“It’s fine. Whatever. You have better food anyway.” She bends forward and grabs her jeans off the floorboard, tugging out her phone. “Oh crap.” She holds in the button on the side, but the screen stays black.

I pull my phone out of my pocket. “Here.”

After Tessa calls the tow company, the rest of the drive is made in silence, or as much silence as being in a vehicle with her allows. She hums softly to herself, some song I know I’ve heard on the radio but can’t place, and only stops when I pull into the driveway. I open the garage door and park my truck, grabbing her wet clothes and my T-shirt off the floorboard and depositing everything into the washing machine after I empty her pockets. I remove the battery out of her cell and set everything on top of the dryer.

“Your phone should be fine. Just give it a couple of hours before you put the battery back in.”

After starting the load, I see her waiting for me in front of the door that leads into the house.

Her body is wrapped up in the towel, which she opens slightly the moment I step in front of her, granting me access. I slide my hands around her waist to her back, pulling her against me.

She tilts her head up. “Luke?”

“Yeah?”

“If I come in, I might… actually, I know…” She blinks heavily, struggling to find the words. “I know I’ll…”

I tilt my head, forming my mouth to hers. “Just come in, Tessa. Don’t overthink it. I want you here.”

I back her up the steps, opening the door as her tongue slides into my mouth. The towel is dropped somewhere between the living room and kitchen as I wrap her legs around my waist and carry her upstairs.

“God, I love how you kiss,” she says against my mouth as we reach my bedroom doorway.

I pin her against the doorframe, swallowing her tiny squeal before taking control of her mouth and fucking owning it. It’s how I’ve always kissed Tessa, only her, and I’d do it for hours right now if the sound of a throat clearing didn’t pull me out of it.

I look over in the direction of the noise, as does Tessa, both of us panting, caught up, but still able to focus on the person who interrupted us.

Naked.

In my bed.

Where she’s never belonged.

I glare at the skank I should’ve knocked out hours ago as she lays propped up on her elbow, facing us. She’s topless, covers barely draped over her, a twisted smile in place. I’d be angry if this attempt to seduce Luke wasn’t the perfect blend of desperate and amusing. No guy wants to come home to a botched boob job waiting for him, one that just so happens to be in a very unflattering position. Especially when he’s just spent the last half hour worshipping the fantastic pair that belong to me.

I wiggle in Luke’s arms, loosening his hold on me so I can slide down to my feet.

“What the fuck are you doing in here?” he asks, stepping into the room and keeping me behind him.

I try to move next to him, not giving a shit if this chick sees me naked or not, but Luke darts an arm out and pushes me back. I huff loudly, earning myself a warning look over his shoulder. It’s brief, but intimidating nonetheless. Of course, that doesn’t stop me from standing on my toes and exaggerating my stare, wide-eyed and apparently humorous, given the smile that touches his lips before he turns back around.

“You said you needed to do laundry. I don’t remember hearing anything about you wanting to take a fucking nap. Don’t you have a bed?”

Her low, obnoxious laugh fills the room. “You know I do, baby. You’ve been in it.”

Oh, hell no. I was content on staying behind Luke for the time being, mainly because the back of him shirtless is just as insanely attractive as the front, but it looks like this bitch forgot her place, and I have no problem being the one to put her back in it.

I shove Luke’s arm out of my way and move next to him, not bothering to cover myself up because I really don’t give a shit. Besides, I’m sure she hasn’t seen a pair of real tits in years, and while I’m at it, I might as well make this verbal beat-down educational.

See this? It’s what a nipple is supposed to look like.

I hold my hand out, palm up, motioning toward the bed. “You know, we just started a load. Now those STD-riddled sheets are going to have to wait at least an hour before they can be disinfected.” I sweep my gaze down her body, grimacing. “Heavy disinfected. And, honestly, I’m not even sure bleach can handle this situation.”

“Do you ever get tired of running your mouth?” she asks.

I flatten my hand to my chest. “Me? No, I never get tired of anything involving my mouth.” I hitch a thumb toward Luke. “Neither does he.”

“Tessa,” Luke warns.

I shrug, gathering my hair over one shoulder and twirling pieces of it. “What? You don’t.”

He gathers the clothes off the floor and tosses them onto the bed. “Get dressed and get the fuck out of my house. And next time your washer goes up, go to the Laundromat, or buy a new one. Don’t ask to come over here again.”

She sits up, shock setting into her features and tightening the lines of each and every one of her wrinkles. “What? But I thought…”

He points his finger at her. “You thought what? That I’d come home, find you in my bed, and actually consider fucking you again? Even if she wasn’t here—” He gestures toward me with a nod, “—your ass would’ve been thrown out. I told you, I’m not interested. The only reason why I even looked at you before was because I needed a distraction. From her.” He turns his head, locking eyes with me, and I feel my mouth go dry.

I blink several times; in fact, that’s the only thing I can seem to do at the moment. He stares at me for what feels like minutes instead of seconds, keeping himself perfectly still while I feel the hand submerged in my hair begin to tremble.

“I don’t want any more distractions,” he states, standing up a bit taller.

Whoa.

I try to swallow, to produce any amount of saliva, but my tongue suddenly feels as if it has doubled in size. His forehead creases, just below his hairline, like he’s studying my reaction to what he’s just said. I’m not sure what he’s seeing, but I feel like I probably look completely mental right now. I know I’m not moving, I’m barely breathing, and I’m naked. Very naked. I hear movement in the room, covers shuffling, some low, muffled noises, but I can’t peel my eyes off Luke. Not while he’s looking at me like that.

“Move.”

He shifts over, allowing Jolene to push past him and continue in my direction. She knocks purposely into my shoulder, meaningful scowl in place, before exiting the room with an exaggerated grunt.

I flatten my back against the door as Luke eliminates the space between us with two long strides. “I’ll be right back. I just wanna make sure she leaves.”

I drop my head into a partial nod. “’Kay.”

‘Kay? I can’t even manage to put an “o” in front of that? Has the ability to pronounce a simple vowel escaped me?

He places a gentle hand on my arm, just above my elbow, squeezes, and slips out of the bedroom, leaving my hopeless vocabulary and me alone.

I shake my hands at my sides, blowing out a quick breath.