Tyler eyed him hard. “Keep her safe.”
That went without saying but Grey replied anyway. “Will do.”
Tyler headed out, slamming the door shut behind him, leaving Grey alone with the knowledge that he’d done more harm than good by returning to Avery’s life. At least according to her brother. What mattered was what Avery thought, and his chances with her had always been shaky.
Now? He had no idea what he was up against. All he could do was make sure she felt the depth of his feelings for her and believed that if she was with him, she’d be protected and safe … and hope for the best.
* * *
Avery couldn’t stand sitting around her room any longer. Ella got busy blow-drying her hair. She wouldn’t discuss Tyler, just saying that Avery’s brother had always been controlling, annoying, and a pain in the ass. Avery agreed, but she still sensed more brewing and couldn’t begin to understand their dynamic. And why hadn’t she picked up on it sooner? Meanwhile, her brother and Grey were in the other room discussing God knew what, and she’d had enough.
She swept into the room only to find Grey staring out the window and Tyler nowhere to be seen. She took in the stiff lines of Grey’s broad back, the way he braced his hands on the windowsill and looked down, lost in thought and wondered what had been said between these two men in her life.
“Hey. Where’s Tyler?”
Grey turned, his concerned gaze meeting hers. “He took off. Said to tell you he was going out to buy better locks and he’d be back to install them. He’ll also be in touch about who he picks as your bodyguard.”
She stiffened at the reminder of how much her life had and would change if she persisted in this relationship with Grey. No matter how short term, the tumultuous existence that followed him would become hers as well.
“Come here.” Grey beckoned with a crook of his finger, and damn her, she walked over, as if pulled across the room by an invisible string.
He braced his hands on her waist, deliberately lifting her top and touching her bare skin. His palms seared like a hot brand on her skin. Her nipples tightened, her sex clenched, and need swept through her, all rational thought and concern disappearing at his touch.
“We need to talk.”
Apparently she didn’t have the same effect on him, and she fought through the haze of desire to regain her wits. “We do. I want to know what you and my brother discussed behind my back.”
“I already told you.”
She frowned. “That was what Tyler had to say. You’re the one who wanted a minute with him. So … spill.”
“That was just guy
shit. We needed to get some facts straight, and we did.”
“Such as?” If he wasn’t going to jump her bones the way her body wanted, she intended to force honest answers from him.
“Such as the fact that I’m back in your life, and I’m not going anywhere, so he’d better get used to it and stop giving you a hard time about me.”
“Oh.” That statement shocked her.
The notion that Grey would take that kind of stand with Tyler took her off guard. If her brothers thought he’d made promises, they’d be even more pissed off when the inevitable happened and he left again. She bit down on her lip. Somehow she’d have to explain to the overprotective men in her family that she’d known the end result with Grey. No matter what he claimed or believed now.
She blew out a calming breath.
“Oh? That’s all you have to say?”
She couldn’t help the grin that lifted her lips. “I’m impressed that you’d take Tyler on.”
He rubbed his nose against hers. “I already told you, anything for you, Very.”
She melted inside and accepted that this was worth the pain and difficulty his star status would cause her. She slipped her hands around his waist, and suddenly his hard cock was nestled between her thighs. Warmth and need became a tangible thing. His breathing grew rougher, and her hips began to circle against him in a dance she couldn’t control.
He let out a harsh groan that reverberated inside her, and her eyes fluttered closed as she swayed into him.
“Now I need an answer,” he said.
She didn’t know how he managed to think clearly when her panties were so wet, her sex so needy, she could barely bring herself to care that Ella was right in the next room.