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Ice shrugged. "Practice makes perfect. How am I supposed to get perfect if you don't let me practice?"
"Practice in your own car," Mannix said.
Ice reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. He opened it and grabbed hold of a credit card between his thumb and forefinger. He held out to Mannix.
Mannix looked at him funny. "What the fuck are you doing?"
"Buying your car," Ice said easily. "Then I can drive my own car. And you can buy yourself a new one tomorrow. Win-win."
Rich boy problems. I knew Mum loved Leo, but I suspected she also loved the fact he had more money than God. So did Mannix, and apparently his friends. I couldn't even imagine buying a car on a whim. Even if I could afford it, I liked to think things through.
Mannix shook his head and turned to hurry up the stairs. His feet thumped heavily all the way to the top, like he was announcing his presence with each step. Or trying to break through to the space under the stairs.
Ares leaned against a wall and crossed his arms over his ridiculously broad chest. He'd be hot if he wasn't looking at me like something the cat dragged in.
Yeah, fuck you too, asshole.
Ice slipped his credit card back into his wallet and shoved it back in his pocket. "I guess I'll go car shopping tomorrow. Wanna come?" he asked me.
"She's probably busy," Ares snapped.
Ice's eyes were still on me, when he said, "Doing what?"
Before I could answer, Ares said, "Washing her hair or getting her nails done. Some shit like that."
I glanced down at my natural, bitten nails. I'd never had acrylic on them in my life. As for washing my hair…
"What is your problem?" I asked him. "I met you approximately three minutes ago and you've already decided you don't like me?" Apart from wondering how his tongue would feel on my clit, the feeling was mutual. I'd bet half my trust fund that his cock would fill me up and then some. Ugh, I needed to stop that line of thought right now. If I didn't, I was going to drip on the hardwood floor.
"Kennedy," Mum hissed, as though I was the antagonist in all of this. "Let's not have any unpleasantness. Perhaps we can all get some coffee. I'm sure we would all get along if we got to know each other."
Ares gave me a sarcastic smirk.
I badly wanted to flip him off, or better yet, kick him in the balls, but I didn't want to upset Mum. Thank fuck he didn't live here. With any luck, I wouldn't have to see much of him or Mannix.
Ice seemed okay, if a bit strange, but if hanging out with him meant hanging out with them, I’d have to pass. Just because they were all hot didn't mean I had to give them the time of day. I needed to find my own friends, which meant going to the gymnastics studio to see if I could spend some time in the gym. With any luck, I’d meet a hot coach and forget all about these three guys.
"I could go for a coffee," Ice said cheerfully. "Knowing Mannix, talking to Leo will take ages. And may or may not involve one or both of them bleeding."
I snorted a soft laugh. At least, I thought he was joking. My stepfather-to-be was nice enough, but he was intense. Like Mannix, he had an undercurrent of something dark. Like if you lifted the lid, you'd find a rolling boil of violence. He’d never hurt my mother, but other people? If anyone lay a hand on her without her permission, he'd want to rip their arms off and shove them down their throat.
It was… Sweet. Would he act on that though?
That brought me back to that night and the tang of blood and death. It wasn't just that night, I realised. Dusk Bay had a feeling about it. Like it was teetering on the edge. On the edge of what, I had no idea, but I had a very strong feeling I should be scared of it.
Chapter Three
Kennedy
"So much for not seeing them," I muttered under my breath.
For people who didn't live here, Ice and Ares were here all the time. As far as I could tell, they both lived a handful of minutes away, but whenever I saw Mannix, they were with him. Ice was friendly enough, but the other two hadn't thawed a drop. Ironic that they were colder than he was.
They must have heard me mutter, because Ares turned to give me his customary sneer.
Mannix matched it with his usual annoyance at my presence.
Okay, I got it. This was his house and I wasn't even legally a stepsibling. I was just the daughter of his father's fiancée. Still, did he have to look at me like I was trespassing?
