“Excuse me.” I brush against him, reaching for a cupcake. “Dessert,” I murmur with a wink before heading back to Jaxon. “I’ve been craving something sweet all night long.” I swipe my finger through the fudge frosting, then slowly suck it into my mouth, all the while noticing how Garrett demolishes another can of sparkling water.
Jaxon’s hooded gaze tracks my finger, my lips, the way my tongue darts out to make sure I don’t miss a single bit of decadence. He brushes a lock of hair off my face before his fingertips skim my waist. “Come home with me.”
Behind him, Garrett’s fist ends the life of what I’m pretty sure is his third can of cherry sparkling water in the last five minutes.
GARRETT
Well, that won’t work. Absolutely not. If I can’t have her, nobody else on this team gets her.
“Eh, Carter,” I call across the kitchen.
Jennie’s icy stare widens. She takes a frantic step away from Jaxon, confirming my suspicion that she’s doing this to get under my skin.
Carter ambles over. “What’s up?”
I incline my head in Jennie’s direction. “Nice to see Jennie and Jaxon getting along.”
Carter’s head whips around, and his fist destroys his beer can. “The fuck he is,” he grinds out, tossing his can in the sink and stalking toward the happy couple.
Well, Jaxon’s happy; Jennie’s not.
Jaxon’s about to be broken, not happy.
I’m happy.
JENNIE
I hope Garrett’s had a good life, because I’m about to end it.
I shove Jaxon’s hand away and pin my brother with a grin, extra dimply. “Hey, you! Enjoying the party?”
Carter’s in full grump mode, angling himself toward Jaxon, strategically blocking me from his line of vision and any further physical contact. “Riley. I see you’ve met my sister. Baby sister. Only sister. My sister.”
Oh Christ. Here we go. Garrett’s not even bothering to hide his triumphant grin behind his fourth water. I hope all the bathrooms are occupied when he soon needs one.
Fuck you, I mouth, flipping him the bird behind Carter’s back.
You’d like that, is I’m pretty sure what he mouths back.
“I was just introducing myself,” Jaxon says. “She’s been very welcoming. She’s beautiful.”
“I know she is,” Carter snaps back. “She’s also twenty-four.”
Jaxon leans around Carter, grinning. “I’m twenty-six.”
Carter sidesteps, the human barrier I didn’t ask for. “Two years too old for her.”
I frown. “You’re almost three years older than Olivia.”
Carter’s head swivels in slow motion. I mash my lips together at his expression, mostly to keep from laughing in his face. He may look threatening, but I’m fully aware he’s a giant teddy bear who spends his time singing Disney songs, carrying his dog, and plastering his ear against his wife’s stomach in case today’s the day he can hear the baby.
“Hey, Carter, I was thinking, with your permission—”
“Riley.” Carter drops his head, shoulders shaking with his chuckle. He lays a heavy hand on Jaxon’s shoulder. “Look, I like you. You’re a good hockey player, nice enough guy.” He steps into him, and Jaxon’s easy smile melts off his face. “But if you finish that sentence—”
“Carter—” His palm covers my mouth, halting my words.
“Now, I know what you’re probably thinking. But Carter, she’s a grown woman.”
“Yes,” I mumble behind his palm. “I am.
“But Carter, she can make her own decisions.”
“I can.”
“I’ll treat her right, blah blah blah.” He shakes his head. “The answer is no. You can touch my sister over my dead body.”
I smile weakly at Jaxon. This is futile, and I don’t care enough to argue it with Carter. “Nice talking to you.”
When Jaxon darts off, Carter turns back to me with a sigh and a dopey grin.
“Sorry Riley was bugging you. Thank fuck Garrett tipped me off.”
My eyes zero in on the man in question, the one who’s watching, wiggling two fingers in a wave.
“Yes,” I murmur. “Thank fuck.”
GARRETT
I changed my mind. I want her, and I’m gonna have her.
Carter walks away, leaving his sister glaring at me, and when she flips me the double bird, I know that only God can help me now.
Fuck me, I’m going for it anyway.
JENNIE
What is he doing? Why is he looking at me like that? Is he walking this way? He’s walking this way.
Get back, demon boy.
But also, come a bit closer.
No, stop right there.
Fuckballs. I can’t make up my mind.
I drag my clammy palms down my thighs, glancing away. He’s probably not coming this way.
He’s definitely coming this way.
My jaw drops, he grins, and I do what I do best.
I run.
“I’m gonna make a mistake,” I mutter, slipping through the crowd. I climb the stairs two at a time and beeline down the hall. “If he talks to me, I’m gonna make a mistake. A huge mistake. I won’t be able to stop myself. I will not be able to stop myself. Huge mistake, Jennie. Huge. No. Nope.”
I heave open the linen closet and throw myself through it.
Safe.
The door swings open a moment later, and the moonlight filtering through the window in the hallway illuminates a pair of piercing eyes as the intruder sweeps into the tiny space and shuts us in.
“Great thinking on the closet, Jennie.” Garrett’s gravelly voice sends a shiver down my spine. He smacks the wall, lighting the space with a warm glow via the tiny chandelier hanging above us, and the man has never looked so sinister. “Think we lost them.”
My heart leaps to my throat as he steps into me, towering. This man right here is all devil as he slowly crowds me, gaze locked on mine as he pins my hips to the wall.
“Now tell me about that huge mistake you wanna make.”
GARRETT
“Lemme guess…” Jennie’s hands sweep up my biceps, roaming over my shoulders. She tangles her fingers in my hair, twining it slowly. The way she turns her confidence on and all the way up to ten without batting an eye cranks my gears in a way I can’t explain. “You heard the word huge and figured I must’ve been talking about you.”
“Hey, if the shoe fits.”
“Ego,” she whispers, dragging my neck down until my lips hover over hers. “The word you’re looking for is ego.” Her mouth bypasses mine, lips skimming my jaw, and my cock starts gearing up for a quick fuck in the closet.
Except I don’t want there to be anything quick about the way I fuck Jennie.
“Remarkable how well your ankle healed over the past week,” I murmur as she leans back. “Couldn’t even tell you sprained it tripping over your bag, hurting it during practice, and tripping over your dance partner, by the way you sprinted up those stairs.”
Jennie checks her nails. “Yes, well, they had me stay home and rest it for the week so I didn’t aggravate it. It feels fine now.” Her gaze flips to mine. “I’m sorry your head isn’t any better.”
“I scored a goal and got an assist today.”
“Oh, I’m not basing it on your ability to play hockey. Simply on the way you seem to keep making…” Her tongue pokes the corner of her mouth. “Ill-advised decisions.”
I drop my gaze, watching my finger trace the waist of her jeans, the way her exposed skin jumps at my touch. “I don’t recall making any ill-advised decisions. In fact, I’ve been told the dessert was…” Dipping my fingers below the waist of her jeans, I tug her forward. She catches herself on my chest with a strangled gasp. “Orgasmic.”
A tiny vibration, right there in her throat, as she tries to hide her snicker. “The popcorn was delicious.” Her fingers brush my collarbone as she fixes the button on my shirt. “Are you having fun playing this little game of yours?”
“Funny you should ask. That’s exactly what I wanna do.” I capture her hands in mine, pinning them on either side of her head. “I want to play.”
A beat of silence echoes between us as the words settle. Jennie laughs lowly.