Page 88 of Arrogant Playboy

“Rosie, come over, let me introduce you to the other halves,” Ivy calls out to her. Rosie’s face lights up when her eyes land on me as she walks over.

“You’re so fucked,” Alistair whispers into my ear.

Ivy starts introducing everyone to Rosie. “This is my soon-to-be brother-in-law Nate. Sam Rose, his family owns Rose Hotels,” Ivy explains.

“Oh, I think my friend Ava just moved to New York to work with your sister, Harper,” Rosie says.

“Yes, she owns The Rose Agency. What a small world?” He smiles at her as his partner comes up and wraps herself around him.

“Then there’s Axel Taylor from Dirty Texas, please tell me you know who they are?” Ivy smirks.

“I’m not that young. Yes, I love your music, and Sons of Brooklyn, too,” Rosie answers. Axel tips his beer in her direction.

“And you’ve probably met briefly before Jasper and Alistair, who are Lauren and Eloise’s other halves.” They grin and greet her warmly, Alistair sending looks my way. “And lastly, you know Daniel.” Ivy smiles.

“Of course, we’re about to finish working on a project together,” she says, walking over and giving me a kiss on eachcheek. My dick twitches.Now is not the time.My tongue becomes tied, and my use of the English language seems to have flown out of my mind. “The last of the items will be in next week. Daniel asked to have it in before the end of summer and we are going to make it just in time.”

“Does that mean we can have a party at your house, finally?” Jasper asks.

“It’s up to Rosie, will the house be ready for next weekend?” I turn and ask her.

“Yes, if there are no delays on delivery,” she says through gritted teeth.

“Maybe just a small one then,” I say, smirking at her.

“I’m doing the barbeque,” Jasper adds.

“No,” everyone says.

“One little fire and now I can never do it again.” Jasper moans.

“You nearly started a forest fire,” Lauren says, shaking her head at her fiancé.

“That’s because you distracted me with a blow job in the pantry,” Jasper spits back.

The truth comes out and we all burst out laughing.

“You think we could do a small party?” I turn and ask Rosie.

“I’ll make it happen,” she tells me confidently, and then the group moves on to another topic.

“You look lovely tonight,” I say, leaning over and whispering to her. I can feel all my friends’ eyes on me as if they can sniff out something happening between us.

“Thanks, it’s one of Ivy’s dresses. Mine broke, it ripped the entire way down as soon as I arrived,” she says, giving me an embarrassed little giggle.

“You look good in it.”

“Thanks,” she answers as her cheeks turn pink. “Your friends are so nice, all the girls I mean. They were so lovely helping meget ready for tonight. They seem to want to see you settled down, though.”

“That’s because they all are. I’m the last man standing.”

“It’s sweet, they all care about you deeply,” she says, sipping her champagne. “Just a heads up, there was some matching making between us by them.”

“Really?”

“We’re going to have to be careful and make sure it looks like we are nothing more than professionally friendly tonight.”

Her comment irritates me, and for the first time, I don’t want to keep my relationship behind closed doors anymore. I want to be able to reach out and touch Rosie, just like Alex is doing with Ivy, or dance around like Lauren and Jasper are. I want to lay claim over her and keep those men’s eyes from looking at her hungrily. It’s the first time that it’s me wanting something more with the woman when usually it’s them trying to get me to commit. I feel like shit. She makes me so happy, and she looks ravishing tonight, and all I want to do is kiss her and be happy. But she doesn’t want that, or is it she doesn’t want me? Does she not think I’m worth the risk? Suddenly, as if the floodgates of feelings that I’ve been putting Band-Aid after Band-Aid on have finally given way, I realize I’ve fallen for Rosie Hunt, that she has embedded herself into my heart like a damn thorn, and the realization that she doesn’t feel the same way is hitting me.Hard.Does she like me? Yes. But does she see us hosting barbeques together at the cottage?No.Does she see herself coming to the weekly couple’s dinners?No.And suddenly I want that with her. Throwing back the rest of my drink, I try to quell the raging thoughts I have inside.

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