by Jewel, Bella
They shared a conspiring look.
And then, it was gone.
What the hell happened last night?
I needed to get Vesper alone. I didn’t do well with curiosity. But while two was company, four was a crowd, and I doubted getting her alone anytime soon would be easy.
All I could do was open up my house and hope to hell Vesper confided in me when we had a chance.
And that she doesn’t dump me.
Rupe once again went above and beyond, proving he was a kind-hearted bear beneath the expensive cut of his cargos and white t-shirt. He held out his arm. “Well, seeing as we’re both outsiders in this love fest, what do you say we share embarrassing stories about our respective loves and plot a way to make them cringe later?”
Polly glanced at Vesper.
Vesper opened her mouth. “Maybe we should all just stick to—”
“You know what? That sounds like a great idea. Time for a little pay back.” Polly boldly looped her hand through Rupert’s arm. “I’ve been hearing far too many sweet and sinful things the past few weeks. Time to mix it up a bit.”
“You been sharing our dirty secrets, Ves?” I poked her side.
“What? No way,” she blustered. “I’m a vault.”
“A vault who has a thing for collars apparently.” Polly giggled. “Watch out, Ryder. I’m judging. I know what you guys get up to.”
“You know about the collar?” I slapped my forehead. “Geez, I wish you girls wouldn’t share everything.”
“My lips are sealed in the future.” Ves slinked her arms around me. “Unless it’s utterly mind blowing and then…who knows.”
I chuckled. “I suppose I should be grateful that you find me awesome enough that you want to share.”
Vesper’s eyes darkened as her arm squeezed me. “Talking of grateful. I seem to remember a text or two last night discussing—”
“Right, that’s enough of that. I’m already annoyed at you both.” Rupert laughed. “I just got a cavity watching this sweet gag fest.”
“Oh, you too?” Polly batted her eyelashes. “I’d made a dentist appointment for next week. You’re welcome to come if you need help.”
Rupert’s face spilt into a wide grin. “You know, I’m not so happy with your friend over there, but I already like you.”
“I’m reserving judgement for now, but I appreciate the compliment.” Polly smiled.
Oh shit, Rupert had once again turned on the charm.
Time to move this party inside.
Wrapping my arm around Vesper’s shoulders, I said, “Enough, all of you. This was supposed to be a sensible luncheon not a pick on Vesper and Ryder fest.”
“You brought it upon yourself, dude.” Rupert pointed at me. “The moment you sighed on the phone that night—this is what you earned.”
I hung my head. This would be painful. Rupert’s ribbing always was. Last time he’d picked on me it was because a bitch called Michelle spread rumours that I had an STD when I was sixteen and proceeded to cover me in whipped cream from a can saying I had bitch cooties.
It was a lie. But needless to say, it was not a good day.
I still hadn’t gotten him back for that.
Perhaps today the tides will turn.
Rupe said, “Righto, all this sarcasm is making me hungry. Who’s with me?”
Polly put her hand up. “Me!”
“I’m liking you more and more.” Patting her hand wrapped around his arm, he grinned. “Let’s put some distance between us and this diabetic couple. We have shameful childhood memories to share.”
He threw me a smile, escorting the best friend I needed on my good side through the foyer and kitchen out onto the deck where warm sunshine already painted the back garden with tree stencils and the rolling happy bodies of fifteen dogs.
The past week, I'd been able to forever home three pooches, including the wiener, Pikachu, and the nasty Pomeranian, Gremlin.
Long may her new family rest in peace.
Even with the new editions I’d picked up, I missed the terrible mutt. I also had a persistent woman who’d messaged me through my website the past few days asking to come view my remaining rescues.
I hadn’t replied.
I had more important things to do.
Such as doing Vesper.
Vesper stood on her tiptoes and kissed my cheek. “You know, I love being sweet with you.”
Twisting my head, I forced her lips from my cheek to my mouth.
