Brazen and Breathless (Untouchable #6) - Heather Long Page 0,82
calf. “No?”
I grinned. “Truth or dare?”
He let out a happy little sigh. “Fuck, I love you.”
“I know. But that doesn’t answer my question.”
He chuckled. “Dare me.”
Oh, I planned to.
Chapter Sixteen
Crap Meet Fan
Coop
It was funny, Frankie didn’t so much lock the other guys out as lock herself in with me. I didn’t usually care if Jake was there or, fuck, any of them really. Archie and Bubba weren’t necessarily on board for the active sharing, but I’d caught Archie watching more than once and the flare of interest, even if he kept it to himself. Dude was allowed.
Bubba?
Yeah that was a whole other hole to dig in later when it was just us. I had questions, but I wasn’t putting Frankie on the spot. Especially when she seemed so deliriously relaxed.
We hadn’t unlocked the door before we fell asleep. Apparently, a couple of the cats were in the room, and they emerged to find their spots after Frankie wrapped herself around me. I only woke when one of the little bastards stepped on my bladder. With careful disentangling, I slipped free of the bed and unlocked the door. I didn’t bother with clothes because it was late.
When I got back from peeing and grabbing a glass of water, I caught sight of Jake on Frankie’s other side. I bit back a laugh and set the glass next to the bed before sliding back into my spot. She was already tucked up against Jake, which had her facing me. I threaded our fingers and closed my eyes.
“You good, man?” Jake’s sleep-hoarsened voice said he needed the water as much as I had.
“Yeah,” I told him. “I just needed her for a while.”
“We all need her.” True enough. “But I’m here for you, too.”
I grinned. I appreciated the sentiment. Except… “She’s just prettier.”
“Fuck you,” Jake muttered. “But I accept that logic.”
I chuckled, and Frankie made a little sound of protest that had us both humming little soothing sounds that were so damn identical, a snort escaped me and Jake had to strangle a laugh. When her breathing deepened again, I lifted and glanced over at him.
“We good?”
“We’re fine,” Jake said, yawning. “I get it.”
“Cool.”
That was that.
Frankie had her internship hours at Standish today, and Archie hadn’t stopped twitching all morning. I was pretty sure Jake was going to slug him. Even if Arch was doing his damnedest to dial it back, there was no missing the way his gaze kept jumping to her or that his mouth would flatline as he conjured up some new scenario. For her part, Frankie kept running her hand over his, soothing him or leaning into his side.
When she headed back to finish dressing, Jake blocked Archie from following, and even Bubba—who had come by early after not staying the night—eyed him. “You gotta chill the fuck out,” Jake informed Arch.
Yeah. Diplomatic. That was Jake.
Archie glared at him, and I ran a hand over my face. I still needed to shave, but I probably wouldn’t bother before school. No Frankie to give beard burn to meant I didn’t care as much.
“I hate that she’s going there,” Archie gritted out between his teeth.
“We know,” Bubba told him, almost the soul of patience. The ease in his voice was at odds with the clench in his jaw. “But you’re going to make her nervous, and you’re worrying her.”
Which was also true.
“She’s not unarmed,” I reminded them all, but I kept my focus on Archie. “She’s also very aware of how this is affecting you, and Bubba’s right, she’s worrying about you. So dial it back, deep breaths, man. We know where she is, and you’ve covered a lot of bases and put support in place for her there…”
With a groan, Archie tilted his head back. “I hate this.”
“We know,” I said before Jake could thump him. He got his attention. Now we just needed to let him know he wasn’t alone. “We’re all on her side and on yours.” Because Archie’s dad pulling this crap wasn’t just about Frankie. What we couldn’t shake was that this was some kind of power play where Arch was concerned.
He glanced over his shoulder toward the doorway. Frankie wouldn’t be long, and there were some things we didn’t discuss where she could hear. It was just better to be on the same page and not put her in the middle, at least not in a negative way. At Jake’s quirked brow and eye roll, I wiped the smirk off my face.