AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I grumble because I can guess what Calli is thinking—that she can't say no without sounding like a hypocrite. I have the same problem, so I say, "It's all right. Let them have their fun."
Gavin raises a brow at me. "Fun? I like Jamie a lot. It's more than fun. Not like you and my sister, having sex while she says you're not her boyfriend. At least I'm upfront about it."
"Upfront?" I say. "You snogged my sister while I was away."
"You want I should do it in front of you?" Gavin has a mischievous gleam in his eye. "All right, I will."
He pulls Jamie into his arms and mashes his mouth to hers. What does my sister do? She sags into his embrace, despite the audience of two watching them. Despitemewatching them.
I push away from Calli, scowling at Gavin. "Why donnae ye just tear her clothes off right in front of us?"
He releases Jamie with a look of self-satisfaction on his face.
Jamie's cheeks flame bright red.
And I fist my hands.
Calli hurries around the sofa to Jamie, placing a protective arm around her shoulders. "Both of you, stop harassing the poor girl. Gavin, quit trying to annoy Aidan. And you, Aidan, let your sister live her own life. At least she's not in Chicago trolling the clubs. My brother is a good man." She throws Gavin a chastising look. "Most of the time."
Gavin and I both lower our gazes to the floor, suitably chagrined. Though I do feel bad for behaving like acacan, Calli's stern tone makes me want to toss her over my shoulder and carry her into the bedroom so I can shag her while she talks to me in that commanding tone.
Jamie murmurs something into Calli's ear, though I can't hear what she says. Calli glances away, toward the far wall, seeming almost embarrassed.
I return my gaze to the floor, but I can't take the silence for more than a couple of seconds longer. Then a breath gusts out of me as I raise my head. "I'm sorry. Won't happen again."
Gavin looks up as well. "Me too. Sorry."
"I suppose," she says, "we will accept your half-assed apologies."
"We will," Jamie concurs.
Gavin glances at her, then at his sister, a question in his eyes.
Calli waves a hand. "Go. Take Jamie to dinner, make out with her in the car, whatever. You're adults, and we" —she shoots me a pointed look—"will not interfere. Will we?"
"You have my word."
Gavin turns to the lasses. "Calli, I am sorry for being such a jerk."
"I know."
He takes Jamie's hand, guiding her toward the sliding glass doors. As the doors whisk shut behind them, Calli approaches me and slips her arms around my waist.
"What shall we do now?" she asks.
The dog door whacks open as Mandy and Misty blast through it. They swarm around our legs, leaping and licking and whimpering with glee.
I hug Calli closer, glancing at the puppies. "Take the furry lassies for a walk, it seems."
Chapter Thirty
We wander back from our walk in the woods, tired puppies trotting alongside us with their tongues lolling. Calli holds Mandy's retractable leash while I grip Misty's, a task that requires strong muscles given Misty's tendency to pull with all her considerable strength. When I had convinced Misty to walk without almost yanking me off my feet, Calli declared that I had achieved the impossible. Though I think she's exaggerating, I accepted the compliment because she spoke it in a sensual tone that I know means she wants to shag me.
As the house comes into view behind the trees, an odd noise catches all of our attention.
Mandy and Misty prick their ears, canting their heads in the direction of the hunting cabin.
Trees screen the cabin from our view, where it lies a few hundred feet away. The noise originating from that direction sounds farther away than it likely is. Calli had told me how the trees absorb sounds and trick a person into believing the noises are more distant than they are. The keening sound grows louder and quieter in a steady rhythm, and I notice another, less obvious sound beneath it, a noise that resembles grunting.
