Quinn’s introduction in The Three Hearts Equation. Get to know the quirky sidekick before the release on May 7. If you want to make sure you don’t miss the release, pre-order is available.
The beat bounced off the walls and right through me, lifted my mood, and made my hips swing.
“Not a big crowd tonight,” I said as I slumped onto the sectional next to Beth and Blake.
“I like the smaller ones,” Beth said.
“Nah, I’m all for go hard or go home sorta thing.”
Blake wrapped his arm around Beth’s shoulders and pulled her closer.
Last fall should forever be remembered as the pitiful season when all the bachelors abandoned their posts and tied their balls in relationship chains. The hunting season had left only one man standing, and I glanced around the room for some wicked fun.
On the far side of the sectional sat Leo, and in Leo’s lap sat Mason. I glanced at the pink cheeks on that sweet man’s face and thought of how different we were, yet how much I liked having him around. Leo had changed the wrap on Mason’s index finger. He caressed his hand now, slid his fingers up and down the length of Mason’s skinny arm, and whispered something that made Mason giggle.
The sight of them never failed to bring a smile to my face, even when the sight was all puke-inducing sugary romance. They had a free pass, though. They could be as sweet as they wanted, and they wouldn’t hear a complaint from me.
“Ever think of settling down?” Blake’s question pulled me back.
I tilted my head. “Ever think of minding your own business?”
Blake roared a laugh and bent forward. “That’s a no, huh?”
“A decisive one at that,” I said. I dashed away giggling and crossed the half empty space to the fridge for another round of beers. I owed them one for sure.
“Hey, Quinn,” said Dan as I passed him.
“I knew I’d see you here,” I said. His gorgeous face exuded the confidence I had no clue where he found, but it made him sexy, and it made me fall for him all over again. Fall might be too strong of a word, though. It tickled me.
He wasn’t alone either. Josh, who rarely attended our parties, raised his moody eyebrow at me. The sullen face, sharp cheeks, narrow jawline, and low eyebrows turned him into a natural-born punk. The torn pants and a checkered shirt over a black T-shirt only helped round the image.
“Hi, Josh,” I sang.
He winked. There had been an on-and-off flirtation deal between him and me for years now. A couple years older, but slim and wiry, Josh wasn’t exactly the type I was after. Then again, I rarely chased the types. Carpe diem all the way, baby.
I opened the fridge, then glanced over my shoulder. “What are you boys drinking?”
“Whatever you’re offering,” said Dan.
“Got any pale ale?” asked Josh. Ouch, that husky voice left me swooning.
“Sure do,” I said with the sort of pride I really shouldn’t have felt simply for having two types of beer in my fridge.
I handed bottles to both of them and made sure my fingers brushed against Josh’s when he took it. Then I pranced away.
Blake had his tongue down Beth’s throat when I slammed the bottles against the table. “Yuck. Who’s up for a game?”
“What game?” asked Blake.
“I’d say spin the bottle, but I’m afraid of landing on you,” I said. “Never have I ever?”
They both shrugged and agreed. “Make it fun,” said Beth.
“I’m the fairy godmother of fun, darling.” I raced around the room and poured everyone shots. “Gather ‘round, folks. Let’s get this party going.”
Anna, Casey, some random guy, and the random guy’s girlfriend scooted over with Dan and Josh following them. A couple more people I knew from passing joined, and a little group in the dining room took a rain check.
I scanned Dan and Josh. “The Nice Guy and The Bad Boy,” I said.
“I can be nice,” said Josh.
“Don’t be so dull,” I threw back. I raised my glass. “Let’s start with a head-count, huh? Never have I ever had sex in this apartment.” I crossed my arms to observe way too many glasses turning upside down. Mason chuckled to my left and had his share with Leo following. Beth and Blake clinked their glasses together before drinking. Dan glanced at me, then emptied his glass. The random guy and his girlfriend shared a look and attempted being discreet, then looked at me with guilty expressions.
Ah, so I identified the bathroom usurpers from last week.
Josh, though, swirled the drink in his glass and smirked.
I raised my glass high. “And to many more.” Then I emptied it like everyone else. After another glance from Josh, I leaned in. “You can drink it if you’re thirsty.” I batted my eyelashes at him the way I knew made me cute. “We’ll call it retroactive.”
Josh smirked and brought the glass to his sharp lips, then let the liquor slide down his throat.
Just like that, I had a date.
I loved the thrill of it. The tingling rose from my toes to my stomach and the heat crept up my neck. I’d flirted with Josh from afar, but I’d never gotten a taste of those lips. Scorching hot and with the face that sent the angels into hiding, Josh made for one fun prospect.
