Page 102 of Famous Last Words
“You’re being very boyfriend-y tonight, Robbie Mason,” I tease.
“Is that okay with you, Keller?” He steadies me with the kind of look in his eyes that takes my breath away. “Me being all boyfriend-y?”
I bite down on my bottom lip, considering his question. And, with a nod, I grab the front of his shirt and pull him down so I can press my lips to his despite it being just the two of us out here on the patio.
CHAPTER 40
ROBBIE
“You really didn’t have to wait around for me,” Fran says as she shrugs on her coat.
My jaw ticks. Because yes, I did. Even with me around, Tadd has been looking at her like she’s a piece of fucking meat. Something to claim. Like hell I’d leave her here with him. Fran is tipsy, and the guy’s a fucking predator, just waiting for his time to strike; I can see it in his eyes even now as he approaches.
“Leaving already?” Tadd questions.
Fran’s eyes go wide as she turns. I step around her, putting myself between the two of them, looking at Tadd like he’s nothing more than a piece of gum wedged into the sole of my Air Force Ones.
“Hey Chad. How’s it going, bud?”
His smile is cold and bitter. “It’s Tadd, and you know it is.”
I arch a brow, folding my arms across my chest, not moving.
Taking a sip from the glass of liquor in his hand, Tadd offers me a bored once over before craning his neck to look past me. “Don’t forget we have a nine a.m. tomorrow,sweetheart.”
I huff a laugh, void of humor, stepping up to him until we’re toe to fucking toe. My hands ball into fists and my jaw clenches, my face mere inches from his as I stare down at him, seething. “Call her that again. I fucking dare you.”
His smile lingers, but he says nothing, just meeting my stare with one of his own.
“Come on.” Fran tugs on my hand. “Let’s just go.”
I don’t want to break first, but I do, only because she asked me to. With a snide grin, I offer him a wink.“Sure thing, baby,” I say, turning to Fran and slinging my arm around her shoulders. I meet Tadd’s eyes again as I say, “Let’s go home to bed.”
Fran and I haven’t spoken much since leaving her event. We sat in the back of a cab, each of us staring out of the windows as the city whizzed by in a blur. It wasn’t until we were pulling up outside my apartment building that I realized I’d been dragging my thumb over the back of her hand the whole time. It’s like Ineedto touch her. When she’s next to me, I can’tnottouch her.
By the time we make it up to my apartment, my head and my heart are a fucking mess because I want to fuck her. But I also just want to hold her, be with her. I’ve never had this dilemma before, and I’m not sure if I like it or hate it. It’s confusing, and it’s never been this way.
“You hungry?” I ask, helping her take off her coat.
She shakes her head.
“Thirsty?”
“I could use some water.”
My hand feels empty without hers wrapped around it, and oh my fuck. I’m a goner. I shake my head at myself as I pull open the fridge door, because what the hell, Mason. Get your shit together.
Grabbing two bottles of water, I turn only to stumble over my own feet when I see that, not only has she followed me to the kitchen, but she’s perched that fine ass of hers onthe island, waiting for me. Why does she look so good sitting there, in my kitchen, on my island?
I clear the bubble that’s latched itself to the back of my throat, handing her one of the bottles, and she takes it, uncapping it and bringing it to her lips. Man, even her throat is sexy as it works with a swallow. Since when has the simple act of drinking water been so hot?
Standing in front of her, just shy of touching, I take a few mouthfuls from my water, my eyes meeting hers as I do, which is when I realize how heavy and thick the air feels between us. Is this what they mean when they say the tension was palpable, because it’s almost like I can feel it, thrumming between us, like the air is a rubber band pulled so tight it’s about to snap.
“You gonna sleep over?” I ask, my voice cracking like a fucking teenager.
Fran stares into my eyes, her lips curling into a shy smile as she nods.
I swear I breathe a sigh of relief. If she’d said no, I’m not sure I’d have been able to stop myself from pleading with her.
