“Never said you were.”
She nodded, mumbling, “Sure, okay.”
I rubbed the back of my neck as Lexi walked out of her room wearing a tight black dress that hugged her body. Hugged wasn’t the right word. Showcased. Her luscious curves pressed against the silky material, and my mouth dried looking at her.
“How’s this?” she asked, biting her lip and fidgeting with the little bow that tied to the side. Her attention was on my sister, thank god, or she’d think I was constipated with the way I stared at her. Charley set her drinks down and walked up to Lex, spinning her around with a huge smile.
“Girl, you look hawt.” Charley whistled. “What do you think, Will?”
Lexi dragged her gaze from my sister to the floor, then up my legs and torso until she stared at my face and swallowed hard. She looked so damn nervous, so I tried to search for the right thing to say. It broke my heart to see her unsure of herself and nothing like the loud, goofy girl I’d known my whole life. Whatever happened to her after that relationship pissed me off, and I pursed my lips, hoping to assure her she looked great.
It couldn’t be because she looked delicious or because I wanted to find out how soft the material wrapped around those curves was. It was confusing to feel this spark of attraction toward someone I’ve known for decades. This was Lexi, the girl who stayed over so many nights at our house and wore footie pajamas. The woman who got a tattoo after losing a dare with my sister. My mind had never processed her as anything but a friend in the past, yet staring at her light brown eyes searching mine for approval threw me out of my element.
“Looks good,” I said, nodding and turning away, embarrassed by my reaction. Charley would murder me in my sleep if I voiced any of the thoughts marching through my mind. Stone-cold murder. And our family wouldn’t even be mad about my death.
“See? Will said you look good too. You look gorgeous. Now, let’s do a couple of shots and head out!”
Charley poured three tequila shots before handing us limes and salt. “Here’s to night one.”
I licked the salt, took the shot, and watched Lexi do the same. A little of the liquid spilled down her chin, dropping onto her never-ending cleavage, and my stomach tightened. I wanted to lick it off. Would it be salty? Sweet?
Seriously. What the fuck was wrong with me? Had it been that long since I got laid?
“We should make some very clear rules for tonight,” Charley said, pouring another round of shots. “If we bring someone back.”
“Like, sock on the door?” Lexi said, giggling. Her entire face lit up when she laughed. Always had. Her amusement always made me happy because she cackled hard and loud. “Or like, no running around naked in the shared areas?”
“Both,” my sister said, looking at me with a very serious look on her face. “We need to make sure whoever we hook up with doesn’t watch baseball or find out who is staying in the place with us.”
“Oh, of course, I would never want anyone to harass Will,” she said, her voice getting all soft and defensive. Her gaze moved to me. She had a slight blush to her cheeks, and her jaw was set in determination. My stomach twisted with an uncomfortable thought. The idea of her hooking up with someone ten feet away from me pissed me off.
Maybe I needed to get laid.
Damnit. That was what got me into trouble in the first place.
I took the second shot without waiting for the other two and clapped my hands. “I trust you both completely. I know you’ll have my back. You proved that back in junior high with the Mrs. Simpson prank. Enough talk about hooking up. Let’s move out.”
My outlet for this relentless energy used to be sex. It helped me. When that became too risky, I would hit the gym to the point my body would exhaust itself. Since hooking up with a random woman and working out weren’t options I could choose right now, going to a beach club where the lights were dark and it was easier to blend was the best option. The restlessness had only gotten worse the past few weeks ever since the scandal, and I had no idea how to fix it. My career was solid, my family supported me, and my teammates laughed the whole thing off. Everything was fine for the most part, but I still felt violated whenever I thought about it.
We walked shoulder to shoulder to the Bum Hut, the laid-back club on the sand, and Charley twirled around in excitement. I was relieved to see my sister smile, knowing how much of a funk she’d been in, but a part of me worried she would go overboard with the drinks.
She said in her sing-song, tipsy voice, “I’ve been reading about this place. They have swings at the bar, and hell yes.” She zeroed in on someone carrying a very large and obnoxious purple vase that was at least two feet tall and two inches wide. “I want that drink. Excuse me.”
She took off, leaving me and Lexi alone.
This was going to be trouble. I could feel it in my bones. Each breath Lexi took seemed to land on my arms, making me very aware of how close we stood.
Just as I was about to say something, she crossed her arms over her ample chest and frowned. “Do you ever get nervous? Shit, you probably don’t, being you and all. You can walk up to someone and breathe, and they’d be into you.”
“Breathing is a sexy quality,” I teased, hoping for one of her smiles. Bam. I got one, and I took the opportunity to check her out again. Her smile transformed her pretty face into pure joy. Her lips curved up almost too far on each side, and she had the smallest dimple on her right cheek. I continued, “I get nervous, but probably for different reasons.”
“What does that mean?” She looked up at me with curiosity and zero judgement. The comfort of being able to be myself around her meant more than she realized.
“Do you get nervous that the people you talk to could be trying to use you? That they could be hoping to get a picture of you to sell or to post online for likes?”
“No,” she said, frowning and reaching over to squeeze my forearm. “I’m still so mad all that bullshit happened to you, Will. I would punch that girl right in the teeth if I saw her.”
“And risk breaking your fingers which you need for your job?” I asked, trying not to picture Lexi fightingfucking Katie Hallow—the woman who used me.
