But this is Holden Bailey.
I know better.
Too bad my body didn’t get the memo.
“Slow down,” Kate calls after me.
I stop at the curb and take in a deep breath. My hands hang at my sides as I tilt my head back, closing my eyes, letting the fall air cool my heated skin.
“Parker, what the hell?” Autumn says, linking her arm through mine.
“Did he hurt you?” This comes from Troy. His words are a little slower, a sign of his alcohol consumption of the evening.
“No.” I lift my head and open my eyes. “He didn’t hurt me. I’m just not interested.”
Troy studies me. “That why you're squeezing your thighs together, and your nipples look like they could cut glass?” he asks. He suddenly doesn’t sound as inebriated as I first suspected. He folds his arms over his massive chest and stares down at me.
“He’s right,” Garrett chimes in.
“Hey!” Autumn and Bridgette smack them on the arms.
“Not helping,” Autumn huffs.
“What she said,” Bridgette agrees.
“It’s the cold air.” We all know I’m lying. “Can we go?” I ask.
“Uber is on its way,” Autumn tells me, holding up her phone to show me the app.
“Thank you.” The cool night air is starting to get to me. Just as a shiver races down my spine, the Uber driver pulls up. Autumn and I say our goodbyes and climb in while Kate, Bridgette, Troy, and Garrett take the one behind us.
“Holy shit, Parker. Holden Bailey had his hands all over you,” Autumn exclaims as we pull away from the curb. At her excitement, the Uber driver glances in the rearview mirror, but I ignore him.
“We were dancing.”
“Which is code for fucking with your clothes on.”
“Stop,” I say, not able to hide my smile. “You’re ridiculous.”
“What’s ridiculous is you pushing him away. This is Holden Bailey we’re talking about. Hot as hell baseball player. In fact, I’ve heard you say more than once how hot he is. That’s how I know who he is. You’ve pointed him out to me several times.”
“He is hot. I’m not denying that. He’s arguably the most gorgeous man I’ve ever laid eyes on.” It’s more than that. Holden has this way about him. His confidence shines through in everything he does, and that makes him even sexier. Pushing aside his tendency to sleep around, he’s a man who knows what he wants and goes after it. You can see that in him with every play he makes on the field. It’s a sight to see.
“And he wants you.”
“He wants in my pants. There’s a difference.” A big difference. He’s not interested in the person I am. He’s only interested in what’s between my legs.
“And that’s a problem because?” Autumn asks.
“Come on, Autumn. You know that’s not me. One-night stands are not my thing.” I don’t bother to mention that if he were anyone else, or if his reputation didn’t proceed him, I would have seriously considered a one and done with him.
“Maybe they should be. At least for one night. One night with Holden Bailey.”
“Do you hear how ridiculous that sounds?”
She shrugs. “He’s hot as sin, and from the moves I witnessed on the dance floor, the two of you have chemistry in spades. Can you imagine… ?”
She doesn’t finish her question, but she doesn’t have to. I know exactly what she’s thinking about, and she’s right. There was something there. Something hot and all-consuming, but I refused to let it suck me in. We danced, we had a good time, and that’s that. I’ll never see him again. I knew that going into this, which is why I walked away.
“Enough about Holden,” I say as the Uber pulls up outside of our apartment building. With cash handed over, we slide out and make our way inside.
“Fine, I’ll stop, but I still can’t believe you passed up a once-in-a-lifetime orgasm.”
“He could suck in bed,” I toss out. Again, we both know that’s not the case. A man can’t move like that on the dance floor and not bring it in the bedroom. It’s just not possible.
I try to remain serious but lose it, and we both start laughing. “Fine,” I reluctantly agree. “He might have been amazing in bed, and sure, I’ll never have the opportunity again, but that’s okay. He would have forgotten me the minute he pulled out, and that knowledge is worse than never having what you refer to as a once-in-a-lifetime orgasm.”
“Fine,” she huffs. “I see your point.”
“Love you, A,” I say, hugging her tight. “I’ll see you in the morning.” Rushing down the hall to my room, I close and lock the door. Quickly, I strip out of my clothes. I reach for pajamas, and I pause before getting dressed. I’m hot and sticky and in need of a shower. Pulling my silk robe from the back of my bedroom door, I grab my clothes and head across the hall to take a quick shower.
All I can think about is him and the way it felt to have every inch of him press against me. I’m horny as hell, and all we did was dance, but I refuse to do anything about it. Instead, I deny myself the release that I need and rush through my shower. Tonight was fun, but it’s over, and there is no use wishing it wasn’t.
I wake to the sound of my cell phone vibrating across my nightstand. I groan before blindly reaching over and tapping the stand until I find it. Carefully, I unplug my phone from the charger and squint to look at the screen. When I see my older sister calling, my heart drops, and I’m pushing accept.
“What’s wrong?” I ask Paisley. She never calls me in the mornings.
“Are you sleeping? It’s noon.”
“I got home late.” I also had a hard time falling asleep thinking about a pair of light blue eyes attached to a man with big strong hands and a hard body. That’s not the only thing that was hard, but we’re not thinking about that.
“Well, get up, lazybones.”
“I’m up,” I groan.
“Good. Are you coming to Mom and Dad’s for dinner tonight?”
“That’s the plan.”
“Great. Are you bringing Peyton?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t talked to her. Why?” She’s acting weird.
“Can I not miss my little sisters?”
“Your husband is home after being on the road for months. Don’t you have better things to do than bother me?”
“Oh, trust me. Cam and I got some us time.” She laughs.
“I don’t need to hear that, Paisley,” I complain, which only makes her laugh harder.
“Oh, hush. Now, make sure you pick Peyton up and bring her with you.”
“What’s going on?”
“Nothing. I just miss my little sisters.”
“I’m not buying it, Paisley Taylor. Spill.”
She laughs again. It’s a carefree sound that makes me smile too. She’s so happy, and Cameron adores her and their three-year-old son, Jett. My sister fell in love with a man who loves her like our dad loves our mom, and I couldn’t be happier for her. For both of them.
“Well, if you’re that worried that something is wrong, you better be there to find out.”