Being as quiet as possible, I padded into the bathroom and took a much-needed long, hot shower. I was beyond exhausted and barely able to keep my eyes open as I got out and dried off. I pulled on a fresh pair of boxers, then crawled into bed with Kiersten. On instinct, she immediately nestled up next to me and laid her head on my shoulder. Her eyes were closed as she whispered, “Hey.”
“Hey, babe. Sorry I woke you.”
“I’m glad you did.” Her voice was low and raspy and sexy-as-fuck as she whispered, “I missed you today.”
“Right back at ya.” I leaned over and kissed her forehead. “Did you have a good day?”
“It was okay.” She did that little hum thing she did when she was worried about something before saying, “I talked to Braylon today.”
“About?”
“Mia.” She sighed, then continued, “He really likes her, but he’s been pushing her away. He still blames himself for what happened with Drake and his men.”
“Yeah, I had a feeling that was what was going on. Did you set him straight?”
“I think so, but you never know with Bray. He’s so stinking stubborn.” She yawned, then hummed once again. “He’s a good guy. He deserves to be happy.”
“And he will be ... when he’s ready.”
“But if he’s never ready?”
“He’ll get there.” I ran my fingers through her hair. “I know you want to fix it for him, but he’s gotta do it on his own. And you gotta trust that he will.”
“How did you get so smart?”
“You’re the smart one. You’re just rubbing off on me a little.”
“Is that right?”
“Mm-hmm.” I closed my eyes and settled in. “You’re the best thing that could’ve ever happened to me.”
“It’s funny you say that ’cause I think the same thing about you.”
She eased up and kissed me, then laid her head back down on my shoulder. A few minutes later, she stilled and her breathing slowed, and I knew she’d drifted back off to sleep. I looked down at her and was in complete awe. Kiersten had no idea how incredible she really was, but I knew. I’d known it all along. She was the best of both worlds. She was strong, independent, and beautiful, but at the same time, she was vulnerable with a heart of gold. She made it easy to fall for her. Hell, I was still falling, and as I lay there in bed next to her, I knew I’d never stop.
Twenty
Kiersten
“What the ever-loving fuck?” Lynch roared. “How the hell is she doing that?”
“I don’t know, but they’re definitely kicking our asses.” Shotgun huffed with aggravation.
Lynch pointed over to me with a pout as he complained, “I’m pretty sure she’s cheating.”
“She isn’t cheating,” Grayson argued. “She’s just better than you.”
“She’s better than you, too.” Lynch pointed to the red solo cup of beer. “Drink up, buttercup.”
Grayson looked over to me with a scowl, then lifted the cup and quickly downed it. The guys had gotten together to celebrate Viper’s birthday, and they’d all been partying pretty hard when Locke got the bright idea of setting up a beer pong table. At first, the guys seemed a little undecided, but when Locke suggested a match between the brothers and the ol’ ladies, suddenly they were all for it. We’d already played several rounds, and the ol’ ladies were dominating the guys, which suited me just fine. After the last party, I had no interest in getting smashed again any time soon.
Since I’d made the last shot, I had to go again. I could feel the guys’ eyes on me as I prepared to take my next shot. I held the ping pong ball up and aimed it at the next red solo cup, then held my breath as I tossed it in the air. Seconds later, it plopped inside the cup, causing some of the beer to splash out. I threw my arms up in the air and shouted, “Oh, heck yeah! That’s what I’m talking about!”
“You’ve gotta be shittin’ me!” Lynch whined. “How in the hell did you just make that?”
“What can I say? I’ve got skills,” I teased him.
“I’ll show you skills.” Lynch took his ball and tossed it towards our end of the table, and like many before, he missed the cup by a mile. “Damn it!”
I smiled as I pointed to the cup. “Drink up, buttercup.”
“Damn it.” Lynch grabbed the cup with my ball in it, then quickly drank it. He tossed the empty cup to the ground, then turned to Grayson as he fussed, “You’re gonna have to step up your game, brother.”
“Me?” Grayson scowled. “You’re the one who can’t get it in the damn cup. You’re worse than a fucking virgin searching for the golden hole.”
“Fuck you, brother. You’re just taking it easy on ’em ’cause you wanna get laid tonight.”