“Girls always think it’s sexy.”

“Well, I don’t so I guess I’m a first. It looks skanky.” Maybe lightning wouldn’t strike me for telling such a boldfaced lie.

“Wow, tell me how you really feel.”

I rolled my eyes and then headed for the pool with Nick hot on my heels. “You act like you don’t want me here. Has something happened since you invited me?”

I whirled around on him. “I didn’t invite you and I certainly didn’t invite your date. It was all Claire’s idea. Remember? That’s who you talked to, not me.”

He laughed at me. He freakin’ laughed at me. “My date? Is that what’s going on here? You’re mad because I brought a date?”

“Does she know you kissed her hostess last night?”

He was amused, but I wasn’t. “No, I didn't tell her we kissed.”

“We didn’t kiss. You kissed me.”

“I recall you kissing me back.”

Yeah, I did, but it was such a mistake on my part. “If I did, and I’m not saying I did, I shouldn’t have.”

I tried to turn away, but he caught me by the hand and pulled me toward him. “Well, I’m gonna kiss you again and next time you won’t call me ‘friend’ afterwards.”

Oh, that was why he brought a date to my house. He was mad about being called ‘friend’? “That’s it. You’re mad because I addressed you as ‘friend’ in my text?”

“I don’t know what’s going on here but one thing is for sure. I didn’t like being referred to as a simple friend after our amazing kiss.”

What the hell? “Well, I don’t know what’s going on here either but I sure think it’s wrong for you bring a date to my house after last night.”

“You’re jealous.”

Damn skippy I was jealous but I would die before I admitted it. “I’m not. I just think it proves what a Playah you are and confirms all the reasons why I’ll never go out with you.”

He was smiling, or maybe it could be called some form of gloating. “Dallas,” he called out as he waved over the brunette and I immediately wanted to cringe because I remembered that name. Stupid! Why had I been too dumb to consider that he brought his sister? Because I was too wrapped up in my own hurt and preconceived notions to consider the possibility that maybe he wasn’t trying to play me after all.

12 Cracked Glass

Nick

Payton Archer had a jealous streak when it came to seeing me with another girl and I couldn’t be happier about that. She was caving whether she wanted to or not and that meant I was one step closer to having her. “Payton, this is my sister, Dallas.”

Payton’s face was red, but it wasn’t from the sun or the heat. She was blushing because her jealous anger had revealed more than she intended. “It’s really nice to meet you, Dallas.”

“Thanks for inviting me.” Payton’s eyes shot to mine and begged me to not say otherwise. “Your house is gorgeous and this pool is to die for. This is where I would spend every minute of summer if it were in my backyard.”

“I’m glad you were able to come and please make yourself at home.” I pointed in the direction of the pool house. “There’s plenty of drinks and snacks in the kitchen, so help yourself to anything you want.”

“Thanks, but I wouldn’t care for anything right now. I’m dying to get in the water.”

“Me, too,” Dane yelled as he ran toward the pool to do a cannonball. After his big splash, he came up and ran his hands over his hair from front to back pushing the water away from his face.

Payton shook her head and rolled her eyes. “Very mature, Dane.”

“Warning...if you didn’t think that was mature, you probably won’t think this is either.”

“What?”

“This.” I surprised her and she let out a loud screech when I grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into the pool with me. I held her against me as we fell into the water and then bobbed up to the surface.

She came up and gasped for air. “I should put my knee in your nuts for that.”

I didn’t let go of her, but I twisted my torso to protect my jewels because I wasn’t sure she wouldn’t decide to go for it. Who knew with this wildcat?

Jessie got up from the table where he and Claire were sitting and pulled his shirt off. “Next.”

Claire put a death grip on the arms of the chair she was sitting in and looked up at Jessie. “Just what do you think you’re gonna do?”

“Oh, I know exactly what I’m gonna do and you should, too. It’s not like I’ve never thrown you over my shoulder before, Princess, so let go of the chair.”

Dane yelled out across the pool. “Awww, yeah. Free show. This oughta be good.”

I saw the challenge in Claire’s eyes daring Jessie to try to pull her from that chair and knew she wasn’t going easily. Jessie squatted in front of her so they could be eye level with each other. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Your choice.”

