Taunting Callum (Big Sky Royal 3)

“You said anything I need,” Ellie reminds me.

“Yeah, I thought maybe you needed some scones or coffee or something.”

“I need scones,” Monica says. “Huckleberry ones.”

“Me, too,” Natasha adds.

“Oh, I’d love to try those. We don’t have huckleberries in the UK,” Alice says.

“Focus,” Ellie says. “Please say you’ll go, Aspen.”

Ellie bats those ridiculous lashes at me, and I know I’m a sucker.

I can’t tell her no.

“I’m not supposed to be dating Callum,” I mutter with a frown.

“We missed something,” Monica says. “Something good. And you’d better spill it.”

Ellie’s eyes almost pop out of her head. “They don’t know?”

“We’re about to,” Natasha says. “Talk, Aspen.”

“I slept with him,” I mutter and suck down half of a mojito. “And it was damn good. And there was no sleeping done, by the way.”

“Attagirl,” Monica says.

“And then, the next time I saw him, he forgot all about it and me.”

The room falls silent for a heartbeat, and then Natasha giggles. “What a prick.”

“Hey, that’s my brother,” Ellie says but shrugs. “And, yes, it was dreadful, and he’s a knob. But what she’s leaving out is that he’s spent the past two years apologizing and agonizing.”

“Good,” Monica says. “He should. But did you forgive him?”

“Yeah.” I reach for more ice cream. “Hating him is exhausting. Also, have you seen him? He’s too sexy to hate.”

“Alice is awfully quiet,” Natasha says. “What do you think?”

“That it’s not my place to talk,” she says. “Except maybe to say this. Today, after you left us at the market, he watched you for ten minutes like a lovesick puppy.”

I bark out a laugh. “Right.”

“He did,” Alice says. “I’ve no reason to fib. He speaks highly of you, and he was genuinely happy to see you.”

“Hmm.” I eat the ice cream, thinking over everything that was said. “I guess it won’t hurt to go to the benefit.”

I might regret this when I’m sober.

“Brilliant,” Ellie says and leans over to give me a drunk kiss on the cheek. “It’ll be so fun to have you there. Now, do you need a dress?”

“Shit. Yeah, I’ll be going to see Willa for sure.”

“We’ll go with you,” Natasha says. “Now, give us more details about those sexy times with a certain prince.”

“Must she?” Ellie asks, scrunching up her nose. “He’s my brother. I don’t want to think about it.”

“She must,” Monica says.

“It was a long time ago,” I reply, brushing it off. “I hardly remember.”

Lies. It’s all lies. I remember everything.

But I don’t want to share it with them. I want to keep it just for me.

“She’s not gonna spill the beans,” Natasha says. “Pity. I bet it’s a hell of a story.”

“Alice, who does your hair?” Monica asks, changing the subject. I could kiss her. I might kiss her before the night is over. My friend glances my way and winks at me.

“Oh, I go to a salon in London,” Alice says and brushes her fingers through her blond locks.

“I like the length,” Monica says, tilting her head to the side. “But I wonder if you’d be open to some highlights to give it a bit of depth?”

“I might be. I haven’t added color in a long while.”

“I own the salon downtown. If you’re interested, just let me know. I’ll get you on the books.”

“Thank you,” Alice says. “I could use a day of pampering.”

“Book it,” Ellie says. “And add nails, a facial, and a massage. On me, of course.”

“Ellie—”

“You follow us around the world and make amazing things like this ice cream. Trust me, it’s my pleasure.”

Alice grins. “Well, I won’t say no. Thank you.”

“I want more real food,” Natasha says as she stands and walks toward the kitchen. “I always eat too much when we get together, but I’ll just run an extra three miles tomorrow.”

“I don’t run unless something’s chasing me,” Monica says. “And even then, it’s a crapshoot.”

“Where did you get these pretty flowers?” Natasha calls from the kitchen. “They look like they came from Brooke’s.”

I take a drink and answer without thinking. “Callum brought them to me this afternoon.”

Three pairs of eyes turn to me, and Natasha pokes her head out of the kitchen to join them.

“What?”

“Callum brought them?” Monica asks. “He was here, in this house?”

“In the kitchen this afternoon,” I confirm. “He just brought flowers. And asked me to forgive him again. Nothing else.”

“I have to say it,” Monica says with a smug grin. “The prince likes you, Aspen Calhoun.”

“He felt guilty.” I set my ice cream bowl aside before I gain seventy pounds. “Besides, we’re not in the seventh grade.”

“No, he likes you,” Alice says, surprising me. Although I’ve only known her for a few short hours, I’ve learned that Alice is a woman of few words. Or maybe she’s just shy, and we’re new to her. “He definitely likes you.”

“I thought we changed the subject.”

“We did,” Ellie says. “And then we discovered the flowers.”