Anna rolls her eyes. “Look who’s talking. Come on, with the amount of shit we get into, these will be useful.”
“And will probably get you into trouble with your men,” I add casually.
At least it will if I win.
We all look at each other and nod.
Game on.
* * *
When Adam comes to the door to pick up the girls, I’m not surprised. While having him in my space makes me feel a tad uneasy, the fact that he’s the one who came definitely works to my advantage.
“You want me to do what?” he asks, eyeing us all individually, then staring skeptically at the three glasses in front of him. When he first hesitantly stepped into my house, he looked around, taking in the place. Now, however, he has an Are you fucking kidding me? look on his face, one I shouldn’t find sexy. But I do. In fact, his adorably confused expression makes me almost want to forget that I hate him and fall into his arms. Almost.
“Fuck. I feel like I’m back in high school. You’re all fuckin’ nuts,” he says, running his hand over his jawline. I see the way his lips twitch though, and I know he’s finding this amusing as hell. So we ignore his complaints and just stare at him expectantly.
“What did you guys bet?” he asks, gaze lingering on me before picking up the first glass.
“Don’t you worry about that,” Anna says in a saccharine sweet tone. “It’s between us women. Just take a sip of each, you don’t have to drink the whole thing.”
“Like I would,” he growls, then takes a sip of the pink liquid. I watch his throat work as he swallows, then he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. He places the glass down, then picks up the second one, which is mine. The orange liquid swishes around the rim of the glass as he takes a small sip, then a bigger one. I try to hide my smile, knowing that there is no way I’m losing this stupid, childish, yet hilarious bet. The third glass is Lana’s. Adam sips it, then puts it down, making a face. He points to my glass. “This one is hands down the best.”
Anna and Lana yell “Come on!” and other shouts of complaint while Adam and I just watch each other. Amusement dances in his eyes, and he knows that I know exactly what he likes, and I used it to my advantage.
“Hope you won something good,” he rumbles, then looks toward the hallway. “Where’s Cara?”
Why did he want to know?
“Asleep,” I reply a little hesitantly. “She’s fast asleep.”
He nods once, then looks away, giving me an unguarded moment to stare at his handsome profile. His five o’clock shadow has me wanting to run my fingers over his cheeks and his jaw. He’s the same, but he isn’t. More angled. More ripped. He’s harder. And not just on the outside.
What has your life been like, Adam?
“Women, let’s go,” he says, looking around my living room once more. “I’m hungry. I say we stop for food.”
“Bailey made us the best dinner,” Anna tells him. “You would have loved it.”
He mutters something under his breath, then walks outside. I guess he’s done waiting.
Anna and Lana both hug me at the same time, and I wrap an arm around each of them.
“I’ll see you soon?” I ask quietly, looking from one to the other.
They both assure me that they will.
I’m glad, because now that I have them back, I don’t think I can lose them again.
Rake
I walk outside and check out the front of Bailey’s house, not feeling satisfied with the level of her security. Pretty much anyone could break in, so I make a mental note to sort it out.
Her house, it’s so her. Warm and inviting. Cozy. And she cooked for them.
I scrub my hand down my face. Am I feeling jealous because she cooked for them and I didn’t get anything?
Yeah, I fuckin’ am.
Everyone gets her, except me. And I’m the one who knows how amazing she is to be around.
I’m losing my shit.
Anna and Lana say their good-byes, laughing and carrying on. I move so Bailey’s door is in my line of sight, and get one last peek at her before she closes the door.
“Can you two hurry up?” I grumble as they take their sweet time getting into the four-wheel drive.
“Why are you so grumpy?” my sister asks, sliding into the passenger seat.
“I’m hungry,” I tell her. “Not all of us have eaten.”
“So let’s stop somewhere on the way,” she suggests, studying me. “Are you sure that’s the only reason you look like someone stole your motorcycle?”
I throw her a warning look, which she heeds, turning to stare out the window.
I put on some music and drive to the diner to grab some food.
It doesn’t taste as good as I know Bailey’s would.
SEVEN
Bailey
I FEEL like my life is a series of awkward events,” Tia says as she blows on her coffee the next morning.
“What happened now?” I ask, running my fingers through my hair, trying to tame it a little. It was the next afternoon, and we’d both just gotten home from work. Our kids were doing their homework in Cara’s room together.
“Dentist guy asked me out on a date,” she grumbles.
I gasp. “You said no, right?”
Tia worked as a dental assistant, so going out with essentially her boss would be a pretty stupid fucking idea.
“Of course I said no,” she says, waving her hand in the air. “So we just had sex on the patient chair instead.”