Page 138 of Scatter the Bones

I side-eye her. “This way I can make sure you’re not out hunting anyone without me.”

Her cheeks flush, but she lifts her chin, pure defiance. “That’s a solo hobby.”

“The fuck it is,” I mutter.

I check that both ends are working, then hand her phone back.

“No more worrying about anything those girls said. If I’m not with you, I’m thinking about being with you.” I lean down and drag my lips over her shoulder. “And if I want something from you, I’ll ask for it.”

She hums and leans into me, finally relaxed.

We’ve been awfully focused on me and my supposed needs tonight. I shift, brushing her hair away from her face. “And if you want something from me, you’ll tell me.”

She pulls back, a wrinkle forming between her eyebrows like she’s giving this a lot of thought. “Ireallyliked when you chased me through the woods.”

Now we’re talking.

A slight shiver ripples through her. She bites her bottom lip, eyes flicking up to meet mine.

“I’ve thought about doing that again with you,” she says. “A lot. I think I want to find a wrap dress, so you can just untie it, instead of ripping off all the buttons.” She twists a piece of her hair around one finger. “Although the button ripping added an extra thrill.”

This woman might be what finally makes me believe in God.

“I’m glad you said that.” And I absolutely love how much thought she’s been giving it. I flick my phone open and pull up the photo Rooster sent me. “Rooster’s place has a whole lot of woods surrounding it.” I tilt the screen toward her.

“Oh my God.” She laughs and bumps her shoulder into mine. “What if he catches us?”

“We’ll wait until he’s out of town.”

“Okay.”

“Anything else?”

She hesitates, glancing toward the door. “Well, there is one other thing I wanted to ask you.”

A sense of doom tightens my chest. “Did those girls make up some other shit I’m supposedly into?” I run a hand down my face.What else could they have possibly said?“Okay, just so we’re clear—no, I don’t ever want you to call me Daddy. I’m not into having you dress up like a schoolgirl, nun, or anything else. No, that’s not true, you’re definitely wearing my property patch and nothing else when I give you one.”

She shakes with laughter. “No, nothing like that.”

“You’re right.” I gesture toward her heels. “You can wear those heels with the patch, and nothing else.”

She stops laughing. “Oh, I’ll definitely do that for you.”

One corner of my mouth slides up. “Yeah?”

She nods quickly.

“So what is it? What else do you want to ask?”

She takes a deep breath. “The one in the tacky shorts?—”

“Amanda?”

She turns and glares at me. “I never got her name.”

Christ, now she’s definitely going to think I used to yank Amanda’s ponytail. “She was a friend of Serena’s,” I explain.

“Some friend.” She scowls. “Well, Amanda said you and Serena…and implied Rooster and Serena too…” Her brows pull together. “I guess it’s none of my business, but I’d like to know. I don’t want to—I don’t know. How does that work with her being engaged to Grinder?”

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