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She thought she had her brother right where she wanted him, until Luc slid his hand around her waist. It sent chills through her. They were pleasant chills, and a smile started to cross her lips at his touch. Again, this was new to her, to them, and she liked it. But Kaden obviously saw it, because his calmness disappeared again, and his face grew beet red in anger.
“Kassie, when the hell were you going to tell me?” His words were sharp and mean. His eyes were piercing, and it would’ve terrified anyone else. But he was her brother, and she knew him too well.
She gave it back just as tough. “Tell you what, Kaden?”
“That you’re sleeping with Luc.” His eyes narrowed as he spat out the words like venom.
Heat filled Kassie’s face so quickly that she thought she might faint. That, coupled with the alcohol she had already ingested, made her so shaky that she had to grasp onto Luc to steady herself. “I am not sleeping with Luc. We are dating. But if that’s how little you think of your sister, I can certainly make that happen.”
“Really, Kass? Ugh! I can’t believe you!” Kaden threw his arms up in the air in an infuriated huff. “You, of all people, know better. But then again, so does Marcella.”
“Kaden, can we stop this, please?” Ali begged as she tugged at her husband’s arm. “There’s a time and a place, and this isn’t it.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” He turned to walk away from them, but paused. His voice was low and cross. “Kass, we’re not done. And Marcella, I’ll deal with you later.”
Kaden walked away with Ali in tow, but not before Ali glanced at Kassie and mouthed, “It’ll be okay. I promise.”
“Looks like Ali has your back,” Luc commented. He opened a cooler and grabbed a beer. Popping the top, he took a long sip. Flashing her a soft smile, he asked, “You okay, sweets?”
“Yeah, I will be. He’ll keep his distance for now.” But the damage had been done. The alcohol had her feeling a little anger now. “If he wants to be that way, fine. I’m done playing by his rules.” Grabbing the beer from Luc, she gulped as much as she could before he took it back. The grimace that surely formed on her face as she gagged on the sour beer had Luc holding in a laugh.
“You said you didn’t like beer. Are you sure you’re feeling okay?” A smirk pulled at the side of his mouth as he put the beer to her lips. “You sure you don’t want another sip?”
Kassie pushed the beer away, the taste still lingering in her mouth. “I’m fine.”
“Do you want some water? Maybe it’ll help clear your head.”
She looked up into his dark eyes and saw nothing but caring and concern in them. As she stared at him, it was as if they were the only ones in the room. The talking and the music faded away, and it was just them.
The moment was lost with Kaden’s next interruption. Her brother grabbed the beer out of Luc’s hand and slammed it hard down on the mantel. His voice was low, probably because Ali had told him not to make another scene, but it was almost an angry hiss. “You’re driving my sister home, Marcella? I don’t want to see another fucking beer in your hand. Got it?”
When her brother turned to walk away, Kassie grabbed the beer and chugged the remaining liquid. It was disgusting, and she would never understand the draw to beer, but since she was still mad at Kaden, the drink warmed her from head to toe and eased her tension.
Luc still towered over her by the fireplace. His hand was back on her hip, and his body blocked her from the rest of the party, as if he was protecting her. She hadn’t let herself recognize how much she really enjoyed his touch until now. The heat that ran through her was overwhelming.
“There’s pizza over there. You want a slice?” he asked.
Her stomach rumbled in response to his question.
Luc chuckled. “I’m going to say that’s a yes.”
“Oh god, did you hear that?” She lowered her eyes to the floor, embarrassed. “I’m sure that’s super attractive. Ugh.”
“Hey.” Luc tipped her face up so she was looking him in the eye. He placed a soft kiss on her forehead as he said, “You’re adorable. Wait here.”
She had to catch her breath after that little show of affection. I’m adorable? He wasn’t like any other guy she had ever met. He hadn’t even kissed her properly yet; her forehead was the closest he’d gotten. As much as she liked the whole gentleman thing he had going on, she was getting impatient. If he didn’t make a move soon, she would have to. And since her brother already thought she slept around, what did she have to lose?
Luc quickly returned with two slices of pizza. Kaden always had pizza at his parties; it was his favorite food. The team had come to expect it. She nibbled on her slice of pizza as Luc inhaled his. When he was finished, he picked at the toppings on hers while she tried to finish it.
“I know it’s not tacos…” Luc teased. “But it’s pretty good, right?”
“Ha, ha. And do you mind? You’re eating all the mushrooms!”
Luc picked the last one off her cheese and popped it into his mouth. “Nope, don’t mind at all.”
He stood in her personal space, and for some reason, each and every word he said excited isolated parts of her body. She continued to eat her pizza, because jumping on Luc in the middle of her brother’s party might be frowned upon.
He was oblivious to her dirty thoughts. “You wanna walk around and talk to anyone?”
