“Last night? I was there last night. Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Because I wanted to be sure. And believe me, I’m sure. And after you and Flynn left, I grilled her about Johnny O. Nothing is happening between them. She’s just crushing on him.”
“And that proves my point, if I wasn’t being clear. My sister falls in love with rock stars. If you haven’t noticed, Flynn is not one.”
“No, your sister drools over your rock star friends from a safe distance. That’s not the same thing.” I adjusted my bra, pumping up my cleavage. I planned to slip a pretty, sheer blouse and a flouncy silk skirt over the lingerie. The outfit would be soft on the outside, pure sex on the inside, and I was hoping my date was gonna love it. “Angeline is an old-school romantic, Elle. Just like you.”
“Like me?”
“Yes. Like you. But unlike you, she lives in la-la land.”
“No shit.”
“So maybe all that girl really needs is a good man. And not some fantasy. A real flesh-and-blood man who’ll adore her and sweep her off her feet. You know, like Seth did to you,” I pressed.
“Right…”
“And treat her like the angel she is.”
“Uh-huh.”
“And fuck her upside-down—”
“Please don’t.”
“And Flynn is dying to do it. But he thinks you’ll disapprove. I confronted the ever-loving hell out of him today, and—”
“What? Really?”
“Yes, really. I called him. And yes, he was as uncomfortable with my meddling as you are.”
Elle sighed.
“Look, Flynn respects you, Elle. And he values his job. He’s afraid it’s inappropriate. Which is why he’s the exactly right guy for you to approve of, big sister. You know he’ll treat Angie right.”
Elle made what sounded like a gagging noise.
“Why is this grossing you out?” I demanded.
“Because if I have to hear my bodyguard and my sister getting it on in the next room all over the goddamn globe now, you’re in deep shit.”
“Fine. I can live with that.”
“You’re a romantic yourself, you know that?”
“Of course I am. Glad you’re finally getting with the program.”
Elle snickered.
“Romance is the name of the game, babe. What the fuck are we all doing if we’re not looking for love? If your sister has a chance at finding that and you can help, in any way, it’s your duty as a human being.”
“Uh-huh. So what do you want me to do about it?”
“I want you to invite them both over, then leave the room. Better yet, leave the house. Then report back to me, obviously.”
“Aughhh, why am I agreeing to this? My life is perfect right now. Perfect. I’m going on the road to see my man in like two weeks and Emma is the best and everything is amazing.”
“So? This will only make it more amazing.”
“For who?”
“For them. Let them have a chance. If it’s not meant to be, it won’t work out anyway. Then he’ll leave on the road with you, and they’ll both go on with their lives. No harm, no foul.”
“Ugh. Fine.”
“Now that’s the spirit.”
Elle laughed a little.
“Angie deserves this, babe.”
“Okay. I’ll do it already.”
“Of course you will. Because you’re an awesome big sister. When?”
“I don’t know. Whenever. Do you need a date and time?”
“Yes. I do.”
“Fine. Sometime next week, before I leave town. I’ll see when Angie’s free. Does that satisfy you?”
“Yes, it almost does.”
“You’re relentless,” she said, “do you know that?”
“Thank you. I’ve always considered relentlessness one of my finer qualities.”
She groaned, but I knew she loved me and my relentlessness. “So, what is the fabulous DJ up to tonight?”
“I’m going out to dinner.”
“Oooh. Who’s the lucky man?”
“Ronan Sterling.”
There was a silent, what-the-fuck pause. Then: “You’re going to dinner with your bodyguard?”
“Yup.”
“That sounds suspiciously like a date, Summer.”
I grinned at myself in the mirror. My makeup and hair were done, and I was pretty sure in this lingerie I looked about as fuckable as Ronan had ever seen me.
“Who’s paying?” Elle pressed.
Hmm. Come to think of it… he’d never even let me pay for any of the takeout he’d ordered for me. “He always pays, actually.”
“What? What do you mean always? Have you been on other dates with him??”
“No.”
“You’re lying!”
“Oh, bae. I would never lie to you.”
“Don’t you dare call me bae and then lie to me. I thought you two weren’t hooking up—”
“Oops, gotta go!”
Ronan had appeared in the doorway behind me; I saw him in the mirror. I hung up on Elle and turned to him.
He leaned a shoulder on the doorframe and looked me slowly up and down, drinking me and my purple lingerie in.
“You ready?” he asked, his voice husky.
“Do I look ready?”
“You look ready for something.”
I leaned back on the counter as he advanced toward me. His eyes were locked on mine, and I knew that look.
I fucking loved that look.
Desire surged in my core. My limbs flooded with warmth and I felt weirdly faint as he pressed in. The man had some serious sex magic going on. He did things to my body I was never quite ready for, even when we weren’t having sex.
He took my head in his strong hands and laid a kiss on me, and I completely melted. I fumbled around down below until I found his fly, and tore open his jeans.
He scooped me up and shoved me onto the counter, sending my cosmetics flying as he pressed his body between my legs. Then he slid a hand down into my panties… and sent me to the moon.
And that was how, on our very first official date, Ronan and I had hot, frantic sex on my bathroom counter before we even made it to dinner.
As it turned out, Ronan had made us a dinner reservation, at a very nice restaurant. Good thing, because after all the hot sex, we were hungry as hell.
We were shown to a private booth