She moaned as I turned and welded our two fronts together, taking the opportunity to slam the door closed and push her against it. “I love being naughty with you.” Following her curves, I squeezed her ass, grinding into her as the kiss waltzed from welcome to wanton.
Her tongue touched mine and I forgot about my bother and Polly.
I didn’t care about lunch or beer or being sociable.
All I wanted to do was drag Ves to my bedroom and try that damn pussy tickler we still hadn’t used.
However, her tongue withdrew and she slipped from tiptoes to flat. “As much as I want you naked and inside me, I think that would be frowned upon.”
I groaned. “Naked and inside you are my kryptonite.”
“Well, you’ll just have to continue being strong and withstand my power.” She pushed me away. “You invited us. Time to host.”
Rolling my eyes, I guided her away from the door and toward the lounge. “You know, we could always vanish for a few minutes.”
“Few minutes, huh?”
“Okay, a few seconds when you look at me like that.” Making sure Rupe and Polly were distracted on the deck, I fisted myself, proudly displaying the pounding erection her kiss caused. “You did this. Isn’t it fair you fix it?”
She glanced where I did, ensuring we didn’t have perverts watching us. Her fingers lassoed around my hardness, squeezing hard. “It is fair I fix it. And I will fix it. But not right now.” Rubbing me, she licked her bottom lip. “Down boy. Behave and I’ll do bad things to you later.”
My head fell back as I contemplated if I should slam to my knees and beg her to strip right here and right now. However, Polly’s voice dispelled my lust mist, turning me human rather than beast once again.
“Wow, this place is impressive.” Polly gawked as she meandered from the deck to the unfinished masterpiece of the lounge. Rupe handed her premixed vodka something or other from the cooler—he’d been in charge of heading to the bottle-o to get booze, not me.
“It’s a mess. Go on…you can say it.” Rupert laughed. “I do all the time.”
“Hey. Don’t hurt my house’s feelings.” Rearranging my love stick, I took Vesper’s hand and carted her into the kitchen. There, I stuck my fingers into the ice box and pulled out a watermelon premix for Vesper.
“Yes, I learned the hard way not to comment on this place.” Taking the drink, Ves twisted the cap and took a sip. “Then again, the past two weeks have really given it a transformation. You’ve done an amazing job with the place, Ry.”
Hearing her call me that never failed to make my heart skip—and I didn’t fucking care if that made me a sap.
“Thanks. David and I really cranked up the pace. Another few months and she’ll be done.”
“Don’t think I’m not gonna charge for my labour. You’re a slave driver.” Rupert took a swig of the Indian Pale Ale that was his drug of choice. I was more of a Lager or Pilsner man. Which was good because he could drink faster than me and hold his liquor better. I’d run out of supplies with him guzzling them.
“I’ll pay you in chicken wings.”
“Dude, you better have some of that mango coconut cheesecake. That’s what I want payment in.”
“God, I bake once in my life for mum’s birthday and you never let me live it down.”
Rupert laughed. “Only because you wore her pink polka dot apron.” He grinned at Polly. “He looked so cute. And the cheesecake wasn’t half bad.”
“You can bake, too?” Ves asked. “A man
of many talents.”
I lowered my jaw, deliberately giving her a heated look. “Many you have yet to discover. One night, we’ll have to have a cooking lesson to pay you back from that biology class you’ll be teaching later.”
“I said geography not biology.”
“I think I need biology more. I still don’t understand the mechanics of sex very well. I need a few more pointers.”
“Okay, and that’s the cue to change the subject.” Rupert clinked his glass with Polly’s bottle. “Here’s to an awesome afternoon with friends.”
Holding my beer up, I said, “Cheers. To a relaxing day with sunshine, booze, good food, and better company.”
Everyone crowded together and clinked. “Cheers.”
Rupe smiled at Polly. “To making new friends.” His eyes flittered to Vesper. “And sussing our potential sister-in-laws.”
Vesper’s cheeks went pink and my gut did a weird pretzel move. “Goddammit, Rupe. You’re here to be nice, not make the damn woman run away like a gerbil.”
