Swallow

Chapter 1.38:

Aiden stepped over the threshold to get inside the house first.

Brynn reached out and smothered his body with her own the second he tried to walk past her. He wrapped her in a one-armed hug over her shoulder loosely.

It wasn't the same way he hugged Riley. He didn't linger against her or press every cell of his body tightly to her. It wasn't even lost on me at all when he pushed her away first.  Brynn may have not noticed, but I sure as hell did.  

"My turn," Mark yelled out like a gregarious fool.  

He started barreling towards Brynn like he was going to tackle her and then made a slight detour to head directly for Aiden.  He wrapped his arms around Aiden and playfully caressed his back like they were in a passionate embrace.  Aiden stood stone-faced with his arms plastered against his sides as Mark purred at him. 

"Get off me." Aiden grumped.

"Stop pretending like you don't want these sugar lumps."  Mark stepped away and motioned down. He blew Aiden a few sloppy, wet-mouthed kisses.

The Mark and Aiden war from last night had apparently not ended.  Mark was clearly winning at this point. 

I crossed my arms over my chest as I watched the childish display back and forth. Mark was playing it up for Brynn's sake to try to get a laugh out of her.  It might have worked, too, if she wasn't keeping herself occupied by checking me out.  

I had felt her eyes on me for way too long. 

She stepped confidently by my side and started twirling her hair, wanting me to notice her. 

"I remember you. You are the guy in from the hall the other day at the house." She said.

I remembered her too, but not in a good way. She looked more put together than she did when she stumbled out of Aiden's room that morning, but she still was on the trashy side.  The scrap of fabric she called a skirt was way too short for her long legs and her top was one arm raise away from earning her a set of Mardi Gras beads.

The fact that Riley chose this girl as a friend did not make any kind of sense to me.

I started to walk around Brynn to go find Riley.  My whole body was longing to see again, even if she wanted nothing to do with me.  I made it two full steps before I felt a rough tug on my arm.  Brynn pulled me back and slid herself up under my arm like we had been friends for years.  

Her hand wrapped around my back and started roaming up under my shirt. She slowly lowered her hand down closer to my ass.  There was a slight pressure followed by a hard pinch on my left cheek.  I jumped and pushed her away from me. 

What the hell was that? 

Brynn gave me a sultry smile and looked down at the crotch of my pants. She was completely unfazed by my reaction and lack of interest in her. Riley was her friend. After the way Riley and I parted last, I would have expected her to act the complete opposite of how she was treating me. She should be giving me scathing looks and the cold shoulder all night.

Unless Riley didn't tell Brynn about her and I hooking up.

The acid churned in my stomach at the realization that my situation with Riley was much worse than I had thought.  Why would she keep what happened between us a secret from her best friend? Didn't girls tell each other everything?

"Hey, guys. Get in here." JD called from the living room.

My pulse quickened as I broke away from Brynn and rounded the corner to go in.  I was anxious to see the look on Riley's face when I walked through the door.