4 Bad Boys to take to Bed (4 Book Bundle Set!) by Elizabeth Nelson Page B

my phone at the same time. She snatched it and I wrestled it from her.
    She’d already gotten into the message. As I scanned the words, not a single recollection came back to me. Drugged texting was a thousand times worse than drunk texting. Warmth flooded my face. They got worse.
    The only one I remembered was his first: GN. Hope everything went ok with your talk. See you tomorrow?
    From there, I drew a blank.
    Thanks. You were sweet to come over.
    I like hanging with you.
    Me too. The kissing part was great. We should do that more.
    I slapped my phone face down on the table. Kerri slipped it from beneath my fingers and scrolled through the conversation. She did a pretty good job of keeping her excitement in check. I didn’t dare look at Jesse.
    The waitress showed up with Jesse’s coffee. “We ready to order?”
    I shoved my face in my menu while Kerri and Jesse ordered. “The Avocadonado, please.” She took our menus and smiled at Jesse again. Bold flirting with a guy bookended by two chicks. He was such a musician. Groupies could smell him a mile away.
    Kerri slid my phone back. Jesse intercepted it and scrolled to the bottom. “So I guess you didn’ t mean any of this?”
    “I do like hanging with you.”
    He twirled the phone between his index fingers and thumb, like an intoxicated pinwheel. “But not kissing me?”
    Kerri squirmed like someone had flippe d the switch on her seat heater, but—impressively—she kept her mouth shut.
    “It wasn’t a kiss, it was to make you quit smoking.”
    “Then if that wasn’t a kiss, there’s no reason we can’t keep doing it. I feel like smoking right now.”
    I huffed and crossed my arms. “Have a sucker.”
    “How about a kiss?”
    “You can’t have a kiss every time you have a craving. It was a one-time deal.”
    “Fine, then I’ll go smoke.”
    Silence stretched and I waited for him to get up. What did I care if he killed himself in a long, slow death from cancer?
    “Sasha?”
    I didn’t look at him. I was having a hard enough time ignoring the lust pounding at my throat, if I looked at him, all my resolve would vanish.
    He leaned his shoulder into mine. “I was kidding. I won’t kiss you if you didn’t like it.”
    I couldn’t say that with a straight face, but we weren’t ever going to do it again so it didn’t matter whether I’d liked it or not. Blanking my face so I didn’t reveal a thing, I smiled and met his eyes. “I like where we’re at.”
    He nodded once. “Then that’s where we’ll stay.”
    I didn’t believe him, but it was enough to get me through breakfast—which luckily arrived before I had to say anything. He looked down his nose at mine while drizzling syrup over his full stack. Without comment, he handed me the bottle. I poured a pool in the corner of my plate.
    He coughed. “You’ re not serious.”
    “Shut it.”
    I cut a corner of the avocado explosion that may have contained eggs and dipped it in the syrup. “How fast today?”
    Pancakes paused at his lips. “Nine.”
    “How far?”
    “Seven.”
    “I hate you.”
    “Run with me when you’re foot’s healed and I’ll get you there. ” He popped the pancakes in.
    “You’ll be a great trainer.” Kerri waved her fork in the air. “Just pretend you’re going to kiss her.”
    My face heated up and I hid behind my coffee mug.
    Jesse laughed and high-fived Kerri. Jerks.
    Breakfast wasn’t horrible. Again. He was making a habit out of being charming. Good thing we were just friends.
    A commotion on the far side of the restaurant saved me from any further humiliation.
    “Oh my.” Kerri’s exclamation lifted my head. I swallowed quickly to keep from spewing coffee over the table. Dew and a herd of fit, barely dressed men were headed toward our table—not a boy among them. Sculpted muscle bunched and flexed beneath cut-off sweatshirts, tank tops, and jerseys. My eyes bulged and I swallowed as they jostled and bumped against each other, moving like a pack of