Entwined With You

behind us. “I wasn’t finished talking to you.”
    Gideon glanced at him. “I’ll get to you in a minute.”
    “You’ll talk to me now.”
    “Walk away, Christopher.” Gideon stared at his brother so coldly I shivered despite the heat. “Before you make a scene that takes all the attention away from Six-Ninths.”
    Christopher seethed for a long minute, then seemed to realize his brother wasn’t kidding. He cursed under his breath and turned, only to be confronted by Ireland.
    “Leave them alone,” she said, with her hands on her hips. “I want them to get back together.”
    “You stay out of this.”
    “Whatever.” She wrinkled her nose at him. “Come show me around.”
    He paused, his gaze narrowed. Then he sighed and took her by the elbow, leading her away. I realized they were close.
    It made me sad that Gideon didn’t have that kind of bond with them.
    Gideon brought my attention back to him with a brush of fingertips to my cheek, a soft caress that conveyed so much love … and possession.No one looking at us could mistake the claim. “Tell me you know nothing happened with Corinne.”
    I sighed. “I know you didn’t do anything with her.”
    “Good. She’s not acting like herself. I’ve never seen her so … Damn it. I don’t know. Needy. Irrational.”
    “Devastated?”
    “Maybe. Yes.” His face softened. “She wasn’t like this when she broke our engagement.”
    I felt bad for both of them. Ugly good-byes weren’t fun for anyone. “She walked away that time. This time, it’s you. It’s always harder being the one left behind.”
    “I’m trying to settle her down, but I need you to promise me that she’s not going to get in between us.”
    “I won’t let her. And you’re not going to worry about Brett.”
    It took him a few seconds, but he finally said, “I’ll worry, but I’ll handle it.”
    I could tell it wasn’t an easy concession for him to make.
    His lips thinned. “I have to go deal with Christopher. Are we okay?”
    Nodding, I said, “I’m good. You?”
    “As long as Kline doesn’t kiss you.” The warning was clear in his voice.
    “Same goes.”
    “If he kisses me, he’s getting decked.”
    I laughed. “You know what I meant.”
    He caught my hand and rubbed his thumb over my ring. “Crossfire.”
    My heart hurt in the best way. “Love you, too, ace.”
    B RETT disengaged from his fans and headed over to the tent, looking grim.
    “Having fun yet?” I asked him, hoping to keep him feeling positive.
    “He wants you back,” he said bluntly.
    I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”
    “If you’re going to give him a second chance, I should get one, too.”
    “Brett—”
    “I know it’s tough with me being on the road—”
    “And based in San Diego,” I pointed out.
    “—but I can make it out here often enough and you can always meet up with me, see some new places. Plus, the tour ends in November. I can come stay out here for the holidays.” He looked at me with those green eyes of his, and the attraction hummed between us. “Your dad’s still in SoCal, so you’ve got more than one reason to come out.”
    “You’d be reason enough. But, Brett … I don’t know what to say. I’m in love with him.”
    He crossed his arms and looked exactly like the wickedly delicious bad boy he was. “I don’t care. It’s not going to work out for you with him, and I’ll be around, Eva.”
    Staring at him, I realized nothing would convince him but time.
    Brett stepped closer, then reached out to run his hand down my arm. He stood over me, his body curved into mine. I remembered other times we’d stood like this, the moments right before he pressed me back against something and fucked me hard.
    “It’s only going to take once,” he murmured in my ear, his voice sinful as always. “One time inside you and you’ll remember how it is between us.”
    I swallowed past a dry throat. “That’s not going to happen, Brett.”
    His mouth curved in a slow smile, revealing that decadent dimple. “We’ll see about that.”
    “I can’t believe they’re so much hotter in person,” Ireland said, looking over at where the guys were doing their prelaunch interview with the TV show host. “You, too, Cary.”
    He smiled, his teeth dazzlingly white. “Well, thank you, darlin’.”
    “So …” She looked at me with those blue eyes that were so like Gideon’s. “You used to date Brett Kline?”
    “Not really. Honestly, we just used to mess