Page 33 of Keeping Kaitlyn

“Will you be my maid-of-honor?”

This time, Dakota gives me a slow smile. “Abso-fuckin’-lutely.”

EIGHTEEN

WENTWORTH

2019

No sooner doI make what might actually be the biggest mistake of my life, does Tess give me a wide,I knew my plan would workkind of grin. Kait, on the other hand, isn’t quite ready to give up, just yet.

“I didn’t realize how late it was.” Giving me a quick, nervous smile, she shakes her head. “I need to get home to Mook. He’s probably eaten every sock I have by now.”

Tess gives her anare you seriouskind of smile. “Isn’t Friday night Mook’s sleep over night with Molly?”

“Oh yeah…” Kait, chews on her bottom lip for a moment before she nods. “I forgot.”

“Between Con, Went, and me, Lydia is already having a fit over how many tattoos are about to be exposed to the New York elite next weekend,” she reminds us both with a wry smile. “I think a half finished… whatever that is, would probably send her over the edge. As much as I’d like to see that?—”

“No.” Kait gives her a brief smile, along with a head nod. “You’re right. I’ll stay and let him finish.”

“Perfect.” Aiming that shit-eating grin of hers over my shoulder, she gives Kait a wink. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Before either one of us can even blink, Tess has Henley and Maeve—who were conveniently stationed at the front of the shop and ready to go—out the door, making a show of locking the bottom lock, before shutting it behind her.

For a moment, neither of us can do anything more than breathe. Because we’re alone and alone is something we both agreed was not a healthy place for us to be.

This can’t be healthy…how much I want to fuck you. It’s all I can think about. The feel of your tight, pretty pussy stretched around my cock while I fill it full of cum…

Jesus Christ.

This is bad.

Really,reallyfucking bad.

If it’s so bad, why the hell did you do it? Why did you let Tess walk out of here and leave Kait behind? You all but jumped at the chance to keep Kait here with you when what you should’ve done is snap off your gloves, tell them you were done for the night and send her home with the rest of them.

“I’ll call an Uber,” she says behind me, sliding off the edge of my tattoo table to land on the floor behind me. Spinning around on my stool, I watch while she pulls her phone from her back pocket and starts scrolling through her apps.

“Your tattoo is still half done,” I remind her. Even though getting Kait away from me as fast as possible is the smart thing, it’s suddenly thelastthing I want to do.

“It’s alright,” she tells me, thumbs tapping against her cellphone screen. “I’ll just?—”

Standing, I close what little distance there is between us. Towering over her, I pluck her phone out of her grasp. Looking at its screen, I feel my forehead crumple.

The Uber is ordered. Kevinwill be here in his dark blue, 2018 Nissan Armata to pick her up in seven minutes.

The fuck he will.

I cancel the ride without thinking twice.

“Hey.” She doesn’t sound pissed when she says it. She sounds scared. Not of me. She’s not afraid of me. She’s afraid ofus. What happens when we’re alone. Because even though we agreed thataloneis an unhealthy place for us to be, we can’t seem to make it stick. Lifting herself on her tiptoes, Kait makes a grab for her phone. When I just lift it higher and out of reach, she sighs before dropping herself back onto flat feet. “Went,please.Just let me?—”

“You can’t leave.” I shake my head, trying to rationalize what I’m doing. Justify the mess I’m making. The damage I’m about to cause. “Next time you see Tess—which I’m guessing will be tomorrow—she’s going to ask to see the tattoo. The tattoo that is still half done. She’ll know you left as soon as she did and she’ll want to know why.”

“I’ll tell her the truth,” she tells me in that snippy tone of hers that never fails to make my cock ache. “I’ll tell her that being alone with you made me uncomfortable and that I?—”

“Uncomfortable?” I take a half step toward her and she counters, trying to keep some distance between us. “Is that what you’re feeling right now?” I move again, close enough that I can feel the heat of her against my skin. “Uncomfortable?”