As quickly as his shock arrived, it leaves. Heat spreads across my cheeks when he spans the distance between us to plant a kiss on my cheek.
“Hi.” I return his gesture while sneakily taking a deep whiff of his alluring scent. “What are you doing here?”
His lips twitch, but not a word spills from his mouth. It's as if he is too shocked by my presence to speak.
He loses the chance when my mom lets out a cough. It bellows off the stark white walls of the reception area before jingling into my ears.
“Hi, Mom.” Reluctantly, I pace away from Nick to greet my mom with a hug. It isn’t that I haven’t missed her—I have—I just hate the way her eyes narrow the longer they bounce between Nick and me.
The confusion on Nick’s face jumps to mine when my mom says, “I’ll talk to you next week.” Her tone is stern and straight to the point.
Nick’s eyes stop bouncing between us to briefly nod. His tongue swishes around his mouth as his eyes stray back to me. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Yep.” Heat creeps across my cheeks as I flash him a flirty smile.
Emily and Noah have planned a BBQ at Bronte’s Peak like we did regularly before I left for college. After taking in the way my body blooms around him, Nick waves, spins on his heels, then bolts out of my parents’ law firm.
The frosted glass door hasn’t even snapped shut when my mom blocks it from my view with her brooding frame. “How do you know Nick?” Her tone hangs as low as her brows.
I drag my teeth over my lower lip. “He’s a friend of mine. . .” My reply falls short when I spot my dad in the corner of my eye. “Daddy!”
With a squeal, I throw myself into his arms. The past two months have been the longest period I’ve gone without seeing my dad. I’ve seen him every day of my life for the past eighteen and a half years. I’ve missed him so much, my chest felt hollow from not seeing his face every day.
“How’s my princess?” My dad wraps me up in his famously warm hugs.
* * *
I’ve barely climbed out of my car at Bronte’s Peak when Slater pounces on me. His dreads tickle my neck when he engulfs me in a huge hug. My heart warms from his friendly gesture. I’ve missed out on so many important things the past two months. It’s hard having a life both here and in New York. Although Emily attends school at Parkwood, she gets to come home every weekend. I’m not that fortunate. I didn’t realize how homesick I was until this weekend.
Slater pulls back from our embrace, then drops his big brown eyes to mine. “How’s city life?”
“You know how it is: wild sex parties and orgies every other weekend.” My words are jam-packed with wittiness.
Slater laughs a full and boisterous chuckle. “Sounds like my type of place.”
In the corner of my eye, I spot Nick eyeballing our exchange. The flare of his nostrils tells me he heard my comment to Slater. He’s not happy, but he’s not going to react to my attempt at goading him either.
After greeting Marcus, I make my way to Nick. “Hello.”
I sling my arms around his shoulders the same way I did with Marcus and Slater. The only difference this time around is Nick holds on to me longer than they did.
There’s no surprise that during the rest of the BBQ I never get the chance to talk to Nick. Slater’s imposing frame was wedged between us at all times. It's only when everyone packs away our equipment and begins heading home do I discover a way for us to have a little alone time.
Nick’s truck is parked a few spaces down from a small yellow car positioned at the end of a very long parking lot. Once I say goodbye to Marcus, Slater, Emily, Noah, and Jacob, ensuring them I’ll be seconds behind them, I pace to Nick’s truck.
He’s so deep in thought when I reach his driver’s side window, he doesn’t notice me standing outside for several seconds. His eyes are cloudy, and the veins in his fists are working overtime. When I tap on the window, he gives me an uneasy smirk before opening the door. Sparks of attraction ignite between us the instant I slip into the passenger seat. It makes the heat in the cabin so stifling, my palms slick with sweat.
“Jen—”
“Shh,” I interrupt, the tension firing between us too strong for words. “I just need a few minutes.”
I crawl over the vinyl seat before straddling his lap. I then kiss him before any of the thoughts I see in his eyes can be expressed. He sucks in a quick breath when my lips skim across his jaw, and down his neck until I playfully tug at his nipple poking out of his shirt.
He yanks his shirt off how every man does, via the scruff of its collar, exposing his panty-wetting body to my more than avid eyes. Once it’s dumped on the floor, he works on my shirt. Warm air whips around me when he removes it as eagerly as he did his own. He then lowers his mouth to trap my pert nipple between his teeth. Even with still wearing my bra, his teeth grazing my hardened bud arches my back and has me calling out.
“Again.” I hate begging, but I can set aside my annoyance when it comes to this man.
After pulling down my bra cup, he drags his tongue down the heated flesh of my breast, then circles it around the puckered pink skin. My hands shoot out to secure a grip on something when he sucks my nipple into his mouth, coating the sharp bud with warm, tempting saliva. He peers up at me when my purrs double. I love the way he treats my breasts as if they’re just as important as the more needy regions of my body.
