Hearts the Last Beat (Angel Fire #6) - Ellie Masters Page 0,27

the way I came, I knock on Mitzy’s door and wait for her to open it.

Probably the most interesting person at Insanity, she’s easily the most fun. Her sharp wit and biting tongue stay one step ahead of the guys. And she takes everything they dish out, giving as good as she gets.

Skye’s quieter, gentler. More of a thinker with a solid presence about her, she intimidates me the most. Piper is a lot like Mitzy, a bit wild and unpredictable, but most days she’s busy with Bent or with her job as a physical therapist.

Holly—I steer clear of her. At least she never tried to step in as my stepmother, but she’s tied too close to Bash. Therefore, I don’t trust her to keep any of my secrets. Not when she’s sleeping with my dad.

“You ready?” I knock on the door again.

“Coming. Sorry.” The door opens and I blink at the white one-piece suit Mitzy wears. If I saw that suit on a rack, I would think nothing about it and would move on to the next thing, but on her, contrasted with her psychedelic hair, it’s breathtaking.

“Wow.” I take her in head to toe. “Sorry, don’t mean to stare, but you look hot in that suit.”

“Thanks. Noodles picked it out. Said it would smooth out my aura. I thought he was whacked, you know how he is about his auras, but it’s the first suit that actually makes me look like a chick.” She points to her breasts. “Small breasts, slim waist, I look like a boy most days. This makes me look like a chick. Well, at least until I start showing.” She glances down at her belly. It’s flat as a board, with no sign she’s pregnant. But it’s early. It’s early for all the women at Insanity.

“Don’t know about that, but you’re a knockout in that suit.”

“Thanks. I told Noodles he was in charge of all my shopping from here on out. As far as knockouts go, you sure you want to be wearing that string bikini?”

“Why?”

“Sweetie, you’re a knockout in baggy clothes. In that…” She shakes her head. “I feel sorry for whatever boy decides you’re worth the risk.”

“What risk?”

“Bash, Ash, Bent, Noodles, and even Spike. You may not realize it, but the moment you came to Insanity, you became theirs. Any boy who gets near you will have one overly protective father to deal with and four impossible uncles to face down. And I totally left Forest off that list. You can imagine how that would go down.”

“My other suits were wet. This was the only one that was clean.”

“Come on. The guys are probably wondering what we’re doing and where their beers are.”

We loop arms as we head back out to the pool. Sure enough, Spike and Noodles are out of the water. They sit on the edge of the pool and dangle their feet in the water. They’ve already opened their beers.

Noodles holds up a caffeine-free soda for Mitzy, while Spike hands me a soda. Or at least, that’s what he should do. Instead, his jaw drops, and he gapes. Mitzy and Noodles miss the whole thing as they swap spit and kiss.

I wish I could do that. I’d give anything to walk down to the pool, loop my arms around Spike, nuzzle his neck, and get pulled into his lap where he thoroughly mauls me.

Spike heads over to grab two floats. He flings the floats out into the pool. “Come on, let’s leave the lovebirds to smooch. I’m sure you’d rather watch the stars than that mess.”

“Dude, my wife just got back from being away for days. It’s just a kiss.” Noodles comes up for air but then leans down to kiss Mitzy again.

“It’s sloppy, that’s what it is, and there’s no need to subject Angel to all that lip-smacking going on.”

Mitzy giggles as Noodles buries her under another barrage of kisses. Spike comes to me and whispers. “Get in the water before they come up for air.” He lowers himself into the water and waits for me.

I slide in the refreshing water. Forest keeps the pool heated year-round so that it’s perfect no matter what time of the year.

“Come on, I’ll hold it steady while you climb on board.” Spike grabs the long piece of foam while I settle myself. There’s nothing graceful about my awkward crawl, and I almost fall off, but Spike holds the foam steady. “Love the suit. Makes me hard.” He winks, and the piercings