by Nicky James
The gentleman’s face turned puzzled, but before I could further explain about my recently developed phobias, Rory tugged me away.
“But I want a fancy lanyard and package,” I whined once we were out of earshot.
“Adrian will sort yours out. Do not embarrass me.”
“I am not an embarrassment. I resent that. Besides, I’ve been working on a little speech in case you need me to step in and save your socially awkward ass when it’s your turn to talk.”
“You’re not talking for me. You’re sitting quietly and not drawing attention to yourself.”
“Why is everyone so concerned with me drawing attention?”
Rory dipped his shades down and glared from beyond. “Really?”
“I’m beautiful, sugar. I can’t help that people stare.”
“It’s your mouth we’re all worried about, not your looks. And for the record, you do not have a phobia. You are fearless. You are here because I don’t ‘people’ well. That’s it. Wingman, remember?”
I rolled my eyes and scanned the halls. “Whatever. I have fears. Spiders make me scream like a girl.”
“So does Disneyland.”
“Bitch, shut up. That’s a secret.”
Rory laughed for the first time since he’d picked me up in my room, and I was glad for it.
“So, what should we do with our day?” I asked. “Max is gone. Adrian is busy. It’s just you and me, soldier. Like old times, except minus the awkward sex.”
“Parking garage, then I don’t care.”
We wandered slowly back toward the elevators. In the long hallway we took to get to the lobby we came across all kinds of people lingering and chatting in small sitting areas. Some drank coffee from the small café we passed, others had their noses buried in phones or laptops. The hotel doubled as a convention center, so it was like its own mini-city.
There were a lot of suits, probably here for the conference, but others seemed as normal and dressed down as us.
My gaze caught on two men sitting at a small table sipping coffee. I remembered them from the airport back home. They’d sat off to the side, huddled together and didn’t mingle with the rest of Rory’s crowd. One of them seemed familiar only I couldn’t place where or how I knew him.
His hair was short and deep brown, styled with a bit of gel. Thick biceps strained his fitted T-shirt, and he wore distressed jeans that hugged incredibly firm thighs. A shadow of scruff darkened his face.
And he had a prosthetic leg—which I thought would ping my recognition because it wasn’t something you’d forget, but it didn’t.
When my pace slowed and eyes squinted, Rory spun and followed my gaze. “What? Why are you stopping?”
“Who is that guy? I saw him at the airport in Toronto. He’s part of your group, isn’t he?”
“Grayson? Yeah, he’s fairly new to group. Joined after Christmas.”
“He’s familiar. Why do I know him?”
“How the fuck would I know. Probably from the bar. That’s his partner, I think.”
I squinted and studied him.
Grayson, Grayson, Grayson…
The other man had lighter brown hair. It was a bit longer and curled a lot and was untamed. He had glasses and a less firm body than his friend. Nothing about him raised any flags. It was all Grayson. But why?
Guys came and went from the bar all the time. Regulars I got to know fairly well. Randoms rarely stuck in my mind unless I thought them worthy of a quick fuck—which hadn’t happened since Max came into the picture.
I tried to fit Grayson into the bar scene to see if it clicked. I scanned him again, checking him out shamelessly. He was hot. Someone who would have definitely captured my attention once upon a time. Memories surged and flooded to the front of my mind with the impact of a tidal wave. I clapped my hands.
“Ah ha! Yes! I do know him.” I spun back to Rory who looked less than impressed.
“Hookup?”
“Totally. But it was a long time ago. Now, if he was pantless, I’d have known him right away. Some things are hard to forget.” I tipped my head to the side, recalling those distant memories. “Yes, he definitely has a memorable appendage below the belt.”
“Oh my God, you’re picturing it.”
Rory smacked the back of my head and dragged me along. “What? What did I do?”
“You’re shameless. Let’s get out of here before he notices you imagining his dick.”
“Aww, sweetheart, if it helps, I remember your dick with perfect clarity too. It’s a gift really. Faces, not so much. Cocks, abso-fucking-lutely.”
