Love Me (WITSEC #3)(23)

He covered my fists with his hands and smiled down at me. “I’m fine.”

“You could have hurt yourself more,” I grumbled.

He pulled me closer and wrapped his arms around me. “I saw you run over. Were you coming to save me?”

I looked up at him, frowning. “Are you teasing me?”

He chuckled. “Not at all. I’m quite touched that I have a protective girlfriend.”

“Is someone going to explain what happened?” Knox said as he came to stand next to us.

Colt and Creed walked over next, forming a circle around me. The four of them listened as I told them what had happened. By the time I was done, all four of them were scowling.

Knox looked at Creed and Colt. “Don’t lose her again.”

Colt and Creed stared at me, looking remorseful.

Deciding to take a page from Isabelle's book, I folded my arms across my chest. “Yes, it’s not very nice being forgotten by my boyfriends.”

Creed’s eyes narrowed and he mimicked me by folding his arms. “We didn’t forget you.”

I had to fight not to smile. “How long did it take for you to notice I wasn’t behind you?”

Creed didn’t answer and Colt looked so guilty, I was beginning to feel bad for teasing.

“Not until they made it to the tent and I asked where you were,” Keelan said.

“I’m sorry, babe,” Colt said.

Creed studied me with a frown. “Are you really upset?”

“Can’t you tell?” I asked.

“Normally I can,” he said.

I finally let myself smile. “I supposed this means I’ve improved my lying.”

Keelan snorted at the same time Colt sighed.

Trying not to smile, Creed shook his head and pulled me to him. “That is not something to be proud of,” he said, and did the unimaginable. He started tickling me.

I squealed and tried to get away, but it was no use. He had one arm locked around me while he used the other to tickle me on my sides and stomach. “Creeeeed…st—stop!” I tried to protest in between laughs. “Make him stop,” I begged the others.

Knox stayed rooted where he was, but he was smiling as he watched us. Colt and Keelan laughed, refusing to save me from Creed’s torture.

It wasn’t until I threatened to pee on him that Creed stopped and held my limp form as I recovered. Grabbing the back of my head, he made me look up at him and he kissed me sweetly. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize you weren’t behind us,” he said in a low voice.

“It’s all right. Isabelle and I went exploring,” I said. Speaking of that, I realized I didn’t have my bag with my purchases. I must have dropped it when I’d walked into Gabe. I pulled out of Creed’s arms and began looking around.

“Looking for this?” Isabelle asked, holding up my bag. She and Ethan were standing a few feet away, watching us.

I took the bag. “Thanks.” I turned around to go back to the guys and found Keelan right behind me.

“The run is about to start,” Keelan said, taking the bag from my hands. “I’ll hold on to this until you’re done.”

I handed over my phone-slash-wallet to him as well. I didn’t have reception, anyway. So there wasn’t a reason to risk it getting wet and muddy.

He kissed the top of my head. “See you when you’re done.”

That hurt my heart a little. He was the one who was supposed to do this with me.

He must have seen something on my face, because he said, “All I care about is if you have fun.”

I nodded.

He leaned in close. “If you want, we can create our own game of endurance at home later. It won’t involve mud, but it’ll definitely be wet.”

The feverish heat that hit me had nothing to do with the temperature outside. Keelan winked at me and walked away with Knox, leaving me standing there gaping at nothing because all I could see were the dirty visuals racing through my head.

“Shiloh?”

I blinked back to reality. Creed and Colt were standing in front of me.

“What’s got you all flushed?” Creed asked.

I opened my mouth and shut it. I didn’t want to answer that.

Colt tilted his head slightly, studying my face.

“The run is about to start,” I blurted, grasping at anything to deflect, and began heading toward the Start banner. “What are the stakes if I win?”

It seemed to work, because the guys walked with me and were quiet as they pondered. Isabelle and Ethan followed behind us, talking amongst themselves, while holding hands. After what had just happened, Ethan was also determined to not get separated from his girlfriend again.

“Winner picks dinner tonight?” Creed suggested.

“Knox and Keelan might not agree to that,” Colt said.

“Winner gets to take a shower with me, and I’ll help you wash all the mud off,” I offered. I was going to blame Keelan for the dirty mood he’d left me in.

Their brows tried to reach their hairlines as they both gaped at me.

“I think we’ve unlocked a new side of Shiloh,” Creed said to his twin.

“Like in a video game where if you collect enough coins, you level up?” Colt asked.

Creed nodded. “Instead of coins, it’s orgasms, and poof, a sexy and bold level of Shi appears.”