“She’ll look sexier in about twenty minutes, Donavan, if you get the hell out of here and let her do her thing,” Haddie says unabashedly as she breezes in my room holding a handful of barely-there dresses on hangers for me to try on.
“Well shit,” Colton says, pushing himself up off of the mattress, “I guess I’ve been told. Beckett?” he bellows down the hall, “Time for another beer.”
I twirl a lock of Colton’s hair absently with my fingers as I stare down at his head resting in my lap. He’s just fallen asleep and I shake my head watching the peaceful calm on his face. I’m still in shock at the direction the evening has taken. I smile, recalling the look on Colton’s face when Haddie and I walked into the living room in our sexy Vegas outfits. The bottle of beer that was angling towards his lips stopped in mid-air when he saw me. His eyes ran the length of my body in a lazy perusal, a diminutive smile ghosting his lips before they met mine. What his eyes told me in that one look was everything that I’d needed to hear from him but hadn’t heard over the past couple of days.
Desire. Need. Want.
And then unbeknownst to me, when Colton had mentioned flying, little did I know that there was a chartered jet waiting for us when we arrived via limo at the Santa Monica Municipal Airport. Haddie and I just looked at each other and shook our heads at the lavishness of it all. And when we boarded, in addition to Sammy sitting quietly at the rear of the plane, there was a flight attendant willing to fill any drink or meal order we desired. While Haddie, Becks, and I took advantage of the offer for a drink, Colton declined everything and crawled up on the couch beside me, laid his head in my lap, and declared he needed a quick nap to be ready for the night to come.
I shake my head thinking of it all, a wisp of a smile on my face when I look up to see Haddie and Beckett in a hushed conversation across from me. Haddie’s heels are off and her feet are curled underneath her. Beckett’s long legs are stretched out in front of him, and his fingers absently draw lines on the condensation of his bottle. He’s quite handsome in a non-typical way. I stare at him, realizing that he has definite sex appeal, more than looks. His sandy blonde hair is cropped close to his head and spiked up with gel. His crystal clear blue eyes are fringed by thick lashes. They are quiet eyes that take in and observe in a reserved fashion. He has broad shoulders and a lean build like Colton.
I stare at him, the best friend of my lover, and there is so much I want to ask him about Colton. So many things I think he can shed light on but know he would never betray his buddy by telling me.
Whether by chance or because he feels the weight of my stare, Beckett looks up and meets my eyes, his sentence to Haddie faltering on his lips. He angles his head to the side and twists his lips up as if he’s trying to decide if he should say something or not.
“You know why we’re here right now…why Wood got drunk tonight, don’t you?” His southern accent drawls out as he looks down and shakes his head at the sight of his friend before looking back up at me.
“No,” I say.
Beckett leans forward resting his elbows on his knees and looks me straight in the eye. “Because you told him no, Rylee.” He shakes his head, a smile growing on his face. “And nobody, except me, ever tells him no.”
“That’s absurd,” I tell him, looking over at Haddie, who’s arched her eyebrow at the turn in conversation, a pleased smirk on her lips. I realize that Beckett is telling me I am the first female to tell Colton no. To not ask how high when he says jump. I glance down at Colton and back up to Beckett. “Surely one of his many others have told him no before.”
He thinks in silence for a moment before answering. “Not that I know of,” Beckett says, tipping the bottle to his lips, “and if they have, I’ve never seen Colton care like this.” He leans back and stretches out again, and I try to read the unspoken words in his eyes. “He came back from lunch one surly S. O. B., Rylee. I actually felt bad for the people on the other end of our meeting today.” He smiles at the thought. “And then the next thing I know, he was pounding out his frustration on the treadmill. Pulling me to the bar with him to sulk and started making phone calls. Hatching a plan. Telling people we’ll be in Vegas by ten, to get their asses there, and to meet him at the usual place.”
The usual place? “You guys do this often?”
