She turned to give the pixie wolf her thanks but was cut off before she even started.
“We’ll walk you outside, Sophia. Can you just do me a favor? You’re not stopping anywhere before you go to Julia’s house right?”
Tryx was obviously worried for her, but Sophia had no idea why.
“No, no. This was my one stop. After this it’s straight to her place.” She hoped her response had reassured the wolf sprite. Her stomach cramped, and her eyes darted to the cake box. The sharp needling pain reminded her she’d yet to eat, and damn it all, she was hungry.
“Is Chase going to be there?” Tryx looked hopeful.
“Um, I guess. As far as I know I think it’s just the four of us.” She didn’t really feel comfortable talking about Chase. The thought of him made her hot and bothered, not a good thing as far as she was concerned. That line of thinking was hopeless. Chase was known for his discerning taste.
Picky was his middle name. Sophia had seen one of his girlfriends and was sure the woman came off the cover of For Him Magazine. Only the sexiest feminine bodies in the planet graced that cover. Green with jealousy, Sophia had visualized doing horrible things like calling in Father Dominico and saying the girl was a hooker in need of salvation.
Tryx looked her straight in the eyes. “Promise me that even if Chase isn’t there, you’ll have Julia call him over. He’ll know why once he gets there.”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“Just promise OK?” Tryx had gone from cute to way-out-there bizarre, but Sophia supposed it was best to just nod and get the heck out of there before somebody else acted weird.
After agreeing to Tryx’s demands, Sophia was safely on the road again, munching on the distracting cookies. She wondered what the hell was wrong with everybody. Not herself—she knew she had a few screws loose. It was what made her so good at being a geek.
* * *
Chase sat down in one of the lounge chairs by his brother’s pool with a cold beer in his grasp. He’d just walked out of the nice cool water and had to admit he was actually having a good time. Of course, Julia had yet to do one of her Oscar-worthy performances, but it was still early.
It was clear summer had arrived by the presence of the high temperatures, the smell of barbecued meat, and the uncovered pool ready for use. Every few minutes, Julia would bring out more food to the side table they had set up. What was she feeding, an army?
Granted, he and his brother could eat, but she’d made enough food for twenty. His stomach grumbled in complaint, letting him know he was easily able to eat enough food for twenty.
Julia was really excited about the news she was going to share with Sophia and him. Of course he knew what the news was. His keen sense of smell detected the change in her the minute she’d conceived, but he’d kept his mouth shut. Women were strange about being pregnant, having babies…and weddings.
A car pulled up in the front, a door opened, and a soft voice called, “Jules, I’m here.” His gut clenched. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, Sophia had arrived, and the wolf that had been lying dormant inside him lifted its head in sudden interest. She came around the side of the yard straight to the back. She was wearing a short-sleeve wrap dress that showed off her curvy body.
He frowned when he saw long, loose brown curls hugging her shoulders. He knew the last time he’d seen her it had been cropped to her jaw line. Her glasses were also missing.
Knowing she could barely see without them, he found that strange. Julia had said Sophia didn’t like contacts—they irritated her eyes since she worked such long hours. But it seemed she must be wearing some.
She carried a white box in her hands, and the minute she saw him, she stopped midstride. He watched her nostrils flare and her eyes brighten to a molten gray when she took in his wet and barely clothed state.
He tightened his stomach muscles in a conscious effort to keep her gaze on his body. His dick hardened at her perusal of his physique, and when her tongue darted out to lick her lips, he got the impression she liked what she saw.
Interesting.
Would it be too much if he walked over, grabbed her hand, and placed it on his aching cock? Yeah, it might seem somewhat depraved and give her the wrong impression…or it might give her the right impression—that he was so hard for her he couldn’t fucking think straight.
Sophia stopped walking the minute she caught sight of Chase lying on a lounger like an erotic, half-naked sex god. His skin was wet from having been in the pool, and it glistened with a healthy bronze glow.
She took a moment to stare at the only man that made her babble and left her tongue-tied at the same time. Overwhelming, lust-filled heat invaded her body. Fascination seized hold. She watched drops of water crawl slowly down his muscular torso and cling to his nipples.