“Where’re you going?”
“Just getting dressed,” she said, too brightly.
“Why?”
“Because we’re done here. Right?” I watched her put on her bra, getting the straps tangled up. She swore, tore it off and started over again, trying to pretend like she wasn’t totally flustered. “I’m gonna throw together a salad and make some balsamic dressing. Ashley said he’d do steaks for you guys when he gets back—”
“We should talk, Amber.”
“Yeah. Should,” she said, pulling on her jeans. “But you know, I’m an avoider, and you’re an avoider, so for now, let’s just go have dinner.” She slipped on her blouse and fluffed her hair. “Ashley will be home in a few, and we’ll have some beers.” When I didn’t move, she tugged the sheet off of me. “Come on! It’ll be fun.”
Then she gave me one of those smiles of hers that hit me right in the heart—with just a glint of terror in her eyes—and bolted out of the room.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Ash
I rolled over in bed, stretching, and found myself pressed up against Amber’s naked body. I was naked too, so I rubbed up against her a bit, enjoying the feel of her warm, soft skin. I slipped my arm over her. Then I glanced across the bed.
“Where’s Dylan?”
“Gone,” she said, sleepily. “He got up early and went to do some stuff, then head to the studio.”
Fine with me. I would’ve liked him to be here, but hell, I was glad to have Amber alone.
Lately, I was growing more and more afraid of losing her completely to Dylan… and losing Dylan in the process. I didn’t even want to admit to myself how much that fucking terrified me. But it was starting to creep in through the cracks in the walls I’d put up to shield myself from it all.
Any day now, it was all gonna come crumbling apart around me.
I knew that. And all I knew how to do to prevent it from happening was hold on tighter.
So I pulled Amber close now.
“You kiss him goodbye for both of us?” I asked her.
“Of course.”
I let my hand drift over the soft curves of her body, over her tits. She stirred and kind of whimpered. It seemed to me that she’d been getting softer with me all along the way, opening to me, letting me in, the way she’d done with Dylan in bed from the start.
In the beginning, when I’d first fucked her, I’d definitely seen her as a way to get closer to Dylan. Maybe I’d used her, just a bit. I was always afraid that he was gonna fall for her. And now, I knew that he had.
But along the way, I’d definitely started falling for her too.
Which just complicated the fuck out of things. But who was I to know? The girl annoyed the shit out of me. Or so I’d thought. I really didn’t think I’d end up liking her so damn much.
Truth was, I really didn’t think I’d let myself like her so much.
So fucking much for that.
As I slipped my hand down between her legs and she started rubbing herself against my fingers, at the same time that she grasped my cock and started jacking me off, I knew I had to man up and face the fucking music. Because I could feel it when we were alone. When Dylan’s vibe wasn’t screwing with my head and he wasn’t here to see us… There was something real, right here, between me and Amber.
And we both felt it. I knew it when I looked into her green eyes.
I knew it, because she looked as scared as I felt.
“Hey,” I said, suddenly wanting to cheer her up. “You wanna watch it again?”
“Watch what?”