Page 138 of Unforgettable

My head was tucked into Hazel’s lap as she cuddled up to Luke. Her fingers idly brushed through my hair, and for a moment, my eyelids fluttered closed. A slight buzz of alcohol still evident in my limbs, the cooler night air, and the lullaby of laughter was enough to set any worry at ease. All of the topics we’d defined as off-limits in the car were, thankfully, far from my mind.

“Hazel, I think you’re going to put Amanda to sleep.”

“James beat her to it,” Luke said with a low laugh. “Our conversation was enough for him.”

“What time is it?” I asked groggily.

“Time for bed,” Josh said, standing and stretching before making his way around the fire to me.

I was all too eager to take his hand in the hopes that he’d lead both me and Reed back to his room. I didn’t forget their promise about time together. Suddenly, I was wide awake, knowing the time had possiblyfinallycome.

Like he could read my thoughts, Josh smiled and ran a hand down my back. The gesture was one that was too familiar for friends, but everyone else was too busy putting out the fire and righting the furniture to notice us.

Reed appeared before me and leaned down, his breath hot against my ear. “You ready, Cielo?”

My breath caught in the back of my throat, but I nodded.

To make it look less suspicious, they urged me to walk into the house first with Luke and Hazel while they stayed back to put the fire out completely.

Devon and James weren’t too far behind us, finally splitting off in different directions to go to their separate rooms at the end of a long hallway. In front of me, Luke swept Hazel up into his arms which elicited a breathy giggle from her.

“Y’all keep it down, okay?” I yelled after them as they neared the main bedroom. Reed had willingly given it up to the two of them, probably to deter suspicion.

“You, too!” Hazel peeked over Luke’s shoulder and said back. My steps faltered, and my jaw dropped.

“What does that mean?” Luke asked, also stopping before he could get the door to their room completely open.

Hazel’s eyes conveyed her apologies as her attention bounced between me and Luke in a panic.

“I’m just giving her shit, babe,” she said loud enough that I could hear too, but then pressed her lips closer to his ear.

Whatever she said quickly stole his attention as he kicked the door open in front of him with a growl. He couldn’t get inside quick enough, but Hazel shot me an apologetic smile and waved a second before the door shut behind them.

We hadn’t discussed my predicament for a while, but apparently, she knew more or assumed she did. I expelled a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding and slipped into the room Reed had designated as mine.

It was the same room from two summers before. Not much had changed, although my memory had altered some of the details. The bed was still perfectly placed between two larger windows on the back wall directly across from the door. The dark-blue tones used throughout the space were the same as was the layout of the rest of the furniture.

There was a small nightstand on each side of the bed and a larger dresser to my left, with a mirror above it. A small lamp in the corner bathed the room in a warm light.

Remembering back to that night and walking in to find Reed sitting on the edge of the bed, Josh right on my heels, my body was overcome with every sensation and emotion from that night. It was like it was only yesterday instead of almost two years before.

Behind me, the door quietly clicked open and closed before I felt the press of a body against my back. Without looking, and only based on the presence and smell of him, I knew it was Josh.

Relaxing, I let myself lean back into his embrace. My head landed on his chest, and I peered up into his face. His features were relaxed, and the humor constantly playing around his lips was beautifully paired with the desire flaming in his eyes. With the amount of stress he’d been under recently, it was nice to see the Josh I knew coming back to life.

“The last time we were in this room together, I couldn’t imagine we’d be back again. I wanted it so bad, though. I wanted both of you…” he confessed as he ran his fingers down my neck, followed by his lips. “But I wouldn’t let myself think about it. It hurt too much to know that it wouldn’t happen again.”

His light touch continued over my collarbone and down the center of my chest. Within me, he stirred a desire that was already clawing and fighting to be released, but the dance and the lead-up were nearly as satisfying as the end result. And his voice was a husky melody I wanted to be swept away in.

I felt his smile against my neck. “But here we are. I’m kissing you and touching you, and I’m going to claim every inch of your body because you’re mine.”

“Ours.” Reed appeared near the bathroom and growled.

Josh smiled again and corrected himself. “Ours.” He sucked and probably marked the sun-kissed skin of my neck, but I couldn’t care. His hands traveled over every inch of my body he could reach as he lavished my neck with attention. All the while, every inch of my skin was aware of where Reed’s eyes lingered.

I was hypnotized by their attention and the sucking and stroking of Josh’s tongue, but we weren’t moving nearly as quickly as I wanted to.

“Reed,” spilled from my lips like a plea, and my eyes opened to watch him take slow, measured steps across the room.

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