“Brainstorm, Jordan.” Maya took a drink. “Who do you know that’s positively fabulous?”
“Positively fabulous”—he laughed again—“I’m not sure. I really need to think long and hard about this one.”
“Please don’t.” I pretended to dry-heave. “The whole setting-me-up thing makes me gaggy, and it feels like a train wreck waiting to happen.” My hand went to my heart. I didn’t like the way it was pounding beneath my fingers.
“That doesn’t have to be the case,” Jordan offered. “I’m sure I can come up with someone good.”
“How about someone you work with or a business associate?” Maya encouraged, crossing her legs over Jordan’s while he held her thighs. “Or someone you played hockey with. Or—”
“Jordan, where you at?” a voice yelled from what I assumed was the entrance of Jordan’s condo.
A voice, even though I’d only heard it a few times, I already knew far too well.
The sexiness and grittiness in Gavin’s tone made me sit up a little higher and bring my wine much closer to my mouth.
“In the living room!” Jordan yelled back.
What was Gavin doing here?
And why, out of all evenings, did he decide to come over tonight?
I sucked in as much air as I could hold and waited. The music Jordan had playing in the background made it impossible to hear Gavin’s footsteps, but I swore I could feel him getting closer, my body reacting to the anticipation of seeing him.
And when I did, when he crossed into the living room, wearing a pair of dark jeans and a cobalt-blue button-down, a color identical tohis eyes so that they popped even more than normal, there wasn’t a spot in my body that wasn’t tingling.
Especially when his gaze locked with mine.
When his eyes narrowed and he took me in as if he were seeing me for the first time all over again.
I couldn’t read his expression. I couldn’t make sense of his posture. He had stopped at the base of the ottoman, his arms crossed over his chest, the material of his shirt tight against each muscle. With his height towering over me and his strength apparent in his size, I was dissolving into the couch, melting a little more every second. What didn’t help was my nose sensing a subtle hint of his cologne, and after each inhale, I found myself breathing deeper so I could get more of his scent.
Why does he have this effect on me?
And why can’t I shut it off?
“You know, your brother’s single,” Maya said out of nowhere. “I wonder if he could be an option?”
I couldn’t speak. For so many reasons, the main one being that I was sure no words would come out—it would only be breaths that would sound like a moan.
“What do you think, Jordan?” Maya continued.
Gavin dragged his stare away from me and said to Maya, “What about me being single?”
“Gavin, my girl here needs a happily ever after. In other words, she needs a Jordan. So I asked Jordan if he had any single friends we could hook her up with, and you, being single yourself, just so happened to walk in.” Maya smiled.
And I wanted to die.
Chapter Twelve
Gavin
Ben was at my parents’ for the night, which gave me the option to either go out or sit in a quiet house with thoughts dominating my mind. Thoughts that somehow constantly traced back to Emily. Since there was no way in hell I was going to spend my evening doing the latter, I reached out to Jordan, and he told me to come over. When Denis dropped me off and I walked into my brother’s pad, never did I think Emily would be sitting on his couch.
She was a woman I simply couldn’t escape, no matter how hard I tried.
Her expression, when her eyes locked with mine, confirmed she was just as surprised to see me.
But was her cunt throbbing like my dick was now doing in my jeans? Was her skin on fucking fire, desperate for me to touch it?
