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“I do. Don’t ask me why, I find you utterly infuriating and a stone-cold bitch for playing with my friends’ feelings, but for some cursed reason, I actually do care if something happens to you, Ashley.”
“You’re wrong,” Nate said quietly as I stalked back across the frozen ground toward the house. “Carly isn’t your only friend.” He gave me a long look as I glanced over my shoulder, then shifted his gaze away. “Royce is still your friend… He’s just scared shitless of hurting you.”
“Merry Christmas, Ash.” Those three words, that voice I’d thought I might never hear again—it damn near killed me. A sob ripped from my chest, and I threw myself forward, no longer in control of my own actions. Thankfully, he caught me, his strong arms wrapping around me like he was made to hold me. I sobbed into his chest, now utterly sure I was hallucinating, and he just stroked my hair as he chuckled with a sound so warm, rich, and real. So…Heath.
“If they don’t all get the matching pajamas,” Nate muttered quietly as he appeared beside me with a fresh coffee in hand, “I’ll start a riot.”
When I put my empty mug down at some stage, Nate just wordlessly collected it and disappeared back to the kitchen. Five minutes later I found myself warming my hands on a fresh—spiked—coffee and my smile came more easily. Was it a healthy coping mechanism? Fuck no. But I made a mental note to finally book a therapy session for the new year and took another sip of my drink.
I’ll take Carina shopping, since I know she loves the chaos of sales days.” She really did. My mom was an odd breed, genuinely enjoying the bedlam of a big sale in a department store. She used to drag me out of bed early on Black Friday just to experience the mayhem, not even to buy anything.
“Nathaniel Essex, Ashley Layne, I was not asking you if you wanted to come to this party, I was telling. You do not have a choice. Sometimes, I understand we don’t always want to do the things our parents ask us to do and that it’s frustrating.” Her tone had mellowed into a sickly sweet…gentle parenting voice. I shuddered. “So we’re going to take those messy, angry feelings, and do you know what we’re going to do with them? Hmm?” I swallowed, glancing at Nate. He winced, his jaw tight. “Whisper them to our hand and hold on to them for later?”
“Come on, Spark baby, one more song,” he murmured in my ear, that sexy accent rolling over me like a caress, “and then we can dip out and I’ll eat your pussy in the back of my car to start the New Year right.” Well, shit. With an offer like that, how was a girl to refuse?
“Your mom’s friend is a little too handsy for my liking. Carter is more tolerant than I am.” Well, shit, I didn’t like the idea of that. I scowled, craning my neck to try to see whether Cougar Suzette was being inappropriate with my man, but it was a sea of sharp suits and sparkly dresses on the dance floor; they could’ve been anywhere.
Inappropriate with YOUR mans?! 👀
Carly shrugged. “With Royce, obviously. Or me! I’ve never eaten pussy before but I reckon I’d be excellent at it.” I snort-laughed and threw a pair of rolled-up socks her way. “What tempting options. In case you forgot, friend, you’re straight.” She rolled her eyes. “What’s the saying? So’s spaghetti until it gets wet?”
“It’s not the same,” Royce growled, interrupting before things could get any more out of hand. “No one here is being manipulated into their attraction to Ash and you fucking well know it. You’re just so choked up on jealousy that you’re grasping at straws.”
“You wore my dress. I’m so glad—I thought maybe Carter would beat me to the punch.” “I did,” Carter growled, stalking closer once more. “There were no other dresses in Spark’s room when I dropped mine off earlier.” Heath’s smug grin spread wider. “Weird.” But from the corner of my eye, I spotted him and Royce fist-bumping behind Carter’s back. Sneaky boys.
For some reason, the white ducks were in the champagne flutes more than they were on food, and I was starting to get seriously tipsy for it.
So which one is trying to get her drunk 😹 My vote is Royce since they’re roooomiessss
Nate ran a hand through his hair, messing it up a little as he blew out a breath. “I’m not sure we can call it an accident when you repeatedly bludgeoned a restrained man, bro. There’s literally nothing left of his face.” Oh. Wow. That…explained the mess. For some reason, I glanced around the kitchen until I spotted what must have been the murder weapon. A granite duck figurine. A startled laugh escaped me, and I clapped a hand over my mouth to hold it in. “Sorry,” I muttered. “It’s not funny. Sorry. I just… You used a duck? What is with you guys and waterfowl?”
circling around the hood of his Bugatti to take the driver’s seat. “Hello, darling,” I whispered to the car as I stroked the leather steering wheel. “Stop dirty-talking my car, Squirrel,” Royce complained as he strapped himself in and blasted the heat. “It’s making me jealous.”
“You look good driving my car. I could get used to being a passenger princess.” I smiled, glancing at how relaxed he seemed. “I’ll order you a crown online.”
Oh Royce.. you little flirt. It’s time you get to make your debut into the love fest.
Royce grinned. “No, Squirrel. She’s an inmate.” Well, fuck. “Oh. Um. What did she do?” He drew a deep breath and released it with a heavy exhale. “According to her? Nothing. According to the state? Mass homicide so…she’s in there for life. Fun fact, I was actually born in prison.” My jaw dropped. “What? Royce, you ass, you can’t give me mind-blowing information about yourself while I’m focusing on not hurting your sexy car! What the fuck?”
“That’s the only solution. I have to beat him with a marble duck.” “Too soon,” Heath groaned from the back seat of my car. He was squashed in there like a sardine but had insisted I take the passenger seat since Royce had begged to drive again. I turned in my seat to flash him a grin. “Sorry. Okay, then I’ll stuff sixty-seven tiny ducks down his throat and make him choke on them. Death by duck just seems really appropriate.”
