The conversation moved on. Lucas talked about how he met Cat. Harlow spilled the beans on what a dick I was to her when we first met. (I didn’t argue.) Collin told stories about life on tour while Kennedy asked insightful questions.
“You know I owe this guy my life?” Collin gestured to me with the tip of his beer.
I shifted, uncomfortable to have the spotlight on me while the rest of the table nodded their agreement with the statement.
Kennedy’s gaze skated along my face. “How so?”
“He told you about how we grew up?” Collin lifted a question mark of an eyebrow and I could have killed him.
As Kennedy nodded, I leaned forward. “You’re terrible at secrets, man. What if I hadn’t said anything?”
He waved my fears away. “Secrets eat you up from the inside out. It’s better not to have that many.” He turned to Kennedy. “When Joe and I were twelve, we were placed in the same family. At first it was great, but these people, they collected foster kids like some people collect memories. I was this weird little kid, obsessed with music. Joe fit in immediately. He’s an ass now, but back then he was a chameleon. Whatever you wanted? That’s what he’d be. Me? I couldn’t seem to be anything anyone wanted.”
“That’s not true.” The words grated past a tight throat. “You were my best friend from the start.”
“Awww.” Lucas took a long drink. “You guys are too cute.”
“Joe did his best to protect me,” Collin continued. “He bought me my first guitar and the rest is history. He dropped his life to go on tour with me, then made sure I didn’t lose myself to fame. He even tried to protect me from Harlow, but that turned out to be impossible.” He turned to his smiling wife.
Somewhere along the way, I stopped listening. The only thing that mattered was Kennedy’s smile. Her laughter. The way those fuck-me lips wrapped around her straw as she twirled a tiny paper umbrella between her fingers. The jolt of electricity when her gaze burned into mine. The lingering touch of her fingers against my arm.
I imagined those thin straps slipping off her shoulders, revealing the perky breasts I hadn’t gotten out of my mind since the day I dislocated my shoulder. My mouth would worship the curve of her throat, trailing along her collarbones, and capturing a pert nipple between my teeth. She’d gasp the way she did when I kissed her, throaty, feral, hot as hell.
If the point of the evening was to discover whether or not we liked each other, we could count that problem solved. I liked her. And so did the people who mattered to me most.
As the table erupted in laughter over a joke she cracked at my expense, I knew one thing for certain.
I was done for.
Chapter Twenty-One
Kennedy
The six of us stumbled out of The Pact in a cloud of laughter. The night air clung to the pavement and I inhaled the fresh scent of the nearby ocean. Drunk on an evening packed with details no one would believe—I just hung out with Collin and Harlow West for goodness sakes!—I stayed close to Joe. He wrapped his arm around my waist, and I leaned my head against his shoulder.
I liked the guy. A lot.
And I was attracted to him. A lotter.
“For fuck’s sake, Joe,” Collin said as we came to a stop in the parking lot. “You’re still driving that monstrosity around?”
“I happen to like that monstrosity. Underneath that glaring exterior is a reliable heart that will never let me down. Kinda like me.” Joe placed a hand to his chest and made googly eyes at the vehicle.
“Never, huh?” I bumped my shoulder against his and fell into his gaze. “That’s an awfully big promise.”
He cupped a hand to my cheek, his eyes strong and certain. “It’s one I don’t take lightly. I’m super loyal to whoever makes it to the inner sanctum.”
“The inner sanctum?” Lucas barked laughter. “Oh, boy. Sounds like we need to get out of here and let these two follow their not-first-date to its natural conclusion.
“Just what are you insinuating, Hutton? That my intentions with this woman aren’t pure?”
“That’s exactly what I’m insinuating.” He threw an arm around Cat’s shoulders and led her to the red Jeep next to Joe’s truck. “Come on, KatyCat. My intentions aren’t all that pure, either.” He nuzzled into her neck while she giggled and lifted a hand to say goodbye.