Kicking Reality

“I don’t understand . . . how long . . . when . . .”

The questions pour out; my mind unable to comprehend such an absurd thing. They hated each other. This must be a joke.

“Ashley.” Poppy calms her voice while unfolding her arms and placing her hands flat on her lap. “This is a good thing.”

“No it’s not,” I say adamantly, pulling my pants up and walking away from the sofa, pacing back and forth. “Logan is a bastard. He treats women like yesterday’s trash. He takes what he wants and that’s it. God, I can’t even. . . . And Emmy hates him. She’s always hated him. This won’t last, or work. They’ll just screw each other over then I’m left in the middle. Nothing will ever be the same after this.”

“Let them be. You never know, Ashley, this could be the real deal for them.”

“The real deal?” I laugh, ridiculing her. “This will never work. Jesus! I can’t fucking believe this. All the lies. . . . How did I not fucking see this? And Logan bailing our most important training session and risking our game so he could fly over and fuck my sister?!”

“Calm down,” she begs of me. “You’ve gone mad. Can you hear yourself? They’re a good fit, the two of them. Let them sort out their relationship without you being a factor.”

“You don’t get it, it’s always been the three of us. And if they do work out, then what? What about me? I’ll be left behind.”

Poppy walks over to where I stand, stretching on her tiptoes and wrapping her arms around my neck.

“You’ve got me, you silly twat.”

I can’t hide the smile that appears unwillingly. “Your British name-calling is very distracting. So are your tits.”

“Well, they felt neglected by your pecker getting all the action.”

I bury my head into her neck, thankful that I had her. I never expected this eccentric, gorgeous woman to come into my life and just complete me. She is a mirror of me, understood me better than I understood myself sometimes. A scary thought since we’d only been in each other’s life for a week.

She was everything I needed that night when Alessandra left. Some could say it was rebound, but I wasn’t rebounding from Alessandra. I didn’t love her like she needed to be loved. I wasn’t husband material and our living together proved that. I felt relief when Alessandra wanted out—she brought the giant elephant into the room that night and finally set it free.

“I fucking love you, woman.” I laugh, slapping her ass causing her to squeal in delight.

“Oh bollocks, I give good head.”

“Yes,” I agree with a smirk. “Fucking good head.”

“You’re crazy, you know that?”

“As crazy as you.”

She lets out a sigh and stares into my eyes. I love the way her eyes twinkle when she smiles, switching between green to blue depending which way you looked at her.

“I don’t care what happens between us. I have fun when I’m with you. I don’t want that to stop.”

“Why does it have to?”

“You know . . .” she trails off. “Feelings and stuff get in the way.”

I cup her chin again, bringing her face into mine till my lips are planted on her sexy mouth.

“So, let it.”

With an infectious grin, she kisses me back deeply which switches me back into aroused mode. Pulling back, her stare is full of lust and follows with her falling onto her knees again. We celebrate the moment with what Poppy does best—a nice blow job. When she’s finished and I’m sitting on cloud nine, she reluctantly leaves the apartment to fly back home but not before asking me for the millionth time if I was okay. I tell her I am—just to shut her up.

But I wasn’t.

How could I be?

Alone—in the dark—my head begins to conjure up things. Things that won’t go down well if Logan shows his face anywhere near me. He lied, he betrayed my trust, and he stole my sister ready to use her like he does of every woman that enters his life.

He shouldn’t have messed with me. I knew every little dirty secret of his, everything but this.