moment for Greg’s buzzy brain to process the information. Even then, some of the relevance escaped him. “Yoga?”
His friend’s face lit with mischief. “Hooked her feet on the headboard. With her head still on the pillows,” he clarified with a lift of his brows. “I’ll fill you in on the details later, you big perv, there’s a damsel in distress to rescue.”
“Wait! Take her shoe.” Spinning on his heel, he stalked to the closet. The second the door swung open, a sinful red pump dropped into his open hand. “Thanks,” he muttered, closing the door again.
Will startled and Greg froze, his head canting to the right as he read the questions scrolling across his best friend’s face. Slowly he turned. The faint creak of the hinges screamed in the silent room. Josie stared back at him, her dark hair a puffy cloud around her face and streaks of last night’s mascara rimming shock-widened eyes. A potent mix of relief, confusion, anger, and elation clogged his throat. He struggled to work a word, any word, past the fist-sized lump. The best he managed was a croaking, “Hi.”
Josie’s ripe mouth pulled into a solemn line, but a spark of amusement twinkled in her eyes. “Hello.”
Will stepped forward, a delight creasing his face as he peered around the edge of the door. “Hey, Josie.”
“Hi, Will,” she returned without missing a beat.
Shaking his head, Greg glanced over his shoulder, looking for a hidden camera or something. “This must be Blake Edwards’s room.” Josie’s pink cheeks made his heart thrum against his breastbone. He drew her out of the closet. “Is this a joke? Why are you hiding in the closet?”
She shrugged. “Because I have no coat, no money, and only one shoe?”
The beguiling twitch of her lips worked its magic on him again.
“Fair enough.” Oblivious to the man standing beside him, Greg stared deep into her eyes as he pointed out the obvious. “For a minute there you had both shoes.”
“Yeah, but by then I was already in the closet.”
Her explanation was so short, so direct, and so utterly rational it made absolute sense. “I’m glad you didn’t leave.”
“You are?”
Greg took a step closer, but the moment his hand landed on her waist, she stiffened and darted a glance beyond his shoulder.
Will didn’t cough or clear his throat. That would have been too subtle. “Ahem.” He spoke the word slowly and distinctly, his eyes alight with avid interest. “I hate to mention this because I know you’ll stop, but you do know I’m still here?”
Josie’s scoff made it perfectly clear she hadn’t forgotten the other man’s presence. A sharp surge of jealousy knifed Greg, twisting hard and deep as she stepped back out of his reach. He let his hand fall to his side, but not before he envisioned seven different ways of making his friend pay for his interference.
“Gentlemen, this has been an interesting evening and an even more mortifying morning, but I should be getting home.”
Torn between visions of Will’s vivisection and parsing the meaning behind Josie’s use of the word mortifying, Greg jumped when she plucked her shoe from his hand once more. A hot rush of panic-laced desire pulsed through him as she clutched his arm and bent like a pretzel to slip her foot into it. “Don’t go.”
“I’ll take you,” Will said at the same time.
Will’s quick offer stopped Greg’s heart. Betrayal tightened his throat. He fixed his oldest friend with an incredulous glare. “The hell you will.” He placed his body between Will and Josie’s. “I’ll take you home.”
“You can’t.” When Greg glared at his best friend, Will raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “You’ve got a brunch date, remember?”
Injustice clawed at Greg’s throat as he fixated on Josie’s curious expression. His fingers curled into his palm, and Will’s smirk made him want to use the fist they formed. A totally ridiculous reaction, he knew. Will had been his friend for
His friend’s face lit with mischief. “Hooked her feet on the headboard. With her head still on the pillows,” he clarified with a lift of his brows. “I’ll fill you in on the details later, you big perv, there’s a damsel in distress to rescue.”
“Wait! Take her shoe.” Spinning on his heel, he stalked to the closet. The second the door swung open, a sinful red pump dropped into his open hand. “Thanks,” he muttered, closing the door again.
Will startled and Greg froze, his head canting to the right as he read the questions scrolling across his best friend’s face. Slowly he turned. The faint creak of the hinges screamed in the silent room. Josie stared back at him, her dark hair a puffy cloud around her face and streaks of last night’s mascara rimming shock-widened eyes. A potent mix of relief, confusion, anger, and elation clogged his throat. He struggled to work a word, any word, past the fist-sized lump. The best he managed was a croaking, “Hi.”
Josie’s ripe mouth pulled into a solemn line, but a spark of amusement twinkled in her eyes. “Hello.”
Will stepped forward, a delight creasing his face as he peered around the edge of the door. “Hey, Josie.”
“Hi, Will,” she returned without missing a beat.
Shaking his head, Greg glanced over his shoulder, looking for a hidden camera or something. “This must be Blake Edwards’s room.” Josie’s pink cheeks made his heart thrum against his breastbone. He drew her out of the closet. “Is this a joke? Why are you hiding in the closet?”
She shrugged. “Because I have no coat, no money, and only one shoe?”
The beguiling twitch of her lips worked its magic on him again.
“Fair enough.” Oblivious to the man standing beside him, Greg stared deep into her eyes as he pointed out the obvious. “For a minute there you had both shoes.”
“Yeah, but by then I was already in the closet.”
Her explanation was so short, so direct, and so utterly rational it made absolute sense. “I’m glad you didn’t leave.”
“You are?”
Greg took a step closer, but the moment his hand landed on her waist, she stiffened and darted a glance beyond his shoulder.
Will didn’t cough or clear his throat. That would have been too subtle. “Ahem.” He spoke the word slowly and distinctly, his eyes alight with avid interest. “I hate to mention this because I know you’ll stop, but you do know I’m still here?”
Josie’s scoff made it perfectly clear she hadn’t forgotten the other man’s presence. A sharp surge of jealousy knifed Greg, twisting hard and deep as she stepped back out of his reach. He let his hand fall to his side, but not before he envisioned seven different ways of making his friend pay for his interference.
“Gentlemen, this has been an interesting evening and an even more mortifying morning, but I should be getting home.”
Torn between visions of Will’s vivisection and parsing the meaning behind Josie’s use of the word mortifying, Greg jumped when she plucked her shoe from his hand once more. A hot rush of panic-laced desire pulsed through him as she clutched his arm and bent like a pretzel to slip her foot into it. “Don’t go.”
“I’ll take you,” Will said at the same time.
Will’s quick offer stopped Greg’s heart. Betrayal tightened his throat. He fixed his oldest friend with an incredulous glare. “The hell you will.” He placed his body between Will and Josie’s. “I’ll take you home.”
“You can’t.” When Greg glared at his best friend, Will raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “You’ve got a brunch date, remember?”
Injustice clawed at Greg’s throat as he fixated on Josie’s curious expression. His fingers curled into his palm, and Will’s smirk made him want to use the fist they formed. A totally ridiculous reaction, he knew. Will had been his friend for
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