“Save me some next time?” I blurt, awkward as hell. What spell am I under? Some kind of hocus-pocus shit, no doubt.
The laugh that rolls out of him is so deep it makes my balls vibrate. He glances back over his shoulder; a grin so sexy I’d not be surprised if I melted into a puddle. “You may become addicted, probably not a good idea.”
He doesn’t give me a chance to ask what it was before he closesthe door, and seconds later, the water’s running.
Alright well, now I’m horny,yet again, hungry, and confused.
20
Leaning back in the lounger, I bring the beer to my lips and take a sip. The crisp evening air mingles with the flames of the fire burning between the six of us, soon to be seven.
Corey is going on about something I’ve completely zoned out of with Dom, while Kali and Taylor giggle, and Brittany animatedly mocks him. I feel welcome in their family. Even though most of them went to school together, they’ve embraced not only me, but also Ayden, as part of their circle.
Speaking of him, he’s currently wrapping up a call with Alysa. I really should call her—I still can’t believe I missed her visit. When he told me she’d been here for an entire week for the funeral, I could’ve kicked myself.
I’d gotten a new phone as soon as I arrived, along with a new number. I had to, the phone I had before is down in a canyon somewhere. The new number was just a direct consequence of trying to avoid my biological father and start fresh.
To try and forget about the accident…
The sudden thought of it, and my mom, has me chugging the rest of the beer in my hand.
“Here ya go,” Corey says, and when I look up, another drink is flying in my direction.
I catch it and pop off the cap with my hand. “Thanks.”
“Ayden!” Taylor shrieks. “I was worried you’d stay in and not drink with us.”
They all arrived in a rideshare—everyone here understands the importance of not drinking and driving.
“No alcohol for me, sadly,” Corey grumbles while waving his hand weakly, defeated. “The Missus has plans for us in the early morning. Ugh.”
Everyone laughs, including myself.
“Sit here, Ayden!” Brittany says while gesturing toward her lap. “I’m not allowing you to sit on the floor.”
I narrow my eyes on her and take a very deep breath that’s soon released with a near growl. She’s already had two shots of tequila, saying her week of sessions has been brutal, and she wants to get blackout drunk.
The fact that Dom and I will probably be the ones carrying not only her, but also Taylor, into their ride home has me sighing inwardly.
But I’m not going to worry about that right now. What I am going to worry about is her trying to get Ayden to sit in her lap.
She eyes me with a cat-like smile,tauntingme to tell her otherwise.
“I’d prefer the ground, Britt, but thank you.”
Her gasp has Kali and Taylor bending over, laughing in their chairs.
“Is my lap not good enough?!”
He makes his way over toward me and tries to sit between Dom and I. I catch his forearm and pull him closer. He stumbles slightly but lands squarely on the armrest of the lounger.
“Don’t sit in the sand.”
His hands rest in his lap, and I can see him squirm slightly.
“It’s probably because you’re too forward,” Kali says sheepishly before turning to Ayden. “Do you want a drink? Shot or beer? You seem like the Tequila Sunrise type of man. I can make you a mixeddrink.”
I purposefully move my drink to the hand closest to Ayden. It’ll keep me from doing something stupid like touching him in front of all these people.
