Page 50 of Ice, Love, & Other Penalties

Why is my sister here? Where’s Ty?

“How long have you been here?” I ask, trying to figure out if what happened earlier was an erotic dream.

A very delicious and erotic dream that left me tired but thoroughly satisfied.

“We’ve been here for about an hour,” Harper says, her voice drifting in from somewhere in the house. Probably my kitchen. “Just as Tyberius was on his way out.”

“Have I mentioned that he’s hotter than I thought in person?” Lyric remarks bluntly as she sets her laptop on the coffee table. One perfectly sculpted eyebrow arches. “So, you two . . .”

Heat floods my cheeks. I cross my arms defensively. “Nothing happened between us. We just talked.”

“So you talked naked, huh?” Lyric laughs and Harper joins her, finally stepping into the living room.

I scowl even as my traitorous mind conjures what happened earlier with Ty. “Just leave it, okay?”

Harper picks up a paper that’s on the coffee table, next to a glass of water and the bottle of pain meds.

“Thank you for that orgasm, darling. I’ll text you later tonight, T.” Harper reads with a deep voice trying to imitate Ty’s.

“He did not leave that note,” I say, wrapping myself in the blanket and standing up.

Harper scoffs, handing it to me. “No, it was even more . . . sweet?”

When I read it, my body flushes all over again.

Thank you for giving me such an extraordinary gift and letting me watch you fall apart, darling. You’re gorgeous when you let your guard down. I can’t wait to taste you again—all of you.

T.

“So, nothing happened, huh?” Lyric gives me a teasing look, one eyebrow raised in disbelief.

The room suddenly feels ten degrees warmer, and it’s not just from the blanket wrapped around me. I clutch the note a little tighter, the words blurring as a rush of embarrassment mixed with something akin to excitement floods through me.

“I . . . It’s not what you think,” I stammer, my defense crumbling under their amused gazes.

Harper and Lyric exchange a look, a silent conversation that I’m not privy to, but one that clearly involves making me squirm.

“Come on, spill it. Since when do you keep secrets from us?” Harper prods, settling down on the couch with a smirk that says she’s enjoying this far too much. But then her face becomes serious. “Oh, right, you’ve been hiding a lot from your sisters. So much.”

Lyric nods. “Are you going to tell us what’s going on?”

I let out a sigh, realizing there’s no escaping this interrogation. I’m not sure what I should tell them, but take the easiest route. “He offered me a deal, I took it. It’s pretty simple. Don’t make this into . . . Well, it’s really nothing.”

Harper crosses her arms, leaning back on her seat. “Really, simple. There’s a deal and that sounds like bullshit.”

“Bull. Shit,” Lyric agrees.

The room is quiet for a moment, the earlier amusement giving way to a more thoughtful atmosphere. Harper’s expression is contemplative. “He called me earlier to ask for your address. Apparently, he called a lot of Deckers to figure out a way to get to you.”

I scoff, “You gave him my address?”

She shrugs. “You left a lot unsaid and then disappeared to California. He wanted to smooth things between you two—for his child.”

“Did you tell him about the tea, the flowers, and the pastries?” I say a little too harshly, it’s hard to contain my anger.

He used my sister to get to me.

“The guy is good. We got to talk and asked me what you liked most, disliked and . . . I didn’t give him any hints if that’s what you’re asking,” she states. “It was more like he really wanted to get to you—smooth things over.”

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