Chapter Four
Sister.
She was James’s sister.
Shit. Fuck. Damn.
Blake’s stomach dropped to the floor, and bile rose in his throat.
All the things he’d done with her last night—and the filthy things he hadn’t done but had wanted to—flashed through his brain.
Her gaze met his, and the silent plea for him not to mention last night was impossible to miss.
“Nah,” Blake forced an easygoing smile and held out his hand. It was time to make use of that drama summer camp his mom had sent him to as a kid. “We haven’t met. I’m Blake.”
She placed her hand in his, and he didn’t miss the slight tremor.
“Nice to meet you.” Her smile tightened to almost brittle level as she pulled her hand back. “So, um, how exactly do you both know each other?”
“We were in the same frat.” James grabbed the extra grill spatula and transferred the burgers to a waiting plate. “Blake lived here with us until he got his own place recently.”
“Frat brothers.” Kristen’s tone was overly bright, but James seemed oblivious. “You don’t say. Wow. I mean, that’s great. Just great.”
“Yeah.” James turned and smiled at her. “I’m going to bring these burgers inside. Help yourself to a beer or something, kid.”
“Okay.”
“Food’s inside,” James hollered to the guys on the lawn before turning and making his way into the house.
With no one within earshot, Blake let his smile fade.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” he muttered. “Kristen Watson. Guess I should start asking girls their last names just to be safe.”
“What? It’s not like I knew you were friends with my brother.” Her cheeks went pink, and she folded her arms across her chest. “Trust me, I would’ve run fast and hard if I’d known who I was trying to seduce.”
“You shouldn’t be trying to seduce anyone,” Blake snapped tersely. So much for her not being his problem because here she was, standing right in front of him again. A big fucking problem.
“We’ve had this talk.” She frowned. “I mean, I think. Some things are a little fuzzy from last night.”
“You don’t say. How are you feeling? Hungover?”
“No, I’m good.” Her smile turned whimsical. “I had a super relaxing morning at the spa, actually. Aren’t my nails cute?” She held up her pink-tipped hand. “Anyway. Look, can we just forget last night? Pretend you don’t know me?”
Disbelief had him giving a harsh laugh. “Isn’t that what I just did?”
“Yeah, I guess. But I mean, like, keep that going.”
“I thought you said your brother was a cop? Was that a lie?”
“James isn’t the cop; my other brother is. But he lives in Wisconsin now.”
Now that she reminded him, it surfaced in his memory. James had mentioned both his siblings, just not all that often. Or maybe Blake hadn’t been paying attention.
“Does James know about your irrational little plan?”
“Gross.” She blinked. “Are you high? In what weird world would I tell my brother something like that?”
He nodded and tilted his head to the side. “And planning to lose your virginity with a stranger is totally logical?”