Laid Bare - Lauren Dane [32]
She smiled as she got herself together enough to reach for plates. Todd and his friends were a lot like Brody and Adrian. That kinship showed, and Erin felt that if Todd trusted these men enough to love them like brothers, they were indeed worthy men.
If Ben Copeland had been overwhelmingly large and very handsome, his little brother was downright sinfully gorgeous. He was Todd’s size, with black hair and striking blue eyes. She also knew him.
“So Cope is actually Andy Copeland, huh?” She put the plates on the table and moved toward them.
“Oh my god! You’re the café hottie! Your brother has done my inkwork.” Cope turned to Todd, whose eyebrows had slashed down, his face darkening into a scowl. Cope laughed. “I sneak into your girlfriend’s café at least once a month to drink coffee and to check out what color her hair might be next. Back with Mud Bay you had dreads, and then your hair was very short and black. Hot.” He waggled his brows. “I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you. I should have recognized your voice though. You should have sung more often. That smoky sex voice thing you do on ‘Lashed’ is hot stuff.”
She laughed. “Um, thanks.”
“I can’t believe you and Ben know her stuff and I don’t. I feel like an idiot.”
She reached up, sliding her hand up his neck, wanting to soothe him. “You know me. That’s better. It’s okay, really.”
He turned like his friend wasn’t there and kissed her, hard and fast.
“I blame Waylon Jennings and Toby Keith.” Cope shrugged.
She wrinkled her nose. “It’s only half as bad as I imagined. Waylon kicks ass,” she teased.
“What do you have against Toby?” Todd asked.
“It’s my belief that men who are aggressive and always threatening to beat people up are overcompensating.” She grinned, knowing she and Todd were not close politically at all. Good thing the sex made up for it.
Just then Ben came in with several bags of takeout and the space was filled with so much testosterone a girl could have gotten drunk from it. Instead, she ordered them all to sit, and they popped open lids to the various containers. She sighed happily, putting spoons in things and passing around plates.
Without thinking, she made a plate for Todd and put a beer down for him. His eyes, when he looked at her, burned with some inner light. She hadn’t meant it to be provocative; she just took care of him. Not because he was her master or anything, but because she liked making him happy.
Which scared her. She couldn’t take anyone else into her heart, damn it. It was too much and she’d already lost him once. It had hurt a lot after only a few months when she was very young. What would it be like now? What would the emotional cost be if he walked away again? She sure as hell didn’t have the currency left to pay for it.
She played a stupid, dangerous game with him and she knew it. If she was smart, she’d walk away now. Telling herself she could keep it friendly was a lie and she knew it. Not because she wasn’t capable of fucking casually; she totally was. Erin wasn’t the type of woman who equated sex and love. But this was different because he was different. He got to her. No one had made her want to serve them simply because she wanted to please. God help her. She wasn’t strong enough to deal with the emotional devastation if he walked away, but she wasn’t strong enough to run now herself.
He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “You’re thinking, Erin. It’s like a movie, watching your face. Don’t run from me. I’ll come for you. I want you and you want me. Let yourself have it.” His whispered breath was hot on her ear and it sent a shiver down her side.
She nearly dropped her beer from fingers gone nerveless. How did he get her so well?
“I wanted to tell you how much I