“You hear that, Vesper?” Rupert coughed on a mouthful of beer. “He just called you a gerbil. You gonna let him get away with that?”
Vesper fought a smile, hiding her mirth behind another sip of liquor. “Oh, I’m sure I’ll come up with a way to punish him.” The heat in her gaze when she looked my way made my heart stop and my dick inflate in that order.
Now I really needed to get her alone.
By unspoken agreement, we all headed outside and chose respective perches on the deck in the sun.
Rupert placed his beer on the side table of the BBQ and clapped his hands. “Right, the rules for this afternoon are as follows: drinking is a must. Tipsy is key. Fun and stress free are the goal. Eating copious amounts until we feel sick is also the plan and anyone not abiding these strict rules will be evicted.” He looked at all of us. “Got it?”
Vesper nodded.
Polly took a gulp of alcohol, holding up a thumb in agreement.
And I took my woman’s hand while chugging back a mouthful. “Got it.”
Rupert was famous for hosting parties that went from boring events to superstar I-wish-I’d-been-invited-extravaganzas.
I had a feeling this would be no exception.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Vesper
I COULDN’T KEEP IT TO myself anymore.
I loved him.
Unequivocally loved him.
I loved the way he understood what happened with Polly’s date and didn’t make it awkward or demand any more information than the cryptic stuff I’d given last night.
I loved the way he ribbed his brother and doted on all of us as if we each meant the world to him.
I loved the way he fed us with flair and compassion and even cooked a stack of extra sausages for the dogs all lined up on the lawn.
I loved the way he made me welcome on his lap once we’d eaten our fill and done serious damage to the cooler full of alcohol.
I could go on and on but my point was clear. My heart was made up. My future set in stone.
If he loves me back, of course.
I loved him.
I wanted him.
And the awesome afternoon of joking, hanging, and generally just relaxing as a foursome had shown me just how special family could be when they were welcoming and non-judgemental.
The sun hung lazily in the sky and the clock on the oven said it was half past four; I’d never felt so care free, happily tipsy, or content to have the love of my life and my best friend together.
Even Polly looked better than last night.
She laughed and gave as good as she got with Rupert and I caught the sparkle in her eye whenever she looked at him.
Polly had always been the strong one of our duo. Her mother had died in a car accident when she was fifteen and her dad had passed away three years ago thanks to prostate cancer. She truly was alone, but it didn’t break her. If anything, it added steel to steel until she barely bent in a breeze and carried so damn much on her shoulders.
It was too much to hope that she’d find a friend and romantic interest in Rupert but watching her interact with him made my heart glow with hope.
“I have to admit, you’re better than the rest,” Rupert said, toasting in my direction with his beer. “My little brother has full permission to keep you.”
“Keep me?” I blinked.
“Yep. He said he wasn’t letting you go. I see why now.”
Ryder groaned behind me, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You’ve done so well up till now, Rupe. All during lunch you behaved. Drinking games you were good as gold. But now you decide to throw me under the proverbial bus.”
I’d been sitting on Ryder’s lap for the past hour, canoodling and being that annoyingly touchy feely couple that sickens everyone in a two kilometre radius.
“Hey, just saying how it is. You had terrible taste when you were younger. This one is much better.”
Polly giggled, tipsy and carefree. “Hear that, Vessie? You’ve earned the stamp of approval. You could put it in your passport and say you permanently live in the state of Ryder.”
It was my turn to groan. “You guys suck.”
Rupert turned serious, shifting on his chair to sit on the edge with his beer bottle dangling between his fingers. “No, I’ll tell you what sucked. Seeing my best mate and brother be made a laughing stock by some bitch in high-school. That sucked. Seeing him give up on finding happiness because he lost trust because of lies. That sucked. What doesn’t suck is seeing just how fucking happy he is with you.”
“Great, bring up the exes now. Thanks, Rupe.” Ryder rolled his eyes. “Let’s tell the world how pathetic I was when I was younger.”
