Cherish her: Laws of Seduction, Book 4 (16 page)

When the two alpha males are through weighing each other up and down, I manage to once again capture Jarod’s attention. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming? How long are you staying?”

Jarod laughs at my stream of questions. “I’m here for the weekend. We wanted it to be a surprise.” Jarod shoots a glance over to my brother Jett, who is grinning at both of us. ““You should have seen the look on your face.” I give him a punch in the upper arm, and he reaches up with his opposite hand to rub the spot. “Hey, what was that for?”

Although I would never let on, my hand smarts from the punch. “I don’t know. I felt like it.”

Alex walks up and pulls on my arm, “Come on, Lainey. Time to pay the piper.” We approach the Naked Cowboy, and Alex explains our bet. After handing the street performer a fifty, he gives me a pat on the shoulder and walks off. I have to squint as I look up at the Naked Cowboy, who is on the tall side. He gives me a blindingly white grin and suggests a few songs. When he says one that I know, I nod my head in agreement. All too soon, he is playing the first chords of the melody. He looks at me and gives a big nod to cue me, and taking a deep breath, I start belting out “Love you like a love song” by Selena Gomez. I hear the whistles and yells of encouragement from my friends, which help to quiet my nerves. After the first few bars, I even find myself starting to enjoy the unplanned performance. The jubilant faces of my friends mix in with the unfamiliar faces of the tourists, who have stopped to enjoy the spectacle. Sam walks up to the Naked Cowboy and tries to slip five-dollar bills into his briefs, to which he responds, “There’s no room in the briefs, gotta put it in the boots.” Next she turns to me and slides a bill into the top of my shirt, slipping it under my bra strap. I have to struggle to keep singing and not laugh out loud. Several people hold their cell phones up to record the moment.

As the song comes to an end, my eyes land on James, who gives me a wink along with an approving smile. The impromptu audience claps enthusiastically, and my brothers and friends hoot and holler with glee. I give a dramatic bow before turning to thank the Naked Cowboy, who tips his hat at me before giving me a one-armed hug.

James announces that he has made lunch reservations for all of us in a restaurant nearby, and we laughingly leave the loud chaos of Times Square. James holds my hand as we walk. I am in a euphoric mood. It is a beautiful day, my brother has shown up for a surprise visit, and I am with the love of my life. Not to mention that most of my friends are going to have lunch with us, and perhaps, most importantly, the nerve-wracking singing performance is over. Briefly my mind turns to Tobin and the fact that he is planning some revenge plan against James, but I firmly push the thought away. Think of the positive, I tell myself. Becca is far away in Switzerland, where she will remain for the foreseeable future. The return of Elizabeth to the office had also not been as terrible as I thought. She had been polite and professional, and I am beginning to think that she has worked through her issues.

James gives my hand a tight squeeze, recalling me to the present. “I didn’t know you could sing like that.”

I smile up at him. “I’m glad I can still surprise you.”

He smiles back down at me and sets the butterflies off in my stomach. Damn, how does he do that? I have to concentrate on what he is saying. “You always manage to surprise me. If there is one thing that I have learned, it is that there is more to Lainey Hart than meets the eye.”

“Yes,” I say approvingly. “You can always count on me.”

“I know.” His tone has turned serious. Faintly, I become aware that he is rubbing this thumb and forefinger back and forth across the base of my ring finger. “I would like to take you shopping this weekend.”

“That sounds fun,” I say before the implication of his words hit me. Coming to a dead stop on the sidewalk, I turn and face him. The secretive smile on his face is all it takes for me to know exactly what he wants to shop for. Of their own volition, my arms fly up around his neck, and he catches me. His mouth swoops down on mine in a wet, hot kiss. When he pulls back, I run my eyes over his face, soaking in the happy contentment that I see there. “Oh, James.”

Before I can say more, I feel a light slap between my shoulder blades. I don’t take my eyes from James’s face, but hear Jarod’s voice from over my shoulder. ““Are you two always like this? Because if you are, I am not sure I can take a whole weekend.” He addresses his last comment to James. “Have some respect, man. That’s my little sister.”

I hear Sam’s laughter tinkling next to him. “If you think that’s bad, wait ‘til you hear about a few weeks ago.”

Jarod groans. “No! Please God no.” His voice trails off as if he is trying to get away from Sam.

James, who has been watching the interchange with some amusement, looks back at me. “So we’re on for shopping this weekend, right?”

Happiness like I have never known before surges through me. “Right.”

About the Author

After living for several years in New York City, Ava moved with her family to Germany. She currently lives in Berlin with her husband, two children, and cat Gus-Gus. Yes, he was named after the mouse from Cinderella. When she is not writing, she tries to soak up as much German language and culture as she can. 

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