“Krew, shut the fuck up.”
I peered over my shoulder one last time before falling into step beside Rory. “That is one very lucky man he is with. Just sayin’. Baby, I know you don’t bottom, but I’m telling you, some men are just that unforgettable.”
Rory shoved me into the elevator and took out his frustration on the poor button. I stumbled, laughing at his scowl. He was such a miserable fuck sometimes.
“I’m sure Max would be thrilled to know you were checking out old hookups.”
“Hey, I love Max. He knows my past, and I know his. It isn’t taboo. We talk about that shit sometimes. It’s not like I was crawling onto that guy’s lap and looking for another ride. I was reminiscing. There’s a difference.”
Rory punched the button harder when the doors took too long to close.
“Baby, you seem stressed.”
“No shit. Let me smoke and regroup so I can remember why inviting you sounded like a good idea because I’m struggling to remember.”
I rolled my eyes behind his back. “Whatever. You love me. Wanna go swimming after? There is a pool in the hotel somewhere.”
“I don’t swim.”
“Wear a T-shirt.”
Rory’s scars across his back made him self-conscious. I was his best friend, and the amount of times Rory had let me see them could be counted on one finger.
“No.”
“Fine. We’ll just mingle then. You can reintroduce me to Grayson, or we can hunt down Ireland and Raven.”
“No.”
“Your enthusiasm is overwhelming. Can you dial it down a notch?”
“Fuck off.”
The doors opened, and a steel and concrete underground parking lot surrounded us. Darkness and shadows which would hopefully help smooth out Rory’s biting edge. There were rows and rows of cars and the lingering scent of wet pavement and exhaust fumes.
We wandered a few feet, scanning the pillars before ducking into a small alcove. There were no signs forbidding smoking and plenty of discarded butts on the ground.
“Jackpot, sunshine boy. Smoke away and try to blow all that miserable mood into the air when you exhale. In with the good, out with the bad. In. Out. In—”
He swung his arm to hit me, and I jumped out of the way, laughing. “Give me five minutes of peace and quiet. Can you do that?”
“Fine.”
Rory unearthed a pack of smokes from inside the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a cigarette and lighter. He leaned against the concrete wall and lit up, drawing deeply and closing his eyes like the act itself was euphoric.
I wasn’t a smoker, but I’d been known to indulge on occasion when having a beer. Since Max came into the picture, I hadn’t thought twice about the old habit. The act no longer held any appeal. Maybe I just didn’t feel the tension around me like I once had.
“So when did you quit quitting?” I asked after he’d gone through a half a cigarette.
“A week ago. This whole thing just ate at me, you know?”
I did know. Rory didn’t hide his stress well.
My phone buzzed, and I tugged it from my pocket as Rory exhaled and offered me a drag.
“No thanks.”
It was from Max.
Max: You behaving?
I grinned and typed out a response.
Krew: Never! I saw an old hookup from back home and Rory got mad when I reminisced over his junk.
Krew: I know! That’s what I told him.
Krew: I’ll introduce you later. I learned his name… a few years too late but whatever.
Max: You’ll introduce me to the man or his junk?
Krew: Do not tease me with thoughts of threesomes. I can’t handle it. I may need to find a secluded corner and take care of my chub.
“What are you grinning about?” Rory asked, eyeing me.
“Nothing. Max is just teasing.”
Max: I don’t like sharing, and save that chub for me. I’ll take care of it later.
My cheeks hurt from how big my smile grew.
Krew: Do tell me what you’ll do about my little problem.
Max: I’d rather surprise you.
Krew: I hate surprises. Tell me. In detail. Puuuleeeeze!
“God, you’re sexting right now, aren’t you?” Rory grumbled.
I glanced up as Rory ashed his cigarette and shook his head with a small laugh.
“I’m trying. Max isn’t good at it. I’m teaching him, but he’s a hard rock to juice. The man can talk dirty in the bedroom but ask him to write it out in text or speak it into the phone and he stiffens—and not in a good way.”
