Page 39 of Theirs

I chug the rest of my drink, and sit it on the dining room table before kicking off my heels and making a run to my guest room.

Ben’s hot on my heels, but I playfully shove him into the wall as I sprint into my room giggling along the way, struggling to get the zipper down on my dress. I finally yank it down, and let it slip to the floor before grabbing a bikini and tying it on haphazardly. As I run out of my room, adjusting one of the little triangles to cover my right breast, I hear Ben let out a curse when he hears my bare feet slapping against the floor.

“Cheater!” he yells, as I push the sliding glass door open. “You didn’t even let me count to three.”

I laugh. “Don’t be a sore loser, Benjamin!”

I giggle as I cannonball into the pool, smiling when my head emerges from the water, and I see Ben trying to catch his breath. Mac’s coming up behind him with a pile of pool towels.

“Ha!” I say, sticking out my tongue. “Beat ya! You may have won me for the night, but I get to pick who I’m going to kiss first.”

Ben cocks his head to the side, something catching his attention behind me. “Looks like you didn’t actually win, Lav.”

I spin around, and find Alex emerging from the grotto, and when he comes to stand next to me in the pool, I look down and find he’s in his boxers.

I turn back to Ben, putting my hands on my hips. “You said swimsuits.”

“This is what I sometimes swim in,” Alex argues. “And Ben said ‘the first person in the pool,’ he didn’t actually say that I had to put my trunks on.”

“So, who’s it going to be, Alex?” Colin asks, plopping down on the side of the pool. “You’ve got three handsome bachelor bros here, or one scrumptious woman who tastes like heaven.”

I look at Alex, just in time to see him roll his eyes at Colin’s comment.

“You don’t have to kiss me,” I say, crossing my arms across my chest. He watches the movement as my breasts are pushed up with the action. “I know you’re not as interested as the others.”

He surprises me by reaching out for one of my hands, and pulling it away from my body, tugging me under the waterfall that conceals the grotto. It’s loud back here with the pounding water. And darker than I expected, but the sun has gone down, so there’s not a stream of light coming through to us.

Alex leans in, but he moves to my ear instead of my lips. “I never said I didn’t want to kiss you.”

“Then why do you act so aloof when I’m around?” I ask, turning so he can hear me.

“I don’t feel comfortable doing things with you so publicly with the others,” he says, shrugging his shoulders. “What can I say? I’m a little shy. That’s why I didn’t really speak at the fundraiser, not because I’m some asshole.”

“But those were all your friends at our table,” I protest.

“They might be my friends, but you were this rambunctious stranger,” he says. “I noticed every move you made that night, everything you said. Shit, I loved when you gave Mac hell. Takes a lot to ruffle that cocky bastard’s feathers.”

“You do want to kiss me?” I ask, pulling away and looking up at him through my eyelashes.

He doesn’t answer with words. Alex places a hand around the back of my neck, and bends down to press his lips against mine. I melt against him, and his tongue slides out, asking for permission into my mouth. I open to him, letting him duel with my tongue, but then he removes it as fast as it entered, and nibbles on my bottom lip. I let out a moan against his mouth, and that has him using his other hand to slide down to my hip, tugging me closer.

“Does that answer your question?” Alex asks, pulling away from me.

I pull him back to me, kissing him until it feels like my lips have gone numb. I wrap my legs around his torso, and my arms around his neck, holding him close.

Once I’ve had my fill, I pull back from Alex. “We should probably get back to the guys,” I say. “This thing we’re in doesn’t make you uncomfortable, does it?”

He shakes his head. “Not really. I kind of... I think I like watching my friends turn you on so much. I’ve never done anything like this before, but I think I really like it. Plus, it’s hard for me to date with how busy I am at the firm, at least I know the other guys will keep you preoccupied when I can’t be there. It’s more comforting than I expected.”

I give him a soft smile, and place a kiss on his cheek. “Well, you still owe me a date. So make sure you can pencil me in on that busy calendar.”

“I won’t stand you up again,” he promises me. “I was really looking forward to that opera. I had to pull a ton of strings to get those tickets.”

“That was one of my favorite operas,” I say sadly. “Was looking forward to seeing it performed live.”

“I’ll see what I can do to arrange that,” he smiles down at me.

I don’t argue with him, or tell him that that was the final night they were in town. They’ve moved onto New York, and then they’re heading to Europe for the rest of the year. It’s now impossible to see them perform live. I reach down for Alex’s hand, and pull him back out from the waterfall, joining the other guys who let out a slow clap.

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