“Emily will help him,” Hank said.
I nodded. The media called Emily “a horse whisperer.” Although she didn’t really like putting a title on it. “I’ll do night check after dinner.”
“Sure thing, doll.”
By the time I got back to the house, Ream’s words were back spinning in my head. The feel of his lips on mine, the cocky grin, and twinkling eyes … that was exactly what I didn’t want to see. Damn it, Ream. It was far easier resisting him when he was being a complete butthole.
“There you are. We ordered Chinese.” Emily stood beside Logan at the kitchen counter. They were unpacking dishes from a brown paper bag. “Oww,” Emily hissed as her fingers touched the bottom of one of the containers.
Logan quickly took it from her scowling. “Mouse, let me do it.” He examined her finger before slipping it inside his mouth. When he withdrew it, he kissed the tip. “You good?”
She nodded and I noticed the flush to her cheeks.
“Damn, Logan. I haven’t had any in a while. You mind keeping it to the bedroom.” I’d need a few new toys living with these two. Logan’s mouth twitched and Emily smiled. He was still a scary hot-ass, but Emily didn’t see it. At least not anymore. She did for a while when he came back for her. It was that look in her eyes, a mixture of need and fear all whipped into one.
Then I noticed Ream standing in the doorway, his eyes watching me. Had he heard what I said? Did it matter if he did? Except now he’d know that I hadn’t slept with Lance.
The heat in the kitchen went up a thousand degrees, and I breathed with my mouth open. I wanted to lick my dry lips but couldn’t because all I was thinking about was Ream licking them for me. Having his eyes on me was like him running his tongue across my skin.
“You haven’t slept with him yet?” Ream’s voice was strung tight, and it was super sexy. I was attracted to his scariness and wanted to suck it right out of him.
I noticed the sudden silence as Emily and Logan stopped talking and unpacking containers and looked at Ream and me.
“I’ll get the plates,” I said, trying desperately to keep the quiver from my voice. What the hell was wrong with me? I never acted nervous, but Ream standing there with his deliciously tight ass in those jeans, his lips slightly parted—lips that had been hard against mine.
I reached up into the cupboard and my hands had just touched the plates when I felt him beside me. His scent caused a carnival to break out on my insides, and it was like I was riding a roller coaster in a haunted house.
He was standing so close that our arms brushed against one another. “I have them,” he said as he picked up the plates.
I kept my voice low, so Emily and Logan wouldn’t hear. “I’m capable of doing it myself. What do you think … I’m going to drop them?”
His whispered words drifted like a warm breeze across my cheek. “Oh I know what you’re … capable of, Kitkat.”
My hands fell from the edge of the plates as I stared at him, mouth agape. He quirked a half smile then took the plates and walked into the dining room.
Fuck. The image of me on top of him was plastered in my head like a flashing billboard sign. Every emotion I felt back then was being catapulted into the forefront of my brain, and I wanted to knock it back to Forgottenland with a friggin’ wrecking ball.
“Oh Chinese,” Georgie said as she barged into the room. “I hope you ordered chicken balls, hot stuff.” She nudged Logan with her hip and grabbed a piece of broccoli from one of the open containers then popped it into her mouth. Then she was jumping up and down with her mouth open yelling, “Hot, hot, hot.”
Crisis came in after her and went straight to me, putting his hands on either side of my waist, palms resting on my hips. “You’ve lost weight, sexy. Were you pining for me?”
I laughed. “Yeah, must be that.” Crisis was a touchy-feely guy, and I got that because I was too. He never pushed the boundaries, and not once had he asked me to sleep with him. We were strictly platonic, and yet for some reason Crisis was in the habit of flirting with me especially in front of Ream. Of course I didn’t do anything to stop it because when a guy flirts with you, it makes you feel pretty damn good inside, and I had been missing that lately. So flirting back, I wiggled my h*ps and Crisis moaned, “Yeah, sugar. You still have it.”
Ream didn’t find it funny—at all. “And that shit … ends now,” Ream stated from the doorway.
Crisis laughed, but didn’t let me go. We’d been through this before. Ream usually said his piece, we’d argue, then he’d storm off. This time he was looking like he was going to remove Crisis from my person if he didn’t let me go.
“Ream,” Logan’s voice bit into the air.
Ream’s eyes never left Crisis as he spoke to Logan, “I told you what was going to happen.”
“And I told you to cut it loose if she doesn’t want it.”
“Not happening.”
Crisis slowly stepped back from me. “About f**kin’ time, shithead.” Crisis turned to me with a broad grin. “Looks like it worked.”
“What worked?”
“Sweetcakes, I love you. I love touching you, but Ream’s my best friend. I’d never touch what’s his. Now, he’s finally picked up his balls and is claiming you.”
“Claiming?” The voice that blurted the word was unrecognizable. “I’m not something to be claimed.” And what happened to the friends thing? What was Ream playing at?