“Never have I ever slept with someone living in the apartment,” Beth shouted.
The fun had officially begun. My roommates poured new shots and drank them to the last drop, and Dan had his fair share while chuckling, but Josh directed his half-moon eyes at me and I swore I saw sparks burst out.
“Never have I ever jerked off in one of the bathrooms,” I teased. That one left me thirsty, but Beth drank her new shot and growled, and just from the corner of my eye I spotted Leo’s subtle sip. It seemed the game was sacred to him.
The truths spilled faster and dirtier as the hours passed, and when all my roommates felt the alcohol’s buzz; I walked over to Josh and took his hand. We were both fairly sober, Josh especially, yet he didn’t protest.
The music grew louder; the lights went dimmer, and the apartment spun around me as I pulled him up from the sectional and felt his hands rest on my hips.
“You owe a truth for that shot,” I said.
A corner of his lips rose, and he tugged me closer until our bodies touched.
I held my breath and took his hands in mine, then led the way to my room. Nobody else existed tonight but him, and the excitement shot right into my head. I wasn’t drunk on those shots, but on the lust that I couldn’t quench.
He closed the door behind us and pinned me against the wall. His lips smeared all over my face, mouth, and neck. His husky voice entered my ear and his hot breath made my pants tight. “I wanted this since I met you,” he whispered.
“It took you a while,” I said, not complaining. It would be a lonely night had Josh, and I hooked up sooner.
“I didn’t know you wanted to.” His hands slid up my torso and dragged my T-shirt with them, revealing my flat, smooth stomach. The buckle of his belt touched my skin and sent cold shivers up my body. “You’re always so mean to… Ah…”
I closed my hand around the tip of his hard cock and scattered the thoughts out of his head. “Mean, am I?”
He pushed himself harder against me and sighed louder. “You know…”
“You’re the one to talk, Mr. Sullen Sullivan.”
Josh tittered and bit the soft of my ear. “I wasn’t gonna come here,” he said.
Why did his voice have to be so smoky and hot? He was like a sexy chimney, if sexy chimneys were a thing. I dug my fingers under his ribcage and tugged him closer. Use those muscles and throttle me, you bad boy, I thought. “I don’t care. You’re here.”
I pushed myself away from the door and turned us around, then grabbed his hips and showed what a good rub could do.
“It’s just…” he moaned, but he forgot the rest because the lust kindled and the fire spread. I’d woken it at last and Josh grabbed the back of my head together with a fistful of my hair, then brought his lips down on me and kissed me like we were competing.
Josh was all that I’d imagined. The night flashed in front of me and we barely slept a wink just around dawn.
I woke up sore but smiling, my hand on his bare, wiry torso. A corner of the bedsheet covered only the most intimate parts of our bodies. I took a moment to appreciate the night we’d spent together before he opened his eyes.
“Morning,” he murmured.
“Hmm.” His cute face lit up under the morning light coming through the window, but the gloom that rested behind his eyes went nowhere.
“What’s the time?” he asked.
“Nine,” I said.
He pushed himself up and got out of the bed. I glanced down.
“I should get going,” he said as he pulled his tight boxers on and gathered the rest of his clothes from around the room. “It was fun last night.”
“Sure was,” I said and let the images slide in front of my eyes. Then I remembered trapping him against the door. “You were gonna say something, just before…”
“Yeah,” he remembered. “Uh, kinda dumb now, but I think Dan had some hopes.”
My head sank into the pillow after Josh’s T-shirt covered his sexy abs. “Do you have some hopes?”
He chuckled. “I think you know.”
“Good.” I bent my arms behind my head. He and I were much more alike than I’d expected. Part of me had feared he would now turn all sweet and soft for me. “Then I don’t have to worry about it.”
“I guess not,” he said. “But it makes me a shitty wingman and you- I don’t know what it makes you.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “We know the word.” I rolled over in the bed and realized I could smell his cologne on the pillow. Nice. I’d take advantage of it for a few hours before I change the linens.
“I’ll see you around, Quinn,” he said, winked, and left. I liked them best when they knew what they were getting into. With him gone, I pressed my face against the pillow and took a deep breath. Everything about him was hot, but the casual, unspoken agreement between us was the sexiest thing I could imagine.
I hope you enjoyed Quinn’s intro. He’s been a darling of mine since he showed up out of nowhere in The Nerd Jock Conundrum. The Three Hearts Equation is landing on Friday, May 7. Be sure to stick around Haynden’s Hall for a little party. The book is available for pre-order on Amazon.