She leaned forward and stared him in the eyes, challenging him to try to forcefully move her. “You know I always choose hard.”

He nipped her on her bottom lip with his mouth and she yelped. “And that’s only one of the many things I love about you, Princess.”

“How is it that you think you’re gonna get me to let go of this chair without prying my hands free?”

“I’m not prying anything. You’re going to take your hands off the chair using your own free will.”

She suspiciously narrowed her eyes at him. “What are you going to do to me?”

“I’m going to help you let go.”

She gave him a stubborn grin. “You just think you are, but it’s not happening, Dude.”

“Okay, have it your way.” He reached up and very slowly began to pull the tie to her bikini top behind her neck. “You’ve got about five seconds before your top drops to your waist. What’s it gonna be? Let it drop or let go of the chair to grab it before it falls?”

“Jessie Dewayne Boone!”

“I’m not worried about Dane or Hawke seeing what’s mine because I know you’re gonna be a good girl and grab your top before it falls. When you do, I’m throwing you over my shoulder and hauling you into that swimming pool.”

Claire kicked and squirmed as he pulled and slowly counted. “Three. Two. One.”

I turned my head, just in case Claire proved to be as stubborn as her bestie and the whole thing happened as fast as lightning. Claire apparently reached for her top before it fell so Jessie grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder just like he promised with one exception. He walked past the pool without tossing her in. “Sorry to interrupt the show, but we’ll be inside for a few minutes because there’s a little business we need to take care of.”

Claire slapped him across his back and it made a loud sound. “Jessie!”

I knew the type of business they were about to take care of. Boone was about to find out how good Claire’s little black bikini looked when it was tossed on the floor. He was one lucky bastard, but I was certain Claire’s crumpled black bikini was no comparison to how the white one in front of me now would look.

≈ ≈ ≈

It had been at least an hour and a half without any sign of Jessie or Claire, but I didn’t care because it wasn’t their company I craved.

Dane and Dallas slowly migrated from us on the pool steps to the seat in the deep end of the pool and I strongly suspected we were witnessing the beginning of something starting between the two of them. That was cool by me because I liked Dane. He was a nice guy and we would get along fine as long as he didn’t do anything to hurt my sister.

“I’m a little hungry. Wanna grab a snack?”

“Sure.”

I dare say that there’s nothing in the world that could hold a candle to the sight of water rushing down Payton Archer’s ass when she got out of the pool. I almost, key word being almost, wished I hadn’t seen how fine it looked because it had me adjusting myself in my swim trunks behind Payton’s back as I followed her to the pool house to get something to eat.

She handed me a cola and chips and I sat down on a couch in what Payton called an outdoor room. Yeah, a freakin’ outdoor room with furniture, a kickin’ stereo system and a flat screen.

She pulled out a remote and pointed it toward a receiver below the flatscreen. “What do you wanna hear?”

I wanted some great make out music, but I doubted she would go along with that. “Surprise me.”

She had a mischievous grin to appear on her face. “You know I can.”

“Go for it. I dare you.”

“Okay. Here’s a band I bet you won’t know.”

I listened for a minute and didn’t recognize the song. “You’re right. Never heard this before.”

“This is Civil Twilight and you’re gonna become very familiar with them if you hang with me for long. They’re my favorite band.”

Okay. I could become very familiar with Civil Twilight. That wasn’t a problem for me.

She pointed the remote toward the receiver to turn the volume down and then sat in the chair across from me, which was really disappointing because it would be hard to kiss her from that far away. She popped the top on her drink and then looked up at me as she opened her chips. “Tell me about your tattoo.”

Her question caught me off guard and caused me to choke a little on the cola I had turned up. It took a few seconds, but I finally managed to stop coughing so I could speak. “Sorry. Went down the wrong way. What do you want to know about it?”

“Just the general stuff like when did you get it? Why did you choose that design and what does it mean?”

How did I answer that? There was nothing general about my ink or her questions regarding it. I had never been asked to explain the particulars of it; she was the first. My own family had never even asked although I was fairly certain they probably all understood.