He laughed, bright and happy, and his face lit up in the firelight. With the glow around his head, Ren looked like a damned angel, when in reality he was thedevil.
“Boy, the only one havingsomethinghappen to his ass later is you.”
Pa cleared his throat pointedly behind Ren. “I’d like to remind you that his father is present.”
“And?” Ren threw a sharp smile over his shoulder. “I’m sure you know your son isn’t a virgin.” Then, he pointed at Oli. “Get ready, Kitten. Kansas and I are going to get you all hot and bothered.”
Oli’s cheeks flared so red I was worried he’d catch fire, especially when Barber’s eyebrows hitched in amusement as he glanced Oli’s way.
“Oh my God. Shut up and just wrestle,” Oli said.
“Kansas?” Pa asked. Nothing ever flew past him.
“It’s a pet name between us.” Ren winked before he focused completely on me. His mouth pursed in determination as he leaned all his weight on his arm. His biceps flexed, the grayscale artwork inked into his skin moving with his muscles. “Let’s goooooo, Kansas.”
I rolled my eyes, but the weight on my chest lightened under his fierce, determined expression. If I didn’t have a competitivestreak, I would’ve just let him win without a real fight, but I hated losing. I knew for a fact Ren did, too.
My grip on his hand tightened and I bit my bottom lip, preparing myself.
“I’ll count down from three.” Barber slapped his hands on the table near us, his grin transforming into a feral smirk. That was why we loved him, though. He was a chaos demon in all the best ways. “Three. Two. And go!”
Ren and I immediately used our strength, applying pressure on the other’s arm. We fought, and I was getting the upper hand, with Ren’s arm bending toward the table.
Shit!He managed to fight back. I gritted my teeth and struggled against his sudden burst of strength. Was I being played? Finally, after trying my hardest, he slammed the back of my hand against the table.
He cheered, pumping his arm. “Fuck yeah. That’s how it’s done, kids.”
Oli snorted, but his eyes glittered. He was also noticeably flush, his cheeks and forehead blooming a bright red even in the shadows cast by the flickering firelight.
Despite a part of me knowing Ren was strong to begin with, a sense of failure struck me deep in the chest.This is why I need to bulk up. They don’t understand.My stomach roiled, the familiar tendrils of nausea growing until I had to swallow down the food threatening to rise up my throat.
Ren dragged me into a hug when I met him beside the table and laid a kiss on the corner of my lips. “You gave me a run for my money, Kansas. No one gets to say you’re a shitty linebacker, not even that loser of a quarterback.”
“Quarterback?” Pa’s voice sliced through the air.
I winced, cursing under my breath. I took in the rage that simmered across Pa’s face. If I didn’t douse that fire fast,someone was going to lose their head. The last thing I needed was our quarterback getting murdered.
“It’s nothing,” I said, ignoring Ren’s frown. “Hudson’s a dick, but he never said anything to me.”
“That isn’t?—”
I fisted Ren’s collar and dragged him down into a deep kiss, cutting him off. He didn’t know about Pa, the true extent of what Pa could do. I never wanted Ren to be in the inner circle on that info because it would only put him in danger. But I also didn’t want Hudson six feet under, either. As much as the guy was an asshole, he didn’t deserve to meet Pa’s wrath.
Ren melted against me, and I moaned, not quite expecting the kiss to deepen enough to include tongues, but here we were. His mouth was an otherworldly experience, full of nuances that hit in the right ways. With a simple swipe of his tongue, everything around us disappeared. He took away my worries and anxieties. I was a puppet, and he was the master controlling the strings.
Someone sidled up beside us, and it took me a moment to realize it was Oli as his scent permeated my senses. He’d spritzed on Ren’s cologne earlier, and having him smell like vanilla ignited a desire I shouldn’t want to feel with Pa around.
I switched from kissing Ren to attacking Oli’s lips while Ren slid his mouth across my neck. I shuddered through the explosion of pleasure that detonated through me.
“Guys, guys!” Barber laughed loudly, breaking through the layers of desire clouding my senses. “Keep it PG. We have a child here.”
“I amnota child, Luke!” Sophie huffed, and it was enough distraction to make me jump away from my boyfriends. My cheeks and neck heated, and I groaned when my gaze met Pa’s.
“Fuck. Sorry.”
“I’m not.” Ren waggled his eyebrows.
“He’s KC’s dad, asshole.” Oli shoved his shoulder playfully.
