The Bet (The Bet #1)(46)

“You took out your sexual frustration on a bunny?” Kacey’s voice was breathless.

“Who said I was sexually frustrated?”

Crap. Now what was she going to do? Lie? Kiss him again? Knee him in the balls? “I, uh,” she stuttered. “I just assumed that was the life you led, almost like a eunuch. You know, because you didn’t date much and took that Jezebel to prom with you.”

Travis rolled his eyes. “I’ll let my cousin know you said hi.”

“She always was such a dear.” Kacey and Travis’s cousin, Lucy, had had a falling out that night, when they both showed up in the same dress. Lucy, with all her naturally endowed gifts from God, had nearly fallen out of hers, while Kacey had needed tissue stuffing in hers to fill it out. It wasn’t her fault she was a late bloomer! The entire night was ruined when Lucy, in a fit of lust — and most likely alcohol — made a move for Jake. They were, after all, only second cousins, once removed. It didn’t make it any less creepy, or wrong, or sad to watch as she tried to molest him on the dance floor. Ah, high school. Good times.

Kacey shook her head and gave Travis sweet smile, pushing at his chest so she could get up.

“Where are you going?” Travis grasped her wrist. She had to get out, had to leave him before she attacked him and lost all control.

“My room.”

“You can’t go to you room. What if someone sees you?”

“Who’s going to see me?” The birds? The tiny squirrels outside his bedroom window?

Travis blinked several times before answering. “Anyone could see you, and if you come out of my room looking like that, they’ll be suspicious.”

“Your family knows we hate each other.” Kacey grunted.

Travis, the devil, gave her such a seducing smile she wondered if her heart would stop beating. “Yes, but, my family knows of my certain reputation, that of a playboy, not a eunuch as you’ve so lovingly described me.”

“Right, well, since you’re paranoid, I’ll just shower here, and we can escape out the back. Sound good?”

Travis groaned into his hands. “Too good, Kace. Too good.”

Not wanting to hang around, or even allow his double meaning to penetrate her already jumbled thoughts, she skittered away toward the bathroom.

“Right then.” What was I going to say? Something snappy. Something funny. Damn his abs! They had no right to be so ripped!

Kacey pushed through the door and slammed it hard behind her. Lock, lock where was the lock?

“There’s no lock, Kace,” Travis’s deep timbre explained the situation. “They haven’t gotten around to actually fixing up the bathroom yet, so it’s kinda still in shambles, but the water’s hot, and the towels are clean. Just don’t go making it smell all girly in there.”

How the heck was she going to do that? Just naturally give off her womanly musk by bathing in the steam of his bathroom? Idiot.

“Fine!” She went to the shower and turned it on. Steaming water came pouring out. Perfection. Within two seconds she was stripped and in the shower, dreaming of bacon and scalding coffee.

Which was why she didn’t hear the door open. Or Travis’s voice when he asked if she was okay.

Or the shriek that came from him when he slipped on her thong and grabbed the shower curtain on the way to the floor.

Naked. Gloriously naked. No doubt, he was going to be a little upset over the fact that she’d left more than her musk behind.

Travis cursed, for a great while, and then finally set his eyes on her. All of her.

Following his lead, she cursed like a sailor. His eyes scanned her boldly without shame. They sat in silence, neither of them wanting to make the first move, or even to breathe, it seemed.

“What the hell!” A male voice roared.

Horrified, Kacey looked up into murderous green eyes and gulped. “ Hi, Jake.”





Chapter Twenty-five




“This isn’t what you think!” Kacey managed to grab a nearby towel and cover her nakedness, though it was hard to see the point of it all, considering both men had both openly gaped at her. There had to be something ethically, or at least religiously, wrong with two brothers ogling one woman’s goodies in the bathroom.

“Oh?” Jake crossed his arms. “Because you don’t want to know what I think right now. How could you!” He shoved Travis against the wall.

“How could I?” Travis roared. “What the hell kind of question is that? When you’ve been running around this weekend screwing everything with a skirt?”

“One time!” Jake shouted.

“You’re supposed to be pretending to be engaged!”

“It doesn’t even matter anymore!” Jake pushed him against the wall again, his arm coming up beneath his chin. Obviously Travis was letting him, considering Jake was younger and clearly not as strong as Travis.

“Why the hell not?” Travis voice was strained.

“Grandma didn’t say! She just wanted Kacey back! Besides, she knows we aren’t engaged, alright? I did it for my reputation. Apparently dating strippers is bad for the company. It was the board’s idea anyway. It’s a win-win! I needed to save my reputation, so we pretended to be engaged. Do you think I want to be married?”