Brazen and Breathless (Untouchable #6) - Heather Long Page 0,50

on the phone all the way back in traffic, ’cause I was dying. My guys were all waiting for me when I got home with food, foot massages, and questions.

I managed to answer about half of them before I fell asleep, and the next morning, I had no idea who tucked me in, just that I was sandwiched between Coop and Archie, warm and safe, and my head still hurt when I woke up.

And that was just our first day. We hadn’t even done any real work.

Chapter Ten

Look What You Made Me Do

“Rach?” I called as soon as I was in the bathroom.

“Last stall.” Aggravation vibrated in her voice. I slid right up to the door and then squatted to pass my emergency pack of pads underneath. “I am so annoyed right now.” She took them from my fingers.

“I’m sorry,” I told her. It definitely sucked when the period started out of nowhere. I did a quick glance around and then asked, “Are you good with panties? I actually have a new pair with me.”

Dead silence from the other side of the door.

I could almost picture her facial contortions. “Put away your dirty thoughts, Manning. I keep a clean pair with my emergency pack just in case.” I’d been caught unawares a couple of times, and there was very little that was worse in my opinion.

“My reasoning was so much better.” The tartness in her tone was so much better than the earlier aggravation. “Also, the temptation to say I have a pair of your panties is really doing my mood wonders.”

I rolled my eyes. “Keep it up, and I’ll rescind the offer.”

“You won’t,” she teased. “You love me.”

“I do love you,” I said. “I also spoil you and let you get away with too much teasing, and it would do you good.”

Her laughter made me grin. “Fair point,” she admitted. “Yes, please, can I borrow your panties?”

“You can keep them,” I teased and tugged the little pack out of my backpack and slid it under the door. “Don’t say I never gave you anything.”

She snorted, but the smile in her voice was unmistakable. “Thank you, Frankie. You’re my favorite.”

And just because smug could be fun, I said, “I know. I’m the best.”

The door to the hall opened and let Sharon in. The blonde made it two steps before she froze and stared at me. I’d seen her here and there, but I hadn’t been looking for her to be honest. Her nose looked all right. She’d had plenty of time to heal from our last encounter.

Me too, as it happened.

The flushing of the toilet broke through the impasse, and Sharon jerked her gaze away from me. Yeah. Blink, bitch.

Any residual sympathy I’d held for her had long-since died. If she stayed in her lane and away from me and the guys, I’d leave her alone. Crossing to the sink, I turned the water on to wash my hands, but I tracked Sharon in the mirror. She made it two more steps to a stall and then glanced at me again.

“So you really are a slut,” she muttered.

Shutting the water off after rinsing my hands, I reached for the paper towels and turned to face Sharon again as Rachel’s stall opened.

“Excuse the fuck out of you?” she demanded, but I held up a hand.

“I got this. You go ahead and finish,” I assured her, and Rachel cut a look at me, eyes glittering. “Seriously,” I told her. “I got this.”

Sharon snorted. “You got something.”

I glanced back at her and smiled. Her brow tightened, and my grin widened. It was unnerving as fuck when you were trying to piss someone off and they grinned at you. It made it harder to get under their skin.

Archie proved that time and time again.

“You actually think I give a fuck about your opinion,” I said. It wasn’t a question. “What’s even more impressive is you think your opinion has value. Though now that I think about it, it’s more sad than it is impressive.”

“I think you’re fucking four guys,” Sharon spit out. “That’s kind of the definition of a slut.”

“I think you’re jealous, because you wish it was you and you’ve pretty much shot yourself in the foot with them even bothering to look at you, much less piss on you if you were on fire.”

“Damn,” Rachel mouthed as she washed her hands.

“I also no longer have time for meaningless friendships, forced interactions, or unnecessary conversations. You used me. You wanted me out of