He slowly uncurled his fingers and lifted his head just in time to see…yup, Shelby was running an ice cube along Carson’s jaw line.
Garrett watched as she leaned in closer and traced Carson’s mouth with the ice. The lucky bastard was enjoying every second of it and Garrett didn’t blame him. He’d be pretty happy too if Shelby had her fingers on his mouth. Which raised the question—
would he be getting a turn? Because damn, he really, really wanted one. But she seemed pretty content teasing Carson to oblivion, and then she leaned even closer and…
Kissed him.
She was kissing his best friend.
And Garrett, fucking strangely enough, was as turned on as he was envious. He couldn’t help himself, couldn’t tear his eyes away from the sight of Shelby’s mouth pressed against Carson’s. Her tongue sliding between his friend’s lips and delving into his mouth. The soft moan she gave when their tongues met.
Shockwaves of heat pulsed in Garrett’s groin.
Fuck.
Fuck.
What was happening? He’d wanted this woman for an entire year, and here she was, kissing his buddy. Kissing, and running her fingers through Carson’s hair, and…was he imagining it or had she just slid her other hand onto Carson’s lap?
“Whoa,” Carson muttered, and Garrett knew he hadn’t imagined it.
Shelby did indeed have her hand on his friend’s crotch.
22
Heat of the Moment
“What are you doing?” Carson asked hoarsely.
Good question.
Shelby withdrew her hand and leaned back in her chair, but Garrett saw the hint of a smile tugging at her lush lips.
“I’m going to be honest,” she finally said, shifting her gaze between the two men. “I think we should go upstairs to my apartment. All three of us.”
Carson’s head swiveled in Garrett’s direction.
Garrett, however, kept his gaze on Shelby. “Are you serious?” he squeezed out.
“Oh yeah.” She shrugged, demurely clasping her hands together on her lap.
“But…why?” he had to ask.
Her smile transformed into a naughty grin, her ocean-blue eyes sparkling with desire and amusement. “Because I want to, of course.”
Because she wanted to. It was such a simple, no-nonsense answer, and yet Garrett couldn’t wrap his brain around it. Who was this wild-eyed vixen and what had she done with his sweet, freckle-faced Shelby? Shelby, the woman who baked cakes for a living, who actually cared enough to ask him how his day was, who could brighten up his world with just one small smile.
He’d spent the last year getting to know her, holding off on asking her out because he didn’t want to make it seem like all he wanted to do was jump her bones. And now here she was, flat-out offering to jump his bones, along with the bones of his closest friend.
Part of him was distressed. Dismayed that he’d obviously gotten her all wrong, that she was only looking for a good time like all the other women he’d been with.
But another part of him, the turned on part, was dying to go upstairs with her. So what if she wanted Carson to tag along? Garrett had craved this woman for so long that at this point he was willing to do anything to get her. Take what you can get, his body was telling him. His head, too, seemed to be in agreement, pointing out that the offer wasn’t likely to stay on the table for long. A few more moments of hesitation and she’d probably kick him out and choose to go upstairs with Carson instead. Just Carson.
23
Elle Kennedy
“Let’s do it then.” The words came out before he could stop them and once he’d thrown them out there he couldn’t take them back. His legs were unusually shaky as he stood, but he managed to keep a composed front. Glancing at Carson, he added, “You up for it?”
His buddy looked momentarily surprised, shooting him a look that said, “Are you sure about this, man?”
It was actually kind of nice, that Carson would request permission. Carson Scott was the type of guy who did what he wanted, when he wanted it, but when it came to his friends he was oddly considerate. Since Garrett hadn’t made his feelings for Shelby a secret, it wasn’t surprising that Carson would respect them.
He knew all he had to do was give an imperceptible shake of the head and Carson would hightail it outta there, but if he telepathically ordered Carson to get lost, would Shelby still want him? Or was a threesome a prerequisite for tonight’s fantasy?
He looked over at Shelby, whose arousal was clearly written all over her flushed face, and realized the answers to either of those questions didn’t matter. He was going to take what he could get. One on one, two on one, it didn’t fucking matter. Not as long as he got to be with this woman.
And so he offered Carson a small nod of reassurance, because really, if a kinky ménage was what Shelby Harper had in mind, then that was exactly what he’d give her.
24
Heat of the Moment
Chapter Three