Page 18 of Knight
He was too close and too complicated for casual, and I had no room in my life for anything else.
It would only make a mess for both of us.
CHAPTER 4
KNIGHT
Aiden Donovan looked good.
Too damn good.
Even without the mesh top and booty shorts, his jeans and T-shirt clung to the shape of his body, reminding me of the dips and valleys that had pressed against me all those months ago.
But that was ridiculous. I couldn’t possibly remember it that well. Even if I hadn’t really had a hookup worth remembering since.
“How’s it going over at the tattoo shop, Knight?” Gray kicked my foot. “Earth to Knight. You in there?”
“Huh?” I tore my gaze from Aiden to see the guys all looking at me. Shit. Way to play it cool.
“The tattoo shop,” Emory said with a smile. “They want to know if you can stand working with me.”
“Nobody said that,” Gray said with a laugh. “You’re a total sweetheart.”
“For you, maybe,” Axel grumbled. “I bet Emory knows how to crack the whip, huh? Especially now that he’s a certified tattoo artist.”
There was a note of pride in their teasing. Emory had only recently become fully qualified to do tattoo work on his own.
I smirked. “Emory’s such a mean girl. He makes me clean and prep all the stations.”
“What?” he exclaimed. “That’s Cyrus’s call. I don’t?—”
Everyone broke into laughter.
“Are you calling Cyrus a mean girl?” Shiloh teased.
“I’ll have to tell him the next time I get some work done,” Holden said with a chuckle.
Emory groaned. “I hate you all.”
Aiden, Bailey, and Flynn arrived at the table laden with drinks.
“Hey, Knight, you remember Aiden, right?” Flynn asked as he handed me a shot.
I lifted the shot glass, watching Aiden over the rim. “How could I forget?”
I tossed the liquor back. The tequila burned down my throat and warmed my belly.
“Yeah,Thanksgivingwas memorable,” Aiden said. “It’s when I met all of you for the first time.”
He shot me a warning look, as if I’d really blurt out to everyone that we’d hooked up before. Not worth stirring up that kind of drama over a one-off, even a freaking amazing one that I couldn’t seem to forget.
I smirked, unable to resist teasing him a little. “You came back for seconds, huh?”
His eyes flashed. “Yeah, I couldn’t get enough of the lovefest my brother has going on with Bailey.”
I laughed. “They are pretty sappy these days.”
Aiden rolled his eyes. “Sappy is putting it lightly. They’re horndogs.”
