Page 73 of The C Agreement

I hissed as it burned the back of my throat, Vivian coughed, and Delaney grinned.

“That was quite impressive,” a deep voice said.

The three of us swung around to see Vivian’s cousin standing a few feet away.

“Hugh.” Vivian ran around Delaney to hug him. “When did you get here?”

“Just in time to watch you ladies down those shots,” he said with a grin.

Vivian turned to face Delaney and me. “You remember my friends from the other day? Delaney and—”

“Rayne.” He smiled right at me. “How could I forget?”

Delaney snorted and elbowed me in the side. “You go, girl,” she said out of the corner of her mouth.

Ignoring her, I said, “Hi, Hugh. It’s nice to see you again.”

“You too.”

His gaze was still directed at me, and I was feeling very warm inside.

“Do you want something to drink?” Vivian asked, and he finally looked away.

“What do you have?”

As Vivian showed her cousin all the choices, Delaney swung toward me. “So, are you going to hit on that?”

“I don’t know.”

My immediate thought was of Cade, but while I’d promised to not have sex with anyone else while we were together, there wasn’t anything wrong with talking to another man. Especially since Cade wasn’t my boyfriend and wasn’t going to be around forever. Ignoring the twinge in my chest, I focused on moving on from my own ex sometime soon.

“Maybe,” I said with a slow grin.

“Maybe, my ass. I want all the details.”

I chuckled. “They won’t be very juicy, but I’ll tell you everything.”

Hugh, with a drink in his hand, came over to my side of the island.

“Hey, Vivian. You haven’t given me a tour yet,” Delaney said.

Vivian looked from her to me and then to Hugh. With a smile, she said, “Come on. I’ll give you one.”

Once the two of them were gone, I said, “They’re purposely leaving us alone together,” I warned him in case he didn’t know. “This is my first time here, too, yet I wasn’t asked if I wanted a tour.”

Hugh laughed. “I haven’t ever been given one either.” Then, he leaned in close. “But I’m okay with being left alone with you, if you are.”

I took a sip of my drink. “I’m more than okay with it.”

* * *

Hours later, I slipped into bed beside Cade and tried not to wake him.

I had stayed out way later than I had planned, and I almost went home rather than coming back to Cade’s, like I’d told him I would.

Not only did I have fun with my friends, but I also spent quite a bit of time with Hugh. He actually seemed like a great guy and was nothing like his cousin. Or rather, he wasn’t as uptight as Vivian.

At the end of the night, he’d asked for my phone number. I didn’t know if he was going to be my next boyfriend, but it was fun to think he might be the next something in my life.