His gaze drops to my mouth. “Then what?”
“So tempting.”
I have to look away before I kiss him right here, in the middle of the room, but the last thing I want to do is set my brother off. Patterson spots us first, and his expression goes carefully blank as he watches us cross the room. As soon as my heart starts racing, he lifts his glass and smiles.
Finally, he mouths.
I glance at Louis. “That’s a good sign,” I say.
“Told you.”
Kendall slides out of the booth and rushes toward me. We nearly crash together, and she pulls me into a tight hug.
“That dress is hot. Holy shit,” she says against my ear.
“You picked it out.”
“I’m wondering why I didn’t buy the same one.” She pulls back and holds me at arm’s length before her attention shifts to Louis.
I watch her size him up with her eyes, moving from his face to his shoulders to his hands and back again, and she’s not subtle about it.
Louis watches her with amusement.
“So, you’re the prince,” Kendall says, tilting her head.
“And you’re Kendall Hart. The bestie, right?”
“That’s me. And of course, I’m dating that guy,” she says.
“Oh, really? Interesting.” Louis’s mouth curves, and he glances at Patterson before he returns his attention to Kendall.
“Wait, why did you say it like that?” She shakes her head. “Wait, did Pattycakes talk about me?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Louis says.
“I’d love to hear about it.” Kendall laughs, dragging me by the hand back to the booth.
She looks back at Louis, then at me. It’s approval.
“Maybe sometime over drinks,” he offers.
Kendall slides into the booth, moving beside Patterson. Louis guides me to the open spot across from them with his hand on my lower back. When we sit, his thigh presses against mine and stays there. He’s not at all shy about wrapping his arm around me, holding me close.
“It’s nice to finally meet the woman who’s been busting Patterson’s balls. It’s an absolute honor,” Louis says.
Kendall smiles as my brother reaches for his bourbon and empties it.
“Does everyone know Louis?” I ask, glancing around, ready to make introductions, but it’s not needed.
“They’ve all hung out with Princey before,” Patterson says. “No one is a stranger.”
It temporarily grows tense.
“Addison. Wow. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.” Smiley leans forward with that grin he’s famous for. The guy earned his nickname because he’s always wearing that smile, even when he’s dropping gloves on the ice.
“Yeah, I was overseas for the summer,” I explain, not going into detail about the shit show. I’m sure they’ve all been made aware, considering Patterson is being followed by paps at the moment.
“Louis, I heard you put Patterson in a tight headlock,” Callan, the team captain of the Angels, says to Louis.
