Ask Me Something (The Something Series Book 2) (10 page)

“Everything
okay?” I asked when I noticed Josh’s eyes narrow while watching a group arrive.

He hesitated but
then met my eyes. “Can you do me a favor?”

I nodded. “Of
course.”

“Can I trust
that if you hear about anyone saying anything that could be hurtful toward
Haylee, you would let me know?” His voice was low and the intent was clear as
his eyes landed on Brian’s brother and sister-in-law, Benjamin and Rebecca greeting
Haylee across the way.

“Sure. They
don’t call me Sasha-B-Fierce for nothing.” I sipped my drink and smiled at his
look of surprise that I was aware of my nickname.

“I hope you know
it’s a compliment. Although my first choice was always Sasha Ice as you are the
Ice Man of the advertising pitch. Nothing rattles you.”

“Did you just
Top Gun reference me?” It was amusing to see this side of him.

He chuckled and
then winced. “I did. But on a completely different topic, let me apologize
ahead of time for what’s about to happen. Picture an exuberant golden retriever
who hasn’t learned any manners and isn’t housebroken. He’s harmless but still
jumps up, pees on the carpet, and, unfortunately, has no sense of boundaries.”

I looked at him
like he’d lost his flipping mind until a handsome, younger version of Josh
walked up with eyes only for me and dimples that should be illegal.

“Big brother,
you’ve already got a beautiful, not to mention extremely patient, wife-to-be,
so please introduce me to this vision you’re talking to,” he sweet-talked.

Ah, now the
golden retriever comment made sense. I bit my lip to keep from laughing at the analogy.

“Sasha Brooks is
a friend of Haylee’s and is the senior vice president in the New York office of
Gamble Advertising,” Josh introduced. His tone made it clear to keep it
professional. “Sasha, this is my younger brother, Colby Singer.”

I extended my
hand to his, thinking we were going to shake, but instead he brought it to his
lips, kissing the back of it. Good Lord, he was laying it on thick.

“Nice to make
your acquaintance,” he said smoothly.

Josh offered me
an apologetic smile.

“Uh, yours as
well, Colby. Talk to you later, Josh. I should probably get to my seat,” I
excused, intending to break away.

“Wherever you’re
sitting, I’m taking the chair next to you. Lead the way,” Colby insisted.

Turning, I
arched a brow at his presumptuous self-invitation. This typically intimidated
most men but not Colby, who only chuckled at the challenge.

“I’ll be honest,
my first impressions aren’t always great,” he admitted with a wink.

In spite of
finding him slightly obnoxious, I smiled because I knew the feeling.

***

Brian had acted
strangely during the meal, giving me possessive looks and watching every move
once Colby had taken the chair next to me. Josh’s younger brother flirted
mildly, but I’d mostly talked with Catherine, seated on the other side of me,
about her upcoming trips.

I’d been
anticipating the knock I heard on my hotel room door later that night, but when
I opened it up, McKenzie was there.

“Hey, are you
alone?” she questioned, looking unsure of herself.

“Yeah. Come on
in. Why would you think I’d have company?” I wondered if she had clued in about
Brian and I.

“Colby was into
you tonight. I can’t blame him because you’re gorgeous, but you should know
that he’s a total player. He never commits. Besides, he’s in LA working with
all of those actresses and always has droves of women after him.”

Holding up my
hands, I clarified quickly, “Whoa, whoa, slow down. I’m not interested in Colby
whatsoever.”

The relief on
her face spoke volumes.

“Oh, shit, he’s
your—” I didn’t get a chance to finish when another knock interrupted. “That’s
probably your brother looking for—” I opened it and—Ah crap, it was Colby.

His brow arched.
“Uh, judging by your face, I’m guessing you don’t want to take a stroll down on
the beach?” Something told me he wasn’t accustomed to a look of dread on a
woman’s face.

“Hey, is that my
brother?” Kenzie asked, coming up behind me and sucking in a breath upon seeing
her crush standing at my door.

Colby’s face
faltered. “Uh, I was—Shit.”

While giving him
an annoyed look at his pathetic attempt at a half-ass excuse, I heard Brian’s
voice come up from behind him.

“What’s going
on?” Brian’s eyes flicked from Colby, standing outside my door, to me, facing
him. His voice was casual, but his eyes were anything but.

“Well, I believe
we were all heading down to the beach for a bit. You ready, Kenzie?”

Brian’s
expression changed immediately upon seeing his sister. “Uh, okay. Mind if I
join, too?”

I grinned. “Of
course not. Lead the way, Colby.”

Colby was
momentarily confused but went with the flow, falling into step next to an
irritated McKenzie as we all made our way down to the beach.

“Okay, boys, do
you mind grabbing us some beers,” I suggested with a smile, wanting some time alone
with Brian’s sister.

The guys headed
towards the bar while we girls meandered down toward the beach. We took a seat
on a dock with our feet dangling over the water.

Knowing we only
had a few minutes before they returned, I was blunt. “The crush is Colby, I
take it?”

She didn’t
bother to deny it. “Is this the part where you tell me how screwed up that is?”
Her eyes were focused on her feet.

I sighed. Who
the hell was I to give advice about anything romantic? So I went with my gut.
“Crushes aren’t about logic. It’s simply how you feel. Of all people, I’m not
in a position to judge that.”

“He was coming
to your room because you’re the type of woman he wants. Sexy, confident,
beautiful, polished—”

I shook my head
and interrupted. “Stop, Kenzie. Do you want to know why Colby came to my room?”

She rolled her
eyes. “Please don’t tell me some story. I’m a big girl.”

“I know that,” I
started, trying to mind her feelings. “And what I was going to say is that the
reason why he came to my room is because of the challenge.”

