Page 30 of Sweet Punk
Raven’s lips twitch. “Did you hear what Maddox said through the door?”
Oof.And now my face flames red. “Um, yeah.”
“What did I miss?” Lux glances first at me, and when I don’t answer, at Raven.
I roll my eyes to the ceiling. “Let’s just say it was obvious when they walked in that some sexy times had been happening in the living room.”
Flustered laughter bursts from Lux. “Oh, God.” She covers her mouth with her hand as she giggles.
Raven bites down on her lip, looking over at me, and I can tell, she’s trying to hold back some laughter of her own. “Kellan is so quiet. I have to say I’ve wondered what he’d be like in bed. Sorry if that’s weird.”
“I don’t know yet. Things are moving along, though.” There’s no denying it, stuff is definitely slowly happening between me and Kellan—both on physical and emotional levels. It makes me feel good that he’s letting me in like he has. He’s like a puzzle I’m dying to put together. Some of what he says, though, it does make me nervous. There’s definitely more he hasn’t yet shared with me. But whatever it is, I want to be the one who’s there for him. Not that he has to get over whatever it is, but I’d like for him to trust me with it.
I close my eyes for a brief moment while I let out a swooning sigh. The way he touches me is something else. He’s reverent but adventurous. Careful but commanding. And surprisingly talkative during all of it. Almost as if he wants me to know how much I turn him on and how much he likes what we’re doing.
I want to know everything about him, including whatever deep darkness resides inside his wounded soul, and what it was that put it there in the first place. I give an involuntary shudder. My brain has been working nonstop, sorting through the delicious complexity that is Kellan Murphy.
And in the midst of my little daydream, my gaze catches on someone walking in front of the coffee shop, jerking me away from my indecent thoughts. I suck in a breath. Just some football player wearing a black jersey. Not a leather jacket. My eyes shoot around the room, then toward the windows at the front of the shop.This is my safe space. I am safe here.I allow myself to breathe a little. And as long as my stepbrother doesn’t march his ass through that door, I’m okay.
I jerk myself from my thoughts and back to my friends and take a quick sip of the coffee to hide my minor freak out and force myself to smile. “Yeah. We’re having fun.” I purposefully wriggle my eyebrows, which makes them both laugh. “I did sleep over there, but it kinda happened naturally. It’s not like we planned it. We hung out on his bed, listening to music. And I fell asleep.” Which is odd because I never do that. It’s very rare that I let my guard down with anyone.
Hawk returns to the table and slides two plates of delicious-looking egg bites to the center. Lux grabs a napkin and dives right in. Instead of immediately going for the food, though, Hawk gives me a smooth grin, his brows raising. “I heard part of that conversation.” It’s almost like he wants my permission to speak before saying anything… which I appreciate, actually.
What is he about to say?Do I want to know what Hawk is thinking? Who am I kidding, of course I do. My lips twitch in anticipation. “Go ahead, Hawk.”
He leans forward, bracing his hand on his thighs. “I don’t want to interfere or get in the middle of the girl talk.” He hesitates, eyeing me carefully. “But I will say this—Kellan’s been in a better mood lately. And that dude is super cautious about who he lets close to him. So, take that however you want to. Only you two know exactly where you’re at with”—he smirks—“whatever it is you’re doing.”
Lux smacks him in the chest with the back of her hand.
He laughs. “Right. Orfeeling.My girl seems to think there are feelings involved.”
I can’t control my smile. “I appreciate your input, actually. Thank you for sharing that with me.”
I can’t stop myself from glancing toward the front of the coffee shop again. My palms are sweaty, and my heart races, making my chest tight.Shit.I’m about to lose it. It was so dumb of me to let Milo see who I hang around with and who my friends are. And Kellan.Oh, God.The last time I let a guy get close, my stepbrother took care of him pretty quickly. Wayne was a nice guy, so when minor threats didn’t scare him off, Milo ran his car off a damn road. When I think about how much worse it could have turned out, it makes me sick to my stomach. Thank goodness Wayne wasn’t badly injured. There’d been no way to prove that it’d been Milo, though. And it wasn’t long after that Wayne decided I wasn’t worth risking his life for. Can I blame a high school kid for not wanting to stick around? I’d guess he wasn’t so interested in the relationship… probably just the sex. And Wayne was a catch, so I’m sure there were plenty of willing girls waiting to take my place. I’d tried not to pay attention.
Raven’s looking at me expectantly.Shit.What did I miss? “Sorry. I was off in my head.”
“That’s obvious.” Lux smiles. “She asked if you think there’s something there. Feelings. You know, like”—she elbows Hawk—“this one suggested.”
“Oh. Um.” I flick my eyes over to Hawk, who’s shoved one of the egg bites into his mouth and is sitting there quietly chewing away, watching me with an interested look on his face. I’m no idiot. He will totally relay this information to Kellan, if he sees fit. But there’s no reason to lie. “I like Kellan. A lot. More than a lot. Despite the mixed signals he gives off sometimes. And I know there’s plenty he’s simply not ready to share with me.”
One brow goes up on Hawk’s forehead at the same time Lux and Raven exchange a quick glance. I calmly lift my shoulders to my ears and drop them. Hawk totally knows what I’m referring to. I see it in the way he’s observing me. “It’s okay, my feelings aren’t a secret. You can tell him. I don’t care. I don’t see how hecouldn’tknow at this point.” Hell, I care about him enough that the whole Milo sighting earlier is wigging me the fuck out. Especially now that I’ve admitted it out loud. I like this guy. Like, a lot. I blow out a careful breath and hide my nerves behind my coffee cup as I take another swallow.
Raven leans over and pokes Hawk’s arm. “Since you’re in a sharing mood … Has Kellan said anything?”
He shakes his head, wetting his lips. “Okay. One, just because I’m sitting here, doesn’t mean I’m revealing the inner workings of my bro’s head. And two, Kellan isn’t so much a man of words as he is of action. I’ve never seen him have a girl inside our suite, let alone the inner sanctum of his bedroom. The fact that he’s invited you into his room more than once is major. He’s private about his space, even with us. So, take that information however you want.”
Lux grimaces at him and teasingly sticks out her tongue. “Gee, thanks for the insight.”
“I’m telling you ladies as much as I can without breaking trust with my friend.” He clears his throat, locking eyes with me. “Keep in mind, trust is huge for him.” He slaps his thighs with his hands, and begins to stand, but then jerks to a stop. “Shit, did Lux tell you about the note we found under the suite door this morning?”
My stomach rolls over. “Note?”
“Yeah. It saidHey, did you ever wonder what your girl does when she’s not with you? She had fun riding me tonight.”
“Who was it aimed at?”
“No idea. There wasn’t a name on it.” The muscle in his jaw twitches hard. “I dunno. Anyway, it’s weird. And all three of you girls were with one of us last night.”
