Epilogue
JAYDEN
“We’re going to be late.”
I rolled my eyes, knowing full well Sutton couldn’t see me. If he did, he’d only aim that piercing gaze of his at me. He thought it was intimidating, but it was sexy as hell. I was doing him a favor, considering I had no issues with being even later because I was busy jumping his bones.
“You’re the one who insisted on changing your shirt. Twice.” Not that I’d minded. Every strip show he gave, I was up for.
Sutton grunted and threw a damp towel at me.
“Hey.” I quirked a brow, then all but swallowed my tongue when I raked my gaze over him. “Fuck, maybe we should stay in?”
“That’d be a no, and I think it means you’ll be fired.”
I mulled that over a second. Was it really that important as Ryan’s best man that I get to the bachelor party on time?
“Whatever you’re thinking, no. Just think of the hot and sweaty club and dancing all up me.” It wasn’t fair that his smirk was so delicious, but his words did have merit.
“I suppose, but just so you know, in case you’re feeling frisky, I prepped ahead of time and wouldn’t say no to some nasty restroom sex.”
Perhaps I shouldn’t have said that while he was gulping from the bottle of water, which he sprayed mainly on the floor of the hotel room rather than on his shirt that fit him like it was made for me to peel off.
“Nasty, really?”
I shrugged and threw him the towel. “If you could see how you look through my eyes, you’d be impressed as hell I can even manage to leave this room without stripping off for you.”
His eyes heated. I grinned immediately, hand moving to my belt.
“No,” he said firmly. His gaze didn’t lie, though. It trailed down my body, landing on my crotch. Like the asshole I was, I put my thumbs in my pockets and framed my dick, one of Sutton’s favorite parts of my body. “You’re going to be the death of me.”
I ambled over to him, my smile still in place.
“Never.” I pressed my mouth to his and tugged on his bottom lip for good measure before releasing.
“No chance you’re abandoning me that easily.
Now, get your greedy eyes off the goods.
We’re going to be late.” I walked past him, earning a heavy sigh.
“I know you’re just trying to steal my thunder and step in and be Ryan’s best man last minute. ”
“Uh-huh. Yeah, that’s totally it. Nothing to do with Nate pleading with me to make sure you don’t screw up.” The door closed behind him, and we headed for the elevator.
In answer, I flipped him off, then waited impatiently for the elevator, wondering how hot and revved up I could get him in the twenty seconds we were in the car. The doors opened, and my plan was immediately foiled. Pearce stood in the elevator.
“Hey, good timing.”
Sutton edged me in, chuckling. I expected he’d known exactly what was on my mind. “Hey, you managed to get some rest?” he asked Pearce.
“Yeah. Slept for about three hours. That should see me through. It means I’ll be dead to the world tonight.
” He’d flown in from the States this morning, in time for Ryan and Nate’s bachelor party and their wedding in two days.
We’d arrived two days earlier, but I’d planned tonight after countless messages with a guy called Elijah, the owner of the bar where tonight’s festivities were being held.
It was a place I had meant to visit my last trip, a couple of years back. The car crash had derailed that plan. A quick glance at Sutton made me smile thinking about it.
“No plans on hooking up?” I asked.
Pearce was a good-looking guy, as well as a good friend.
We’d all spent a lot of time with each other since the first summer at Montview.
In all that time, I’d known he’d hooked up a few times but had no one serious in his life.
Sure, he was only twenty-six, but Sutton and I had discussed a couple of times how lonely he seemed.
“Well, I won’t say no if the right guy comes along and catches my eye.” Pearce grinned, but I wasn’t sure I was buying his enthusiasm, and from the side-eye Sutton gave him and then me, he wasn’t either.
“The car should already be downstairs to take us to Bar QK. We caught up with Eddie earlier and a few of the guys who flew in yesterday.” I hadn’t even known until a couple of years back when Ryan and Nate flew out that Ryan knew Eddie, but apparently, they did.
And since their reunion when out at Montview, Ryan had managed to get Eddie, hell, all of us on board with his own basketball camp he’d put together.
Last year had been the first year after meticulous planning.
With the Australian summer being our winter, it made our visit tricky, since we were in season, but we’d flown out for one long weekend.
That hadn’t been a problem for Eddie, though, considering his retirement.
Though I did know it could be a juggle with caring for his daughter.
For the wedding, Ryan and Nate made sure it worked out so as many of their friends Stateside could attend, planning the event for the off-season. That hadn’t mattered so much to us anymore. Not since our retirement at the end of the season.
Realizing Pearce hadn’t responded, I flicked a glance at him as we exited the elevator and stepped into the lobby. “You okay?”
His eyes widened, and he looked my way. “Yeah, sure.” He smiled, but it was far from genuine.
“Eddie.” Sutton lifted a hand, and I looked in the direction of his stare.
“Hey.” He sent us a chin lift, his focus moving to my side. “Pearce, good flight?”
Pearce’s cheeks pinkened. “Uhm, yeah, sure. You know, it’s a flight. I got here. It was long.”
My brows knotted as I took him in. Red-cheeked and tongue-tied, he looked like he wanted the ground to open up.
A noise escaped my mouth as reality set in. Fucking hell, Pearce had a hard-on for Eddie. I opened my mouth, only for Sutton to snag me around the shoulders and tug me close to him.
“Come on. The car’s waiting.”
“But—”
“Nuh-uh.”
“Did you—”
“Nope. Leave it.”
“But they—”
“I swear to all that is good and holy, Jayden, if you don’t hush it, I’m going to have to find a way to gag you.”
Immediately I snapped my mouth shut and grinned. “You’re thinking of dirty restroom sex, aren’t you?” I bounced my brows.
He tilted his mouth close to my neck, his breath fanning against my skin. “If I say yes, will you promise to leave Pearce alone?”
“Didn’t we say no more secrets?” I gave a lopsided grin and may have angled a little to accept the press of his lips against my neck like the hussy I was.
“I said no more secrets between us.” He pulled away, and I only grumbled a little at the loss.
“Fine. I suppose you’ve got yourself a deal.” I cast a quick glance behind me. Pearce followed with Eddie by his side, talking.
Sutton’s sigh dragged my attention back to him. “You’re incorrigible.”
“How many points is that?”
He smiled. “Seventeen.”
“One of these days, I’m going to marry up; you know that, right?”
His gaze flared and roamed my face. “As long as you know one of these days I’m going to be marrying my best friend, then that’s fine by me.”
Between the flipping of my heart, the flutters in my stomach, and the gigantic smile on my face, I had no plans to deny him or the likelihood of that statement.
“Come on. If you’re lucky, I’ll ride you like a kangaroo.”
Sutton snorted, scrunching his nose. “It doesn’t matter how many times you say it, it’s not sexy.”
I laughed loudly and opened the door for him, darting a kiss on his cheek as he angled down. “I’ll spend my life seeing if I can change your mind.”
Absorbing his soft smile and the feel of his hand in mine as we sat in the back of the car, I sighed, completely content.
The accident, the injuries, they’d been absolutely worth it.
Infinitely so. I wouldn’t have changed a moment, not when I still pinched myself every day that my best friend agreed to be mine.