Watching Mine

“When is she supposed to be here?” Nathan asks, depositing his drink on the coffee table in front of him before reclining back, making sure to bring me with him.

Abby looks down at the watch on her wrist before answering, “Any minute.”

“And she didn’t tell you what this was about?”

“Nope. Just that she wanted to see all of us.”

Nathan told me on the drive over that one of his friends, Ava, has been AWOL for a couple of weeks and no one knows where she’s been. I could see the worry flash through his eyes as he talked about her. He also told me he, Abby, and Tegan met through a sexual addiction therapy class years ago. Apparently Abby is a sex addict, Tegan is an exhibitionist, and Nathan is the voyeur, which I already knew from experience. Abby brought Ava into the group when she met her in a bar a few years ago. Ava’s hard core into role play. Each of their sexual preferences intrigues me, especially Abby’s.

The group makes small talk about random things for a few minutes. As I thought, anytime Tegan opens his mouth it’s to say something that has the group either groaning, rolling their eyes, or laughing. The guy is full of himself, but not in an arrogant way. It’s kind of endearing, actually.

“So, Emberleigh,” Abby says, pulling my attention to her. “Nathan mentioned you’re going to college. What are you majoring in?”

Ignoring the fluttery feeling in my stomach at knowing he’s talked about me to his friends, I nod. “It’s nursing school, actually. It’s my dream to work in obstetrics.” She smiles, and my eyes track her hand as it settles over her flat stomach. “Are you…?” I trail off.

Her smile grows, and it’s then that I notice her slight glow.

“Yep,” she chirps, then looks at her husband, pride brimming both of their faces. “Eleven weeks.”

“That’s wonderful,” I say with my own smile appearing. “I’m so happy for you both.”

“Thanks.”

“Is this your first?”

Colt twines his fingers with Abby’s that are still on her stomach. The move is incredibly sweet.

“It is, but we hope to have a houseful one day.”

The door opening and closing has all of us looking over at the entryway. A moment later, a tall brunette appears with a sandy-blond-haired guy behind her. She stops for a moment when she sees everyone before leading the guy forward. Abby jumps up from her perch on Colt’s lap and rushes to her, pulling the woman into her arms.

“Where have you been?” Abby cries, her voice coming out raw. “We’ve been worried about you.”

When they break apart, the woman, Ava, I presume, tips her lips up into a smile. “I told you I was fine, Abby. There was no need to worry.”

Abby blows out a harsh breath. “Well, I’m sorry, but when my best friend just up and leaves without telling anyone where she’s going, I tend to do that.”

Ava laughs, earning a scowl from Abby. I see Tegan get up and make his way over to them. He throws his hands on his hips as he stands beside Abby. Ava’s eyes move to him and she lifts a brow.

“Are you going to scold me too?” she asks in a playful tone.

“Nope. I’m just going to stand here until you tell us where the fuck you’ve been.”

The man behind her steps forward, settling a hand at her waist and pulling her to his side. “Watch your language with her,” he tells Tegan sternly.

Tegan’s hands fall from his hips and he takes a step forward. Although I see his body stiffen, a grin forms on his face. Tension fills the room as he looks the guy up and down, and I realize something about Tegan. He may be the jokester of the group, but he’s also a protector.

“Dylan, right?” At his nod, Tegan continues. His voice may be calm, but even I can tell it’s deceptive. “You may be in her bed, but that doesn’t mean jack shit to me. It damn sure doesn’t give you the right to tell me how to talk to my friend when we’ve been worrying about her for days.”

“Tegan!” Ava demands. “That’s enough!”

Nathan’s arm lifts from my shoulder and he slowly rises, his eyes never leaving the four people just inside the living room. I take to my feet beside him.

Dylan’s eyes turn hard. “Actually, it does, since your friend is now my wife.”

Silence ensues, and shock fills the air. Even Nathan jerks beside me with the news that obviously no one knew about.

“That’s why I wanted everyone here,” Ava says, filling the tense moment. “To tell you all I got married.”