She looked at me
curiously, and I continued.

“Men like Colby
like the pursuit of a woman who isn’t falling at their feet. You said it
yourself. He’s used to these droves of girls in LA throwing themselves at him.
When one doesn’t automatically do so, he’s interested for the sake of the
chase.”

She blew out a
breath of frustration. “And I’ve been the pathetic girl who doesn’t pose a
challenge at all.”

I put my arm
around her shoulders, hoping the gesture didn’t come across as awkward since
comforting others wasn’t my forte. “There’s nothing pathetic about you,
McKenzie. He obviously has a relationship with you that he doesn’t have with
other women, which means he must show you another side of himself. And that
makes you special to him.”

“He does show me
another side. But I always pitifully make him the priority. Maybe if I didn’t,
I’d be the chase.”

I nodded. “Now
you get it. This isn’t a game per se but more of a strategy. Some men want what
they can’t have.”

“Which is why
you haven’t slept with my brother?”

Oh, boy. “That’s
a bit more complicated.”

“I’ve spilled my
guts about a guy I’ve had a crush on since I was six years old.”

I hesitated,
thinking about how to put it. “Your brother is my best friend. And now he’s my
boss. Adding a third element gets tricky.”

“You’re his best
friend, too. I hope you know that. He talks about you all the time. I mean,
only to me, but I know that over the last year since you moved, he misses you a
lot.”

The thought
warmed me. “I miss him, too.”

“By the way,
please don’t tell Brian about Colby. I think he knew about it when I was
younger, but I don’t want him knowing about it now.”

It meant a lot
that Kenzie trusted me enough to confide in me. “I won’t. We’re here to have a
good time, so the other piece of advice I have is that at the reception you
should dance with Will as much as possible.”

She giggled.
“Oh, that won’t be a hardship.”

We accepted the
beers gratefully when the boys found us a few minutes later.

“Everything all
right?” Brian asked, looking at Kenzie and back toward me.

Colby appeared
concerned, and I knew in that moment that at least he cared about Kenzie’s feelings.

“Yeah, things
are good. I’m doing one beer and then heading up,” I said, slugging it back. I
enjoyed the banter between the three of them as we sat dockside enjoying the
warm evening and Caribbean breeze.

After finishing
my drink, I stood up, ready for bed.

Brian got to his
feet as well. “I’ll walk you upstairs.”

“Kenzie, you
staying out?” Colby asked.

She shrugged,
“Nah, I’m going to bed, too.”

I noted Colby’s surprised
look and I was proud of her for not appearing eager to spend time with him.

***

Brian walked me
up to my room, both of us quiet.

As soon as I put
my key in, his body crowded mine through the door.

It hadn’t even
had a chance to close when Brian seized my hips with his hands and backed me
into the room, kicking the door shut behind him. “Is it just me, or has this
day dragged on?”

Smiling, I
realized it had for me, as well. “It has seemed slow.”

His hand stroked
my face softly. “All I could think about was kissing you today.” He dipped his
head and tasted my lips, taking his time with the leisurely kiss.

Once my tongue
met his, however, the kiss changed. Suddenly, I was pressed up against him and
I took the opportunity to reach for the zipper on his shorts.

His hands moved
quickly, though, closing over mine and preventing my intent. “Not like this. We
still have to ensure we’ve agreed on everything.”

“How about we
hash out the details tomorrow? Tonight, maybe we could let it happen.”

He closed his
eyes and took a deep breath. “I can’t.”

“You’d turn down
sex because these rules mean that much to you?”

His expression
was pained and he nodded.

“Unbelievable.
I’m practically throwing myself at you. This was a mistake. You don’t want me,
then, fine.”

“Damn it, Sasha.
Does it feel like I don’t want you?” He placed my hand on his bulge where he
was hard as steel.

Instead of
moving my hand away, I slid it down the length of him and heard him hiss.

He threaded his fingers
with mine and my mouth was ravaged again. After backing me to the edge of the
bed, he eased me down, following on top. His hips aligned with mine, grinding
against my throbbing sex.

Intense heat
spread throughout my body with the contact. I moaned, cradling his hard length
and arching towards him. He shifted me so that we were both on our sides and
his leg scissored over mine, keeping me inches from him.

His fingers
reached up under my dress, but, much to my frustration, stayed outside of my
panties when he started massaging.

“You’re right
there,” I gasped, frustrated.

“I’m going to
make you come, but I’m saving the good stuff for when I have more—”

“Time,” I bit
out, finishing the statement for him. My voice was raw, and my body was
desperate for release.

“Think of the
last time you had foreplay. We’re working up to the ultimate fantasy for both
of us.”

My body had
started to respond to his fingers. I moved my hand toward his zipper again.
“Okay, but I get to torture you, too.” When he tensed, I argued, “We haven’t
started so you’re not in control yet.”

He hesitated but
then let me proceed, sucking in a breath when I took hold of him through his
boxers. “God—” He increased the pressure on me, rubbing harder and faster.

I did the same,
wishing I could feel his actual skin. As it was, he was scorching hot through
the cotton material.

My body tensed
with the detonation of my orgasm. His cock pulsed, wetness seeping through the
fabric onto my hand.

His lips left
mine and he kissed my forehead, tucking my hair behind my ear. “Do you feel
like you’re back in high school?”

“Back then the
boys would go all the way.”

He grinned.
“Teenage boys wouldn’t have given you an orgasm.”

“Ah, high
school, where the boys didn’t know what they were doing, and the girls didn’t
know enough to know better.”

He chuckled.

We lay facing
one another, and my heart beat faster at the intimacy of being eye to eye in
the same bed together. “You have about ten minutes before I’m passing out. What
else do we need to discuss?” I yawned.