AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Sometimes I sketch designs on the notepad Thor has now declared is mine. And others, I just color in a page from one of the countless coloring books Thor has on hand. It’s relaxing, especially on the tougher days.
I manage a shower while Thor takes over and plays NHL on the Xbox with Matthew. Thankfully, it’s not a wash day, so I refresh my curls with a spritz or ten from my trusty spray bottle, add a little curl cream to one side, and some light-hold gel all over. I’m always amazed how a quick refresh can make my curls look almost as good as wash day.
And by ‘quick refresh’ I mean, not at all quick.
When the doorbell rings, Thor’s upstairs getting dressed. Pulling the door open with a grin, I smooth down my shirt with my free hand.
Oh fuck.
“You know, I have seen a great many reactions from women when they see me.” Slade steps into the house past me, a bottle of wine in each hand. “But until now there’s only been one woman to react with such disappointment at my presence. You clearly learned from the best. Is she here yet?” The mischief dancing in his sparkling eyes suggests he is not only thrilled that Paige is here, but he has zero intention of leaving.
“She’s not here, no.”
“But she’s definitely coming, or your face wouldn’t have done that swoopy thing from smiling to utter distress.”
Closing the door behind him, I rub my stomach. This is a disaster. What the hell is he even doing here? Why didn’t Thor tell me he invited him? Another pang in my stomach. I didn’t tell him I invited Paige either, so I guess we’re both to blame.
Sighing, I nod. “She’s coming.” I level him with what I hope is a mean-muggin’ stare. “Don’t start anything tonight, Slade. I don’t care that you’re Thor’s boss, if you upset my best friend, they’ll never find your body.”
He jerks his chin over my shoulder. “Your girlfriend has claws, Thor, I’m here for it.”
A scalding flush spreads across every inch of my skin. My jaw drops open, brain scrambling to find the words to deny I’m Thor’s girlfriend, but I come up empty. We haven’t talked labels, but it’s definitely something I’ve been feeling for a while. Will Thor deny it?
“You have no idea.” A hand slides across my lower back, and lips meet my temple. “You look fanfuckingtastic, kitten.”
His murmured words skim over my skin, sinking into my body and making me warm from the inside. Why isn’t he denying that I’m his girlfriend?
Holy fucking shit on a stick we really are in a relationship. Fuck.
I manage to meet his gaze. It’s playful, and heated, but there’s no mocking there. He clearly knows what he said, or didn’t say, and he’s okay with it.
I knew something had shifted between us, but wow. Girlfriend. I’ll have to play with that word a little. I don’t dislike it, but it’s been a while. And we aren’t teenagers, so maybe we could come up with something a little less... young?
The ding of the doorbell draws me out of my “I’m Thor’s girlfriend” realization loop. We’ll have to talk about it later for sure, but for right now, our friends are arriving, and in my haste to get ready for visitors I forgot to get the body armor out for our guests. Paige isnotgoing to be happy that Slade is here. Not at all.
Kenzie and Austin arrive next, and I was wrong. Kenzie has brought a dozen Quinn-cakes with her, I’m going to be happy as a pig in the proverbial shit tomorrow with leftovers.
Ushering them into the house, Thor steps in and grabs the margaritas from Kenzie before leading her and Austin into the dining room.
As though sensing Paige’s presence, Slade steps over behind the door. I don’t blame him, I’d hide from her if I was him, too. He watches through the glass panel to the left, not letting her ring the bell before he yanks it open, and she walks in.
“I didn’t know what to bring since youjustinvited me, but I figured dessert wasn’t a bad guess.” She hands me what I’m hoping is her apple pie. Yes, I have a thing for sweet treats. And I think we’re up to four at this point, but I don’t care. I’ll enjoy every single one of them.
My girl Paige hates sweating her tits off in the kitchen, but she makes the best apple pie on the face of the earth. I’m tempted to shove it in the freezer before anyone notices that she’s brought it. Might not be pie, since she just got invited. Unless she was already mid-bake. Wouldn’t that be serendipitous?
Slade sends the door closed as soon as Paige gets far enough into the foyer. Paige freezes, eyes widening as her Spidey sense visibly kicks in. She groans. “Oh, no.” She shakes her head. “You didn’t. You wouldn’t do this to me.”
Slade’s wicked grin widens as he blocks the door. Smart fucker’s not letting her escape. The only thing worse than a pissed off Paige, is a caged-in pissed off Paige. This guy has a death wish. He literally wants to die right here, right now.
“I didn’t.” My voice is a whisper, and I hope she hears the anguish laced into my words. “I didn’t know Thor invited him.”
She doesn’t glance back at him, but she has that look on her face that she gets before safe-wording her way out of a social situation. It’s something the three of us have done for as long as we’ve been friends. If we’re in an uncomfortable space and want to leave, we have a safe-word.
I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve used it over the years, but each time was an absolute emergency, and my girls came through for me. “Kenz brought margaritas.”
The flickering rage on her face suggests that even if she drinks every drop of tequila Kenzie brought with her, it wouldn’t be enough. One of these days Paige will have to tell us what actually went down with this guy, because aside from the confidence oozing from his pores, he’s hot, he’s rich, he’s kinky as hell... I fail to see where the problem is.
Without saying a word or so much as a backward glance, she walks right past me and further into the house. I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath, waiting for her reaction, prepared for war, until I huff out a long stream of air.
