A good friend would be honest, even if it meant risking the friendship. I am not a good friend. Not by a long damn shot.
But I don’t say that to him. I can’t. Not today. Not when he’s about to get everything he’s ever wanted. Everything he deserves. I’ll come clean to him later, after more time has passed. Or maybe when I’m not still wanting to kiss his sister so damn badly.
“Yeah, sure. Any time,” I mutter, not really looking him in the eye.
I wait as they say goodbye and pretend I don’t overhear Nessa hissing at Hutch about offering her up to some stranger. I cringe when Hutch laughs and says, “Locke would never lay a finger on you.” If he only knew that not only did I already have my fingers all over her, but my mouth too.
Hutch gives me one last nod before he disappears back down the hall.
“I appreciate the offer, but I really can just grab an Uber,” Nessa insists as we step into the elevator.
I don’t even dignify that with a response.
“Hello?” she says, waving her hand in front of my face. “Did you hear me?”
“Oh, I heard you all right, love. I’m just ignoring you.”
She huffs, crossing her arms over her chest. “Fine. Whatever.”
I grin at her petulance as the car stops on the next floor. The doors open, and several more people file in, forcing Nessa closer to me. I’m instantly overwhelmed with that familiar scent of lavender and wildflowers, and it takes everything I have not to reach over and nuzzle my nose against her neck just like I did all those months ago.
I clench my teeth when the elevator stops for a second time and even more people cram inside. At this point, Nessa is so close against me that I feel like I’m at a middle school dance with her ass pressed against my crotch. I will my body not to react, thinking of anything and everything else that I can to distract me from this torture. I’m not the only one being tortured if the sudden hitch in her breath is any indication.
When the car stops for a third time, it’s rough, sending Nessa tumbling into me. I grip her waist to steady her, and I’m transported right back to our night in New York. Right back to tangled sheets, soft sighs, and whispered words. I inhale shakily, then exhale just the same.
It’s a fucking miracle I’m not hard as a rock right now. I don’t know how, especially since all I want to do in this moment is pull Nessa’s leggings down and bury my cock inside her, all these people be damned.
We finally reach ground level, and everyone starts to file out one by one. I’ve never been so damn grateful and annoyed all at once. Nessa steps away from me, and it’s all I can do to force myself to let her go, my hand sliding from her waist in a slow free fall.
We walk silently to my car, and I grab the door for her before she can get it. She’s careful to avoid my gaze as she hops into the SUV. When I slide behind the wheel, she already has her eyes closed, head resting against the window. Damn. She’s more tired than she let on.
I let her rest, navigating out of the lot. I flick my blinker on to go right, but at the last minute, I decide to go left. We barely make it to the first stoplight before she’s snoring softly beside me. We drive like that for a while, me navigating the city while Nessa sleeps peacefully beside me. It’s a miracle I don’t wreck with the number of times I’ve looked over at her. I certainly get honked at for taking too long at green lights.
Twenty minutes later, I put the car into park, and Nessa finally stirs, her eyes blinking open softly.
She looks around, brow furrowed. “Where are we?”
“My place,” I answer, hopping out of the car before she can protest.
When I open her door, she’s already primed and ready to go, glaring over at me. “What the hell, Locke? Why are we here? I?—”
“Because you’re tired, Nessa. You fell asleep in the waiting roomandin my car. You need to sleep and you’re not sleeping well where you currently are, so why not try somewhere else, eh?”
Her glare wavers for only a second, then it’s back again and she shakes her head. “No.”
“Why not? Do you have to work tomorrow?”
“Well, no. But?—”
“Then you’ll stay here. You’ll sleep as long as you like and you’ll leave whenever you want.”
“Gavin. No.”
“Nessa.Yes.” I hold my hand out to her. “Come on. Out you go.”
She sighs but puts her hand in mine anyway. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re obstinate?”
“Only my mother,” I say with a grin, pulling her from the SUV.
