Weekend Surrender (The Surrender Trilogy, #1)(9)

“I love how you look with pink cheeks, honey,” Hudson said, and he leaned forward stopping just centimeters from her lips. Her mouth dropped open in preparation for a kiss, only to be frozen when he did nothing but slide his tongue along her bottom lip. “And I love how you taste.”

He pressed the butter into her trembling hands, turned her back toward the kitchen counter, and nudged her forward. She moved automatically and silently back to the bread she had been working on. Her mind was fuzzy, and she couldn’t seem to put two thoughts together as she coated the French bread in garlicky butter.

She was able to watch the four men as they moved around the kitchen laughing and joking with each other for several minutes before she had to ask the question plaguing her mind.

“Why me?” she said softly, and when they all grew quiet but didn’t speak, she asked it louder. “Why me? Every woman in town wants you and with just a crook of your little finger, she would gratefully drop to her knees for the four of you. So what makes me so special?”

Rogan was the closest to her, so he was the first to reach her. Gripping her chin, he tipped her head back so she was forced to meet his eyes. She was surprised to see the emotion that filled his gaze, but she quickly dismissed it as a trick of the light. No way they actually felt anything for her, this was just sex. She had to keep reminding herself this was just a weekend fling to cut loose, and give her her confidence back.

“Rachel, you don’t seem to understand that you are the one we want. We don’t want the other women. I think I speak for all of us, but I will tell you what I personally want. I want a sexy brunette, with legs up to her ears, and the hottest navel piercing I’ve ever seen. I want the spicy woman with a sharp tongue, that melts when I kiss her, and isn’t afraid to put me in my place when I’m being an ass. I want your body, and your heart, and I want to keep them.” With every word his brown eyes darkened, and Rachel knew her own eyes widened. Her heart was racing in her chest, and her knees were shaking again.

“You can’t keep me,” she whispered shakily.

“Why not?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Rogan, you don’t have to give me sweet words to get me into your bed. I’ll go willingly, but I don’t want you guys to play with my emotions. This is supposed to be fun. I just wanted to know why you singled me out tonight?” she said, pulling her face away from him so he wouldn’t see the confusion in her eyes.

“You’re being deliberately obtuse,” Parker said from across the room, and she jerked her head up to glare at him.

“No, I’m asking a question. Nevermind. Forget it,” she said with a huff, as she placed the remaining French bread on the baking pan and went to put it in the oven.

Sawyer stood leaning against the counter next to the stove with his arms crossed and a frown puckering his brow. He watched her put the tray in the oven and wipe her hands on a towel before he grabbed her wrist and pulled her in front of him.

“Why is it so hard to believe that we would pick you, baby?” he asked, and she stared at the buttons of his shirt refusing to look at his questioning eyes.

“Just forget I brought it up, the bread should be done in about ten minutes. I should probably wash up, if you’ll just direct me to the bathroom?” she said quickly, pulling away from Sawyer, and turning back to the other men who all stood around the room with their arms over their chests and identical frowns on their gorgeous faces.

They exchanged looks amongst themselves, before Hudson finally broke the silence. “Come on, honey, I’ll show you where it is.”

He held out his hand to her, and she hesitated, drawing an exasperated huff from him, which had her quickly placing her hand in his. Drawing her along behind him, he led her out of the kitchen and back down a hallway. They stopped in front of a door, and he pushed it open. Instead of a bathroom, it was a bedroom, and she froze in the doorway.

Hudson turned back to her with a small smirk, “It’s okay, Rachel, it’s just my bedroom. The bathroom is right here. Right now the guest bath is torn all to hell while we’re remodeling and adding on a master bedroom suite. We have four other bathrooms, but they are all connected to a bedroom. Just come back to the kitchen when you’re done.”

He pressed a light kiss to her forehead again, and left her standing alone in his bedroom. For just a moment she let herself breathe in his scent that filled the room. The furnishings were cherry wood, and the décor was very masculine. She could see various things that bespoke Hudson’s interests scattered around.

On top of the dresser was a pile of hunting and fishing magazines while an air soft gun rested against the bedside table. Several CDs sat next to a stereo on the bookshelf, and she couldn’t resist looking through them. Everything Nickelback to Five Finger Death Punch, it seemed that Hudson had an eclectic taste in his music, and that made her smile.

She remembered what she was supposed to be doing when her full bladder ached, and she hurried into the bathroom. After she finished and washed her hands, she took a moment to look over his bathroom too. It seemed too intimate to be standing amongst his things. His razor and shaving cream sat on the counter next to a bottle of cologne, a comb, and his toothbrush. She shivered thinking about how nice it might be to wake up next to him and watch him use all of it to get ready in the morning.

Stop it, Rachel. That’s just crazy talk.