“Every couple of months.” He shrugs like it’s not a big deal. “But here’s the thing, Rylee, no matter who he’s with, I’ve never—never—seen him bring the woman he’s seeing, or whatever the hell he’s doing with them, along with us.” He tips the bottle of the beer at me. “Now that’s something to think about.”
Beckett eyes hold mine until he knows I understand. There’s something different between Colton and me that he hasn’t seen before. I nod my head at him.
He leans forward again. “I’ve known Colton for a long time, Rylee. He can be cocky as hell and a stubborn ass at times, but he’s a good guy. A really good guy.” I can sense the sincerity in his voice and the brotherly love he has for Colton. He looks down at his slumbering friend and back at me. “He may not always go about things the right way, or even know how to go about them at all, but he usually has the best intentions behind his actions.” When I don’t say anything he just nods and continues. “I’m telling you this because you matter to him. More than he’s willing to admit or can acknowledge right now, but it’s important for you to know. Because if he matters to you like I think he does…really matters…not just for the recognition of being with him, but because of who he is, then you need to hear it. Shit,” he swears, running a hand over his jaw and leaning back shaking his head. “I must be drunk if I just told you that. Fuck.” He sighs. “He’d throttle me right now if he knew I was telling you any of this.”
“Thank you,” I tell him, my voice barely a whisper as I try to digest everything he’s just told me—everything I wanted to ask him but was afraid to. My head is reeling with his confession. I try to keep a rein on the hope and possibilities that bubble up inside of me. I matter enough that his best friend notices the difference in him. I just need to remember that unless Colton acknowledges it, these feelings still mean nothing.
Haddie looks over at me and smiles softly, knowing how much I needed to hear this. That these words justify the depths of emotion I already feel for Colton.
He thanks the flight attendant as she hands him another beer. “I’ve said this much, I might as well finish,” he mutters to himself with a sheepish smile spreading on his lips. Colton shifts and turns into me, his face nuzzling my abdomen, and all I want to do is bend down and kiss him. “Trying to control Colton is like trying to grab the wind. Don’t even bother...” he shakes his head “...he’s gonna fuck up, Rylee. He’s going to make a lot of mistakes and say all of the wrong things because he doesn’t know how to do anything other than what he’s been doing.”
Beckett takes a pull on his beer and sighs. “He’ll never admit it Rylee. And unless you are one of the few that are close enough to him to see it, you’d never guess that he’s a man drowning in his past. To accept that there might be more than just the usual arrangement per se with you—and by you being here, there obviously is—he might just pull you down so that you’re drowning with him.” He shifts some in his seat, eyes never breaking from mine. “When that happens, Rylee, more than anything he’s going to need you to be his lifeline. He’s going to be so consumed and obsessed with preventing his past from meeting his future that he’s going to need everything from you to keep him afloat.”
He holds my eyes for a minute longer and then eases back into his seat, a slight smile playing the corners of his mouth. “I love him to death, Rylee, but some days I hate him too.” He shrugs without apology, “That’s just Colton.”
I look back up at Beckett and smile softly, a silent agreement to his assessment. “I’m beginning to understand that,” I mutter.
The flight attendant comes over to fill our drinks one last time and to inform us that we will be beginning our descent into Las Vegas
shortly. I look down at Colton and a feeling of warmth spreads throughout me as I realize how much I’ve come to care for and love—yes love—him. I shake my head and Haddie catches my eye, her happiness for me brimming in hers.
IT’S BEEN SEVERAL YEARS SINCE I’ve been to Las Vegas, and I can’t believe how much the city of sin has changed in that time. New hotels have sprouted up while old ones have been torn down. Aging ones have been renovated and made over to match the caliber of the new ones.
I’m dying to get a moment alone with Haddie. We haven’t really had one since this whole adventure started, and I need her advice on how I should act in light of Beckett’s revelations. We had a quick moment alone in the airplane while we were freshening up, but not nearly long enough to have a real discussion about the night’s events.
