“Yes, thank you, Aiden. I am aware of that. And if Alex hadn’t confirmed that Becca is actually interested, I wouldn’t be pursuing her. But she’s interested, so I will keep trying. At least as long as she wants me too, anyway.”
“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” Devon yells as he comes into the studio, carrying trays of coffee from Bump & Grind. Alex follows along behind him with pizza boxes from Tino’s. Ever since Alex moved in, Connor has become a lot more relaxed about his studio space. He never used to allow food in here at all, and now coffee and pizza are no big deal. Love really does change people.
“Where’d you go last night?” I ask, narrowing my eyes at him. I’m not positive, but I think he has something going on with Xena. I’m not going to say anything, though. Devon is friends with her older brother, and I’m sure he wouldn’t like it if Devon were panting after her. “Rhea didn’t have her keys or her phone. She had to spend the night at my place.”
“Oh, did she now?” Devon asks, waggling his eyebrows. “And how was that?”
“What do you mean, ‘how was that?’ How do you think it was? It was weird, and a little uncomfortable. We barely know each other and she was forced to sleep at my house if she didn’t want to sleep on the street.”
“Oh, shit dude. Sorry.” Devon’s passing out coffees while we talk. “Xena said it looked like you two were hitting it off. She wanted Rhea to blow off some steam last night. And I know you haven’t been with a chick in a long time. The way you were grinding all over her on the dance floor, it sure looked like you were interested in making something happen.”
Fuck. I was sort of hoping he hadn’t noticed that. It was more bad judgment on my part than it was an actual attempt to make something happen. That’s why I tried to keep my distance from her last night and this morning. Something about her is making me overlook my usual rules for engaging with a woman. One of the main ones is don’t hook up with someone who you will ever need to see again. If I never have to see them again, there’s no chance I will get attached and want something more. Rhea, whether she knows it or not, is involved in our lives, thanks to whatever Xena and Devon are doing. And that’s just one reason she’s off limits.
“Well, next time the two of you attempt to push Rhea onto anyone, I’d suggest you ask her first. She showed no interest in me like that. Not that I was looking at her like that, either. The dancing was just to get some sleazy looking fuckboy away from her. I had to do it again after you guys left, too. For a former cop, she wasn’t taking a very assertive stance with those douchebags at the club.” Although, what if she was looking to blow off some steam, and I kept stepping in and clam jamming her? Nah, she seemed relieved for the help. Didn’t she?
“My bad,” Devon says, a big smile on his face. “I guess I assumed that when she was going on and on about how hot you are, she was showing her interest in you. My mistake.”
“OK, hold on a minute,” Alex says. She stops passing out pizza and looks over at me. “Who is Rhea? Have I met her? Oh, I have the best idea. You should bring her for dinner tomorrow!”
“No!” I yell, causing everyone to turn their attention to me. Shit, this is turning into a bigger deal than I wanted. “I mean, that’s not a good idea. She has job searching to do. She got fired, and she’s trying to figure out what to do with her life now.”
“Yeah, maybe it’s not such a good idea,” Devon says to Alex. “At least not this week. She just lost her dream job as a cop and she’s a little lost now trying to figure it all out.”
“Um, that’s the best time to invite someone to join our family dinner get together. Besides, what’s she going to accomplish on a Sunday? Nothing. She’ll be sitting around, depressed, and probably alone. What better way to take her mind off of it than joining this lot of random weirdos.”
Shit. Alex has a point. Rhea has no family aside from Kaden and Xena, and Xena is most likely going to be here. Xena is one of Denise’s oldest friends and ever since Denise and Ryder got married, she’s been here for every family dinner Sunday.
“Wait a minute.” Ryder sounds like he’s just figured something out. “Is this the cop that was there that day at Gran’s?”
“Yeah, that’s her. She was Kaden’s partner.”
“Well, that settles it then. We have to invite her. She helped my Gran and Gladys when Denise’s dickhead ex tried to hurt them. That means she’s family. Plus, Gran will be here tomorrow. I’m sure she’d love to see her.”
I don’t mention that Gran saw Rhea this morning at breakfast. I don’t think telling everyone I took her out for breakfast will help convince them I’m not interested in her.
“There. It’s done,” Devon says, sliding his phone into his pocket. “Just messaged Xena and told her to bring Rhea tomorrow for dinner.” He looks over at me with a smirk. “There’s no turning back now.”
Why do these guys always think they know me better than I know me? I’m not interested in Rhea. She’s hot, sure. But I can keep my dick in my pants and act friendly without expecting more. I’ve had years of practice denying my sex drive, so no matter how attractive she is, Rhea’s not going to wear me down.
Not that she wants to wear me down. We’re barely even friends, and that’s exactly how we’re going to stay.
Chapter 19
Rhea - Ulterior Meal Motives
“Thanks for having me over,” I say to Alex as she shows me to the kitchen where several other women are sitting around the island and around the kitchen table. Xena went off somewhere to see the guys as soon as we walked in the door. She brought a recorder with her and was intent on assaulting their ears with some elementary school songs. “I was looking at a night of shitty takeout and reruns on Netflix tonight. This is a vast improvement.”
“You are more than welcome,” Alex says, while she hugs me. “We do this pretty much every Sunday. Come anytime you want. This is the only time I get to cook for a large group anymore. I have to say, it’s way more fun cooking for people I like than it was cooking for my personal chef clients. Plus, the only one around here who tries to grab my ass is my fiance, and I like it when he does it.” She laughs.
“There you are, girl. I’ve been waiting for you. Come sit beside me.” Gran pats the chair next to her at the table. “Let’s have a little chat about our mutual friend, Aiden.” She wiggles her eyebrows at me as I sit down.
“Hey Gran, where’s the rest of the titty club? I figured you all travelled in a pack.”
“Oh, I like you. You’re sassy. Too bad you can’t join the titty club yet. Your tits need to hang at least this low,” she marks an imaginary line almost at her hips, “before you can join. You’re just too perky still, I’m afraid.”
All the women in the kitchen burst into laughter, myself included. Gran is quickly becoming one of my favourite people, thanks to her ‘give no fucks’ attitude and decidedly un-granny-like behaviour.
“OK, before we get into the details, let’s at least make sure Rhea knows everyone here. I’m Denise,” the woman across the table says, “in case you don’t remember me from the pink-rope prisoner incident.”
