Rina
Perfect. Meet you there.
Sighing, I stashed my phone away, grabbing another tray of sugar cookies and carrying them out to the case. There wasno stopping those two once they had an idea in their heads, something I knew too well. Ever since they were little, they’d been best friends, always getting into trouble wherever they went. It wasn’t surprising to me that they were still single—even if we were all passing the mid-twenties point. Neither of them seemed interested in meeting someone or settling down.
They didn’t waste any time, and a few minutes later, I saw them both peeking in the front window, past a pair of paper bats I’d hung in the beginning of the month.
I rolled my eyes, surprised it had taken this long for them to ask me about Barrett.
This morning felt like a week ago, so much had happened today, but there was something about him meeting my friends that had me anxious in a whole different way. What if he was a jerk to them? I didn’t know how I’d handle that.
My friends had never met a boyfriend before. Not that he was my boyfriend. Far, far from it. But it felt like we were more than just friends, too. Maybe it was my hormones. I was all jittery, and I’d only had one cup of coffee at breakfast.
“Is that him?” Wendy whispered, leaning across the counter after they’d finally come inside. Barrett was using his laptop, focused on the screen in front of him.
Crossing my arms over my chest, I glared at them. “Yes. Now, if you’re done gawking, I have to get back to the actualpayingcustomers.” They both rolled their eyes at me. “Also, don’t you have, I don’t know… jobs to do?”
“Oh, shut up,” Rina said, fanning herself with her hand. “He’shot.You should definitely go for it.” She gave me a thumbs up. “Get that wolf man D, girl.” She’d pulled up her long, brunette hair into a ponytail on the top of her head, wearing a tight black top and a pair of jeans.
“I…” I blushed, glancing over at him. He had an eyebrow raised as he stared at us, and I wondered how good his hearingwas. Could he hear what we were saying from across the room? I hoped not. Goddess, that would bemortifying.
“Rina,” Wendy scolded, adjusting the slouchy white sweater dress on her shoulder. She’d also tied a red ribbon in her hair as a headband. It was her signature color, and it was rare to see her not wearing it.
Rina, on the other hand, stuck to dark colors and edgier patterns.
Meanwhile, I just liked whatever was cute and comfy, though I did own a dozen different pairs of boots.
“What?” My friend shrugged. “It’s true.”
Wendy let out a sigh of exasperation. “I’m not denying it’s true. But have alittletact.”
Rina narrowed her eyes. “You agreed with me. You think she should fuck him too.”
“Guys,” I hissed. “Why are you talking about my sex life like I’m not even here?” Yep, mortifying.
A throat cleared, and I looked up into a pair of amber eyes.
“Do you think he heard us?” Rina whispered to Wendy. The two of them looked so comical that I had to hold in a laugh.
Wendy tugged on her arm. “Yeah, I think so.” She looked back at me. “We should go.”
“Uh-huh.” I watched them turn and run out of the shop and resisted rolling my eyes as they left. When I looked back at the man at my side, he had an amused look on his face.
“So, those are your friends, hm?”
I grimaced. “How much of that did you hear?”
He chuckled, and the sound went straight between my thighs. He leaned closer, so close that I could feel his breath ghost over my neck. “All of it.”
A squeak slipped from my lips.
Yeah, I was so fucked.
CHAPTER EIGHT
barrett
Icouldn’t stop the low rumble in my chest. He was leaned over the counter, reaching out to touch her arm.
