Piper is standing before me, and yeah, I get my kicks out of her face turning slightly crimson. What are the chances that she and I were connected all along? Damn my niece and her love for nicknames, but this is a fucking fantastic twist.
Or at least, I’m enjoying this ride.
Piper, on the other hand, looks like she may combust. And I don’t mind one bit.
“I’m going to check in on Jeff. Do you mind?” April asks us both.
Piper is quick to shake her head. “Of course not.”
“Oh, don’t you worry. I’m sure I can find something to talk to Piper about to keep her occupied.” I throw on a cunning grin.
April smiles in appreciation before walking off, but my eyes remain on the woman who has been haunting my thoughts for weeks.
The breath of fresh air that I had for one night before she disappeared.
“This is not happening.” Piper seems to be speaking to herself. Her chest is moving visibly up and down.
Stepping closer, I ensure that I’m close enough for the next few minutes of our conversation to be only between us.
“You know this coincidence is, well…” I can’t pinpoint it, but a sound escapes me.
Her eyes dart up to my own. “April can’t know about us.”
“What? The part that we already met or the part that you love to sit on my face.” I offer her a tight smile. I’ve never had qualms about taking people out of their comfort zone, that’s what being a coach is all about.
Piper seems to grow a little agitated by my comment, proven by her sexy-as-hell death stare, but I don’t care. After all, she left before dawn.
“You may find this humorous, but… damn it, I told her a few details about that night, not realizing who the hell you were. Oh no.” She touches her mouth in a panic. “Exactly why she can’t ever know.”
Admittedly, it’s going to be an awkward-as-fuck conversation with April one day if she does ever find out, but I can’t help but point out the obvious.
My smirk stretches. “Ah, so you do remember that night in great detail and felt it was worthy of discussion.”
Her eyes survey the room before she steps a smidgen closer to me. “That night wasn’t… I mean, I don’t normally do what I did.”
I feel like she is trying to justify her actions, and I won’t be having that. “You don’t need an excuse, just own it. You are allowed to ride cock the way you do.”
“Jesus,” she curses. “Do you not have a filter?”
I chuckle under my breath. “Around you? No.” That I’m honest about. “Besides, I don’t exactly owe you manners after you left a cold spot on your side of the bed.”
She sighs and looks away then back to me. “It was supposed to be one night. I thought it was easier that way. Sorry if I didn’t follow procedure, but fucking a man old enough to be my father who turns out to be the godfather of my best friend doesn’t exactly have a playbook…” Her last word drags for a second, and she seems to be considering something, then she laughs softly, and I’m adoring her all over again. “Now I get it. Foul. You chose the safe word.”
I tip my glass to her. “Ding, ding.”
She shakes her head but can’t suppress a smile. “Clever.”
“Is it?” There’s doubt in my tone. “You didn’t find me after. Could have easily done a quick search on the internet. Handsome guy, Hudson, killer tongue, Chicago, and I’m sure I would have been the first name to come up.”
“And you could have done the same. Gorgeous, Piper, lingerie, Chicago, and I’m sure your world would have been blown,” she chides but in a playful way.
This back-and-forth on my level is what has me drawn to her like a moth to a flame.
Taking a sip of my drink, I highlight a point. “You made the message clear that you wanted to forget that night.”
Right? That’s what it means when someone leaves without saying goodbye, or is it just how kids these days are playing the game?
“It’s not that, it’s just…” She chokes on her words. “I’d never done something like that. I thought it would be easier, and trust me when I say it wasn’t something to forget.”
That is exactly what I wanted to hear, because it means her departure has nothing to do with our connection.
Stepping dangerously closer to her, I lean in which causes the scent of peppermint to hit me. I know it’s her shampoo because I had a fistful of her hair at one point that evening.
“It’s okay. I didn’t look for you, but that doesn’t mean I forgot. On the contrary, you’re on repeat in my head far more than I would like to admit.” I hear the heat in my tone, and as I step back, I see her slightly trembling as her lips part open.
But this conversation is going to have to take a pause because I see my sister waving at me from the other side of the room and motioning for me to come to her.
“Go grab yourself a drink, a very dirty martini, Piper. It may be a long night,” I suggest before I walk away.
