Page 15 of Evading Exodus
I pulled him down instead, and he ended up on his knees on the mattress, straddling me. I ran my fingers down his tie, allowing the play of silk to slide over my skin before I fisted it and dragged his lips to mine. When I broke the kiss and relaxed onto the bed, I was granted one more swift kiss, then Ace was backing off.
This time when he held out his hand, I allowed him to pull me up, right into a hug.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“Anything for my perfect boyfriend.”
“Well, I’m not perfect.” I leaned away and met his gaze. “I hate your best friend.”
Ace shrugged. “I’m not worried about it. Maybe you’ll work it out, maybe not. It’s not a deal-breaker.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Maybe?”
“I’m not holding my breath.”
I huffed and sniggered. “Alright. We’ll see, I guess.”
“That’s the spirit.”Yeah, and in the spirit of things, I playfully punched him in the arm.
? ? ? ?
“C’mon,” Ace said, taking my hand, “I want you to meet my brother.”
Reluctantly, I let him lead me from the sanctuary of his mother’s bedroom. We didn’t get far before we were sidetracked by handshakes and hugs from Jake, Terry, and Finn. Finn got the handshake. We hadn’t had much time over the last two weeks to get to know each other, but Jake, and especially Terry, had quickly become very good friends.
“So… What’s the dealio, Ace?” Finn asked, crossing his arms. The other two followed suit, forming quite the proverbial wall in front of us.
I grimaced. “Guys, I’m sorry. It’s just that—” Ace squeezed my hand, and I paused. ”Look, there’s bad blood between Seth and me, but this isn’t the time or place. You can drag the story out of me later, okay?”
“You know we’ll hold you to it, right?” Jake said.
“Yeah,” I chuckled. “I’m sure you will.”
“Now, if you gentlemen will excuse us, I would really like Dare to meet my brother.”
Jake and Finn bowed low, their arms sweeping back in a grand gesture. “Your Excellency,” they intoned, allowing us to pass.
“Bastards,” Ace muttered, leading me past them.
“Something you’re not telling me, Ace?”
“Yes, but like you said, another time.”
“I’ll hold you to it,” I mimicked.
Ace stopped and stepped closer. “Be sure you do that,” he whispered, his eyes smoldering. I leered at him, returning that smoldering look with one of my own. Ace’s pupils dilated, his mouth dropping open.
“Yo, Ronnie.” Ace’s mouth audibly snapped shut, and we turned to greet a man who could practically have been Ace’s twin, but with brown eyes and longer hair. They embraced, his brother holding a Grolsch bottle in each hand. I eyed them suspiciously.
“Jack, I want you to meet my boyfriend, Darren.” A warm fuzzy feeling settled in my gut. “Dare, James, but he goes by Jack.” Jack handed the bottles off to Ace, who took them eagerly, and shook my hand.
“Dare, huh?” Jack asked. “What’s the story?”
“I’m sorry?” I asked, confused.
“Behind the nickname. Ronnie gives them to everyone, and there is always a reason.” He eyed his brother, the corner of his mouth turning up.
“Yeah, we wanna know too,” Jake said, approaching from behind, Terry and Finn in tow. I cast my eyes down, then over to Ace. His eyebrows lifted, silently asking my permission.