Lights and sounds surround us, assaulting our senses as we exit the limo. Sammy nods discretely to Colton and takes the lead as we walk up a set of stairs into an entrance at the Venetian. Within moments we are walking into TAO. Colton’s hand is on the small of my back, and I notice conveniently that Beckett’s hand is doing the same on Haddie’s. I wonder if he’s just being a gentleman or if there’s something else possibly going on. Interesting.
I realize that people are starting to stare at us as Colton’s name is hurriedly murmured around the Friday night crowd who’ve gathered in hopes of seeing a celebrity. Camera phones flash and I look up at Colton to see his reaction. He’s all smiles with the crowd, but when he looks over at me, his eyes warm up with what’s missing from his public one. His nap has sobered him up some, but I can still sense that playful Colton is just within reach.
We skirt around the long line of people waiting for the chance to enter. As we near the hostess podium, a woman steps out from behind it and motions for us to follow her. Wow, life must be nice when you’re Colton Donavan. No lines and women at your fingertips.
Colton leads me by the hand as we walk past the giant Buddha on the way to our private table. Heads turn and flashes explode against the darkened atmosphere of the room as we pass through. I hear Colton’s name murmured a couple more times within the crowd before he stops and turns to face me.
I look at him, a puzzled expression on my face as he steps toward me and unexpectedly captures my mouth with his. At first I freeze—I mean we are in the middle of a very swanky and completely packed restaurant—but as Colton deepens the kiss, as his fingertips cup my face and hold my head still, I succumb to him. His taste is just too devouring and his pull on me too magnetic to resist.
The sounds of the restaurant’s patrons fade away. Colton kisses me like a man drawing his last breath and I am his air. It’s passionate and possessive and provocative. And holy fuck his addictive taste drags me under and takes hold. My mind starts to come back to reality when the whistles and hollers of onlookers begin to register in my brain.
The crowd around us gets louder as they urge on our public display. Colton keeps his hands cupping my face but tears his lips from mine. His eyes register unfiltered lust, but the grin he flashes me is arrogant and mischievous. The only thought in my head is wow, but he’s left me so breathless that forming that simple word isn’t even a possibility. I give him a questioning look.
He just cocks his head to the side, a gleam lighting up his emerald eyes. “If they’re gonna stare, Ryles, we might as well put on a good show!” He wags his eyebrows at me and brushes a chaste kiss on my lips before grabbing my hand and following the hostess standing off to the left of us. The dumbfounded look on her face reflects exactly how I feel.
Playful Colton has reappeared.
Cheers follow us out of the main room into our private dining area, and it is only then that I can read the stunned thoughts dancing across Haddie’s expression. I shrug at her and she just grins back at me, eyes wide and dimples deep.
We reach our table and Colton pulls me into his arms before I have a chance to sit in the chair he’s pulled out for me. “I haven’t told you yet how absolutely stunning you look tonight.” He breathes into my ear. “And now every guy in this restaurant knows you’re mine,” he says in case the claim he’d just staked wasn’t clear enough. He presses his lips at the spot just below my ear. “You look sexy as hell in that dress, but I must confess that all I can think about is getting you out of it.” He chuckles—a seductive sound that wraps its way inside my body and causes the fingers of desire to tickle in my lower belly. “Thank you for coming tonight, Ryles.”
Dinner is delicious and seems uneventful compared to the whirlwind of the past couple of hours. The conversation among the four of us flows easily, and I can see why Colton likes Beckett. He’s funny and witty and really grounded, having no trouble putting Colton in his place when he needs to be. They banter back and forth like little old women, but their affection for one another is obvious.
Sammy sits at a table near us with eyes wary at all times. He’s prevented our meal from being interrupted a couple of times from eager ladies wanting pictures with Colton, if not something more.
I catch myself staring at him randomly during dinner. His charisma and enthusiasm are infectious, and I love watching how his face lights up when telling a story or relaying an event. He’s polite and attentive to everyone during the meal, making sure that all of our needs are met. He steals little kisses here and there coupled with the squeeze of my hand or the trace of a fingertip on my bare shoulder. I wonder if he has any clue the fire he is stoking within me with his casual affection.
