shole flirting with her?" Wren asks, glaring at the guy as he passes us.
"Probably," I say, trying to provoke him.
Wren's ugly scowl turns on me, and I laugh in response. He thought it was funny when my balls were in question. It's only fair I laugh at his weakness.
Wren goes over to question her about it, and she swats him away, her roll of the eyes mocking him for what she feels is ludicrous. Glad my mom is still married. Not sure I could handle her being single and hit on.
My eyes turn to the door, wondering why Raya isn't here yet.
"Going to the bar?" Tag asks, but I shake my head.
"I'll wait on a waitress. I need to be here to see Raya come in."
I groan before he even starts his mocking laughter because even I hear how pathetic I sound. Fortunately, he leaves me without taunting me further.
Sitting down on the sofa, I try to show interest in what the others are saying, but I couldn't care less. I just want Raya to hurry. Now that I've finally decided to make this happen—to hell with the consequences—I just want her to be here.
I'm not holding back anymore.
I look to the door, and my jaw almost drops when I see her—tight leggings, a sexy shirt that hangs just right, and her glossy lips calling my name. At least they're calling my name in my head right now.
But then my jaw almost snaps in half when I see the creep she's talking to move behind her and grope her ass. I'll kill him.
I'm off the couch and across the room in seconds.
"Shit. You're right. It needs intense therapy," Tag tells her, prompting her to laugh as his hands continue to roam.
"Get your fucking hands off her," I growl while shoving him hard, barely stopping myself from punching him.
He's trying to make me cause a scene. I'm not stupid. He even goes so far to wink at her before walking away, but I forget Tag even exists when I slowly appraise her body up close.
All thoughts turn to Raya in an outfit that isn't meant for the cold. I'm pretty sure I'm the one she did this for, and I intend to take full advantage.
"You have to be freezing in that," I say, shamelessly biting down on my bottom lip as I rake my eyes over her.
"Um, not too much. I didn't want to look like a marshmallow."
A marshmallow? She looked cute in all the fluff.
I can't help but start laughing, reminding myself that my family is around. This will be continued. Soon.
We make our way back to the others. I'm counting the seconds down until they abandon us.
"He won't be back until after Christmas," Aunt Melanie says, just as we sit down.
"Who won't be back?" I ask, needing a distraction.
I pull Raya as close to me as possible while wrapping my arm around her shoulders. She tries to hide her shiver, but I notice. She melts into me, and I enjoy the way she feels. This would be perfect, if we didn't have an audience.
"Billy. He's with his friend, Ash, for the holidays. I think he likes them a little better than us sometimes," she says with a sad smile.
"Ash?" I ask, not recognizing the name.
"Yeah, Bity's bestie," Wren jokes bitterly. "I need a drink."
If you don't know Wren, you wouldn't hear the distaste. If you don't know the situation, you wouldn't understand his need for a drink. And if you weren't paying attention, you would have missed Erica's flinch.
How he can sit beside the woman who screwed his brother just a few days before their wedding, I don't know. How he can be planning a new wedding is beyond me.