Page 88 of Wicked Lord

“We should go to bed.” She swallowed hard and sat up, gripping a pillow to her chest like a barrier between us. “It’s late, and I’m certainly not losing tomorrow, so I need lots of rest.”

She gave a nervous laugh.

Damn, she was a master at pretending everything was perfectly normal when it was far from it. I was supposed to use Lorelei to get Cordi back, but lately, instead of dreaming about the girl who was afraid to commit, I found myself consumed with thoughts of the stunning woman right in front of me.

I dragged my hand through my hair—the same hair her fingers had tugged on while my face was between her legs—and forced a smile.

“You’re right.” My knees wobbled as I climbed off the bed, my raging hard on still tenting my pants. “I’ll sleep on the floor.”

She fiddled with the blond strands that had fallen out of the bun. “Are you sure? This is your bed and?—”

“Lore, trust me when I say I need to sleep on the floor.”

She nodded and hurried under the covers, probably sensing how thin my control was.

Not even that cryptic message from Vaughn could completely extinguish the fires blazing inside me. I had no idea how we’d get through the rest of the weekend.

Part of me was pretty fucking certain we wouldn’t.

CHAPTER 36

REAL FEELINGS

Lorelei

The sun was already painting the sky in hues of orange and pink as I gripped the football between my hands. The air was thick with the salty tang of the sea, and the sand was cool underfoot, a perfect playground for flag football. My fingers were sweaty against the leather, though it had nothing to do with the setting sun but rather with the hulking body crouched behind my ass.

Axel’s massive form loomed over me, his familiar citrusy scent invading my nostrils and all my senses. As if I needed the reminder, he was all I could think about since our hasty hook up last night.

If that text hadn’t interrupted us, would we have gone all the way?

Even now, my lusty pussy ached at the heated memories. Yes, we definitely would have fucked. Fake buzz or not, I wanted my fake boyfriend. I couldn’t deny it any longer. Axel Vanderhart had wormed his way into my fragile, bruised heart. And now, I had no idea how to act around him.

“Ready, blondie?” I could feel his smile without even looking back, his excitement contagious.

I hazarded a quick peek over my shoulder. His blond hair glistened beneath the setting sun and a playful grin was stretched across his face. A blue flag was strapped at his waist, matching the one I wore.

The big family flag football game was set to begin. With all five brothers playing and Jackson’s new wife, along with Aaron’s girlfriend, Addie, who showed up this afternoon, and of course Ax’s parents, we had a full team of five on five.

“I’m always ready, babe.” With a steadying breath, I tossed aside all fiery thoughts of the night before and focused on one thing only: winning.

“And hike!”

I tossed Axel the football, and he was off. He was a force of nature; he dodged, dashed, and even leapt over Jenson avoiding a spectacular block that had his whole family clapping. Gigi and Grandpa looked on from beneath the beach umbrella, stretched out on their lounge chairs sipping iced teas.

“Nice one, Ax!” Gigi called out as he barreled by Jeremy for the touchdown.

The game moved fast, the sand giving an extra challenge to our sprints and dodges. Luckily, thanks to my daily Peloton routine, my endurance was pretty decent. I managed to snag a couple of red flags from Axel’s older brothers, each time earning cheers from our team.

“That’s my girl!” Ax rushed by me and slapped my ass, earning him a squeal.

“Hey!” I swatted him away, but I was grinning like an idiot despite the mix of sweat and sand in my hair.

“Save it for the bedroom,” Jeremy shouted, wagging a finger.

“You’re just jealous.” Ax curled his arm around my shoulder and tucked me into his side.

My traitorous body sank into his embrace before I could stop it. His shirt was already off, tiny beads of sweat glistening across his stacked torso. Normally, the perspiration would’ve disgusted me, but with Axel, it just made him sexier.