“I take it Aubrey finally gave in?”
I grinned and relaxed back into my chair, slinging my arm across the back of Aubrey’s empty one. “She will.”
Ethan laughed and mirrored my position, bobbing his head in agreement. “It’s about time you trampled the fuck over her denial. I was starting to get worried that your virginity was going to grow back.”
If we hadn’t been in a nice restaurant, I’d have flipped him the bird. Instead, I mouthed, “Fuck you.” Which only made him laugh that much harder.
While we waited for the girls to return, we talked about his plans for his practice. “Any luck finding a partner?” I inquired.
He shook his head and grimaced. “Not yet. But, I need to find someone soon. Especially with the baby on the way, I want more time to spend with my family.”
Since I was driving, I’d kept my alcohol consumption to one beer before I had switched to water. The waitress stopped at our table and leaned over my shoulder to refill my glass; her manufactured tits shoved uncomfortably close to my face. I almost choked from the cloud of perfume I was suddenly enveloped in and quickly shifted away. She stood back up and her unnaturally blue eyes bounced back and forth between Ethan and me as she attempted to give us a seductive smile. “Looks like you two are all alone, now.” Her voice dripped with invitation and my lips turned down into a fierce frown, my face twisted in the same scowl that had darkened Ethan’s face.
We both stood, and he opened his mouth to reply but didn’t get the chance.
“You can’t seriously be that desperate,” spat Madison as she walked up, her hands planted on her hips, and her face a mask of disgust. “I know you saw the big-ass diamond on my finger.”
Aubrey and Melody had flanked her and were sporting similar expressions of derision. “Run along little home-wrecker,” Melody said, making a shooing motion with her hands.
The waitress glared at them before plastering on a fake pout and batting ridiculous false eyelashes innocently at Ethan and me. She toyed with the ends of her bottle-red hair. “I’m sorry if I came on too strong. I thought they’d ditched you. I felt bad and —”
“Oh, good grief,” Madison grunted with an exaggerated eye roll. “Have some self-respect.”
The waitress dropped all pretense and huffed, “When you boys get tired of fucking these bitches, I’ll be happy to show you what it’s like to be with a real woman.” She licked her lips and ran her eyes over Ethan, then me before she continued, “Trust me, I can handle both of you in my holes.” Before I knew what was happening, she dropped her hand and grabbed my crotch, causing my package to shrivel up and hide. I yanked her hand away, dropping it as fast as possible, wondering if I needed a hazmat shower from touching any part of her.
“What the hell?” Aubrey snapped as she marched around the table. She stabbed a finger in the middle of the girl’s sternum. “You need Jesus.” Then she grabbed her shoulders and turned her around before giving her a push to get her moving. When Aubrey flipped back around, her amber eyes were full of fire.
“Damn…” I breathed. She was fucking gorgeous like this, and my groin came out of hiding with a vengeance. I was dying to see all that fire and passion while she was writhing under me.
Melody and Madison burst out laughing causing Aubrey’s face to flush with embarrassment. I wasn’t sure any of us had ever seen her lose her cool, though I’d caught glimpses of the spitfire inside her.
“Jesus?” Madison asked as she laughed and wiped tears from the corners of her eyes.
Aubrey shrugged, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. “I call ‘em as I see ‘em.”
I tugged on one of her hands and pulled her close, beaming down at her. “It’s sexy as fuck when you mark your territory, baby.”
Her flush deepened and her mouth opened and closed a couple of times before she shook her head vehemently and stuttered, “That’s not—I wasn’t—”
I kissed her to stop her rambling and because I couldn’t resist. “You were.”
She stared at me with a defiant gleam in her honey-colored eyes, but only for a moment. Then her shoulders drooped, and she sighed. Not entirely giving in, but we were getting there.
“Okay,” Melody’s annoyed voice broke the spell and we looked up to see her covering her eyes dramatically. “I love you guys, but I need to go before all this sappy romance ruins syrup for me.” She peeked through her fingers and when she saw Ethan was once again kissing Madison, she threw up her hands. “Ugh!”
Ethan pulled back and threw Melody an amused glance. “You do know I’m the boss, right?”
Melody’s face wrinkled, and she groaned. “Ewww. I do not want to know anything about your sex life with my bestie, dude.”
Madison snickered, and Ethan looked at the ceiling and shook his head. “Your boss, Nurse Carson.”
Aubrey giggled, drawing my attention away from their banter and I gazed down at her, still wrapped in my embrace. “You don’t do that enough,” I told her tenderly.
“Do what?”
“Laugh.” I tucked a few strands of her strawberry curls behind her ear before trailing my finger down her cheek and across her lips. “You’re beautiful when you laugh, Aubrey.” She smiled shyly, and I took advantage of her softened attitude to steal another kiss. This time, I lingered a little longer and when I pulled back, I was satisfied to see the dazed expression on her face. I immediately placed my hand at the small of her back and began to guide her to the front of the restaurant.
“Congratulations you two,” I murmured absently as we passed by our friends. My focus was getting Aubrey back to the office building and into my car before her head cleared and she attempted to put up a fight.
We’d made it to the parking garage before she piped up. “I’m really fine, Nash. I can get a car to take me home.” Damn, I loved the sound of my name on her lips.
I shook my head and increased the pressure of my hand, steering her toward my BMW. “I’m taking you home, cherry.”
She was clearly mellowed from the alcohol because she just shrugged and didn’t say any more. I clicked my fob to unlock the car and helped her into the front seat. She batted at my hands when I reached for the seatbelt, but I ignored her and buckled her in. I quickly brushed my lips over hers before standing back up and shutting the door. Once I was seated, I started the car and lowered the convertible top. As I pulled out of the space, Aubrey laid her head back on the headrest and closed her eyes. Which meant she didn’t notice when I turned left instead of right.
I was halfway to my neighborhood before Aubrey opened her eyes and looked around with a frown. “This isn’t the way to my apartment.” I kept my gaze forward and my mouth shut. “Nash, you’re supposed to be taking me home.” Her tone was flat, but I knew if I looked at her, I’d see narrowed amber eyes filled with suspicion.
“I am taking you home, cherry. My home.”