Page 7 of Spreading Her Wings

I put both hands on her hips and pulled her back, groaning when she stumbled back against me. “It’s nice to meet you both. Congratulations on your engagement!”

“Thank you, but I’mfarmore interested in knowing why you settled for this boy right here!” Ash grabbed my shoulder, giving it a small shake and earning a laugh from Katie. I wasn’t completely sure he was joking.

“I owed him a favor,” she said matter-of-factly, earning a roaring laugh from my friends.

Her smirk said she was proud of herself, but it quickly fell when Logan chimed in. “How do we know you’re not just faking the whole thing, huh?”

She shrugged, spinning around and facing me. She moved her hands up my chest and then snaked them around my neck. When she darted her tongue out to wet her bottom lip, I sucked in a breath. She looked between my eyes and lips twice before stepping up onto her toes, pulling my head towards hers and sealing her mouth on mine.

Katie’s lips were soft and tasted sweet, with a hint of tequila. I wrapped my arms around her waist and tugged her tightly against me. She relaxed, the competitive nature in her slightly fading, and when she parted her lips, I slid my tongue along hers. She moaned, and I had to make myself pull away, hoping I didn’t look as taken aback as I felt.

“Yeah,definitelynot faking it,” Simone said, her voice almost husky.

Katie threw her head back with a laugh that roared above the bar noise. I stood behind her while she answered rapid-fire questions from my friends in between sips of tequila and sodauntil she’d slurped the last drops from around the melting ice cubes. She shivered when I leaned down to whisper in her ear.

“Are you ready for another drink, kitten?”

When she just nodded and went on talking to Simone, I stepped away and headed toward the bar. I didn’t realize until he stepped up behind me that Logan had followed.

“She’s something, dude,” he said, causing me to look back in time to see Katie light up with another laugh, her hair bouncing over her shoulders when she tilted her head. Did she always do that when she laughed?

I worked to refill our drinks. “I told you,” I said with a shrug.

“If I’m being honest, I thought you made the whole thing up, but that kiss…”

With a forced laugh, I squeezed a lime in the glass for Katie, adding a fresh one to the rim. “That’s because you’re an asshole.”

“Yeah, yeah. You and me both.” He laughed. I was waiting for him to top off his drink when he spoke again. “So, I assume you’re bringing her to Vegas with us next month, then?”

“Nah, that’s a bit too soon. We’re taking things slow,” I said, assuming I’d tell them a story about how we broke up before then and everyone would forget it.

Logan laughed. “Whatever you say, Auston. She and Simone already look like besties. I’ll bet she’s on that plane.”

I rolled my eyes as Katie and Simone waved their arms and laughed. He was right. When he walked back to the group, I followed with a groan.

“Katie is coming to Vegas with us.” Simone didn’t wait for us to be more than barely within earshot before she cheered, and Katie looked at me with a shrug.

“I told you.” Logan elbowed me before he took his place with his arm around Simone.

Katie looked between us, reaching for the drink in my hand and taking a long sip. She settled in against my side, fitting thegirlfriend role too naturally. Reminding myself she wasn’t my girlfriend, or even really my friend, I took a long gulp of my beer.

In my car on the way back to Katie’s house, she was quiet. She rested her head lazily against the seat and hummed, even though no music played.

“Thank you.”

She gazed at me out of the corner of her eye before turning to face me and quietly laughing. She tilted her head back a little. “You’re welcome. Turns out I’m a pretty good actress. Not only did I pretend like I can stand you, but I almost hadmyselfbelieving it.”

Pulling into her driveway, I chuckled. “Yeah, you were pretty convincing. You’d almost think you actually like me.” I smirked when she put her hand on the door handle but didn’t pull it.

“Fat chance,” she said with a wink, quickly climbing out of the car. Before she walked to the front porch, she leaned down. “Drive safe, Auston.”

“Good night, kitten,” I said, earning a glare before she slammed the door and stormed up the steps.

Istared at my closed office door, listening to the clock on the wall tick away the seconds. My mind had been racing since I’d woken up on Sunday, replaying Saturday night in my head. It was a fake date with a man who annoyed the hell out of me, so why was my mind recycling the image of him tightening his arms around me during our kiss? Why did I kiss him likethatat all?

A knock at the door caused me to jump, and I looked behind me as if someone were watching me daydreaming about my best friend’s brother and our stupid pretend relationship. “Can I come in?”

“Always,” I said as Sasha stepped into the room. After Jules left DMI, Sasha and I had gotten closer, and then again when our friend Grant left. When I got promoted, Sasha celebrated with me, and most days, she made her way to my office to check in. Usually, that meant a few minutes to blow off some steam.

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