked me before, which means this is 100% about Moon. And third, I’m definitely not his type—he’s into soft, doe-eyed twinks. Like that Scooby-Doo bartender we met at the gay club on Halloween.
Actually, Eric tried to hit him up again, but the number the guy gave him was fake. He even went back to the club a week later—turned out the bartender had already quit. And ever since, Eric’s been trying to track him down—with no luck. Hence the grumpy mood.
“You have condoms, right?” he says, raising an eyebrow. “You don’t want to regret anything later.”
“Eric.” I give him a flat look. “You’re starting to sound like my mom.”
“I have to,” he says, softer now. “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Thanks,” I snort, bumping his shoulder. “But I’ll be fine.”