“TMI, Krew. Put it away. I’m done.”
“Two seconds.”
Krew: Rory says no more sexting. Control yourself! See you in a bit we’re on the run. <3
I shoved my phone into my pocket and followed Rory back to the elevators. “I think Max has sextaphonaphobia. He’s gonna fit right in at this conference tomorrow.”
“Krew?”
“Yeah?”
“Shut up.”
CHAPTER NINE
Finnley
“How about Cassidy for a girl?” Aven asked.
My nose wrinkled before I could control the reaction.
“Okay, that’s obviously a no. Heather?”
“One hundred percent veto.”
“Bethany?”
I covered my face and groaned as I shook my head vehemently.
Aven tossed his phone beside him on the bed and scrubbed his face. “I give up, our child will have no name. You are impossible.”
“What was the first name you mentioned?”
“Peyton.”
“I don’t hate that one.”
“But you don’t love it.”
I lifted my head from Aven’s lap and peered up at him. His hair was still neatly gelled from that morning, but his shirt was wrinkled from lounging about in our room all afternoon.
“Let’s move back to boy names,” I suggested.
“You list some now. I’m spent.”
I grabbed Aven’s phone and opened the baby naming app we’d been scrolling through for an hour. I shimmied up the bed and leaned beside him, shoulder to shoulder so we could both see the screen.
“How about we do the whole Friends thing like Rachel and Ross did?” I suggested.
“Great! Perfect! Let’s do that. Except, I have no idea what you’re talking about, so no.”
“You completely tune it out when I put it on, don’t you?”
“Finn, if you can tell me who David Rossi is, I’ll let you name our baby any name you’d like.”
I frowned and scraped through the dredges of my mind in search of a connection. David Rossi? It was familiar. Who the hell was he?
“See! No idea, right?”
“It’s coming to me. Give me a second.”
“He’s a character on Criminal Minds. Do not accuse me of not paying attention to your TV show when you zone out watching mine.”
I shoulder-checked him and sneered playfully. “Yours is all disturbing and homicidal. Mine is light and funny. Besides, if you’d have said Shemar Moore, I’d have known exactly what you were talking about.”
“Oh yeah? And he’s the actor who plays which character on Criminal Minds?”
Aven broke out whistling Jeopardy music.
“Okay, okay, you win. I quit. I have no idea, and I don’t care. I just want to name our baby before he or she starts college. Can we do that? Huh? Please?”
Aven chuckled and wrapped an arm around me, tugging me closer so he could look over my shoulder at the long list of names. Nothing was just right. I wanted perfection, not mediocre. Our baby would have the best name in the world. One that couldn’t be short-formed into an atrocious nickname. One he or she wouldn’t share with a dozen more students every year at school. Something unique. Exquisite. Exceptional.
“How about Quinn?” Aven asked, pointing at the phone screen.
“For a boy or a girl?”
“Either or. It works for both.”
I considered and a disapproving noise squeaked out. “Meh… no.”
“Henley?”
“Seriously, Aven, why do you hate our child?”
Aven pinched my chin and turned my face to his as he laughed. He nipped my lips in fun and growled. “Stop. Quoting. Friends.”
“Oh, how would you know?”
I stole a kiss while he lingered close. Names were all but forgotten for a few minutes while I savored Aven’s mouth and flavor. Soon, our alone time would be compromised by a newborn baby demanding attention all the time. These moments of free time were dwindling, and we both knew it.
“Seriously, you suggest some because I just can’t anymore. I want you to be happy, baby.”
I sighed and plunged back into the long list. “Benjamin?”
“He’ll get Ben, and I don’t think I like that.”
“River?”
“We are not hippies. No.”
“Ares?”
“Greek God? Really?”
I closed my eyes and slid my finger over the phone in a long, wild swipe and then poked it down after a second before opening my eyes to see where I landed. “Scarlet.”
