AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Mhmm.” It’s less a murmur and more a hiss. “Imagine my surprise to see you tonight.”
He arches a brow. “You didn’t know you were having dinner with us tonight? I’ve known for three days. And here I thought you were wearing this little number all for me.” He fingers the strap of my dress, ghosting over my shoulder. I shudder and shake off his touch.
“Nice of you to mention it last night.” I pick up a menu so I can look anywhere but at Avery.
“I would have but someone’s tongue was down my throat.”
I drop the menu and glare at him. “Oh my God!” I whisper-yell. “For, like, five minutes!”
He lifts one shoulder and lets it fall again. “Five glorious minutes.”
“You’re sitting next to my brother,” I remind him with a clenched jaw.
He winks and leans back, speaking up. “I got to see little Miss Vivi this afternoon.”
Casey shoots forward, pointing at me. “Oh yeah! You didn’t tell me Avery lives with you.”
“He doesn’t live with me,” I gape stupidly before I can stop myself. Obviously with me is not what Casey meant.
Casey rolls his eyes. “In the same building. You know what I mean. I ran into him in the front lobby on my way out, and when I told him I was going out with you guys tonight, he invited me to come back to his place for drinks. Fuck, his place is amazing. You been in it, Claire?”
“I have not.” But super glad my brother has. I glare at Avery. What’s his endgame here? Befriending my brother and all. It’s dangerous. I don’t like it. I try to convey that to him with the daggers I’m throwing his way.
“Vivi loves him,” Casey continues with a chuckle. “She was crawling all over him. Asked him to come over so she could show him her dance routine.” He sighs. “She’s fucking nuts.”
There’s a huge part of me that’s seriously considering dragging Avery off to the bathroom. I don’t know why how much Vivi likes him makes me want to jump his bones even more. Maybe it’s because she wasn’t a superfan of Aaron, which is fine, because he wasn’t a fan of her either. And what the fuck is with that? Who isn’t a fan of that little chipmunk?
Avery laughs, waving Casey off. “She’s adorable is what she is. And funny as hell.”
Damnit, it’s like an icepick is chipping away at my heart. Meeting his eyes, I decide to see if he can read my mind: Stop it. Stop being so cute. Stop talking about my niece like that. Stop befriending everyone I love. Stop, stop, stop.
He just smiles at me. “Something you wanna say, Claire?”
Yep, he can read my mind. “Nope.”
“’Kay.” He leans sideways, his lips grazing the shell of my ear. His breath is warm and spicy like the scotch he’s sipping on. “We’re having dinner. Together. Side by side. Does this count as our first date?” He drops a hand to my knee and starts trailing his fingers up my bare leg.
Oh, for fuck’s sake, why did I wear a dress? Oh, I know. Because I didn’t know I’d be testing my self-control all night. If I’d known Avery was going to be here, I would’ve worn a turtleneck and a pair of sweats.
“Oddly enough, when I think about our first date, I don’t imagine my brother being here. Or any of these other people, really.”
Avery’s brows tweak with amusement. “So you’ve been thinking about what our first date will look like?”
“What? No. I—”
“You guys are dating?” Casey asks, looking curiously—but oddly, not surprised—between the two of us. “That’s cool. I mean, I’m kinda surprised you’re getting involved again so soon, but Aaron was a douche, so I’m glad you’re moving on, Claire. Avery’s a good guy.” He claps him on the back in a show of friendship. I hate it.
I’m not sure if there’s a name for the sound that’s coming out of my throat right now. It’s kind of growly, a little hissy, and a lot huffy. Avery’s grinning proudly like a narcissistic idiot beside me. Wyatt’s trying to cover up his laughter with a fresh bout of fake coughing on my other side. Charlee’s snickering beside Casey. And Dex is…well, Dex looks pretty shell-shocked, his jaw just kinda hanging there in midair.
“We are not dating,” I insist through gritted teeth.
“We’re still in the getting-to-know-each-other phase,” Avery tacks on, as if we’ve practiced this speech before. We haven’t, and this is not what I would have said. “But things are going pretty well, wouldn’t you say?” He skims my shoulder with two electrifying fingers and then tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. Oh crap, it sends a chill right through me.
“I’ll fucking say,” Wyatt pipes up beside me. “They bicker like an old married couple, and Avery spends all day grinning at his phone like a girl.”
Avery chokes on his scotch, slapping a huge hand to his chest. I turn my head slowly to peer at him.
“Is that so?” I murmur slowly, lifting my glass to my lips to hide my smirk.
