by Cindi Madsen
“Surprise!” several people shouted when I stepped inside, even though obviously it wasn’t a surprise party.
Evan stepped up to give me a hug, patting my back and wishing me a happy birthday.
“Right back at you,” I said.
“Gwen.” He tipped his head. “Looking lovely this evening.” He cast me a quick glance, like he was checking he hadn’t crossed the line. Not that I could claim to be an expert on avoiding crossing the line, but I appreciated it. Then his smile tightened as he glanced at Gwen’s roommate. “Tori. Still clinging to the obnoxious British thing, I presume?” Unlike when I teased her about her personality quirk, there wasn’t any humor in his jab.
“I’ll take that as a compliment coming from the discontinued, outdated version of Ethan.”
Wow. The hatred was strong with those two. Not sure why, and I didn’t want to get in the middle of it—I was done getting involved in Evan’s messes. Before we got pulled into that, I nudged Gwen on past my brother’s group of friends, who called out greetings to us as we walked by. Naturally, they all loved Gwen, and it took us a few extra minutes to make it across the room.
“Ethan! Happy birthday!” Mom walked up to us, her smile widening as she took in my girlfriend and her pretty purple dress. “And you must be Gwen. We’ve heard so much about you.” She hugged Gwen, who enthusiastically hugged her back once she realized there was hugging happening. “You’re just as lovely as Ethan said.”
“He’s great at upselling me like that.”
My mom laughed and then Dad came over, and within minutes, they were trying to keep up with Gwen’s chatter as they beamed at her.
I nudged her, my silent way of saying Told you so.
She bumped her hip against mine, in a move that I took to mean Since you were obviously right, you’re going to totally get lucky tonight.
Okay, I might’ve read more into that than she meant, but as the night wore on, and all the weirdness faded, everything in my life felt perfectly aligned. My dad even remarked how impressed he was that I was already up for a promotion.
“Have you seen Tori?” Gwen asked, glancing around.
“Not in a while.” I looked around, too, but didn’t see her anywhere. After another thirty or so minutes of circulating, I curled Gwen to me and whispered, “Ready to get out of here? I can’t stop thinking about you in your birthday suit.”
Heat flooded her gaze, and she gripped a fistful of my shirt. “You better take me home, and quick, or I’ll make what Horny does to his rainbow look like amateur hour.”
“I don’t even know what that means,” I said with a laugh, “but I’m looking forward to finding out.”
We wished people goodbye on our way out—although I couldn’t find Evan—and then we climbed into my car. It wasn’t a Camaro, but it was mine. As was the girl by my side.
On the drive back to my place, I once again thanked my lucky stars for my past poor judgment, a road trip that’d flipped my life upside down, and a woman who was amazing enough to forgive and forget, in spite of my imperfections.
I lifted our entwined hands to my lips and kissed the back of hers. “Have I mentioned lately how much I love you, Guinevere Cosgrave?”
The streetlight lit up her dimpled smile. “It’s been an hour or so. Have I mentioned how much I love you back?”
“You have. But I’d be open to further discussion…”
She grinned and leaned across the console to nibble on my earlobe. “As soon as we get home, I’m going to make sure you have a new favorite ride. Spoiler alert: it’s me.”
I groaned, our game dialing the blood in my veins to blazing hot in a flash. Suddenly the three or so miles we had left seemed way too long.
The engine growled as I eased down the accelerator a couple more inches. When the stoplight at the last intersection before my apartment complex forced me to brake, I used the idling time to slide my hand up her silky thigh. I pushed up her skirt and stroked her over her lacy panties, pleased to find her already growing damp for me.
“Ethan,” she moaned, and I grinned.
There it was.
My car, my girl—and best of all—my name.
Acknowledgments
First of all, I just have to say thank you to all my readers who continue to read and support me and make it possible for me to make up stories for a living. I hope you know how much I appreciate all of you.
Huge thanks to Gina L Maxwell and Molly E Lee for their feedback on my first draft and for telling me how much you laughed—it feeds my ego about how hilarious I am. LOL. Thanks also to Rebecca Yarros, the other girl in our squad who is always there for plot chats, pep-talks, and who even shows up at my house armed with a paintbrush when I’m drowning in remodeling projects. You all keep me sane, show me the meaning of true friendship every day, and I’m so grateful to God for making sure our paths intersected.
Thanks to Shari Ryan at MadHat Designs for my cover and for helping me with so much of my design stuff. Thanks to Kerri Legend for bringing some order to my chaos, to KP and Nazarea at Inkslinger for publicity help, Carolyn Pinard for copyediting, and to all the bloggers and reviewers who help spread the word.
Last but not least, huge shout out to my family for always being my biggest cheerleaders. Every time I talk about how awesome my kids are, people are blown away, something I experience every day. As kind as they are funny, I’m one lucky mom. Thanks to my husband, Michael, who’s heard a dozen versions of a story before any of it makes it onto a page and endures date nights where it feels like my characters are there third-wheeling it with us. I love you! Thank you for believing in my dream even before I did.
Also by Cindi Madsen
Getting Lucky Number Seven
Anatomy of a Player
Crazy Pucking Love
Confessions of a Former Puck Bunny
Nailed It
12 Steps to Mr. Right
Cinderella Screwed Me Over
Taking Care of the Target
Falling for Her Fiance
Act Like You Love Me
Resisting the Hero
An Officer and a Rebel
Second Chance Ranch
Crazy for the Competition
The Bad Boy’s Baby
Operation Prom Date
All the Broken Pieces
About the Author
Cindi Madsen is a USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance and young adult novels. She sits at her computer every chance she gets, plotting, revising, and falling in love with her characters. Sometimes it makes her a crazy person. Without it, she’d be even crazier. She has way too many shoes, but can always find a reason to buy a pretty new pair, especially if they’re sparkly, colorful, or super tall. She loves music and dancing and wishes summer lasted all year long. She lives in Colorado (where summer is most definitely not all year long) with her husband and three children. You can visit Cindi at: www.cindimadsen.com, where you can sign up for her newsletter to get all the up-to-date information on her books. Friend her on Facebook to learn about her adventures in lifeing and writing (Cindi Madsen) Follow her on Twitter @cindimadsen.