Billy's Baby - Annie J. Rose Page 0,18

with white accents, very tropical and beachy and tranquil. I never wanted to settle down in one place, but seeing these—especially that yellow one over there—“ she pointed, “makes me want to reconsider my life as a nomad.”

“That would be a nice place to land,” I agreed. “I think you picked the best one. Not that I’m encouraging looking in windows, but if you lean down a little just over here by the gate, you can see a piano by the front door.”

She crouched beside me with a light laugh and said, “Oh, I see it.”

We walked a few more blocks and turned down another street. I stopped for frozen lemonades and we lingered by the storefront, sipping our cold drinks.

“Connor’s wife Brandi loved these when she was pregnant with Lilly, and she got all of us hooked on them. We were constantly bringing them to her because of the heat, and it’s impossible not to order one for yourself when you’re here. They’re just too good.”

“This is probably the best frozen drink I ever had. And I’m damn partial to a piña colada. The ice is so perfectly shaved. It’s just refreshing,” she said. “I’m literally going to take the name of this place and mention it in my article. It deserves to be celebrated.”

She took her phone out of her bag and took a picture of me standing under the sign with my lemonade. I rolled my eyes at her.

“It makes the picture more personal to have someone in it, particularly a person who’s in the story.”

“Are you sure I don’t need to whip off my shirt and drop my pants to make it more interesting?” I said. “Rehearse for the calendar?”

“If I say yes just to dare you, you’d drop your pants, wouldn’t you?” she smirked.

“It’s a possibility. Tommy’s the joker of the family, but I’ve never backed down from a dare before,” I answered with a grin.

“I can stand here and dare you to take off your shirt and you will?” she asked, narrowing her eyes and challenging me.

“For a picture?”

“For a picture. I won’t even video it in slow motion and put it on TikTok. Scout’s honor,” she said.

I laughed, but Morgan’s slow, wicked grin pulled at me, eliciting a physical reaction from my body. I felt myself grow hard, felt the tingle up my spine like her nails were dragging down my back. The sweet sting of that rolled through me, and I wanted her so fiercely that my mouth was dry with lust.

Reaching for the hem of my t-shirt, I dragged it over my head. I posed, hands on my hips, flexing. She should have laughed. I expected her to, because we were joking around, because we were teasing each other. Instead, her eyes grew dark and fevered as they raked over me. I felt seared by her gaze, and I saw instantly that whatever force of desire I felt for her was answered in her blood. She flushed hot, her eyes fixed on me like she’d never look away. She took two steps closer. I could reach for her and pull her to me, but I held back. This was flirtation, so I’d pretend we were more than half a step away from public indecency. I saw her white teeth bite down on that cushiony bottom lip. I swallowed hard at the sight.

“Are you going to take a picture? Or just memorize me?” I asked teasingly.

She looked flustered for just a moment. A spark of pride and satisfaction rippled over me at her visible confusion. I knew the attraction was ferocious for her as well. She fumbled with her phone, crinkling her brow with concentration until she nodded and held up the phone, framed the shot, and took several photos. I did a few exaggerated bodybuilder poses, then leaned on the side of the building and crossed my arms, giving her my most smoldering, sexy look.

Morgan honest to God dropped her phone. I wanted to howl with laughter or just announce to the world that I had distracted her and turned her on enough that her iPhone tumbled to the concrete. It broke our hot staring contest and we both looked at the ground. She bent down and picked up her phone. Her shoulders sagged when she saw the screen was cracked.

“Shit,” she said.

“It’s okay,” I said. “I know a guy who can fix it. It’ll be done in like an hour.”

“Maybe later,” she said. “I think there’s a nap calling my