With that taunting comment, he strolled off. Now he knew I wouldn’t. Man, I needed a drink, and didn’t care I was a lightweight.
“What’s the book about, the one you’re working on?” Ila asked.
Thankfully, the undercurrent between War and me hadn’t reached her yet. I still wanted to kill him for the stupid deal he’d trapped me into.
“Kama Sutra illustrations,” I deadpanned.
Both Max and Jack’s gaze shot to me. My friends gaped.
“Well, it seems people want to see proper pictures rather than the eroding, erotic sculptures.” I mentally made a note to do some sketches for my horny friends. Later, I would tell them that I’d been commissioned to work on a children’s book. “And Cooper, the author, wants to do it ingreatdetail.”
Ray grinned. “I want to see this.”
“Me, too,” Ila chimed in.
“Heck, I’ll buy the damn book once it’s in print.” Max draped his arm around Ila’s chair, cocking an eyebrow, and she blushed, red staining her tan cheeks.
“Make that two.” Jack smirked, and Ray rolled her hazel eyes at him and laughed. “Can’t wait.”
Teasing my friends was fun, but being here with them and their husbands made me feel like the oddball out.
A familiar, sinewy forearm with a light dusting of hair came into my line of vision, sliding a drink in front of me, floating with mint leaves and ice. My heart skidded in my chest.
“Mojito, right? Light on the vodka?” War said, his corded arm brushing mine as he sat again. A shiver raced through me, straining every nerve like I needed the added pressure.
“Yep, a total lightweight.” Ila grinned. “We both are.”
Unable to ignore him, I looked up and fell into eyes of the deepest ocean-blue, suddenly feeling as if a vacuum had sucked out all the oxygen from the bar, and my lungs were slowly shutting down.
A little glint appeared in his eyes. “I know,” he answered Ila.
It took a moment before I could get my feeble brain to function, and I inhaled sharply. He remembered how I took my drink, even my preference for vodka over rum, and that I didn’t consume a lot of alcohol. That unsettled me a bit.
“Thanks,” I murmured as he reclaimed his seat.
Somehow, War’s chair appeared closer to mine. I could actually feel his body heat. Maybe, the table had grown too small with the extra chairs.
“War?” Max snagged his attention, and I exhaled gratefully since it stopped his quiet tormenting of me. Not that he did anything. Jeez, the guy just had to be, for godsakes!
The food came. Platters of wings, nachos, dips, and mini burgers. Ila switched places with Max.
“War, scoot over, let me sit next to Charli,” Ray said, rising to her feet.
Without a word, he did, cutting me an amused smile. It took everything in me not to glower as both my friends flanked me.
“So…the secret honeymoon, where was it?” My attention shifted to Ila, realizing then I hadn’t asked anything about it when we met earlier at the hockey rink. Well, not my fault I was thrown for a loop during Ray’s reveal, and the stupid bet which left me in my current dilemma—weedingfor the maddening man.
“Italy. It was heavenly.” Ila sighed. “I have vids and pics, but it’s still on my USB. We’ll have dinner at the loft soon, and I’ll show you.”
“And you?” I asked Ray, lowering my voice. “Don’t tell me you hid out in Jack’s bedroom for the three weeks?”
She laughed. “No, actually, we went to Bora Bora last week. I had to wait for my new passport. Man, the place is amazing.” While Ray showed me her snapshots and videos on her cell, I became aware of the women watching our table. Max was taken, and so was Jack, but the outside world didn’t know Ray and Jack were a couple.
Frowning, I followed the groupies’ gaze… to War. I snorted. Of course.
Those blue eyes turned to me like we had a cord attached between us or something. Hastily, I took a sip of my drink.
A redhead, poured into a skintight dress, stopped to talk to War. It was hard to keep my gaze away from them as I drank more of my mojito.
