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“Hi,” he says in his low, sexy voice.
“Hey,” I respond quietly.
Ryan turns around looking in my direction. “Cowboys, huh?” he says with amusement on his face.
I walk over to where they are sitting at the island and lean against it, crossing my arms. “So you’re a hater, too, then?” I ask playfully.
We start talking about football and then they move on to telling stories about when they were younger. Aiden, Max, Ryan, and two other guys I’ve yet to meet were all best friends in college. Ryan fell in love with a local girl so he stayed here, became a cop, and married her.
“Yeah, she’s best friends with Je—” he stops midsentence. But I already know what he’s going to say. I just nod. “Sorry. Anyway, I talked to Jessie and told her to stay away from you both and if she comes back on the property that she’ll be charged with trespassing. I’m sorry, Addison,” he says somberly.
“Well, that settles that. Can we never talk about her again?” I quickly ask, wanting to move on. The guys both nod. Ryan changes the subject, asking me what I thought about skydiving.
“I loved it. I can see why people can get addicted to it,” I say.
“When Max told me you went up without me, I was pissed!” He punches Aiden in the arm. “But then when Max explained who you went up with, I about fell out of my chair. And then he tells me to watch this video, and I was sure you must have hit your head at some point in the last two years.” He laughs.
“Why is it so hard for all your friends to imagine you in a relationship?” I say, lifting a curious brow at Aiden. He shrugs with a smug smile. Ryan laughs again.
“We thought Aiden would be a bachelor his whole life. He’s always been focused on work; he didn’t make time for women. Well… he made time, he just didn’t want one around constantly,” Ryan jokingly says.
“I hadn’t found the right one yet,” Aiden says matter-of-factly, winking at me. His words send a jolt through my body. All my nerve endings tingle as heat spreads through me. I glance away, needing a distraction. I open the refrigerator, welcoming the cool air as I pretend to look for something.
“How did y’all meet? Through work?” Ryan questions. I close the door and glance at Aiden to answer. I know that Damon and Max know, but I’m not sure who else he told.
“Something like that,” he answers, pinning me with his intense stare. He tilts his head, cocking his eyebrow. Those beautiful emerald eyes are trying to find the answer to something, I just don’t know what it is. “Are you hungry?” he asks.
I really hadn’t thought about food, but since we skipped breakfast, I could eat. “A little.” I shrug.
“Hey, let’s go have lunch at the barn.” Ryan stands up, slapping Aiden on the back.
“The barn? Sounds fancy,” I say. They both throw their heads back, laughing.
Aiden stands up, sliding to stand by me. “It’s just a local restaurant, not really a barn. We used to go there to eat every time we came into town. They have the best chicken fried steak.” He brushes my hair behind my ears.
I bite my lip as I hesitate to answer. “I’m not sure, Aiden. I don’t know if I can handle any more surprise visits from more of your friends.” I gesture with air quotes. “And I’m not talking about that type of friend,” I say, pointing at Ryan.
“Ryan, give us a few seconds,” he says, nodding his head toward the front door. As soon as Ryan leaves, Aiden traps me with his arms on both sides of me. I can feel the cold granite at my back. The intimate space between us has my pulse quickening. “We can leave if you want,” he whispers as he lays his forehead on mine. I’m having a hard time thinking about anything but him and how close he is. I grab the granite at either side of us.
“Addison, touch me,” he pleads. “I need to feel your touch like I need air to breathe. It’s killing me inside that you’re hurt. I would do anything to take away that pain. For you to look at me the way you did yesterday. Please, Addison.”
The pain in his voice breaks me, causing all my restraint to crumple. I run my hands up his shirt, feeling his muscular chest. I close my eyes, breathing him in.
“Let me kiss you,” he whispers into my ear. I shiver from the heat of his breath and the slight touch of his lips on my ear. I nod, parting my lips. He lightly sweeps his lips across mine. “I love you,” he whispers before pressing his mouth to mine. I bring my hands up to his hair, threading my fingers through it. He moves his hands behind my back, pulling me into him. Our bodies sway to the music of our hearts. It’s a slow, sensual song, with a lot of beat.
“So are you guys going to lunch? I don’t have all day. Some of us have to work.” Ryan’s voice pulls us out of our trance.
Aiden rolls his eyes. “What is it with people always interrupting us?” He chuckles. “Should we go to lunch or do you want to eat on the way back home?”
“The barn is fine.” I smirk.
Lunch ends up being delicious. Ryan’s an awesome guy. His face lights up when he talks about his wife. The guys reminisce about fixing up the house and trashing it at night. A few locals stop by to say hi, excited to see Aiden is back in town. I can only imagine the trouble those boys brought to this little beach town. Although, it seems everyone has grown to love them. Some, a little bit too much.
“It was good seeing you, brother.” Aiden pulls Ryan into a hug. “You and Macie should come see us.”
“We will. Maybe we’ll come down for New Year’s.” He looks over at me. “Keep him out of trouble. And don’t go shooting anyone,” he says sarcastically. Aiden’s and my eyes go wide. I bring my hand to my mouth to stifle my laugh. “Am I missing something?” Ryan asks, narrowing his eyes at us both.
Aiden slaps him on the back. “Some things are better left unsaid.” He laughs.
