Mismatch - By Nana Malone Page 0,68

a moment. Now, all he could think about was her nipple ring and her response to him tugging on it with his teeth.

A light blush stained her cheekbones. “No, I ah, left that one intact. I figured it was too much fun to get rid of. Besides, that one's private. Only a select few know it's there or will ever see it.”

Let’s keep it that way. “I'm glad to be one of the few.”

Her body swayed into his, and his blood quickened enough for him to feel the spike of heat throughout his body. She wanted him as much as he wanted her.

A squeal from the bottom of the stairs had them jumping apart. Izzy was at the top of the stairs in no time. “Are you two sure you don’t want to play? Aaron refuses to play against me and Jason. Apparently, he'd like to stop losing.”

Jessica darted a quick look at Eli and spoke quickly. “No thanks, babes, we should probably get—”

Izzy interrupted Jessica by putting a hand on her hip and raising an eyebrow. “If you're about to say the two of you better be going, might I remind you that it's my birthday and that we have more than enough room in this house to put you guys up for the night?” She sized Eli up. “Jason has plenty of stuff to fit you, Eli. Please, I'd like you to stay.”

Jessica sputtered to silence beside him. “Iz, you can't—”

The warmth coming from Izzy was genuine. She meant it, and because Eli wanted to escape his life for one more night, he said, “Thank you. We'd love to stay the night.”

***

Eli glanced around at the candlelit guest cabana. “I feel a little bamboozled.”

Jessica's eyes went wide. “I had nothing to do with this. I swear, I’ll kill her. She always has been a bit of a meddler. I—”

“Would you relax? You act like no one’s ever teased you before. It's nice. Not what I expected at all.”

“Yeah, well, this is Izzy. She believes in love and shit.” She quickly slammed her eyes shut. “Not that…I don't mean…This isn't love obviously. We're just…Business.”

“Friends,” he offered, to be helpful.

“Right. Friends who've seen each other naked. So not a love thing. I—”

Eli had to laugh. She was always so confident that her nervousness now rattled him. “Jessica, why are you nervous?”

She puffed out a breath, and her bangs fluttered off her forehead and back again. “I'm pretty shitty at relationships, as we've discussed. Like really bad. I choose the guys in the band, or the one covered in tats and piercings, or the drifter, or the guy who has no future potential. I've done it all my life. At first because those were the kind of guys my dad hated, and later because, well, let's face it, they were hot and let me keep playing at misfit. I've never once even been near a guy who’s normal.”

He frowned. “What makes you think I’m normal?” No one had ever called him normal before. Shit, Vince called him a freak on a daily basis.

“Look at you.” Her hands waved up and down his body. “I mean, you're beautiful to look at obviously, but you're buttoned up on the surface. Even though you’re an artist, you have an analytical mind. You know what you want in life, and nothing will get in your way. You’re driven. You have a future beyond how you’re going to pay rent this month. Your idea of traveling isn't a series of bar crawls all around America and Mexico. You're normal-ish. I've never dated normal. Leave it to my best friend to get a little over excited.”

“You know, a wise woman told me once to focus on the outcome I want, and I can make my dreams happen. If you wanted normal all these years, you are the only reason you didn’t have it.”

“Not nice to throw my words back at me.”

He shrugged. “Which one are you, the pot or the kettle?”

She gave him a wry smirk.

Everything about her made his blood hum. “Jessica, come here. I want to show you something.”

“Why do I have a feeling this something is going to require me being naked?”

“It’s like you've read my mind.” He tugged her toward the outdoor shower.

She took his outstretched hand. “Aren't you the one who told me once that for what you had in mind you needed privacy and condoms? That shower is open to everyone.”

“Everyone went upstairs already. Where’s the daring woman who wanted me