2. Piper
PIPER
“So are you gonna tell me my brother slept at your house last night, or are you gonna keep staring at that invoice all morning instead of the fifty-seven other things we need to do?” Rory says with a smug curve of her lips that has my mouth falling open.
“Seriously?” I sulk but she just laughs.
“What? You can bang my brother, but just realize he’s run through most of this town so…” She shrugs her shoulders and lifts her eyebrows. “Just don’t expect him to settle down.”
“Please stop pimping out your brother.” This time I groan because I haven’t had enough caffeine this morning to think about sex with Mack. I indulged in a little self-care in the shower, but I’d be taking that to the grave.
He just looked so hot shirtless in my living room.
And the way he was staring at me had my panties soaked in an instant.
Ugh.
Why do I have the worst taste in men?
Technically, Mack isn’t the worst and I’ve never had him—specifically because he’s Rory’s younger brother, but also because the playboy rumors aren’t rumors.
Mack has a reputation, and I know it would feel so out of this world good in the moment but then what?
The sheets wouldn’t even be cold before he’d be making his escape, and my stupid heart would break and I would have no one to blame but myself.
I’m a sucker for the promise of a happily ever after.
And Mack is, and has always been, emotionally unavailable, and I won’t risk our fun and flirty rapport for a couple of orgasms and possibly the best night of my life.
Probably.
Probably the best night of my life.
Ugh.
“Oh, sweetie,” Rory coos, “I take it back. You can’t sleep with my brother. I love you and l love him, but he would break your heart and I would have to kill him and no one wants that.” She rubs my back as if I’m a kid who scraped their knee on the playground.
“Stop it,” I hiss, annoyed that I’ve let myself spiral this morning when absolutely nothing happened.
Except when he whispered, “You can be damn sure, Honey Girl, that the first time I’m in your bed, it won’t be for sleeping.” Did he whisper it? Or did it just feel like he whispered it because my vagina thought he was talking directly to her?
“I need to clean something,” I mutter, pushing back from my desk and staring at the clock.
Shit. We still have about two hours before we even open for the day, but there’s so much to do.
The summer is one of the busiest times for us and this year—because I have nothing else going on—we decided that the shelter will host an adoption day on National Dog Day.
Woohoo.
I love this for me.
And the dogs.
And I know it will be a great day and it will all be worth this absolute chaos, but I cannot with this absolute chaos right now.
“Okay, but like I need you back here in an hour so we can go over some of this checklist you laminated.”
“Uh-huh.” I wave back at her, but I don’t turn around, missing whatever she grumbles under her breath and hoping that in sixty minutes’ time, my run-in with Mack will be nothing but some distant memory.
A really hot distant memory.
Dammit.
MACK
“I’m sorry, sir, do you have an appointment?”
“Yeah, here,” I tell my sister, thrusting the cup of coffee into her hand and watching her dramatically inhale the scent through the little drink hole.
“You’re my favorite brother.”
“I’m your only brother.”
“Yes, and as my only brother, you can’t have sex with my best friend.”
“Why? What did she say?” I didn’t mean to say that out loud, the hope in my voice giving away my intentions.
Well, kind of.
Rory growls, “Dude.”
“What? I’m not that bad.” I’m going for levity, but she’s doing the older-sister glare that used to have me running for the hills. Now I just find it endearing.
“You’re amazing, but she’s my best friend and I can’t have you sexing her up and then ghosting her when someone new comes along.”
“First of all, I’m offended.” She rolls her eyes but I’m not joking. “Seriously, what do you think I’m gonna do?”
“She will get attached and that will be the end of the easiness between you guys.”
“I like her,” I enunciate, my stomach doing a slow roll as my sister snorts out a laugh.
Awesome.
“Rory, have you seen the—” Piper’s eyes widen and her lips part, and all I want to do is cover them with mine and kiss her until she’s panting and boneless and aching for me to be inside her.
But I can’t do any of that—yet—especially not with my sister here.
“I brought you a coffee,” I tell her, holding it out and letting out the breath I was holding when her fingers brush against mine. “Thanks for lettin’ me crash at your house last night.”
“Just because you have a key doesn’t mean—”
“He has a key?” Rory asks, the question shrill and obviously looking for an answer, but Piper’s green eyes stay locked on me.
“How do you know my coffee order?”
“I know things.” I let my lips curve up into a slow smile and watch as the prettiest shade of pink colors her cheeks.
Why does she have to be so damn beautiful?
“No.” Rory’s finger waggles in front of my face, pulling me from the little trance I’d been in and unfortunately back to reality. “No. Both of you, no.”
“It’s really none of your concern.” My words are a slow drawl, meant to hide my irritation.
“It is and I don’t have enough vacation time to deal with it. Can we please get through the adoption event, and then I’ll go to the beach somewhere and y’all can do whatever it is you’re so hell-bent on—”
“No one is hell-bent,” Piper snaps, her face flushed as her gaze bounces between us. “Oh my gosh. Stop—both of you.”
Her voice cracks on the last word, her eyes glassy as she takes a step back, away from us.
Away from me.
“Piper.”
“I have work to do. Thanks for the coffee.”
“I’m sorry,” my sister sighs out, “I didn’t—” But Piper has already hightailed it out of the lobby, leaving me nothing to do but stare after her and hope that my sister hasn’t blown my shot with her best friend.