Page 50 of Cocky Player

Weeks?

His jaw jutted out, lips pressed into a tight line.He was resolute in what he was asking and it didn’t seem fair of me to request anything different.

“If that’s what you want, Connor.I can give that to you.”

He shoved his chin in the air.“Get home safe, Brenna.”

I openedthe door to my apartment, Gina’s mouth dropping and her eyes going wide at the sight of me.

“Oh dear,” she said.“This does not look like the face of a woman who finally rid herself of that peskymaidenhood.”

A cough, followed by a choking sound came from the kitchen.I’d think about the maidenhood comment Gina said later.

“Seriously, Gina?”

“Oops.I forgot I had company.”

“And now I feel so utterly welcome again.”The door behind me slammed shut as the masculine voice, and the man who had used it, stepped out of the kitchen.If I was correct, he studiously avoided meeting my gaze.

And I didn’t know which one of us was more surprised, me that Gina apparently invited over her man-who-was-still-nameless when she thought I was gone for the night, the tall and lean guy who looked nothing like a tattoo artist I’d ever seen, or Gina…either at my arrival home or for meeting her boytoy in such a way.

I came unstuck first and after dropping my purse and keys to the sideboard table at our entry, held out my hand to the guy.Clean cut, short spiky blond hair tinged with blue at the tips and wide blue eyes.He was well over six feet, and while there was a tattoo sleeve running down his arm, various brightly colored images, a hodgepodge of perhaps everything important to his life because it wasn’t one design, he looked like you could throw him in a dress shirt and tie and he’d look like every other kind of uptight, businessman Gina dated.

“I feel like I should move us past this awkwardness and introduce myself as Brenna the virgin, but how about we stick to Brenna.”

“Brandon,” the guy said, shaking my hand and letting go.

My gaze slid to Gina.She rolled her eyes.

“Brandon, hmm,” I sang.“How great to meet you.So what are you kids up to tonight?”

“Nothing,” Gina quickly said.It might have been the first time in my life I saw her blush.

“Nothing?”Brandon repeated, arching a brow in a way that had I not been with Connor Quinten for the last two weeks might have made my knees wobble.Brandon wasprettywith a capital P.“I don’t think what we just finished up was nothing.”

“Anddd…I’ve heard too much.You two kids just” —I flipped a hand in the air— “go back to doingnothing,but keep it quiet, please.I’m exhausted.”I turned to Brandon.“Nice meeting you.I’m going to go crawl into a hole and die of embarrassment now.”

He raised his glass of beer.“Cheers.”

I scuttled off to my room but before I could close the door, Gina was there, blocking me from shutting it.

“What’s going on?What happened?”

“I think I should be asking you that.”

She shrugged.“So you were right and I like him.School doesn’t start for weeks, so it’s fun.”

“And once school starts?”

“You know how insanely focused I get.”

“But does Brandon know?”

She scrunched her face and stepped farther into my room, closing the door behind her.“Nooo, and he doesn’t need to.Besides, he’s busy too.”

“Uh-huh.Okay.”

She twirled a finger in the air at me.“What’s that face for?And why do you look sad?”

---