This Time Around(42)

I lean towards her and whisper into her ear. “You looked fucking beautiful teaching that class.”





Chapter Twenty-One

Taiya

“Xander looks like he would be kinky in bed,” Sephie says out of nowhere, causing Summer to choke on her drink.

“Why would you say that?” I ask, trying to hold in my laughter.

Sephie looks over at Xander and sighs, “I don’t know just look at him. Tattoos, muscles, long hair… that intense look on his face.” I look at Xander, who is sitting with Dash and Tag, and laugh. He does look like he might be intense in bed. He’s currently talking with the guys, his hazel eyes sharp and intelligent.

“What do you think he’s into?” I ask, actually curious now.

Sephie purses her lips in thought. “I don’t know. Bondage? That would be hot.”

I look at Xander once more, with raised eyebrows, speculating.

“Maybe he likes to have sex with a goat mask on, or something,” Sephie jokes.

I burst out laughing, causing all the men to look over at me. Ryan walks over, like I knew he would, to see what’s going on.

“What’s so funny?” he asks, touching my cheek with his fingers.

“Nothing,” we all say at the same time, except for Sephie who says, “Just wondering what Xander’s like in bed.” The woman has no filter whatsoever.

“That’s my brother!” Summer whisper-yells. “Do you want to talk about how Reid is in bed?”

Sephie makes a face. “Let’s make a deal to never mention this again.”

“Done,” Summer says, immediately.

Ryan leans down. “You better not be wondering anything.”

I lift my chin up. “He’s pretty good looking.

Ryan practically growls. “No looking.”

“No looking? Can I touch then?” I taunt, flashing him an innocent look.

“You’re too much,” he says, grabbing my chin with his thumb and index finger and giving me a deep kiss, one completely inappropriate for public view. When he pulls back, I’m panting.

“Get a room!” Reid calls out, smirking.

“You’re ruining girls’ night!” Sephie huffs, gulping down her drink. Sephie, Summer and I decided to have a night out, just us girls. Isis couldn’t make it, because she had to study for her exams. An hour into our evening Ryan, Reid, Xander, Dash and Tag show up, sitting at their own table, and proclaiming their own night out. We all know they just wanted to keep an eye on us. Ryan gives me another quick kiss and then re-joins his table. An hour later and the pretence is over, because we’re all sitting together drinking, laughing and enjoying our time together. When I see Xander sit down next to Sephie, causally putting his arm around her, I quickly look to the twins, who are both staring at Xander’s arm with narrowed eyes. Well, that’s a disaster waiting to happen.

Summer and I head to the bathroom together, because apparently, even slightly tipsy girls can’t go alone. I fiddle with my hair, pushing it away from my face, trying to control the wispy curls.

“I’ve never seen Ryan like this, you know,” Summer says, retouching her clear lip gloss.

I give up on my hair and turn to face her. “What? With one woman for more than a night?”

She puts her gloss in her small clutch bag and studies me. “He was trying to get over you. Not that it worked, but he sure as hell tried.”

“You can say that again,” I mumble. “I know he loves me. He’s really shown me how much. It’s just hard to swallow the other women, you know? I know I wasn’t here, blah blah, but it doesn’t change how I feel.”

Summer bobs her head. “Trust me, I know the feeling. Just tell yourself that you have him now and forever. All they have is a memory.”

I smile dreamily. “I like that.”

We walk out of the bathroom arm in arm, the smile on my face dropping as I see a woman standing next to Ryan. She puts her hand on him, saying something to him. He shakes his head at her, smiling slightly. Reid says something to him and he turns his head to look at me.

“Fuck,” I see him mouth, and then it hits me why. Our deal. Looks like Ryan’s not getting off tonight. I smile evilly, walking over to him and sitting down in his lap. The woman wanders away, and Ryan holds me in his arms.

“You were joking about continuing that deal, right?” he whispers into my ear. Goosebumps appear on my arms, and a shiver runs down my spine.

“Nope, not even a little bit,” I say, straightening my spine.

“We’ll see,” he says with confidence. I know he thinks he can seduce me, but I’m not giving in this time. “You’ll want me inside of you tonight.”