Aven opened his mouth to object then shut it again. Tipping his head to the side, he considered. “I… I actually don’t mind that one.”
“Really?” I stared at the name and rolled it around my head a few times, testing it. Scarlet Hollins-Woods. It was pretty and unique. My brow flew up, and I flipped my gaze to Aven. “Holy shit. Me too. And if she has Bryn’s red hair, it would actually be quite fitting.”
Aven rested his hand on my arm and studied my face. “Are you saying we actually agree on a name? After eight months of deliberating, we may have found common ground on a girl’s name?”
“I think we have. You watch, she’ll have a boy, and we’ll be lost again.”
“Finn, are we saying yes to Scarlet?”
I pondered a minute more before a smile crested my face. “I’m saying yes to Scarlet.”
Aven chucked his phone aside and clasped my face between his hands. “Hallelujah! One down, one to go.”
His lips found mine, warm, soft and pliant. He pushed me down until I lay across the bed sideways. Aven straddled my waist and kissed me deeper. His tongue glided against mine, tenderly and softly, bringing a moan up my throat.
I tugged him down and wrapped my arms around his body, threading my fingers through his hair and wrecking his perfect style. His hands were everywhere at once. Touching my face, tracing patterns down my arms, reaching around to cup my ass cheeks and drag me closer. His erection dug into my thigh as he ground against me.
“This could be the last alone time we get for a long, long time,” I said into our kiss.
“I know, believe me. We should take full advantage.”
“Please.” I arched my hips, grinding us together. Heat germinated from my core and seeped through my veins.
Aven’s hand slipped under my shirt and ghosted a gentle massage along my ribs as he ducked his head to my collarbone and sucked.
My phone pinged just as I gasped.
Aven and I both froze, eyes bugging before we flew apart in a mad scramble to be the first to reach my phone.
“Where the hell did I put it?”
I fumbled off the bed and dug through my pockets not finding it. Aven scoured the bedside tab
les before launching to the other side of the bed. “Here!”
I dove across the bed after him as he unlocked my phone and pulled up the message.
“Oh God, it’s Bryn. What if this is it?” Aven’s voice trembled, his fingers shaking as the message came up.
Bryn: Hope you guys are having fun. Just wanted to let you know the massage was amazing. Your baby was active the whole time, kicking and rolling about. Look, I took a video. It’s almost creepy, you can see my belly moving and rolling.
My heart thrashed and struggled to calm.
Not baby time.
We let out mutual sighs as we glanced at each other then back at the phone.
Aven wrapped an arm around me as we lay side by side on our bellies and watched the video. It was short, but Bryn had captured a few good kicks, visible through her tight maternity shirt.
We watched it over and over again. My eyes misted as I reached out, wishing I could feel those strong kicks against my palm like we had a few times before.
“That’s one feisty baby,” Aven said sounding just as choked up.
“I love it.”
“Me too.” He kissed my temple, and we kept watching the short clip again and again.
Our heated moment was gone, and once we’d calmed from our panic, Aven nudged my shoulder. “Why don’t we see if Arden and Iggy want to grab dinner tonight. Maybe Arden would like to see this too.”
I rubbed Aven’s arm and nodded. “I think that sounds great.”
Aven took a turn in the bathroom first while I messaged Arden to make plans, telling him about Bryn’s text and the video. His excitement shone through in his response. Arden had been Bryn’s rock through her pregnancy. He came to the appointments along with us and supported her decision one hundred percent.
When Aven came from the bathroom, wet from a shower with only a towel wrapped low on his hips, I considered canceling everything and staying in our hotel room. He wandered to his suitcase and rummaged through while I raked my gaze over every inch of him.
“Arden and Iggy will meet us at the restaurant downstairs at five. Arden won’t be able to eat anything but would love the company.”
Aven peered over his shoulder. “Great. Gives us a bit of time to argue over a boy name.”
I chuckled as Aven dropped the towel and stepped into a pair of underwear.