Page 185 of Tangled up in You

There is nothing good about this. But what the hell am I going to say without outing myself for lusting over her? That’ll just make shit a lot more awkward.

“Yeah, we’re good,” I say as the guys wander over and greet Ryver. She smiles, and I want to growl at them. A few seconds in her presence, and I want to bend her over and fuck her all night. I can picture her hair in the two long braids she loves, wrapping them around my hands as I take her from behind. I swallow the lump in my throat. What the hell will two days, two weeks, two months look like?

“Don’t worry, guys. I have all the songs memorized, and I pack light.”

“Girl, you know we are stoked to have you. We’ve been low-key hoping for your brother to fuck up and injure himself just so you could take his place,” Finn says, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

She leans over and sniffs his shirt, and I almost snarl. “I smell a liar,” she says and laughs as she walks away from Finn to give everyone else a hug. I’m frozen in the middle of the garage staring at her like she is a fucking lion heading my way to rip my throat out.

“Hey Cas,” she says, all sweet, her tone buttery with a sexy edge. Her words caress my cock as she slides her arms around my neck, hugging me tight. My arms must have a mind of their own because the next thing I know, I’m pulling her flush againstmy body. My hands run across the soft skin of her exposed back, and part of me wants her to feel how hard I am. I want her to be terrified and run off so I won’t have to deal with this. The other half is praying she felt it and gives me a sign to do all the fucking dirty shit racing in circles around my brain. What a disaster.

“Hey, Ryver.” I purposely say her name wrong to annoy her. She insists that it’s pronounced river, with a small I, but I’ve been harassing her about her name since she could talk. She smells so fucking good. It’s like she bathed in some sort of exotic lust potion. Jesus fuck, I need to get my hormones under control.

Ryver pulls back and narrows her eyes at me. “Really? Are we going to play this game?”

There are a fuck load of games I want to play with her, but none of them have to do with her name unless I’m yelling it as I come. My heart is pounding out of control, and if I move a fraction of an inch, my cock will be rubbing against her stomach.

“You know me…Ry.” I smirk as I call her by the nickname we agreed would not make her want to rip off any of my body parts. Ry blushes, making her look more adorable. “You really want to hang out with us for the next six months in a small, sweaty van? I mean, it’s not like we can girl it up for you or anything.” Ry steps back and punches me hard in the arm.

“Ouch,” I pout and rub where she hit me.

“Girl it up? When have I ever been a girly girl?” Never, Ry has always been a tomboy. But the baggy T-shirt-wearing pre-teen I make fun of isn’t supposed to turn into a smoking hot nineteen-year-old with a perfect amount of sass and a sense of humor. She always tells me I’m dumb when I say she can model for the cover of any magazine, but it’s true, and she makes my brain misfire.

“Aright, fine. I’m just warning you now that Koa has disgusting farts. You’re taking your life in your hands.”

“Hey! Don’t drag me into this, and besides Finn is worse than I am,” he says, as Finn walks back into the room with a soda in his hand.

“What about me?”

We all laugh, and even though I know in my heart this is a terrible idea, I grab the last of the bags and usher everyone out of the garage. We leave early, and I want everything by the door ready to rock.

I can do this. I can do this. Fuck me, who am I kidding? I’m going to be in a bathroom jerking off like I’m fourteen all over again. Terrible fucking idea.

CHAPTER 2

Ryver

Is it terrible to thank God for my brother getting hurt? Yeah, that’s probably not something I should be thankful for at Thanksgiving dinner. But…this is my dream come true. I’ve been hanging around the band and learning how to play the drums just like my brother from the second I could pick up the sticks.

The band moving to Caspian’s house hurt my heart. I haven’t been allowed in any of the band sessions after being branded the annoying baby sister, but I practice whenever Seth isn’t around, and my parents are at work or on vacation. Not only do I have copies of all of Seth’s sheet music and books, but I’ve been tempted a few times to start my own band.

However, I can’t find a single person who wants to play with me or even knows how to hold a note. Seth is lucky his band is made up of his best friends. They have known each other forever. So not fair. It also doesn’t help that they are all so fucking hot. I’ve crushed on all of them at one point or another, but…Caspian…he is…he’s the one I dream about in bed at night. I’m positive he feels something for me. He sure looks at me like he does. But no matter how hard I flirt, he never takes the bait. Icatch him looking at me, but he darts his eyes away as soon as he notices me staring at him.

But that’s all about to change. Six months on the open road with no parents or my brother to mess shit up for me. This is my time. No one will stop me from playing with the band or with Cas. If I am being honest, I’ll fuck all of them in a heartbeat, but my goal, the trophy, the one I’ve set my sights on, is Cas. He is end game.

We all file into the living room while Cas’s mom, Mrs. Knight, piles the table with bags of food for us to take. This is really happening. I’m actually anxious and want to hit the road now so that Cas can’t spend all night looking for someone else and tell me that he doesn’t need me.

The boys all sit down, and there are officially no spots left. Quinn pats his leg, and I easily curl up on his lap. I’m all too aware of Cas’s eyes on me. I don’t look over but make a point of cuddling into Quinn’s arms and shiver so he rubs at my bare skin. Dangerous game? Maybe. It can totally backfire, but I’ve tried everything other than crawling into Cas’s bed in the middle of the night, naked. I’m not above seducing to get what I want. There is a reason I’m a straight-A student when I’ve no idea what I’m doing in science class. But this is different. He needs to make the first move.

“Are ya warm enough, Ry,” Quinn asks, and I wrap my arms around him.

“Still a bit chilled, actually.”

“Cas, toss me that blanket thing behind you,” Quinn says, and I can see Finn smiling and trying hard not to laugh as Cas swears.

“Maybe Ry wouldn’t be so chilled if she put some clothes on,” he growls, the sound as intoxicating as the rest of him. Cas’s sexy blue eyes lock with mine briefly as he hands over the throw, and there is a fire in them that goes straight between my legs.Fuck he could melt any girl’s panties right off their body. His hair is dyed shock white and silver, which most guys can’t really pull off, but it looks natural on him. On stage, he wears silver contacts, and I’ve seen more than one girl faint if he touches their hand. They may not have tens of thousands of fans at a concert yet, but I see it happening. The band, and especially Cas, is right on the verge of making it big.

Quinn unfolds the blanket and lays it over our bodies, and I sigh dramatically as I snuggle closer. Cas’s nostrils flare, and his jaw twitches. Can making him jealous actually work?

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