Page 10 of Adrift

My cheeks feel hot all of a sudden. There’s a twitch in my pants that really demands some attention—and for me to cross my legs and scoot into the table right now.

I clear my throat, finally breaking the gaze so I can do exactly that, and the stiff line of my cock presses all the harder against my jeans.

Ow. Come on. Get it together, man.

Something tells me Kieran flirts with a lot of men this way. That, and he told me himself by mentioning Grindr. But does he getthisfeeling every time? Because I’ve had my fun, but I sure as hell never got this tongue-tied about any cute little thing before now.

“And I’m happy to keep you in pie while you… uh…” Kieran tears his gaze away from me and leans on the table, squinting at the photos and map. “Figure out where to hide a body?”

I can’t stop the smile. Hell, I’m pretty damn close to laughing. It’s so much funnier to hear from such a bubbly little thing. It’s even cuter how he’s trying to sound like he isn’t snooping.

But I’m not dumb. Even as a kid, I knew that Sunrise Island is powered by gossip. And I’m happy to give him some tidbits.

And then some.

“Don’t worry. I keep my skeletons in my closet, where they belong,” I tell him with a wink. I grab a fork from the little container in the middle of the table and set it on the table next to me.

Then, before I can talk myself out of it, I grab another fork and hold it out to Kieran.

He looks at it, then at me.

“If you’re allowed to sit for a minute?”

I hope this isn’t totally weird. It just feels like the right thing to do. It’s cute and flirty, right? And I don’t want to sit here eating pie right in front of him while I tell him my life story. That’s like a supervillain move.

Kieran grins slowly and takes the fork. “I finished all my chores, sir,” he teases me, his voice dripping with innuendo. “I’ll sit anywhere you tell me to.”

Oh, fuck.

My brain grinds to a halt. I don’t even know what to say, but luckily, he spares me. He just giggles, grabs a chair perpendicular to me, and plops his ass down, crossing his knees and folding his hands on his lap.

I take the first bite of pie, mostly so I can stop staring at Kieran.

“No, really, though,” he says, leaning over the table and tilting his head against his shoulder to keep looking at the map. “I’m dying to find out what’s happening. It’s the orchard, right?”

He sneakily digs his fork into the other side of the pie, working his way in from the opposite corner.

“Yep,” I tell him, moaning with satisfaction when the apple pie dissolves on my tongue.

Butter, cinnamon, apple. All the right things.

“Thought so. The gossip app is on fire today.” I blink at him, and Kieran just giggles around his mouthful of pie. He swallows and adds, “WhatsApp.”

“Oh. I was just thinking, there really is an app for everything.”

“Oh, trust me.” Kieran glances at me from below his lashes and smirks to himself like he’s not letting me in on the joke. “There is.”

Well,thatmakes my imagination run wild. I’m adding it to the list of things to think about when I’m in my sleeping bag tonight.

“Back when I was here before, the gossip was analog.” I chuckle. The pie is rapidly disappearing, and I’m trying to slow down to make sure he gets half of it. “Or Facebook, which is basically analog, isn’t it?”

He glances at me, elbow on the table and chin on his fist. “Hm. Yeah. Gossip moves faster now. We have to make our own fun here. A new face makes everyone’s tongues wag. Especially one like yours.”

Ithinkthat’s a compliment. The way he’s glancing at me with a coy little smile, I’m pretty sure it is.

“You should hear what they say about me,” Kieran pretends to gasp. “And it’s all completely… true.”

“I bet.” I raise my eyebrow. “What are you going to tell them about me, then?”

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