“Thank you for coming with me,” Royce said quietly as we made our way back out of the prison still hand in hand. I leaned into him, releasing his fingers so I could loop my arm around his waist. “Anytime, friend.” He inhaled sharply, then let it out with a heavyhearted sigh as he murmured “friend” under his breath with an almost heartbreaking edge of disappointment.
OPEN YOUR EYES DUMB GIRL
Heath just laughed, licking grease off his thumb. “Liar, you love me.” And then I choked. Fucking infuriating men needed to stop saying things that panicked me while I was eating or drinking. Thankfully, it was just a droplet of Coke that I’d inhaled, which probably wouldn’t kill me…but my face burned all the same. Didn’t help that both Heath and Royce were looking at me like I couldn’t be trusted to eat solid foods without adult supervision.
I’m sure they were looking at you for different reasons you slow woman.
“Here, I’ll put it in writing so there’s no miscommunication.” Squinting, I looked down at the note. I like you. I think about you naked all the time. I wanna be more than friends. I might already love you.
How does one make 3 hot and rich men fall in love with them?
Asking for a cousin..
“What if I told you I was the one destroying the pillow wall every night?” He dipped his head but glanced at me through his long lashes. “Because every time I did, you would snuggle into me almost immediately, and I liked to pretend for a couple of hours that you were mine.”
IT WAS PRETTY OBVIOUS HE KNEW WHAT WAS HAPPENING?!
“I’m scared,” he confessed in a whisper, “that I won’t be able to go back to being friends after I kiss you.” “Good,” I replied, bringing my hands up to cup his face. “I don’t wanna be your friend anymore, either.” Then I closed the gap between us, our lips brushing in the softest caress imaginable.
“But you’re mine now, and I’m only just getting started.” Holy possessive crap. This was a side of Royce I was unprepared for, and a panicked voice in my head started screaming that maybe…maybe…I already loved him too.
As much as I wanted to stay in bed all damn day, it was a Monday, so we all had lectures to attend. And I for one did not want Nate catching the three of us taking a trip to Paris.
Nate caught my arm in his. “You sit in the front. The three stooges can take the back.”
From the back seat, Carter groaned. “God damn it,” he cursed, punching Heath in the shoulder. “We had an agreement.” “Ow, dickhead,” Heath protested, punching him back. “Don’t get mad at me!” Carter gasped, and I glanced over my shoulder to see him staring at Royce in shock. “No! You?” Royce just grinned like a fucking Cheshire cat, not even the slightest bit guilty. “Me, motherfucker. You snooze, you lose.”
Mom gave an angry grunt. “I’m sending a picture to Nate’s phone. I’d like you to tell me why his lovely fiancée looks so very familiar, Ashley, and I swear to coffee, if you lie to me, you will regret it.”
Carly gave me a pointed look. “What?” I asked, scowling. She shrugged. “Nothing.” But her smile said it wasn’t nothing at all. Probably reading way too much into me sticking with Nate’s taxi services. She just loved seeing connections that didn’t exist, I was sure of it.
Yet she’s called 2/3 boys and their feelings??
in the meantime Nate’s fake-engagement fuckup is really working in our favor. Who’d have thought? Certainly not me. Here’s hoping Ash is okay maintaining the lie a little longer…because Nate’s already agreed.
Whoooo would’ve thought.. he’s okay with it 😹
“I missed you today, Squirrel.” I laughed softly. “You say that every time you haven’t seen me in a few hours. It can’t possibly be true every time.” His teasing expression sobered as he studied my gaze. “Can’t it? You’re my obsession, Ashley. Every minute you’re not touching me, my heart aches. I love you so much, it literally hurts sometimes. Does that scare you?” I wet my lips, swallowing hard. “Yes,” I admitted honestly.
Our finest moment was when Carter tried to lure me into a quickie in the bushes, and I swiped both his flag and egg, then left him with blue balls. Sucker.
“Sit down,” I ordered, pointing to a vacant seat by a little garden table. “Take the weight off your ankle. I’ll get some ice.” “Stop fussing, Layne,” he growled. “I’m fine. It wasn’t that bad.” Still, he sat down where I had pointed, and that in itself told me he was in pain. If it were really fine, he’d still be stubbornly on his feet or doing a tap dance just to prove his point.
“This is unnecessary,” Nate grumbled as I sank to my knees in front of him and lifted his injured foot up into my lap to apply the ice to his ankle. I glanced up at him with a grin. “You don’t like feeling like the damsel in distress, Essex? You’re lucky you’re so fucking heavy, or I’d try to carry you out just to emasculate you further.”
0530: Woke up with Squirrel in my arms. Perfection. Even if Heath’s foot was touching mine, I could put up with it if it meant not waking her up.
NOT MAN TOOTSIES ON MAN TOEBEANS
Squirrel slipped out to visit Carter, and I know this because I woke up to the sound of his headboard smacking the wall and Heath snuggling me like I was little spoon. The fucking audacity, I am not little spoon.
“Damn, Squirrel, you look like a fucking present waiting to be unwrapped.”
“I’m terrified that I don’t have the capacity or the emotional depth to give you what you need. I can’t fucking share you, Ashley. Don’t you get it? If you were mine…you’d be mine. And I know you’d never be able to give me that because you’re already in love with the three best guys I know.”
I understand this is a why choose.. buuuuut in the end she’s going to choose Nate??? RIGHT?! 👀
“Ashley, this pains me. You gave your stepbrother medical power of attorney in a moment of lucidity after your mother and his father were confirmed dead in a plane crash last week. Nathaniel is all the family you have left.”
EXCUSE ME WHAT
