Page 49 of Praised
“He knows better,” Rob said, but the flush on his cheeks indicated that there might have been some recent changes to the dynamic of their relationship that none of us were privy to.
“You still haven’t answered the question,” Barclay said.
“There wasn’t one.” From across the room, I could see Rose headed back toward us, tray of water glasses in hand. “Do not say something asinine in front of him.”
“Or what?” Archie threw his head back and laughed just as Rose reached the table.
My heart hammered against my sternum as Rose’s thigh grazed the outside of my arm. He leaned past me to set water onto the table, then tucked the tray under the crook of his arm and stepped back.
“Have you five had a chance to look over the menu?” he asked.
“We haven’t even thought about the menu,” Dalton almost purred.
I smacked him and narrowed my eyes in warning.
“There’s cocktails on the back,” Rose offered, reaching in front of me and flipping my menu onto the other side. “I’ll give you some more time.”
“I’ll have a whiskey,” Rob said. “On the rocks.”
“Same,” Archie said, letting his menu fall to the table.
“What about you?” Rose asked me.
“Water.”
Barclay laughed at my answer and threw his menu on top of mine. “The rest of us will have whatever whiskey you’re getting for the first two.”
“Four whiskeys and a water,” Rose summarized.
“Not well,” Barclay added.
Rose feigned insult, pressing his hand against his chest. “I’d never.”
That retort earned half of a smile from Archie, and a moment of peace after he headed to the bar before they started in on me again.
“Things with Rose are not cut and dried,” I said.
“They rarely are,” Archie mused.
Of the group of them, Dalton was the only one I’d even remotely entertained the idea of sharing with, and with the four of them ganging up on me, I debated if I wanted to tell any of them anything ever again.
“And you can say you didn’t drag us here, but in the decade or so I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you get up and go after a man. So of course we were going to tag along,” Barclay said.
“Had to see what the fuss was about,” Archie agreed.
“Well.” I gestured toward the bar on the other side of the restaurant. “Now you see.”
“He looks positively decadent,” Dalton said. “Now I see why he hated your house.”
Archie chuckled and Rob leaned in a little closer. “He hated your house?”
“He hated my furniture.”
“I hate your furniture too,” Rob agreed, nodding like the dislike of my furniture was common knowledge between them.
“You didn’t hate it enough to not fuck on it.”
“I’ll fuck anywhere.”
