Page 98 of Vacancy

Beyond relieved that she still chose me even after all the crap the guys had just revealed to her, I immediately took her fingers and stood, more than ready to follow her anywhere.

Until Hudson folded his arms over his chest and snorted. “And you accusedmeof being stuck under some chick’s complete control.”

Sending him a stern glance, I said, “Enough.”

Immediately, the other three guys in the room cleaned up their act, clearing their throats and straightening in their chairs.

Oaklynn sent me an admiring glance over her shoulder as she led me out of the kitchen. “Just so you know, it impresses the hell out of me how you can make them behave with a single word. I want that kind of superpower.”

“You have a better kind of superpower,” I assured her as I came up close to wrap a hand around her waist and kiss the side of her throat.

Grinning mischievously, she turned to face me while walking backward. “Mmm. I do like the sound of that.”

To test her abilities, she reached for the front of my jeans. And just like that, her magic fingers made my dick go achingly hard.

Growling, I picked her up. She hummed appreciatively and wound her legs around my waist.

A second later, her mouth was on mine, our tongues were tangling, and I was jogging up the steps blindly to get her to my bed as fast as possible.

25

OAKLYNN

Once we hit my room, I set Oaklynn on her feet and shut the door behind me with my foot as she started on the top button of my shirt.

My hand settled on her hip, palming a lush curve, and I studied her eyes that were focused on my chest.

“Hey,” I murmured seriously. “I’m sorry if they upset you.”

Oaklynn glanced up in surprise. “They didn’t. Truth be told, I was more worriedforthem. From the way you tensed against me when they started in on you, I was mildly afraid you would hurtthem. They should honestly be thanking me right now for sacrificing myself and being so willing to distract you from your murderous thoughts. Because, mmm…” Licking her lips as she refocused on my chest that she was exposing one button at a time, she purred deep in her throat. “Distracting you is definitely going to be quite a sacrifice for me.”

Then she grinned and leaned forward to kiss my chest directly over my heart.

Sucking in a breath, I wound my fingers through her hair and watched her lavish my pecs with her lips and tongue.

“There really weren’t as many girls as they made it seem,” I blurted before I could stop myself. “I mean, honestly, only one said all that to me. One semi-serious girlfriend. That’s all. And maybe what she said was true, but—”

“Whoa,” Oaklynn halted me, looking up in bewilderment and catching my hands. “Just stop right there, partner. You don’t actually think I took anything they saidseriously, do you?”

When she looked at me like that, it was hard to think that she ever would, but my heart had nearly stalled in my chest when the guys had been going on. I could suddenly picture Oaklynn saying those very words to me someday. And I didn’t like the image. Not at all.

“I don’t know,” I mumbled, not really wanting to admit how much it had bothered me.

But she could already tell.

“Hey. Newsflash, Archer,” she whispered, cupping my face between both of her soft hands. “I was already vividly aware of how quiet and reserved you can be, and I’m still here, alright?”

I swallowed and nodded, comforted by her words. Pressing my brow to hers, I closed my eyes and rasped, “Okay. Good.”

“And that other girl was wrong about you hiding your feelings, anyway,” Oaklynn went on, brushing her thumb over a tiny scar on my cheekbone, just under my eye. “You might not scream them from the rooftop, but you don’t hide them. If someone’s paying attention, they can see exactly what you’re feeling.” Then she smiled into my eyes. “Fortunately for me, I love to watch you.”

Then she leaned in and gently kissed the other small scar I had on my face, this one on the other side and lower, toward my mouth, just above the start of my beard line. The move was so sweet and gentle, I couldn’t stop myself from saying, “I don’t want this to be casual between us.”

“Do what?” Oaklynn reared back, her eyes wide as they met mine.

She opened her mouth to say something, but I caught her hands. “Just hear me out.”

Oaklynn blinked once and then quietly said, “O…kay.”

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