Page 97 of His Greatest Treasure

“We don’t want to play with a bunch of stinky boys,” Tinsley sasses, shoving Noah aside when he hovers, not listening.

She’s only ten, but she can be really mean when she’s hungry. Noah’s nine and always tries to skip out on our football games to sit and watch her. It’s weird.

“Well, I don’t want you to play with us either. You reek like perfume, Tiny,” Maddox grumbles. “It was Oliver’s idea for youto hang with us.”

Noah glares at him and punches him in the gut. “Don’t talk to her.”

Cooper thinks he’s too old to hang out with us because he’s seventeen, so he’s inside painting instead of in the yard. I don’t think he’s that old. Maddox is fifteen but always makes time for us. Especially when Avery’s in town.

I scratch at the back of my neck and look at the blonde girl beside Tinsley. Avery Miller’s fifteen too, but her age doesn’t matter to me. I want to date her someday, even though she’s older than me by four years.

“Don’t start a fight,” she tells the boys, sighing in annoyance at their behaviour.

I jump between Noah and Maddox and look at the older brother. “Listen to her, Dox.”

He frowns at me. “You’re supposed to be on my side.”

“Well, I’m not.”

“You’re such a suck-up. She’s going to notice your crush because you’re so obvious,” he whispers.

Noah leans close, his smirk making him look more his brother’s age than his own. “A crush?”

“I’ll tell Braxton you have a crush on her if you tell Avery about mine,” I threaten Maddox, ignoring his brother.

Braxton is Maddox’s best friend outside of our group of family friends, and I’m pretty sure he loves her already. He always chooses her before the rest of us. I hate her a little bit for it.

“There’s no loyalty around here,” he mutters.

Noah’s gone when I turn around, but it only takes one look at Tinsley to find him back at her side like a creep. Maddox may be weirdly addicted to being near Braxton, but he has nothing on his brother with Tinsley. He’s like a weirdo stalker.

Avery smiles at me when I look her way. She smooths a palm over her slicked-back hair and pulls at her ponytail so it swishes in the air. Her hair is so pretty, but I’ve never told her that. She’s even prettier than her hair.

The prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.

I puff up my chest and head her way, but Maddox grips my shoulder and tugs me against him, keeping me away. Even when I stomp on his toes, he doesn’t release me.

“You’re eleven. Don’t embarrass yourself.”

Even though I want to spend time with her before she goes back to Sweden, I listen to him and leave her standing there with Tinsley.

Next time she comes to Vancouver, I’ll talk to her. I can wait that long.

I blink out of the memory when lips press to my chest. Swallowing to bring moisture back to my dry mouth, I sit up in bed and drag her along my body until she’s straddling my lap. Her cheeks are stained pink when she places her hands on my shoulders and smiles.

We’re both naked, and every slight shift of her body atop mine has me biting back a curse.

“Good morning,stilig,”she whispers, toying with the hairs at the back of my neck.

“Another Swedish name you don’t plan on telling me the meaning of?”

“It means handsome,butternalle.”

I scowl. “You get pleasure from teasing me, princess?”

“I get pleasure in plenty of ways,” she purrs.

With a slow, upward thrust of my hips, I watch her mouth part on a silent moan as her bare pussy spreads over my shaft, enveloping it in warmth.

---