nothing but a pair of jeans, a t-shirt tucked into the waistband. It’s like a scene out of one of those cheesy rom-coms—my one guilty pleasure, other than Cade—where the hot, hunky guy walks into the room and choir music plays as the heroine’s tongue rolls out of her mouth in unadulterated lust. Staring at his bare chest, suddenly wanting to do more than just look, I remember how good it was when he railed me on the kitchen counter last night.
He clears his throat, and my eyes lift lazily to meet his dancing ones, a wicked grin playing on his lips. “Everything okay, Spitfire?” he asks, that sexy grin of his doing downright illegal things to my downtown playground.
You wouldn’t think he’d done me dirty just an hour ago because right now, all it would take is a crook of his finger to get me jumping him like a spider monkey in heat.
“Are you two going to continue eye-fucking each other or are we going to get this shit done so I can sit down and enjoy another beer?” Thomas asks, breaking the moment.
Dragging my eyes off my prize—one that I’ll definitely claim again later—I look towards Thomas.
“We could just go ahead and do actual fucking. In fact . . .” I lean into him and point to the counter where he’s chopping vegetables, “ . . . we may have already christened this counter just last night.”
Thomas rears back and glares at me. “At least tell me you sterilized.”
“What are you trying to say?” I ask with an amused grin, as I hear Zach call out, “Hey,” from the entryway.
Thomas looks at the counter then to Cade. “Think you might warn me when I’m touching surfaces where you’ve fucked?”
Cade shrugs and looks at me, a knowing smile playing on his lips just as Dani and Zach enter the room.
“Hey,” Dani says, making her way towards me, putting a saran wrap-covered salad bowl on the counter before turning to give me a hug.
“Do mother-buffer duties include chef services?” she muses in my ear.
“They seem to include a lot of things,” I murmur for her ears only. I catch Thomas watching us, his expression thoughtful. “What?” I mouth.
Dani steps away and looks between the two of us.
Thomas grins and shakes his head. “Not yet.”
I put my hands on my hips and glare at him. “Now what does that mean?”
“All in good time, Abi. Hi Dani,” he says, stepping forward and kissing my best friend’s cheek. “You ready to leave Zach and run away with me?”
They pull apart and Dani giggles. “Unfortunately no,” she replies.
“Get away from my girlfriend, Caldwell.”
Thomas winks and leaves us, moving over to where Cade and Zach stand, Cade’s chest now covered with a navy blue tee. Our eyes meet and he smiles brightly at me, causing my heart to skip, flip, and play dead. What’s that about?
“Need help?” Dani asks, breaking the spell.
I shake my head and face her. “Sorry?”
“I see you’re still cock-dumb”
“What?”
“You seem to be saying ‘what’ a lot,” she says with a grin.
“I didn’t hear you,” I say defensively,
She lowers her voice. “You two are so not fuck buddies.”
“We are!” I say it a little too sternly, drawing the attention of the guys.
“Keep telling yourself that, Abs. You’re helping him hold a barbecue for friends. That’s not casual.”
“He didn’t ask; I offered.”
“And here you are . . .”
“What are you talking about?”
“A fake girlfriend looks good on his arm at public events. Real girlfriends co-host gatherings.”
“Dani,” I warn under my breath.
“I’m just saying you look happy and relaxed. If he’s the reason, then hold on to that. You deserve happy. He’s a nice guy and worth considering.”
“He’s awesome, but what’s going on is not like that. You’re just in a loved-up haze and seeing something that isn’t there. We’re friends who happen to fuck each other’s brains on a regular basis. It’s good, it’s fun, it’s easy—”
“Who’s easy?” Cade’s smooth voice asks, his arms coming around my waist at the same time as he rests his chin on my shoulder. “Hey Dan.”
“Hi. How are you?”
“Good. Real good,” he replies, giving me a squeeze. I melt back into him, loving the feel of his arms around me. Shit. No Abi, do not let Dani’s romantic musings permeate your brain. This isn’t real.
Dani’s eyes meet mine, and she quirks a brow as if to say “told you so,” before grinning and leaving us alone in the kitchen.
Needing to fix this and fast, I do the