“Are you talking about liquor?” Jolene said, appearing behind him in the kitchen doorway.
She looked pissed off and beautiful. Her hair was damp. She had clearly showered. She was wearing a pair of his boxer shorts and her tight tank top, which made him raise his eyebrows a little. That was an odd outfit choice, but then he remembered she had zero clothing with her. He’d been meaning to pop over to the cabin and clean out the fridge and gather up their luggage, but that had seemed like a lot of work. After years of doing nothing except work, he had been enjoying hiding out with Jolene, living on nothing but sex and takeout.
“No, of course not. I’m talking about you.” He held his hand out to her. “Come here, darlin’.”
He meant for her to join them at the table, but she plopped herself right down on his lap. Now, that was new. He was fairly certain Jolene had never sat on his lap, ever. Which meant she was staking a claim on him so Tennyson would know what was what. And that made him hard. He kind of liked the idea of Jolene being a little jealous. For a split second he had an image of her wrestling Tennyson to the ground, and he was even more turned on. He shifted a little, clearing his throat, his erection pressing into her backside.
Jolene’s eyes flew to his. She shook her head slightly, like she couldn’t believe how disgusting he was. He shrugged, amused, and put his hand on her waist to hold her steady.
“Good Lord,” she murmured under her breath.
“Well, this is going to be interesting,” Tennyson said. “The first threesome of my career.”
Oh, hell, no, she did not just say that. Chance narrowed his eyes. Jolene made a sound in the back of her throat. Ginny, who had returned to the kitchen, chuckled like it was all so cute and amusing. Tennyson laughed, her voice husky and confident.
Chance had the feeling that he would have to watch her like a fucking hawk. Time to snap out of his love haze and guard the gates. The lion was circling.
For a heartbeat, he didn’t say anything, to give Jolene the opportunity to take the lead on this one. But she didn’t speak, so he did. “Fair warning. I don’t play well with others.”
Instead of backing him, or recognizing that what he was doing was warning off Tennyson, Jolene snorted. “That’s the truth.”
Well, this was going to be fun. He tapped Jolene’s waist, irritated. “Stand up, babe. You’re crushing me.”
It was the absolute worst thing to say, he realized a fraction of a second too late. She glared back at him, her eyes hurt. Yep. He’d just stepped in it.
With a huff, she stood up and crossed the kitchen, fussing with a new coffee mug as if she’d forgotten where she left her old one, her cheeks pink.
He made the mistake of making eye contact with Tennyson.
She smiled.
A promising day had gone to hell in a handbasket. He sighed and went for the whiskey. He needed just a splash in his coffee.
Ginny and Jolene gave him looks heavy with judgment.
He poured in even more and raised his mug in defiance to both of them. “Let’s do this.”
Chapter 14
Jolene opened the front door of Chance’s house and greeted her sister. “Thank God you’re here. I need to vent, and I need makeup pronto.”
Elle eyed her up and down. “Why in the hell do you look like you’ve spent two days in a frat house having a train run on you?”
That was a disturbing enough comparison that Jolene paused pre-rant, flustered. “What? I’m just wearing boxer shorts not a T-shirt that says ‘Take a Number.’ What are you talking about?”
“Exactly. Plus, you have the look of a woman who has had a lot of dick in the last few days.”
“I have. But it was all the same one.” She couldn’t bring herself to say “dick” out loud. It sounded so crude when she was in love with the man behind the penis. “Neither one of us went to college, so I’m not sure where you get the idea that there are dorm orgies going on.”
“Of course there are,” Elle scoffed. “You throw a bunch of nineteen-year-olds together and what else would happen?”
“I don’t know, studying?” Her sister was really excellent at distracting her. “I’m not going to debate the sex lives of college students with you. Nor am I going to debate my sex life with you. But my appearance is precisely why I called and asked you to bring me clothes and makeup. Please tell me you have a bag full of magic, because I need it.”
Elle gave her an amused look as she stepped inside. “So, unexpected company, huh?”
“Yes.” Jolene glanced behind her to make sure no one had sneaked up in the living room. Chance and Tennyson were safely in the backyard. She could hear faint chords from two guitars. “It’s Tennyson Mitchell, and do you know how thin she is? There are six-year-olds with bigger waistlines than this girl. Did I mention she’s from Chicago and has zero hint of an accent except when she uses ‘y’all’ to be cutesie? I haven’t felt so country bumpkin in a long-ass time.”