The Best Man (Alpha Men 2)

Daff leaned toward him, a bright smile plastered to her face—by now the conversation had flowed in a different direction and nobody was paying attention to them.

“Back off, Brand,” she growled. “She’s not interested and you’re making her uncomfortable.”

He turned to her with a laconic grin on his face, and Daff decided in that instant that she probably wasn’t going to like this suave asshole.

“I’ll wait for her to tell me that herself,” he murmured in that crisp British accent of his and then leaned in, a conspiratorial smile on his face. “So . . . what’s her name?”

“Ugh . . .” She turned away from him and met Spencer’s brooding gaze. He was a serious man, but lately he looked downright gloomy every time he looked at her. She wanted her Spencer back. The man who shared his rare smiles and incomprehensible sense of humor with her. The man who couldn’t seem to get enough of her company. Lately it seemed like he went out of his way to avoid her when they weren’t making love.

Lia returned a few moments later, looking less strained. She smiled gratefully when Spencer, in typical fashion, stood and held her chair out.

“So why were you in Maputo, Sam?” Mason asked.

“Looking to expand the business,” Sam explained, and Mason nodded. The two men had co-owned a personal protection company until Mason had sold his half to Sam for a vast amount of money.

“Yeah, just like we always talked about. There’s decent business down here, but I want to set up the African base in the Cape and use it mostly for recruiting and training new officers.”

“Makes sense.” Mason nodded. “Does this mean we’ll have more opportunities to see you?”

The guy’s eyes went back to Lia’s downcast head, and Daff did not like his smile.

“Oh, I think that’s a definite possibility.”

“I didn’t like that guy at all,” Daff bitched to Spencer a couple of hours later after they’d returned to his place. She was applying lotion to her legs; she loved the way Spencer’s eyes usually followed every sweep of her hands. But tonight he barely spared them a look. Maybe they were becoming familiar with each other’s routine and it was old hat to him now. She tried not to think about possibly boring him and instead continued her little anti-Brand campaign. “He’s too smooth and too arrogant and he’s way too interested in Lia.”

“Hmm?” There was surprise in the sound, and Daff cast him an exasperated look. He was standing in the doorway of the en-suite bathroom, watching her while he brushed his teeth vigorously, one powerful shoulder propped against the door frame.

“Don’t tell me you didn’t notice?”

“Things on my mind,” he said around his toothbrush.

“You seem to have a lot on your mind lately.”

“Hmm,” he agreed before turning away and heading into the bathroom. She heard him spit, rinse, and clean the basin and his toothbrush before he sauntered back into the room. He crawled onto the bed and straight between her recently moisturized legs. “This on my mind.”

He kissed her, and she melted with a blissful sigh and happily accepted his all-consuming, minty-fresh kiss. Of course the kiss led to other incredible wonders, and afterward Daff stretched blissfully as she considered the fact that every time with Spencer was absolutely amazing. He didn’t have a bag full of tricks to keep things spicy, but he didn’t need them. The man was extremely goal oriented and focused, and when he was in bed with her, he treated her like she was the center of his universe. At first it had been unnerving, being the sole recipient of all that attention. But now she craved it, and she felt like she would wither away if he were to deprive her of it.

It was early, she could tell from the hazy light in the room, and she heard the shower running. He was getting ready for work. Because of the expansion plans, he had been spending longer hours at his office. The renovations would start next week and the shop would be closed for two weeks in December, which was his most profitable time of year. He wasn’t thrilled about it.

Daff lay curled up beneath the covers, feeling lazy and disinclined to move. Her mind fluttered from one topic to the next while she hovered in that happy place between complete wakefulness and sleep. Charlie’s room was just about done, and she would be moving in next week, so Daff and Spencer would probably have to spend more time at Daff’s place. He probably wouldn’t stay over anymore, because he wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving the girl alone overnight. That was just the way he was made. Charlie was his responsibility and he’d promised to take care of her, and staying out all night wouldn’t be fulfilling that promise.