I sip the last of my Tom Collins and realize I have a slight buzz going when Colton’s phone alerts an incoming text. He looks down and laughs at the message. “Gotta hot date, Ace?” I tease him with a smirk on my face. He looks up from his phone to meet my eyes at the same time Haddie snorts at my nickname. He just raises an eyebrow and flashes that mischievous grin I adore. In the midst of staring at me, I see the moment his brain registers why Haddie’s laughing.
“You,” he says across the table pointing at Haddie.
“Me?” she says coyly as she takes a sip through her straw.
“You know what A.C.E. stands for,” he says with excitement, and I can see the cogs turn in his head as he figures out how to play this.
“Now why would you think that?” Haddie flutters her eyelashes with feigned innocence.
“Spill it, Montgomery,” Colton demands playfully. Haddie’s eyes dart over to me and her smile widens, but she says nothing. “What can I bribe you with?”
“Well,” Haddie replies in her best bedroom voice. “There’s definitely a lot of things you could do to me to make me talk.” She breathes out, licking her bottom lip and pausing. “You know Ry and I like to play a little on our own together,” she says suggestively, eyeing him up and down. The look on Colton’s face is utter shock and, being the guy that he is, unfiltered lust. It’s taking everything I have to not burst out laughing. “If you want me to talk, you could always join us,” she suggests, “and play a little…”
He works a swallow down his throat, his eyes darting back and forth between us before a lascivious smirk turns up that skillful mouth of his. “Very convincing, Haddie…And as much as my dick’s enjoying the thought, I’m not taking the bait, sweetheart,” he replies while Beckett barks out a laugh.
“Damn, Haddie.” Becks shakes his head. “You had me going for a minute there!”
We all laugh as Haddie throws her napkin at him and turns to me with a smile on her face. “He’ll never get it.”
“Attractive, charming, and exquisite,” Colton guesses and then blows on his knuckles and rubs them against his chest.
“Nope.” I smirk at him as I play with the straw in my drink.
“More like all consuming ego,” Beckett mocks.
“Nope,” I repeat, my standard response.
“Saved by the bell!” Colton says as the waiter places dessert plates filled with chocolate confections in front of us.
We enjoy our dessert, the playful banter continuing, but no matter where my ey
es wander, they always come back to Colton. He looks up as I’m admiring his devilishly handsome face and smiles softly at me.
“You ready?”
I return his smile and nod.
“Haddie? Becks? You game?” They both agree and gather their things. I start to stand up and find myself tugged backwards so I land on Colton’s lap. I catch a glimpse of his wicked grin before his lips close over mine. His tongue slips between my lips and teases mine with tantalizing slow licks and sweeps into my mouth. He tastes of mint and rum, and all I can think of is how these little kisses here and there are not enough to last me all evening. They are a cruel tease when I’ve already had the real thing and know it’s mind-blowingly better. His hand slides slowly up the outside of my thigh, fingertips gliding underneath the hem of my dress, kneading my soft skin with his roughened fingers.
Teasing me.
Before I can even process a coherent thought, he pulls back and kisses me on the tip of my nose. I release a frustrated sigh, needing so much more to soothe the ache he’s seated in me.
He chuckles softly at my response. “Let’s go,” he says, nodding his head toward the door.
We’ve spent the last hour and a half occupying the casino floor with a flamboyant flair. Much to Sammy’s dismay, Colton decided that he wanted to play some Craps. After some initial losing, Colton ended up at a table surrounded by a crowd as he rolled again and again to their cheers of encouragement and the benefit of his wallet.
His adrenaline is still amped up, and I can feel it vibrating off of him as our car pulls along a back entrance of the Palms Casino a little after midnight. We’ve all had a lot to drink and I’m more than ready to release some energy on the dance floor.
“Now the fun really begins, ladies!” he exclaims before tipping back the rest of his drink and grabbing my hand.