“Surprise.”

“You’re wearing stockings and garters.”

“I know.”

“We should be at the Grange in fifteen minutes.”

“You’d better be quick then, huh?”

His chuckle brought the brush of his warm breath against her thighs as he pushed her dress up. “You’ll be showing them to me later. In my bedroom with the lights on. I think you should leave the shoes on too.”

Her hands dropped to his shoulders as her upper body leaned against the island behind her.

He pulled the panties out of the way and she widened her stance as his fingers slid through her pu**y, hissing when he found her hot and wet.

Leaning in, his mouth found her ready for him, her clit already swollen and sensitive. Her taste seduced him. He loved the way she felt on his tongue, loved the scent of her body, of her skin and the honey that rained on his tongue. Loved the long, lean flanks of her legs.

Two of his fingers pressed up and inside her as he took quick, whisper-light licks over her clit. A gasp tore from her lips and her fingers dug into his shoulders.

This was an appetizer, something to whet his appetite for her and get him through the next hours. When he got her back to his place he planned to get a better look at those sexy stockings as her legs wrapped around him.

He recognized the change in her taste, the tremble in her thigh muscles and the quickening of her breathing and knew her orgasm was on the way. He loved to give her a hard, fast climax, leaving her for a few hours, knowing he’d be back for more later on. Knew she’d be wet for him for the rest of the night and it was only fair because he’d be hard for her all night long too.

With a soft intake of breath and a long moan, she came with his name on her lips. He loved hearing it that way. Often thought of how it sounded during his day.

After her pu**y had stopped fluttering around his fingers he withdrew them slowly and rearranged her panties before standing and kissing her. Hard and possessive.

He was glad they’d reached the stage where he could be a bit more dominant with her and it didn’t spook her. Just thinking about her made him want to grab her and head for the hills. She brought out something very primal in him and he liked it. No one else ever affected him on that level.

“You ready to go?”

Eyes opening slowly, she brought her fingertips to her lips. “I…uh yeah. What about you?”

He was glad she couldn’t see how predatory his grin must have looked there in the dark, as he thought about once they were back at his place. “Believe me, darlin’, I’ll collect later on.”

At the Grange, Cassie was sure everyone would know Shane went down on her with the drapes open in her kitchen in the dark. But if they did, none of them seemed too bothered by it.

That’s when she noticed Penny walk in with a tall, handsome man about their age.

“Ryan Betts. How are you?” Shane stood up and clapped the man on his shoulder.

“I’m good. Just squiring Penny around for the evening. It’s only taken fifteen years to get a third date with her. You look well, Shane.” He turned his green eyes to Cassie. “You must be Cassie. Penny talks about you all the time. I’m Ryan, it’s nice to meet you.”

Cassie took his proffered hand and shook it before turning her eyes to a very pinkfaced Penny. “Nice to meet the mystery date. I’ve been bugging Penny for the last week but she kept telling me I’d meet you when I met you.”

“And you did. It’s a good thing you’re such a good employee because you’re a pest.” Penny’s laugh sounded different than Cassie had ever heard. It was nearly a giggle.

There were long minutes of back slapping and drink getting and a few toasts as Cassie watched them all. She hadn’t felt like an outsider for a few months but realized that’s what it looked like when you had lifelong friends.

She felt the edge of that divide rather sharply although she knew none of them intended it. Cassie didn’t have friends she’d known all her life. People left a lot. Her mother died, she went to boarding school for several years until high school. She did stay in LA to go to college at UC Irvine and then medical school at UCLA. The only permanence had been Brian.

“Why the long face, gorgeous?” Matt sat down next to her and put a mug of steaming cider in front of her.

“Oh nothing. I was just thinking about how I didn’t really have lifelong friends like all of you. I suppose I was just feeling a bit sorry for myself.”

Matt took her hand and squeezed it. “You have us now. And once you’re a Chase, you don’t want for company. Of course, that also means we’re always up in your business too.”

“You making a play for my girl?” Shane turned and smiled.

“In a perfect world, Shane, your lovely woman would realize what a tool you are and run away with me. But alas, the world is a flawed place and for some crazy reason, she loves you.” Matt put a hand over his heart dramatically.

“Come on, darlin’. Let’s grab a dance or two before dinner gets started.”

Cassie stood, taking Shane’s hand and let him draw her onto the floor and against his body.

“You were meant to be here against me. You know?” he murmured into her ear.

“It feels that way, yeah.”

“God it makes me happy when you accept all of this. This thing between us.”

“It makes me happy too. I was just thinking tonight as I got ready about how lucky I am in you. You’re so good to me.”