Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72990 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72990 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
I glance at my watch, wondering where Kain, Dalton, and Blake are. Maybe they’ve thought twice about coming to celebrate my birthday. When I invited them, they seemed pleased, but when I told them we’d have to pretend that there’s nothing going on between us, their faces fell.
I was annoyed at first because this deal was always supposed to be a secret, and they made me feel like the bad guy for not wanting to kiss them all in public. I don’t know what they expected, but we’re not in that place. We can never be in that place. Gossip spreads like wildfire. There’s no containing it.
And if Travis found out…
I shake my head even at the idea of him rushing back from Germany to confront us.
“Why is your face like that?” Celine asks. She tosses her auburn curls over her shoulder and wrinkles her freckled button nose. “It’s your birthday. You’re supposed to be happy.
“I am happy,” I say.
She frowns and purses her lips. “Something’s going on with you, and I don’t know what it is.”
I’ve kept details of the deal to myself. Even Ellie, who encouraged me to go for it, doesn’t know what we’ve been doing. It’s easier to keep it a secret rather than face up to the obvious questions that any of my friends would ask.
Celine turns to the bar and waves as Ellie starts to make her way to us, her dancing walk through the bobbing throngs of people making me smile despite all my angst.
“I am so happy to be out tonight; you guys don’t even understand.”
Hugging Ellie tightly, it hits me how different her life is now. “Who’s looking after Noah tonight?”
“My mom. Any excuse to have cuddles. I swear, she’s so great at being a nana. I didn’t expect it at all.”
“That’s good to hear,” I say. My friend didn’t plan to become a mom so young, and knowing she’s got family support is a relief. She’s never been good at asking for help. Like me, she doesn’t trust easily. Maybe that’s what drew us together, a familiar wariness.
“Have you guys been drinking? Colby’s buying me a Red Devil. I’m practically salivating. Can you believe it’s been a year and a half since I drank one?”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. With the pregnancy and breastfeeding…I just haven’t been able to.”
“I’m still over here dealing with bullshit like which ramen I should buy at the store and you’re raising a whole human,” Celine says.
“I don’t have to worry about ramen,” Ellie says. “I leave Colby to do all the grocery shopping.”
“Lucky you,” I say, glancing at the huge man responsible for feeding my friend. His arms are bulging against his shirtsleeves, probably from all the groceries he’s been hefting!
The dance floor becomes more crowded as Colby, Micky, and Seb shoulder their way through, each holding a red cocktail and a bottle of beer.
“Happy birthday, Gabs,” Seb says, planting a kiss on my cheek. He hands me a Red Devil. Micky passes one to Celine and Colby gives his to Ellie. We clink our glasses, and they both yell happy birthday before we drink them down in big, freezing gulps.
“Wow,” I gasp. “That was good.”
“Look who it is,” Colby yells, nodding at someone in the doorway. I peek around his bulky shoulder to find Kain nodding and smiling back. Behind him, Dalton and Blake are searching the crowd for us. I put up my hand to wave but pull it down quickly, embarrassed. I’ve forgotten how to be natural. Would I wave at them, and smile if I wasn’t having sex with them? Ugh. I hate that sex makes everything complicated.
“Oooo…Kain is looking fine,” Ellie says, licking the cocktail from her lips, eyes gleaming with suggestiveness. “And are they his brothers?”
“Yeah,” I say. “Dalton’s the big one, and Blake’s the one with the tats.”
“Yowzer. That’s a trifecta of hotness right there.”
Seb throws his arm around Ellie’s shoulder. “You know we’re standing right here?”
She kisses his cheek. “Of course I know. Why? Are you jealous?”
As they continue their jokey conversation, my focus zeroes in on Kain’s tall frame. At six-two, he stands a few inches taller than a lot of the men in here, but amongst the football crowd, he just seems normal sized. I watch as Kain shakes hands with Dornan and a few of the other players on his team. Some know his brothers. Others get introductions. Dalton seems restless, as though he doesn’t want to be dragged into game talk. He whispers something in Kain’s ear, and he and Blake draw away, heading straight for me.
Shit.
This is weird.
I can do anything with these men. Hell, I’ve sucked their dicks and sat on their faces. I’ve been fucked in just about every position I’m flexible enough to achieve. But somehow, greeting them in a social setting seems weirdly intimate. They’ve seen me naked so why does dancing in front of them make me cringe.