“Hey, we all have the dating horror stories. I have my fair share, too.” Rupert’s lips melted into such a sincere smile, he gave me heart-hiccups. “All I’m saying is, you’ve done well.” His gaze landed on me. “Thank you for putting up with him, Ves. He’s a good guy and I’m glad you put a collar on him and made him yours.”
“Goddammit.” Ryder growled with mock anger. “Don’t mention the collar again—especially not with town folk listening.”
“Why not?” Rupe took a swig.
“Because everyone thinks Vesper is his cousin and they’re having incestual naughtiness.” Polly ran her hands through her hair. “It’s all over the place. And apparently Ryder is cuckoo.”
“Can’t deny that.” Rupert barked with laugher. “The cousin part is new however. Well, Ves, if you are by some chance related to us, nice to meet you. If not, then welcome to the family.”
I lowered my gaze, slightly overwhelmed by the welcome. “Thank you, Rupert.”
Ryder threw back the rest of his beer, scowling at his brother. His fingers brushed aside my hair and placed a distracted kiss on the back of my neck.
The moment his lips touched my skin, I squirmed on his lap.
“Shit, that feels good when you do that,” he murmured in my ear just for me. “Your ass on my cock makes me so close to coming. I’ve been fighting the urge all day.”
My thighs squeezed together as a sudden throbbing started in my clit. Ryder shifted beneath me as the tip of his tongue replaced his lips.
“Something very important just came up,” he whispered, arching his hips into me. Something hard poked me. “Are you ready to take care of it now or will you give me an even worse case of blue balls?”
“Take care of what?” I looked over my shoulder, blinking innocently.
Rupert and Polly drifted into the background as they fell back into conversation, leaving us in our own private bubble.
“This.” Ryder pushed up, prodding my ass again.
I shivered, purring. “Oh that? I think I can guess what that is.”
“You think, Einstein?”
“Do you know Einstein holds a very special place in my heart now.”
“What on earth for?”
“Because that was the first time you kissed me. On his no
se.”
His forehead furrowed. “Whose nose?”
“Einstein’s.”
“Why the hell, and how the hell, could I kiss you while on Einstein’s nose?”
“At laser strike. It was a glow-in-the-dark artwork in the tepee.”
Ryder laughed. “If you think I remember anything about that place, you have a higher opinion of me than I deserve.” His voice dropped as he cupped my chin with beer cool fingers. “From the moment we stepped inside that acid trip all I could think about was pressing you up against a wall and shooting you with a different weapon than the one intended.”
“Is that the weapon I feel currently?”
He winked. “You guessed it.”
“In that case, I do agree something important came up. I heard it’s bad to store live ammunition for too long.”
“You read my mind, woman.”
Nuzzling my throat, his arms tensed around me as he helped me to my feet. Keeping my body in front of his, to hide the fact he had a giant erection, we ambled toward the bifolds leading toward the house.
Rupert and Polly were chatting in a mixture of chuckles and murmurs but of course we didn’t get away scot free.
“Gonna bang, huh?” Rupe laughed.
Ryder froze, looking over his shoulder. “You always did have a dirty mind. We’re off to get some more supplies.”
“Not the way you’re walking you’re not.” Rupert snickered. “Unless you smuggled a sausage down your shorts from the BBQ, you’re packing and need relief.” He glanced at Vesper unapologetically. “Better serve my little brother, Vessie. He so needs your magic touch.”
The fact he’d used the nickname that only Polly had used up till now seemed to annoy Ryder. He growled, “Back off.”
Grabbing my wrist, he dragged me over the threshold and into the shady lounge. The relief on my eyes from the hot sun was immediate.
I instantly felt guilty for leaving Polly.
Untangling myself from his hold, I said, “Wait just a sec.” Darting back to the deck, I met Polly’s eyes. “You’ll be okay, right? I’ll only be five minutes. I don’t see any donkey moments happening in that time.”