Page 132 of Lights Out

Her husband rolled his eyes. “I’m trying to compliment you.”

“Then be more obvious about it,” she shot back. “Next time, try saying something about what a nice arse I have.”

Nico looked scandalized. “Not in front of the kids.”

Aly dragged me past the pair, but we didn’t get away fast enough to miss Moira’s rebuttal.

“Calling that man a kid is like calling the David statue a lump of marble. Stop trying to infantilize him because he makes you feel weird in the tummy.”

“Moira! Jesus Christ. He doesnot.”

Aly wheezed beside me as we sped down a hallway, doing her best to hide her laughter and failing spectacularly. “Weird in the tummy. That woman is a legend.”

I didn’t find it quite as funny. “So much for me staying on his good side.”

She squeezed my arm. “You’ll be fine. I threatened to tell the cops everything if he ever turns on you.”

I stopped mid-step, dragging her to a halt with me. “When did you do that?”

“A week ago. Remember when you went back to your place to grab more stuff?”

I nodded.

“I came here while you were gone and read him the riot act over the tracker and the mass copying of my keys and keeping us out of the loop with everything.”

“How’d it go?” I asked.

She shrugged. “He said he’d fill us in tonight, but we’ll see if he keeps his word.”

“He will,” someone called out. We spun to see Junior rounding the far end of the hall. He gestured behind him. “We’re in here if you want to join us.”

I was about to have dinner with the whole clan. Nico, Moira, their sons, and all their romantic partners. Great. Splendid. I couldn’t wait to get this started.

Why were my hands so clammy all of a sudden?

Aly squeezed my arm. “We’ll just be a second.”

Junior nodded and disappeared back around the bend.

Aly dragged me into a nearby powder room with barely enough space for us. We were pressed so close that I had a clear line of sight straight into her cleavage. Weirdly, it helped calm my racing pulse. Just last night, I’d nestled my head there after she’d made me come so hard I saw God, and I’d spent several minutes with my ear pressed to her skin, listening to the steady rhythm of her heart. I could almost hear the lowba-dump, ba-dumpnow.

She took my hands, her eyes large and imploring. “You don’t have to do this.”

I would have leaned down and kissed her if not for the risk of smearing her crimson lipstick. “Thank you, but if you’re here, I’m here. I’ll just have to find some way to deal.”

“You’re sure?” she asked.

“I’m sure,” I said.

She looked amazing tonight, her long hair falling around her in loose waves, her natural beauty accented with makeup, and that dress. God, that dress. I couldn’t wait to see it pooled around her feet later. I’d caught a glimpse of the bra and panty set she wore beneath it, all black silk and lace. An image of me slicing them into ribbons filled my head, but the fantasy would probably never come to life. It turned out fancy lingerie was expensive, and Aly had been low-key pissed after I cut a different set off her.

Maybe I could get away with it if I bought her more afterward.

She shook her head at me. “You’re thinking about sex, aren’t you?”

I grinned. “Dirty, dirty sex.”

“Yeah, you’ll be fine.”

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