Page 9 of Never Gonna Lie
Nodding, I stand up. “Don’t blame her. I’ll go say hi.”
Striding through the house, trying not to bump into the many people milling around, I head toward the docks, to where I know Raven is.
I haven’t seen her in a good couple of years. She was a gangly teenager back then, and if I remember correctly, she had braces, wild, untamed curls, and always had her nose stuck in a book.
Walking to the edge of the water, I spot a figure lying on the dock and instantly know I’ve found her. Coming to a stop in front of her, casting her in shadow, I get a quick glimpse of smooth, tanned skin encased in a tight black T-shirt and denim shorts before her eyes open and she’s throwing herself at me.
“James. What are you doing here?” she squeals, excitement clear in her tone.
My hands instinctively rest on her waist, the hem of her T-shirt lifted just enough for my fingers to brush against her skin, sending a jolt of electricity up my arm. Raven pulls back, gazing up at me, and my mouth goes dry. She’s grown up a lot since I last saw her. Gone is the awkward teenager, and standing in front of me is a woman who’s making my dick perk up with interest.
Shit.
“I came to see the birthday girl, of course,” I chuckle, trying my best not to stare at how beautiful she looks.
Raven pulls away first and goes to sit down on the dock, her legs dangling in the water. I sit down next to her, bringing my leg up and resting an arm on it. “You looking forward to tonight?”
“You know as well as I do, pretty boy, that these parties are just a way for my dad to network and nothing to do with myactualbirthday.” She rolls her eyes at me, and I’m overcome with the need to put her over my knee.
I lift an eyebrow, forcing back a grin at the nickname she’s just given me. “Pretty boy?”
“Yeah, the pretty boy to my pretty girl.” She shrugs and looks away, the tops of her ears and cheeks turning red.
This girl—woman shouldn’t be allowed to be so adorable. It’s doing things to me I’d rather not name.
“Cute,” I chuckle. We sit, gazing out across the water for a time before I say, “Come on, pretty girl. Let’s get you back. I’ll see if I can swipe you some liquor.”
Pushing myself up, I hold my hand out to her. She looks pensive for a minute, and I wonder if she’ll take the offered hand, but she does, tripping over something and crashing into me.
Raven’s hands land on my chest, and I’m frozen in place, my heart beating rapidly as the scent of Neroli hits me and makes my dick hard.She peers up at me, and I’m lost, not even the birds’ tweeting registers as I’m locked into her gaze.
I finally come to my senses, clearing my throat as I tease, “Careful, pretty girl, don’t want you falling for me.”
“Bigheaded much?” she retorts.
I’d love to show you something big—what iswrongwith me?
“Not bigheaded, just stating facts.”
She laughs. “Your level of conceitedness is showing, pretty boy.”
I squeeze her hips, her skin just as soft under my hands as I thought it would be. I shouldn’t be this close to her, but for the life of me, I can’t move away. I can feel her touch through my T-shirt, burning into my skin.
“I can’t help that I have a certain way with women,” I reply gruffly with a shrug.
She chuckles lightly, trailing a hand down my chest and walking away. “Come on, someone said something about swiping me some booze.”
I pause, my brain misfiring as I’m overcome with the thought of what life would be like if she were mine, her freely touching me like she just did. Shaking my head from the weird but not uncomfortable thought, I chase after her.
Once we get back to the house, Raven goes off to her room, and I head to one of the many guest rooms. Drew’s house is massive, bigger than mine, and I’ve got five bedrooms. One of the staff brought my bags inearlier, so my suit’s hanging in the wardrobe. I grab it and place it on the bed before heading into the bathroom.
I turn the shower on, stepping under the spray once it’s warmed up. Raven lying on the dock suddenly pops into my head, and my dick goes painfully hard again. I ignore it and carry on, no fucking way am I jerking off to one of my best friend's daughters.
Who the fuck does that?
Turning off the water, I grab a towel and head back into the bedroom. Getting dressed in my suit, forgoing the jacket and tie and leaving the top couple of buttons open, I head back into the bathroom and style my hair. I’m not one for messing around, so I shove a bit of gel into my hand, rub it around the strands, and hope for the best.
Strolling into the foyer, I head toward the dining room where the majority of people have congregated. Grabbing a glass of whiskey from one of the passing waiters, I make my way over to Drew and Emma.
