“Hey, Ry. Long time, no see.”
If it were up to her, it would be a lot longer. I hadn’t exactly been nice to her when she broke it off with my buddy and then left him high and dry. I’d sent some pretty nasty texts to her cell before it shut off.
I looked at Jules again, recognition hitting me harder than a slap in the face—something Lex had the nerve to do when I ordered her out of my apartment after I’d found her with Dwayne. Was this the same girl Blake had gone out with on a few dates before he reattached his ball and chain to Payton? Thinking about it, I was pretty sure he said her name was Jules.
Not that it really mattered. Blake had always been gaga over Payton. Jules never stood a chance in hell. Especially when he threw away his scholarship with Baylor just for a chance that Payton might come back. Stupidest decision of his life but, then again, he knew what he wanted.
“Long time no see.” Jules smiled over at me, her pretty little bow lips sending my pulse racing. She was even more beautiful when she wasn’t in her work uniform. With no makeup on, her face looked fresh and vibrant—all things masked by heavy eyeliner and foundation. Added bonus that she wore shorts that showcased her mile-long legs.
The one pair of legs that I’d love wrapped around my sides right about now. She thought I didn’t notice her pushing up her cleavage today in the store, but it took every ounce of inner strength not to look. I knew her type—if I showed too much interest right away she’d get bored. I needed to be slow and methodical with her, the same plan for when I finally got her in my bed.
Payton and Blake were chatting about a camping trip to Crater Lake they had planned for next weekend, too busy to notice Jules and me sitting in awkward silence in the back seat. Blake was my best buddy, but damn, his whipped status hovered in the red zone. A nuclear war could go off in our backyard, and he wouldn’t notice, not if Payton were anywhere in a five mile radius. I’d never seen two people so in love. In my world, girls lost interest the moment I love you came out of my mouth. Girls like Payton were rare. Love like that even more so. I couldn’t even find a girl who could stay loyal for more than a year.
I shoved my hands in my hoodie pockets and sunk back into the seat. The thirty-year-old truck’s AC sputtered a measly cool breeze, barely reaching the backseat, which remained muggy. Shifting in my seat, I pulled off the hoodie, my shirt creeping up with the sweatshirt. I turned to Jules, whose mouth had shaped in a very attractive O, her gaze roaming over my exposed abs. She glanced up and quickly looked away when she saw I’d noticed her stare.
Caught you.
She was interested. Time to reel her in. “See something you like?”
She cleared her throat and, even in the darkness of the truck cab, I noticed the deepening blush that splashed across her cheeks. “I’ve seen better.”
There wasn’t a lot about my body that I was overconfident with, but I’d done enough sit-ups and burpees to earn my eight-pack. “You must see a lot of abs then. Have a rating system?” I snapped my fingers. “No, wait, a spreadsheet.”
“If that were the case, you’d be a mid-lister.” Her mouth quirked into an innocent smile.
I suddenly wanted to dropkick every single guy on that list. What kind of guys did she date if I was a “mid-lister?” Bodybuilders? Thor?
I needed to flip the brakes of this freight train thought process speeding on a direct route to don’t go there, dipshit. Her dating history didn’t matter, because in a few weeks I’d be back in Texas. A few times of hooking up, and I’d have this girl out of my system.
“Good thing I’m not just another guy on your list.”
She cocked a brow, a clear Payton-ism, her gaze wandering everywhere but my direction. Her fingers etched across the earrings running up the perimeter of her ear. I wanted to run my tongue over each one of the piercings, pin her down in the truck, and explore every inch of her skin. My cock twitched in agreement. I shifted in my seat, adjusting my raging erection.
“You wouldn’t even qualify, DeShane.”
“Is that so?” Damn, she was cocky. And I loved it.
“Not even for the thirty-day trial period.”
“I wouldn’t need thirty days to convince you.”
“And how many would it take?”
Lowering my voice, quiet enough for Blake and Payton not to hear—not that they paid either of us any attention—I said, “I could have your toes curling in twenty seconds flat. Two minutes, and I’d be at the top of that spreadsheet of yours.”
She shifted in her seat, crossing and uncrossing her legs again; each time, her thighs brushed together. I dug my fingers into the leather to restrain myself from smoothing them over her skin.