Delayed Call Read online

  “Jack and Coke, you freak. Get your own drink,” she said, smacking him away. “You guys can go, really. I’m terrible company.”

  “Let’s change that,” Jensen said, taking the cup out of her hand and handing it to Vaughn. “Dance with me.”

  Vaughn’s mouth actually dropped open. Like, to the floor, as his best friend pulled a very reluctant Wren to the dance floor while she protested. “I’m a horrible dancer.”

  “Good, so am I.”

  Throwing his thumb up, Vaughn bounced up and down. Jensen shot him a dirty look before moving to the floor and taking Wren in his arms. She went willingly. Call him silly, but he pulled his phone out and took a picture, sending it to Wells. He answered back almost immediately.

  Wells: No. Way.

  Vaughn: Right? He just asked! Took her out there and everything.

  Wells: Way to go, Jenny!

  Vaughn: I know. I’m proud.

  Wells: They grow up so fast.

  Vaughn: Whatever will we do? Our babies aren’t babies anymore.

  He waited for Wells to text him back, a little grin on his face, but then he heard, “Texting at a party. Is your date boring?”

  Looking up from his phone, he found Brie grinning up at him.

  And he was dazzled.

  Dazzled? Could he be dazzled? He wasn’t sure, but at that moment, he was pretty fucking dazzled. If he’d thought she looked gorgeous from afar, nothing could touch how she looked up close. Her lips were so plump, her eyes so bright with the glitter and gold makeup, and Jesus, she smelled heavenly. “Hey, no. No date.”

  Her lips curled more, and he was pretty sure she was batting her eyelashes at him. “Oh, well, mine is in the bathroom.”

  Tucking his phone into his pocket, he scoffed. “Liar.”

  She shrugged. “Can’t blame me for trying.”

  “Ha, yeah.”

  Turning to face the party, she took a sip from her wineglass before looking up at him as he took a long pull of what he discovered was just Coke. Why did Wren lie? Before he could question that more, though, Brie said, “Party is nice.”

  “It is. Elli puts on one hell of a show.”

  “She does. And my goodness, how does she do it? She’s so gorgeous all the time. And five kids? Lord. It exhausts me just thinking about it.”

  “Yeah, those kids aren’t easy either, but she does it with grace,” he added with a nod.

  She smiled. “Oh, I didn’t get to thank you for stopping by earlier. I had to leave for my hair appointment, but Rodney was beyond excited. He sent me all the pictures of him, Mitch, and the girls together. That was sweet of you and Dawn.”

  His face broke into a grin. “The cake was my idea.”

  “Well, since the cake said, ‘From Nate,’ I kind of got that.”

  He laughed. “Wanted you two to know.”

  “We did, and he loved it.”

  “Good. I’m glad. I’ll let Dawn know.”

  “I already sent her screenshots of his texts to me.”

  “Cool, but yeah, he looked good. He was really peppy.”

  “Yeah, he is in good spirits, ready to go home, he says.”

  “Good,” he said with a nod. Everyone loved Rodney at NateWay, and Vaughn was so damn happy he was fitting in so well. He knew that kid was the perfect fit when he met him. He was so full of life, so funny; they needed him as much as he needed them. Clearing his throat, he said, “I noticed that his arm was really weak. He said he couldn’t move it.”

  She let out a long breath. “Yeah. After the first heart attack, he lost all feeling in his left arm. It came back, but then the second one knocked it out again. So they think that it’s just a temporary side effect.”

  “Yeah, I think Dawn wants to give him a volunteer during his recovery.”

  “That’s what she texted me. I agree.”

  “Good. I’m glad we’re all on the same page.”

  “Me too. She said she’ll go visit while we’re in California.”

  “I told her to,” he said, meeting her gaze, and she smiled.

  “Thanks.”

  Heat started to spread across his chest as he stared into her eyes. They were so blue, so gorgeous. Everything about the girl was just exquisite. The air around them was crackling, and he felt it. Could feel her heat. He swore as her gaze moved along him he could feel it in every fiber of his body. He wanted nothing more than to close the gap between them and kiss that dark red mouth of hers. He wondered how she tasted. He wondered how she kissed. Would she be rough, sweet? God, he wanted her.

  And she must have suspected it because she looked away, a small smile pulling at her lips as she said, “You missed media.”

  “On purpose.”

  She giggled. “I figured.”

  “I hate it.”

  “I know.”

  “But if I had known you were gonna look that damn good, I might have showed.”

  Her lips curved even more as her eyes lit up. “Are you complimenting me, Mr. Johansson?”

  “Aw, call me JoHo. It’s endearing.”

  She sputtered with laughter. “Fine, are you complimenting me, JoHo?”

  His eyes held hers as his lips tipped up just slightly into a grin. “Yeah, I am.”

  “Well, thank you. You look pretty damn snazzy yourself.”

  He nodded as he ran his hands down the front of his suit. “I know.”

  Scoffing, she rolled her eyes. “You’re sickening.”

  “I know that too.”

  She looked up at him, laughing, and he grinned back down at her as the party went on around them. All he saw was her. How did this happen? Days ago, he hated her with everything inside of him. But now…now, he wanted her.

  Desperately.

  When “Bad Things” by Machine Gun Kelly started, her face changed into some pursed lip look as she started to thrust her pelvis. With his brows to his hairline, he gasped, “What are you doing?”

  “Oh, man! I love this song.”

  “Oh, you’re dancing.”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you know how to dance?”

  “Yes! I’m dancing.”

  “You’re humping the air.”

  “You don’t know anything about my mad moves.”

  His brows drew in, and then he found himself setting down the glass he held. He took her hand and brought her out onto the floor. “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “I’m showing you real mad moves,” he said before spinning her out and then back in against him. When she came into him with a gasp, her lips spread wide as he started to move against her, Dirty Dancing-style.

  Thank you, Wren, for making him watch that movie four times a day for a whole summer when he was twelve.

  He may not have been going exactly to the beat of the music, but he didn’t think either of them cared. They were too busy laughing and acting like complete fools as they moved along the floor, both showing moves they should have left at home. He saw Jensen watching them, shaking his head, and Vaughn didn’t care. He was having a blast. When the song changed to something slow, they both gradually stopped, looking around awkwardly. It was easy just being silly, but as people started to embrace around them, he wasn’t sure what to do.

  So he did what he did best. He didn’t think, he just grabbed her, bringing her in close, his hands sliding against her bare skin. Why hadn’t he done this sooner? She felt so fucking good. Right. So right. Looking up at him, she tried to wrap her arms around his neck. She couldn’t reach, but she did get them near his neck, at least.

  Shooting her a small smile, he whispered, “You’re short.”

  She glared. “I’m aware.”

  “Do you want me to pick you up?”

  “Sure, if you want me to knee you in the dick.”

  His brows shot up. “Rude.”

  “Douche.”

  Grinning, he moved his thumbs along her back as her lips curved and she laid her head on his chest. As they swayed, he saw her eyes drift shut. All