“For you? Abso-fuckin’-lutely.” Walking behind him, I grab a fistful of his ass before bringing my other arm around to hand him the coffee mug. My mouth next to his ear, I add, “I mean, have you seen you? How could I not be?”
I expect him to make some deadpan comment, or brush it off with a dry chuckle, but instead, he leans into the touch, bringing his back flush to my chest, and turns his head, pressing his mouth to mine. The kiss takes me by surprise, because we’venever kissed outside of sex, but also because of how tender and slow it is. It reminds me of how he kissed me last night. Goosebumps break out all along my flesh, my stomach doing another flip while my dick thickens all at the same time. It doesn’t lead to anything else, nor does it last very long, but by the time we pull apart, my head is dizzy, and I don’t quite know what to make of the warmth spreading through my chest.
“How do ya like your eggs?” Ford asks, like he didn’t just rock my world with nothing more than his lips against mine.
It takes my mind a second to catch up. Clearing my throat, I say, “Scrambled is fine.”
A barely-there smirk tugs on the corner of his mouth, like he’s completely aware of what he just did to me, but he doesn’t say anything about it. Nodding, he gestures toward the bar. “I got it,” he murmurs. “Sit.”
My throat is thick, tongue feeling like it’s twice its normal size as I do what he says.
What’s my problem?
Why am I so affected by one simple kiss?
“Last night was fun,” he offers, glancing over his shoulder at me.
“Yeah, it was.” I nod. “It’s been a while since I’ve hosted a game night.”
“Didn’t think it was a good idea to come, but I’m glad I did.”
Memories from last night, specifically making out with Ford in the bathroom, flit through my mind, and my stomach clenches. “Think Remi saw anything?” I ask.
His body tenses, and for a moment, he doesn’t say anything. “I’m guessin’ if he had, he woulda said somethin’,” he finally says. “We just gotta be more careful.”
Chewing on the inside of my cheek, I nod as if he can see me. “Yeah…”
Panic shot through my body as soon as Remi approached last night. Ford is probably right; it’s not like Remi to keep quiet about something,especiallysomething like this. I’ve known this entire time that I shouldn’t be doing this with Ford, that it would more than likely piss Remi off, but it hasn’t been an issue up until now. It’s been in the back of my mind, but nothing’s happened where he could even find out…until last night.
It’s not that I think Remi would stop being my friend if he found out, but this thing with Ford isn’t going anywhere serious—so I keep telling myself—so Remi finding out, or worse, catching us in the act, seems like it would cause more tension than necessary. We’re just having fun.
That’s all.
“I’m curious,” Ford says, turning around and pulling me from my thoughts, “In all the time I’ve known you, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a relationship. Why is that? It can’t be from lack of options.”
I breathe out a laugh and shrug. “Just not that kinda man.”
Lifting a thick, dark brow, he asks, “And what kinda man is that? The monogamous type?”
“Nah.” I shake my head. “I can definitely be monogamous if I want to be, but my life is goin’ pretty well the way it is. Why fix what’s not broken? It’s the whole feelings, and drama, and inevitable hurt that comes along with dating and relationships that I’m not interested in.”
“Inevitable hurt,” he echoes with a chuckle. “Damn, you sound jaded.”
“How aren’t you jaded?” I snort. “You can’t honestly sayyou’re in a rush to jump into another relationship after your divorce?”
“Well, no, but I’m not closed off to the idea either.” Taking a drink of his coffee, he says, “Have youeverbeen in a relationship?”
I nod. “Yeah, once, in high school.”
“Okay… And how did that end?”
“Terribly,” I huff. “No, it wasn’t all bad. We dated junior and senior year, but as graduation approached, it became harder to ignore the big, glarin’ issue that we wanted very different things in life.”
“How so?”
“She was goin’ to Austin for college and had dreams of livin’ the big city life, while I had no desire to ever leave Wolf Creek, or my family’s ranch.”
Ford’s gaze finds mine across the kitchen as he places two pieces of bread in the toaster next to the stove. His brows are furrowed. “So, y’all broke up, and that’s what swore you off of relationships for the rest of your life?”
