4
Luke
I have a raging erection while looking at a newborn. It sounds bad, but that’s where my dick is at. We’re all standing around Julie’s hospital bed, looking at the new addition to the group, and I’m hard. Not because of the ugly cute baby who just popped into the world—I’m not a sick fucker—but because of my proximity to Dex. I’m right behind Virginia, next to him. I haven’t seen him since his birthday gathering, and his closeness is killing me. For two weeks, I’ve jacked off at the memory of his moans and demands, and I’ve imagined more scenarios between the sheets. It’s driving me insane, especially because I know it won’t happen again.
“She has Virge’s eyes,” Dex says, his voice hurting my groin. He sounds so vulnerable, so raw, so filled with emotion that I want to hug him tightly and never let go.
“She does,” I whisper trying to restrain myself from touching him.
“What’s your name, beautiful?” Virginia asks.
I know the answer already. Julie shared with me the name of her baby when she told me who the godparents would be. She said she didn’t want me to feel left out. I don’t. I think Dex will be better at it than I would. I don’t like children. I already have one nephew and niece from my brother, Aaron, and I’m not a big fan of poopy diapers and screaming assholes. I like to be the fun uncle, the one they can confide in and joke around with.
Ian clears his throat. “Julie and I decided we wanted to name her after people who are important in our lives. So we named her Gia Dexlee Porter, and we really hope you two will be her godparents.”
I feel Dex’s emotion, and when I see him wiping his eyes, I can’t resist rubbing his back to comfort him. He relaxes under my touch and leans back a little to allow me to continue. Chills spread all over me. I feel as if every hair on my body is standing up, along with my dick. It’s done as fast as it happened.
* * *
Dex crouches and rubs his hand on Virginia’s knee. “I promise I’ll protect you fearlessly and in a much better way than I protected your aunt when she was young, little Gia. I’ll be there for you as much as I was there for your dumbass cousin, Asher. We’re going to make a hell of a team, Virge.”
He smiles, and my heart skips a beat like it did two weeks ago. He kisses Virginia on the forehead, and I wish it were me. I’d give anything to have him touch me the way he touches her. To be loved like Virginia is by Dex.
I hear the door opening and turn to see who is intruding. I lose track of their conversation when I see Ryan standing there. I don’t really like him, and I have many reasons not to. First, there’s the story with Julie. There seems to be many versions of it. In the beginning, I heard he forced her to kiss him. Then it seems there was never a kiss. He was acting, to be sure she would push him away so he could feel miserable all alone. Fuckhead. Julie forgave him, but Ian seems a little more cautious. The guy seems like a pathetic asshole to me.
Then there was the car accident with Virginia. He told her horrible things, which made her lose control of the car and sent her to the hospital with a broken thighbone while he only broke his arm and scratched his eyebrows. He went to rehab, and now it seems we have to accept him into the group. Why the fuck Dex would let him come near Virginia is something I can’t comprehend.
By the time I come back to my senses, I have a baby in my arms and Virginia is hopping away on her crutches, Ryan on her heels.
“Shit,” Dex mumbles.
“What the fuck? Why did you let him come here?” I accuse Dex.
Virginia is a former addict, and Julie told me that Ian is concerned she’ll relapse. I believe Virginia’s stronger than that. She’s broken and lost, but she just needs time. Ian is trying to get her out of her funk, but he handles her a little too much like a broken crystal vase. Dex, on the other hand, is pushing too hard. I know he would never hurt Virginia on purpose, but he really fucked up on the Ryan front. He has no trouble shattering the vase on the floor.
“Hey! Julie is the one who asked me to have him pass by. I was sure if Virge knew he was coming, she wouldn’t come, and I couldn’t let her not be here for the birth of her niece. Seriously, how is this my fault?”
I’m surprised Dex is on the defensive. He usually attacks and doesn’t comment on his actions. Or if he does, he generally tells us to go to hell.
“Uncle D, you know Mom already has a grudge against you. That’s not going to help,” Asher says.
“You know what? All of you, fuck off,” Dex says, walking away. That’s more like the Dex I know. I give the baby girl to Ian and follow Dex outside.
“I can’t believe you let that happen!” I scold.
“Fuck you. I don’t need to explain myself to you!”
“Clearly not. I don’t understand how you could do that to her!”
“Maybe if you knew her the way I do, you would understand. But you don’t, and I don’t owe you anything. So again. Fuck off.”
As we approach Ryan and Virginia, I see her kissing him on the cheek as if she’s saying goodbye forever. My heart breaks for her. Just because you’re the one walking away doesn’t mean it’s easy to do. I should know—I’ve done it many times.
Without a second thought, I scoop her up and carry her to the elevator, walking away from Dex and Ryan. I drive her home and let her stew in silence. I won’t pry. If Virginia wants to tell me, she will.
* * *
By the time I’m done taking care of Virginia, I’m still mad at Dex, but I’m not the kind to let a situation rot. I drive to his super-ugly penthouse so we can clear the air. When he opens the door, he’s still wearing his navy suit and a burgundy shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He leans against the door, his arms crossed. He’s the perfect image for an Armani ad. His dark hair is styled as if he just rolled out of bed, which helps calm my anger but wakes my dick.
He doesn’t say a word, but his gaze analyzes me. That’s how Dex knows what to expect from people. He reads body language like nobody else. I’ve seen him end an argument before it even started. As his eyes narrow and a smug smile forms on his lips, I know he has decided how he will react to what I have to say even before I speak.
“Are you going to let me in?”
“I would, but Ryan is staying here tonight, and you might get pissed again about him being around,” Dex answers with a challenge in his voice.
“I was coming to make amends, but I see you’re in a fighting mood, little prince.” I smirk. I could be offended that he thinks I would be jealous Ryan is staying over, but I’m not. If we were in a relationship, no other man would come close to what is mine. But Dex isn’t mine, simple as that.
“I’m overworked and underfucked, Luke, what did you expect?”
“Do you have a hard time getting what you need since our night together, Dextyn? Can no one make you moan the way I do?”
He arches an eyebrow. “Did you come here to fuck? Because I’m not sure we can just fuck and be friends. It would get messy.”
I shove my hands in my pockets and readjust anything that needs to be put back in place. Dex doesn’t miss any of it.