stupid and fuck up.”
“I’m never stupid.”
“No? So what you did at the school with Shane… totally a smart move? You were on school grounds, he’s a student, and your ass became an adult last year. Still think you’re clever?”
“Fuckin’ A. It was my smartest move yet. I got her to admit she loves me.”
Halfway through a pull of his beer, he chokes and bends forward to clear his airway. “What? She said that?”
I smirk and thump his back. “Well, not out loud. But she was thinking it.” Her untouched core was like an inferno on my leg. “She was definitely thinking it.”
He shakes his head. “You’re a fucking mess, Kincaid. God knows what you’re gonna do when they ask ‘does anyone object to this shit’ at her wedding.”
“I don’t think they say it exactly like that.”
“No?” His green eyes meet mine. “You know what I mean! Should I buy her a baby shower gift now, or…?”
Fury rages hot inside me. “It won’t make it all the way to the alter. She already wants me. And she’ll never carry his babies. I’ll drag her off to Nantucket before he gets his hands on her.”
“Just like that?” He laughs and leans back onto the Mustang. “All our history, all our fun, you ditch your best friend and move to Nantucket for a girl?”
I scoff and force my raging heart to relax. “Just like that. But you can come with us. I’ll find you a nice girl to talk into bed.”
He rolls his eyes. “I don’t need your help. Unlike you, I get laid on the regular. Unlike you, I don’t become a fuckin’ eunuch for an unavailable chick.”
“Different paths, Geo. You like ‘em fast and loose. I like her. We both still smile at the end of the day.”
“Speaking of,” he murmurs hungrily. His eyes zoom across the lot to none other than Tammi St James. She strides across the hardpacked dirt in a teeny tiny denim skirt and big hair. Tammi also has double D’s, but hers don’t hold even close to the same appeal for me. With a sequin purse hanging off her shoulder, fire-engine red lips and popping gum, she leaves her arm stretched back as though pulling someone through the crowd.
As though…
“I fuckin’ knew it!” I slam my fist into Geo’s shoulder. “I fuckin’ knew she wanted me.” I act badass, I act unaffected… sort of. But today, I sprint across the dirt and swing Nelly into my arms before she sees me coming.
Tammi and her double D’s are forgotten as I jog around the back of a VW van and stop with her back pressed against the fading blue paint. Legs wrapped around my waist, her chest rising and falling with shock… surprise… exhilaration? Fuck knows, but she’s not mad, she isn’t hitting me to let her go, and her arms wrap around my neck instinctively. “I knew you’d come find me.” I bury my face in her scented neck and take a whiff. Mine. All mine.
“Tammi made me come.”
“Uh-huh. Your excuse implies Shane still thinks he’s your man.” I nibble on her rosy flesh and smile. She came for me. For the first time in three years, she dressed up for me, she snuck out for me. She always looks pretty, but tonight, she did it knowing she was coming to find me. In nineteen and a half years of life, this moment is legitimately my happiest yet.
And it’s only going to get better from here.
“Did you race yet?”
“Not yet. Soon.” I pull back to look into her smoky eyes. “I’ll race for you. Win for you.”
She smiles shyly. And yet, her legs remain around my hips. Her warmth resting against my belly. “What do you get for winning?”
“A little cash. The satisfaction of knowing I’m number one.”
“That’s important to you?”
“Winning? Uh-huh. I always intend to be number one. I fight? I win. I race? I win. I want you… I will win.”
Her eyes darken and glitter in the moonlight. “Am I just a game to you? A trophy to collect? What happens after you win?”
I smirk arrogantly and extend one arm to the space around us. “I win. But I keep coming back. It’s not one and done. It’s win once, win again, keep winning. I’ll always work to keep the number one place in your heart, Bert.”
She rolls her eyes, but I see her lips shaking. Tell me yes! Tell me it’s okay to taste them. “You think you’re so sweet, Bryan Kincaid. You