Page 104 of Five Brothers

“Besides …” She starts swaying to the music as I hold her.

“Saints? Digging? Six feet of anything? In the rain? Yeah, no.”

I laugh.

“They would’ve just resorted to destroying headstones,” she says, but rushes on when I try to interject. “Which I understand are old and sacred, but the bodies would never have been disturbed.”

They won’t be deterred forever, though. They’ve been fucking with us since their ship landed.

“Thank you.” I inhale her fruity body spray, and stare at her neon purple lips. “You’re good at this.”

“At what?”

I shake my head, trying to find the words. “At … being a friend.”

She smiles, a gorgeous light hitting her eyes. “Thank you.”

Sweet and sincere, she says it as if it’s the best compliment she’s ever gotten. She circles her arms around my neck, hugging me tight.

“But I still don’t want you to do it again,” I say as she holds me. “Milo, I mean. He will hurt you. Every time.”

“Okay,” she agrees, and I like how quickly she does it. “I won’t do it again.”

Not sure if I believe her, but I hope she involves me quicker the next time she decides to take matters into her own hands.

I keep holding her, people passing by, the music pumping, and there’s no way in hell I’m dancing, but there’s no way I’m leaving her here, either. Not with him.

“I’m too old for this party,” I say.

I have to be the oldest person here.

She pulls back, her smile softening. “Me, too.”

She keeps one arm around me and pulls out her bun with the other.

“But if I tell them to get out,” she states, “Trace and Dallas will hear Milo beating the walls of the pantry. And you know what happens then.”

Her chestnut-brown hair spills down around her, but I can barely focus with the heat between her legs pressed against my stomach.

“So how long should we wait?” I play along.

“Until the rain starts.”

The cops won’t let anyone in the Bay who doesn’t belong there after that point.

“So what should we do?” I ask.

“I think it looks like we’re doing something now.”

I tighten my grip on her thighs, Krisjen pressing her body into mine, and déjà vu floods my head, and I’m warm all over. God, she feels good.

“Why doesn’t Dallas like me?” she asks.

I narrow my eyes. “Do you want him to?”

“Of course.”

The quickness of her reply surprises me almost as much as the answer.