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Suddenly, a whole new reality bloomed before me. I was doing this. I was actually dating Hollin Abbey. And I wanted more of everything he was offering. Not just the sex, which continued to be mind-blowing, but also the time together and all the silly moments. The fact that he read the books I liked so he could make conversation with me. That we liked the same music and binged the same movies. That I was kind of loving the Harley as much as he did.
“You’re doing it again,” Blaire accused with a laugh.
“Doing what?”
I stared out the front window of my Jeep as I drove me, Blaire, and her assistant, Honey, to The Tacos game.
“Getting that dopey smile on your face. You’re thinking about Hollin.”
“I was,” I admitted.
“It’s so cute!” Honey said from the backseat. She wore a Blaire Blush baseball hat over her shoulder-length blonde hair and lavender matching leggings and crop from a designer that Blaire loved.
Blaire agreed. “So cute. I’m happy for y’all. I knew there was a reason you two were always at each other’s throats.”
“Not sure that’s stopped.”
Buttons were pushed all the time. We were always challenging each other and seeing how far we could go. In and out of the bedroom. But it was the right kind of challenges. It wasn’t anger for its own sake. It was different, better. Who knew I just needed a guy who didn’t bore me?
She laughed. “True.”
“And what about you?” I asked. “Any guy catching your eye lately?”
She wrinkled her little nose and drew her baseball cap lower on her head. “No.”
“You were talking to that guy online,” Honey said, waggling her eyebrows.
“What guy?” I gasped.
“No one,” Blaire said with a huff. “You weren’t supposed to see that, Honey.”
“My bad.” She got a sheepish look on her face. “I handle her messages, and sometimes, I answer fans and see personal stuff.”
I arched an eyebrow at my best friend. “Spill.”
“Fine,” she said with a sigh. “There’s this, like, TikTok star. He’s real hot.”
“He’s a thirst trap,” Honey volunteered.
I blinked. “A thirst trap?”
“Yeah. He’s one of those guys who smiles sexy at the camera and takes his shirt off,” Honey said. “Like a model.”
“I see,” I said with a laugh. “And y’all are talking?”
“He lives in Midland.”
“A thirst trap in Midland, Texas. Now, I’ve heard everything.”
Blaire shrugged. “I live in Lubbock. Anyway, that’s how we started talking. Because he’s only an hour and a half away.”
“Have you met?”
“No. I’m sure it’s not going to go anywhere.”
Honey giggled. “Not the way he talks to you.”
“And what is this guy’s name?”
“Nate,” she offered.
“Nate King,” Honey volunteered. “You can look him up @nateistheking. His family is into oil money. They run Dorset & King.”
“Thank you, Honey,” Blaire said sarcastically.
I’d look him up to see if he was everything Honey was going on about. It would be nice for Blaire to look at someone other than Campbell Abbey. She hadn’t been in a relationship in a while. And look at me, suddenly happy and wanting my friends to have this ounce of freedom.
I parked the Jeep next to Hollin’s truck and hopped out. Blaire grabbed her bag out of the back and fell into step beside me.
“Honey wants something to work out for me,” Blaire muttered.
“So do I.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll find someone in this small town eventually.”
I laughed. “You will.”
“They’re a bit close, aren’t they?” Blaire asked, jutting her chin toward where Hollin stood on the sidelines next to Tamara. “I can kick her ass if you’d like?”
When needed, Blaire could flip to defensive best friend mode in the blink of an eye. And I didn’t doubt for a second that she’d get into it with Tamara for touching Hollin. Not that it was necessary. I already knew that Tamara made Hollin uncomfortable.
“I can handle it.”
Blaire nodded and jogged off toward the field.
I walked right up to where Hollin stood. His smile brightened at the sight of me. I grabbed Tamara’s hand and removed it from Hollin’s arm.
“No,” I said flatly.
Tamara’s cheeks flamed bright. “Uh…I…we were just talking.”
“Of course.”
Tamara bit her lip and then scurried away over to August and Nora.
Hollin’s smile only grew. “Jealous?”
“I am not jealous of the child.”
He dropped a kiss on my lips. “Yes, you were, and it was hot.”
“No. She just can’t touch what’s mine.”
“So, I’m yours?”
I blinked at the words. I hadn’t even considered them before saying it out loud. I hadn’t liked the idea of someone else touching him. We hadn’t had a conversation about what we were, but considering we were spending every minute of our free time together, it was pretty clear—at least to me.
“Are you mine?” I challenged right back.
He pushed my hair back out of my face. “Yes.”
“Oh,” I said, turning to mush at the way he’d said that one simple word.
“Well then, yes,” I agreed. “You’re mine.”
