“You two are slow pokes!” Sam calls back to us as Leo walks backwards. “If you trip and fall and drop me, rock star, we are going to have issues.”
“I’m not going to drop you, sunshine.”
“I want a ride too,” Stacy says demandingly to her husband.
“I’ll give you a ride, all right,” Isaac replies with a cocky grin.
“Stop it!” Jules cries, just as Luke stops dead in the center of the sidewalk, pulls his wife into his arms and drops a kiss on her that would make the gods weep. “For the love of Christmas, we’re in public!”
“I don’t give a fuck,” Luke replies calmly, still staring in Nat’s eyes.
“God, you’re gross,” Jules grumbles. “I need cheesecake.”
“We’ll get you some,” Nate replies with a laugh. “Just ignore the PDA. Or join it.” He buries his face in her neck and bites her flesh, making her moan.
“Oh, that doesn’t suck.”
“You’re all a very affectionate group of people,” I observe, as we walk into the pub and score a big table near the back.
“Does that bother you?” Meredith asks.
“No, it’s just unusual.”
We settle in, glance at menus, order drinks and just when I think my comment has been forgotten, Luke continues. “If it does bother you, Alecia, just say so.”
“Hey! I say so all the time and you do it anyway,” Jules complains.
“I’m fine,” I reply with a laugh. “It’s not that it bothers me. I’m just not used to it.”
“Were your parents affectionate?” Nic asks.
“They were with each other,” I say slowly.
“But not with you,” Nic replies.
I shrug and shake my head, as if it’s no big deal.
“My mother hasn’t touched me in six years,” Nic says as the waitress sets a glass of water before her.
“What?” I frown at the beautiful woman, surprised.
“We don’t get along well. Never have really. So all of this affection was new to me too.” Matt kisses her temple gently.
“You’ll get used to it,” Jules adds. “I drink a lot, to dull the grossness.”
Natalie laughs and throws a napkin at her best friend.
“I want hot wings,” Brynna announces.
“I thought you were full?” Caleb says.
“I’m in the mood to suck the fuck out of a bone,” she replies, and my eyebrows climb into my hairline.
“Excuse me?” I ask.
“Oh, just wait,” Sam says with a grin. “You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen Brynna suck the fuck out of a bone.”
Chapter Sixteen
Alecia
“But I hate to run,” I whine, as I pull into my parking space and cut the engine.
“Don’t be a *,” Blake replies into my ear. “I need a run and I want to talk to you, so I’m picking you up.”
“You’re using me as an excuse because I have the best running trails in my neighborhood.”
“That hurts, Leash,” he says. “It’s true, but it hurts.”
“You’re a smart ass.” I giggle and walk to my building.
“I’m a smart ass who’s almost to your place.”
“What? I’m just getting home.”
“Well, hurry up and change. I just got off the freeway. See you in a few!”
“Damn it, Blake!”
But it’s no use. He’s already hung up. I hurry upstairs, let myself in, and immediately begin shedding clothes. My shoes come off first, tossed just inside the door, then I unzip and shed my skirt, leaving it in a wad by the kitchen.
My blouse and bra are flung next, one ending up on the couch, and I have no idea where the other went.
I’ll pick them up later.
I hurry into a sports bra, tank and yoga shorts, and Blake bursts through my front door, just as I’m lacing up my shoes.
“You’ve gotten messy, Leash.”
“Eff you. You didn’t give me any time.”
“Are you going to pick your clothes up?”
“I will later.” I sigh and wave him off. “I have to take them in to be dry cleaned anyway. Are you really going to make me run?”
“Yes, ma’am.” He winks at me and wraps his arm around my neck, kisses my head with a loud smack, and pushes me away.
“Why do I have to go? Can’t you go running without me and just come back here when you’re done?”
“God, stop whining,” he says and rolls his eyes. “It’ll be good for you.”
We leave my condo, ride down the elevator and walk out to the sidewalk, then break out into a slow jog.
“This is as fast as you’re going to go?” Blake asks me with a smirk.
“If you don’t like it, go by yourself.” I sniff and already hate the way it feels to run. I’ve always hated it. “How’s Emily?”
“Why do we have to talk about this?”
“So it takes my mind off the fact that I don’t want to be running.”
“So, let’s talk about your love life”
“Hell no, you’re the one making me run. So start talking.”
He sighs and stares out at the water, watching a boat drift by. “We’re good.”
“Well, that was informational.”
Blake laughs ruefully. “One of the things I love about you is that you don’t take my shit.”
“You don’t need me to take your shit. You have enough people in your life who do that for you.”
“True enough.” He picks up the pace, just a bit, and I growl at him, making him laugh again. “You’re kind of a weenie, Leash.”
“Emily.”
“She’s great.” He sighs again, not because he’s out of breath, but because he doesn’t want to talk about this with me.
I don’t care.
“She’s funny. Smart. Has a banging body.”
I shake my head and look up toward the heavens. “Seriously.”
“She seriously has a banging body.”
“Does it always go back to sex with men?”
“Pretty much, yeah.” He seems to give this some thought and then shrugs. “So I enjoy sex. Sue me.”
“I enjoy it too, but that isn’t in the top three things that I talk about when I discuss who I’m dating.”
“Okay, what are your top three things?”
“He’s smart, sweet and funny.”
“What’s number four?”
“He’s amazing in bed.”
He laughs long and loud, then high fives me. “You’re funny.”