Bradford Brawler (Bradford Bastard 2)

He places the glass down on the end of my sun lounger before reaching for the one to my left and yanking it closer. Riley shrugs out of his shirt, drops it to the ground and makes himself comfortable beside me. “So, what’s going on? What are we talking about?” he questions, ready to soak up some rays.

I gape at him before turning to the girls to make sure they’re seeing this too. “Ummmm, don’t you have somewhere to be?” I ask.

Riley shrugs his shoulders before propping his hand behind his head, making it easier to see the two bikini-clad goddesses in the pool. A smirk pulls at his lips. “I’m right where I’m supposed to be,” he murmurs.

I let out a heavy sigh and reach for my empty glass before leaning down beside me and grabbing the cocktail jug. “Have it your way,” I say, filling my glass. “But remember what happened last time you touched something that wasn’t yours to touch.”

“Oh, I know,” he says with a cheesy wink. “You can drop me like that any day. I swear, I won’t tell Tanner. It’ll be our secret.”

I shake my head and glance toward Arizona. “You two should date. You’d be perfect for each other.”

In the same second, both their faces scrunch up in disgust, and Arizona even goes as far as taking a few steps further away. “No thanks, he’s probably riddled with STDs.”

Riley scoffs, his lips still pulled into a cocky smirk. “Yet you have no issue whoring out to Jax. Hmmm, peculiar.”

Arizona sends a wave of water sailing over Riley, getting me and Chanel in the process. “You’re a grade A asshole, Riley. No one can ever say that you don’t excel at anything.”

Chanel shrieks, flying up off the lounger as water drips off her, but I can’t seem to find the same level of outrage. My boob sweat kinda likes the cold bite of the water.

Riley laughs, not even bothered a little bit by the water soaking his body and holds his hand to his heart. “I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

Arizona groans as the rest of us watch on in amusement. “Oh my God, Riley, you are so frustrating. Why are you even here?”

“Good fucking question,” a deep grumble comes from behind us.

I glance over my shoulder to find Tanner hovering in the open doorway, gripping the top of the frame and looking like some kind of Adonis. His eyes scan over the yard, and as they settle on me, his lips twitch, the corners pulling into the slightest, knowing smirk, flooding me with heat. The image of his video has been playing on repeat in my head non-stop, and the fucker knows it. Hell, I’ve had to take care of business three times already just today, and it isn’t even lunchtime yet.

“Ugh,” Riley groans. “If it isn’t the fun police.”

Tanner’s gaze scans back to Riley’s, watching as his best friend all but dangles over the backrest of the sun lounger. “Fun police?” he scoffs. “You said you’d help me work on the Mustang. I went inside for two fucking seconds and come out to find you gone.”

Riley shrugs. “What do you want from me, man? The girls practically begged me to come over. It’s not my fault they all want me. What was I supposed to do? I didn’t want to be rude.”

Chanel scoffs and throws a jam-filled donut right at Riley’s chest. “You’re so full of it, Sullivan,” she says, watching as the donut splatters against his skin.

Riley gapes at the mess of jam before slowly raising his gaze to Chanel. “You did not just do that,” he rumbles, sitting up from the sun lounger and letting the donut fall into his lap.

Chanel swallows hard, her eyes widening as she cautiously climbs off her lounger, putting more space between them. “Don’t even think about it,” she warns, throwing up a hand, knowing damn well what’s coming her way.

Riley springs off his lounger, moving across the backyard like a fucking ninja as Chanel lets out an ear-shattering squeal. She takes off at a million miles an hour darting in front of me, but her speed is no match for the star athlete. He launches at her, flying through the air and collecting her around the waist, sending the two of them into the deep cold water with a ferocious splash. Water flies up around them and I brace myself for the epic splash.

They surface a moment later, Chanel gasping for breath as Riley’s booming laugh sails through the yard. “ASSHOLE!” she screeches, blinking rapidly and trying to save her false lashes as she flails toward the edge, her teeth chattering from the cold water.

She hauls herself out of the pool as Riley cuts through the water, going the long way to take the proper exit, only stopping in front of Ilaria and grabbing her waist. He pulls her in flush against his chest and the sudden movement has a rush of breath escaping her lips. “Hey, babe,” he murmurs, his tone low as her hand presses against his defined chest.