“Why do you think I bought the house?”
He throws his head back laughing, hauling me closer to him.
“Yeah, I like this one,” Annie throws in, reminding me we have an audience.
“Move over, woman. Stop hogging her.” An older version of Evin butts in.
“Edward Graham,” he introduces himself.
I free myself from Miller and hug him. “Nice to meet you.”
“Whatever you do, no matter how hard she pushes, do NOT give my Annie the website address,” he mutters in my ear.
I shift back and wink with a slight nod. “Got it.”
The energy in the room picks up as my family swoops in for introductions. With all the attention off me, I tug Miller to the hallway. When we’re out of earshot, I spin, ready to state my case, but don’t get a chance. He hauls me against his hard body, sliding his hands in my back pockets and squeezing my ass. His mouth crashes down, his tongue tangling with mine with a possessive demand. I have no choice but to follow his lead, holding on to his shoulders to keep standing. Heat and need build low in my spine, slowly trickling its way through my body. His scent surrounds us, lingering in the air and invading my senses. I lose myself in him, savoring the stolen moment of intimacy.
His hips surge upward, the thick bulge pressing into me. I whimper at the sensation, instantly greedy for more. He growls down my throat, curling his tongue around mine once more before tearing away. “I fucking missed you today.”
I fight to regain my breath and barely get out, “Missed you, too.”
“I like your parents, Princess, but I’ll be glad as fuck when you’re back in my bed.”
“Maybe you could stay in my room tonight?”
He moans, dropping his forehead to mine. “Don’t tempt me, Ashlyn. My willpower is only so strong. Two days without you has taken its toll, and we both know what will happen if I come to that hotel tonight.”
“I’m an adult, Miller, and they are aware I have a man in my life.” I throw his words from Thursday morning back at him.
“Yeah, they’re very aware of that fact. I’ve made it through this far unscathed. Not sure it’s smart to test my luck by fucking the hell of out you with them down the hall.”
A new kind of electricity courses through my system at the promise in his statement. The thrill is quickly doused when I remember my conversation with Austin earlier. My arms go around his neck, and I lean back to see him. “Speaking of unscathed, you are not taking my brothers surfing tomorrow.”
“Why?”
“Because bodies disappear easier in the ocean.”
“I’m an excellent swimmer.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’d like to get to the point where you fuck the hell out of me. To do that, you can not go surfing with my brothers.”
The corners of his lips curl up, and his eyes sparkle in amusement. “You can stop worrying. Knowing what’s waiting for me is incentive enough to watch my back.”
There is no further discussion when his mouth closes over mine again.
Chapter 13
Miller
“Didn’t you leave an hour ago?”
“Hour and a half.” Pierce comes in carrying two glasses and a bottle of whiskey. He pours a generous amount in each glass before dropping in the recliner.
“You forget something?”
“Nope.”
I click off the TV and toss the remote on the couch next to me, grab my glass and wait.
“Ashlyn went back to the hotel?”
It’s a stupid question with an obvious answer, but I give him what he’s looking for. “It’s her last night with her parents. They decided not to stay over Sunday night. I’ll meet them at the house tomorrow morning.”
“You okay with that?”
“Not my first choice, but it’s important to her.”
He takes a sip, sitting back like he’s staying a while.
“Something on your mind?”
“There’s a lot on my fucking mind.”
“Are we going to dance around it or get to the point?”
“Darby talked to me.”
“How’d that go?”
“Hurt like a fucking son of a bitch, but at least I know what’s bothering her. I have you to thank for that.”
“She would have come to you eventually.”
“Maybe, or she would have internalized and figured out a way to move past it without sharing. Either way, we’ll work through it.”
“No doubt you will, but now that you know how she’s feeling, why is your ass at my house? Shouldn’t you be at home working through it?”
“Seeing as you’re moving your girlfriend into your house tomorrow, figured it was a good time to get you alone.”
“Pierce, say what you came to say. I’m pleased as fuck you and Darby had your heart to heart, but that’s not why you’re here.”
“It’s been bothering me since we left last week. You’re no amateur. There’s not a chance in hell you’d let a knock-out like Ashlyn walk away from you in a bar in Chicago. I was right there with you for over ten years, picking up women, fucking the night away, leaving it all behind. She is not the type of woman you leave behind.”