Kade laughed. “Thank God I didn’t have to go through that.”
“So,” Colby said, tapping his palms on the table. “Y’all ready to get out of here? The night’s still young. And I’ve got a fully stocked bar at the house and a heated pool.”
“Hell, yeah,” Jace said, pulling out a couple of bills from his wallet and tossing them on the table. “I’m game. How ’bout you two?”
Everyone looked to Kade and Tessa with questions in their eyes. And Tessa had the distinct feeling there was way more being left unsaid than said. Kade slipped his arm around her and gave her a pointed look that reached inside her and sent everything aquiver. “I’m not sure. Are you game, Tess?”
Her throat went dry, despite her recent sip of wine, and her stomach dropped to her toes. But she wasn’t breaking her promise to herself that she’d made with Sam. Just say yes.
She said yes.
SEVENTEEN
Colby’s house was in a pleasant, quiet neighborhood and was situated at the end of a cul-de-sac. A nice place but nothing outrageous. The kind of house you’d see as the backdrop for some family sitcom. Nothing that would indicate the people walking inside weren’t simply another group of friends getting together for a couple of drinks and some conversation on a Friday night. It was a scene that had played out regularly in her old life. Neighbors drinking poolside, sharing gossip, and trading stories.
But when this group settled poolside with margaritas, Tessa knew that it was going to be far from a normal get together. For one thing, Colby was checking the temperature of the pool. And she knew she wasn’t the only one who hadn’t brought a bathing suit. Kade stretched out behind her on the lounge chair and wrapped his arms around her. “How’s the drink?”
“Weak,” she said, her voice coming out softer than expected. “But tasty.”
“Yeah, that’s on purpose. You’ve already had two glasses of wine. Any decisions you make with me tonight need to be made sober.”
Across the pool from them, Evan, Jace, and Andre had pulled together a few loungers, making a space large enough for the three of them. Jace was playfully kissing Evan on her neck and Andre was peeling his shirt off. Colby had walked to a panel on the wall of the house and was turning on music. Tessa swallowed past the knot of nerves that was building in her throat. “Decisions?”
Kade pressed a kiss behind her ear, sending goose bumps down her side. “Yes. Lots to choose from the fantasy list tonight.”
She gripped her drink tightly, the sweat of the glass dripping onto her lap, as she watched Jace reach out and flick one of Andre’s nipple rings. Colby walked by them, giving them a glance as he made his way to the edge of the pool. “I’m guessing being a voyeur is one of the options.”
“Yes,” Kade said, his touch growing bolder as he coasted fingers along her thighs. “And that’s fine if that’s all you choose to do tonight. Watching can be unbelievably hot.”
“And being the exhibitionists is the other choice of the two?” she asked, leaning back into him, her body heating beneath his fingers and illicit words.
“Absolutely,” he agreed. “Great option as well. But there are more than two choices, Tess.”
Her gaze shifted from the triad across the way and landed on Colby, who’d taken off his shirt to reveal a body that would’ve been at home on Mt. Olympus. Jesus. “More than two?”
Her eyes were glued to Colby as he unbuttoned his jeans and pushed them down along with his underwear without hesitation or reservation. What he revealed had her face going hot and her tongue pressing to the roof of her mouth. Part of her felt wrong for staring. She was with Kade and in complete lust with him and his gorgeous swimmer’s body. But hell if she could look away from the beast of a man slipping naked into the pool. There were some things that required you to stare.
Kade snorted behind her.
“What?” she asked.
“I asked you something and you didn’t hear a word. You’re giving me new reasons to hate my best friend. You love his music and can’t take your eyes off of him getting undressed. A guy could develop a jealous streak.”
She set her drink down and turned in his arms with a grimace. Jealousy. It’d been a running theme in her marriage to Doug. Any time she glanced at a guy, whether with appreciation or not, Doug would get annoyed and call her out. “God, I’m sorry. You’re right. I shouldn’t have looked, I—”
His smile was slow and knowing. “You really didn’t hear what I said before that, did you?”
She bit her lip. “No, what did you say?”
He slid his hand around the back of her neck, pinning her with his gaze. “I said you have the option of watching a threesome tonight or having one.”
Every muscle in her body froze. “What?”
His fingers drew circles along the nape of her neck. “It’s up to you, Tess. If you want to just stick a toe in the water tonight, we can relax here, watch Jace, Evan, and Andre. Enjoy the view. Or you and I can give a little show of our own. Or if you want to really push your boundaries, that man you were just ogling can join us. Your call.”
She tried to wet her lips but her tongue wouldn’t work. Kade and Colby? “You want to share me? With your best friend? I thought you said you were getting jealous . . .”
The whole idea had her body stirring and her mind scrambling.