“Us things. Like going places as an us, or a we, or a th-they. Plurals. Are we doing the plurals, Hamilton?” Sonofabitch, I was rambling.
Hamilton grinned at me, like my uncomfortable behavior was amusing to him. “I have to go see a friend today for a few, but afterward, I really want to do all sorts of plural things with you, Petal.”
My ears perked up. “You do?” I asked, my voice a squeak.
He grabbed my hips and pulled me closer to him. “I want to do us things privately. Publicly. I want to kiss you in front of Jared and see him rage. I want to put you up on this counter, spread your legs and lick your clit until your entire body shakes. I’m all for us things.” His lips found my temple, and he left a trail of heated kisses there, leading down along my jaw.
“Let’s do the plurals then, Hamilton,” I replied before pulling at the waistband of his pants and letting him do exactly as he described.
18
I didn’t have time to really get ready, mostly because Hamilton and I were insatiable. We barely made it out the door, my wild hair spun up in a messy bun on top of my head and our clothes wrinkled from sitting in a pile on the floor by my bed. Hamilton invited Jess and Infinity to go out with us, and I was looking forward to seeing them again.
“So, Jared legitimately invited us, hmm?” Hamilton asked while turning into the parking lot of the bar. He had one hand on the steering wheel and one on my upper thigh, his thumb massaging me lightly as he drove. Ever since he got here, he had to be touching me somehow. “He must be up to something.”
“Why do I find your jealousy so sexy?” I murmured mostly to myself.
Hamilton pulled into a spot and turned off the car. “Because you’ve never had someone fight for you before, Petal,” he whispered while leaning over the center console and kissing me on the mouth.
A palm slamming against the hood of his car made me jump. Jess and Infinity were standing outside, both wearing identical smirks. I blushed. Jess already knew something was up between Hamilton and me, but I still felt that instinctive need to keep this thing a secret.
We got out of the car, and Jess immediately hugged Hamilton. She was in black skinny jeans that were ripped at the knee and a bright red flannel shirt. He wore a genuine smile as she squeezed him tightly, then punched him on the arm. “Now I know why you aren’t replying to any of my texts. I invite you to breakfast at our local spot and don’t hear from you for hours.” Jess smirked at me before looking at her best friend once more. “Then, you tell me we’re going to this damn pretentious bar. I saw a man wearing a suit go inside, Hamilton. A suit!” Jess scowled for effect.
Hamilton chuckled. “Don’t blame me! Vera’s boyfriend invited all of us out. You know I’m more about kickbacks at the house than overpriced beer with overpriced clientele.” I didn’t like that Hamilton was calling Jared my boyfriend. Was my friendship with him bothering Hamilton more than he let on? His possessiveness and jealousy was hot, but it seemed to run deeper.
“I thought you dumped that dude when Hamilton got you off in the bathroom?” Jess asked.
At that question, Infinity elbowed her girlfriend in the ribs with a huff. She was wearing jeans and a see-through flowy blouse. Luckily, Infinity changed the subject efficiently, with her ethereal voice and soft smile. “Sooo, how have you been, Vera? It’s so good to see you again!”
I swallowed and blushed, still thrown off from Jess’s question. Hamilton wrapped his arm around me and kissed me on the temple while I tried to come up with an answer. Jess and Infinity stared at the subtle display of affection, their mouths parted in shock as they watched me.
“I’ve been really great,” I answered before looking at Hamilton. He met my stare with a heated intensity that made me waiver.
The smoldering moment was short-lived. “Oh, girl, we are so discussing this later,” Jess interrupted with a squeal before grabbing my wrist and looping her arm through mine. Infinity grabbed my other arm, and the three of us started walking inside, Hamilton chuckling as he followed behind us. There was a line to get into the club.
“Did you see that?” Infinity asked Jess in a whisper. “That was genuine affection.”
“Totally genuine affection,” Jess echoed.
“I can still hear you. And I’m capable of genuine affection, you know,” Hamilton called at my back. “Also, can I have my girl back? This is worse than when I told you I slept with our history teacher senior year. Gossipy hen.”
Jess stopped to gag. “I still can’t believe you slept with Miss Gladde. She was engaged to the football coach! Doggy style behind the bleachers, no less.”
I looked over my shoulder, feeling a bit out of my element as we got in line to enter the bar. Hamilton had a sheepish grin on his face. “I’d do it again. She was hot.”
A gust of wind blew through my hair. “Not as bad as the time you fucked your nanny,” Jess added while side-eyeing me, as if trying to gauge how I’d react to their ribbing.
“That was just embarrassing. I came after like three pumps.” Hamilton winced at the memory. I winced for a completely different reason.
Infinity giggled before interjecting. “Don’t forget that the two of you had quite the affair,” the soft-spoken girl said while gesturing between Jess and Hamilton.
My brows shot up. Jess rolled her eyes before speaking. “One time. One time! We were drunk, and I was curious what all the fuss was about. I had whiskey clit and didn’t even come—not for lack of trying. It only counts if you come.”
“You and Hamilton?” I asked incredulously.
“There was lots of alcohol involved,” she grumbled. “Never again.”
“Oh, come on. We were great together, baby,” Hamilton purred playfully.
“I puked on you!” Jess exclaimed, making the person in front of us in line turn to look over their shoulder.
“You’re the only lesbian I’ve ever slept with that also puked on my dick. It was good for my ego,” Hamilton replied dryly. “I mean, it wasn’t the worst sexcapade I’ve ever had, though. It was better than those twins I once fucked in my mother’s garden.”
I pulled away from Jess and Infinity to rub the back of my neck and look around. Where was Jared? Hamilton definitely had experience. I knew that I needed to hear an unfiltered account of Hamilton’s whoring around. Even though this entire conversation was making me uncomfortable, it helped to remind me that Hamilton wasn’t the sort of man to do forever. He was good in bed, but he wasn’t good for my heart. “Oh, I forgot about them,” Jess replied. “Didn’t one of them poke holes in the condom?”
“I had to pay her to take Plan B,” Hamilton replied with a shiver.
I chewed on the inside of my cheek. This was fine. I knew that Hamilton was a fuckboy. This felt like a test somehow. He’d worn a condom every time we fucked, and I had been on the pill for the last two years, but we needed to be careful. “You okay, Vera?” Infinity asked while giving her girlfriend and Hamilton a pointed stare.
“I’m great,” I replied with a fake smile before inching up to the bouncer. Hamilton cursed softly, but I ignored it.