Page 46 of Fearless

“It looks like a pine cone. But freakishly big.”

“I don’t have anything against the freakishly big” – she shot him a sideways grin – “do you?”

There was a pause, one of those moments where they existed in a perfect golden bubble, eyes locked, the energy between them electric and nothing like the safe, warm love they’d shared during her childhood years. This was new. This was friction and tension all wrapped up and delicious. This was tangible. This was within reach. This wasright.

“Nah.” He grinned…

And then they both realized at the same moment what was happening: she wasflirtingwith him.

Mercy’s expression blanked over, like a switch had been flipped. He broke their moment on purpose. He shoved up from the table and refused to meet her gaze. His voice took on a cold, false quality.

“It’ll be good, you tutoring the jock.”

She made a faint reach for him and he stepped away. “Mercy–”

“You need to spend more time with kids your age.” He offered her a tight, humorless smile as he started to walk away. “You hang around dirty old men too much.”

“Merc.”

But he was leaving, striding toward the clubhouse with ground-eating strides that forced a wide gap between them.

Ava sighed and propped her chin on her fist as her adrenaline ebbed. Too hard, she’d pushed too hard.

But all she’d done was look at him!

But that was too much for a man who slept with groupies at random, wasn’t it?

She scowled.

“I’m gonna laugh my ass off when Mags proves right and your face finally sticks like that,” Aidan’s voice intruded upon her thoughts.

She looked over her shoulder and saw her brother slouching past in his uniform of faded jeans, cut, and old threadbare band t-shirt. He needed a haircut, his dark locks too curly and unkempt on top. He needed a shave, too, and probably a breath mint, though she wasn’t close enough to tell that. Tango was at his side, as per usual, his lean frame decked out just like that of his best friend. Tango’s pale hair was swept back with too much product and hung down almost to his shoulders in back, the sides above his ears shaved. His left ear was pierced from the lobe to the top, and the rings caught the light.

“Look,” Ava deadpanned in return, “the Lean Dogs brain trust. How’s the nuclear fusion going?”

Aidan wagged his finger at her. “That’s no way to talk to the future president of this club.”

“I take it you never learned that old saying about making assumptions.”

“Hey.” He held out his arms in a helpless pose. “Dad’s vice president. It’s just natural I’d follow in his footsteps. Leadership’s in my blood, baby.”

Ava glanced at Tango and made a face. “How do you stand him?”

Tango, ever the gentleman, gave her a wink. “I don’t have anything in my blood but beer and poor white trash. Figure I gotta get in good with these leader types.”

She snorted.

Aidan dug a smoke from his back pocket. “What’d Mercy want?”

Ava shrugged and hoped her face didn’t betray her. “He was just saying ‘hi.’ ”

“Don’t be bothering him,” Aidan said as he and Tango sat down across from her. “He don’t have time to babysit your ass anymore.”

“And you apparently don’t have time for grammar,” she shot back, eyes downcast so he wouldn’t see how sharply the comment had stung. No, Mercy didn’t have time to babysit her. That’s all it had ever been, hadn’t it?

“I’m serious,” Aidan pressed. “You wanna hang out with the old ladies: fine. Whatever. But you can’t be tugging on Mercy’s wallet chain anymore like when you were a kid. The Carpathians are long gone. You don’t need a bodyguard anymore.”

“Dude,” Tango said. “Harsh.”

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